Rebecca's Return

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Authors: Jerry S. Eicher
Tags: Fiction, General, Romance, Love Stories, First loves, Christian fiction, Religious, Christian, Amish, Ohio, Amish - Ohio
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reins again, but slapped them instead. What was wrong with him, he wondered? Why couldn’t he be a little more self-confident—unafraid of losing? Was it because there really was a danger? Or was it just him and his fears making shadows out of nothing?
    It must be him, he decided, and urged his horse on. Pulling past the first houses in Harshville, the sound of the horse’s hooves on the pavement echoed in the trees.
    Lights were on in the houses around him. He could tell most of them were English because of the brightness of the lighting. It was different in the Amish homes, which had the soft glow of lanterns. Looking at the lights, he wondered if Rebecca could ever go English. The question made its way into his consciousness and stirred up his fears again.
    Surely not, he almost said out loud. She was such a decent girl, beautiful and committed to the church. He was sure it simply couldn’t happen—she would never go English. Rebecca was his now, in a manner of speaking, and someday she would really be his. The thought took his breath away. The wheels of his buggy rattled across the bridge, the racket thundering in his ears.
    Pulling around the sharp bends in the road, John stilled his fears and prepared for what might lie ahead. He willed himself to stop thinking, concentrating instead on searching for Rebecca’s driveway. Considering how often he had been there, the task should have been easy. Yet tonight, surrounded by the familiar, he felt alienated and in uncharted territory.
    Thinking that he would need to turn on his bright lights, he was thankful when it proved unnecessary. Any Amish person watching would know why he needed the extra light. Couldn’t find his way into his girlfriend’s yard. Lost on the way to love, as usual… The imaginary teasing chilled him.
    Turning in, the gentle slope of the Keim driveway led upward. John let his horse walk, finding the familiar tying place on its own. Memories from the past were flooding his mind. He saw the times he had come here with Rebecca, certain then of what was ahead. Evenings, afternoons at times, he delighted in the anticipation of spending time with her.
    John forced himself to slide open the buggy door and place his foot onto the step. Surrounded by his fears, he sensed Rebecca’s presence before he could see her. Between the house and the buggy, he saw the faint form in the darkness. He tried to halt his downward movement but couldn’t. Continuing toward the ground, his foot reaching, nearly stumbling, his mind and body were off balance.
    John righted himself, looking in her direction. The light from the living room window found its way out to the buggy and lit up her face.
    “Hi,” Rebecca said. “I saw you coming. It’s so good you could come over tonight.”
    In a rush of emotions, John wanted to reach out, to touch, but he restrained himself. He might do things that he would later regret, so he simply cleared his throat.
    “How’d you know I was here?” Rebecca asked, but he couldn’t see her face anymore, the weak light lost to some unseen object.
    “Guessed,” he got out, regretting the word because it wasn’t quite the truth. “Really…” He tried again. “I didn’t know, but I wanted to—I mean—to see…whether you were home.”
    “That’s nice,” she said, her face still in the shadows. “On the way home from Milroy, I realized that I should have contacted you. But things were so busy with the baby and all, and I didn’t have your address. You want to come in?”
    “I have to tie the horse,” he said, not directly answering her question, anger stirring in him now. Why didn’t she offer to explain more? So cheerful as if she has done nothing wrong, while I am suffering.
    “I’m glad to see you,” she said, her voice sounding happy, making things worse. How can she see me? It is so dark. Angry voices in his head filled the places where fears had been just moments before.
    Am I to demand to know? The outburst inside

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