Dear Fabrizio,
I thought it was about time I wrote to you, my friend. Rose and I have settled in England. We’re staying with a lovely old couple, the Brookes. Rose works as a language teacher at a church school and I have been drawing portraits at Rushton Park for a few pennies. Life here is good, Fabri, and I miss you. In May, Rose and I became engaged, and we have settled on a date of December the twenty-third. We would both love it if you would come. It’s been seven months since we met, yet it feels so much longer. Rose also asked if you could contact Maria and thank her for helping her when she needed it the most. She also would like it if Maria could also come to the wedding. She would like to see her again and it would be good for the four of us to be together again—like old times. Well, write back soon, my friend. My address is included in this letter. I hope all is well with you.
Jack
Folding up the small note and placing it in a small envelope, Jack licked the flap before sealing it. He hoped Fabrizio could make it to the wedding. There were only two months to go and he couldn’t wait to marry her. The front door banged and Rose entered, disturbing Jack from his thoughts.
“Happy birthday, darling.” She greeted him with a small kiss. She looked stunning in a black dress with yellow roses embroidered on the shoulders.
“Thank you.” He smiled to her. “I wrote to Fabri. I hope he replies.”
Rose had seen how much he missed his friend and she, too, hoped he came to the wedding. “I have gotten you a few presents.” She hoped to perk his spirits up a little.
“Rose, I told you not to.” He shook his head, taking a seat on the sofa. She simply rolled her eyes at him. She handed him three presents, each one wrapped in brown paper. The first was long and flat, while the others were more square.
“It’s your birthday. I have to.”
Tearing the paper open on the first present, he found a leather portfolio. His eyes lit up. He smiled happily. “Rose…”
“I thought you’d need a new one. Besides, with us getting married, I thought we could have our own little collection of drawings in there.”
“That’s a good idea. Something to take with us forever.” The next item was smaller and weightless. Within the packaging, he found a simple black tie. He looked at Rose. He had never worn a tie before.
“I thought you could wear it when get married.”
Jack raised his eyebrows for a moment. He had forgotten that he would have to wear a tie when he was married. He smiled to himself, realizing how much of their wedding they needed to plan.
“I will. Thank you.” The last present was a box, and Jack opened it to find a pocket watch. It looked expensive and he looked at it carefully. “Rose…I don’t know what to say.”
“Turn it over.” She smiled, and he did. She’d had the words Maybe it’s Destiny engraved on the watch. It was something he had said to her a few months ago, and maybe it was destiny that they were together now.
“I’ll treasure this.” He put the watch in the palm of his hand and clutched it tightly. “It will never leave my side.”
Rose stood and came towards him. He kissed her forehead. He hadn’t expected her to buy him anything.
“Is there anything else you want for your birthday?” she asked, teasing him a little. His face fell serious, and she realized something was the matter. Was he missing Fabrizio still?
“Not something I want for my birthday, but…what I want to talk to you about.” Jack had been wanting to talk to her about it for a few weeks. “When we’re married, where are we going to live?”
Rose shrugged. She knew they couldn’t live with the Brookes forever, but they couldn’t exactly afford their own place. “We’ll figure it out.”
“Rose, what I mean is…would you like to go home? To the States?”
She leaned forward a little. She hadn’t really thought about America. It had been almost a year since she had left Philadelphia for finishing school. “I don’t know. Maybe. How about you?”
“I don’t know. I’d like for us to move back home. I miss it there. I left over two years ago and I want to take you to Los Angeles, to the pier in Santa Monica.” He smiled at her, and she remembered how they had talked about it. “I want us to live life to the fullest. To make each day count. We’re still young, and even though we’ll be married, I want you to go on the same adventures I had…it’s time you started living like a seventeen-year-old girl should.”
Rose couldn’t stop smiling. “Oh, Jack, I want that, too. But can we afford it?”
“After the wedding, if we put our heads down for a good few months and work, maybe we’ll be able to afford tickets home. Maybe around March or April.”
“I’d love to. That would be incredible.”
She jumped into his arms, never thinking she could feel any happier than she already did.
*****
Two weeks later, Jack dropped by the post office to see if he had any mail. One letter. He waited until he got home to open it. He tore open the envelope and pulled out the paper inside.
Jack,
I am so happy for you and Rose, and I will most definitely be there to see you two wed. All is well here, although lonely without you. I cannot wait to see you again. It has been too long. I still work at the factory, but I am growing to hate it more and more each day. I have spoken to Maria and she, too, will come to the wedding and is looking forward to seeing both you and Rose. She is living with me at the moment. She was attacked by a client at the brothel, and because she acted towards him in self-defense, she was fired. We will arrive in London on the day of your wedding.
Fabrizio
Jack threw the letter onto the table. He was going to see his best friend on his wedding day and he couldn’t wait to tell Rose. Everything was coming together now.