Page 48 of Big Island Moonlight
It made her wonder how easily their lives would integrate, if things reached that point… but as she watched him walk away, the broad muscles of his shoulders visible beneath his white cotton t-shirt, she left her worries by the wayside.
The present moment was all that anyone was ever really given, and she was learning to enjoy it.
Paper bag in hand, she walked down the back steps and across the lawn to the cottage where Juniper was living with her baby. Three days earthside, and he still didn’t have a name. The parents seemed to be in no rush, though when Cody came by(which he did multiple times a day, seemingly any moment that he wasn’t at work or in class) it was all that they talked about.
Emma slipped through the screen door without announcing herself and walked carefully through the living room, not wanting to wake mother or baby if they were taking a well-deserved nap.
Juniper seemed to be sleeping, but her eyes opened when Emma peeked in.
“Hi Auntie Em,” she said dreamily. She lay on one side, arms around her sleeping newborn.
“Hey sweetheart.” She moved closer to the bed, keeping her voice low. “Keith brought you some goodies from the farm. I’ll put them in the kitchen for you.”
“Thanks.”
“I’m going to head out in a minute. Is there anything you need?”
She shook her head sleepily. “We’re okay. Cody will be here soon.”
“Okay. I love you. Rest up.”
“Wait,” Jun said as Emma moved towards the door. “Was I supposed to watch Kai?”
“No, don’t worry. He’s at Lani’s house.”
“Okay.” Her eyes drifted shut, and Emma tiptoed out.
Keith drove her up the mountain for their second date. Not across the island to Kona, but farther up the side of Mauna Kea to a spot near the visitor center that stood nearly two miles above the ocean. They parked and climbed out of the truck just in time to watch the sun disappear into the clouds below, turning the sky orange and gold.
As the sky turned purple and the wind picked up, Keith made a cozy nest in the back of his truck with camping pads and quilts. By the time the first stars blinked into sight, they were cuddled up side by side sharing a thermos of hot chocolate.
It reminded her of an evening that she had shared with Adam nearly twenty years before, stargazing together on the Big Island. Not long ago, those memories would have overtaken her. Up until recently, the past had overshadowed the present.
Lately those memories of her youth with Adam had turned hazy, like a half-remembered dream. It was truly another lifetime.
In that moment, her past felt more remote than the stars overhead. Keith’s solid shoulder beneath her cheek, his hand in hers, those werereal. Those were now.
Emma didn’t fight the thoughts of Adam that rose up in her mind.
She let them warm her, and then she let them go.
As an astonishing number of stars overtook the sky, she was able to fully enjoy just being there in that moment with the wind whistling overhead and Keith’s body warm against hers. She squeezed his hand and stared up at the Milky Way in awe.
They stayed long enough that her eyelids grew heavy. Try as she might to keep her eyes open and see more shooting stars, their nest was so cozy and the air so fresh and clean that sleep pulled at her. Before she knew it, Keith was waking her up.
“Come on,” he said gently, pulling back the quilts. “Let’s get you home.”
The moon had risen while she slept, lighting the mountain and dimming the stars. Still sleepy, she crawled into the cab. Keith put one of the quilts over her legs. She curled up beside him, drifting along half asleep as he steered them safely back down the mountain.
When they finally made it back to her house, she was loath to say goodbye. Having someone next to her was deeply comforting. Not just anyone, but this good and patient man. She found that she didn’t want to say goodnight.
“Do you want to sleep here?” she asked quietly, looking down at their hands. His fingers were laced through hers, his grip both strong and gentle. Her cheeks burned as she stumbled on: “Not… I mean… just sleep?”
Gently, he kissed her forehead. “Yes.”
“Yeah?” She looked up and met his eyes; they were dark silver in the light of the moon.
He nodded and opened the door. “Come on. Let’s get some sleep.”
