Amber's Future

"Leah, this is Danny," said Amber.

"Hi." She didn't meet his eyes.

"Hi, Leah." Danny smiled and extended his hand, and Leah shook it. "It's great to meet you. Are we off, then?"

A few minutes later, they arrived at Life Way Church. A group of teens were already setting up the games. A girl named January looked up and smiled as the trio entered the reception room, where the event was being held.

"January, this is my friend Leah from school," Amber told her.

"I'm so glad you're joining us tonight!" January said to Leah.

"Thanks." Leah gave a shy smile.

"Would you like some refreshments?" asked January. "There's cookies and juice on that table over there."

"Oh, yes!" Leah made a beeline for the snack table. She was still eating when it was time to choose partners to play Pictionary. Almost everyone, including Amber, automatically chose their usual game partner, leaving only a handful of people who hadn't been chosen.

"Leah, why don't you team up with Florian," January suggested. "He's new, too."

Florian was a light-skinned boy with light brown hair and blue eyes. "Hi," he said to Leah.

"Hi," Leah replied. "Um, do you like stickers?"

Florian shrugged. "They're all right, I guess. We just moved here from Virginia. My Dad's in the army. He has been since before I was born. We've lived lots of different places, even overseas. I was born in Germany. That's where he met my Mom, but we moved to the United States before my brother and sister were born."

"I've always wondered what it would be like to have brothers and sisters."

Florian grimaced. "They can be a real pain sometimes."

"But at least you're not so lonely."

"OK guys, are we ready to begin?" asked January.

Danny and Amber looked at one another and smiled.

One Sunday morning in February, Jade was clearing away the breakfast dishes when she heard the doorbell ring. She looked through the peephole to see a smiling Trey holding a picnic basket. She opened the door. "Wow, you're early!"

"No problem. I'll just watch TV while you get ready. Assuming you want to go to the park for a picnic with me, that is."

"Oh, absolutely! Give me about fifteen minutes to get dressed." She chose black jeans and a black sweater with red hearts all over it, put on her make-up with care, then joined Trey in the living room.

"Actually, I couldn't wait to give you this." He handed her a large pink envelope. She opened it to find a beautiful card with a piano with flower petals all over it. Inside was a message that read 'You hold the key to my heart.' Beneath that, Trey had penned his own message: 'Jade, when I thought my life was over, you gave me reason to keep on living. When I thought all hope was gone, you made me smile again. I will always be indebted to you, and I love you more than words can say. Happy Valentine's Day, darling. Love, Trey.'

"It's beautiful! Thank you!" Tears were in Jade's eyes as she embraced him.

"That's not all," he told her. Next came a huge box of chocolates in assorted flavors and a slinky red negligee.

"Oh, Trey!" Touched, she clung to him. "This is the nicest Valentine's Day I've ever had!" Her mind went back to five years ago. It had been a rainy Monday, and Danny had given her a cute card with a monkey on the front.

She still had it, buried deep beneath other mementos.

"I've got something for you, too." It was a red, pink and white striped hat with a matching sweater for Lucy. He laughed as he hugged and thanked her.

At the park, the air was brisk and refreshing, and a bright sun shone down on the picnickers, rollerbladers, and bikers. "Before I went into the army, I used to spend hours rollerblading in the park every Saturday morning." Trey's voice was soft, pensive, and tinged with melancholy.

"I never learned how," Jade replied. "But I did used to ride my bike a lot when I was in high school."

They ate the fried chicken, biscuits, potato salad, coleslaw, and pecan pie Trey had brought, then took turns feeding one another chocolates. "I really meant what I wrote on that card, you know." Trey's voice was gruff.

"I know." Sensing there was more to come, Jade waited for him to continue.

He leaned closer and took her hands into his own. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you, Jade. I've known that for a long time, but I hesitated to tell you because - " He sighed. "Well, I just kept asking myself, what woman would want to be married to a guy with no legs? I mean, my job's OK for now, but it's nothing like what I could have had if I could have stayed in the army and risen up through the ranks. I'm not sure how well I could support a family on the salary I have now."

"Oh, Trey, you know that never mattered to me! I'm gonna have my degree in a couple of years, and then I can get a really high-paying job. Between that and your job, we'll be fine."

"But what about when we have kids? You do want them, don't you?"

"Of course I do - eventually. Isn't it a bit early to be worrying about that?"

"I don't want you to have to work after we have kids. They'll need their Mom at home with them."

"Maybe I could work just part time, or we could hire a nanny or something. We'll work something out."

Trey just stared into the distance, not saying a word.

"Can't we just worry about that later, Trey?" asked Jade. "It's been such a beautiful day so far. Please, can't we just enjoy being together?"

Trey sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry." He shook his head. "I always end up ruining everything, don't I?"

"You haven't ruined anything at all! We've had a really nice picnic together, and you gave me a beautiful card and delicious chocolate." She winked. "And there's still that negligee for me to try on for you."

He grinned.

"The community college is holding an essay contest for a two-year tuition-free scholarship," Mrs. French announced to her fifth period English class. "Six of you have been selected to compete. Brandon Lebo, Jodie Smith, Tyler Johnson, Amber Cartwright, Keith Durham, and Heather Nord will ride the bus to the college campus after homeroom Wednesday morning. The contest will take place in the English lecture hall, and then the students will return to the high school for lunch."

When Amber met Danny after school that day, she told him about the contest. "It would be great to win," she said. "Mom's worried all year about how she's gonna be able to send me to college. But those other students are all so smart. It would be super hard to write an essay better than theirs."

"You can do it, Amber," Danny replied. "I have faith in you."

Amber chuckled. "I wish I had as much faith in myself as you do in me."

Danny took both her hands and looked into her eyes. "If only you could see yourself like I see you, Amber."

His words warmed her heart but didn't make her feel much more confident.

At home, she told her mother about the contest. "That would certainly solve the problem of how to pay for college next year," Helen replied. "Then all we'd have to worry about would be how to find a car for you to drive." Helen needed her own car to go to work in every day, and they didn't live near a bus stop.

On the morning of the essay contest, Amber woke up with a throbbing toothache. Determined to make it through the morning anyway, she took several extra strength Tylenol and carried on. By the time she arrived at school, the Tylenol had reduced the screaming agony to a dull ache.

After homeroom, she met the other five students at the back of the school, where they boarded a mini bus. Amber found herself seated beside Heather, a plump girl with dark blonde curls, hazel eyes, and a friendly smile.

"Are you nervous?" she asked Amber.

"Kind of. Are you?"

Heather laughed. "I know I don't stand a chance against Keith and Jodie, as smart as they both are. I'm just doing this for fun."

"You might win anyway," said Amber. "You never know."

Heather just laughed again.

As the bus pulled into the college parking lot, Amber's stomach began to churn. She looked around at the other five students. Could she really do this?

The group went into the school and made their way to the lecture hall. Brandon opened the door, and they entered, found seats, and waited.

Eventually, a well-dressed middle-aged woman with perfectly coifed grey hair entered the room and walked to the podium. "You will have one hour to complete your essay," she told the group. "The choices for essay topics are listed on the form which I will now pass out to you. The essay must be written in black ink. All cell phones must be turned off, and no talking is allowed. I wish you all the best."

When Amber received her copy of the essay subject choices, she looked over them carefully. Should people be allowed to keep exotic animals like chimpanzees or tigers as pets? Should students learn about world religions in public schools? Should people with terminal illnesses have the right to doctor assisted suicides? Should children who commit violent crimes be tried as adults? What was the proudest moment of your life? If you could live in a different country, which one would it be?

Amber carefully examined all the questions, chose the one that she thought she could best relate to, and started writing.

She was about two thirds of the way through when suddenly her bad tooth screamed out in agony once more. She tried biting down hard on it, massaging it with her tongue, and pressing her balled fist against her cheek, but nothing helped.

Oh dear God, please no! she begged. How can I ever concentrate on my essay when I'm in such terrible pain?

Taking a deep breath, she tried to force her mind to return to its previous train of thought and succeeded well enough to finish the essay within the allotted time frame. She even had time to glance back over it and make sure there were no spelling or grammatical errors.

She suffered so badly from her toothache she was hardly able to pay attention in any of her classes, and when Danny met her that afternoon, he looked very worried. "Poor baby," he said as he embraced her.

"It's about to drive me crazy." She was near tears. "It started as soon as I woke up this morning. I took some medicine and that helped for awhile, but then it started hurting really bad before I'd even finished the essay. I tried to ignore it and kept working, though."

"How well do you think you did?"

She thought for a moment. "I think I did OK, up until my tooth started hurting so bad, at least. My essay was on teaching different world religions in school. I thought it was a good idea, and I listed the reasons why. The most important one was that it would help people to be more open-minded and tolerant, since after all, none of them can be proven to be the only correct one."

"You're so right," Danny told her. "Heaven is filled with representatives from practically every religion ever practiced. But what will you do about your tooth? You can't just go on going in the kind of pain you're in."

Amber shrugged. "I guess I'll just have to keep taking medicine until it gets better. We sure can't afford a dentist."

"Call Dr. Bagsby. He lets you make payments over time. Mom used to take us to him when we were little."

"I'd hate for Mom to have to pay that kind of money - "

"How would you like to work in my aunt's bookstore? One of her clerks just went on maternity leave. I already talked to her about it. She'd be willing to work around your school hours."

"Really? That would be great! Thank you so much!"

"Hey, what are friends for?"

"Amber!" Danny's aunt, Beth Dunn, smiled as her newest employee entered the store. "I think I'll have you start by helping Madison put away these new books that just came in this morning."

Madison was a tall, slender blonde who wore glasses. "Why don't you start on that end, and I'll do this?"

"OK." Amber glanced at the book's title. 'Jesus Calling' by Sarah Young.

Dr. Bagsby had pulled her infected tooth just a week before and had agreed to let her pay the bill in installments, as Danny had predicted he would. She'd recovered from the procedure with no complications.

"You're gonna love working here at Beth's Books," Madison told Amber. "I've been here a year already, and it's been great!"

"I'm only temporary, filling in for a woman who went on maternity leave," Amber told her.

"Gabrielle. She told me she wants to take at least six months off, or maybe even longer."

"So it might turn out I can work here for six months or longer? Nobody told me that!"

Madison smiled. "How old are you?"

"Eighteen. I graduate high school in June. How about you?"

"I'm twenty. I'm studying psychology. My fiance's going into law school after college."

"Really? My sister's studying psychology too! She's in California. She went out there with her boyfriend. He wanted to join some new age group. They're not together anymore, but she's still there because she met someone else not too long after they broke up."

The evening passed quickly, and Danny arrived to pick Amber up at the same time Madison's fiance, Seth, arrived to pick her up. "How did it go?" he asked her.

"Great! I like it a lot so far. Your aunt's really nice, and I might get to work here six months or even longer!"

"Glad to hear it." Danny smiled. "I knew you'd do well there. That's why I recommended you for the job. I would take you to Dee-Lite, but tomorrow's a school day."

"That's all right. We can go there Friday night."

The date of the senior prom was announced not too long after that. Amber told Danny about it that afternoon.

"Of course I'll take you," he said. "I never got to attend my own senior prom, you know. Jade went with Gideon." There was an unmistakable note of sadness in his voice.

"Well, maybe this will make up for it," Amber suggested.

"I have no doubt whatsoever it will."

The night of the prom, Amber put on the deep purple formal she'd bought at a consignment shop with some of the money from her paycheck she'd had left over from paying Dr. Bagsby. She'd had enough left over to buy matching dangling purple earrings, and her mother had done her hair especially nice. She spent about thirty minutes on her make-up, struggling to get it just right.

"Do I look OK?" she asked her mother when she was finished.

"You're beautiful, darling." Helen kissed her daughter's forehead.

Danny arrived wearing a black tuxedo. Not a single hair on his head was out of place.

"Wow!" he exclaimed as he placed her corsage on her wrist.

"You look more angelic than an angel," she replied as she pinned his boutonniere to his tuxedo jacket. He burst out laughing.

"I hope tonight turns out perfect for you," Helen told her daughter as they left.

When they arrived, Amber saw that the lodge was decorated with streamers and banners. Strobe lights and fog machines were going, and Lady Gaga was blasting from the stereo as at least half a dozen couples danced. Danny took Amber's hand and led her onto the dance floor, and they began to move to the beat.

More couples arrived as they danced, and then 'If You're Not the One' by Daniel Bedingfield began to play. Danny's arm went around Amber's waist, and she rested her head on his shoulder as her hand slid into his.

As they moved together, Amber saw that Leah and Florian were also dancing with one another. In her heart, she was glad she'd befriended Leah and invited her to game night at the church.

After awhile, they got tired of dancing and sat down at one of the tables. Leah and Florian joined them. "You look so beautiful!" Leah told Amber.

"So do you," Amber replied. Leah was wearing a light pink formal with a matching headband over her braided hair. "And you look so happy! I can't believe how shy you used to be!"

"It's funny, but I don't feel shy when I'm with Florian," Leah replied. "We talk on the phone all the time, and I can't believe how much we have in common!"

"Danny and I are going to Dee-Lite after the prom is over. Would you like to meet us there?"

Leah looked at Florian. "That sounds like fun," he said.

Amber and Danny stayed at the prom until most of the others had left, and so did Florian and Leah. They left for Dee-Lite at about the same time, although of course Danny and Amber got there first.

As they sat together in a booth, enjoying their frozen treats, Amber asked Florian what high school he attended, and he told her. "That's where Bailey goes!" she exclaimed. "Do you know her?"

"Bailey Anderson? Sure I do. She was in a couple of my classes this year. Why?"

"I stayed with her family for the fall term of my junior year. Then I moved back in with my Mom and we lost touch. I haven't seen her in awhile. How's she been?"

"OK, I guess. I don't really talk to her much. I remember when her sister was still alive. They were both in my ninth grade English class. They used to play tricks on teachers all the time, pretending to be each other. It was over the Christmas holiday that year that Britney was killed. None of us could believe it when the teacher told us on the first day back in January."

"That's terrible!" Leah exclaimed.

"It sure was," Florian agreed.

By the time they left Dee-Lite, it was almost two in the morning. "How long have you had this car?" Leah asked Florian as he drove her home afterwards.

"It's actually my Dad's car," he told her. "He let me borrow it for tonight. I'll have to buy my own car before I start college next year."

Soon he pulled up in front of her house, then walked her to the door. "Well, thanks for a wonderful night," she told him.

"You're welcome. Uh, have you ever been kissed?"

She blushed a deep crimson. "No. have you?"

"No," he whispered, beginning to fidget. "Uh, would you like to right now?"

"OK." Slowly he leaned toward her until their lips met.

"The community college called earlier," Helen told Amber one day after she'd come home from school. "You won the two-year scholarship."

"All right!" Amber crowed. "Now the only thing we have to worry about is how I'm gonna get there and back."

"I checked into that," Helen replied. "There's a bus stop about five miles from here. I could drop you off there on my way to work every morning and pick you up every evening on my way home. You might have to stay on campus several hours after your last class some days, and it would mean a long ride on the bus, but if there was no other way, it might work out."

"I'm just so happy to get the scholarship, I'm not even worried about that right now," Amber replied. On honors day, she got a reward for her high grades in English, and Trey and Jade came from California to watch her graduate. Aunt Maria was there too, and as Amber walked to the front to receive her diploma, she knew they were all watching her, proud of her accomplishments, and Danny was the happiest of all.

When the ceremony was over and the graduates had thrown their caps into the air, she ran right into his arms, and he gave her a fierce hug. For several minutes it was just the two of them, and then he looked into her eyes. "Congratulations, Amber. You've done something I never did - graduate high school."

"Oh yeah, that's right!" Amber didn't know what else to say.

"It's all right." Danny grinned. "I'm proud of you, Amber. You've come a long way since you were that frightened girl I found who wanted to end it all. I know you're going to go far in life, and I wish you the best."

Something in his tone caused a prickling sensation down her spine. "Things will still be the same, won't they? I mean - we'll still go out every weekend, won't we?"

Danny shook his head. "It wouldn't be fair to you. You're a living mortal, Amber - a woman who deserves opportunities I can't give you. If things continue as they are, you'll only be held back. You have a destiny to fulfill, but I won't disappear from your life completely. Any time you need me, all you have to do is call."

"Oh, Danny..." She began to cry.

"Hey now, none of that." He embraced her and held her close. "This is a day for celebration, remember? There's no reason to be sad."

She gave him a weak smile. "I guess you're right."

He laughed. "Of course I'm right!" He held her face between his hands and placed a soft kiss on her lips. "Goodbye, Amber."

"Goodbye, Danny."

One Month Later

Helen knocked on her daughter's bedroom door. "Amber! Company!"

Amber emerged from the room to see Florian and Leah standing in the living room, smiling. They both wore swimsuits.

"We were wondering if you'd like to come swimming with us," said Leah.

"Sure. Just let me get my swimsuit on." She went back into her bedroom and emerged a few minutes later wearing her new purple swimsuit.

"That's pretty." Leah smiled but didn't meet Amber's eyes.

"Thanks."

"Ready to go?" asked Florian.

"Sure," Amber replied.

The three of them walked outside to Florian's father's car, which was a 1998 Pontiac LeMonz. "Any luck in finding a car for college?" Amber asked him.

"Nope. You?"

"A girl at the bookstore has a ten-year-old Honda Civic she's trying to sell. She wants three thousand for it, and that's more than I have, but I'm gonna see if she'll come down on the price."

"I wish I had a job," said Leah.

"I'll ask if there are any openings at the bookstore," Amber told her.

Having fun with her friends, Amber felt the melancholy that had settled over her for the past month finally lift. "This reminds me of the summer I was thirteen," she told Florian and Leah. "Jade and I had just gotten out of school for the summer, and Mom brought us here for a picnic. Danny - " Her throat closed up, and she couldn't finish.

"You must really miss him," said Leah. Amber nodded.

"Too bad he couldn't stay," Florian remarked. "He seemed like a really nice guy."

Suddenly Amber no longer felt like swimming and splashing around in the water.

That Saturday was bright and sunny, just like the day Danny died. Amber decided to walk to the park, but her feet must have had other plans, as she soon found herself headed for the cemetery. Once there, she automatically started upon the familiar path toward the grave she'd visited so many times.

Except that it was no longer there. In the space where a marker and a vase for flowers had been, there was nothing but grass. What happened? Amber's breath caught in her throat. Am I going crazy?

A Bible verse from that year's Easter service at Life Way Church came to her. Why seek ye the living among the dead?

She looked up, and sure enough, there he was, walking toward her. Although he looked the same as he always had before, she sensed he was different now. She couldn't quite explain how.

"They all said it was a miracle I survived," he said to her. "By all rights, I should be dead right now. One thing's for sure: I'll never, ever ride with Dekker when he's been drinking again."

It hit her like a bolt of lightning. Did she dare hope?

"You mean - are you back to stay this time?"

He looked puzzled. "I never left!"

They were married right before college classes started in August. All the family members were there. Mrs. Green and Maggie cried, but this time, they cried tears of joy. As Danny slipped the ring onto her finger, Amber felt an electric thrill flow through her body. Danny was hers now, and she was his, for as long as they both lived.

She glanced at Jade to see that she was standing with Trey and they were both smiling. Suddenly what had happened between Danny and Jade no longer mattered. It was in the distant past, and that's where it would stay.

The first night of their married life was spent in a cozy bed and breakfast in their hometown. For Amber, who'd never even spent the night in a motel room before, it was a completely new and different experience. And to be sharing it with Danny, the man she loved!

He kissed her like he had in Venice, but this time there was no hesitation, no apologies. As they kissed, his hands caressed her, and she felt all apprehension leave her, to be replaced with desire at the new and exquisite sensations.

It was nothing at all like it had been with Bruce. Instead of pain and humiliation, there was tenderness and warmth, a blissful union of their two souls, a healing balm poured out over all her pain, vanquishing it, until all that remained was the most profound peace and love.

Ten Years Later

The two couples sat together on the quilt they'd brought to the park and spread beneath the trees.

"So how are sales on your latest book?" Trey asked Danny as he poured tea into a plastic cup and added a lemon slice.

"Pretty good so far." Danny leaned back against a tree, resting his hands behind his head while he stretched his legs and wiggled his toes. "We make a pretty good team, don't we, hon?"

"As an author and illustrator working together, I'd say we're a formidable force!" Amber agreed. They both laughed.

"Can I have another cookie, Mommy?" asked six-year-old Pepper Ann Green. She was tall and slender like her father and had brown hair and eyes like her mother.

"Here you go." Amber handed her daughter another sugar cookie.

"Thanks!"

"Can I have one too?" asked her cousin. Summer Jade Whittaker was also six but was almost a head shorter and had blue eyes instead of brown.

"Hey! I thought we were playing catch!" protested eight-year-old Hunter Trey Whittaker. He had brown hair and hazel eyes.

"I just got hungry." Pepper popped the last bite of cookie into her mouth. "I'll play with you now."

"They're growing up so fast, aren't they?" Jade remarked.

"Just enjoy it while you can," said Trey.

Later, Amber tucked Pepper into bed after her bedtime story. "I wish I had a big brother too, like Summer," the little girl told her mother.

"You do have a big brother," Amber replied after careful consideration. "His name is Nathaniel, and he lives in heaven. You'll meet him some day."

"But why can't I meet him now?"

"Sweetheart, you know when people go to heaven, they stay there, unless there's a special reason for them to come back. You might have to wait a really long time, but I promise you, you will meet him some day."

"OK, Mommy." Piper closed her eyes and went to sleep, and Amber returned to her own bedroom.

"I told her about Nathaniel," she told Danny as she cuddled with him in bed.

"What did she say?"

"She wanted to meet him now, and I told her she'd have to wait until the time was right."

"How did she take that?"

"She didn't say anything else about it."

"Sounds like it's not a problem, then. She'll understand it better when she's older."

As Amber drifted off to sleep, secure in her husband's arms, she wondered how much of the time her husband had spent in heaven he remembered. He never talked about it at all, not even with her. She knew he'd made the tremendous sacrifice of exchanging his immortal life for the opportunity to stay with her, to share her life and grow old with her, because of his deep love for her. She'd never understand how he'd done it, but she'd be grateful forever.