Page 59 of Truly, Madly, Deeply
She looked too pretty to have cancer. He opened the front door as they got closer. The Baxters always gathered at the old farmhouse in Bloomington for Thanksgiving, and this year they had invited the Millers. Because the news from Annalee’s scan was so good.
Her tumor was disappearing!
She didn’t need a wheelchair now, even though she’d had another round of chemo since the scan. Maybe because of the great news or maybe because God was working a miracle, she felt stronger these days. Able to walk. And the color really was back in her pretty freckled cheeks.
Tommy met them at the door and resisted the urgeto let Annalee lean on him. She wanted to walk on her own, she had told him a few days ago. Like a normal person. She had missed it. Instead he shook hands with her dad and hugged her mom and brother.
“Glad you could make it!” He grinned at each of them. “Everyone’s inside.”
Over the last three years Annalee’s family had shared other dinners here at the Baxter house, so there was no need for introductions. Tommy’s dad had asked the family to avoid talking about Annalee’s cancer.
Better just to enjoy the time together.
When everyone had said their hellos, Tommy walked with Annalee to the back porch, where they could be alone for a few minutes. He had promised that even he wouldn’t ask how she was today. So he put his arm around her and together they stared across the back field.
“It’s so pretty.” She shaded her eyes. “Let’s walk to the stream out back… next time.”
“We will.” He held her close, warmed by the feel of her body against his. “This spring. It’s a date.”
“Perfect.”
They were talking in code. She would finish with her treatments in early January. Then there would be another scan weeks later. That one had to show just one result if they were actually going to take a walk to the stream in spring.
No evidence of disease. NED, her doctor had called it.
“What are you thankful for, love?” He held her closerstill. They would talk about it at dinner, go around the table so everyone could share. But he wanted to have this moment with her first. Just the two of them.
She turned to him. “So much.” She paused. “I’m… thankful for the smell of turkey and potatoes coming from your aunt and uncle’s house. And for the chill in the air reminding me that winter is coming. Time is passing. The seasons are changing.”
Here was one more thing Tommy loved about her. She was a poet. Every detail of life landed on her. Moments like this he wished he could write down what she had just said. Because he never wanted to forget it.
“Okay.” He faced her now. “My turn.”
She put her finger softly to his lips. “Wait. I’m not done.” Her eyes danced, the way they hadn’t in far too long. “I’m thankful for my friendship with Jesus and my parents and my brother. And I am forever thankful… for you, Tommy Baxter. I don’t think… I really don’t think I could’ve survived all this without you.”
Where they were standing couldn’t be seen from the house. They hadn’t kissed since the time they walked the canal. There had never been a good moment, what with her being so sick and tired.
But here… with the late November cold on their faces and hope flooding their hearts, Tommy couldn’t take another breath until they did. He stepped closer and took her face in his hands. “Can I kiss you, Annalee?”
She answered him by touching her lips to his, by kissing him in a way that took his breath. “Didn’t youknow, Tommy?” Her words were breathy, little more than a whisper.
“Know what?” He kissed her again and another time.
“This…” She kissed him once more and the moment lasted longer than before. When it ended, her smile took up her whole face. “This… is why I agreed to come today.”
“Oh, it is?” He kissed her a final time and then brought her back to his side, his arm around her. There were lines they didn’t want to cross, which meant it was time for a break. He caught his breath. “Wow. I guess I know what I’m thankful for.”
“Tommy!” She giggled. “You wouldn’t dare say that in front of our families!”
“No.” He laughed and ran his hand along her arm. “But I am thankful.”
They were quiet for a while, until Annalee broke the silence. “What else? What are you thankful for, Tommy?”
“For today.” He turned to her and took both her hands in his. “Thankful you’re standing here and looking like a vision of health. I thought God wasn’t hearing my prayers. But that wasn’t true.” He sighed. “So I’m thankful for everything He is doing. In your life and mine. And in my parents’ lives. And I’m thankful for you, love. Every minute with you.”
Tommy couldn’t help himself. He kissed her once more and then he took her hand. “Dinner’s probably ready.”
“Oh, that.” She laughed again and the sound stayed with him. “I almost forgot.”
