Bridget's Flame, week two story
This is a bit of an experiment for me. Please let me know what you think.
“What do you say we take off on the ‘bike this summer and see some of the world? We could go to Chicago, the Grand Canyon, Vegas- we could make it all the way to California and back in two months.”
“Ummm …sounds interesting. But where will we stay?”
“Well, we could camp-“
“Camp? Where are we going to put our camping equipment, on the bike?”
“I can fit everything we need on the back: tent, sleeping bag, a few supplies, and a small bag each.”
“Really? It must be a small tent, and what will we eat? I can’t afford to eat in restaurants, even if it’s McDonald’s, for two months, you know.”
“It is a small tent, and we’ll pick up food along the way; there are lots of farm stands and farmer’s markets, and we’ll never be far from a grocery store.”
“Well; it sounds like you’ve done this before.”
“I have. I’ve been back and forth between the east and west coasts a few times. I know how it works, where the campgrounds are, all that. Come on, you know you want to.”
“It might be fun. I’ll think about it.”
“You’ll think about it? What other offers have you got for this summer that are as good?”
“Well, there’s that job with Bill in Rockland, and the chance to work at the Farnsworth Museum, and there’s always the coffee house.”
“You would rather work at the coffee house than take a trip cross country?”
“Not necessarily, but if the others fall through … It’s my back-up plan. Besides, at the coffee house I’ll make money instead of spending it.”
“You have your whole life to make money and … What is that music on the stereo?”
“Huh? Ummm … Maria McKee. “If Love is a Red Dress”. What does that have to do with anything?”
“It’s distracting, her wailing away about betrayal. It spoils the mood.”
“Oh, what mood is that?”
“The mood- dammit, you’re not going to make this easy, are you?”
“Make what easy? You’re trying to convince me to give up my plans, alter my life, for your whim? Why should I do that? Why should that be easy for you? Why should I just say ‘Gee, Martin, that sounds like a great idea; let’s go!’? Huh? Why?”
“Whoa, hold on, Anna! Firstly, this is not a whim of mine. I’ve done it before, I’ve got the equipment, the maps with the route marked, all of that. I thought you might like to get out of this flat little clearing at the edge of the ocean, and see something new. And … I thought … I was going to see if you would marry me. I thought we could get married in Las Vegas.”
“What? … Get married? … When were you going to tell me that?”
“On the rim of the Grand Canyon. I thought it would mean more if we were … out of context, away from our ordinary lives.”
“You were going to drag me to the Grand Canyon to propose to me?”
“No! That’s only part of it! I wanted you to see Chicago, and the St. Louis Arch, and the Great Plains. I wanted us to sleep out under the stars in the middle of nowhere. I wanted to give you memories of what else there is out there.”
“Because I need to be shown the world before it’s too late? Before I die an ignorant old woman here in ‘this flat little clearing at the edge of the ocean’?”
“No. Because I want to go to these places with you. Because I want us to take this trip, and come back here as man and wife, before we settle down in this place. Because I love you.”
“I love you, too, Martin. Believe me, I do. But this is a lot to consider. I’ve never thought about getting married. It changes things, and I’m gonna need some time, to digest it. Please, just- Can I have some space, to think about it?”
“Sure, Anna. Whatever you want. I’ll see you around.”
“What do you say we take off on the ‘bike this summer and see some of the world? We could go to Chicago, the Grand Canyon, Vegas- we could make it all the way to California and back in two months.”
“Ummm …sounds interesting. But where will we stay?”
“Well, we could camp-“
“Camp? Where are we going to put our camping equipment, on the bike?”
“I can fit everything we need on the back: tent, sleeping bag, a few supplies, and a small bag each.”
“Really? It must be a small tent, and what will we eat? I can’t afford to eat in restaurants, even if it’s McDonald’s, for two months, you know.”
“It is a small tent, and we’ll pick up food along the way; there are lots of farm stands and farmer’s markets, and we’ll never be far from a grocery store.”
“Well; it sounds like you’ve done this before.”
“I have. I’ve been back and forth between the east and west coasts a few times. I know how it works, where the campgrounds are, all that. Come on, you know you want to.”
“It might be fun. I’ll think about it.”
“You’ll think about it? What other offers have you got for this summer that are as good?”
“Well, there’s that job with Bill in Rockland, and the chance to work at the Farnsworth Museum, and there’s always the coffee house.”
“You would rather work at the coffee house than take a trip cross country?”
“Not necessarily, but if the others fall through … It’s my back-up plan. Besides, at the coffee house I’ll make money instead of spending it.”
“You have your whole life to make money and … What is that music on the stereo?”
“Huh? Ummm … Maria McKee. “If Love is a Red Dress”. What does that have to do with anything?”
“It’s distracting, her wailing away about betrayal. It spoils the mood.”
“Oh, what mood is that?”
“The mood- dammit, you’re not going to make this easy, are you?”
“Make what easy? You’re trying to convince me to give up my plans, alter my life, for your whim? Why should I do that? Why should that be easy for you? Why should I just say ‘Gee, Martin, that sounds like a great idea; let’s go!’? Huh? Why?”
“Whoa, hold on, Anna! Firstly, this is not a whim of mine. I’ve done it before, I’ve got the equipment, the maps with the route marked, all of that. I thought you might like to get out of this flat little clearing at the edge of the ocean, and see something new. And … I thought … I was going to see if you would marry me. I thought we could get married in Las Vegas.”
“What? … Get married? … When were you going to tell me that?”
“On the rim of the Grand Canyon. I thought it would mean more if we were … out of context, away from our ordinary lives.”
“You were going to drag me to the Grand Canyon to propose to me?”
“No! That’s only part of it! I wanted you to see Chicago, and the St. Louis Arch, and the Great Plains. I wanted us to sleep out under the stars in the middle of nowhere. I wanted to give you memories of what else there is out there.”
“Because I need to be shown the world before it’s too late? Before I die an ignorant old woman here in ‘this flat little clearing at the edge of the ocean’?”
“No. Because I want to go to these places with you. Because I want us to take this trip, and come back here as man and wife, before we settle down in this place. Because I love you.”
“I love you, too, Martin. Believe me, I do. But this is a lot to consider. I’ve never thought about getting married. It changes things, and I’m gonna need some time, to digest it. Please, just- Can I have some space, to think about it?”
“Sure, Anna. Whatever you want. I’ll see you around.”