"Bye, Suzy Q." Sean said reluctantly. Sue forced a smile.
"Yep...bye." She replied as Sean backed away. When the door closed, the fake smile fell from Sean's face and he exhaled sharply. His eyes were wet as he fought to maintain his composure as he walked back across the street to his house. He hoped that no one in his family would see him as he walked in and he lucked out. He made it to his bedroom unnoticed and closed the door softly behind him. He thew the red duffle bag onto his bed and stood in front of his closet for a long moment. He then haphazardly tossed assorted clothes across the room. He turned to see the mess that he made and sighed. He walked to the bed and collected each article of clothing, folding each piece carefully and packed them into the bag. He had never felt like this about ANYONE before and he so desperately wanted to tell Sue how he really felt about her. He thought about going back across the street and letting it all out, but didn't know if it would be right to do that just before flying half way across the world for 3 months. But what if she did feel the same way? Maybe she wouldn't mind waiting 3 months for them to be together. Maybe the distance would end up tearing them apart. Maybe she didn't feel the same way about him and then he would be distracted with heartbreak while he was in Ghana where he was supposed to be focusing on the less fortunate. What if she met someone new during the summer? He hated the thought of seeing her with someone else, but he didn't want to interfere with her happiness. He decided it would be best to just try to get over her. If they didn't end up together during the 5 months that passed after their Christmas kiss, who was he to think that anything would happen during the next few days? He finished packing his clothes and placed the packed bag near the front door.
"Sean? Is that you?" Nancy called from the other room.
"Yeah, it's me." He replied as he stepped into view.
"Are you ready to go to the church to pack care packages for the troops? I was supposed to be there 15 minutes ago but I was waiting for you." She said.
"Sure, mom. Let's go." He replied. He figured that it was worth trying anything to take his mind off of his love life.
"RON! WE'RE GOING TO THE CHURCH NOW!" Nancy shouted from the front door.
"HAVE FUN!" He called out from the other room.
"Oh, I forgot my phone. I'll be right back." Sean told his mom as he went back to his bedroom, running into his father in the hallway.
"Hey, son. You know that it's pretty obvious for a man to tell when another man has been crying." He pointed at Sean's red eyes and patted him on the shoulder.
"What?" Sean asked surprised, wiping his eyes in an attempt to hide the evidence. "I'm...fine...it must be allergies or something..." He defended. Ron shook his head.
"It's Sue, isn't it?" Ron asked. Sean's mouth flung open in shock.
"W...what? Why would it be...what makes you think that?" Sean questioned. Ron chuckled sympathetically and lowered his voice so that Nancy wouldn't hear him.
"Let's just say...on Christmas Eve when I was chasing down that Glossner kid, I may have spotted you and Sue in the backyard..." Ron explained. Sean's eyes widened and his face was flushed.
"You...saw that?" Sean whispered. Ron smiled and nodded.
"It's pretty easy to notice how much your face lights up whenever anyone mentions her name. But don't worry, I haven't told anyone. It's between you and Sue." Ron said. Sean sighed, feeling slightly relieved that someone finally knew his secret.
"Dad...I don't know what to do. I...I love her. And she has no idea. She hasn't even brought the whole thing up and it's been 5 months. She probably doesn't even care..." Sean explained and Ron shook his head.
"I wouldn't be too quick to assume that. I've seen the way her face lights up too whenever you two are in the same room. Although to be fair, it's Sue and she's always so happy...anyway, my point is that if it's meant to be, it will be." Ron said.
"Yeah, if either one of us ever speak up." Sean rolled his eyes and rubbed his temples. He never had a problem being clear with girls in the past, but with Sue, he knew he struggled with communication.
"Well, why haven't YOU said anything?" Ron questioned. Sean thought about it for a minute.
"I guess because I'm scared. I don't want to get my heart broken." Sean replied.
"Maybe that's how Sue feels, have you ever thought about that?" Ron asked. Sean sighed.
"I should have just given her that snowglobe I bought her last year and asked her out. At least then I would have my answer." Sean said. Nancy shouted from the other room.
"SEAN! LET'S GO!" She said and Sean gave his dad a sarcastic smile and hugged him goodbye.
Later, Ron was only a little surprised to see Sue at his front door in search of Sean. He couldn't help but notice that she was holding a snowglobe and he wondered what the whole significance was to this little trinket. He was interrupted by a phone call from work and excused himself, but he saw Sue carefully place the globe into Sean's packed duffle bag. He smiled, knowing that now the wheels were in motion and that his son would finally get the answers he had been waiting for.
