Thursday Evening, December 14
Would it be wrong of me to say that I’m almost glad that fence broke?” Dale asked as he closed the door behind them.
Amanda couldn’t help herself. She giggled like a teenager. “Jah. It would be wrong. That fencing is a serious matter.” But yet, here she was, smiling, too.
He chuckled. “Of course, you are right.”
She was so glad he’d brought out a lantern with them. It made her feel more at ease around him. It also gave her a good opportunity to study his features a little better. He really was so handsome. “Your sisters seem nice. All of your family does.”
“We get along. Well, most of the time. There’s a lot of us, you know.”
“Eight kinner is an awful lot.”
“Soon only seven of us will be living at home. My older brother, Max, is moving to Michigan.”
“Why there?”
“His girlfriend’s family just moved there. They’re getting married soon.”
“That’s wonderful!” she exclaimed, just as she realized that sounding so happy about a sibling moving away was in bad taste. “Or, um, are you sad that he’s going to move so far away?”
“Nee, I’m happy for him. We’ve always gotten along, but I’ve never been as close to him as I am to some of my sisters. Or Neil. Neil and I grew up together like brothers.”
Amanda knew that he’d brought Neil Vance up in an innocent way. But still the mention of his name stung. “Well, um, congratulations anyway.”
Stepping closer, he shook his head. “I didn’t mention Neil in order to make you uncomfortable. I mentioned him because he’s simply a part of my life. I know he got off on the wrong foot with your sister, but I promise, he’s really not bad. He’s actually a really good person. He’s been a great friend to me over the years.”
“I’m sure he has been.” Because he was still staring at her intently, she said, “I’m sorry, I don’t know how to make things easier between us.”
“Maybe it already is. Maybe I’m hoping you’ll see that I’ve come to terms with him moving.”
She wished the lantern’s glow was a little brighter. She would have loved to study his expression better. “Truly?”
“I promise. Now, if I tell you something else, will you listen to it with an open mind?”
She wondered what he could possibly say. “I’ll try.”
“Well, I’ve started to be very thankful that you moved here. Now I can start visiting you in the evenings.”
Visiting in the evenings? “That sounds like you intend to be courting.”
“That’s probably because I’d like to. Eventually. When we know each other better. If you are okay with that.”
Though he was stumbling over his words, she noticed that he also sounded hopeful. And, perhaps, a bit too sure of himself?
She couldn’t resist teasing him a bit. “I might be . . . if my parents are okay as well.” Primly, she added, “I’m sure you will be wanting their approval, too.”
“Oh! Jah,” he blurted, sounding slightly flustered. “To be sure. I am hoping that your parents will be open to my visits.”
Now she was the one stepping closer to him. “I was only teasing you, Dale. If they hadn’t been open to you calling on me, they would have never simply stood still and watched us step out here together.”
“Did you notice that mine did the same?”
“I did.” She smiled. “I know we don’t really know each other all that well, but perhaps the two of us might help pave the way for our two families to learn to trust each other and get along.”
“I hope so. If someone has decided to start breaking our fencing, we all are going to have to stand together. Otherwise, things will only get worse.”
LATER THAT NIGHT, when Amanda was still lying on her back and staring at the ceiling, Susanna creaked open her door.
“Manda, you asleep?” she whispered.
“Nope.”
“Gut.” After closing the door behind her, Susanna padded across the room and then hopped onto the other side of Amanda’s big double bed. “I couldn’t sleep, either.”
Amanda moved onto her side to face her sister. “This is one of those times that I wish we still shared a room.”
Chuckling softly, Susanna whispered, “I know. Who would have thought we would miss our little cramped room?”
Oh, but their room had been stuffed to the gills. Susanna was a pack rat, and she? Well, she always had boxes and bins of fabric or yarn that she was working on. When they were teenagers, they would argue about each other’s stuff all the time.
But they’d also had each other all the time. They’d always talked about everything, late into the night. Their friends, their parents, how annoying Traci had been when she was seven . . .
Learning to go to sleep with only her thoughts had been difficult to get used to.
“What did you think about tonight?” Susanna asked.
“I don’t know. The Kaufmanns seemed nice.”
“Do you think Mamm and Daed are ever going to get along with them?”
“I hope so,” mused Amanda. Especially since Dale has such grand plans.
“Mamm seemed happy when we got home.”
“I thought so, too. Daed is still worried, but I’m glad he and Mr. Kaufmann are going to look at the damages together tomorrow.”
“Jah.” Susanna yawned. “So . . . how was Dale?”
She couldn’t resist smiling. “He was good.”
“Do you like him?”
“We just met!”
“I know. But do you like him?”
Looking into her sister’s eyes, Amanda saw interest and humor. And love and acceptance. “Jah,” she whispered.
Susanna smiled as she shifted to her back and closed her eyes. “His sister Esther told me that Dale really likes you. Isn’t that something?”
A little shiver ran through her. “Jah,” she whispered after a bit. “It’s really something, indeed.” After trying to stifle a yawn, she said, “’Night, Sue.”
But her sister was already asleep.
Rolling over, Amanda closed her eyes and, finally sure she was going to have sweet dreams, let slumber find her, too.