Page 53 of Someone to Remember
“But you can’t help wanting to run and hide, especially in light of our situation.”
“Something like that.”
“It’s okay, Hal. Don’t feel like you have to dodge me on the hard stuff. I’m here for all of it.”
I reach for her hand and am immediately comforted by her touch. “I can’t bear to think of a time when you won’t be here.”
“Likewise. I mean, it’s unlikely, but I could lose you before you lose me.”
I make a face at her.
She laughs. “What? It’s true. Look at what happened to Will. Leaving the house can be dangerous.”
“Luckily, I don’t work on scaffolding.”
“We’re all thankful for that.”
I’m a well-documented Calamity Jane who’d have no business working anywhere that involves high places. “I keepthinking about what he thought of as he was falling, probably knowing he was going to die.”
“I’m sure his every thought was for Taylor and the children.”
“Definitely.”
“Will you do something for me as you process this terrible tragedy?”
“Yes, of course. What do you want me to do?”
“Talk to me about it. Don’t curl up in a ball and try to muscle through it. That doesn’t work, and it’s apt to make everything so much worse.”
“I promise I’ll talk to you about it, but I may not have much to say.”
“That’s fine, too, as long as you don’t bury it and think it’ll go away, because it won’t. It’ll just fester.”
“I know,” I say with a sigh. “Sadly, this is far too familiar to me. Thinking about what Taylor is going through brings it all back with Gwen. The initial shock, those first few days, the people, the food, the disbelief. I haven’t taken a trip down that memory lane in a while.”
“I’m sorry you’re hurting all over again.”
“I’ll be okay. Don’t worry about me.”
“I can’t help it. I love you, and I hate to see you suffering.”
“Is it weird to be suffering over someone I hardly know?”
“You understand what she’s going through, and that’s why you’re suffering. You know how hard she worked to get to where she was with Will, only to be put back to day one as a widow.”
“That’s it exactly. You’re good at this.”
“At what?” she asks with a laugh.
“Getting to the heart of the matter and making me feel better about being grief-stricken for the friend of a friend.”
“She’s a fellow traveler. That’s who you’re grief-stricken for.”
“I hope she comes back to the group.”
“She may decide that was too much a part of her first time around and want something different now.”
“Maybe, but I still hope we can help her somehow.”
