25. Lani

25

Lani

T here was nothing like the rush of surfing. The wind in her face, the spray of the ocean, the sheer exhilaration of flying across the surface of the world propelled by a wave of water.

Lani felt seven seconds of perfect joy before her board flew out from under her and she tumbled into the sea.

Cold water enveloped her as she spun, momentarily losing track of which way was up. Then her board reached the end of its leash and the cord snapped taut, pulling her ankle towards shore. She got her legs under her and broke through the surface, coughing and snorting saltwater out of her nose.

Worth it.

Sunlight dazzled her as she opened her eyes. The light that danced over the surface of the water seemed as bright as the sun in the sky.

Lani pulled herself up onto her board and caught her breath. The deep green foliage and black volcanic sand of the beach drew her eye away from the bright glare of the ocean.

She spotted Tenn's surfboard standing upright in the sand, then a second splash of color as Tenn shook out their picnic blanket.

"I guess it's lunchtime," she murmured.

Tenn waved at her from the beach, and she waved back. God bless that man for keeping her fed. She forgot to eat more often than not, and then she'd end up feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Not only did Tenn remember mealtimes; he made the best food on the island.

Better lock that one down. She could hear her mom's voice as clearly as if she floated in the water beside her. It made her laugh and tear up, both at the same time.

Her mom had been gone for nearly twenty years now, and there were times that Lani struggled to recall her voice or her face. And then there were moments like this one, when it felt like they had just spoken yesterday.

Lani glanced over her shoulder, tempted to try for just one more wave, but a pang in her stomach told her to turn for shore. She paddled in, and Tenn ran to help her out of the wild shorebreak. He lifted her board under his arm with ease, and they walked hand in hand up the beach.

Their picnic blanket was waiting at the high point of the black sand, where they could see the crowd of surfers on one side and the calm riverbend on the other.

Lani scrubbed her skin dry with a towel before sitting down on the picnic blanket. She tilted her face up towards the sun, letting it bake away the chill that had settled into her ears and limbs after nearly two hours in the water.

"Thirsty?" Tenn handed her a big bottle of liliko'i cane juice, and Lani guzzled half of it down in one go.

"Ambrosia," she said, putting the cap back on. "I could live on that stuff."

"You're not a hummingbird," he admonished. "Here."

Lani accepted the container he handed her and pulled off the lid to reveal a neat row of mutsubis: egg, tuna, and jalape?o tofu. She picked up the last one and took a big bite.

"You could sell these," she said through a mouthful of rice. She washed it down with another swig of cane juice and continued, "You could add a to-go case and sell them as take-out lunches. People would love them."

"I'm not sure they'd fit the burgers-and-fries cafe theme we've got going."

"It's the Pualena Cafe," she said, half serious and half teasing. "Mutsubis are never out of place in Pualena."

"It could work. A small display case with bottles of cane juice, mutsubis, mac salad…"

"Try it! It'll be a hit."

They watched the surfers as they finished their lunch, sitting closer together than a blanket of that size truly required. Just to be in each other's company with no kids and no work felt utterly luxurious, and Lani relished every moment of it.

The sun shone down, baking her swimsuit dry. By the time they were done with lunch, she was sweating.

"Race you to the river!" She was up and running before he could reply, moving as fast as she could over the blazing-hot sand and the smooth river rocks.

A huge, calm pool burgeoned out from the river just before it reached the rapid stretch that led to the sea. The bank was steep there, the water crystal clear all the way to the deep, rocky bottom, and she dove in without pausing.

River water surrounded her, bracingly cold, whisking away her sweat and the heat of the day. She swam along the bottom of the pool for as long as she could before she burst up from the river and sucked in a lungful of air.

Tenn swam up behind her and looped an arm around her belly, pulling her against him. The heat of his chest contrasted pleasantly with the cold water. She let her limbs go loose and float towards the surface as he kicked his legs, holding them up.

"What a perfect day." She laid her head back, resting it against his shoulder and looking up at the blue sky. A pale gray bridge bisected the sky high above the river, its long legs stretching all the way to the clifftops.

"The day isn't over yet."

"I don't want it to be over. I just want to pause time and live in this moment. For a while, at least."

They floated there for a long while, their closeness warding off the worst of the chill, until the peace was broken by a group of teenagers who jumped screaming into the water.

"And the world comes crashing back in," Lani muttered.

The waves created by a nearby cannonball splashed her face, and she pulled her legs back underneath her so that she could tread water.

"Just as well," Tenn said. "You're starting to shiver."

"Do you think we have time for a few more waves?"

"Let's go warm up in the sun first."

"We can warm up on our boards."

Tenn grinned at her enthusiasm, but he shook his head. "Come back to the blanket. I have something for you."

"I can't eat another bite."

"It's not food," Tenn laughed. Before she could ask what it was, he disappeared underwater and struck off towards shore.

She followed him, moving quickly through the clear water and across the sun-warmed rocks. The black sand was scorching hot beneath her feet, and she dove for the relief of the blanket.

"Are you alright?" Tenn took her foot in his hands and brushed it clean.

"No harm done."

He pulled her other foot into his lap and looked at it for a moment. The shore at Honoli‘i was always covered in sea glass, and the sand itself was full of tiny pieces of polished glass. Each one was the size of a grain of sand, sparkling green and blue and amber against the black.

Tenn brushed that foot clean too, using his t-shirt to get the last of the sand, and then she folded her feet beneath her on the blanket.

"What's the surprise?" she asked.

He grinned bashfully at her and looked around, suddenly self conscious. They were out in the open, sitting at the highest point of the ever-shifting black sand, but there was no one nearby. A crowd of surfers bobbed far out on the water, and a group of kids was taking turns on a rope swing across the river, but they were basically alone on their own little piece of the beach.

"It belonged to my grandmother." Tenn pulled a handkerchief out of one of his bag's many zippered pockets. The linen square was stitched with beautiful embroidery. When Lani looked closer, she realized that it was covered in plumeria flowers.

"It's lovely."

Tenn gave her a quick, puzzled look before the side of his mouth quirked up in amusement. He untied a knot in the fabric and spread it flat on one hand.

In the center of the handkerchief lay a golden ring.

"My grandparents were married for seventy years. They had their ups and downs, but that's part of it. That's the heart of it, I think. Standing beside the person you love through all of life's ups and downs."

Lani picked the ring up and brought it closer to her face. There was no diamond, no gems at all, but the gold band was embossed with a delicate pattern of loops and swirls.

"It's gorgeous," she breathed.

"Is that a yes?"

She closed her hand tight around the ring, terrified of losing it in the sand, and looked Tenn in the eyes.

"You could propose to me with a ring pop and I would say yes." She half laughed as she said it, suddenly fighting not to cry.

Tenn smiled and let out a breath of relief that was itself somewhere between a laugh and a sob. Blinking rather more than usual, he took Lani's hand in both of his and gently pried open her fist. He took the delicate band in his fingertips and slipped it onto her ring finger.

The gold glinted in the sun, brighter even than the stars in the sand.

"A perfect fit." His voice was rough with emotion.

"Thank you." She took his face in both hands and kissed him. Everyone else disappeared until there was nothing but the two of them, floating on the sound of crashing waves and enveloped by sunlight.

"Is that a yes?" he asked again, pulling back.

"Didn't I say yes?" she asked, still holding his face in her hands.

"You said that you would say yes if I had a ring pop," he said, half laughing, "and I don't."

"You're trying to seal the deal without a ring pop?" she teased.

"I'll buy you a diamond if you want one."

"I don't need a diamond."

Tenn put his right hand over her left and turned his head to kiss the palm.

"You haven't asked me," she said.

He looked at her, dark eyes wide. They looked black half of the time, but here the sunlight revealed them to be a clear, deep brown. The same as hers.

"I haven't?" he asked.

She shook her head.

"Lani…" he took the hand that already bore his ring and held it over his heart.

She smiled at him, soaking in this perfect moment: the light that glinted off of his wet hair and shone on his sun-bronzed shoulders, the cool breeze around them that carried the salt spray of breaking waves, the hope and love in his eyes.

It was the best moment of her life, right up there with birthing her daughter beneath the spectacular green and amethyst dance of the Northern Lights.

"Will you marry me?"

"Yes."