Page 47 of See You at the Sunset

Dennis:Night!

18

“Good morning, Gladys.”

“Henry, what brings you by today?”

“I was wondering if I could use the printer and the copier? If you can believe it, Dennis doesn’t have either in his home,” Henry says.

“Oh, I can believe it. What do any of us need a printer for when we’re eighty? Having this one here for the whole neighborhood is just fine for all of us,” she replied.

Henry smiled and nodded. He couldn’t argue with that.

“Whatcha working on?”

“Just some stuff, reminders and lists for Dennis for when I go back to New York. So he has all the answers in one place,” he told her.

“Sweet boy, I don’t think any of us can have all the answers. But if someone did, it would more likely be one of us old folks who’ve been around, made our mistakes already, and lived to tell about them. Don’t you think?” Gladys winked and got upfrom behind her desk. “Here, use this computer, since it’s already locked and loaded. The other one sometimes forgets to talk to the printer.”

Henry sat in Gladys’s chair, ruminating on what she’d just said. He wanted to believe that we all got wiser as we got older. But his granddad often forgot to take his medicine, sometimes refusing completely to take the larger-size supplements that were harder to swallow. He was stubborn as all get-out and wouldn’t use his walker. He left the TV and lights on when he went to bed or left the house.

And each time Henry caught any of these things, it brought about a spike of anxiety. And a fresh wave of guilt. Dennis had always been there to take care of Henry when he was young. And now, Henry was realizing, he’d neglected to take care of Dennis as he got older.

But Henry had a life in New York, a successful career and... well, not much else. But he’d been busy. Still, spending time with his grandfather these past couple weeks made it clear that he could have paid and would be paying closer attention. Starting with these lists and reminders. It was the best he could offer.

“Gordon had a special today—strawberry matchas! Now, I know you think matcha tastes like grass, but— Oh, sorry. I swore Gladys usually sits in that chair.” Henry looked up from the computer at the loud intrusion to his thoughts. Jia stood there with two brightly colored drinks in her hands, a wide smile on her face.

“Jia, itisme, Gladys. I just borrowed Henry’s body for the day.”

Jia stared at Henry, expressionless.

Shit, so much for attempting humor. What was he thinking? Henry never cracked a joke. Because, clearly, he was bad at it.

Jia’s entire face exploded into laughter. She keeled over with it. She barely balanced the drinks in time before they could spill. “Henry J. Shin, Esquire, did you just make a joke?”

“Not a very good one.” He deadpanned back before lifting the corner of his mouth. Why was her laughter funnier than the joke itself?

She pulled herself together, but the smiled remained. God, she was pretty. She didn’t look to have any makeup on. Her hair was up in a knot. She wore denim shorts and a plain white tank top. And she was the most stunning thing he’d laid eyes on.

Last night, he’d lost himself. It was dark, and he’d been mesmerized by the most gorgeous sunset he’d ever seen. And Jia was there. He’d let himself go. He’d let himself say things he never said out loud. He’d let himself explore emotions, test out feelings, even in small bite-size pieces, with Jia last night.What if?he’d asked himself.Could we?he’d wondered.

He’d gone to bed feeling raw, exposed, untethered. He hated it. But he wasn’t so sure he wanted to leave it behind.

It didn’t matter. Because Henry was leaving all of this, and likely Jia too, soon enough.

“Whatcha working on?” she asked, leaning her hip against the corner of the desk.

“Some things for Dennis. A calendar, reminders, just for when I’m...” Henry stopped himself.

“Gone?” Jia completed his sentence.

It felt odd to be talking about it... leaving. He assumed they’d both eventually be back in New York at some point. And then... what? Just go back to life as he was living it?Yes, probably. Was there another option? Everything was very simple, ordered, and focused before. It was also empty, lonely, and repetitive. That wasn’t a bad thing, though, right? “Yeah, since I won’t be here to help him.”

“That’s nice of you.” She looked at everything Henry had worked on. “That’s a lot of reminders.”

“He’s got a lot of stuff to remember to take care of himself.”

“You included a reminder to wash and fold his laundry.”