home? I can do this later.”
“Just stay there and finish. You want to meet for lunch?”
“Okay. Can we go to the coffee shop? Maybe meet at noon?”
“Sure. I’ll see you then.”
“Garret, how are you feeling?”
“I’m fine. I feel better now that I slept and took a shower.”
“You grew a beard overnight.” She laughs a little.
“Yeah. I’ll shave. See you soon.”
“Wait. Garret?”
“Yeah.”
“You heard, right?”
“Heard what?”
“About your grandfather.”
When she says it I realize I forgot to check the news this morning. I didn’t even think to check. I just assumed he passed away overnight. But if he had, Jade wouldn’t have left this morning. She’d want to be with me. And she’d sound sad. She doesn’t sound sad.
“What happened?”
“Your grandfather made it through the night.” She sounds happy, hopeful.
I’m neither of those. Truthfully, I’m disappointed. Fuck, that’s messed up. He’s my grandfather, but shit, he’s pure evil and I wanted him gone.
“Garret, did you hear me?”
“Yeah. So they said he’s getting better?”
“I’m not sure. He’s still in a coma. You should call your dad.”
“I will. I’ll do it right now. I’ll see you at lunch.”
After we hang up, I turn the TV on and search for any updates. I find one on a financial channel.
“…condition remained the same overnight. His wife, Eleanor, has asked that her husband be transferred to a medical facility closer to their home in Connecticut.” The camera pans to the other news anchor. “The stock market took a nosedive yesterday as reports of—”
I click the TV off and call my dad.
“Yes, Garret.” He sounds like he’s in a hurry.
“What’s going on?”
“It’s not a good time to talk. I’m in crisis mode here. One of our plants had a fire last night and this morning one of our distributors wants to—”
“Not about the company. What’s going on with Grandfather?”
He sighs. “My mother is moving him to a different facility.”
“Wait. Back up a minute. So he’s better? He’s recovering?”
“His condition hasn’t changed. And it doesn’t look like it will.”
“By different facility, you mean the clinic?”
“Yes. Not the one you were at, but a different one. It’s in the Hamptons. It has the latest equipment. A top notch staff.”
“What does this mean? You think they can help him?”
“I don’t think so. I’d be surprised if he made it through the week.”
“You said he wouldn’t make it through the night , but he did.”
“Garret, I really can’t talk right now. I have at least 10 people waiting outside my office. We’ll talk later.” He hangs up.
So it sounds like my grandfather’s still going to die, but now it’s happening later this week. Dammit. I just wanted this to be over. And it will be. In a few more days. Until then, I need to start acting normal so Jade will stop wondering what’s wrong with me. I need to start eating and sleeping and going to class. And when my grandfather dies, I need to play along and act sad.
At noon I meet Jade at the coffee shop for lunch. She’s sitting at one of the small round tables but she gets up when she sees me. She has on jeans and a light pink sweater that reminds me of the pink flowers we had at our wedding. Her hair is pulled up in a ponytail with a few loose strands falling down around her face. I see her every day, but sometimes I have these moments where I see her and realize how lucky I am that this beautiful woman is my wife. That she’s all mine.
“Hi.” She gives me a hug and I smell the fresh, flowery scent of her hair. I hold on to her for just a moment longer when she tries to pull away.
“You look beautiful.” I kiss her head, then slowly let her go.
“Thanks.” She gives me a funny look as she glances down at herself. She obviously disagrees, which I don’t understand, but maybe if I keep telling her, she’ll eventually realize that she really is
“Just stay there and finish. You want to meet for lunch?”
“Okay. Can we go to the coffee shop? Maybe meet at noon?”
“Sure. I’ll see you then.”
“Garret, how are you feeling?”
“I’m fine. I feel better now that I slept and took a shower.”
“You grew a beard overnight.” She laughs a little.
“Yeah. I’ll shave. See you soon.”
“Wait. Garret?”
“Yeah.”
“You heard, right?”
“Heard what?”
“About your grandfather.”
When she says it I realize I forgot to check the news this morning. I didn’t even think to check. I just assumed he passed away overnight. But if he had, Jade wouldn’t have left this morning. She’d want to be with me. And she’d sound sad. She doesn’t sound sad.
“What happened?”
“Your grandfather made it through the night.” She sounds happy, hopeful.
I’m neither of those. Truthfully, I’m disappointed. Fuck, that’s messed up. He’s my grandfather, but shit, he’s pure evil and I wanted him gone.
“Garret, did you hear me?”
“Yeah. So they said he’s getting better?”
“I’m not sure. He’s still in a coma. You should call your dad.”
“I will. I’ll do it right now. I’ll see you at lunch.”
After we hang up, I turn the TV on and search for any updates. I find one on a financial channel.
“…condition remained the same overnight. His wife, Eleanor, has asked that her husband be transferred to a medical facility closer to their home in Connecticut.” The camera pans to the other news anchor. “The stock market took a nosedive yesterday as reports of—”
I click the TV off and call my dad.
“Yes, Garret.” He sounds like he’s in a hurry.
“What’s going on?”
“It’s not a good time to talk. I’m in crisis mode here. One of our plants had a fire last night and this morning one of our distributors wants to—”
“Not about the company. What’s going on with Grandfather?”
He sighs. “My mother is moving him to a different facility.”
“Wait. Back up a minute. So he’s better? He’s recovering?”
“His condition hasn’t changed. And it doesn’t look like it will.”
“By different facility, you mean the clinic?”
“Yes. Not the one you were at, but a different one. It’s in the Hamptons. It has the latest equipment. A top notch staff.”
“What does this mean? You think they can help him?”
“I don’t think so. I’d be surprised if he made it through the week.”
“You said he wouldn’t make it through the night , but he did.”
“Garret, I really can’t talk right now. I have at least 10 people waiting outside my office. We’ll talk later.” He hangs up.
So it sounds like my grandfather’s still going to die, but now it’s happening later this week. Dammit. I just wanted this to be over. And it will be. In a few more days. Until then, I need to start acting normal so Jade will stop wondering what’s wrong with me. I need to start eating and sleeping and going to class. And when my grandfather dies, I need to play along and act sad.
At noon I meet Jade at the coffee shop for lunch. She’s sitting at one of the small round tables but she gets up when she sees me. She has on jeans and a light pink sweater that reminds me of the pink flowers we had at our wedding. Her hair is pulled up in a ponytail with a few loose strands falling down around her face. I see her every day, but sometimes I have these moments where I see her and realize how lucky I am that this beautiful woman is my wife. That she’s all mine.
“Hi.” She gives me a hug and I smell the fresh, flowery scent of her hair. I hold on to her for just a moment longer when she tries to pull away.
“You look beautiful.” I kiss her head, then slowly let her go.
“Thanks.” She gives me a funny look as she glances down at herself. She obviously disagrees, which I don’t understand, but maybe if I keep telling her, she’ll eventually realize that she really is
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