Another Skype Session ensued that Wednesday with Dr. Parker.
"Welcome to the family son in law," he cheered with the biggest grin on his face making me want to smile. "Sara told me everything! I'm thrilled for you both. And you used your grandma's ring?" My head nodded yes. "How could your grandmother hate you?"
A nervous laugh took over me. "Can I be honest? I'm honestly a little nervous. Part of me is wondering if I'm actually ready for this."
He grew serious for a moment. "Jimmy, let me tell you this. Sara is just as worried as you are. I'll admit, I was worried when I was engaged. It's just natural for humans. We sometimes fear change. But, I know for certain that you are ready for this. I've seen such a strong love in the both of you that I know the time has come. And what father-in-law would agree to pay for the wedding?'
...
Time began to creep with summer growing closer each day. One Sunday after church, Sara drove to the spot where the house burned. The house she almost died in. The house that literally destroyed her heart. But there was no house. It was simply just an empty lot. Nothing but a bunch of ugly dirt. Getting out of the car, she walked up that empty lot and just stood there in her Sunday dress. The sun radiated against her skin. My ears could hear birds all around us.
"Hey Tony," she began with a sigh. "It's been a while." She took another sigh. This was clearly hard for her and I wasn't exactly sure what she was doing. "The last time I saw you, I was a young girl. I was a girl growing up trying to figure things out. And I know you were this young guy trying to figure things out. And for the longest time, I questioned my life. Why did I have to like you? I had my doubts, my fears, my insecurities, my questions. And I was good at hiding it. I was tired of hiding it. Somedays all I wanted was for my heart to fail so I could just die and forget all of this." Those words caused her to cry. "But my life has changed this year. Meeting Jimmy, I realized that life is a journey. A journey that doesn't end. When the journey ends, you reach your destination and once you've reached that destination, there is no journey left to take." She began laughing a little. "I'd like to think that God has blessed me with this journey."
That was the end of her speech. Her eyes took a look at her surroundings which included me. Turning back to look at the bland dirt, she reached out one of her arms. What followed next, caught me completely off guard. Sara took off one of her watches. Oh my goodness, she actually took off one of her watches just like I threw away two of my plastic rings. This was a huge moment for me and for her. Once that watch was off, she threw it on the ground.
"It's your watch Tony, not mine. You should have it back."
And that was the end of that. She licked her lips and headed straight back to the car. Neither of us said a single word the way back. I'm sure she was feeling a mix of emotions on that drive back.
...
With May creeping closer, I caught Roger and Karla eating lunch together one afternoon. Neither of them were sad or angry. They were getting along just fine. Were they getting back together? Their meeting ended once Sara showed up and stole Karla. Roger sat there drinking his coffee He seemed completely fine that Karla left. In a bold and gutsy move, I decided to sit with him.
How's it going man?" he smiled taking a sip of his coffee. "It can't be too bad now that you're getting married. Sara's a lucky girl.
"Yeah, life hasn't been too bad. What about you? I just saw you sit with Karla. Anything happening between the two of you."
He took a deep but quiet breath. "As of right now, nothing is happening between us, but we are on good terms. All is forgiven. Probably for the best. I actually broke up with Kim about a couple weeks ago. Needed to some soul searching." Taking another sip of his coffee, he licked part of his lip. "Speaking of apologizing, I also want to apologize to you bro. I deserved what was coming to me. You ratting me out was probably the best thing that could've happen. And for that thanks."
"No problem." His apology completely caught me off guard. "Hope you get back with Karla someday."
"We'll see. You know, it's funny. I don't feel like I really knew Karla like you know Sara. Heck, I lived with you in our dorm and I feel like I barely know you. Sometimes the people that are closest to you are the ones you hardly know."
...
Conner invited Sara out for breakfast on a Saturday morning after claiming that he found a watch lying on the dirt one random day when he felt like needed a trip down memory lane. Sara made sure to tag me along to make sure no funny business happened between the two of them. All seemed well during that breakfast. Conner tried to give Sara the watch back, but she refused. During that breakfast, we also found out that Conner was no longer engaged. Once the breakfast was over, Sara hugged the guy and he went about his way. Or so he thought. Neither of us knows how it happened, but somehow Karla tripped over Conner. All her coffee had spilled on her hair and head.
"I'm so sorry," he claimed. "I have a couple napkins in my pocket."
With those two napkins, he tried to get the coffee off, but the napkins found themselves wet and nothing got accomplished which allowed him to laugh over the silliness. Karla couldn't help but laugh.
"I'm sorry again. Maybe I should get paper towels from the bathroom."
The moment he finished his sentence, Sara returned with paper towels. He took them and used one to scrape against her hair. Karla's face came about blushing with a bite to her lips. It truly was an interesting moment once numbers and social media accounts were exchanged.
Another interesting chapter. Thanks for reading and your support! Don't forget to comment, vote, and share!
How do you feel about Sara giving Tony back his watch?
Is there a chance for Roger and Karla?