1961
"Jennifer, before we go out to dinner, I want to talk to you."
That was never a nice way to start the evening. It late February and the snow was starting to thaw, so Jennifer had her gloved hands in her pockets to keep warm as she waited for Jonathan to meet her by the car. They were supposed to go out with Richard and Goofy—now sometimes known as Eva—to double date. Jonathan's roommate and Jennifer's best friend had gotten together officially at Valentine's Day, much to everyone's joy.
But now Jennifer found herself hungry and very anxious for what Jonathan wanted to talk about.
"Can we do it in the car? The wind's a little much," she said just as a gust blew through her hair.
Jonathan, always the gentleman, opened the door for her on the passenger side. He always drove them on their dates, even if it was in Jennifer's car. She didn't mind. It left her free to snuggle up to him as much as she wanted. Only right now seemed perhaps a bad time to try to cuddle.
She waited for him to get in and close the door before she asked warily, "What do you want to talk about?"
"Well, you know my birthday is coming up in a couple weeks."
"In thirteen days. March second," she interjected. Jennifer was very aware of when his birthday was, mostly because she had been practically killing herself to come up with a gift for him. Having his birthday come so soon after Valentine's Day really didn't give her a lot of time. She had just gottn him a blue scarf that brought out his eyes and a box of his favorite chocolate chip cookies from a local bakery. Figuring out what to do for his birthday was proving difficult. But that wasn't the point right now. "What about your birthday?" she asked. "Do you know how you want to celebrate?"
Jonathan looked at her with a soft smile. He leaned in to kiss her once, very gently. "I know I want to spend my birthday with you, and I don't mind at all what we do," he said. He leaned back to his side of the car and continued, "But I'll be turning eighteen, which means I'll be an adult. And that means I need to start making plans for the future."
Jennifer wasn't quite sure what he meant, so she just stayed quiet and waited for him to explain.
He took her hand, glove and all, and held it in his as he looked into her eyes. "Jennifer, I love you. I love you more than anything in the world. And I want to love you for the rest of my life. I want to be able to marry you one day and to give you the life you deserve."
Her heart pounded in her stomach, and she tried not to get too emotional. "You can marry me next week. We can get my father to sign off and we can get married." She was teasing, but her voice cracked. Because this wasn't a joke to her. None of it was. Because she and Jonathan were in agreement about this and almost everything else: they were going to get married and live happily ever after.
Jonathan laughed lightly at her hyperbole. "No, you're going to finish school first. And you're going to go to college and get a great education and become a reporter and travel the world and do everything you've always wanted. And I want to help make that happen."
Now she was starting to get confused. "What do you mean?"
"I mean that I want to be able to support you, and I don't want to ever stand in your way. But the only way that I can be with you and make sure you can do all those wonderful things is if I can support myself. I know you've got your trust coming to you, but I need to be able to provide for us. I don't want to rely on your family's money. You should be able to enjoy life with that money, not depend on it for survival. So I need to be able to take care of us in the future," he explained.
Jennifer gave his hand a squeeze. "Jonathan, I know you're going to do wonderful things in life. I don't have any doubt that you'll be able to support us. That will all come in time."
But he shook his head. "I can barely afford to take you out to dinner once a week right now. And I don't have the money to go to college. Not yet, anyway."
"Well, surely with your grades and all, you can get a scholarship. And if that doesn't cover it, I'm sure Max can—"
"No, I'm not Max's responsibility," Jonathan said, almost snapping. "But it's not just the money. I don't know what I want to do with my life, and I don't just want to work odd jobs for the next two years until you graduate."
The pieces were starting to come together in Jennifer's mind. Jonathan had thought about all of this. He had answers to everything. He wasn't just brainstorming ideas with her. "You've already decided what you're going to do," she concluded.
He nodded. "And that's what I wanted to talk to you about. I wanted to explain that it's all for us and for our future, so I can get a good start and be in a good position by the time you finish school. And to do that, I've decided to join the navy."
Jennifer's heart fell into her stomach. "T-the navy?" She felt a little lightheaded. Jennifer read the newspaper and was much better informed than most girls her age. She had seen the reports on Khruschev's statements about supporting communist uprisings around the world. She knew that President Kennedy had just come into office with a hope of promoting global democracy. War wasn't upon them yet, but it was surely only a matter of time.
Jonathan explained further, "I grew up by the Bay. I'm good on a boat. And you know I'm smart, and I work hard. I can get promoted and get the start that we need."
Swallowing back the lump of emotion in her throat, Jennifer looked straight in Jonathan's eyes and said, "You promise me one thing, Jonathan Hart. Just one thing."
He nodded, taking her serious tone as intended.
"You go join the navy and do all the wonderful things I know you'll do serving our country, but you promise right now that you'll come home to me."
Jonathan gathered her in his arms and hugged her tight. He murmured in her ear, "I promise. I promise I'll come home to you."
They stayed like that for a while, holding each other. Jennifer pulled back first, blinking the unshed tears from her eyes. "Come on, we're going to be late to meet Goofy and Richard," she reminded him.
"Right," he agreed, swallowing back his own emotion. Jonathan turned the key in the engine to start the car and drive them to The Claw for their double date.
Jennifer put her hand on Jonathan's arm, causing him to pause and look at her. "Thank you. For telling me. And for everything you're doing for our future. I can't wait to marry you someday."
That made him smile, which was Jennifer's intent. He kissed her cheek and backed the car out of the parking space.
After that conversation, Jennifer knew what she wanted to get Jonathan for his birthday. She had to do a little research, and she customized the gift, which took a little longer. But thankfully it was ready to pick up just in time. She had the shop gift wrap it and she rushed to meet Jonathan at the Flamingo Hut after his shift at the grocery store.
"Hi darling, I'm so sorry I'm late," she said greeting him at the counter.
Jonathan stood up to hug and kiss her properly. "Is everything alright?"
Jennifer grinned. "I had to pick up your birthday present," she explained, taking the box out of her purse and presenting it to him. "Open it," she said, placing it into the palm of his hand.
He looked at her curiously. She was probably a little too eager, but seeing it finished and done just as perfectly as she'd hoped, Jennifer wanted to see Jonathan's reaction. She hoped he'd like it.
Jonathan pulled the ribbon off the box and opened it up on its hinges. There, securely held in a velvet form, was a silver identification bracelet. He pulled it out to see what was engraved.
Jennifer explained, "I looked up the Naval Uniform Regulation at the library and it said that you're allowed to wear a watch and an identification bracelet, but not on the same wrist. I left some space if you want to put your name or birthday or ID number after you enlist. But I wanted to give you something that you'd be able to keep a part of me with you always. I designed that for us." She pointed to the small engraved hearts, one in front of the other. "Your last name is Hart, so when we get married, we'll be two Harts. Get it?"
The beaming smile on Jonathan's face told her everything she needed to know. He grabbed her in his arms and held her tight. "This is the best present anyone could ever get for me. Thank you so much, darling." He kissed the side of her neck to punctuate his appreciation.
She laughed, "Happy Birthday, Jonathan. I love you."