She convinced herself that evening that he was the perfection of what a brother in Christ should be. There was no uneasiness in her heart as they took their seats. They both thoroughly enjoyed the show—which turned out to be a superb adaption of Dorothy’s trip to the land of Oz. Yet, as the hour turned late, and the end of the story, so well-known, was not having as captivating an effect as it might have had, she felt her head, almost like a magnet, wanting to fall upon his shoulder. Surely, he wouldn’t mind? She had herself convinced and unconvinced a dozen times before the show was over. She had at one point even taken a deep breath and almost tilted her head just enough… She stole glances at him, it seemed, every 5 minutes. He didn’t so much as say a single word as soon as the curtains had drawn. He stared straight forward, either totally engrossed in the scene on stage, or his own personal thoughts, or both. Her dress was itching, her neck was sore, her legs were aching—how could he sit sooo still? but something bordering on conviction held her upright, and deep down she knew it was not fair, not even appropriate.
Following the show they strolled along the docks at the Bay, neither with many thoughts to speak.
The next morning was Sunday, and Daniel was filling the pulpit. It was an interesting experience—sitting between his mother and her own sister, watching him preach. She saw her friend in a whole new light—this was his professional side, this was his life’s work. She heard a redemptive story strong enough to come from a Keller sermon, he talked about Martin and Katie Luther, and the message about choosing the better portion (the story of Mary and Martha) convicted her. She liked it, to say the least.
For lunch Daniel’s parents treated them all, and they were joined by one of Daniel’s mentors, his wife and two children. Joshua, their 10 year old son was quite smitten with both Angela and Ashlee, and after stealing Ashlee’s undivided attention for a whole ten minutes, she heard his father whisper to Daniel, “Better watch out, or my son’s gonna get your girl.” She made her best attempts to hide that she had heard the remark, but knew she was blushing, and couldn’t help but wonder what kind of reputation preceded her.
Then goodbye came. With classes Monday morning, Daniel needed to drive back home to Charlotte before the two sisters flew out Tuesday morning for Birmingham to visit a good friend. He hugged them all goodbye, and looked rather pathetic as he got into his car, so she ran forward impulsively and hugged him again.
He thought about that second hug nearly the whole way home. And then that night on the phone his mom questioned him about it too, “I dunno Dan. I think she likes you. What else was that second hug for?”
Following the show they strolled along the docks at the Bay, neither with many thoughts to speak.
The next morning was Sunday, and Daniel was filling the pulpit. It was an interesting experience—sitting between his mother and her own sister, watching him preach. She saw her friend in a whole new light—this was his professional side, this was his life’s work. She heard a redemptive story strong enough to come from a Keller sermon, he talked about Martin and Katie Luther, and the message about choosing the better portion (the story of Mary and Martha) convicted her. She liked it, to say the least.
For lunch Daniel’s parents treated them all, and they were joined by one of Daniel’s mentors, his wife and two children. Joshua, their 10 year old son was quite smitten with both Angela and Ashlee, and after stealing Ashlee’s undivided attention for a whole ten minutes, she heard his father whisper to Daniel, “Better watch out, or my son’s gonna get your girl.” She made her best attempts to hide that she had heard the remark, but knew she was blushing, and couldn’t help but wonder what kind of reputation preceded her.
Then goodbye came. With classes Monday morning, Daniel needed to drive back home to Charlotte before the two sisters flew out Tuesday morning for Birmingham to visit a good friend. He hugged them all goodbye, and looked rather pathetic as he got into his car, so she ran forward impulsively and hugged him again.
He thought about that second hug nearly the whole way home. And then that night on the phone his mom questioned him about it too, “I dunno Dan. I think she likes you. What else was that second hug for?”
... to be continued...
No comments:
Post a Comment