Never Ending Sun

Helen looked out her dormitory window with a sigh. She watched several couples from her class walk hand in hand across campus. They laughed, they kissed and shared in embraces before they went their separate ways. Helen let out another sigh. 

“If you sigh one more time, I will kill you.”

Helen looked back over to her roommate who was hunched over her thesis, reviewing the required edits that were needed in time for submission today. She said nothing, knowing that it was the stress that was talking, and returned her attention to the window. This time she spotted a blond guy walking with the swimmers. He happened to look up at her at that moment and their eyes met. He smiled and waved, while Helen smiled back. Once he was out of sight, Helen sighed again.

“That’s it,” her roommate said, lunging at her. She grabbed Helen by the arm and yanked her from her perch. She opened the dorm room door and shoved Helen outside. “Do your sighing somewhere else,” she shouted and slammed the door shut on Helen. 

Helen let out another sigh followed by a giggle. She went downstairs and exited outside into the fresh air. Spring semester, especially the end of it was always her favorite time of year. This was her last semester and she would be graduating in two weeks with a degree she had no idea what to do with. As she contemplated these things, the guy she had seen from her window approached her. 

“Hello,” he said. “You’re the great beauty from the window.”

Hellen laughed, feeling her cheeks turn crimson. “I’m not sure I can be called a great beauty,” she said as demurely as possible. 

“Where are you heading? Mind if I walk with you?”

“I’m not sure where I’m going. My roommate is short of temper and kicked me out.”

“That’s not nice.”

“It’s not entirely her fault. Her thesis advisor had an about face and suggested she revise half of her thesis; it’s due today. But it’s not a problem. The day is beautiful,” Helen said looking up into the blue cloudless sky. 

The young man did not look up, but at her. The sun shone on her causing her golden hair to sparkle. He was instantly in love with her. 

“If you don’t know where you are heading, may I suggest the cross country trails? They are beautiful especially on this kind of day?”

“But what about you?” Helen asked. “Don’t you need to be somewhere?”

“I just got out of swim practice and I don’t have any classes scheduled today. Besides, I would really enjoy spending the time walking with you.”

Again Helen flushed. “Okay, but I don’t know where the cross country trails are. Will you show me?”

“Certainly.”

They walked along the brick path and across the street to another brick pathway that meandered about old trees and brick buildings. 

“What is your name?” asked the young man. 

“Helen. And yours?”

“Andrew. I take it you are a senior given your roommate is working on her thesis?”

“That’s correct. What year are you?”

“I’m a freshman, believe it or not.”

It was hard to believe given Andrew’s height and confidence. She fought the urge to sigh and instead mused about how he was the first boy in a long time to speak to her. It was a pity it was in the last month of her last semester and that he was a freshman. 

Together they took a turn onto a dirt path that hugged the edges of the the practice soccer fields. There were a few players juggling a soccer ball from one leg to the other. When one of them noticed Andrew, they waved. Andrew waved back, but did not stall to exchange words. He continued escorting Helen to the trails he suggested. 

At the trail head, Helen was already delighted. She stopped to watch an American blue bird nestled on a branch. When they bird flew off, they continued a few paces before Helen stopped to look at a Cardinal. 

“I take it you like birds?”

“Love them. I love the way they sing in the morning,” Helen said with a beaming smile. 

Andrew smiled back. “Which is your favorite?”

“I don’t know the name, but it’s a little one with a black head and white feathers around the eyes. I don’t know why but they always make me laugh because they looks so serious but they are so small. It’s like they are compromising for their size. Do you have a favorite bird?”

Andrew laughed. “I do. But it may shock you.”

“What is it?”

“A turkey vulture.”

Helen looked at him, cocking her head to one side as she scrunched her eyebrows.

“I like their giant wingspan,” Andrew explained. “I enjoy watching them ride the wind on breezy days.”

Helen did not quite understand, but she left it to the fact that he was a boy, and continued to walk along beside him. She learned that he was majoring in Biology, with Botany being his passion. He was able to identify and name several species of plants as they walked along the trail . Towards the end of the trail their conversation died and Helen began to wonder what would happen next. To her amazement, Andrew asked, “would you like to go out? I know I’m just a freshman, but I have really enjoyed your company.”

“I’m sorry,” Helen told him. “I don’t think there is a point to that, I being a Senior and you a Freshman.”

Andrew nodded, but did not take his eyes off of her to acknowledge defeat. She found that charming, but moved to leave, hoping to avoid encouraging him further. But then she realized she had left her keys in her room. She turned back to Andrew. 

“Would you mind walking me back? I left my keys in my room.”

“Not at all,” Andrew said, and he resumed walking with her as if she had never rejected him. 

The following day, Helen moved to her seat by her window, this time without the threats of violence, since her roommate was in class. She watched the couples walking by arm in arm that she overlooked Andrew standing beneath her window with flowers in hand. He waved when he noticed he had her attention, and she quickly looked away. 

“Does no, really mean no?” he called out.

“I’m afraid so,” she said.

In the afternoon Helen returned from her last class of her college career. When she entered her dorm room, she found roses on her desk.

“How did these get here?”

“Ugh!” she heard her roommate cry. 

Helen looked ever and found her roommate still in bed, semi-conscious. 

“There was some guy who was looking for you. He told me to give you these. He said they were a flower named for you. Sounds like you have an admirer.”

Helen sat down at her desk to admire the flowers, but she was concerned. There were two days left in the semester and then there was the graduation ceremony, and then she would be gone. Surely Andrew did not intend to start a relationship with her during this short window of time she had left on campus. 

“Should I give him a message?” asked her roommate as she put on a tee shirt and some shorts. “I’ll probably run into him out there.”

Helen shook her head. “No. My answer to him is the same.”

“Okay,” her roommate said and slammed the door close on her way out. 

Helen wondered what she should do. She liked Andrew, but did not want to break his heart. She took a nap, and, upon waking, she found her answer. 

“Helen,” Andrew called as she exited her dorm. 

“Andrew,” she began. “Thank you,” she said, “but you have to see, this will not work.”

Andrew smiled. “Yeah, I get it. Your roommate told me the only way to win you over is if I can prevent the sun from setting.”

Helen did not respond, but was happy that her roommate created this challenge. Surely, Andrew would give up. 

Grinning, Andrew asked, “will you give me your mailing address? I have a plan.”

Again Helen was torn. Here she almost had an out, but the boy was determined, however, she acquiesced out of curiosity and gave him a P.O. box that her parents owned. 

“Look out for a letter in June,” he said and left. 

Helen felt a freedom no longer having to worry about the boy. She attended all the senior activities leading up to graduation, walked across the stage and received her degree, then took the long drive home with her parents to Washington, where she had to figure out what would happen next in her young adult life. 

When it was June first, Helen completely forgot Andrew’s promise, but her father brought her a letter. 

The envelope was white with her name in a neat cursive script above the address she had given her. In it the letter read:

I was told that the only way to win your heart was to stop the sun from setting. On 21 June, will you join me as I make this attempt?

Enclosed were the details for a plane ticket to Alaska. 

***

On June 21st, Andrew stood in the Northern Alaskan airport with flowers in hand. He questioned himself, whether it was too bold of a move. But the saying ‘a fair heart never won a fair lady’ came to mind. The question was, was she fair. Would she accept this offer? His sign that he was committed to winning her affection? He paced around in circles trying to predict the future when he heard someone call his name. 

He looked up and saw Helen. The essence of sunshine that he remembered her to be on that day that they met. He wanted to weep with joy that she took him up on this offer. He controlled himself, walked to her, and handed her a bouquet of forget-me-nots. 

“Welcome to the land of the midnight sun,” he said.