Duchess of the Shire

The most obscure thing happened to me the other night. I ended up with the brunette yet again, but at a soirée up on the cliffs of the Northlands over looking the beautiful sea. It took me a while to recognise my surroundings but after a short panic I saw the Captain's abode through the trees. The Antipodes may be a stunning country but it is far too small compared to the cities that I am used to.

What are the chances I would end up near where I unwittingly ended my laconic relationship with the Captain after the Rowing Ball?

A part of me thinks that the brunette had it planned in order to shock me into an inebriated stupor. She is devious and cunning, but this felt more like fate. A sharp reminder of what I lost. Every time I think I am completely over the Captain I get a little jolt that reminds me of what could have been.

Terribly melodramatic I know, but I was shaking like a leaf when I realised where I was. Even though I have seen the Captain in the last few weeks and we've established a friendship,  it is still somewhat tenuous.

There is also a small matter of a few other suitors and I'm not quite sure what to make of them. The latest is a friend of the brunette's and though he is sarcastic and witty I'm not sure he can handle the little emotions I have to offer. I just don't see him in a romantic light, though I wouldn't mind a little bit of a tumble, but he has this look in his eye that speaks volumes. I don't truly think he knows what he's getting himself in to, but I'm not one to say no... 

Then there are those who keep further afield but whose attentions haven't gone unnoticed. I can only smile and nod while they try and convince me of their love, but it isn't their love I want. I want solid friendships here in the Antipodes. Friendships that can go the distance for when I leave... I am at the midway point of my travels, and so far the Captain and brunette, though she is a Northern county lass, are the only two to have captured my full attention.

I shall have to wait and see what happens in the next few weeks. I must control my urges and make more of an effort to maintain friendships. Especially the few that I have here.

D. S.