The Ring

by Sarah Anne Carter

  “Thank you,” Lucas replied, and they got up to leave. Lucas looked at his watch. “You’re good luck, Amanda. Nothing is ever quick in the military, and here you got things done in 25 minutes.”

  When they got in the car, Amanda asked him about DEERS and TRICARE. He explained that TRICARE was their medical insurance company, and she would have to register at each military hospital they used. DEERS was a military-wide database that kept track of who was eligible for benefits and which ones.

  “Nothing in the military works right if you’re not in the right system,” Lucas said. “I’ll get my orders amended tomorrow and then once we stop by the hospital later this week, you’ll be officially official.”

  Lucas took her back to the hotel, pointing out a few things on the base as they drove. He promised a full tour that night. He said would actually be able to get rides to training most days as some guys he knew from the first loadmaster school were here and staying in the same building, too. That way, Amanda could even go off base and see what there was to see.

  Lucas was back at 4:30 and found the room all sorted out and Amanda asleep on the bed. He gently woke her up with a kiss and asked if she still wanted the tour and to go out to dinner. She yawned and said yes but said she hoped they could go to bed early that night.

  He handed her a map of the base and a pen so she could make notes of places she might want to go. He went in a big circle and made sure she saw the fitness center, the hospital, the BX or base exchange with a food court, the commissary where she could buy groceries, the gas station, and the building he went to for training. He also took her by the flight line to show her the C-17s up close. She was in awe of how big the plane was.

  “You’ll be able to see them take off and land up close here. If you hear a big rumble, go outside and watch it take off. The tactical take-off is the best – it’s what we can do if we have to get out of somewhere fast. You’ll be able to wave to me when I go up,” he said with a smile.

  “It would be neat to fly in that, I would think,” she said.

  “Well, I don’t know if they’ll do it here, but at Charleston, I should be able to give you a tour inside of the plane and they’ll probably have a spouses flight once a year where you’ll get to be a passenger.”

  “Really?” she said, very excited about the possibility of taking a flight on a C-17.

  “Really,” he said. “Now, let’s head to one of the best restaurants around here – A Little Off Base.”

  “What’s it called?”

  Lucas laughed. “That’s the name and the location – A Little Off Base.”

  “Now, that’s clever,” she said.

  Amanda got to meet several of Lucas’ classmates at the restaurant. It seemed like almost everyone made it one of the first stops for dining at Altus. There were three other wives there and one girlfriend. They all exchanged information. The girlfriend and two wives had work-from-home jobs, so they were busy most days, but the other wife, Stephanie, was a teacher, too, and since they didn’t have kids or pets, she was able to come stay with her husband. They were stationed in Alaska and Stephanie also didn’t want to be there by herself for most of the summer. Amanda and Stephanie planned to go to the gym together the next morning and see what classes were offered. Stephanie mentioned the base also offered some day trips for shopping and sightseeing twice a month, which could be fun to go on together.

  Between doing things with Stephanie a few times a week, finishing up her paperwork for her teaching license in South Carolina, applying for jobs, reading, updating her lesson plans, and doing some online house hunting, the days passed by quickly. They ate out most nights or stayed in and ate leftovers or pizza. Their room only had a small refrigerator and a microwave, so they couldn’t cook full meals. They spent Saturdays sightseeing and Sundays studying. Amanda helped quiz Lucas when she could. She loved knowing when he was going up in the air, but she started to notice that she would feel relieved when the plane landed. She wasn’t actively worrying when he was up in the air, but she must be in the back of her mind.

  After their weekend in Oklahoma City, there was a week full of thunderstorms and tornado warnings. The class was a week behind after that. When it was time for Amanda to fly back to Washington, she didn’t know if she’d see Lucas soon in Washington or later in South Carolina. She truly hoped he’d make it to go on the long drive with her, but she wouldn’t know until just a couple days beforehand.

  She had two weeks to pack up her apartment and get the contents in a U-Haul when she got back. Her parents picked her up at the airport and took her to dinner before taking her home. While they had been to Oklahoma before she was born, they had only driven through it on their way to other places on trips with her. They shared stories about places they had all seen now. Her mom offered to help her pack during the week if she wanted help, and Amanda told her she’d let her know.

  Amanda called Juliana just to let her know she was back in Washington, but the call went to voicemail. Amanda knew Juliana and Brian were getting more serious as they were going out to explore Chicago together almost every night. Although they worked for the same company, they worked on different floors and different projects, which Juliana was actually happy about. She wanted to see Brian a lot, but not all the time. Amanda secretly hoped there would be another wedding soon for her and Lucas to go to together.

  Despite being tired, Amanda had trouble falling asleep that night until she pulled out a T-shirt of Lucas’ she had tucked away in her luggage and stuffed a pillow in it. She wasn’t used to sleeping alone anymore. She knew she’d have to figure out something because as soon as they got settled in Charleston, he would be back on the road again.

  Amanda started packing by tackling one room at a time. She bought a lot of boxes and packing tape and, at Lucas’ insistence, had been careful to tuck the receipts away somewhere safe. He said he had filed to do a partial DITY move when he told her about the move. Her confused look must have been clear to him because he then explained that DITY was do-it-yourself, and the government had three ways to move people’s belongings: the government could do it all, the person could do it all and file for reimbursement, or it could be partially government-moved and partially person-moved and the person could be reimbursed a certain amount depending on the weight and what the government’s cost was for the move. It sounded complicated, but Lucas was sure they would be under the weight allowance since he wasn’t moving any furniture other than a bed and desk and Amanda just had a couch, kitchen table, bed, and desk. The government would do Lucas’ move and since they didn’t get married until after Lucas was packed up and they had to add Amanda to the moving orders after-the-fact, they would move her belongings and then get reimbursed for it. Amanda kept an envelope in her purse to tuck away receipts for everything related to the move, including gas receipts for their drive across the country. It sounded complicated to Amanda, but she trusted Lucas knew the system better than she did.

  Amanda emptied out the small coat closet first and decided to use that for the items she wanted to keep with her in the car. She would have a suitcase for two weeks’ worth of clothes, and she wanted to keep important papers and her laptop with her. She also planned to put a tub with all her teaching supplies and lessons in the car. If she did get a job, she would have only two weeks to get ready from when they got to Charleston. She actually had a couple phone interviews next week lined up. She didn’t want to have to dig for her supplies in case they hadn’t completely moved into a place by then.

  She made plans with Jodie and a few friends from school and work to meet up with and say goodbye that week. Lucas called every night, and they talked for at least an hour each night. He was hopeful they would finish up by the next Wednesday and then he would be back to help her load the U-Haul and start driving Saturday. But, on Monday, his flight got cancelled due to a maintenance issue, and on Tuesday it was cancelled for weather when a small tornado actually touched down three miles from the base. He finally made it up in
the air Wednesday and passed his last test Thursday. He would out-process Friday morning and fly to Washington that afternoon. He had even found someone from class who would take his car to Charleston for him for a small fee.

  Amanda’s parents helped her load the truck that day and clean the apartment. She had planned to spend the night at her parents’ house, but with Lucas coming in, she booked a hotel in downtown Tacoma. Unlike the last road trip, they only had to drive six to eight hours a day and planned on a few stops to spend a day sightseeing. They didn’t have to leave at any certain time the next day to start the trip, and her parents suggested they plan to leave by 10 a.m. at the latest so they would at least get out of Washington State the first day. Amanda thought it was a good idea and was glad they were going with them. She was also so glad her parents and Lucas got along so well.

  She picked Lucas up at the airport that night and surprised him with the night in a hotel. She slept soundly that night with Lucas beside her.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Amanda couldn’t wait until she could sleep in her own bed once they got settled in Charleston. It had been a great trip, and they had taken turns riding with different people throughout the trip “so they couldn’t get tired of each other,” her father said. About halfway through the trip, they even split up for dinner, parking at a mall and planning to meet back at the vehicles two hours later. The time they each had alone definitely went a long way to helping keep any arguments at bay. At breakfast each day at the hotels, they would review the plan for the next three days and plan exactly where to stop that night. They hadn’t done that the first two days, and it led to some worrisome moments later in the afternoons when no one had cell phone service and they had lost sight of each other. They had managed to find each other at rest stops both days, and then they decided to plan a stopping point in case it happened again.

  They got to Charleston in mid-afternoon after only 10 days on the road and unloaded the U-Haul into a storage unit near the base. They got Lucas’s truck, returned the U-Haul, and took Amanda’s parents to the RV rental location. After saying goodbye, Lucas and Amanda went to check in on base. The room was just about the same as the one in Oklahoma. They both sighed at the same time as they saw there was no stove again. Lucas promised they could visit the housing office the next day.

  “How would you feel about living in a house on base?” Lucas asked.

  “What would that be like?”

  “I think we would get a two-bedroom house and it would probably be a duplex or quadplex, so the neighbors would be close. I think we may not have to wait so long if we move into a house on base first. It could take us a while to find something off base to rent that we liked.”

  “It would probably be convenient, and I know we both wanted to feel settled fairly soon. Can we look at it first?”

  “Yes. If they have anything available, they could show us it tomorrow.”

  “Guess it’s worth seeing what they have,” she yawned. “I need to send three emails about the job interviews before we go to bed tonight. Hopefully I can line those up in the next day or two, as well.”

  “Why don’t you do that and I’ll go find us some dinner and bring it back? I’m up for going to bed early tonight, too. I’m glad I fly everywhere for my job. Driving is tiring.”

  Amanda’s brain felt like it was swirling every day their first week in Charleston. There was so much to do and so many decisions to make. They were shown and offered two houses when they went to the housing office. Lucas had been right on both the duplex and the quadplex. The duplex was newer and empty, so they decided to take it and they had an appointment to get the keys and do a walk-through inspection in two days on Friday. Lucas lined up the delivery of his belongings, and over the weekend they would use his truck to move her belongings out of storage. Amanda had two job interviews Thursday afternoon and one Friday morning before their housing appointment. Two were at a high school and were a 30-minute commute from the base. The district right outside of the base had an opening for a middle school teacher, and she really wanted that job the most. She felt they really liked the fact that she was a military spouse as there would be a lot of military “brats” in her classes. The principal even said she liked that Amanda had already taught military kids in Washington.

  They got as settled as they could over the weekend, which included two trips to Walmart on Saturday and four trips on Sunday to get food, toiletries, curtains, curtain rods, towels, extension cords, laundry detergent, and other odds and ends off a continually updated list left on the kitchen counter. Lucas would start in-processing on the base on Monday, and his belongings would be delivered on Wednesday, so Amanda would have to be home all that day. If she got one of the jobs, the before-school training would start on Thursday. Everything was at least lining up just right.

  On Monday afternoon, Amanda got a call from the Charleston School District offering her the middle school job. She was so excited. She called Lucas right away and got his voicemail. She then called her mom and Juliana and talked to them both for 30 minutes each. She barely heard the door open as she was hanging up with Juliana. Lucas came in with two dozen roses, a bag of caramel Ghirardelli chocolates, and moose track ice cream.

  “Congratulations, my smart wife!” he said and handed her the presents. “Sorry I missed your call, but as soon as I got your voicemail, I knew we’d have to celebrate tonight. I asked around and found out the best Greek restaurant around here and I’d like to take you there for dinner. If it’s good, it could be our new Phyllos.”

  Amanda wrapped her arms around him and thanked him with a kiss.

  Lucas didn’t have to leave on his first trip until October, so they had some time to get settled into their house and explore the area a little. Right before he left for Australia, he told Amanda that Terri and Will were moving to Charleston in early December and would be in the same squadron. Amanda was excited about the idea of having someone she knew there. One couple from Altus and two guys from the class were at Charleston, but they lived off base and were in different squadrons. Amanda hadn’t made it to any of the spouse events yet, but had gotten to know a few teachers from school, two of whom had husbands who worked on the base as civilians and three whose husbands were in the military, but not in any of the flying squadrons. She had worried about finding friends moving to a new location, but it seemed those attached to the military made every effort to include newcomers, which made it easy for Amanda to feel welcomed.

  Lucas was gone for both Thanksgiving and Christmas that year. There was a lottery system for who got leave, but you weren’t allowed to participate the first year there. There was a squadron Thanksgiving feast potluck a week before at the base housing’s clubhouse. It was the day before Lucas was heading out, so they only went for a little bit to have a Thanksgiving experience together at least. Amanda ended up spending Thanksgiving with some single coworkers from school who were all going to Denny’s for dinner and then for drinks at a piano bar. Amanda skipped the bar, feeling really out of sorts that day spending a holiday without any family around.

  Amanda didn’t find out about Christmas until her last day of teaching before the holiday break when she came home and found Lucas packing. Although she knew it was a possibility that he would be gone, she was hoping he would be able to stay. She started to cry. Lucas held her until she was ready to talk.

  “I’m sorry, Amanda. I wish I didn’t have to leave you for another holiday. It’s Europe, though, so I can get a big stash of all the good chocolate to bring home with me.”

  “I’d rather have you than chocolate.”

  “I know. Hey, why don’t we look at you going home for Christmas?”

  “That would be nice. I know my parents are staying home this year. They were invited to Uncle Eddie and Aunt Vicky’s for Christmas dinner. The plane ticket wouldn’t be cheap, though.”

  “We’ll figure that part out. You shouldn’t be alone on Christmas.”

  “I guess I didn’t think a
bout how much lonelier I’d be with you gone all the time away from my family and hometown.”

  He kissed her forehead. “I know, sweetheart, but it’s only a few years and then we can talk about whether I stay in or get out and go back to Washington.”

  “It would be nice to see you every day for a while, whether here or in Washington.”

  “I love you, Amanda.”

  “Love you, too.”

  Amanda ended up going to Washington for a week for Christmas. She stayed with her parents, and her mom took her shopping and to the Nutcracker ballet in Seattle. They wrapped presents, delivered cookies to neighbors, and watched a different Christmas movie every night. Amanda knew her parents were excited to have her home, but they could tell she was missing Lucas. Her mom did a good job of trying to keep Amanda busy and distracted.

  Lucas had mailed a few small presents to her parents’ house for her to open on Christmas. She had snuck two into his suitcase, too. Amanda smiled at the thought of them both trying to be sneaky about making sure they both had presents from each other. While Amanda was opening a bracelet from Lucas, she heard her phone ring. It was a long-distance number she didn’t know, but she had the feeling she should answer it.

  “Hello?” she said. There was a small pause.

  “Amanda, it’s Lucas. Merry Christmas!”

  “Merry Christmas! Thank you for the presents. How are you calling me?”

  “I love my new wallet and watch. Thank you. I’m getting to call you from the plane. We’re flying back across the ocean right now. I should be home the same day you get home.”

  “That’s great news! How can you call me from the plane?”