~*( I know I changed this beach scene a lot, but hey it's fiction.)*~
Rafe McCawley sat at the edge of the warm Florida ocean, the soft white sand cushioning him like a pillow stuffed with the most delicate of goose feathers. The beauty of the ocean sunset and the sound of the crashing waves, was almost reminiscent of Hawaii. A place that he in fact was trying to forget. The fire in front of him snapped and crackled with the added kindling of the paper he tossed in painfully. With each letter her burned the time he'd spent with Evelyn felt further in the past.
Then his solitude was shattered by the familiar sound of Danny Walker's approach, as he cast a stick to the side, drawing Rafe's attention from the letters. His friend's advance had gone undetected until then, the sand stifling the sound of his foot steps.
"I've been lookin' all over for you." Danny's voice affirmed as he lowed himself onto a fallen log nearby Rafe.
"Danny, this ain't the time to leave things unsaid." Rafe began "But we gotta face facts here, fact is we both love the same women."
Danny was silent for a minute, before he blinked his penetrating eyes and declared.
"She's the first girl I ever felt this way about Rafe."
Rafe exhaled heavily, with a slight snort.
"What about Beth, do you remember her?"
Danny's stomach knotted at the mention of her name, his blood congealed in his veins, the feeling almost made him nauseous. It was as if his heart froze.
"My wife died Rafe, she died in my arms, I can't believe you'd bring that up." Tears started to well in Captain Walker's dark eyes. "There isn't a day that passes that I don't ask God for just one more day with her. For just one more chance to see her smile, or smell her silky blonde hair. I would give everything I have, everything I'll ever get just to hold her again. But she's gone and I'm never gonna get to do those things again. I didn't think I could ever think about spending my life with another girl until I met Evelyn."
"Ah, but Danny didn't you once promise there would never be another girl for you, other then our Miss Elizabeth Sullivan. You've never been the type to lie Danny, but you told one hell of one don't ya think." Rafe said bitterly.
"What about you?"
"What about me?" The older pilot asked if there was nothing his buddy could throw in his face.
"Didn't you make a promise just like that to a girl 'fore we left? I'm thinkin' ya did, now what was her name? Oh that's right, Rosanna Gadry, Rosie. Let's talk about how selfish you are Rafe. You just packed up and left that poor girl at home alone and heart broken. Didn't even bother to write to her, forgot about her like she didn't eve matter. I bet you never even told about Evelyn did you? Beth died Rafe, but Rosie's still very much alive, so who's a hypocrite?" Danny retorted.
"I'm sure she's over it by now, Rosie's a strong girl, besides I left her with some great memories."
"You left her with more then just memories McCawley." The younger countered.
"What's that suppose to mean?" Captain McCawley raised his eyebrows.
"Forget it Rafe, that's what you're best at." With that Danny left the beach.
******************************************************************
In a moderate sized farm house in Louisville Kentucky a petite twenty-two year old brunette stood at the sink watching her daughter out of the kitchen window. The little girl was the pride and joy of her mother and the apple of her grandfather's eye. She had her mothers soft brown curls and tiny frame but her eyes were hazel with a playful gleam, her chin was slightly cleft and her smile was both mischievous and earnest. The little girl was her father in female form. Right down to her obsession with anything that flew. One day she'd even gone as far as to leap of the top rafter in the barn, in an virtually reenactment of something her father had done many years before, earning her the nickname Eagle from her mother. That on some days brought face splitting smiles to her mother and others drove her to the verge of tears.
Life hadn't been particularly hard for Rosie after Rafe left, she took the money Danny had given her and bought a nice piece of property in Kentucky, close enough to return to Shelby Tennessee often, but far enough away not to be reminded of her past on a daily basis. She'd written back and forth to Danny biweekly since the boys had left for the Army going on six years ago. And had been using the rest of her money to provide for her child.
Still sometimes she'd look at her daughter and wonder what might have been, thinking of all the things she'd given up to become a mother just before her eighteenth birthday. She'd always wanted to go to college and get a degree in mechanics, she wanted to open her own garage, or she wanted to buy her own plane and start her own air tour company. Rosie hadn't flew since Rafe had left, hadn't as much as looked under the hood of a car since Rosalyn had been born, everything had changed in her life.
She had told Eagle, for years that her father would be returning to them soon, trying to spare her daughter from knowing your parent had left you willingly, a pain Rosie had known all to well herself. Then came the day she'd received the letter from Danny telling her Rafe had been shot down over the sea, as he fought as a member of the RAF. Rosanna had taken Rosalyn aside and explained to her that her daddy had died and that he couldn't come back to them. When she learned the truth of his miraculous survival, she'd been content to continue letting Rosalyn think he was dead, the little girl would never know her father anyway.
"Mommy!" Voice that hadn't aged a day over five years called, raising up the back steps and into the kitchen.
Rosie smiled at her little girl for a second before he answered her. Rosalyn's hair was sticky with sweat and her cheeks were tinted pink form over excitement and exercise.
"What is it sweetie?"
"There was a plane! Did ya see it, did ya see it!" She asked excitedly, hopping up and down.
"No honey, I didn't."
"Mommy, I wanna fly, someday can I fly like daddy did?"
Rosanna sighed and closed her eyes picking up the little girl.
"Maybe one day you can my little Eagle." She whispered, maybe one day.
Rafe McCawley sat at the edge of the warm Florida ocean, the soft white sand cushioning him like a pillow stuffed with the most delicate of goose feathers. The beauty of the ocean sunset and the sound of the crashing waves, was almost reminiscent of Hawaii. A place that he in fact was trying to forget. The fire in front of him snapped and crackled with the added kindling of the paper he tossed in painfully. With each letter her burned the time he'd spent with Evelyn felt further in the past.
Then his solitude was shattered by the familiar sound of Danny Walker's approach, as he cast a stick to the side, drawing Rafe's attention from the letters. His friend's advance had gone undetected until then, the sand stifling the sound of his foot steps.
"I've been lookin' all over for you." Danny's voice affirmed as he lowed himself onto a fallen log nearby Rafe.
"Danny, this ain't the time to leave things unsaid." Rafe began "But we gotta face facts here, fact is we both love the same women."
Danny was silent for a minute, before he blinked his penetrating eyes and declared.
"She's the first girl I ever felt this way about Rafe."
Rafe exhaled heavily, with a slight snort.
"What about Beth, do you remember her?"
Danny's stomach knotted at the mention of her name, his blood congealed in his veins, the feeling almost made him nauseous. It was as if his heart froze.
"My wife died Rafe, she died in my arms, I can't believe you'd bring that up." Tears started to well in Captain Walker's dark eyes. "There isn't a day that passes that I don't ask God for just one more day with her. For just one more chance to see her smile, or smell her silky blonde hair. I would give everything I have, everything I'll ever get just to hold her again. But she's gone and I'm never gonna get to do those things again. I didn't think I could ever think about spending my life with another girl until I met Evelyn."
"Ah, but Danny didn't you once promise there would never be another girl for you, other then our Miss Elizabeth Sullivan. You've never been the type to lie Danny, but you told one hell of one don't ya think." Rafe said bitterly.
"What about you?"
"What about me?" The older pilot asked if there was nothing his buddy could throw in his face.
"Didn't you make a promise just like that to a girl 'fore we left? I'm thinkin' ya did, now what was her name? Oh that's right, Rosanna Gadry, Rosie. Let's talk about how selfish you are Rafe. You just packed up and left that poor girl at home alone and heart broken. Didn't even bother to write to her, forgot about her like she didn't eve matter. I bet you never even told about Evelyn did you? Beth died Rafe, but Rosie's still very much alive, so who's a hypocrite?" Danny retorted.
"I'm sure she's over it by now, Rosie's a strong girl, besides I left her with some great memories."
"You left her with more then just memories McCawley." The younger countered.
"What's that suppose to mean?" Captain McCawley raised his eyebrows.
"Forget it Rafe, that's what you're best at." With that Danny left the beach.
******************************************************************
In a moderate sized farm house in Louisville Kentucky a petite twenty-two year old brunette stood at the sink watching her daughter out of the kitchen window. The little girl was the pride and joy of her mother and the apple of her grandfather's eye. She had her mothers soft brown curls and tiny frame but her eyes were hazel with a playful gleam, her chin was slightly cleft and her smile was both mischievous and earnest. The little girl was her father in female form. Right down to her obsession with anything that flew. One day she'd even gone as far as to leap of the top rafter in the barn, in an virtually reenactment of something her father had done many years before, earning her the nickname Eagle from her mother. That on some days brought face splitting smiles to her mother and others drove her to the verge of tears.
Life hadn't been particularly hard for Rosie after Rafe left, she took the money Danny had given her and bought a nice piece of property in Kentucky, close enough to return to Shelby Tennessee often, but far enough away not to be reminded of her past on a daily basis. She'd written back and forth to Danny biweekly since the boys had left for the Army going on six years ago. And had been using the rest of her money to provide for her child.
Still sometimes she'd look at her daughter and wonder what might have been, thinking of all the things she'd given up to become a mother just before her eighteenth birthday. She'd always wanted to go to college and get a degree in mechanics, she wanted to open her own garage, or she wanted to buy her own plane and start her own air tour company. Rosie hadn't flew since Rafe had left, hadn't as much as looked under the hood of a car since Rosalyn had been born, everything had changed in her life.
She had told Eagle, for years that her father would be returning to them soon, trying to spare her daughter from knowing your parent had left you willingly, a pain Rosie had known all to well herself. Then came the day she'd received the letter from Danny telling her Rafe had been shot down over the sea, as he fought as a member of the RAF. Rosanna had taken Rosalyn aside and explained to her that her daddy had died and that he couldn't come back to them. When she learned the truth of his miraculous survival, she'd been content to continue letting Rosalyn think he was dead, the little girl would never know her father anyway.
"Mommy!" Voice that hadn't aged a day over five years called, raising up the back steps and into the kitchen.
Rosie smiled at her little girl for a second before he answered her. Rosalyn's hair was sticky with sweat and her cheeks were tinted pink form over excitement and exercise.
"What is it sweetie?"
"There was a plane! Did ya see it, did ya see it!" She asked excitedly, hopping up and down.
"No honey, I didn't."
"Mommy, I wanna fly, someday can I fly like daddy did?"
Rosanna sighed and closed her eyes picking up the little girl.
"Maybe one day you can my little Eagle." She whispered, maybe one day.