Forget Me Not

"What's going on?" she demanded, arms crossed.1

She was standing in front of the door, blocking his only escape from the dreaded conversation.2

"N-nothing," he stammered, straightening himself up.3

He wasn't ready to tell her. He didn't want to have that conversation with her. He knew it would be far from pleasant.4

"I don't believe you," she hissed. "You're a horrible liar."5

It was true. He'd never been a good liar. Especially not around her. Lying to her was nearly impossible. Sarah always could read him like a book. There were few secrets when she was around.6

Forcing his gaze downward, he focused on the floor. If he looked at her face he was sure to crack. He would be rendered powerless. He cared too much about her to look straight into her eyes and lie. Once look at her beautiful face and the truth would come out.7

Softening her icy tone a little, she tried again.8

"What are you keeping from me?"9

There was a lighter edge to her voice. A softer edge that he knew would end up working to her favor. She had to know he was doing it for her own good. She had to know he really didn't want to see her unhappy. And he hoped she knew how much he loved her. If only she knew that, either way, she wasn't going to be happy.10

"I don't want to talk about it," he muttered, his eyes still glued to the floor.11

"So you're just going to hide it from me until I happen to find out in the worst way possible?" she asked, a sharper edge lacing itself into her lovely voice.12

"I enlisted in the army," he suddenly blurted out.13

He closed his eyes, grimaced and waited for the explosion.14

"YOU WHAT?" she demanded, eyes flaming.15

"I enlisted in the army," he replied meekly.16

As reality sunk in, she merely stared at him in awe. How could he? 17

"When?" she asked, too shocked to ask much else.18

She'd hoped she'd misheard, but apparently she hadn't. Sarah was still trying to wrap her mind around the all too real situation.19

"Three weeks ago," he muttered.20

That was when her awe wore away and anger took its place.21

"When were you planning on telling me, huh?" she demanded venemously.22

He was taken aback by the venom in her voice.23

"When was I going to find out?" she continued. "Were you going to leave a note while I was asleep? Were you just going to leave?"24

She paused for a moment and waited for an answer that she knew he didn't have.25

"Or was I going to find out when one of your comrades or commanders or whoever came to tell me my fiancé died a war hero?"26

The tears were freely streaming down her pale cheeks. She was saddened by her lover's decision. Saddened and afraid for what was and what would be.27

He couldn't blame her. He really couldn't. Especially considering he didn't have an answer for any of her questions.28

"So you were going to go all the way to Vietnam without a word to me?" she sobbed. "I hate you."29

He didn't answer. Her harsh words stung him more than she could imagine. She made it sound as if he didn't care about her. He loved her dearly, but he'd been too afraid to tell her. He just wished she would understand.30

"Why did you propose to me?" she asked her voice strained. "Why? Just so you can leave me to go fight in a war?"31

Carelessly removing the ring from her finger, she tossed it in his direction.32

"Keep it," she seethed.33

It was his turn to be stunned. After all that they'd been through, their engagement was going to end like that. He was horrified and heartbroken. He'd never meant to hurt her like that. Suddenly, all he wanted to do was fix things. He could only hope he knew how.34

"You're stunning when you’re angry," he told her.35

"What?" she asked, tears still streaming.36

"I said your stunning when you're angry," he said, confidence finding its way back into his voice. "You're eyes remind me of an ocean storm, beautiful yet terrifying."37

He picked up the ring and inched closer to her.38

"And your face- so lovely, but set with determination- reminds me of a lioness."39

He moved closer.40


"Your hair doesn't change, but it's still gorgeous. It reminds me so much of the sun."41

Her tears had ceased. She was entranced by his sweet words. She'd never heard him say such sweet things before.42

Wrapping his arms around her, he slipped the ring back on her finger.43

"Aren’t you happy?" she whispered weakly.44

"More than you can ever imagine," he promised, stroking her hair. "I want to help my country, though. I want to help them fight off communism in Vietnam. Maybe then the people there will have a better chance to be as happy as I am now."45

"Will you come back to me when the war's over?" she asked softly.46

"Of course. I want to get married and start a family. And we'll do that as soon as the war is over."47

Lightly tracing the outline of the ring, she glanced up at him.48

"I love you," she murmured.49

"I love you too," he smiled, happy that things were fixed. "And I promise that I'll come back soon."50

But he never did. James never came back for her. A month after he left she got the visit. The long dreaded visit that she'd prayed would never happen. All of their plans were forever postponed. And their dreams were forever lost in the countryside of South Vietnam.