The Gods of Song and Poetry

Chapter 40 - Wishes I Haven't Yet Made

Chapter 40 - Wishes I Haven't Yet Made

After Kelly's birthday, her fears started to get inside my head. What would happen if Kelly and I didn't see each other for three months over the summer, then only sporadically for two more years? Was I kidding myself that our relationship was just so perfect that it would survive that kind of neglect? Would we each change subtly, in different ways instead of together? Would we still 'fit' together afterwards?

Still, these worries were easily subdued. Every time I was with Kelly it felt so right, so wonderful, there was no doubt in my mind that our relationship would not only survive, but we would be able to pick up where we left off as soon as fate allowed, and we would be stronger than ever. When I wasn't with Kelly, though, the small drip of anxiety returned, causing a tiny bit of erosion where an otherwise unblemished happiness prevailed.

Despite this small, but consistent background unease, February and March were the most enjoyable months I could have ever asked for. All my old friends were back in my life, or had never left, and my new friends had time to spare for me. The only exception was Kala, who was occupied with a new love interest, but she had promised to take me to Madison for a night of fun and to tour the UW-Madison campus over spring break.

Kelly and I had several whole weekends mostly to ourselves since my parents and Kelly's grandparents took some well timed trips, and they didn't ask too many questions about sleeping arrangements when they were gone. At school, Kelly and I were not only accepted by most people, but seen as a cute couple by many.

My band had three successful gigs. Two were at local bowling alleys for open mic nights, and one was at a "Battle of the Bands" held at a small teen center in a nearby city. We won a grand total of $225 dollars, which was spent on junk food, gas money, and beer.

I was spending time applying for scholarships and admission to universities, even though I knew that I would be attending UW-Madison. Not only was it the school that I had planned to attend before I met Kelly, it was also a practical choice for my relationship, since it was assumed she would move back with her mom sooner or later, or maybe even her dad. Until that time, I would be visiting her and my family simultaneously on breaks and occasionally on the weekends. Plus, since the girls would be able to drive, they could come and see me once in a while.

From the time Kristy and I were born, my parents had put aside money in special accounts to help us with school, and I had been contributing to my account ever since I got a good job. As a bonus, scholarships were starting to look promising, and it was virtually guaranteed that I would be getting a large scholarship from the state for being valedictorian. It only applied to in-state tuition, but that worked perfectly with my plans.

Yes, life was looking very good.

* * *

"So, how did you two meet, anyway? Just at school?" Cindy asked between licks of a cookie dough covered wooden spoon. We were in my kitchen with Kelly and Kristy, filling the first day of spring break with cookie baking and Netflix.

"It was actually just before school started this year," I said. "Kristy had a big sleepover, and Kelly was there. I couldn't stop thinking about her ever since." Kelly gave me a big smile as she spooned dough onto cookie sheets.

She added, "By the second night, I couldn't stand it any more, so I kissed Ani."

"Excuse me," I said. "I hate to disagree, but I was the one who kissed you."

"Nope. I clearly remember thinking, 'Please don't let her think I'm stupid or gross,' and leaning towards you."

"Well, I remember softly rubbing my lips against yours to see if you would back away, then kissing you when you didn't."

"So you both thought you were the instigator. How funny!" Cindy said.

"Shh!" hissed Kristy, drying and putting away clean dishes. "Don't stop them. This might be their first fight."

"Seriously?" Cindy said. "They've been dating for over half a year. They must have argued before."

Kelly and I looked at each other with thoughtful faces. "I don't think so," I told Cindy.

"We haven't had anything to fight about," Kelly shrugged.

"That's impossible," Cindy said flatly. "Do you talk about politics?"

"Of course," Kelly said. "Ani's a little further left than I am, but we agree on all the important stuff."

"I'm working on her," I winked.

"Religion?" Cindy smirked, clearly thinking she had a hot-button topic that would cause conflict.

"Kelly's a pessimistic agnostic. I'm an optimistic atheist. Nothing to fight about," I answered.

"What do those terms even mean?" Cindy asked with a frustrated laugh. "Never mind, I'll just have to work on you both. Tell me more. What was the first thing you noticed about her?"

Both Kelly and I answered at the same time. "Her eyes."

Kristy and Cindy looked at each other and went, "Aww..." Though, to be fair, Kristy was doing it mockingly. She was happy that we were happy, but even Kristy could only take so much sappiness.

Cindy said, "You guys must answer that question a lot to be synchronized."

"That's actually the first time," Kelly said. "For me, anyway. When Ani answered the door and I saw her, I almost blurted out, 'Oh my god, you have the prettiest eyes!' Thankfully I stopped myself. She would have thought I was a complete dork."

"Really? I spent that whole day trying to figure out what to call your eye color. I was bouncing back and forth between 'golden blonde mahogany' and 'petrified sunrise.' Then Timmy came up with 'amber,' and I was so upset that he complimented you on them first."

"Seriously?" Kelly asked with a smile. I nodded. "I called yours 'arctic blue' in my mind until you showed me blue zircon."

"Arctic blue? That's a...cool color." Kelly slumped her shoulders and gave a sigh, even though she was smiling. She stomped over to where I was sitting on the counter, squeezed between my legs, and gave me a kiss.

"Did I miss something?" Cindy asked.

"Every dad joke costs a kiss," Kristy explained dryly, rolling her eyes.

"You two are the cutest couple ever! I can't believe I used to think your relationship was an abomination in the eyes of the Lord."

I don't think anyone knew how to recover from that awkward statement, so I ignored it. "I like that description of my eye color. I always thought of it as a watered-down, boring kind of blue."

"Not at all!" Kelly said. Then she added, paraphrasing the lore of blue zircon, "They hold all the wishes I haven't yet made."

"Aww..." Cindy cooed while Kristy banged her head softly on the refrigerator door.