Never Forgotten

by Kelly Risser

  ***

  When I got back to my grandparents’ house, it was almost six o’clock. After Katie finished showing me around, I offered to drop her off at home. I felt a little guilty about not calling, because I saw that the movers were there. They were in the process of unloading all of our stuff. Mom sat in a chair, an ice pack on her forehead, watching the progress. Grandma Mary walked beside one of the surlier-looking men, discussing where she wanted a particular piece of furniture placed in the house. She seemed a bit frazzled, and I thought she was worried about whether our possessions would fit. I kind of wondered the same thing myself.

  I walked over to my mom and perched on the arm of her chair, leaning in and hugging her briefly. “The migraine is bothering you?” I asked as casually as I could.

  She smiled up at me and patted my arm. “It’s better. Thanks. Where were you all afternoon?”

  “I wandered into town, grabbed lunch, and then walked to the lighthouse with Katie.”

  She nodded, but I could tell she wasn’t really listening when all she said was, “That’s nice.”

  I watched the movers a little longer, growing bored. In the distance, a few dark clouds moved in, and the wind picked up. It looked like I was in for my first storm in the Cove. Hopefully, the movers would be done before it broke.

  On her next trip in, Grandma Mary stopped in front of me. “You hungry?”

  “Not really,” I said. “I ate a late lunch. Sorry for not calling.”

  She waved her hand. “Don’t worry about it. I was just going to tell you that I didn’t make anything anyway. There are some leftovers in the fridge, if you do get hungry. Your mom already ate.”

  “Thanks, Grandma Mary,” I said. She hurried toward the movers. Mom shivered a little, so I took her hand. It was ice cold. “C’mon, Mom. Let’s head inside. The movers have this under control.”

  A little while later, I carried two mugs of hot chocolate into the living room and handed one to my mom, who was curled up on the couch. I sat down and snuggled up next to her, resting my head on her shoulder. She smelled like shampoo and her favorite perfume. The familiar scents relaxed me. “Can you tell me more about David?” I asked, closing my eyes and listening to the soft buzz of the television in the background.

  She was quiet for so long that I didn’t think she was going to answer. In fact, I wondered if she even heard me. Another minute passed, and then Mom kissed the top of my head and started talking. “I’ll tell you about the first time I met him. I remember it was a Thursday morning. When I showed up for work at the Cove Inn, Lydia was positively glowing. She told me about a guest who had arrived the night before. She insisted that I had to meet him. I was curious, but I didn’t think too much about it. Lydia was the beautiful one. If he were interested in either of us, it would definitely be her. It didn’t even seem to matter that she was married. Guys hit on her all the time.”

  I could relate. Kim was flirty and outgoing. Whenever guys were around, she was the one who always got the attention. I never really minded though. It took the pressure off me. Mom took a sip of hot chocolate and then continued. “A few hours later, I was vacuuming the hallway when I met David for the first time. He smiled and told me good morning, but I was too stunned to speak. He chuckled then, amused at my awkwardness, and asked me if I had plans for dinner. He asked me on a date, just like that. I finally managed to shake my head no, that I didn’t have plans. He smiled then, and said he would meet me out front at five.”

  “You had your first date that same night?”

  She nodded. “Yes, and we were together the rest of the summer. In my wildest dreams, I never thought someone as beautiful as David would be interested in me, especially over Lydia. But, he was. To Lydia, he was cordial, but he only had eyes for me.”

  As my mom talked, I absentmindedly fingered the necklace that lightly rested on my collarbone. It was a gold sand dollar, and I never took it off. My mom gave it to me on my tenth birthday. She noticed and touched it with her finger, saying, “David gave that to me, you know. Besides you, it was the one thing I had to remember him by.”

  That was the first time I heard that, so I asked, “Why did you give it to me?”

  She looked at the necklace again before responding. “I always knew that he meant it to be yours.”

  I thought maybe that was all she was going to say about David for the evening, but she seemed to have made up her mind that it was time for me to know more. She settled more comfortably into the couch. I got comfortable, too, and then she began to talk again.

  “Even that first night, I knew there was something special about David. He consumed my thoughts. I wondered when I would see him next and where we could escape to be together. He didn’t seem to have a real purpose for being in Peggy’s Cove. Sure, he helped at the docks, but he would also disappear for days at a time. Whenever I asked him about it, he carefully evaded my questions. He never lied to me, but I knew there were things he wasn’t telling me.”

  “Like what?” I asked.

  “Well, he said he couldn’t stay forever, and he was careful not to make any promises. It didn’t concern me at the time. From the moment I met him, he was everything to me.”

  I wondered where she was heading with this story. When she first started talking, it sounded like your typical boy meets girl, boy asks girl out, boy and girl fall in love story, but it was heading in a new direction. I waited for her to say more, not wanting to break the spell.

  “When he was around, we were inseparable. His passion about the sea, about history, about art, about so many things, was contagious. We talked late into the night, and I often felt like I knew him better than I knew myself. But there was something there; something that I couldn’t put my finger on. I knew he was hiding it from me. He was mature beyond his years, had too many experiences for someone in his early twenties, and had a wilder, more primitive side than any boy I had known before.”

  She stopped and gave my shoulder a squeeze. I smiled at her in a way that I hoped was encouraging. It worked. She continued her story. “The logical side of me knew I should be careful, but my heart wouldn’t let me. I was recklessly, wildly in love. By the end of summer, I realized I was pregnant with you.”

  “What did you do? Did you tell him?”

  “Of course. He was surprised. Happy, I think, but reminded me that he couldn’t make any promises.”

  “And then he left you?”

  “Not right away. He stayed as long as he could.”

  “Why couldn’t he stay?” I asked.

  She looked at me, tears shining in her eyes. “I don’t know.”

  I wanted her to say more. I knew the story was incomplete. She knew why my father left and chose not to tell me. I wasn’t sure how I knew that. I just did. I couldn’t push her. Not tonight, when I could see the migraine pained her and she looked so frail, so worn. Instead, I kissed her.

  She touched my check and gave me a faltering smile. “I wouldn’t change it, Meara. I want you to know that. If I had to do it all again, I wouldn’t change a thing.”

  “I love you, Mom.”

  At that moment, my grandmother came in the front door. “Movers are all done and on their way. I’m amazed we—” She paused when she saw us. “Everything okay in here?”

  “Fine,” Mom and I said at the same time. Grandma Mary looked at us a moment, and then sighed. “Well, if you girls are okay, then I’m going to head back to my room do a bit of sewing.”

  “We’re good, Mom,” my mom said.

  Mom and I continued to cuddle on the couch, eventually finding an old horror movie to watch. We loved the classics. This one was with Vincent Price. When the movie ended, I went to bed. I thought for sure I would dream of David that night, but I slept in peace.