A week after the wedding, I was beside myself trying not to think too much about Peter and trying not to worry about him.

To distract myself, I kept to my duty as a housewife and stepmom to Isla. The doctor had already taken a look at her leg and declared that she needed a week more in her cast before they took it off completely, which Isla was positive and cheerful about. Her cast was already a colorful beacon on her leg, as she had friends and family sign it and color it to pretty it up.

When we got home, Isla looked for things to do and decided to finish her art project. I helped her out, but it was clear she was determined to finish it on her own, so I left her to her own devices. There was nothing much to do once my household chores were done, so I ended up baking cakes and brownies again, with Isla taking a break from her project from time to time to watch me. The smell of baking wafted in the air and gave a pleasant, calming atmosphere, and when all was done, I let the finished products rest on a cooling rack and found something else to do: redecorating.

After the wedding, I found out that I actually liked taking things apart and recreating them to make them more beautiful. This was what I did to my wedding, and I enjoyed mixing minds with my wedding planner until we came up with that beautiful setup and ceremony.

I did this to Isla’s room the first few days after the wedding, too. Isla mentioned that she wanted to change her room to another color, and when I asked what she wanted, all she said was to surprise her. So I did, taking out her stuff first before painting the walls white with her help. Then we painted the edges lavender, let it set, and rearranged her furniture inside to make everything look more spacious. The end result was a brighter, cleaner room with sparkly touches, and Isla loved it so much that she declared it her “fairy” room and herself the fairy princess. It fueled her imagination and had her writing down her own version of fairy tale stories, another interest that was taking up her time as she still was on break from ballet.

I didn’t touch the master bedroom, though that was where I slept whenever I missed Peter—and I missed him a lot. The room smelled of him, but a few days in and my subtle scent also filled the room. I often burrowed myself in the sheets and got myself acquainted with the place, though it felt half-empty without Peter in it. I guess I’d gotten used to his presence, especially during the last few weeks before our wedding when we spent so much time together.

This had to be exactly how Isla was feeling, though she didn’t really dwell on things. Still, I did my best to pamper her and see to her needs, sometimes sleeping beside her when she asked and telling her new stories that made her laugh. Our bond just kept getting stronger and stronger, and I knew without a doubt now that I loved her with all my heart.

When we weren’t busy doing homework, baking or redecorating, Isla helped me out with chores. I did a little spring cleaning, too, something that Peter apparently wanted to do for a while now but just didn’t have the time to start with. We found things in their garage that they didn’t use anymore, boxes and boxes that Peter was about to sell but forgot eventually. We placed a table right on the driveway, laid out the items, and began to have our mini garage sale. It started off slow but picked up by the time word of mouth spread.

I knew most of Peter’s neighbors came to take a look at me, the new bride that they were all curious about. They were friendly enough, and I realized the garage sale was a perfect way for me to get to know the people here and get myself acquainted with them. It was also the perfect way for Isla to stop getting cooped up at home getting bored.

It was obvious that the neighbors adored her, too, as they let her sweet-talk them into buying most of our stuff until our tables were emptied out. Seriously, this girl was so talented with talking and charming that if her ballet or any other hobby didn’t work out, she would really have some kind of future in marketing.

Other than finding things to do at home, Isla also continued her piano lessons. I drove her off three times a day, sometimes leaving her to run some errands and just pick her up when she was done. Today, however, I had plenty of free time, having already done the groceries, the household chores and even planning some house redesigns that I wanted to run by Peter first. I stayed because of this, chatting up Isla’s teacher before going outside to sit on the available bench that faced the side road.

Isla’s chatter could be heard all the way from outside, and I smiled at how the teacher laughed at whatever it was she said. Then she started playing, and I lost myself in the music as I listened to the soothing, vibrant sound. She’d gotten a great deal better, and I knew it was because of all her hard work practicing.

As I immersed myself in the beat, I found myself thinking about Peter again and missing him so much. It had been almost two weeks since he was gone, and though I knew the Navy would inform me had something gone wrong, I still couldn’t help worrying. Isla had mentioned that her father was usually gone a week, but being gone for two weeks was rare. His boss must really be in trouble, and I could only cross my fingers that they were okay and holding on. I wasn’t privy to mission details and I understood that, but I also understood how dangerous it could get, especially when you were in enemy territory. I prayed nightly that wherever they were, they’d be safe and sound, and Isla prayed along with me for the same.

My thoughts were just drifting to where I would take Isla out for dinner when something familiar caught my eye—or rather, someone familiar.

It was one of my old university classmates, Jenny, who was close to Michelle but wasn’t really part of her party crowd, and we got acquainted when she did tag along once or twice. Then we ended up having some of the same classes and would sit beside each other, making small talk until we became somewhat friends.

I was about to call out her name when she glanced in my direction. Her eyes flared in recognition, then she was stopping in front of me to say hello. I said hello back, and Jenny took that as an indication to come closer. We smiled at each other, and I couldn’t help but feel a surge of familiarity and pleasantness at seeing an old friend.

We chatted for a while, with Jenny revealing that she actually lived just two blocks away here at Little Stone. I told her my address, and she finally dropped down on the bench beside me, nodding eagerly.

“Oh, right,” she said, thinking it over. “There was some mention in the university that you actually got married so quickly. Is it true?”

I nodded. “Yes, it was pretty quick. My husband’s in the Navy and we wanted to get married before he got another mission again.”

“Oh, wow. That’s great news! I won’t mention it to anyone, though, if you want to keep it private.”

I shrugged. “It doesn’t really matter to me if people find out. I mean, I’m pretty sure Michelle and the others would tease me to death.”

We reminisced the time we played some kind of party game and I was deemed the last one to ever get into a relationship with a guy, hook up with a guy or get married. It was funny how things worked out. Jenny grinned at me as she remembered the same thing, and we had a good-natured laugh about it. Remembering that in that same game, Jenny had been deemed the one to graduate early, I asked her how school was working out for her. She was such a good student back then, always keeping a level head and prioritizing her studies more than partying.

To my surprise, Jenny admitted that she actually dropped out of the university just a week after me. When I prodded her why, she opened up to me that she just got tired of the pressure and really didn’t even want to go to that place—it had been her parents’ decision for her to go there, study hard, and become a lawyer someday. She’d been all along for it until she realized that it wasn’t what she wanted in life—and so with lots of courage and plenty of arguments, her parents finally relented and accepted her decision.

“That’s really brave of you,” I said, sincerely. “I think you really should go after your passion, because that’s what will make you happy in the long run.”

“Yeah,” she murmured.

“So what did you want if you didn’t want to become a lawyer?”

Jenny brightened. “I wanted to become a teacher. I want to teach economics.”

Considering how she was very patient when I asked for her help before with a homework I didn’t understand, I got what she was saying. “That’s really great.”

“Yes.” She laughed. “I’m actually taking community college classes right now. It’s not as fancy as universities, but it’s education all the same.”

When she saw my surprise, Jenny began to explain how she got in and what other kind of classes were offered there. Apparently, the community college was just a few minutes away from Peter’s house—and well, my house now—and just beside the hospital. I must have missed it when the ambulance drove to the hospital during Isla’s accident, concentrated as I was on her during that time.

Jenny and I talked some more, and I opened up as well about my life—having a stepdaughter and the fear of failing her and my husband. But she encouraged me, and her words felt like a warm balm.

“You’ve always been the nurturing one when we were in college, Rachel,” she said with a smile. “Even Michelle’s antics couldn’t really touch you. I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You seem happy.”

I nodded, realizing the last part was true. “I am. I really am happy.”

“That’s good to know,” she said, her voice ringing with sincerity. “Just keep your head up and you’ll be supermom before we know it!”

We both laughed about it, then talked some more about the people we knew mutually at our old school. The biggest news was that Michelle had actually fallen in love and was now steadily dating a guy we wouldn’t have thought she would date—a quiet scholar who was more into comic books than parties. I remembered that certain guy, Aldrin, always hanging out in the library to study, and I had to wonder what made his and Michelle’s path collide and how they got to know each other. Whatever it was, I was glad Michelle was happy. It only further cemented the truth that everyone’s lives turned towards the unexpected at some point, and we were living proof of that.

When Isla finally came out of her piano lesson, I introduced her to Jenny as my stepdaughter. Isla and Jenny hit it off, so I invited my old college friend to have dinner with us, which she happily accepted. We bonded over pizza and salad, and I could see a knowing gleam in Jenny’s eyes every time she watched me and Isla interact. I guess she was remembering her encouragement earlier.

When dinner was done, Jenny said she still had to do some last-minute errands and had to say goodbye. We exchanged numbers and promised we would keep in touch, considering we were already in the same town. Isla gave her a hug and told her she was happy I found an old friend of mine, and it touched me so much that I gave the little girl a hug in return.

We waved to Jenny before piling in the car and driving home, where I settled Isla in sleeping clothes and got her in bed. She requested to be the one to tell me a story this time, and I sat beside her and listened as she told me of good-hearted dragons that breathed fire and kept jewels of love with them. The kid certainly had an overactive imagination, one that I knew would be put to good use someday.

Once Isla was asleep, I got ready for sleep too and decided to stay beside her, looking up at the dim but sparkly ceiling and wondering about my life—wondering about community college, to be more specific.

I’d never even considered it, but now that Jenny brought it up…it seemed like the most logical thing if I wanted to do something and be someone other than a housewife.

What was it that I enjoyed the most now, other than taking care of my new family?

Not cooking, no. I liked decorating and realized I had a flair for it, one that I wanted to explore further and see where it would take me. Wedding planning had been fun, and I definitely found my organization skills useful in that aspect. But recreating room designs and redecorating, considering aesthetics versus practicality and space…it was much more fun. In fact, it was so exciting that I was looking forward to redecorating more spaces around the house as soon as I consulted with Peter and he was okay with it.

It had to be passion, because it was burning in me and urging me to become better at it.

And I realized that I wanted to pursue it.

I also realized that maybe I could have the best of both worlds: a husband and some kind of career.

Would it work?

There was only one way to find out.