Page 54 of Ghost

Ghost

Although I’d been in California for thirteen years, I’d never spent much time at the beach. After meeting Abby, I’d sat and watched the sunset no less than a dozen times. The event had become somewhat of a ritual for us. One I truly enjoyed.

We were seated side by side on the upper deck of her home, facing the ocean. Three weeks had quickly passed since the day I first kissed her, which made our relationship the longest one I’d ever had. Pleased that everything was working in our favor, I stared at the indigo body of water and waited for the sun to melt into it.

“Do you think this is peaceful?” she asked.

I glanced in her direction. “Sitting here?”

Peering through the lenses of her Aviator sunglasses, she sipped her glass of tea. “Watching the sunset. Smelling the ocean. Sitting here.”

With the sound of the waves within earshot and the air so thick with salt water it could be tasted, I didn’t worry about my condition, cancer, or what the future might hold. Somehow, the ocean transported me to a place where either my problems didn’t matter, or they simply didn’t exist.

“It’s comforting,” I said.

She shifted her attention back to the horizon. “When I was sick, I used to sit out here and pray. Sometimes I’d fall asleep in this chair.”

I had no desire to say a prayer to a God I wasn’t sure existed. Falling asleep with the sound of the ocean in the distance sounded like a good idea, though.

“We should do that sometime,” I said.

“Do what?”

“Fall asleep out here. I bet I’d feel refreshed in the morning.”

“We can tonight, if you want.”

I closed my eyes and listened to the waves washing ashore. “Let’s do it.”

I found myself doing things with Abby I never would have dreamed of before we met. I wondered how much of the differences I saw in myself were a result of being with her, and how much was driven by knowing my future was uncertain. That my time on earth was very likely limited to a much shorter timespan than most men my age.

It seemed I was willing to be far more accepting of life since I met her. I’d never describe myself as an angry man, but my life had become a pool of serenity since meeting Abby. Pinpointing what caused the change in me was impossible, so I simply accepted the changes as simply being part of what one received from a relationship.

“You know what?” I opened my eyes and turned to face her. “I like this.”

“What?” She asked. “Sitting out here waiting for the sun to set?”

“No, being in a relationship.”

She looked at me and lifted her glasses, revealing her majestic blue eyes. “Me, too.”

After a lingering glance, she smiled. I liked it when she smiled. It let me know she was pleased with life or with me. I liked thinking it was a little of both. Eventually, she turned to face the horizon. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as she brushed her hair behind her ear and did the nose scratching thing.

“What do you like about it the most?” she asked.

“About what?”

“Our relationship, silly.”

“Just one thing?” I asked. “or do you want me to give you a list?”

“Let’s stick with one. The best one.”

“Waking up next to you,” I said. “Same question to you.”

With her eyes fixed straight ahead, she responded. “Being appreciated. And waking up in your arms.”

I glared at her. “You said one answer. That’s not fair.”