The man led us outside behind the warehouse, and we rode in a little golf cart out to the large object I couldn’t quite make out earlier. It was a hot air balloon. They were just now lighting the fire in the basket to begin filling the balloon with air while it laid on its side on the ground. As another man walked over, I smiled up at Alec and squeezed his hand. He kissed the top of my head.

“I love you,” he whispered in my hair.

“I love you right back.”

The new man was introduced to us as our pilot. We listened to the safety rules, and when he finished, I looked over and saw that the balloon was fully upright. Holy hell . . . it was gigantic. My heart started hammering with anticipation, and I could hardly wait to get in the basket and start our ride.

He squeezed my hand in his. “Are you excited?”

“Yes, I can’t wait! Oh Alec, this is the best! Thank you so much for this amazing surprise!”

We followed the pilot in, and as the balloon rose, the earth grew smaller. When I shivered in the cool air, Alec helped me into my sweater. Wow, he really did think of everything. He rubbed my arms, and hugged me close as we looked out over Georgia. The landscape was beautiful. There were green trees everywhere. We sailed over Red Top Mountain and Allatoona Lake. I’d never realized it before, but it wasn’t shaped like a typical lake. It was a big body of water, but it weaved through the land like a finger tracing a squiggly line. As we drifted toward Fort Mountain, there were ponds and smaller lakes scattered about the land. We saw baseball, soccer, and football fields. The cars and trucks seemed so small from the balloon. It truly felt like we were floating on a cloud, and the sky was clear and beautiful.

We were in visual range and saw Fort Mountain. It was even more breathtaking from that vantage point. He pointed out a lake we’d camped near once. Alec held my hand in his and we talked of our plans for after graduation and watched the birds flying below us. He pointed to different landmarks and noted where we were gliding above.

“I have an idea. What if, after we graduate, instead of staying on campus at Kennesaw State, we got an apartment together? My inheritance is enough that it would cover the cost of a simple apartment. We wouldn’t need anything fancy.” Alec said.

“Oh, yes!” I squealed.

“Do you think your parents will be okay with us living together?”

“Well I’ll be eighteen then, and they’ve always encouraged me to follow my heart. Plus, it helps that they adore you.”

I was so excited I couldn’t wait to start looking at ads in the newspaper. I just hoped Mom and Dad would go for it. Alec was serious about school, so I knew it wouldn’t get in the way of my studies.

I hoped we’d get accepted at Kennesaw State.

“Have you chosen a major yet?” I asked him.

“Yeah, English, I think. I’m sure you’re not surprised.” He laughed. “I’ve always wanted to be a teacher, and you know English is my favorite subject, so it just makes sense. I’ll do something that encompasses the things I like best. My dad always said if you love your job, that’s more than half the battle of life since you spend so much time of your day doing it. What about you?”

“I think I’m going to study psychology. I’ve always wanted to help people, and there are so many psychological illnesses. It’s misunderstood, and a lot of people need help with it. I’d like to help them have live happier everyday lives and feel better.”

He smiled at me with that grin of his. “Samone, you’ll make the best psychologist ever, I can’t imagine anyone with a bigger or more caring heart.”

When the ride ended, it felt too soon, and I didn’t want the trip to be over. We thanked the pilot for an amazing excursion, and Alec drove us to our park.

With the excitement of my surprise, I hadn’t noticed the cooler in the back of his truck. As he grabbed it, I picked up the blanket and small basket sitting beside it.

We walked over to our oak tree, which was thankfully clear of people. Spreading the blanket on the ground, I opened the basket as Alec pulled bottles of water out of the cooler, an apple, pastrami sandwiches, and a small baggie of cheddar cheese cubes. We sat and ate our lunch together under our tree. After we finished, Alec leaned back against the tree and I lay down with my head in his lap. He combed his fingers through my hair with the most delicate touch. Between the balloon ride and our lunch under the tree, it was the most beautiful day ever . . . one I would never forget.

The next morning, Tricia came into town for Jolie’s memorial dinner, and I couldn’t wait to spend some quality time with my sister.

“Hey, Tricia!” I called as I came downstairs to see her at the table having coffee with Mom and Dad. She got up and gave me a hug.

“How’s my little sis? Looking adorable as usual, I see. Are you ready for our spa day?”

“I’m great, thanks, but what about you? Did you have a good drive down? When did you get here?” I replied as I stretched my arms up above my head.

“Yeah, it was good, and virtually no traffic, so I got here early and had a cup of coffee with Mom and Dad while waiting for your sleepy head to wake up,” she said, making us all laugh.

“We should get going soon, or we’ll be dealing with the Atlanta traffic.”

“Yeah, just give me a minute. I’ll be right back.”

I ran upstairs and grabbed my sandals then met Tricia outside. She owned the cutest car, a red Nissan Juke. I hadn’t seen it before; she bought it after her last visit home. Mom and Dad were outside checking it out.

“Wow! Your new car is amazing! I love it.”

She smiled. “Thanks, Sam. Now let’s get in and go so we aren’t late.”

Traffic was light. I told her about the hot air balloon ride Alec had taken me on.

“Damn, he sounds like a keeper.”

“I know. I’m in love with him. He asked me to get an apartment with him while we go to KSU. Hopefully, we’ll both get accepted. If Mom and Dad are okay with it, he wants to start looking right after graduation so we’re ready and moved in before classes start in the fall.”

“Wow. So you really think Mom and Dad will be cool with that?”

“Yes, I do. Tricia, they love Alec. He’s kind of an old soul, and I think they can relate to him. Plus, he’s responsible about everything; I think they’ll feel better knowing I’ll be living with him rather than on my own.”

“If you say so. Damn. That never would have flown with me. ‘No, Tricia, this; no, Tricia, that.’ It’s true, you know, what they say . . . that the babies of the family are spoiled with the lax rules.” Narrowing her eyes in my direction, she added, “You’re lucky I love you so much.”

As we picked out our nail polish, we giggled at some of the colors they had available. When they called us back to begin our pampering treatments, we looked at each other and sighed. Our facials were heavenly, the manicures, and pedicures were just what we needed to unwind.

After we finished, we grabbed a late lunch. Then spent the rest of the day walking around the mini-mall.

“Sam, check out that window display in Cindy’s Boutique.”

“Oh, wow! That’s really cute.”

She smiled. “Yeah, let’s go see if they have our sizes.”

We walked inside and went directly to the sales rack with the window display clothing.

“Awesome! Let’s go try these on.” I said.

We walked back and waved to Cindy. She was the sweetest lady and always had the latest, trendy clothes to choose from. As I slipped my dress on, I imagined how Alec’s face would look when he saw me in it, I suddenly felt flushed and excited.

“Tricia, I want to see your dress, so come out when you’ve got it on,” I whispered.

“Okay.”

I was standing at the tri-mirror, looking at the front, back, and sides of the dress. I loved it. Tricia came out of her changing stall, looking like a runway model. She was beautiful.