Years of Summer: Lily's Story (11 page)

“Lily Grace, please don’t cry; I never want to be the reason for your tears.”

“Then stop saying things like that, Jace.  They seem so final.  We promised to make the most of the time we are together.  All that makes me feel is we don’t have any time left, almost like you are going to break up with me or something.”

“Well you are very wrong there.  I‘m afraid you’re stuck with me for the rest of my life.” 

He never mentioned the rest of
my life
.  I tried to skirt around that and pretend that it was just a confusion of words, although something nagged at me that he meant it. I just wish I knew what he meant by it. I couldn’t fathom the possibilities it held. I didn’t want to.

Chapter 7

RUSH—anyone that has ever been a part of this yearly Sorority event knows what I mean when I say hectic and exhausting.  Each night I would go to bed right around ten when I really wanted to be in bed by nine, but Jace and I needed to see each other.  It renewed me to an extent, but I would be so glad when Rush was over.

Jace stayed at the fraternity house for the next three days after I went back. Thursday the bookstore opened and after morning Rush practice Jace met me and he and I went to buy our books for the next semester. He worked during the summer, part-time, for his Dad's business to buy his books and things. It was an architecture firm. That is what Jace did every summer.  He made pretty good money too.  He assisted on drawing plans and things like that.

* * * * * * *

He and his dad were a great team. They were really close. That was a big thing with Jace, his family. He was close to all of them. I could tell too. It made me love him that much more, because family was a big thing with me too.  Sometimes when Jace and I were together he would talk about his plans for us and I loved hearing them, but I always wondered in the back of my mind if those plans would ever come to be.  He said he couldn’t wait to be Ally’s big brother.  That is how we spent much of our time, making the most of each moment we had together.  Dreams are beautiful, but sometimes you chase them and can’t catch them, because they are gone so soon. 

* * * * * * *

RUSH WEEK—Jace knew that I would be busy until about nine every night, but he requested that I save him at least an hour each night.  We would spend that hour either on the quad or walking the campus, even though I was exhausted.  I felt, however, that I owed him that much, because even though I was busy with Rush, I knew he was sitting in his room or at the fraternity house missing me as much as I missed him.  Thank goodness Rush Week was almost over.

The final Rush, the big choice day, Jace had called me and asked me to come by his room when I came back from the Pledge party at Jessi’s house.  All rushees were on the quad along with every sorority.  This was a big deal; people even came to watch, especially the guys from the fraternities, all the fraternities, and Jace was front and center and it was hard to keep my mind on what was going on, I was nervous about our meeting later.  I thought he had finally decided to break up with me.  I tried not to think about that.  It was Chelsea’s turn to call our choice girls.  She called out twelve names and each of the girls seemed so excited to be chosen by us, the First and Finest, plus we were a really nice down-to-earth group. ADPi’s were known for that. 

After the excitement died down we all took our cars to Jessi’s house.  Each car was required to take at least one pledge; they were not allowed to drive themselves, so ten cars pulled up in Jessi's monstrous driveway that went with her monstrous house.  It was beautiful.  They had a pool and everything.  It reminded me more of a country club than a house.  Her Dad was a doctor. 

This was a get-to-know-you party.  We were supposed to make small talk with the new girls and get to know who they were.  It ended up being fun, but the pressure was tremendous.  I was truly glad when it was all over, but nervous about seeing Jace later. By the time we made it back it was around five o’clock.  Chelsea went to see Ty, Brianna went to see Dave, and Jillian went to see Mike. 

I brushed my teeth and made my way across the quad to see Jace.  I still had my ADPi jersey on from the party.  I walked in and Jace was waiting on me.  “Took you long enough, I saw Brianna, Jillian, and Chelsea and then expected to see you right behind them and you weren’t.  I thought you might have decided against coming.”

“Jace cut the small talk, what’s this about.”

He grinned.  “Come walk with me.”  He took my hand and led me out of the dorm and across the quad.  I felt a little less nervous. He had a smugness about him and I knew he had something up his sleeve.  We walked across to the education building and sat on the picnic bench where we did that night back in March when we began.  We had been together seven months.  “Lily Grace can I see your chain?”  I wore a gold rope chain around my neck that held my ADPi lavaliere.  I pulled it up out of my shirt and showed it to him. 

He laughed.  “Would you mind taking it off for a minute?”  I did and he slid the A∆π lavaliere off of my chain and gave it to me.  “You know I don’t wear jewelry, but I want you to wear this.”  He slid his ∆X lavaliere onto my chain in its place and put it back around my neck. 

I started crying.  “Do you mean it?”

“Yes, I do.  I am yours and you are mine.  I love you, Lily Grace.”

“I love you too, Jace.”  We sat there for a moment in each others’ arms.

He had committed himself to me and I was thrilled beyond all imagination. As the days went by things just seemed to get stronger between us, we never went back on our pact to make the most of each moment we had together. We spent Thanksgiving together and Christmas break. My parents loved him and my little sister Ally just adored him. He was very good to her. His parents loved me too, but had since March of last year at our spring break retreat at Seaside. This year though we were not having a retreat during spring break, but his parents had still planned to go to the beach.  They invited me and Ally and Dave.

* * * * * * *

Dave needed a break away from campus; he and Brianna had broken up and it really hurt him, because he had fallen for her. I didn’t know why at first, but I was the one he came too, although I understand that fully now. At that time, he claimed he just needed a friend, whom knew Brianna well, to talk through things with. I thought he was looking for a few answers, and Dave and I had become really close since Jace and I had been together. I thought I helped him understand the reasoning behind it. 

Brianna had been trying to transfer to Samford University because of their law program there—she was working towards becoming a lawyer.  She finally received her acceptance letter and knew she was going to have no time for a social life once she started on her law degree.  She was not as in love with Dave as he was with her, but she cared enough about him to set him free so he could find someone who felt the same way about him.  All I can say to that is “WOW”.

Ally needed some time away too. She knew her time with Connor was coming to an end.  It was March and he was trying to prepare her for their parting. They had both mutually decided that since they were both going to be on two separate ends of the state that they would part ways and date others and that if they were meant to be, they would be in the end. I was so proud of my little sister. That was a very mature decision that she had made, and although it hurt her, she knew it was for the best.

Dave and she became friends that time during spring break and they had some fun together, but she was the same age as his little sisters so that is what he viewed her as, just another little sister. I thought it was sweet. My boyfriend and one of my best friends absolutely adored Ally, but I have to admit she is absolutely adorable. Cute, cheerleader with dark brown ringlet curls, petite and loved life, still does. No one was ever a stranger to her or has ever been a stranger to her. I sometimes worried about her, as little as she was. She was tough though.  I just hoped that when she went to college she would not run into a Chance. I would have to kill him then, something told me Jace and Dave would be right behind me too if that ever happened.

* * * * * * *

We spent that spring break at the beach. That was a whirlwind of a week. One night Jace asked me to come walking with him on the beach.  It was a little chilly.  I still had his jacket from the previous year and he pulled it over my head before we went walking.  I had invited Dave and Ally to join us, but they suspiciously decided to stay in.  As Jace and I walked out the door everyone sitting around the table had a mysterious grin on their face.  I also noticed Jace had that same mysterious grin.  I knew he was up to something.

We started walking down the beach. It was beautiful. The stars were twinkling; the moon was bright and full. It was our one year anniversary since we started dating. I was happy as a clam and Jace seemed that way too. 

“Lily, do you remember that day last year when you were on the retreat and you finally decided to give me a chance?”

“Yes I do, and look where we have come.”

“I’ll have to admit though Lil, you had me scared.  I thought you were about to break up with me.”

“Jace we weren’t officially dating, how could I have broken up with you?”

“Well, it might not have been official, but we had been dating.”

I laughed. “Yeah, I knew that. We have had so much fun together and I love you so much, Jace.”

“I love you too, Lily Grace Aldridge.  I was wondering if you would do something for me.”

“What do you want me to do?”

“Well actually it is something I want to do.”

“Okay, name it.”

“Funny you should mention names, because . . .” He turned and faced me and then got down on one knee and reached into the pocket of his shorts and pulled out a little velvet box.  “I want to change yours. Lily would you do me the honor of becoming my wife.”  Then he opened the box and pulled out the ring.  “Lily Grace Aldridge, will you marry me?”

Tears started flooding my face. I went down on my knees in front of him and kissed him.  “Yes, I would be honored to become your wife.” 

He took tight hold of me and whispered into my ear.  “You have made me the happiest man alive right now.”  He took my hand and put the marquise diamond ring on my finger.  It had a slightly wider band and it was beautiful.  There were little marquise diamonds on either side of the big one and it fit me perfectly.  I started laughing.  Jace stared at me.  “Lil, what are you laughing about?”

I looked at him.  “I take it this is why Ally and Dave chose to stay at the condo?”

“Oh, that, well yeah Dave knew that I was planning to do this.  I also called your dad and asked him before we left and by the way, your mom is thrilled to death.  Ally knew it was coming.  She thought I would do it back at Christmas and admitted she was disappointed when I didn’t.”

“Jace, I had no clue.”

“Of course not, you weren’t supposed too.  It wouldn’t have been a surprise if you did.  Are you happy, Lily Grace?”

“Happier than any person on the face of this earth.”

“Good, that has always been my goal, to make you happy.  All I want is your happiness.” 

There was something strange to the way that sounded. I pushed it out of my mind.  “So, do we keep walking or do we stay here on our knees in the sand, or head back to the condo?”

“Let’s head back, we are going to have game night.  It’s a blast.”

We walked in and Ally ambushed me.  “Let me see, let me see.”

I showed her my ring.  “Oh, Lily, I am so happy for you.  So when is the date?”

Jace answered.  “Not until after college, that gives us a year to plan the wedding.”

I looked at him as if he had just won the Nobel Prize.  “Lily I want you to finish school so you will always have your degree to fall back on.  I want to do the same so I can afford for us to live.  Who knows, we could end up at the same school.”

“That’s true.  We don’t know, but thank you for that.  So do you want to get married in July or August of next year?”

“Let’s say July, that will hopefully give us enough time to find jobs since we both graduate next year.”

“Okay, then July it is.”  I was so excited.

The rest of spring break we had the best time.  Ally and I, and Jace and Dave really had fun, and I felt like Ally and Dave became really good friends. That made me incredibly happy for some reason.  I didn’t know what the reasoning was though.  I knew he would never date her, but at the same time, one never knew anything, because one never knows where their life will take a turn.  One day you can be loving life and the next everything can be ripped away from you. 

* * * * * * *

Jace and I had news to tell people when we returned.  The first person I told was Chelsea, only fitting because she was my best friend.