Sunday morning arrived full of sunshine that filled not only the outside of their apartment, but their spirits as well. Sam woke more aware and excited than usual, and must have slept wrong because the scar on her chest was tender as if it had been pressed on for too long. When she walked into the bathroom she looked at it in the mirror, afraid that it may be bleeding and it was reddish from top to bottom. Hopefully, it wasn’t anything other than that, she thought and sighed and carefully touched it.
As quietly as possible, Sam walked into the kitchen to make a quick and easy breakfast. It would take some getting used to, but healthy was the way to go for her. She sort of felt bad for Chris though since he would be eating a lot of what she had. Unless she made two separate meals all the time or he cooked for himself. She laughed to herself when she thought about him doing that. Not that he couldn’t.
Chris got out of bed soon after her. After a quick hug and kiss he sat and tried to enjoy the scrambled egg whites with no cheese. The wheat toast wasn’t too bad, but the no cheese in his eggs wasn’t adding a smile to his sleepy face. Sam tried not to giggle as she watched him, knowing how spoiled she had made him over the past two years.
When they were finished he told her to shower first and he would clean up the kitchen. While she was getting ready he quickly ate a small bowl of cereal to fill his stomach. He had to admit that he looked forward to going to church as much as Sam did. It had been a long time and he knew it was something he should start doing regularly. The thought of it surprised him a little, but not as much as Sam thought it would.
When Sam walked into the kitchen Chris couldn’t control his grin as he admired her. She chose to wear a knee length lavender cotton dress. The collar covered most of her chest so nobody could see her scar. Her hair was up in a bun and she wore only a touch of make-up and perfume. From her ears hung sparkling and dangly earrings. Gorgeous as always and enough to take out on a date.
He quickly shaved and showered and they went on their way to pick up Tonya from her house. Thankfully, it was another beautiful and sunny day to match the way they both felt. They hadn’t been to the church they were planning to go to so they hoped they arrived before everything began.
Soon, they all three were looking for a spot in the obviously full parking lot of the church. It was a small white church with a tall steeple and they could hear the piano from outside. It went well with how the morning was. When they walked through the doors they were greeted by two ushers who handed them pamphlets of how the service would commence. Nervous and excited at the same time they chose a pew on the right about halfway down the aisle. People they didn’t know greeted them and made them feel at home.
The music and songs touched their hearts and even though the three of them weren’t good singers it didn’t matter. They held the hymn book open and joined in. Sam cried while she sang and Tonya had to hand her several tissues so her makeup wouldn’t run. The service was by a visiting preacher and he gave a great sermon. Each word felt as if it was directed to them and they took it in with stride.
When the service was over they were all glad they had decided to go. They talked about it on the way home and said they might go back the following week. They dropped Tonya off at her apartment because she wanted to change clothes before going shopping.
“I’ll be over to pick you up in an hour,” she told Sam. “I want to go a little more casual and be comfortable.”
“Okay, I’ll see you then.”
Chris and Sam went home and changed clothes and laid on the bed and held each other as she waited for Tonya to pick her up. Gazing into each other’s eyes they found themselves wishing they had more time before she had to go.
“I’ll miss you while I’m gone,” she whispered.
“You’ll be having fun with Tonya. I doubt you’ll think of me,” he joked back causing her to slap his arm.
“Don’t say things like that.”
“Sorry. I’ll miss you, too.”
She pressed her lips against his and closed her eyes. They stayed that way for seconds and when she pulled back she gave him a mischievous grin.
“What?” he asked her.
“Do you remember when we were at the beach in that restaurant that was decorated like the fifties or sixties?” she asked him. She began twirling her hair between her fingers and looked away from him. Her face remained with the same grin.
“Yeah, I remember. I remember you saying something about how you would love to have a place like it someday.”
“Do you remember when I was teasing you about something, but wouldn’t tell you?” she lifted her eyes and giggled at him.
Laughing nervously, he replied, “Yes, you were leaving me hanging. What are you up too?”
“Well, I think I should try to do something for you since I couldn’t when we were there. Of course, you’ll have to wait so I can make sure everything will fall into place.”
“You are doing it again,” he complained with a grin. “I also recall telling you I would torture you. I guess you want that, huh?”
She laughed and her cell phone started ringing. It was Tonya.
“Whoops. There’s my ride.”
“What? Hey, just know we are not finished with this conversation.”
Unable to hold back her laugh, she kissed him quickly and told him she loved him and would be home in a few hours.
“I love you, too.”
He watched her walk out of the bedroom and a few seconds later he heard the door close. With his eyes closed his laid back on the bed grinning, and missing her already.
***
At the mall in Waterbury, Samantha and Tonya walked around and in and out of the stores enjoying the time together. It had been a while since they’d had this kind of opportunity. They looked at new purses and shoes and dresses. Neither thought too much about buying anything. They simply wanted to have a girls’ day window shopping. They enjoyed an ice cream cone at Hershey’s Ice Cream store and watched couples and single parents with their children. On their way out they came upon Barnes and Nobles bookstore. Sam wanted to look at some cookbooks out of curiosity to see what their selections were.
Browsing through the aisles, Tonya looked in fiction while Sam looked through the chefs’ books. She got a little excited when she found a couple that were on sale and picked out two of them, one from Bobby Flay and another by Gordon Ramsey. When she saw the one from Chef Ramsey the idea of going on his show, Hell’s Kitchen, flew into her mind and she laughed to herself.
“What are you laughing about?” Tonya asked her.
“Just the crazy notion of trying out for Hell’s Kitchen. I love that show and I just found a book by Chef Ramsey. The silly idea popped into my brain is all.”
“What’s so crazy about that? I bet you would do great on there. You should look into it.”
“Nah, the pressure would be intense, plus I would have to be away for probably a couple months if I made it on there at all.”
“Well, I love the idea and think you should do it once you are healthy enough. You’re almost finished with school anyhow. You know your stuff, girl.”
Shaking her head at Tonya and changing the subject she asked, “What did you find?”
“Oh, just a couple romances. Something to get me all torn up inside and wishing I had someone is all.”
They laughed and paid for their books. Walking out into the sunshine they decided to sit on a bench to savor the breeze and a little more time together before driving home. Tonya wanted to talk to Sam about something and figured it was a good enough time to do it.
“Hey, I umm, I’ve been needing to talk to you about something.”
“Okay,” Sam looked at her and could hear some nervousness in her tone. She sensed it would be something she wouldn’t like hearing.
“I have been dreading this conversation for about a week now, but I am going to be moving in a couple of months. Someplace that will make us not be able to see each other, but maybe once or twice a year.”
Sam turned toward her with her jaw dropping.
“What? Where and why?”
Pursing her lips, Tonya looked at her sadly before speaking.
“Well, you know I have been trying to find something better than what I have been doing for the past few years, right? And how much I hate the winters up here. Well, I found someone who wants to buy my business and at the same time it’ll be enough money to where I can move to Florida where it’s warmer. I have an uncle who wants me to come down and run his restaurant for him. The pay will be better than what I’ve been able to do here, plus benefits.”
With her bottom lip starting to stick out Sam tried not to appear heartbroken. She understood what her best friend was telling her and she wanted to be happy for her, but she knew she would miss her terribly. She reached for her hand and took it within hers.
“I will miss you so much, but I do understand and I’m happy for you.”
“Really? I mean I know it will be hard being away from you, especially with everything you have been through.”
“I’ll be okay. Yes, it may be hard, but we can still talk on the phone and there’s always Skype. When you get settled and I finish school I can visit you or you can visit me or both.”
Simultaneously, warm tears attacked their eyes and they held each other as shoppers walked past them.
“I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
They agreed that was enough talk about something so exciting and sad at the same time and headed back to Torrington. Sam felt tired and wanted to take a nap, and Tonya agreed with the idea.