Free The Vigil by Marian P. Merritt

stubborn.” Anthony lifted the ball Mr. Bojangles dropped at his feet. He stood and flung it across the park. We both watched in horror as it sailed toward the pond. I held my breath hoping it wouldn’t go in. My crazy dog would jump right in after it. Nothing like a gray and white dog in muddy pond water.
    Anthony handed me his snoball and darted toward the pond.
    I placed the tips of our snoball between the slants of the bench and raced after him.
    His broad shoulders and athletic frame moved like lightning toward my dog. As fast as Anthony beamed forward, he missed by seconds.
    The ball made a huge splash followed by a bigger one made by Mr. Bojangles.
    Anthony turned back to me as I sailed after them. He shrugged his shoulders, kicked off his shoes, and tromped into the muddy water after my soaked dog.
    He lifted my dripping Schnauzer from the pond and onto the bank and even went in after the floating ball that Mr. Bojangles had missed. Anthony threw the ball back toward the bench, and we both laughed as mud and water flew out from the once clean gray fur attached to the overexcited dog.
    I grabbed Anthony’s shoes and headed back to the bench. Anthony caught up to me as Mr. Bojangles, covered in muck and mud, met us with the ball firmly planted between his teeth.
    “He’s like a robot. Does he ever get tired of fetching?”
    “Yes, in about thirty minutes.”
    Anthony flung the ball away from the pond and then plopped next to me. Our icy treats slumped over as the hot sun melted them. We gathered what was left and slurped the slushy mix while Mr. Bojangles fetched his favorite toy.
    I loved Anthony’s patience and gentle spirit. He was three years older than me and had not yet married. I wondered if he had some of the same hang ups I did. I slid my knee onto the bench and turned toward him. “Anthony, do you ever wonder why we aren’t married yet?”
    He snickered or sighed. I couldn’t tell which. “Yeah, I wonder, and then I quickly erase the thought.” His eyes twinkled and tiny lines creased in the corners when he smiled.
    “Seriously. Do you?”
    He grabbed my hand. “ Te . Yeah, I do wonder. I want a wife and kids. The whole thing, but then I think of Mama’s marriage and the pain it caused all of us. I’m not sure I could do it. Besides working seven-and-seven is hard on a marriage. I see those men with families. They’re miserable when they’re offshore. Of course, those are the ones who still care. Some of the men have empty-shell marriages so they’re happy offshore and dread going home. And then there are the ones who are crazy jealous and fear their wives are cheating on them when they’re gone. Sad thing is, some of them are right.”
    “You know we had it good when Daddy was alive. I don’t remember too much but enough to know that Mama was happy and Daddy was a good man.”
    He nodded. “He was. They were happy together. Mama didn’t act all weird with him.”
    “I know we didn’t have a good role model for a happy marriage after Daddy died, but we both know that. So why haven’t we been able to commit?”
    He shrugged his shoulders. “I haven’t found the right girl. I know that. The truth is, I’m not going to find her unless I leave here.”
    “Well, a lot of good it did me to leave. I didn’t find Mr. Right. And Houston is a big city. What about Angelle? Y’all dated for a while.”
    “That was twelve years ago. She wanted a ring. I didn’t want to be married then. So she went off to college. Last I heard, she graduated from med school and was doing her residency at Children’s Hospital in New Orleans. I often wonder if she was “the one” I let get away.” He patted Mr. Bojangles on the head and tossed his ball again.
    “Is she married?” I asked.
    He shook his head. “I don’t know.”
    A smile tugged at the corner of my lips. “We could find out.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Duh, the Internet has everything. Especially if she’s a doctor. We could find