Secrets From The Med

Chapter 8

     Jason was careful not to run over anybody as he worked his way through the crowded mess decks.  Family members were being allowed on board the ship until 1100, which was about two hours away.  At that time, the families would be required to leave, then the ship was scheduled to get underway promptly at 1300.  Everywhere he looked, it seemed that Jason saw the tear stained face of a young child sadly saying goodbye to a mom or dad who would be out of the country for the next six and a half months.  Many of the adults were allowing their tears to flow freely as well, as they bid husbands and wives sad farewells.  Jason was in a hurry to get to the safety of his office, which was up on the port side main deck.  

     Jason exited the mess decks, then hurried up the ladder that led to the port side main deck.   Once he reached his office, he closed the watertight door behind him, then sat down and put his elbows on his desk and his head in his hands.  Senior Chief Sanderford had told him earlier that he and the ship's boatswain wanted to meet with him this afternoon concerning the division's damage control and planned maintenance system.  Right now, though, Jason had other things on his mind and was grateful to be able to spend some time alone.  

     First and foremost on his mind was the green eyed, dark haired beauty he'd spent much of his time with over the past month.  Jason had never enjoyed spending time with a girl as much as he enjoyed spending time with Tabitha.  Each time they parted, he found himself immensely looking forward to being with her again, whether it was to play volleyball or go bowling or sit in his car and listen to music.  He knew he'd never wanted to kiss a girl as badly as he'd wanted to kiss her last night.  He could only draw one conclusion from the emotions he was feeling: he was in love.  

     Jason leaned back in his chair and let out a long, drawn out sigh.   Admitting that he was in love for the first time was difficult; the feelings he'd been having were completely new to him.  He wondered how much time they'd be able to spend together on this cruise.  He'd had a talk with her out in the parking lot last night before they'd walked back up to the ship concerning their need to be discreet about their relationship during working hours.  The other members of their division would no doubt, if they hadn't already, figure out that they were involved with each other, and that was okay.  They just couldn't make a show of it while they were at work or allow it to affect their work in any way.

     Jason had been touched that Tabitha had brought along her photo album on their date so she could share it with him.  He couldn't ignore the fact, however, that a couple of the pictures he'd seen had evoked memories of his own family and childhood and had him thinking about his mother.  One memory that had come to life was from the fall of 1980.  Jason had been a freshman in high school and had come home one afternoon to find his mother hard at work in her kitchen.  Seeing her working hard in the kitchen wasn't at all unusual, only this time Jason noticed that she was preparing enough food to feed at least twenty people.  When he'd asked her what was going on, she'd explained that his dad had invited two new church families to have dinner with them that night. A couple of hours later, Jason's family, along with the two church families had sat down to chicken and dumplings, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, squash casserole, corn pudding, and buttermilk biscuits.  To top it off, they'd had chocolate cake for dessert.  After dinner they engaged in a short Bible study, then the two families left.  Shortly afterward, the phone in the den rang and Jason's dad answered it.  After he hung up the phone, he grabbed a light jacket and explained to Jason's mom that a newlywed church couple that lived a few miles away had gotten into a heated argument and desperately needed him to come and give them spiritual guidance.  Jason had overheard his mom say she'd been hoping the two of them could spend some quiet time alone that evening.  His dad had then given her a quick kiss and told her not to worry, he wouldn't be gone long, then headed out the door.  Forty five minutes later, he'd called and told her not to wait up for him, the matter was going to take longer than he'd expected.