Page 8 of Passing Ships

I’ve missed a lot of birthdays and holidays. Nana and Gramps aren’t getting any younger, and with the addition of Avie and Leia to the clan, I’ve been thinking a lot about my priorities as of late. I don’t want to miss any more important events.

All of my fellow career Navy men have married and started families of their own. I was too focused on the job and never cared to settle down, but now that I’m thirty-seven years old, soon to be thirty-eight, and my baby brother has a fiancée and a little girl of his own, I find myself longing for home for the first time since I set foot on the Naval Station Great Lakes for basic training twenty years ago.

I pad to the bathroom and close the door. I use the facilities and splash water on my face before exiting the bathroom to grab my phone and Nana’s spare cottage keys. I head to the living room as quietly as I can to retrieve my clothes.

Peeking out of the blinds, I see that the light is still on in Nana’s kitchen window, so I dress quickly and search the drawers of the desk under the window for a pen.

I scratch out a few lines on the back of an envelope I found.

Legs,

Nana was waiting up for me, so I had to run. Didn’t want to disturb you. Thanks for a great night.

Lennon

I leave the note on the island in the kitchen, where she is sure to see it, before slipping out the door.

Thanks for a great night?

I sound like a douchebag, but what else do you say after a night like that with a virtual stranger?

I sprint across the street and around the house to the steps that lead up to the back of my grandparents’ home.

When I walk inside, Nana, dressed in her housecoat and slippers, is sitting in the recliner with a book in her lap.

“Hey,” she greets me as I slip out of my shoes.

“Hey, Nana. Sorry it’s so late,” I whisper as I walk over and bend to kiss her on the cheek.

“It’s okay. You know I’m a night owl. How was the rest of the party?” she asks.

“Good. Leia hung in there as long as she could, and then Sebastian put her in bed and threw us all out,” I explain.

Her hand comes up and pats her chest above her heart. “I’m so happy for him.”

“Yeah, me too. Avie seems great,” I agree.

“She is. All three of those girls have worked their way right into our hearts,” she adds.

“Three?”

“Yes, Avie, Leia, and her friend, Amiya. They’re a package deal. Have been since they landed in Sandcastle Cove.”

“But the friend doesn’t live here, right?”

“No, but she’s here more often than not. I don’t think she’s gone more than two weeks without trekking it up to see the girls,” she says.

“They must be pretty tight.”

“Like you and Wade. Friends since school.”

“Wade and I go a lot longer than two weeks without seeing each other,” I remind her.

“True,” she quips and gives me a stern look, “but I get the impression that Avie and Leia are Amiya’s family. Speaking of which, it would be nice if my grandson did make it home more often.”

“Yeah, I know, Nana. I promise I’ll make more of an effort.”

She smiles, and her eyes brighten. “That’s all I ask.”

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