I stood in the kitchen with Chase, flipping through a dozen different recipe books. It had been over a month since my parents found out about Chase, and they still hadn't met him yet. My mom thought it would be a great idea for us to cook dinner for the family together. I can still remember Chase's expression when I told him that. He said the most extravagant thing he could make was cereal, and he didn't think my parents wanted to eat Lucky Charms or Fruit Loops for dinner. I told him that my peanut butter and jelly sandwiches always had too much jelly, and I never made grilled cheese without burning at least one side. We both concluded this was going to be the worst dinner ever.

My mom said that in every relationship, one person needed to be a good cook. I told her we weren't planning on getting married anytime in the near future. She did not appreciate my sarcasm.

So, Chase and I found ourselves looking for the perfect meal to make. Chase was a little more critical of our selections than I was. He wanted to make a good impression on my parents. Seeing as they'd never met, I suggested we made stake, because it was my dad's favorite food. That light of hope turned off quick, seeing as neither of us knew how to prepare meat or check to see if it was done.

So, we were stuck looking for a meatless entrée. That left us with two options: pasta, or a casserole. I opted for pasta, possibly some sort of bread to go along with it, and maybe a fruit salad. Chase agreed, and it was a done deal. Pasta it was.

We wasted no time in finding a box of penne pasta in my pantry. He began preparing that while I searched for some acceptable fruit. I came across a few apples, a banana, two mediocre oranges, a bag full of grapes, and three plums. We made the executive decision of nix-naying the plums and cutting around the bad parts of the orange to make a half-decent salad.

It was quickly all coming together. It had to be. My parents weren't home from work yet, but they would be within the next half hour. It had been an entire month since I promised them that they would meet Chase. I had put it off long enough. Actually, that part wasn't hard. I convinced my parents that it would work out better to plan the dinner once the soccer season was over. They agreed, knowing that Cade had his own busy schedule due to soccer. Unfortunately, their season ended prematurely at a qualifying contest.

It wasn't like I was ashamed of Chase. In fact, over the past month, I had grown even fonder of him. We spent nearly all of our free time together, except for when I had plans with Denny. You simply could not split up best friends.

But being with Chase evoked feelings that I had never felt before. And those came simply by a mere touch of our arms, the sight of him jogging to me in the hallway just to say hi before his next class, or at that very moment in the kitchen where I glanced up from washing fruit in the sink to see Chase flinging penne pasta against the wall to see if it was done.

"Done yet?" My eyes caught hold of his, and still my heart skipped a beat. We had known each other for months, feeling this way for months, and still his blue eyes captivated me like none other.

"I think just a few more minutes." He gave the marinara sauce a stir before setting down the wooden spoon and approaching my side. He slowly wrapped his arms around my waist and nuzzled his head into the corner between my head and shoulder.

"My parents could walk through the door any second."

"I don't care." His breath was soothing against my skin. "I just need to be near you, that's all."

"Stop being so serious. I'm trying to wash my apples."

His subtle laugh created a grin upon my face, and I felt his jaw bounce on my shoulder. After the flood of emotions ran through the course of my body, his arms retreated from my waist before moving back to the stove to stir the marinara sauce.

Once I was done making the salad and Chase was putting the finishing touches on his pasta, I was able to drive to the supermarket in order to buy warm bread. In the meantime, I left Chase at home with Emma. When I got back home and made my way into the kitchen with bread in one hand and my wallet in the other, I found myself staring at Emma, sitting on Chase's lap, while he bounced her up and down and held one of her favorite story books. As I looked into the dining room, I noticed that he had the entire table set. All of the food was ready to be eaten.

Chase cocked his head around to smile at me before reading the last few pages of Emma's book. Although I was not surprised at the compassion he expressed, I was still in awe at his grace. Emma had been a fan of Chase from the start. Every Sunday, after Sunday school, she would cling to his leg in hopes of not leaving. He would send me one of those infamous Chase Avery grins while prying her stubby fingers off of him.

My parents arrived home that night almost simultaneously. I began getting nervous as I heard footsteps moving to the dining room, but Chase caught my gaze and sent me a nod. He knew exactly what I was thinking, but he was more than ready.

My dad was the first to approach him. He had known of Chase throughout all of Cade's soccer games over the years, but they had never actually spoken before.

"Nice to meet you, sir." Chase extended his hand towards my father. His voice was confident and dignified, yet another reminder that he was going to be a soldier.

My dad took his hand and gave it a strong shake. "Nice to meet you, too."

We were off to a good start.

My mother was next to walk into the dining room. She was still wearing her work attire. Her greeting to Chase as about the same as my Dad's, and before you knew it, Cade walked in the door and we were all ready to sit down for a warm dinner.

"Everything looks wonderful." My mother's voice eased my nerves as she glanced at Chase and I sitting next to each other. We had our fingers interlocked underneath the table.

"Thank you, ma'am." Chase was as calm as ever. "So Rhapsody tells me that you both commute to work everyday outside of Stars Mountain." He was even doing better than me. Heck, my boyfriend was making conversation with my parents on his own while I was sitting silently, too nervous to speak.

"That's right. You're a senior, Chase. Have you put any thought into your future career?" My father raised a brow before reaching for his ice water. Chase gave my hand a squeeze.

"I'd like to join the Armed Forces, sir. I recently sent in my acceptance letter to the Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs. I would like to serve my country, sir, as a fighter pilot."

He sounded so dang grown-up, like even just sitting here at the table he had aged.

"Really." My mom looked up from her plate of pasta. "Well, that's very noble of you, Chase."

He didn't respond, just gave a tip of his head.

"Well, it sounds like you've got more planned out than Cadence over here." My dad motioned his face towards Cade. "He doesn't know what the heck he's doing."

Cade set down his glass of water. "Thanks, Dad."

Well, I'd much rather see Cade taking the heat than Chase.

"So, any reason why you've decided to become a soldier?" My dad sidestepped the previous conversation with Cade.

My boyfriend finished chewing his pasta before speaking. "I've always felt a pride and loyalty to America, Mr. Madsen. I think God has called on me to defend her."

Pride surged through my veins. My boyfriend: the soldier. I don't think there could have been anything to make me feel prouder. The young man sitting beside me was the best there was.

My dad nodded at his answer. The conversation following was fairly casual, talk about the soccer season or how senior year was going. The meal was a success with little or no obstacles. Chase was charming as heck, and my mom loved him. Dad kept his cool and didn't jump on anyone's back. So yeah, it was a success. Chase and I spent a good half hour washing dishes and flicking soapy water at each other. And before we knew it, the time had come to kick Chase out of the house before my dad made any comment of him being with me too late or something. Our stressfully anticipated night had ended, and all was well.

Time moves too quickly. Yeah, I'm not the first to realize this, but I started fretting about the timeline placed in front of me. My time with Chase was dwindling. A few months turned into countable weeks and I feared the moment that I numbered the days. As usual, I turned to Brayden with my worries.

"Rhapsody, I've seen you two together. I know how you feel about him." He looked up at me with the most sincerity as we sat at the base of a mountain, taking in God's beautiful landscape before us. "Just enjoy the time you have with him now. Live in the moment."

Brayden was right. He's always right. I nodded my head in agreement with his statement. We sat in a comfortable silence, the way best friends do. I tugged my jacket closer to my body. Just like that, winter had come and gone. Spring was almost on its way out as well. But the mid-April breeze still held an unforgiving chill.

"I'm scared," I blurted out. Denny already knew this, but I needed to admit to it.

He tucked an arm around my waist and drew me a bit closer. "I know, Rhapsody."

I leaned my head on his shoulder and soaked in his comfort.

"He's gonna be fine in the Air Force. Chase is strong. He'll make it through. Just be praying for him. I'll be praying for him."

I had no words to add. I felt weak. I felt like the world was spinning before me.

"God will keep you strong, okay? He'll keep you strong, prop you up. He'll keep Chase safe, send his guardian angels out for him. God will take care of all your worries. Just let him."

And I did.

Disclaimers: Lucky Charms, Fruit Loops