Page 16 of See You at the Sunset

Henry would miss his grandfather’s old house. But with Dennis’s health declining with his increased age, it made more sense for him to move into the retirement community of Sunset Hills where he could be close to people his own age and pace and where medical support would be nearby. He’d prefer his granddad move into a nursing home or an assisted-living facility at least. But the stubborn old man refused. It was one of the few times his grandfather had really dug his heels in, and Henry had eventually let it go. For now.

He connected his phone to CarPlay and pressed the Contact for his granddad.

“Yello,” the sandy voice said on the other end.

“Hey, Granddad. Just wanna let you know I’m about ten minutes out.”

“Hank? Shoot, was it today you were coming in?”

Henry held back the sigh and the accompanying worry creeping up his neck. He’d told his grandfather multiple times the date and time he expected to come. The information just didn’t seem to stick.

“Yes, just as I told you. The eighth of August. That’s today.”

“Well, hot damn, it’ll be good to see you.”

“Granddad, do you remember what today is? Do you remember me telling you when I was coming?”

“Yes, Hank. I’m just being an asshole because I like riling you up. Of course I knew you were coming. I even tracked your airplane to see if you were gonna be on time. Had a whole plan to fuck with you if your plane was delayed. But I’ll hang on to that one for another day.” His grandfather laughed like all of this was hilarious and not incredibly infuriating. The hearty laugh turned into a hacking cough ending in a wheeze.

“Real funny,” Henry managed to get out.

“Oh, don’t be mad. I’m just happy you’re almost here and I get to see you. Ten minutes, you say? I’ll get a beer out and pop it open for you by the time you walk in the door. See you soon,” he said.

Henry let out a deep breath and couldn’t help it—he smiled toward the phone. “See you soon,” he replied.

The house was filled with boxes labeled in his grandfather’s shaky scrawl. Henry didn’t want to know how he’d packed them or what he’d find broken or intact once he opened them. He’d told his granddad to wait till he arrived so they could pack up the home together. But again, he didn’t listen.

“Has the hip been giving you any trouble lately?” Henry asked. Dennis had gotten a hip replacement not too long ago. He had a walker to help with his mobility, and they’d been monitoring all his other organs to make sure the surgery didn’t have any additional negative effects on his health. Henry had been so busy with work recently, he hadn’t checked in with the doctor in... months?

“Hank, that was a while ago. I’m good as new now. Youhaven’t seen me since I’ve been all patched up. New hip works better than the old one ever did,” Dennis said.

Henry took one look at his aging granddad and knew that couldn’t possibly be the case. But as long as he wasn’t in any pain or imminent health danger, he wouldn’t press the issue.

As the movers loaded the truck up with his granddad’s entire life, and part of Henry’s for that matter, Henry couldn’t help but feel a sense of being untethered. He’d built a life for himself, steady, successful, and different from the one he’d had growing up. But that didn’t mean it didn’t feel odd watching the last of what he remembered of his childhood become space between four empty walls.

An unexpected lump formed in his throat. He would not get emotional. Henry did not do emotional. It was impractical and unnecessary. A house was just a building.

A hand slapped him on the shoulder. “It was a good home for us for a long time, isn’t that right, Hank?” his granddad said. “Maybe we should take a last picture outside and send it to your par—”

“Let’s get going, Granddad,” Henry interrupted him. He did not want to think about what his parents might say about the move and whether they would ask his granddad for any extra cash he might get from the sale. Luckily, Henry had made certain to handle all the financial specifics and put everything into a separate trust account that fed into his granddad’s personal finances each month. Henry would handle all the bills and let his grandfather have enough for whatever incidentals he’d need.

No telling what his parents would do if they smelled any bit of what his granddad had made off the sale of his house to a move to a much smaller one.

“We’ll let the movers finish up here and meet them at thenew house,” Henry suggested. A part of him wanted to stay and oversee the rest of the packing up. But with one mention of his folks, he itched to get out of the past and move his grandpa into his new future, however short it might be.

“The movers will be there in an hour, so we’ll need to go and collect the parking permit and owner’s guide over at the community center office. Granddad, are you listening to me?”

“Sure, sure, Hank. Whatever you say.” He had his headphones over his ears. His grandfather had issues both with hearing and with attention span. So the headphones helped focus him on what was being said. Unfortunately it made it difficult for him to hear the actual words.

Just one of the many things reminding Henry that Dennis was old and aging. He seemed to age a decade every subsequent time he saw him.

Henry made sure to set up his granddad’s recliner and television before anything else. That would keep him occupied as he watchedCrash Landing on Youfor the hundredth time. Henry could focus on directing the movers for all the other boxes. Henry had seen bits and pieces of the K-drama in passing while his granddad had it on the screen: an over-the-top soap opera from what he could tell. He wasn’t sure what made Dennis love it so much, but it was definitely not the type of show Henry watched himself.

Henry shook off the brief distraction and reminded himself of what needed to get done.

Boxes in.

Guest pass secured.