Free Departures by Robin Jones Gunn

steadily at Christy. “You get to know someone and then you ask yourself, ‘Would I like to spend the rest of my life with this person?’ If the answer is yes, then you wait until you have a big argument. Or until something goes wrong, or he does something you don’t like. And when things are at their lowest, you ask yourself again, ‘Would I like to spend the rest of my life with this person?’ If the answer is still yes, then you know you’re in love.”
    “That’s it?” Grandpa spouted. With a hoot he leaned back in his chair and laughed heartily. If he had been heavier, he probably would have crashed to the floor the way Matt had.
    “No,” Grandma said defensively. “That’s only the beginning. You make one big decision and follow it up with a lifetime of little decisions that support that first one.”
    Grandpa had stopped guffawing and was wagging his finger at Christy. “The real way you know if it’s the right person is to evaluate his background. Do you come from the same place? Then you have a much better chance of making it through the hard times when they come. That’s how you know if it’s a match.”
    Grandma let out a low chuckle. “Oh really, dear. You and I both know plenty of couples with opposite backgrounds that have made it through lots of hard times.” She gave Christy’s hands a pat and said, “The real answer, Christina dear, is that when it’s right, you’ll know.”

13

    hristy wrote as much as she could remember of her grandparents’ advice in her diary that night. The group had been at the church cleaning up until nearly midnight. Uncle Bob and Aunt Marti hung around until almost nine before Marti felt one of her headaches coming on, and they left.
    Matt and Christy were assigned to kitchen duty, where they washed every pot, pan, cup, and dish the kitchen owned. First Christy washed, and Matt dried. Then, when she complained that her fingers were too wrinkled up, Matt washed, and she dried. Matt used way too much soap when he refilled the sink, and a rollicking soap bubble war broke out between the two of them.
    Christy had dollops of foamy bubbles on the top of her head, and Matt’s back was covered when his mom stepped into the kitchen. She scolded them as if they were six-year-olds and left the kitchen shaking her head.
    Matt and Christy went back to their soapsuds war until they were both laughing so hard that they called a truce. Handing Christy a dry dishtowel, Matt said, “So what else can you tell me about Rancho Corona? Do you think I’d like it there?”
    They talked seriously about college and moving away from homefor the first time. Matt admitted he was a lot more interested in Rancho now that he knew it was close to Christy’s home. “If I went there, do you think you would be willing to hang out with me sometimes on weekends?” Matt asked. “You could show me the sights. I’ve never been to California.”
    Christy gave him a rundown of some of her favorite spots and how she made the adjustment when her family moved to California. When Matt walked Christy to the car in the church parking lot, he said, “I wish it weren’t so late. We could go somewhere and talk some more.”
    “We have tomorrow,” Christy reminded him. Then she remembered she had invited Melissa to come along. She wished she were going to have him all to herself tomorrow.
    Matt must have been feeling the same way, because the last thing he said to her was, “Maybe we can have some time to talk tomorrow, just the two of us.”
    When Christy’s family arrived at her grandparents’, everyone headed right to bed. David tried to convince Christy to play another midnight round of Monopoly, but she turned him down. He decided to sleep on the enclosed porch since it was the coolest place in the house. Mom and Dad told him that was fine, and Christy was glad. That meant she had the bedroom to herself, and she could use the time to write in her diary.
    After putting down her impressions of