Forever. Karen Hopkins Ann

      Noah

      Elijah’s cold, hard look sent a shiver through me, but I didn’t turn away. The man’s anger was thick in the air even though he’d remained silent during the announcement of the wedding’s cancellation. I can’t say that for the rest of the community, though. The gasps and fervent whispering had to be quieted by Aaron. He quickly jumped into reciting the rest of the morning’s news, obviously trying to calm the situation.

      Father sat staring straight ahead. He didn’t meet the hostile looks coming from the Schwartz men. Father was a formidable and respected man in the community, yet I knew that he was worried about the situation. His fear about the future had settled over me like a heavy blanket in wintertime. If he was afraid, then we all should be.

      The ball of tightness in my stomach became too much for me as we left the Schrocks’ church building. I had to get away now. Moving past Marcus Bontrager and several others stalled in the aisle, I pushed the sliding door open and stepped into the cool morning brightness. The warm-up we’d had in April had been tempered by colder air in May. Ruth’s line of pink peonies was still blooming, but their petals were drawn up tight, as if they were attempting to shield themselves from the harsh wind that pricked my own skin.

      I didn’t button up my vest, thankful for the cold, stiff breeze. It cleared my head.

      The hand on my shoulder didn’t surprise me, and the voice close to my ear was expected.

      “What’s going on? Have you lost your mind?” Timothy whispered.

      I glanced back, and seeing that Matthew was close behind him, I signaled both of them to follow me toward the stable.

      Once through the doorway I turned and faced my friends, knowing they were completely loyal to me. The Troyers would side with Father if it came to an open contest between us and the Schwartzes in church, but I wasn’t so sure about the Weaver family. Mervin Weaver, Matthew’s father, always had his own agenda.

      “It’s about Rose.”

      Timothy rolled his eyes and leaned against the stall door with a groan. Matthew’s jaw dropped, and he stared at me with wide eyes.

      Before either of them could speak, I plowed on. “Her brother wrote the letter saying she’d quit me—not her. She didn’t know anything about it.”

      “How did you find this out?” Timothy asked. His voice was calmer and his face serious.

      “It’s a long story. Basically, Sam had a moment of clarity. He must have felt guilty about his father’s lies. At first when he told me, I didn’t believe. But after a torturous night of running it through my head, I realized he must be telling the truth. Rose would never have left me like that. She’d have talked to me at least, explained things in person.”

      I sat down on a bale of hay. Timothy and Matthew followed suit, taking the bales across from me.

      “I was angry with myself that I so readily believed Doctor Cameron’s story, and abandoned my girl.” I looked up and met their steady stares. “I had Mr. Denton take me to the city. He found out her address on the computer when I told him the names of her aunt and uncle—the people she was staying with. We went there that next day, and Mr. Denton left me.”

      Matthew continued to watch me, hanging on my every word, but Timothy closed his eyes and thudded his head against the barn wall. Timmy was a whole lot sharper than goofy Matthew.

      “You didn’t,” Timmy said.

      After a pause, I met his gaze. “I did. It was incredible to have her in my arms again. All the feelings came rushing back. I’d never stopped loving her. I never will.”

      “Your father let you dump Constance to be with Rose? How is that ever going to work?” Matthew exclaimed. “Is she going to become Amish?”

      “Shhh, someone might be listening.” I leaped up and went to the door to look out. When I turned back, I said, “No one knows the particulars yet, and I’d like to keep it that way.”

      The soft voice from inside the darkened stall to my left made my heart stop dead away.

      “Sorry, but you’re a little late for that.”

      Suzanna’s blond head peeked over the divider. She smiled sheepishly. Miranda’s face soon joined hers.

      “Aren’t you girls ever where you’re supposed to be?” I groaned and shot a warning look at Timothy and Matthew, whose faces told me instantly that they were as shocked as I was.

      The cold, damp air in the barn seemed to warm a bit as the girls left the stall to join us in the hallway.

      Timmy stood up and went to Suzanna. “What are you doing, Suzanna, spying on us like that?”

      Suzanna placed her hands on her hips and frowned at her boyfriend. The look made him take a step back.

      “What kind of fools go into the barn to have a secret meeting and don’t even check the stalls to make sure they’re alone? Huh, tell me that,” Suzanna hissed and I knew it was useless to argue with these girls about anything.

      Matthew wasn’t so smart. He looked at Miranda, his own girlfriend, and asked, “I thought we didn’t keep stuff from each other, Mirn—what’s going on?”

      His voice had a whinelike quality, and I wasn’t surprised when the usually quiet girl blurted out, “I’m not doing a thing wrong, or worth telling you about. We came in here to talk for a few minutes in private before we went to help with the lunch sandwiches.”

      When Miranda paused, Suzanna jumped in, saying, “It’s not our fault that you ran your mouth before checking if the stable was occupied. I’d have thought you would’ve known better.”

      I nodded. “Yes, you’re right. I’ve been torn up all morning because of Elijah. He isn’t going to let this thing go.”

      Suzanna came closer. She whispered, “How’s Rose? Is she all right? Are you two really getting back together? Is she coming back to live among us?”

      I put up my hands to stop her bombardment. The motion silenced her, but her light blue eyes sparked with more questions. I sighed, knowing I wouldn’t be able to escape the barn without sharing some information with her. Suzanna and Miranda were Rose’s friends, after all. It was understandable that they’d want to know what was going on.

      “All right, slow down. Rose is fine. Yes, we’re back together, but it isn’t common knowledge yet, so don’t go gossiping.”

      “You know we wouldn’t. Anything you tell us will never leak out. I thought we’ve proven ourselves to you,” Suzanna huffed.

      Looking into her eyes and seeing her determination, I knew she meant what she said. I relaxed further and continued, “Rose is coming back to Meadowview today, but she’s not going to be Amish straightaway. I guess the only reason her father is all right with her coming back to the area is that she’s convinced him that she’s over me. She’s finishing out the few weeks of school to prove to him her intentions.”

      “Not more lies. Haven’t you two learned your lesson well enough? After the incident with that letter you were talking about and all, I’d think you’d want to be in the open with your love,” Suzanna said.

      I shook my head. “You’re not thinking it through. We can’t be together just yet. She’s still only seventeen. Her father wouldn’t allow her to come back if he knew about us. And, my father has asked that we stay away from each other for some months to let the trouble with the Schwartzes die down. When Rose turns eighteen in late November, enough time will have passed for the community to again accept our union, and her father won’t be able to stop us, either. We’ll marry soon after and begin our life together in the Amish world.”

      Timmy scratched his chin and nodded his head slowly. “That sounds like a good plan to me. If you and Rose got back together immediately after you canceled the wedding with Constance, you’d be frowned