Away from Home

A Changed Life

Sara La'Ander really stuck to Jon. She was intelligent, good-looking, funny, and, at the right times, just a little awkward. She was the perfect match for Jon. Her dark red hair flowed and flickered in the wind like a roaring fire. Her bright and sky blue eyes saw you, all of you. You couldn't hide anything from her. Her lips were full and always moist. The best part of her was her voice. She spoke like that of an angel. She could work words in mysterious ways. Everything she said came out like a song and she never stuttered.

Jon first found Sara while he was out walking along the beach on the coast of South Carolina. He had his hands jammed in his pockets and he was whistling a tune. He had just lost his corgi, Lumen. Sure, he was sad but crying would do nothing to bring his precious little Lumen back. All he could do was not forget her. Then, for an instant, he did.

As he was whistling his tune and taking strides along the smooth sand, he saw a woman standing just out of reach of the tide. Her yellow shirt and dark red hair were flowing in the wind. She was staring off into the distance, her eyes didn't move from where they looked. Jon glanced to where her eyes were and saw nothing... but then there was a light. A distant one. A ship, Jon had guessed.

Jon opened his mouth but thought better of it. What would this woman care of him? Why would she want to know him? Instead of going up to her and speaking, he strode right past her. As he walked by, he smelled a hint of something fresh. It wasn't the usual overpowering scent of fruits and flowers that most women wore but it was something that could only be smelled when close enough and it was refreshing. Jon took about four steps past her when he stopped.

This woman was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. There was no way he could pass up an opportunity like this. This was his chance. Get the girl. Get her, Jon. He turned.

"Why are you out here?" Jon asked her. A hello seemed a bit late at this point.

The woman turned to him. "Why?" She asked aloud. She then turned back to face the light. "Do you see that light out there? Way out in the distance?"

Jon looked. Yes, he saw it. "No, I don't." He stepped closer to her. "Where?"

She got closer to him and pointed directly at the light. "That one. That tiny one out there."

Jon nodded. "Yeah, I see it. What is it?"

The woman shrugged. "I don't know. I come out here every night and it's out there. I like to imagine it's many different things. Could it be an oil rig? A boat? A yacht that someone's having a party on?" She turned to Jon and looked him in the eyes. Those bright sky blue eyes immediately capture him, reeled him in. "What do you think it is?"

Jon shrugged. This light obviously meant something to this woman - whether it was something deep or light he did not know. "Maybe it's someone's future, someone's dream. Perhaps their dream was to own a yacht and throw a party on it or maybe, just maybe, it's nothing. It's just a light that someone left on." Jon folded his arms. "It could be absolutely anything - even nothing at all."

The woman smiled at Jon and Jon smiled back. "What's your name?" The woman asked him.

"Jon. Jon Strice. Yours?"

"Sara. Sara La'Ander."

The two kept in touch for two weeks. There were a few texts thrown here or there and there was phone call somewhere in those two weeks. They didn't start dating until the second week had ended. Jon had finally worked up the courage to ask her out. She replied with wide eyes and a big smile,

"Yes." She had said in an excited voice. "I'd love two."

The two had lunch on the very beach they met on. It consisted of a few ham and cheese sandwiches, some chips, and a few cups of orange juices - Jon and Sara's favorite. They splashed about in the ocean and told each other jokes.