Marley's Monologue
Marley Wallren was a 20-year-old grill cook at the local Applebee’s in East Greenbush, a small town in the Eastern part of New York State. He was about 6 foot tall, with dirty blond hair, blue eyes, and a large smile to complete his adolescent face. He was shy and kept to himself but I could tell there was another side to him in his eyes. As his face lit up, each side of his mouth raising high into his cheeks, there was something about the way his eyes spoke life. He was quiet and mysterious and I just had a yearning to know him.
My name was Jillian Atwood. I was a server at the same local spot and I just turned 18 years old. Blonde hair and hazel eyes, I was bubbly and free. Ever since Marley started at the Applebee’s I had my eyes on him. I always made sure I asked him first if I needed something from the …show more content…
grill line. I smiled as I walked by and made sure my eyes locked with his for even just a moment, to make my interest known.
One day, one of our co-workers, whom I happened to be friends with was throwing a party.
"This would be the perfect opportunity. Now is my chance." I thought, "or I will surely regret not asking."
I walked over to the grill line and got cold feet. I pretended as if I had to stack dishes, when to my surprise Marley approached me.
"Hi Jill." (As most people who knew me called me)
My face lighting up, I couldn't help the huge grin that came across it. If I looked in a mirror at that moment, I would probably be embarrassed by the shade of pink my cheeks must have been. "Oh, hi Marley." I said eagerly. "What's up?"
"So Melissa told me about her party tonight and said I should come. She told me you were going to be there too. I was wondering _ uh _ well _ I wanted to see if, maybe, I mean _ would you like to go to the party with me, Jill?"
"YES!" I shouted in my head but didn't want to seem so eager, so I replied, "yeah sure Marley. That sounds fun." All I could think was how much my flirting had paid off. Finally, I would get to see what Marley was all about.
Marley and I went to the party and we really hit it off. For weeks, we became inseparable. Weeks turned into months. Then everything changed and Marley dropped a bombshell on me.
"Jill, I need to tell you something." As he sat at my dining room table. His leg shaking and he fidgeted with his hands.
"O.K., Marley, what is it?" I sat down at the table across from him so I could see his face, and I put my hand on top of his to calm the fidgeting.
"Well you know all those talks we had about me going into the Navy?" Marley pushed his enlisting date out three times already. "Well I need to go to boot camp at the end of the month. They aren't letting me push the date any longer. I leave the 30th."
My heart sank deep into my chest. It was July 17, 2004. "How many days is that?" I thought. Not many, I knew that. I wished it were a dream. That I would wake up any moment and this conversation never happened. That I could go back to living in my perfect little bubble. Sadly, I knew this day was coming. We had many talks about how much fun we were having. About how we could never be something serious. Marley was leaving and neither one of us wanted to get attached. For me, it was too late. I had fallen for Marley that first night at the party.
"Ok Marley. Well we still have some time. Let us make the best of what we have left. Want to go get dinner somewhere?" Quickly changing the subject, I yearned to say so much more, but I didn't. I cowered.
The days passed by quickly and the night before Marley had to leave approached us. Both of us silent as he packed his stuff from my apartment, where he spent most of his free time.
"Marley." I said. Pausing for a moment, I trembled inside over what I was about to say. "Marley" I said again as I mustered up the courage to say what had really been on my heart since he told me he had to go. "I don't want to lose you." I blurted out.
"Oh Jill. I don't want to lose you either, but I don’t see how we can make this work."
"I'll wait for you. We will write. You will call when you can. I'll wait for you." I frantically stated.
"I would never ask you to do that, Jill. That must be so hard." Marley said, as he looked at me hopelessly and sad. You could see tears well up at the corners of his eyes but he shook them off, not allowing them to show me that side of him.
"I know you aren't asking, Marley." I said. "I am telling you that I want to wait for you. That I have never felt this way about anyone before and I don't care how hard it is or what it takes. I want to wait for you." I pleaded.
"I love you, Jill." Marley said so nonchalantly, as if it was not the first time he said this to me before.
"I would love to give this a chance and to see where this takes us. If not for nothing, at least we can say we tried. I would love for this not to be the end, but the beginning of a great adventure with you."
And so it was, an adventure, as Marley called it. I dropped Marley off at the airport the next day. We exchanged promises, and a long embrace, complete with a passionate kiss. Marley promised to write, and to call when he was allowed, which was not that often.
Marley went to boot camp and we both waited impatiently for each other's letters. There were minimal phone calls allowed, which made that time priceless and so precious. Marley graduated in October, and I went on a road trip with Marley’s dad to cheer him on and support his success.
After boot camp, Marley went to A-school in Florida. This time there weren't many letters, as we were able to call each other whenever we wanted. When A-school was over, finally Marley was able to come home to visit for a few weeks before assigned to his stationed location, in Virginia
Beach.
Marley was the same, just in better shape. Nothing else about him seemed to change. He was still mysterious and quiet in his own way, yet fun and exciting too. He was more handsome than I remembered and I was ecstatic that he was actually home. That we made it through these past few months, and pretty easily at that. It gave us hope for the unspoken future.
One night we were getting ready to go on a trip to visit Marley’s family in Michigan for Christmas. I was packing away and Marley, with his face the color of a rose, and sweat starting to be visible at his hairline, paced back and forth in my living room.
"Marley. Are you feeling ok?" I asked.
"Um, Jill. I...uh...have a...um Jill. Come here." Marley said.
I felt my heart sink into my stomach. "What could this be about?" I thought. "Marley what is it?" I said, thinking he was about to tear my heart out.
Right before my eyes, Marley got on his knee, put his hand into his pocket, and pulled out a box. "Um...marry me, Jill?"
Oh my goodness. Could this really be happening? "Oh Marley, yes. Yes I'll marry you." As I jumped at him and wrapped my arms around his shoulders, not even allowing him the chance to put my ring on my finger.
The time came for Marley to go to Virginia. We had every confidence that we would make it. A few days after arriving to Virginia, Marley learned that he was going on the USS Harry Truman to the Persian Gulf. After all, the War in Afghanistan was still so present and they desperately needed all the soldiers they could get.
I planned our wedding for July, that following summer. With everything planned and paid, the only thing left to do was wait the approaching day, and Marley’s return of course.
Marley came home to visit for 5 days at the beginning of June. Shortly after Marley arrived, he received a call letting him know that right after our wedding he would be going on another 6-month tour to the Persian Gulf. I was supposed to move to Virginia Beach and leaving everything and everyone I ever knew. I was young and terrified. "Could I do this?" I thought. "There is just so much waiting. Is it always going to be like this?"
5 days passed, Marley left, and I called off our wedding. I just couldn't go through with it. I was devastated by the decision but I didn't feel like I had any other option. I was not strong enough to handle what I needed to, to be a Military wife, at the time. I was too young. Too immature and I was still figuring out who I was. The only thing Marley left behind was his memory, and a box. The box contained all of our letters to each other, a picture album of his childhood, an old softball jersey from his youth, all his military documents, and a few other keepsakes.
Years passed. Boyfriends. A lot of them. A few serious. One I thought I would spend my life with, but that ended too. All the while, I kept moving around. My belongings, Marley’s box, and me. 10 years passed and I could never bring myself to get rid of the box. I just couldn't do it. I held all of our memories there, and as much as I never admitted it at that time, my feelings for Marley, never resolved, just ended up in the box with his belongings. I heard he got married about 2 or 3 years after I ended things between us. Good for him.
My name was Jillian Atwood. I was a server at the same local spot and I just turned 18 years old. Blonde hair and hazel eyes, I was bubbly and free. Ever since Marley started at the Applebee’s I had my eyes on him. I always made sure I asked him first if I needed something from the …show more content…
grill line. I smiled as I walked by and made sure my eyes locked with his for even just a moment, to make my interest known.
One day, one of our co-workers, whom I happened to be friends with was throwing a party.
"This would be the perfect opportunity. Now is my chance." I thought, "or I will surely regret not asking."
I walked over to the grill line and got cold feet. I pretended as if I had to stack dishes, when to my surprise Marley approached me.
"Hi Jill." (As most people who knew me called me)
My face lighting up, I couldn't help the huge grin that came across it. If I looked in a mirror at that moment, I would probably be embarrassed by the shade of pink my cheeks must have been. "Oh, hi Marley." I said eagerly. "What's up?"
"So Melissa told me about her party tonight and said I should come. She told me you were going to be there too. I was wondering _ uh _ well _ I wanted to see if, maybe, I mean _ would you like to go to the party with me, Jill?"
"YES!" I shouted in my head but didn't want to seem so eager, so I replied, "yeah sure Marley. That sounds fun." All I could think was how much my flirting had paid off. Finally, I would get to see what Marley was all about.
Marley and I went to the party and we really hit it off. For weeks, we became inseparable. Weeks turned into months. Then everything changed and Marley dropped a bombshell on me.
"Jill, I need to tell you something." As he sat at my dining room table. His leg shaking and he fidgeted with his hands.
"O.K., Marley, what is it?" I sat down at the table across from him so I could see his face, and I put my hand on top of his to calm the fidgeting.
"Well you know all those talks we had about me going into the Navy?" Marley pushed his enlisting date out three times already. "Well I need to go to boot camp at the end of the month. They aren't letting me push the date any longer. I leave the 30th."
My heart sank deep into my chest. It was July 17, 2004. "How many days is that?" I thought. Not many, I knew that. I wished it were a dream. That I would wake up any moment and this conversation never happened. That I could go back to living in my perfect little bubble. Sadly, I knew this day was coming. We had many talks about how much fun we were having. About how we could never be something serious. Marley was leaving and neither one of us wanted to get attached. For me, it was too late. I had fallen for Marley that first night at the party.
"Ok Marley. Well we still have some time. Let us make the best of what we have left. Want to go get dinner somewhere?" Quickly changing the subject, I yearned to say so much more, but I didn't. I cowered.
The days passed by quickly and the night before Marley had to leave approached us. Both of us silent as he packed his stuff from my apartment, where he spent most of his free time.
"Marley." I said. Pausing for a moment, I trembled inside over what I was about to say. "Marley" I said again as I mustered up the courage to say what had really been on my heart since he told me he had to go. "I don't want to lose you." I blurted out.
"Oh Jill. I don't want to lose you either, but I don’t see how we can make this work."
"I'll wait for you. We will write. You will call when you can. I'll wait for you." I frantically stated.
"I would never ask you to do that, Jill. That must be so hard." Marley said, as he looked at me hopelessly and sad. You could see tears well up at the corners of his eyes but he shook them off, not allowing them to show me that side of him.
"I know you aren't asking, Marley." I said. "I am telling you that I want to wait for you. That I have never felt this way about anyone before and I don't care how hard it is or what it takes. I want to wait for you." I pleaded.
"I love you, Jill." Marley said so nonchalantly, as if it was not the first time he said this to me before.
"I would love to give this a chance and to see where this takes us. If not for nothing, at least we can say we tried. I would love for this not to be the end, but the beginning of a great adventure with you."
And so it was, an adventure, as Marley called it. I dropped Marley off at the airport the next day. We exchanged promises, and a long embrace, complete with a passionate kiss. Marley promised to write, and to call when he was allowed, which was not that often.
Marley went to boot camp and we both waited impatiently for each other's letters. There were minimal phone calls allowed, which made that time priceless and so precious. Marley graduated in October, and I went on a road trip with Marley’s dad to cheer him on and support his success.
After boot camp, Marley went to A-school in Florida. This time there weren't many letters, as we were able to call each other whenever we wanted. When A-school was over, finally Marley was able to come home to visit for a few weeks before assigned to his stationed location, in Virginia
Beach.
Marley was the same, just in better shape. Nothing else about him seemed to change. He was still mysterious and quiet in his own way, yet fun and exciting too. He was more handsome than I remembered and I was ecstatic that he was actually home. That we made it through these past few months, and pretty easily at that. It gave us hope for the unspoken future.
One night we were getting ready to go on a trip to visit Marley’s family in Michigan for Christmas. I was packing away and Marley, with his face the color of a rose, and sweat starting to be visible at his hairline, paced back and forth in my living room.
"Marley. Are you feeling ok?" I asked.
"Um, Jill. I...uh...have a...um Jill. Come here." Marley said.
I felt my heart sink into my stomach. "What could this be about?" I thought. "Marley what is it?" I said, thinking he was about to tear my heart out.
Right before my eyes, Marley got on his knee, put his hand into his pocket, and pulled out a box. "Um...marry me, Jill?"
Oh my goodness. Could this really be happening? "Oh Marley, yes. Yes I'll marry you." As I jumped at him and wrapped my arms around his shoulders, not even allowing him the chance to put my ring on my finger.
The time came for Marley to go to Virginia. We had every confidence that we would make it. A few days after arriving to Virginia, Marley learned that he was going on the USS Harry Truman to the Persian Gulf. After all, the War in Afghanistan was still so present and they desperately needed all the soldiers they could get.
I planned our wedding for July, that following summer. With everything planned and paid, the only thing left to do was wait the approaching day, and Marley’s return of course.
Marley came home to visit for 5 days at the beginning of June. Shortly after Marley arrived, he received a call letting him know that right after our wedding he would be going on another 6-month tour to the Persian Gulf. I was supposed to move to Virginia Beach and leaving everything and everyone I ever knew. I was young and terrified. "Could I do this?" I thought. "There is just so much waiting. Is it always going to be like this?"
5 days passed, Marley left, and I called off our wedding. I just couldn't go through with it. I was devastated by the decision but I didn't feel like I had any other option. I was not strong enough to handle what I needed to, to be a Military wife, at the time. I was too young. Too immature and I was still figuring out who I was. The only thing Marley left behind was his memory, and a box. The box contained all of our letters to each other, a picture album of his childhood, an old softball jersey from his youth, all his military documents, and a few other keepsakes.
Years passed. Boyfriends. A lot of them. A few serious. One I thought I would spend my life with, but that ended too. All the while, I kept moving around. My belongings, Marley’s box, and me. 10 years passed and I could never bring myself to get rid of the box. I just couldn't do it. I held all of our memories there, and as much as I never admitted it at that time, my feelings for Marley, never resolved, just ended up in the box with his belongings. I heard he got married about 2 or 3 years after I ended things between us. Good for him.