The Lighthouse

by Melanie Wilber

  “Like what?”

  “Easy, amazing.”

  I agreed with the easy part, but amazing? How could two hours with me be amazing? “Where are we?”

  He glanced around. “My dorm is over there,” he said, pointing up the street a bit.

  I saw it then and regained some directional bearing. “Back where we started, huh?”

  “Location wise, but I hope we made some progress in other ways.”

  I knew we had, and he did too without either of us having to say it.

  “Would you like me to walk you to your dorm now, or could I talk you into letting me take you out for some ice cream?”

  “Oh, I think you could talk me into that.”

  “Are you warm enough?” he asked, rubbing my back through my medium-weight brown sweater. I had put it on over my other shirt before going to dinner.

  “Yeah, I’m okay,” I said. He was wearing a long-sleeved Oregon State t-shirt. “How about you?”

  “I might stop by the room and get something warmer.” He continued walking that way, but he kept me close to his side. A few moments of silence passed and I mentioned something that came to mind.

  “Do you want to check on Marissa? See if she made it back okay?”

  He took his phone out of his pocket. “Yes, thank you. I was planning on doing that.”

  “She can come with us if she wants. I don’t mind.”

  When Marissa picked up, Jonathan asked where she was, how she was, and then told her our plans. “Do you want to come? Jennifer is inviting you.”

  He laughed. “Okay, I am too. And no, you won’t be interrupting anything. We’ve just been getting to know each other.”

  Jonathan told her we would be there in ten minutes. He clicked off the phone, and I asked him if it was okay that I’d invited her.

  “Whatever you want, Jennifer,” he said, stopping to face me again and pulling me into a hug. “If you’re happy, I’m happy.”

  I hadn’t thought about it until now, but I was happy. I’d been happy all week. I’d been happier than I could ever remember being.

  I feared it was all too good to be true, but I had no tangible evidence of that, and quite the contrary as Jonathan held me gently and I enjoyed the comfort of his closeness. He felt nice and smelled nice and yet seemed so privileged to be in my company. I didn’t understand why, but for now I accepted his behavior as honest, and I had no desire to step away.

  Chapter Eight

  Jonathan took Marissa and me to a little off-campus place within walking distance of our dorm. It had counter-service inside the front door, and I could see from the menus overhead they served breakfast, lunch, and dinner during the appropriate hours, but also dessert and snack items at any time, along with a variety of beverages: Coffee, tea, hot chocolate, juices, soft drinks, smoothies, and “healthy” milkshakes that Jonathan said were very good.

  I decided to get a strawberry milkshake and a slice of berry pie. Jonathan ordered a brownie ice cream dessert and asked Marissa if she wanted to share with him because they were quite large. He asked me first, but I had to inform him of my chocolate allergy. I wasn’t usually tempted to eat chocolate because I hadn’t had any for such a long time, but it did look good when we found a place to sit and Jonathan set the creation on the table between himself and Marissa.

  My pie was good though, and the milkshake was amazing. I asked Jonathan how often he came here, and he said not that often.

  “But I’d come here a lot more if I had someone to come with.”

  I smiled. It did seem to be more of a date-spot or someplace for just a few friends than a popular group hangout. It wasn’t set up for that with small circular tables taking up the limited dining space. I could imagine coming here often with Jonathan and Marissa together, or with just one of them, and I realized something about myself. I really enjoyed talking to those who listened to me and were open to sharing about themselves in a heart-to-heart way. I had come to think of myself as antisocial because I didn’t talk much in group settings and tried to avoid them whenever possible, but that was because I was more interested in friendship and meaningful conversation than a bunch of activity and noise.

  Sitting there with Jonathan and Marissa for the next hour, laughing, talking, and having a nice time just the three of us--I had never experienced anything so genuine and heartwarming. I felt like I never wanted the evening to end.

  But it did have a sweet ending. After we walked back to the dorm, Marissa said good-night to Jonathan and went inside ahead of me, letting us have some moments for just the two of us again. I didn’t feel shy in his presence, but I wondered how he would take advantage of the moment: If he would keep me out here talking for a long time, or if he was ready to bid me good-night, with or without a kiss.

  “I’d like to see you tomorrow,” he said. “Do you think that might be possible?”

  I smiled. “Yes.”

  “Do you like volleyball?”

  “To play, or to watch?”

  “Watch. There’s a match here tomorrow night. Some girls from The Lighthouse are on the team. Would you like to go?”

  “Sure. That sounds fun.”

  “And what’s your schedule like during the day?”

  “Just picking up my schedule and getting my books.”

  “I hope you get all the classes you want,” he said. “Having to find others that fit into your schedule is a pain.”

  “Does that happen often?”

  “Unfortunately yes, so don’t be surprised if it does.”

  I hadn’t considered that possibility and began to panic. I hated being in situations where I didn’t know what to do. I remembered someone talking about that at one of the orientation meetings, but I hadn’t paid much attention and couldn’t remember what they had said exactly.

  “What should I do if that happens?”

  “Call me. I’ll help you through it. I know some tricks about the system by now.”

  That made me feel better. “Okay, thanks.”

  “And I’ll pray we both get everything we signed up for, and then we can spend the afternoon doing something fun.”

  “Okay,” I laughed.

  “I had a great time tonight,” he said seriously.

  “Me too.”

  “What did you like best?”

  I didn’t think I could pick one thing over another. “Everything.”

  He smiled and put his arms around my waist, pulling me into a gentle hug. “I’m glad,” he said.

  I took a deep breath and cherished the feeling of being so close to him. I wasn’t much of a hugger and usually only hugged my mom and sometimes Uncle Stewart, but this was on a different level of someone being in my personal space.

  “I’m going to say good-night now,” he said, stepping back to look at me once again.

  “Okay,” I replied, for a lack of anything better to say.

  He found my hands and held them. “Good night, Jennifer. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  I felt like I might cry at his sincerity. He released my hands, and I turned away and went inside, feeling numb and really strange as I crossed the lobby, waited for the elevator, and rode it to the sixth floor by myself.

  Stepping into the hallway, I walked to my room and entered it. Marissa was there, getting ready for bed. She was in her pajamas but had waited for me to go down to the bathroom.

  I thanked her for waiting, and we went to brush our teeth. On the way there she asked me if I’d had a nice time tonight. I didn’t feel like I had the words to express how I felt.

  “Have you ever been in love, Marissa?”

  She smiled. “No, why?”

  “Because I’m wondering if this is what it feels like,” I whispered. “I can’t believe I’m saying that!”

  She giggled and looped her arm with mine. “Oh, Jennifer. He’s a sweetheart, isn’t he?”

  “Yes,” I agreed, but I felt like it was more than that.

  Marissa didn’t go overboard in her giddiness,
but she was obviously happy about me being with Jonathan, and I was glad she was so supportive. In the morning we went to pick up our schedules, and I was prepared for the possibility of not getting all of the classes I wanted, but I felt indifferent to it at the same time. I would deal with whatever when the time came, and that wasn’t like me at all, but I felt powerless to be any other way. So far none of my fears about this week had come true.

  Looking over my schedule once I had it in my hands, I wondered if I was reading it correctly when all of my classes were listed just as I had chosen them. Marissa was in a different line, but once I reconnected with her, I saw what mine would look like if I hadn’t. Marissa’s Spanish 101 class was listed at the bottom, separate from the rest of her schedule, with the words CLASS FULL next to it. Below that it said, SIGN UP FOR ALTERNATE DAYS AND TIMES AT: Langton Hall, 2nd Floor.

  “Okay, Jonny told me about this,” Marissa said. “I should go there as soon as possible. Did you get all of your classes?”

  “I think so,” I said, looking at it one more time to be sure.

  “Do you want to go with me?”

  “Sure.”

  We looked at a campus map to see where Langton Hall was and then headed there. It wasn’t far, and I asked Marissa on the way if she wanted to call Jonathan and ask for his help.

  “He said to do this first, and if I have a problem to call him.”

  There was a bit of a line Marissa had to wait in, so I went down to the landing between floors where there was a large window overlooking the street, and I called Jonathan to see what he was up to. He was happy to hear I had gotten all of my classes and that Marissa only had to find a different time for one of hers. We talked for a little bit, and then he asked if I wanted to meet him for lunch in an hour.

  “I’d like that,” I said. “At your cafeteria?”

  “Sure, if you want.”

  “Should I bring Marissa?”

  “If she doesn’t have other plans.”

  “Okay, I’ll ask her.”

  “But I get dinner with just you, and I’ll take you someplace nicer than the cafeteria.”

  I smiled.

  “Or did you have a date with someone else tonight?”

  “Well, this one guy did ask me to go to the volleyball game with him, but I could meet him after dinner.”

  He laughed. “Okay, I’ll be sure to have you back in time. What’s he like?”

  “He’s nice. Sweet. Really cute.”

  “Wow. It sounds like I have some competition.”

  “Maybe so.”

  “I hope I’m not assuming too much by wanting this whole day with you, Jennifer,” he said seriously.

  “You’re not.”

  “I know next week will be a lot busier for both of us, so I want to take advantage of the time we can have together now.”

  Privately I wondered if the unanticipated joy I was experiencing this week would fade away and be nothing but a memory as the reality of college life settled in, but I didn’t voice my thoughts and decided to live this day for whatever it was. I might be disappointed in the end, but there wasn’t much I could do about that now. Jonathan had already swept me off my feet little by little every day this week.

  I experienced more of the same as the day progressed. From the time we spent in the bookstore as he helped Marissa and me with finding the books we needed, to the afternoon stroll we took on the pleasant fall day, to a nice dinner at a sushi place, and even in the contrasting atmosphere of the exciting volleyball match where we were surrounded by a lot of his friends.

  The only thing that surprised me about our time together was he didn’t attempt to kiss me at some point, even when he told me good-night outside my dorm in much the same way as he had last night. My limited dating experience in the past had been with someone who was anxious to push the physical side of things, but Jonathan seemed content to take a slower pace, and yet he had shown me plenty of sweet affection throughout the day, not like he didn’t have any desire to be close to me.

  Unlike on Thursday night when he left our plans for today up in the air, he didn’t do that this time, asking me out as formally as he ever had, and I was agreeable to his plans. He was saving some of the details as a surprise, but he did tell me to prepare for spending much of the day away from the campus and encouraged me to bring my camera and some good walking shoes.

  He thanked me for another “amazing” day and kissed me sweetly on the forehead. Despite being with him for ten hours straight, his closeness and sincere words to end our time together melted my heart and made me long for tomorrow to come.

  He waited for me to step inside, wishing me sweet dreams and making me feel like he was the fortunate one to be a part of my world.

  Chapter Nine

  Our day together began with breakfast in the cafeteria closest to my dormitory. Jonathan wanted to make sure we both had something substantial before we got going, but he wasn’t in any hurry, so we didn’t rush, and I felt sufficiently full by the time we left and walked out to Jonathan’s car that he had already driven down to my area of the campus.

  Since he had told me to bring my camera and to wear good walking shoes, I had the feeling some hiking would be a part of our day, and that excited me. I loved hiking, especially in a scenic area with plenty of great views and natural beauty. It was difficult to hike anywhere in Western Oregon and not have both of those, but I had a feeling Jonathan had a particularly beautiful place to take me.

  With photography on my mind as we began to drive out of town, I asked him about the pictures I had seen of his trip to Brazil this summer. He had never mentioned it, and I wondered why that was, but I was also genuinely interested in hearing about his time there. He smiled when I asked, and I immediately knew why he hadn’t mentioned anything about it yet.

  “Are you sure you want to get me started on that? I could talk all day, just warning you.”

  I smiled. “If it’s that important to you, I definitely want to hear about it.”

  “Well, this is a good time because we have a bit of a drive ahead of us.”

  First he told me the basics, where he had gone, with whom, and why. I wasn’t surprised he had gone with some others from The Lighthouse, including his best friend, Adam. I also wasn’t surprised by the mission. They had gone to meet a variety of needs, from delivering food, water, and supplies to a poverty-stricken area, to repairing some homes and building others from the ground up.

  He talked about the work involved some, but mostly he talked about the people they had gone to help. The families. The children. The people from a church there who had hosted them and prearranged the work that needed to be done. Jonathan remembered them all by name. He had formed some close attachments, and he obviously missed them.

  “Do you want to go back next summer?”

  “I’d love to, but I’m not sure that’s possible. If I went with another team, we would probably go to a different place, according to where the greatest needs are at that time. Which is fine. We left them in much better condition than when we arrived, and others were coming on our heels to do more, but I got more attached to the people than I thought I would.”

  “What made you want to go?”

  “Mostly from hearing others talk about their experiences. I wanted to do something meaningful with my summer, and mission work is something I’ve thought about a lot. I knew it was time.”

  He talked some more about how the experience had affected and changed him, and I was inspired by the things he said, even those about God I didn’t fully understand. I didn’t interrupt and just let him talk, not realizing it until we pulled off the main road we had been on and he apologized.

  “Sorry, I warned you. I’ll shut up now and let you speak.”

  “I like listening to you, Jonathan. You don’t have to stop.”

  “Are you curious about where I’m taking you?”

  “Up a mountain apparently.” We had been going uphill steadily in a heavily forested area, so that w
asn’t a huge leap.

  “This is Marys Peak,” he said. “The tallest mountain in the Coast Range. This road will take us to a day-use area where we can park and then take a trail to the summit from there.”

  “You must have been listening when I said I like hiking.”

  “Yes, although this is an easy trail, so don’t get too excited. There are some more challenging ones, but they would take the better part of a day and more preparation than I wanted to bother with today. I want this to be more about us having some time together.”

  “Hiking is about the scenery for me more than the physical challenge, so I think you chose wisely.”

  “It is beautiful. I hope you like it.”

  “I’m sure I will, but I’m already having a great time.”

  “And I really like talking to you, Jennifer. I know I talk a lot in general, but there’s something special about talking to you.”

  I knew what he meant because I felt the same way.

  We continued up the Forest Service Road, catching glimpses of the valley below whenever there was a break in the trees. Once we reached the parking area, Jonathan found an open space in the semi-full lot, and he got a backpack out of the trunk to take along as we walked toward the trail. We stopped to use the restrooms, and then we were on our way. The trail was well maintained and wove its way gradually up to the summit. The forest was beautiful, and the views were amazing.

  By the time we were at the top, I knew I was in love with this place. “It’s beautiful, Jonathan,” I said, leaning into him as we took in the full view of the surrounding mountains and the valley we had come from below.

  “God’s Creation never ceases to amaze me,” he said. “You should have seen this one place we went to in Brazil. We had to take this tram thing up to the top of this ridge, and it was so incredible.”

  “I think I remember seeing pictures of that.”

  “Yeah, you probably did. It was amazing to actually be there, looking over the varied landscape and the ocean in the distance. I felt bad later though because I mentioned it to one of the families we were helping, and they said they had never been up there because they couldn’t afford it. I couldn’t imagine something like that being so close but never seeing it. That was one of the things that struck me about being there--such beauty in the landscapes but ugliness in the living conditions. So heartbreaking.”