Azaleas in Bloom

Short Story

I tugged at my lacy, white dress with the hope that it would stay in place. White wasn't usually a color I would wear, but celebrations were in order; I was about to see Jack Granger for the first time in a long time.

Waiting for his arrival reminded me of our first date in the spring, just when the flowers were beginning to bloom. I was sitting on a chair in the living room of my house, waiting⎯⎯being late had always been a trait of Jack's. A few moments passed and there was a knock on the door. I opened it to see Jack standing there with a bouquet of vibrant, pink azalea flowers. He had picked them himself. That moment was one I would never forget, one of my favorite memories.

Despite the immensity of the crowd I stood in, I wanted Jack to notice me⎯⎯and only me. But, of course, that might have been reasonably difficult with another girl standing close by me. She was beautiful. Perhaps the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen. She had mesmerizing blue-green eyes, long, sandy blonde hair, perfectly tanned skin, a pretty pink dress; what's not to love?

I became queasy at the thought of seeing Jack again, not knowing if he'd be happier to see me or the girl. He had spoken to her while he was away, but they had never met. The nervousness grew as I thought about their first meeting. My mind seemingly began to take over. What if he doesn't even notice me? What if he goes to her instead?

After being lost in my thoughts for a few minutes, I heard the sound of an old bus engine approaching the parking lot. The crowd grew louder with anticipation as the bus came to a halt. I'd heard that sound once before and it was like music to my ears.

Multiple families surrounded the bus door, trying their best to wait patiently for their loved ones. Both the girl and I tried to get a closer look, but our short legs prevented us from seeing over the crowd.

U.S. soldiers began to flood out of the bus, carrying all of their personal belongings. I raised myself onto my tippy toes to catch a view of the soldiers exiting the bus. A few short seconds later, my eyes caught Jack's. His captivating green eyes lit up in excitement.

I'd been waiting for that day for a long and agonizing three hundred seventy-nine days. It had finally arrived. It was incredibly incomprehensible.

Jack briskly weaved his way through the crowd. He got closer every second, but it seemed to take an eternity; until he was finally standing right in front of me. He let his duffel bag hit the ground, then he pulled me into his warm embrace for a short moment. He let go of me and asked a question that I already knew was coming, "Where's Azalea?"

I turned around to look at the beautiful, sandy blonde and nudged her towards Jack. She stood at just two feet tall from the ground, looking up at him in amazement. He picked her up and held her tight. They both smiled widely with love, and so did my heart.

I no longer felt the worry I did before the sight of my husband holding our daughter for the first time. In fact, I would have rathered him love her more than me.

My mind wandered back into my thoughts again. My favorite memory was no longer of Jack holding my first sight of bright, pink azalea flowers. It was the sight of him holding our beautiful daughter, Azalea, as she wore that pretty pink dress on a beautiful spring day.