Finding Ashlee

Chapter 3 - Hope

Dear Mom and Dad,

I know it was hard for you to hear my voice on the phone. I didn't mean to hurt you or cause you any pain. But now you know why I had to leave. I had to come to Alaska and find whatever was waiting for me here. To find whatever had called me here. Life here is so much different than my life at home. It's beautiful and amazing, but harsher than I had imagined. But I'm adjusting well and I'm doing well. Please know that I love you and I miss you.

With love,

A.

~~~~~~~~~~

I took a deep breath and tried to steady my pounding heart. Seeing Gabe with that girl had affected me more than I wanted to admit. Why did I think someone as handsome and sweet as him would be single? I felt like kicking myself for letting myself get so wound up over a guy so quickly. I rolled my suitcase against the wall and slid dejectedly down in the reclining seat. Turning my head to the window, I pulled the collar of my jacket up to cover the bottom of my face. When I closed my eyes, I hoped to see nothing but blackness, but of course, I could only see Gabe's smiling face. When the tears of disappointment threatened to fall again, I shook my head hard and forced myself to push the image away. After a time, I slept.

Gabe and his brothers were nowhere to be found as I rolled my bag down the ramp to the dock. It was just as well. I didn't think I could face them after what had happened. Maybe they hadn't been laughing at Gabe. Maybe they had been laughing at the silly girl who thought she actually had a chance with him. I sighed and pulled a piece of paper out of my pocket. The ferry ride was long and tiring and I was sure that I had never been this exhausted in all my life. Looking down at the handwritten directions, I set off for the veterinary clinic that was located only a few hundred yards from the dock. It was easy to find and from what I could tell, Hoonah was a very small town. Spring in Alaska was colder than spring in Ohio and I found myself smiling at the light flakes of snow that had begun to fall. I was in Alaska!

My first few days in town were a flurry of adjustments. The clinic was surprisingly busy for such a small town, and many people who were traveling out of town would board their animals for weeks at a time. I loved working with the animals and within no time I had learned all the exercise routines and feeding schedules. I quickly made friends with the other three employees of the small clinic. A pleasant surprise was that one of them, Kathi, a cute dark haired girl with big brown eyes, invited me to stay with her in her two bedroom house until I could find a place of my own. She explained that her sister had been staying with her but had recently moved out to go live with her boyfriend.

"He's a really nice guy." Kathi chatted as we began setting the table for dinner that night. "But I don't understand why they are together. I love my sister but she is so wild and crazy and this guy is just way too nice for her." She laughed. "Every time they are together she is all over him and he's kind of shy, so he doesn't say anything. But I can tell it really embarrasses him."

"Well, I hate to say this, Kathi." I smiled as I reached back for more forks. "But I'm glad she's with him. Otherwise, I wouldn't have a place to stay!" Our easy laughter was wonderful but it also made me homesick for my friend Brooke and my home in Ohio. I didn't want to go back, but I still missed them. And sometimes late at night, my heart still ached for my dream man. For Gabe. I knew I wasn't doing myself any favors by letting his face and his smile fill my mind. But I couldn't always push it away.

"Oh, Ashlee. I forgot." Kathi's hand flew to her forehead as she exclaimed. "My sister and her boyfriend are going to join us for dinner tonight. We need to set a couple more plates."

"Wonderful!" I was glad to finally meet her sister and the boyfriend that Kathi talked so much about. "I'll finish up here. I think I just heard the doorbell."

Kathi hurried to the front room to answer the door. I shot a quick glance at my hair in the mirror. The damp air in Alaska was giving my sandy blonde hair all kinds of bouncy body and my skin had never been softer. This was a great perk of living so near the ocean. The sound of laughing and talking filtered through to where I stood near the table and I hurried over to greet Kathi's sister and her boyfriend. As I stepped through the doorway to the living room, I stopped dead in my tracks.

"Ashlee?" Gabe Brown's wide shoulders filled the doorway and his smile filled my heart.