Tied

19. Memories Are All You Have

"Nolan- have you seen Charlotte? She's gone missing and I've got no idea where she could be!" Emily screeched into the phone. "Wait a minute Em, I'll be over in a second." Nolan replied, trying to sound calm, but it wasn't really working. Emily hung up and began to pace. Back and forth; back and forth; from the stairs to the door; again and again.

When Nolan arrived, however, she rushed to him, wrapping her arms around him. "Thank God you're here. I couldn't take this to Daniel, he'd be sick with worry." Emily blurted out through newly emerging tears. "Don't worry," replied Nolan, smiling, "I know where she is."

The wind brushed through Emily's hair as she rounded the corner of the Montauk dock, to find Charlotte, sitting on a bench outside the Stowaway, in tears. Without saying anything, she perched rather awkwardly next to her sister, and stroked her back lightly. Charlotte lifted her head, putting the stray hairs that clouded her vision behind her ears. Her face was blotchy and red, and there were streams of tears running down her face. "What's wrong, Charlotte?" Emily asked. "Nothing," Charlotte paused "everything. I just don't feel like George an I have everything figured out yet. I need more time before I can commit." Emily let a light chuckle escape her lips before replying "You think Daniel and I have it all figured out? We were supposed to move to Paris, have two kids, and that was our whole plan! Now look. Look where we are. We're living back here, which I never thought I'd be able to stand, and we're about to have a third baby, which I never in a million years could've ever seen myself having! Life sometimes has other ideas. No matter how much you plan, how much detail you go into, you can't control where things are going to go, you've just got to let the world take you there." Emily finished, looking rather satisfied at having made her point. Charlotte, however, remained stoically quiet.

Emily, sensing Charlotte's problems hadn't yet receded, continued, "Daoists believe that the world is made up of energies, vibrations, matter that all behave differently in different contexts. Daoism teaches that there is a power in universe. It's higher, deeper, truer than any other force; they call it the 'dao'. It means 'the way'. The dao has two sides, and unlike other religions, where the higher power is all good, and perhaps has an all evil rival, daoism teaches that we need to learn from both sides, and unlike religions with Gods that are personal, the higher power in daoism is not. Daoists believe that living in harmony, a person will not have to fight against the universe's natural flow. For example, listen more, argue less. Don't worry about being the best; be who you are. Daoists say the wise person is flexible, learning to use the dao is what daoism is all about. So don't overthink things; or you'll talk yourself out of everything, and maybe even the best thing that could ever happen to you."

"As nice as that speech was, that's not why I'm here. Not really." Charlotte shot Emily a warm, sincere smile, trawling her gaze along the beautiful scenery that surrounded them, before bringing her eyes to rest upon the battered blue door of the stowaway tavern. "It's Declan, isn't it? You can't let him go, because you miss him." Charlotte nodded, blinking back more tears.

"Missing someone isn't about how long it's been since you've seen them, or the amount of time it's been since you've talked. It's about that very moment when you're doing something and wishing for them to be right there with you." "You are just a plethora of impromptu speeches today, aren't you?" Charlotte laughed, even behind her teary eyes. "Well, weddings have always brought out my inner Wordsworth! Speaking of, feel like going to yours today? I know for a fact, that Declan wouldn't want you to just sit in front of the stowaway for the rest of your life, crying; he'd want you to get out there, and live your life!" Emily looked into Charlotte's misty eyes, wiping the tears from their corners as she did so "Are we doing this?" Emily asked. Charlotte nodded assertively in reply. "Let's go get married!" she smiled.

© Sarah Egan 2014. All rights reserved. This story is subject to copyright and may not be copied or reproduced without the express permission of the author.