*NOTE: This story takes place one year after "Meant to Be" Part II. They are now seventeen years old.
Meant to Be: Part III: Love that Endures
Today was the one year anniversary of when Lilly and Oliver started dating. Their love for each other grew stronger every day. It was so strong that nothing imaginable could damage it. No one could come between them. Their relationship had things that neither of them had ever had in a relationship. They had trust. They had understanding of each other. They knew each other so well they didn't need words to know what the other was thinking, sometimes. But most of all their love for each other was real, and it was rock solid.
Oliver was walking off the pier when all of a sudden Lilly came out of nowhere and caught him in a bear hug, and kissed him full on the lips. "Hey Ollie, happy anniversary!" she said happily. "It's been amazing Lillypop." He replied, enthusiastically. Surprisingly enough Oliver had remembered to get Lilly something special. On the other hand, as Lilly was in the middle of another bear hug, she remembered "Oh shoot, I didn't get him anything, but he's a guy he won't mind… but he's not like other guys, he probably got me something ,I mean he gave me something for our one week anniversary for crying out loud!! I better think of something quick." They had a whole day planned out. They would hang out on the beach all morning and possible do some surfing. Then they would swim over to the floating restaurant and have lunch. Then they would go ice skating at the mall and see a movie to commemorate their first day of dating together. And then they had planned to have dinner at a nice restaurant. And finally they'd fall asleep under the stars in Oliver's back yard.
They cheerfully walked down to the beach, hand in hand the entire time. The moment their feet touched sand they spotted trouble. Lilly's ex-boyfriend, Lucas Tomland, who had been dating another girl at the same time he was dating Lilly. "Hey Lilly-pad, wanna go over to that bar right down there and get a drink with… hold the phone, you're dating Okey?!!?" Lucas said rudely, he was clearly intoxicated. "It's Oken you…" "Shut up Lucas, why don't you take your crazy eyes and your fake ID and go bother someone else." Lilly interjected. "You don't know what you're missing Lil, he could never…" "He's twice the boyfriend you could ever be, so go away!" she cut him off again. Oliver was starting to get frustrated; Lucas' insulting behavior was starting to get to him. "I'll show you he's nothing compared to me!" Lucas shouted. BAM! Lucas' fist collided with Oliver's jaw, and a little blood dripped out of his mouth. But then Oliver, with lightning fast reflexes that he didn't know he had in him, stuck his foot behind the heel of Lucas' foot and forced his leg out from under him, knocking him to the ground. "Both of you cut it out! Let's go Oliver!" Lilly beckoned at the top of her lungs. Oliver being the bigger person began to walk away with his girlfriend and dignity intact. And as Lucas came up behind to make another move, a policeman grabbed him from behind, and arrested him for assault, possession of a fake ID, and drinking underage.
"Ok Oliver, I'm really proud of you." Lilly said. "Yeah, I really had him!!" Oliver said confidently. "No Ollie I mean for walking away and not being a jerk like him! It just goes to show that we make a great couple, cause we can face something like that together and not let it bother us!" she said. "Yeah, you're right. I love you Lils!" They kissed each other, and then made their way to the water with their surf boards. But after a while they decided to try something new. Lilly got onto the same board with Oliver. They couldn't really ride the waves so much. But they did feel good being so intimately close. In the end they repeated the same mistake they had on their first day as a couple. They tried to kiss each other while surfing. And even though they were on the same board, they lost control and wiped out. They recovered the board but they just lay there for a while on their backs, with their shoulders touching and their fingers interlocked, letting the tide wash over them.
Lilly sat up and started playing with Oliver's hair. It was much shorter than it had been a year ago. Not too short. It now only came to behind his cheek bone. It reached to about the length of half way down between the bottom of his ear and his jaw bone. She always noticed how his chin came to a definite point. And often she would put part of her hand there when they where kissing. She didn't know why, that was just where it ended up.
As planned they swam over to the floating restaurant, and had lunch. But it wasn't long before they spotted another old face. It was Oliver's ex Joanie Palumbo. But to their relief she with another guy, so she wasn't going to be trouble the way Lucas had been. "Hey, Oliver, hey Lilly," Joanie said in a cheery voice, "I heard you two where dating. You are so cute together. To tell the truth, when I broke up with you Oliver, I figured Lilly would actually make a lot of sense for you!" "Thank you Joanie that means a lot." said Oliver. "We are cute together, aren't we Ollie?" said Lilly jovially.
They made their way to the mall where they once again went ice skating. This time Oliver asked Lilly to skate with her arms around him. But this time neither of them had to make the excuse that they where cold and needed the warmth. They both knew it was the warmth that the intimacy brought being so close that they could feel each other's hearts beating and feel each others' breath on their skin. Occasionally they kissed warmly on the cold ice. Soon the rink attendant told them they would either have to stop kissing, or leave.
A minute and a half later they had their ice skates off and they were in line to get tickets to another emotional movie. By the end they were both holding each other tight. They were an emotional couple, so it was easy for them to lean on each other for support, when they needed to cry. When they got out of the movie, it was past five. So it was time for them to go somewhere for dinner.
So they went to that very same Italian restaurant that they had been to during their very first day as a couple. When they were finished eating they had things to give each other. "Happy one year anniversary Lilly," Oliver said happily. He handed her a box and something rectangular that was wrapped in newspaper, after all he was still a dork. But he was adorable to her. She opened the wrapped present first. It was a picture of them during their first dance, which he had paid Jackson to take. "Aww, Oliver that is so sweet, I love you so much!" she said smiling and then kissed him, still smiling. Then she opened the box. It was a beautiful necklace with a piece that said 'Lillypop'. "Oh my gosh, Oliver that is so…" But she couldn't find the words to express how she felt at that moment. It was just that he always seemed to know the right things to make her happy.
It was Lilly's turn to present Oliver with something to celebrate her love for him. She had indeed been able to come up with something suitable. It was along the same vein as Oliver's gift. It was a photo album from when they were in kindergarten to the present. There was a picture of them on the swings at recess in kindergarten. There was the Halloween in second grade when they both dressed up as pirates. There was the time in fifth grade when Oliver had the chicken pocks and she caught it from him. There was a picture, taken by Rico, of them wrestling his locker monkey. There were their prom pictures. There was a picture of them sitting on the beach with the sun setting in front of them. And there was a picture of them kissing in front of that very same sunset. There were many other pictures of them. Oliver looked at her and smiled "This is the best present I've ever gotten. I love you more and more every day." They kissed each other warmly and then left after the check was paid.
Oliver walked Lilly to his house where they prepared to end their evening by falling asleep next to each other under the stars. They kissed passionately and romantically. Then they looked at each and said in unison "I love you!" It had been a wonderful and eventful day. But if there was one thing they were sure of more than ever was that their love and their relationship was going to continue to grow, and it was meant to be.
As their eyes closed they were looking directly at each other, and had each other's faces fresh in their minds. They fell asleep to be greeted by dreams of love and each other. If anyone had seen them, they would have noticed the smiles on their faces, but not seen the love in their hearts, that was meant to be.
*NOTE: Even though this was the third part of "Meant to Be", it is the fifth installment of my "Meant to Be" saga. "How it was Meant to Happen" and "Beautifully Sad" are part of the saga, and both connect in. Later chapters are where "Beautifully Sad" will connect.
**NOTE: "Meant to Be" part IV will take place eight years after this chapter. I will not reveal any details, but I think you'll like it.
***I hope you like this installment! More to come!