ROMANCE │SERIAL INSTALLMENT FOUR
Love in Blue, Installment 4
The drive back
Read Installment One here.
Hector was driving with his foot hard on the pedal as they passed the small beach where surfers practiced “hanging ten.” Lynda had read that there was only one coral-free cove on the island where surfers could enjoy the warm waters on their boards. As she watched the shore fly by, she leaned back into a stretch and smiled. She was feeling happy-go-lucky, and wanted to talk.
“Oh, Hector, thank you so much for taking me out today. It is just so beautiful…oh, I wish I could think of a better word…beautiful is just not strong enough. Oh! Look!”
A gull, flying against the sun, created a picture that Lynda found absolutely breathtaking. She couldn’t fight the exhilarated chatter that bubbled to her lips.
“Oh, Hector, how can you think this place is boring? I think it’s wonderful! I wish I could stay here for five or six years instead of only two. Oh, my parents would absolutely love it!”
Lynda’s excitement was so much for her that she went on and on, oblivious to the storm that was building on Hector’s face. She talked about how so many of her friends would have given “their eye-teeth” to be there. She remembered how her grandfather had been at Yigo during World War II.
“Yigo was the site of the last confrontation between Japanese and American forces during the Battle of Guam, you know. It was in 1944. It’s the place where the Air Force base is now. I can’t believe I remembered that! Grandpa told me about it when I was a kid. I never thought I would be stationed here!”
She sat up for a moment and took a breath. She was thrilled to be on the island, in the South Pacific. Feeling the wind on her face as they drove along the winding road overlooking the shore, she thought about the afternoon at the beach and the parking lot. A shudder of pleasure rushed through her as she settled into her seat for a few minutes.
Closing her eyes and listening to the road beneath, Lynda allowed herself to drift into a daydream. After a few minutes, she opened her eyes and turned to Hector. “Didn’t you even think it was exciting when you first got here, Hector?”
“Yeah, well, I guess I did, when I first got here, but I don’t anymore. Now, will you just shut up for a while? I hate broads who talk too much.”
Crushed, Lynda blinked back tears and sat back into her seat. She turned slightly toward the passenger door so she could look out toward the ocean. She had almost forgotten about the little annoyances before and during the fiesta. Now, they came back to her tenfold. Why was she out here with this man she hardly knew anyway? He seemed so nice when we met, she thought. He is nice, most of the time. Maybe I am annoying. Anyway, I’m not here to find a man, right?
They spent the rest of the ride back to base in silence. Lynda leaned her head against the back of the seat and thought about what she was seeing. On the right was the ocean. It felt so free. It was empty air and clear blue sky. It felt like the way Lynda had felt that morning scampering through the sun-shower back to her room from the Base Exchange. On the left, the lush green jungle, though beautiful, reminded Lynda of how she felt that very minute. She felt enclosed, trapped, and claustrophobic.
Any other time, she would have felt embraced, private, and protected. In a short Saturday afternoon, Lynda felt as if she had become like those vines that intertwine with the tree branches — delicate, yet enduring; strong, yet unable to break through the newest entanglement. Sighing, she allowed herself a moment of self-pity.
Then, determined to free herself from the doubt and depression, she closed her eyes and imagined she was standing on a precipice between the sea and the jungle, one on each side of her. Imagining herself alone, she now took comfort in them for a moment. At least, she thought, there really can’t be a better place to find contentment than this.
Maybe the day had turned out to be the worst day of her life, but there were many lovely memories as well. The people at the fiesta had been friendly. That guy from the Navy was nice. It was kind of weird how he seemed to be watching me though. Remembering how she had noticed Rick standing at the end of the line of craft tables watching her, Lynda suddenly felt a sense of foreboding. What the hell was that about anyway?
Still, she’d had a great time for most of the day. Weighing the beauty of the island, the beaches, and the happiness she had felt just being alive so many times during the day against the dark element of her companion, she knew the good would remain much longer in her memory than the bad.
They rolled through the gate at the base as dusk began to descend. Hector drove the car around to Lynda’s barracks and pulled up to the curb. As they came to a stop and he shifted into park, he turned to her with a sheepish look in his dark brown eyes. He ran his fingers through his hair, then reached out to trace a soft line along Lynda’s face from her eyebrows to her chin.
“Lynda,” he started softly, “I’m so sorry I spoke to you like that. I don’t blame you if you never want to go out with me again. I don’t know what came over me. I think I am just worried about what I will be doing next, where I’ll be stationed. I’m afraid of becoming too close to you, because I will be leaving soon.”
He brushed the tip of his forefinger around the edge of her ear and down the side of her neck. Bringing it to her chin, he lifted her face gently toward his. Lynda felt the residual anger she was harboring melt away as she gazed into his eyes, searching for sincerity and convincing herself she found it. She felt a smile begin to play on her lips.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered once more, placing his other hand on Lynda’s shoulder.
She turned toward him. “It’s okay,” she said, “I understand.” She truly thought she did understand. Fear and anxiety can make someone say or do things they didn’t mean. He wasn’t being mean; he was just afraid.
“Lynda, I’m afraid I’m falling in love with you. I don’t want to. I don’t want to hurt you, but I will because I will have to leave when the time comes.”
Hector’s mouth was close to hers. She could feel his hot breath tickling her neck and the small fly-away hairs around her face seemed to stand up. She heard herself groan, ever so quietly, as his lips locked with hers and his tongue prodded itself into her mouth. She felt that telltale twinge deep withing legs and she moved a little to accommodate him as he pressed closer to her. He slipped one hand behind her neck and brought the other down to the button on her jeans.
The car was small, but one quick movement from Hector took the front seats back until they were almost flat. His adept fingers pulled the zipper on Lynda’s jeans down and moved quickly under the band of her silk panties.
“You want me.”
She could not deny it, nor could she speak in that moment at all. She took his face into her hands and kissed him deeply. All thoughts about the day drained from Lynda’s mind. Soon, she was unable to do anything more than moan as her world shifted.
Somehow, Hector’s shirt was open and he waslooking down at her with a strange half-smile on his face. Lynda had felt entranced, but something brought her back to her surroundings. Looking around, she realized that though they were alone, they were not far from the barracks. There was a sidewalk next to the curb where they were parked. She realized that anyone could walk by and see them.
Brought so suddenly out of herself, she blurted out the truth. “Hector, I — I can’t do this. Not yet. I’ve never…I’m a…I mean I’ve never gone any further than we have so far. I’m a virgin!”
Hector stopped and pulled his jeans back into place. He looked stunned. “Really?’ he asked.
Lynda nodded. She felt herself throbbing, simultaneously yearning for more and embarrassed at the public way in which she had just been in the midst of lovemaking.
“Ah,” crooned Hector, “then we must wait. Your first time must be special, not like this.”
He leaned over and kissed her, then sat back, pulling Lynda into a sitting position. “Go ahead,” he said, “put your clothes back on. I’ll walk you to the door.”
He got out of the car and walked around to the passenger side. Opening Lynda’s door, he held out his hand to help her as she stepped out. Gathering herself together, Lynda made sure she had everything. She took Hector’s extended arm and walked with him to the stairs.
“You don’t have to walk me all the way up,” she said, stepping onto the first step and turning toward him.
“Oh, but I do,” He took her hand and led her up the stairs. At the first landing he stopped and took her into his arms. “I think I love you even more,” he whispered. Then he led her to the second landing. Stopping again, he kissed her gently. “I wonder if you can love me,” he said.
It wasn’t a question, for which Lynda was thankful. Up one more flight of stairs, they were on the third floor and walking slowly to Lynda’s room. Lynda realized that she hadn’t said anything since her revelation. She owed him something.
“Thank you for today,” she said. “I had a good time.”
It was the truth. There had been some rough moments, but all in all, it was a good day. The truth was, though, that she had concerns.
And she wasn’t ready to fall in love.
© 2023 by Suzy Jacobson Cherry (originally published under the pseudonym Veronica Maitland)
Love in Blue is currently a short story in metamorphosis. What it is to become has yet to reveal itself. Whatever happens, it will happen here, with you. Bits and pieces will be posted when they are ready, hopefully no longer than a week apart, depending upon various circumstances. Come back for more!