I wonder where I am going,” said Joan.

She clutched tightly to her walking stick and turned sideways. Seth held her shoulders with his huge warm hands and gave her a reassuring squeeze.

“Just trust me. Okay, Joan?” Seth whispered and Joan visibly melted in him arms.

Joan Dering lived in the countryside of North Carolina. She was a confident, beautiful girl in her mid-twenties. But she couldn’t see. While volunteering for an animal shelter in the neighbourhood, she met Seth Lawson. He was kind and didn’t make fun of her disability. She felt as if everything around her had evolved into something magical. Seth served her as an emotional acquaintance. He took care of her like no one had ever done. Her parents had abandoned her when she was only nine years old. She had always felt a void but now Seth had filled that emptiness.

Two years of endless happiness reached its denouement when Seth proposed to her on her birthday. Joan was ecstatic. It was all surreal for her. She had always believed she would be alone in her youth and die alone, with only cats surrounding her. But that fear had now been replaced. She had Seth and he loved her.

She was basking in her happiness.

One day, Seth decided they needed to go on a trip. And here they were walking in the middle of nowhere. Joan didn’t know how this man she loved looked. What she did know was that  there was no way he would ever betray her.

“I am tired, Seth. Why won’t you tell me where this journey will lead us to?” Joan was baffled and the heat was draining every ounce of her energy. After a long silence, Seth finally told her they were walking in a desert. She was dumbfounded. They were to be married within a week and her fiancé was making her walk in a desert. She suddenly heard a slow hum in a distance which made them halt.

Seth moved forward and started talking to a group of strangers. Joan knew this wasn’t a good idea. Although she was blind, her other senses were sharp . She thought the strangers were clearly insane.

“Who would in their right mind light a campfire in the middle of a desert?” she said to Seth. But he thought otherwise.

“I was just asking for directions, sweetheart. Why are you so angry?”  he said.

“Lady, you are quite uptight. Give the man a break. It’s swell,” said one of the strangers in a slurred voice.

Wow, those boys weren’t just mad but intoxicated as well. Joan thought to herself.

She then pleaded with her fiancé to hurry as it was getting late.

It felt to Joan like they might have walked for decades now. That’s how she felt.

 Seth told her night had fallen and they were now in some farmland. She heard some heavy thundering and wondered how wonderful it would have been if she were home in bed with Seth beside her, sipping a piping hot cup of coffee while listening to one of Jane Austen’s audio books.

Eventually, it started raining and they needed to get a lift on someone’s vehicle. Bright lights flickered through the darkness of the night, and the coarse sound of an engine seemed to be coming closer.

“Can you give us a lift? You see, we have been walking all day,” Joan heard Seth shout so that the driver would hear. The rain was pouring and it seemed that

both of them were now soaking wet. The driver was a good man and readily agreed to help them.

“Where you love birds headed to, mister?” he asked.

Joan thought finally Seth would reveal their destination. She was indeed really curious about the whole situation.

“Please take us to California. We need to see someone.”

This was crazy. Joan felt more confused than ever. No matter how long she wracked her brain, she couldn’t see any reason for their having to travel that far. Why on earth were they going to California? Whom were they supposed to meet?

Joan felt that maybe Seth was hiding something and her mind started to make up its own stories. She kept thinking of the worst scenarios. She always knew in her heart that having Seth was a luxury for her,  which she didn’t deserve. He was too kind, too perfect. Every night she slept dreading that Seth would leave her for someone far prettier and better than her. And every morning she woke up to his soft touches and sweet words.

Maybe her fantasy had finally come to

an end and Seth had decided to move

on, like her parents had done. With a heavy heart she decided to just let things take their own course.

In the morning they reached the suburbs of Los Angeles, California. They both thanked the driver, and after he left, she faced Seth. Joan closed her eyes as if trying to conjure up some energy to be able to speak. She drew Seth’s hands to her chest and said, “Seth, my love, please tell me. Is something wrong, honey? Tell me. We are going to get married soon, right?”

Seth squeezed her hand, and even though Joan couldn’t see, she could imagine a small smile spreading across his lips. Whenever he looked at her, she imagined, there was this absolute love in his eyes.

He whispered to her softly with a kindness and warmth she never thought was even possible.

“Joan, I would like you to get into your home.”

At first she didn’t get what was going on. He knew she was an orphan. He pulled her inside a big mansion. A lady in her late forties came to the entrance and embraced her and tears pooled in both their eyes. Seth had brought her home to her mother.

Seth had searched for Joan’s birth

parents. He knew that he needed her parent’s blessing no matter whether they accepted her or not. Later he found out that Joan’s parents hadn’t abandoned her but that she had gotten lost in a fair. After parting from her mother, she met her father, who took her in his arms. How happy they were to have found their only child they had thought was dead. And she had grown up to be a fine young lady. They all chatted till evening and the couple excused themselves to leave and promise to visit her parents often.

As they were walking down the driveway, Joan abruptly stopped and Seth turned to look at her. Today she was indeed a very happy woman. She came forward and embraced her fiancé because she knew now they were destined to be together. Gone were her insecurities. He was her miracle. He loved her and so did she.

Now they had a family to raise and live happily. She raised herself on her toes and whispered into Seth’s ears: “Seth Lawson, I love you.”