Chapter 2

The obnoxious beeping of the alarm once again awakened me. Rik rolled over and hit the button with a bit more force than necessary. My personal space heater sat on the edge of the bed for a moment, rubbing his eyes and letting out a low groan in protest. He put both hands on the bed, pushing himself up, standing tall and proud even only moments after being awake. Rik’s posture was always impressive and flawless. He grabbed his undershirt, white in color, placing it over his head, and moving on to the next article of clothing.

         While he was getting dressed, I managed to remove myself from the little safe haven, made up of Egyptian cotton sheets and fluffy pillows. Ignoring the fact that my husband was going to be away for a while, I got dressed for the day and made my way to the kitchen to brew some fresh coffee. The sweet aroma of our favorite dark roast delight greeted me when I opened the bag. I love the smell of freshly ground coffee. As an adult, it’s the only thing that seems to help me wake up every day, especially at six o’clock in the morning. Two coffee cups seemed to make their way out of the cabinet and onto the counter, awaiting their time to fulfill their purpose. He usually likes to use the coffee cup that has the American Airlines logo on it because is the only cup in the house that holds over eight ounces of coffee without overflowing when the cream and sugar are added. However, this morning he was going to have to settle for a travel mug with coffee that wasn’t exactly up to his liking in the taste department.

         I opened the fridge to find two flavors of creamer to choose from. Rik loved when the holidays would come around because he liked the choices of flavors that he could choose from. Peppermint Mocha and Pumpkin Spice are his ultimate favorites. Out of all of the normal every day flavors, his first choice is positively Hazelnut. French Vanilla comes as a close runner-up. If there is absolutely nothing else to choose from, then he could settle for the Italian Sweet Crème. Should none of the above flavors mentioned be an option, then Rik prefers to have his java black with two sugars. Me? I’m not really that picky when it comes to coffee creamer. As long as my only option isn’t soy milk, then I will use whichever one is available at the time. Luckily, I just bought a fresh bottle of Hazelnut in preparation for his departure.

         I dispensed the coffee into the respective mugs. The smell was even more heavenly now than it had been just moments ago. This will be the last time, for a while, that I am able to make coffee for two in the morning. As I started adding the cream and sugar, my husband approached me from behind, wrapping his arms around me. Closing my eyes, I couldn’t help but wish that we could stay just like this forever. Turning to face him, I said “I love you. It’s never the same when you’re gone. I would be lying if I said I enjoyed being here all by myself.” Smiling he responded “I know it’s hard for you sweetheart, but you are such an amazing woman for dealing with and supporting not only my profession, but my dream as well. Plus, every time that I’m away, that’s at least a couple more postcards that you can add to your collection. I love you to the moon and back Andria. You know that I would do anything in this world for you. I have always felt that way. Ever since the first day I met you, I knew you were the one for me. You’ve heard this a million times and I’m sure that, by now, I sound like a broken record.”

         A wink escaped his eye the same time that he sheepishly grinned, sending goosebumps throughout my entire body. “I will never, and I repeat, never get tired of hearing you say those words to me. Believe it or not, it’s very nice, not to mention flattering to hear every once in a while. I would go to the ends of the Earth for you my love. Nothing nor anyone will ever change that.”

         We engaged in a kiss that lasted for what seemed like a lifetime. His lips were so soft and smooth that they would be able to make anyone instantaneously melt. His gentle touch caressed me, guaranteed to leave me feeling wonderful for an eternity. My fingers, contacting his hair, intertwined and twisted through every inch of brown beauty that existed. Of course, he kept it in decent shape because of his career. It wasn’t too long, but not too short either. It was just long enough for me to play with and that’s all I was concerned about. Rik is a well-built man. Seeing as he stands just over six feet, I usually have to stand on my tip toes just to give him a smooch. He also has a body that, I swear, is made out of solid concrete. The man is a walking tank with nothing more of maybe a quarter of his body weight being fat. The rest is all muscle. Reason for this being a fact, is because he goes to the gym religiously. My husband is positively a person that I would consider to be a gym rat. The thought that all two-hundred and fifty pounds of him was mine until the end of time, gave me the greatest sense of peace.

         Without breaking the connection, Rik hoisted me up so that my feet rested on top of his. We started to sway to the beat of our own music, forming a dance path around the dining room table. We broke the kiss, staring into each other’s eyes as if we were the only two people left on this planet. His hazel eyes pierced trough me like a sword, digging deeper into my soul with every second that went by.

          All of a sudden it dawned on me that I had no clue what time it was. “Dear, what time is it?” I asked frantically. “Unfortunately sweetheart, it’s time that we get on the road” he stated with a sigh. Nodding, I hopped off of his feet and grabbed his travel mug. Leaving mine on the counter, I scurried out the of the house with Rik in tow not too far behind me, luggage in hand. He locked the handle behind him, giving it a twist just to double check. This was my least favorite part about the whole process; the drop-off at the airport.

         Our carriage awaited us, the morning sun glistening off of it. The Marlboro red fit right into the color scheme of the sky. If you were able to catch it at the right angle, the roof of the car blended right in. Snapping back into reality, the car chirped, allowing us to now have access to the inner parts. Rik popped the trunk and inserted his luggage. I was already in the car and had my seatbelt on, dreading the sound of the trunk closing. A complaint escaped me, triggering a shift in eyes from my husband. I rest my chin upon the palm of my hand, staring out the window as the car roared to life. The calming purr of the Honda civic seduced me. I love this car. Mainly because it always smelled like my husband’s cologne, but also for the wonderful melody it would produce. Leather seats were positioned beneath me, making up the entire interior of the car. The heated seats had your tush feeling roasty toasty in no time flat. One of the other major selling points for buying the vehicle in the first place, at least for me it was.

         My left hand laid on top of the center console, with the sun beaming through the windshield, hitting my wedding band. Sparkles brighter than anything twinkled, stamping little tiny dots everywhere. I found myself shifting my hand back and forth, watching the miniscule blotches dance across the dashboard. Disappearing, he had laid his hand on top of mine, shooting me a look of pure intensity. He will never understand how much he truly means to me. How did I get so lucky all those years ago? As if he had picked my brain, he asked “How did I get so lucky?” Shaking my head, I replied “The same way that you are always, somehow, able to read my cranium and say exactly what I’m thinking.”

         He released his contagious laughter, making me chuckle in the process. “Do you really have to go this time? You’re just playing a joke on me, right? This isn’t really happening” I pleaded. He gave me a look that suggested I was being silly. He was right. He was always right. “Andria, darling, we go through this every time. Is it really that bad when I’m away? You don’t enjoy the time to yourself? Even in the slightest?” he asked almost sounding impatient. I thought about it for a millisecond responding with “Sometimes. I mean, I have my work at Mr. Mark’s but honestly, other than that, I don’t really do a whole lot while you’re gone. Of course, I hang out with mom too but that is a given.”

         “Well, you could always go to the library in town and see if there are any new, interesting books that have come out recently” he suggested. Hmmm, that actually isn’t a bad idea. I bobbed indicating that I was in agreeance. “I just might do that. Thank you, baby, for the suggestion. I greatly appreciate it” I said flatteringly. His cheeks flushed. I loved when they did that. In fact, there wasn’t too much that I didn’t love about my husband. “Not a problem my love. Anything for you.”

         All of this dialogue occurred within the first twenty minutes of the ride. Seeing as the total commute time was forty minutes without traffic one way, the thought of silence made me uncomfortable. There was already going to be plenty of that on the journey back home. I decided to turn the radio up, catching an ending glimpse of a song that I adored but could never figure out the name of. Neither of us had a whole lot to say the rest of the way. It was as if we wanted to speak but weren’t entirely sure of what to say. This seemed to be a reoccurring issue every time he was due for duty. Quietness didn’t suite either of us very well. It was the perfect recipe for overthinking and making up scenarios or issues that don’t even exist.

         In the midst of aimlessly staring out of the window, I heard Rik’s faint slurping of his coffee which was more than likely still warm. With every minute that crept by, we got closer and closer to his departure. Oh, how my heart ached. Trying not to focus on that, I suggested to my companion that we play our habitual round of I Spy. He seemed pretty enthusiastic about it so I offered to let him go first. “I spy with my little eyes something majestic. So beautiful that no words on this Earth could ever describe its true beauty.” I started to scan everything in view, finding this one riddle particularly difficult to figure out. A few moments went by and eventually he asked “Give up?”

         “Yeah I suppose so. Usually I can figure out what you’re describing, but today the blood flow to my brain must not be present” I stated. With his pointer finger, he proceeded to point in my general direction signifying that I was, indeed, the answer to his riddle. The only thing I could seem to do was beam a ray of happiness. “You’re such a wonderful man, husband, friend, companion, and life partner. You know that?” I asked. “Nah. You are too kind. I am just a simple man who is madly in love with his wife.” His smile could have been seen for miles on end. Rik was legitimately in high spirits and I couldn’t help but to share the optimism that emanated from him on almost a constant basis. Very few and far between was he the type of person that was pessimistic.

         “Okay love. It’s your turn now.” I looked around, trying to spot something that was going to be a little on the tricky side, but still something that, knowing him, he would easily be able to guess. I searched and searched and finally I found just the object. “I spy with my little eyes something that is multicolored. Something that is used as a form of” I paused. “Identification so to speak.” Rik’s face had hardened slightly, getting more and more serious with concentration as the minutes clicked away. You could tell that he was having a hard time wrapping his mind around my glorious brainteaser. “Can I have another hint?” I shook my head no with a Cheshire like smile. “Please? I want to try and get this before we reach the airstrip” he begged.

         “I feel like if I give you another clue, that it will give it away” I uttered. He gave me the puppy dog eyes and that was the final turning point of me giving in. Worked every time and he knew it. “Okay okay. Fine. Hmm.” I thought for just a moment, being very meticulous about my hint. That’s when it hit me. “Alright. Your next and final clue is that it is in the shape of a square.” The look on his face was invaluable. There were a lot of squares that surrounded us at the moment, so needless to say that wasn’t very accommodating. His eyes shifted from one side of view to the next, skimming through every detail he possibly could in the few moments that he had left before arriving at our final ending point. Exit 167 off of I-65 North was coming up quickly. He was running out of time. There are forty-one miles separating our house and the airport. Leave it to us to start playing a game fifteen minutes before we get to where we are going.

         The way that the rules work is, if you haven’t guessed the solution to the riddle correctly by the time you pull into the airport or the driveway, depending on which direction you’re heading, then you suffer the ultimate defeat. In view of the ending point to this particular adventure, I probed him for a resolution. After realizing that this round was going to end in failure for him, he politely resigned. That made me the champion of today’s round! That never happens to me, in particular when I play with Rik. “Well what was the answer?” he asked eagerly. “You’re going to laugh, but the answer is……A LISCENCE PLATE!” I shouted.

         “Wow Andria. I’m impressed. You’re getting pretty canny with your methods. Your technique is certainly improving. Pretty soon I won’t be able to guess the answer to your mysteries.” His statements were complemented by that brilliant sneer that I fancied so much. That time has come again. The time that I have been dreading since he got his assignment two weeks ago. The car came to a stop, jerking slightly while doing so. I fought the urge to curl up in the front seat and stop functioning. I don’t like to say goodbye. I’m convinced that it has a lot to do with the fact that I never got to say goodbye to my father. Being that my husband does the same thing that my father used to, it’s the only reason or explanation that makes the most sense to me. Rik understood that. So, instead of saying goodbye, I say “See you later baby. Have a good trip, be safe, and most importantly I love you. Let me know when you get there. Wherever there is this time.”

         “Yes ma’am. I will make sure that you are the first to know of my whereabouts. If you will be so kind, my love, as to say a prayer for me that my passengers and I make it to our destination safely, I would greatly appreciate it. Plus, it would be very kind of you.” Tears began to well up in my eyes as I said “Of course I will sweetheart. Anything to keep you safe. I love you” I said. “I love you too.” We declared our love, once again, on the very same platform that we had been on so many times before. It never gets easier, no matter how many times you go through the experience. He leaned in, wrapping his arms around me, squeezing me as if it would be the last time that he would ever hold me again. I could tell he didn’t want to let go. I didn’t want him to either. I never did. At that moment, he gave me one last quick peck on the cheek, reached in the trunk of the car to retrieve his luggage, and closed the trunk when the task was complete. “Be good love. Try to enjoy yourself. I love you and will talk to you as soon as possible.” I nodded, as I watched him rotate and meander his way into the building that was made of glass. The last little view that I had of my husband was that of him getting on the upward rising escalator. One minute he was there and the next he was gone. At least for now he was. He would be back before we both knew it. I already cannot wait until that day.

         Until then, I am going to start focusing on things that I enjoy. Reading, working, spending time with my mom, and finally organizing my postcard collection. It is in desperate need of some configuration. Taking into account that I have been building on this assemblage since I was seven years old, there comes as no surprise that it needs some organizing. However, there is one other reason that I am very fond of that collection. Being able to travel, in ways that are out of the ordinary, is a gift. A gift that has been kept a secret for many years. A secret that my husband doesn’t even know about me. The secret of time travel.