They sat at a small outdoor café just minutes from the beach. Lilly felt a soft ocean breeze tickle her skin. Sitting quietly at first, she traced the rim of her cup, her thoughts still heavy from the day before.
“Roni, I feel defeated. Maybe I am not the natural writer that I thought I was.”
Lilly’s eyes began to water.
“Hey,” Roni said gently, leaning in. “Listen, my lovely friend… let’s change the subject. Let me tell you how I met Justin. I think it might help you. And if not, well… it gives me an excuse to talk about him.” She smiled. “Oh, Lilly, isn’t he something?”
Lilly took a deep, settling breath. “Yes, Roni.” She sat up and grinned. “Go ahead and tell me all about it.”
Roni began talking with a chipper tone.
Lilly had always admired Roni’s beauty, but she never noticed how Roni flipped her hair. She pulled it all forward. Then immediately she flipped it back, first the left side, then the right.
Lilly wondered if Roni ever noticed she did this.
She couldn’t contain a giggle.
Roni paused. “Why are you laughing?” Her eyes furrowed. “Normally our inside jokes include me.”
Lilly smiled. “You are so adorable. Happiness looks so good on you.”
Roni smiled. “Oh, okay… now where was I? I was walking the beach. You know how I love it.”
“Yes,” said Lilly. “Me too. I can’t wait until we can enjoy it together. Soon?”
Roni nodded.
“I was looking for treasures. Then there it was. The way the light reflected off it was stunning. You know how excited I get at the thought of finding a new pretty thing the ocean left for me?”
Lilly smiled. “I do, but what I want to know is where you keep them all.”
Roni laughed. “Girl, I’m telling you how I met the love of my life, and you want me to stop to tell you where I put…”
Lilly put her hand up. “Okay, no more interruptions. I want to know every bit of your journey with Justin.”
“All right then,” said Roni. “It was shimmering in the sun, and I just knew it was meant for me. I ran over and picked it up. It was a shell, and not an ordinary one. I had never seen one like this before.”
Lilly asked, “And so where does Justin fit in?”
“I will get to it, Lilly. I forgot how impatient you can be.”
“The colors inside the shell were so vibrant, a blue-green with golden specks that glistened. It didn’t seem real, Lilly.
“Oh, and I promise I’ll show you later.”
“And… well, I stood up, still gazing at its beauty. I was so mesmerized by the trinket. I must have taken a step back, because… it happened.
“Oh no, I was so sorry. There he was just lying on the sand, looking a bit shocked, maybe even miffed. I reached down to help him up, and when he stood, I dropped that shell. Lilly, he was the most handsome man I had ever seen. He and I just stood there for at least a minute.”
“You see, Lilly, that shiny shell didn’t just coincidentally catch my eye. Had I not been drawn to it, I would have never met Justin.”
She leaned in slightly, her eyes bright. “And it goes even deeper than that. What are the chances of you deciding to become a writer close to the time I happened to crash into a man who is an editor?”
Roni smiled, almost as if the answer was obvious. “I don’t think any of this is random. I was meant to be his wife… and you, Lilly, are meant to write. You just have to believe it.”
Lilly tried to hold onto that perspective. It did seem more than just serendipitous, but something in her hesitated. She wasn’t fully convinced yet that she was destined for writing.
To be continued.
Tag, you’re it. If you’d like to jump in, feel free. If not, I’ll keep moving it along, bit by bit.
Sending warmth and kindness
