Caroline was due back the next day from her family trip and couldn't wait to be with Tim again. She sent him a text along with a picture of herself along the shoreline... I'm on my way home, will see you tomorrow afternoon. I have missed you so much Timothy and I can't wait to start our life together. I love you...

Tim was at the apartment, making the final touches for when they move in when his phone vibrated. He took it from his pocket, reading her message over and over, smiling from ear to ear. This was the first message he had received from her since she left. Her father was emphatic that this vacation was to be "electronic device free" in his words. He wanted them to enjoy their surroundings and each other without the intrusion of phones, computers even television. Tim had been nervous about not having any communication with her during the month she was gone but deep down knew he really didn't have anything to worry about. He knew she would come back to him.

He took one final look throughout the apartment, satisfied with everything he had finished. All it needed now was for the two of them to move in and begin their life together. They would be moving in within the next week after orientation.

Realising he hadn't eaten all day, he contacted his mother to see if she and Emily would like to join him for dinner. Family dinners would not be the same once he left for college as he would be a couple hours away and with classes and work he knew they would need to "schedule" time together. They would decide where to go when he arrived back home, 'home' he thought will have a whole new meaning in just a few short days.

As Tim drove back to his Mom's in Nederland from the airport, he thought back to the days when he first left for college and moved in with Caroline. Family, friends, fond memories - it all seemed so long ago.