Their summer was spent in the kind of splendor you could only see in a classic movie of Hollywood's glamorous heyday. The classy parties, the beautiful settings, the sunsets on the beach; it all seemed like an enchanting dream. The tinkling of champagne glasses still rang in their ears, long into the night, from the gatherings they attended. Then the summer ended.
It was a cold, rainy September morning when Gerard left. The war in Europe was heating up and they needed all the help they could get. There was no hesitation in going; if you were a man, you fought. Sarah stood at the train station, holding him tightly, crying. If she could just keep holding in, maybe he wouldn't leave. If she could just hold on, maybe all of this would go away and they could go back to their lives in the snug Hollywood Hills. If she could just hold on, the train whistle sounding in her ears would stop drowning out the happier sounds.
If she could just hold on, it would all be okay. But, of course, she couldn't. He kissed her hard, trying not to cry himself. He whispered his love to her and pressed an envelope in her hand, telling her to read it when he was gone.
"It might help," he whispered in her ear.
She clung to his coat, crying softly and begging him in hitched whispers not to go. He held her for a few more moments, then pushed her away and climbed up onto the train. They had agreed earlier not to linger, trying to keep sight of one another, but she couldn't help hoping he would come to a window.
As the train hissed and slowly started to move, she followed along--watching each window for one last glance of his beloved face. He appeared for a brief moment and she could see the tears on his face as he too cried at their parting. She shouted to him, but the train whistle sounded and drowned out her voice. As the huge, hulking mechanical beast took her beloved away, she ran to follow as long as she could, tears streaming down her face. At the end of the platform, she collapsed. She wrapped her arms around herself in a pale shadow of his last embrace. Something crumpled in her hand and she remembered the letter. Right there, in the middle of the throng of people that surged around her, she unclenched her fingers and opened the rumpled envelope.
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"I know you're reading this as soon as you lose sight of the train, and I want you to know I wish I was still there holding you. I love you. Always remember that, Sarah. I love you, and I will love you forever. I know you're probably very upset right now, but I don't want you to focus on how it felt to see that train leave. Instead, remember how it felt to watch the sunset together and then talk until we saw the sunrise the next day. Remember the sounds and smells and sights of the summer. Remember how it felt to stand on the beach and hold each other.
"When I come home, I am going to take you away from all the heartache you have right now. We are going to have that life we always talk about. We are going to have the blue house with the white picket fence you want so much. When I come home, we will find a way to disappear from all of this and just live.
"Remember that I love you. If you are ever unsure in your life, just remember that I believe in you, love you, and will be here for you. Every night, I will look up at the stars and remember our summer together, and count the moments until I can be with you again.
"I am always and forever yours, Gerard."
Sarah stood shakily. She brushed off the bits of dust from the floor of the platform, pulled out her hankerchief from her pocket, and dried her eyes. She walked numbly to the front of the station, telling herself over and over that Gerard would be coming home. Somehow, she wasn't sure whether she was reassuring herself, or trying to convince herself.