Through Thick and Thin (Anthony Rizzo)

Truly, Madly, Deeply

Jazmyn

Now that summer was here and I was getting used to working with the national guard I start to make some plans. For the first time in a long time I can actually do that. I can enjoy the holidays and have my family come visit. Though the corona virus was still taking precedence over everything, we were a little bit more free. The gyms were open and you can sit in restaurants and as long as you have a mask on they'll let you in.

Today I decided I wanted to go to the beach. It was open with a limit to how many can enjoy this fine day, but I haven't been to a beach since I was in high school. And while Lake Michigan wasn't exactly the Atlantic, it was still nice. I've already gotten to see the view from the boat and now I wanted my toes in the sand.

So I drag Anthony out on one of his rare free days and we camp out on the sand. I set up the umbrella and snacks while he applies sun screen to himself. Once we were done I shed my tank top and shorts and protect myself from the sun.

I absentmindedly put the lotion on until I feel a pair of eyes on me. I look up to see Anthony staring at me, like I was still that stranger standing in his apartment complex trying to find my place in the world.

"What" I finally ask as he just smiles.

"Nothing" he tries.

"Come on Anthony, I know you better than that" I remind him.

"I know" he chuckles. "It's just, you are so beautiful. I look at you and it feels like all those months ago at the store when I saw you for the first time. When I felt something inside me change right then and there. I think part of me always knew it was going to be me and you from the start. Maybe it was the way your eyes held such mysteries and ambition. Or the way your smile makes me smile, even on the darkest days. Or maybe it's the way my skin tingled when you first touched me.

I can't put my finger on any one thing, because when it comes to the way I feel when I look at you, it's everything. Every little thing about you is beautiful and I don't tell you enough. I can't tell you enough because it would never be enough.

But I truly, madly, deeply love you" he promises.

"Did you just quote a Savage Garden song" I question as he smirks.

"Maybe" he admits.

"Well you picked the perfect song" I assure him. "And I truly appreciate your words. I don't always feel beautiful. I have a lot of scars, some you can see and some you can't see. And they don't feel like blemishes with you, they feel more like beauty marks. They're a part of me and when you look at me every set of me feels beautiful.

And I hope I never stop feeling like this. Like I can fly every time you look at me. Like I am the luckiest girl in the whole world because I get to love you. It's great to know that your love for me is as deep as my love for you. That this isn't one person falling harder for the other. I truly believe we came together in a way that both of us can make it all the way" I admit.

"As much as I would have loved to make you mine from the start, you're right. Slowly falling in love with you, getting to know you and love every part of you, the good and the bad, it made us stronger in the long run. And while I'm still learning about you, still falling in love, I also know that you are the right one for me and I want to spend every second of the rest of my life with you" he insists.

"That's a mighty long time" I reply.

"Yet it doesn't seem long enough" he sighs.

I reach over and cup his cheek before running my fingers through his curly hair. He wraps a arm around me as we move in closer together. I rest my forehead against his as I close my eyes.

"I love you Jazmyn Katherine" he whispers and I smile.

I look up into his eyes that was shining down on me like the sun. They say the eyes are the window to the soul, and from the first time I saw his staring back at me I felt something in me change. I felt his soul and my soul meeting and merging. Accepting each other and feeding off of each other.

Now we sit here on the beach, what was two ships passing in the night now docked together for the rest of our days.

"I love you too Anthony Vincent" I assure him making him smile back.

"You wanna take a dip in the lake" he wonders.

"That sounds nice" I admit.

So we crawl out from the umbrella and into the water. It was a steamy one here in the city and the water felt really nice. I let the wave splash against my legs as I kick the water around.

"Did you get to see a lot of beaches while you were serving" Anthony wonders.

"Not at all. We were on board but never on beaches" I explain.

"Florida has so many stations though" he insists.

"For National Guard or Navy. I trained in St. Louis and there's no beaches there" I laugh.

"Yeah. Not much there at all" he teases as I roll my eyes. If one of his best friends wasn't on that team I wouldn't to know what he really wanted to say.

"It wasn't my favorite place to be but it's better than any place I've been over seas. War zones are like giant realistic nightmares" I admit.

"So a city like this is pretty great then" he admits.

"This place is exactly what I dreamed it to be. There's a beach to get lost in, building to explore, culture to get immersed in and beauty around every corner. And that's just the half of it.

Something in me told me I needed to be here. After Mathew died there was no real reason for me to be here. But I had this feeling like I needed to be here, at least for a little while. I needed to see that life doesn't have to be so damn hard all of the time.

And here I met you, I get to help people and make a difference in this community. It's almost like..." I trail off.

"Fate" he asks.

"Fate" I agree.