Chapter 17 – Today's the Day, September 16th 2230.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that." Edd said, as he and Marie momentarily broke apart.

"Come again?" Marie asked, with a confused expression on her face.

"Well, uh, you see. I'm not to familiar with courtship rituals, and I feel that I should've, well, asked you first. You know? Gotten consent and all," Edd rambled, as he was cut off by Marie placing her index finger on his lips.

"Edd," Marie said, "Thank you for your consideration, but, you're fine. Really."

"Are you sure?" Edd asked.

Marie responded by pecking him in the cheek, "Absolutely," she responded.

"Thank you Marie. You see, this is one thing that I've always had some trouble with and I'm hoping to work on it before I get to the Navy," Edd said.

Marie shot him an even more quizzical look, "You mean, like, how to interact with women? Or men? I mean, I know what they say about the Navy and all, but I didn't think you'd be the type to hook up."

"Huh?" Edd asked, as his brain tried to process what Marie was implying. His brain now registered what Marie was talking about and he facepalmed himself, "Oh, no, no, no, not what I meant all. You were my first voluntary kiss, after several hundred involuntary over the years I might add, jokingly, but, I mean overanalyzing and assessing whether what I just did was right or wrong, and what the implications would be down the line. You see, immediately after we kissed, rather than just enjoy the moment, my mind raced through hundreds of scenarios of 'what just happened? What if I misread Marie's ideas? What if I just caused a fissure between us?' and the like, and I tend to do this in all matters of life regardless of their magnitude of consequence."

"So, you're saying that you need to learn how to let stuff go?" Marie asked.

"In a manner of speaking, yes," Edd replied.

"Well, I got two thoughts if you want to listen? They're not very technical or anything, but it's kind of just how I lived my life," Marie said.

"I'd love to!" Edd responded, exhaling some relief.

"Well, the first is, I only worry about what I can control. Like, I don't know how May or Lee or Ma will be when I wake up. I don't know if anyone will buy my art. I don't know what questions will show up on the exams, and I don't know if you'll ever love me back, but I don't worry about those things. I do the best I can, with what I have, and if things work out, great, if not, no use wasting time in regret, just try again, or, pack up and leave and try again somewhere else," Marie said.

"Easier said than done," Edd asked.

"True, and it was kind of natural for me, but, if you need help, you could get help? Like a therapist or something?" Marie proposed.

"I don't think I ever needed therapy, because, well, my life's never really been traumatic," Edd offered.

"Well, don't think of it as therapy for fixing something broken. Think of it more like seeing a personal trainer to get your brain and emotions under control. You know? Like, yeah, you're fit and don't have any physical deformities, actually, fuck it, you're quite the hottie, but, getting way ahead of myself now, when you're running, you still have a coach right? You're not figuring it all out for yourself? Maybe there could be some 'training' rather than 'healing?'"

"You know, you're right. I never thought about it that way," Edd replied. "What was you're other idea?"

"It was an old saying my mom said growing up. 'Today's a new day, yesterday is gone forever, and tomorrow may never come.' She shortened it to just 'Today's the day,' and we kind of live that way. It was rough for her for a decade or so in the bottle after our dads left, but eventually, she joined AA and had a support group work her through it. She realized she was drinking heavily out of regret, self-loathing, and despair for what she lost, but when she finally came to grips that there was nothing she could do to change her past or get them back, she kind of found the strength to move on. So, no use worrying about yesterday. Todays' the day you can make a change, and it's got enough problems, so, worry about those. And, if you get them done, tomorrow 'may' never come. It's not gone forever like the past, but it's not right in your face either, so it's worth the time to work on it, if you have some. That's kind of our Kanker philosophy," Marie responded.

"That's quite, articulate Marie. Thank you. I don't think it's going to sink in right now, but I'll ponder it for the evening," Edd told her.

Marie pecked his cheek again, "Don't worry about it Oven Mitt, and did I mention how sexy you are when you speak properly? Hey, I'm not in AP English for nothing."

"Yes, so, um. What are we?" Edd asked.

"You mean, as like a couple?" Marie asked, suppressing her growing excitement.

"Exactly. I don't want to rush in and apply labels or anything like that, but, I also want to take things slowly," Edd said.

"Wait, so like, you actually want to date me?" Marie asked.

"Today's the day, right?" Edd replied. "Objectively, both rationally and emotionally, we spend a considerable portion of our free time together, and exclusively together at that. We are helping each other out and are working towards improving each other. You're quite beautiful if I do say so myself, especially when you're not assaulting me like I'm a gazelle on the Serengeti. And, for what it's worth, probably most of all, I trust you Marie. I've always thought about what constitutes 'love' beyond hormonal attraction, and I'm hypothesizing that trust and willing the good of each other despite the consequences we may receive as a result of our generosity, are two important factors, and, well, we have them."

"So, are you saying that you, um, love me?" Marie asked.

"Well, I'd like to find out if you're willing to give it a chance. We can take things slow, talk things through, but, yes. I'd like to find out if I love you Marie, and I'd like to start today."

Marie wrapped her arms around Edd's neck and pulled him in tightly as she let out a small sob. "Do you have any idea how long I've waited to hear those words?" she asked.

"I can guess, but, we can make that a tomorrow problem. Today's the day, right?" Edd replied as the teens met for another kiss, before setting out for their respective homes.

…..

September 30th, 1130

The next two weeks progressed steadily, but also uneventfully for the new couple. At Edd's request, they kept their relationship status hidden from their classmates, but Marie cut a deal where she could tell her sisters, who were overjoyed that Marie and Edd were together because of their past, but, internally, they were even more hopeful that she was with Edd, because they knew he was genuinely a good guy at heart. Edd continued to train while Marie continued to write, and work on her design for the scholarship. Her project was rapidly morphing into a scene where she could capture "The Essence of Peach Creek," a working title for sure, but showing that there was more to the town than jus the Main Street, downtown, high school, and highlights. There were Mom and Pop shops like Rolf's tucked away; there was Park N'Flush; there the woods and the creek; there was a way to place it all in one design, and it was slowly taking form. Edd's relationship with his parents continued to grow in light of the revelation that his father was not his biological father. Edd spent time with his family asking about his biological father's past, hobbies, interests before, during, and after his service, and spent hours looking through an old photo album. It was a quiet period of growth, but, today was the day of one more trial: Edd's PT test.

Edd was excused from Saturday morning practice, as his mile time trial today, coupled with a recovery run afterwards would serve as his workout. He showed up to the track and started to warm up, but he was surprised to see most of his team still there. He thought they would've dispersed after a Saturday morning workout from hell, but Coach Pick explained Edd's absence to the team and they stuck around to encourage him on with numerous pats on the back and yelling from the stands.

"Alright Edd, you ready?" Coach Pick asked.

"Absolutely?" Edd responded.

"You got it son, alright, here's the official spiel I have to say. You are about to take the United States Service Academies' Candidate Fitness Assessment. This test will measure your muscular strength and endurance, cardio-respiratory endurance, and motor fitness. The results of this test will be used in the admissions process at each service academy by demonstrating your level of physical and motor fitness. Listen closely to the test instructions. You may cease work when you have scored the maximum for any individual event. Otherwise, do your best on each event. You have 40 minutes to complete the entire test. After you complete each event, the scorer will record your raw score and the time the event was tested. If at any time you cannot continue to meet the timed requirements, the test will be terminated. You will have two minutes to complete each event followed by a three minute rest between events. The maximum scores are: Basketball Throw, one hundred two feet in a single attempt. You will have three attempts in two minutes. Okay, I'm going to stop right here. Why do you have to throw a basketball?"

"Shoulder strength?" Edd shrugged, "Making sure I can swim every stroke and don't have extreme pain or a tear? That's my best guess."

"I'll take it," Coach Pick responded. "Pullups, eighteen dead hangs, two minutes. Shuttle Run, seven point eight seconds, two minutes. Situps, ninety-five, two minutes. Pushups, seventy-five, two minutes. One Mile Run, five minutes and twenty seconds. You miss that and we're going to do four hundreds until you fall over. I'm kidding, relax. Do you have any questions?"

"I do not," Edd responded.

"Good, let's begin then," Coach Pick said.

Edd proceeded to the end zone and got on his knees to hurl a basketball down field. His teammates were chanting from the stands, and he reached back and hurled the ball with all his might, but his hands hit the ground in front of him from his momentum.

"Coach, you have to disqualify that one, my hands hit the ground," Edd told his coach.

"I admire your integrity. Okay, two more tries, only the best gets recorded. Want to just ensure you get a safe one before you haul it on the third try?" Coach Pick asked.

"Good idea," Edd thougt as he flashed a thumbs up. He hurled the ball downfield and remained upright.

"Fifty-four feet!" one of his teammates shouted with the measuring tape.

"Not bad, one more try," Edd thought to himself as he took the ball back and really tossed it downfield, but his body was starting to careen forward. He flexed his abs and did his best to remain upright, because once his basketball hit the ground, he was free to fall forward. It took every ounce of concentration to keep his core tight.

Thunk! The ball hit first. "Eighty six feet! Not bad!" His teammates shouted.

"Pullups now, take your time to get to the bars. Three minutes rest begins now," Coach Pick said.

Edd took several deep breaths heading to the pullup bars. A few weeks of training with Marie paid significant dividends, but, he didn't want to completely tax his upper body, because his pushups would suffer in a few minutes. He gripped the bar and came to a dead hang.

"Edd, these are cadence pullups, and they will be on my command. Up!" Coach Pick shouted.

Edd effortlessly knocked out one rep, "Down! Up!" Coach Pick shouted, for repetitions two, three, and four. By repetition five, Edd's arms were growing weary and Edd's heart rate started picking up a bit. His mind came flooding back with thoughts of his past failures, faults, and missteps in this arena. His arms began to shake and his grip grew slippery. He managed to crank out a fifth one, and then went back to an extended arm hang. His mind was battling him. The thought of failing and slipping began to push the thought of success out of his mind, when from outside the fence surrounding the track, he heard his name. Edd's eyes were cinched shut at this point and he saw Marie, standing there, arms crossed over the fence, staring at him, with a smile. She mimed taking a deep breath and crossed her hands into a heart over her chest. Edd breathed deeply, calmed his mind, and knocked out a sixth, seventh, eight, and ninth pullup. Nine was his personal record, and he was getting ready to drop, when he thought, "what's one more? Today's the day, right?" and knocked out a tenth pullup before dropping and landing on the ground.

"Ten. Jeez Edd, I never knew you had that kind of upper body strength," Coach Pick said as they made their way to the cones for a shuttle run. Edd's speedwork on cross country paid dividends and he was able to complete the shuttle run in 8.2 seconds, less than half a second shy of maxing. When pushups came, he was able to knock out sixty-nine which earned a loud howl from the team and a seductive grin from his girlfriend on the side. Edd facepalmed himself with minor embarrassment, both for the number in question, and because seventy-five pushups was no problem for him normally, but, now he realized how much those pullups affected his ability to max. Still, his core was relatively fresh, and he knocked out all ninety-five situps, his first maximum of the event. When the time came for the mile, Edd knew all eyes were on him, and he wanted to do his team and coach proud, and avoid missing the maximum and the ensuing mockery that would jokingly come his way. A 5:20 mile would require four 80-second 400-meter laps. Edd knew how to negative split and save extra speed for the end, so, he attacked this piece just like any other run. Coach Pick blew his whistle, and Edd was off. One lap: eighty-two seconds, right above pace. Second lap: Eighty seconds flat, still two seconds above pace overall, but on track for success. Third lap: Edd tripped for a moment and rapidly regained his footing, but fell two seconds behind, eighty-two seconds overall. Final lap: Edd closed his eyes, breathed deeply, and took each straightaway and curve as hard as he could, as if these were the steps would could prevent an inevitable execution. First hundred meters of the last lap: nineteen seconds, right on pace. Next hundred, and the next hundred, nineteen seconds a piece. Edd heard Coach Pick shouting the numbers from the side and he threw his body into overdrive as his lean frame barreled down the final one hundred meters. He heard his teammates counting down the meters from the side by tens, until Edd literally threw himself across the finish line and managed to remain upright. Coach Pick walked over to him and showed Edd the numbers right from his stopwatch: 5:19.87. "Not bad. Catch your breath, grab a drink, and go for a light five miles this afternoon."

As Coach Pick patted him on the back, his team gave their congratulations as well. However, it was still a Saturday afternoon. The football team was away; most students wanted to go to the game, and even those who didn't were reluctant to spend any more time at school on a Saturday than was required. Coach Pick left as well to catch the second half. Edd continued to stretch in silence and laid down for a second, eyes closed, head on the bleachers, and thought "I did it. It's over, and I did it." The light in front of his closed eyelids dimmed, and Edd sensed the change in his ambiance. He opened his eyes, looked up, and saw Marie standing over him. Edd motioned to get up, but was abruptly tacked back to the ground as Marie embraced him tightly and shouted, "You did it!"

"Couldn't have done it without you," Edd responded, "But, in all sincerity, I am in pain right now, and should get back to stretching."

"You can get back to stretching in two minutes. First, I need to say congrats," Marie told Edd, as the two teens, alone on the field, tied themselves in a lover's embrace, before standing up, and leaving the field.

Today was most certainly the day.