Army Way of Life

Chapter Fifteen

Our last full day on Tybee Island, Jer and I decided to spend the day at the beach.

We had spent the day before with Heather and Nolan hanging out inside because she had gotten sun poisoning and couldn't be outside in the sun. I didn't mind it much, as I had gotten a bit of a sunburn.

Heather and I had left Ryker with the boys and then went to get cookie dough and movies. There had been a few at the condo, but ones you wouldn't pay to sit through.

I also ended up buying a board game that sounded fun. When we played it, I laughed harder than I had in a long time.

I really enjoyed spending time with my long-lost best friend. I hated that they left early this morning and couldn't join us on the beach for the last day. But I understood that they needed to head back; their drive was a lot longer than ours.

When we got down to the beach, there was no room to lay our stuff down where we had entered. So we walked down the beach a ways and found an opening big enough for the 3 of us. We spread our stuff out before we got in the water.

Jeremy took Ryker out into the water further than I really felt comfortable with, but I trusted him and I stood there like everything was peachy keen.

They jumped in the waves as I went back to our place on the beach and laid out. I took in the sounds around me; the ocean washing up onto the beach before receding again, kids laughing and screaming with their family. There was the distant sound of a game of beach volleyball. These peaceful noises put me in this dream-like state.

Then there was a loud crack of thunder that shook the ground. I jumped up quicker than I thought possible. A few kids nearby started crying and people in the water ran out quickly, knowing that lightning and thunder always went hand-in-hand.

I looked up that the sky and was met with nothing but the sight of low, dark gray clouds. I gathered our stuff and shoved it in the bag, knowing that our day that the beach was over.

I met Jeremy and Ryker by the entrance to the beach and we hurried to the car as large raindrops were starting to fall.

No sooner that we got into the car, the torrential downpour let loose. We sat in the lot for a few minutes, not able to see through the rain to drive.

"That was a close one," Jeremy let out a sigh of relief.

"It's not like you aren't already wet..."

"Not the point."

I stuck my tongue out at him and he leaned over and pecked me on the cheek.

"I'm so happy we're here this week," he admitted.

"Me too," I agreed, reaching for his hand. "I really missed you while you were away."

"I thought you hated me."

"I could never really hate you."

He looked at me lovingly. "I love you."

"I love you too," I said. He squeezed my hand and then turned the car on because the rain had let up a little.

In the time it had taken to drive back to the condo, Ryker had fallen asleep. I carried him up and had to wake him because he was in wet clothes. Fortunately, he fell right back asleep after I changed him.

After I had placed him in the pack-n-play, I went out to find that Jeremy wasn't in the condo anywhere that I could see. I looked out on the patio and didn't see him. I continued looking in spots I knew it was impossible for him to be in, like the closet. But he was nowhere to be seen. So I went to see if my car was still where he had parked it, and prayed that it was. I didn't think he'd leave me, but it was something that was always in the back of my mind. It was parked right where we had left it and I sighed in relief.

So I looked out on the patio and saw movement on the far end. I stepped out and peered around the corner. Jeremy was sitting in the furthest chair, turned away from the door. I walked over to him and stopped behind the chair, wrapping my arms around his neck.

He tensed, clearly not expecting me. He turned to look at me before giving me a weak smile and pulled me down to sit on his lap. Jeremy wrapped his arms around me tightly, holding me close.

"What's wrong?" I asked, looking at him. He just shook his head and I raised my eyebrows at him.

He sighed. "I'm just thinking about us."

My heart started beating a little faster. Because of his mood when I came out here, I had no idea where this was going.

"What about us?"

"I don't know. Just how much has changed in the last couple of months."

I really wasn't sure I liked where this was going.

"I mean, a month and a half ago, I was just a 20 year old guy having fun at West Point. Then I found out I had a son that my family and closest friends had been hiding from me. You're back in my life and I couldn't be happier. Ryker's an amazing little boy and I hate that I missed this much of him growing up."

"Where are you going with this?" I asked nervously.

"How am I supposed to leave you and go back to West Point? And what if I don't want to?"

"Woah. Stop the train right there. You're going back to West Point. You're not throwing your future away for us."

"But how is this going to work?"

"We'll figure it out."

"Quinn, I don't want Ryker to think I'm abandoning him."

"He won't," I promised. "Besides, he's still really little."

"He'll forget who I am."

"Jer, we'll all be fine." He sighed in response.

I kissed him on the lips to get him to relax. His shoulders relaxed instantly and he ran his tongue across my bottom lip to deepen the kiss. We made out for a while, the rain music in the background. He eventually carried me inside, never breaking the kiss, and laid me down on the couch.