The Lighthouse

By: Sarah Moody

A lighthouse stood solitary on a beach in South Carolina. It had been there for as long as any of the townspeople could remember; the stories were passed down from generation to generation. The most well known was a story of how a sailor ended up stranded on the beach where he found help and his true love at the lighthouse. It went on to say that, the lighthouse brought soul mates together, and those that found their true love there never lost each other.

"Come on, Bobby!" yelled a blonde curly haired girl running barefoot across the sand.

A brunette boy ran behind her, slowing down to catch his breath. "Let's go back inside, Katie. I'm tired," he complained.

"Aww, you're just mad 'cause you can't keep up. You're a slowpoke!" she drawled in her southern accent.

"Am not!" Bobby protested.

"Are too! Slowpoke, slowpoke, slowpoke!" Katie teased dancing around him.

"I just turned six, so I'm now two years old than you! And that means I'm faster than you!"

"Well, I'm gonna turn five soon, which means you're only a little older! I can still beat!" she argued her blue eyes flashing.

"Fine! Last one to the lighthouse is a rotten egg!" Bobby said taking off without warning.

"Bobby! That's not fair, Bobby! Wait up!" cried Katie running frantically behind him.

He laughed, "Who's the slowpoke now?"

Twelve years later, Bobby (now called Robert) led Katie across the beach. They were just at a school dance, where they promised to go with each other if they could find nobody else to go with. Robert watched Katie walk in the sand next to him. She was carrying her heels in one hand and keeping Robert's letterman jacket in place on her shoulders with the other.

"I had a really great time tonight," she said breaking the silence. "Thanks for the flowers."

Robert was thankful it was dark so she couldn't see that his cheeks were red. "Thank you," he mumbled, as an awkward silence settled over them. Hesitantly, Robert spoke up, "Katie...do you...I mean... doyouwanttogooutwithme?" he hurriedly finished.

Katie frowned, confused. "What did you say?"

He took a deep breath, "I said do you want to go out with me? Like as in I'll be your boyfriend and you can be my girlfriend. But it's totally up to you...if you don't want to that's fine..." he rambled.

Katie smiled, stood up on her tiptoes, and gave him a kiss. "Does that answer your question?"

Robert smiled, "I think you should tell me your answer one more time," he said leaning down and kissing her again.

A few years passed and Katie and Robert had just graduated from high school and planning on going to the same college in fall.

"Robert! Where in the world are you taking me?" an agitated and blindfolded Katie asked. Robert was holding her hand and trying to get her to move faster. "Slow down Robert. It's harder for the blind to move. I can't see a thing," she complained.

He laughed, "That's kind of the whole point of the blindfold, babe."

"I'd better not run into anything!" Katie huffed. "Can I just have a hint of where we are?" she asked sweetly making a puppy face.

"You're not gonna run into anything," Robert replied. "But I will tell you that you are on a beach."

"Really? I had no idea," she replied sarcastically. "I couldn't tell by the sound of the waves at all, Sherlock Holmes."

Robert rolled his eyes, "Sarcasm is the lowest form of with, you know that right Katie? Besides, we're almost there," he said opening the door to the lighthouse. He led Katie to the middle of the room. "Okay, you can take off the blindfold."

"Finally," she muttered taking off the blindfold. She gasped. Inside the lighthouse, there were candles and rose petals scattered everywhere. She looked at Robert, who was bending down on one knee and holding a ring in his hand.

"Will you marry me?" he asked.

Katie sat lounging on the beach reminiscing all that had happened there. Her first crush, her first kiss, and her first – and only – wedding. She put her hand on her growing stomach and felt her soon to be third child move. Her husband of six years leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.

"Do you think the lighthouse legends are true?" he asked looking over at it.

Katie smiled, "When I was little, I used to dream about it. That one day I'd find my true love just like the story. And would you believe it, I did. Funny thing was in my dreams you were always dressed like a sailor," she said laughing.

Robert laughed, "Well sorry. Sorry I'm not your sailor in shining...uh...uniform." Katie rolled her eyes. "Well, you get what you get," she said giving him another kiss.

"Mommy! Daddy! Hurry up, I wanna go to the lighthouse!" cried their daughter jumping up and down.

"You go and play with your brother and his friend," Robert said fatherly. "Mommy and Daddy are tired."

"Fine," she said stomping away.

"Hey, Lynda. I bet I can run faster than you!" said Ryan, her twin brother's friend.

"Nu-uh," she argued putting her hands on her hips.

"Well fine," he said. "Let's see who's fastest. Last one to the lighthouse is a rotten egg!"