The sound of piano filled the room with melancholic yet delightful music, played by skilled hands and a sorrowful heart.
She leaned against the door frame and for long minutes let herself be carried far away by the beautiful tune. Seemed like sad music was all he ever played.
A shame.
Nevertheless, she smiled.
He was so distracted in his thoughts that he was startled when two arms snaked around his waist and a soft kiss was planted on his neck.
He smiled and leaned back into her embrace, the song becoming slower and slower until it stopped. Sighing lightly, he too caressed her arms with the same gentleness and care.
For long minutes, neither said anything, just took comfort in each other's presence. A few more kisses were planted on his neck. She stretched out her arm and with unskilled hands, played a short, soft tune.
He laughed. "Twinkle, twinkle little star?"
"Hey, I didn't get a hundred years' practice. Alicia taught me this when she was 7. Gotta say I felt pretty stupid and she was quite proud of herself."
Henry smiled at the memory of Jo's now 15 year-old niece. She was precious.
"I love your playing, love."
Jo smiled and kissed his neck again. "That's awfully nice of you. I like your playing too. Just wish you'd play something happier every once in a while."
She disentangled from the embrace and sat next to him on the small bench. She took a moment to marvel on his good looks, face neatly shaven and a cocky smile gracing his features with the most adorable dimple.
Not aging was definitely a plus… unlike herself. He insisted she was as beautiful as she was the day they met, but she begged to differ. Time did slowly take its toll on her skin, her once scarce graying hair becoming more abundant, little crow feet lines when she'd laugh. It didn't bother her that much, though, and it seemed to bother Henry even less. He had the rare and welcome ability to see through looks but still admire them.
"It was his favorite song.", he whispered.
Jo nodded. "I know."
It had been seven years already. It took him some good fourteen months to move on, a little, and agree to move out and elsewhere with her. Though his heart was heavy with grief and the fear of actually leaving all that behind – the furniture, his belongings, objects from his far-away past… Even some objects that had belonged to Abigail.
Jo was not one to feel jealous. She loved him, she understood him, but she also knew he needed a break. A break from his past, from the agony of having lost his wife and son. From losing part of his heart, part of his joy, part of his will to live.
The rest of them resided in her.
She was just that breath of fresh air and nurturing he had needed so bad, though he wouldn't have admitted to himself.
"Time sure flies.", she offered.
He kept quiet. He wouldn't say that. For a person that had all the time in the world, it sure dragged itself through his misery.
"Remember my friend Amanda?" Jo asked.
"How could I forget?" he smiled.
Jo smiled too. "She had been my best friend for twenty years. Some of the best times of my life were spent with her. I was devastated when her son died in that crash."
Henry nodded. He remembered.
"And then I couldn't believe it when she was gone."
Henry looked at her compassively, sliding his arm around her shoulders and pulling her close. He remembered all too vividly – from the day he'd met Jo's chirpy and authentic friend, to the gloomy mourning days of the teen's death, to the final stages of a nasty disabling disorder two years back. Through all those days, Jo had been by her side, and Henry did what he could to show his support, even if he barely knew the woman. After she passed away, Jo had had the most difficult times. He was there for her, and eventually she started smiling and laughing again as if she hadn't just lost a friend closer than a sister. He did admire this woman's strength.
Jo laughed hard. "Some days, she kept going on and on about how we should have a small wedding, and she'd be the bridesmaid, and give us an enormous bed so we could make cute little babies for her to babysit. She was kinda messed-up." She swallowed hard and smiled, fighting back tears. She remembered that day, when she admitted to her friend that she would marry him in the blink of an eye - in spite of knowing he had his reserves, that she someday would love to have children but wasn't so sure he'd want.
Of course he'd want. All of that.
It's just that… it's complicated.
Could he deal with outliving another child?
Could he bear celebrating his love without the presence of his other love?
She cleared her throat and didn't think of any of the small grants and huge dreams she'd set aside for Henry. She only thought of her late friend for now. "We talked a lot. When my brother died, she told me to remember the good days only. Forget the end. Because everybody dies one day, we have to remember how happy they were. How happy they made us, how loved they made us. It was the best thing anyone could have told me, because he had died in a terrible, terrible road accident. I kept thinking about it, and it was all too… sad. So sad. He'd been the kindest guy. The best friend anyone could've had. And then… he was gone. But the memories remained. Of snowball fights, of riding a sledge, of Sunday afternoons at Grandma's… All those beautiful things he'd told me, and the birthday wishes, and the parties, the girlfriends, the sleep-overs. He made the best burgers, and told the best jokes. Those are all things I want to remember from him."
She paused.
"What do you want to remember, Henry? That you once had a son? Or that he was the little boy that brought you so much joy, and you had the honor and privilege to see developing, growing up, learning infinite things with that spark in his eyes, that unique sense of humor, that… amazing food he cooked. You were there when he got married, you were by his side when he split up and you were there for him every single day until the very end."
"No parent should watch their children die."
"I agree. But no parent gets to watch their children as closely as you have. And no parent should forget the joy they've brought them, not the pain. Let the pain go, Henry. You don't become any more mortal by holding onto it. It only makes you more miserable."
Henry didn't utter a word, but merely lowered his gaze.
"There's so much more to life than the past. You have all the time in the world, but you're not living. I'm here for you, baby, I'm here with you. Take me somewhere nice. Let's travel. Let's… move to another country and start a new life. Let's…", she spoke softly, "let's have kids of our own. Let's have a happy home. Let's live."
Henry smiled melancholically and kissed her.
He just figured it wasn't the best time to tell her.
So instead, he held her face between his hands and looked at her. Such a lovely face. Such beautiful eyes, bearing so much love and tolerance and hope and dreams, and a tinge of sadness.
"You are right, Jo. You're right. I just… I've lived so many years, in so many places, did so many things, that I just grew tired of living. It's not fair to you, it's not fair at all. You deserve a better me. I'll be a better man, ok?", he promised, leaning his forehead against hers.
She nodded and kissed him.
A long time is spent on silence, and kisses and soft caresses. Time indeed flies, but neither seemed to care. They didn't care about anything else besides this long, loving hug. She held onto him and he wouldn't let go of her.
One hand tangled in her hair, the other caressing her back.
"I want to marry you, too", he whispers and tightens the embrace. "I love you so, very much, Jo."
She smiled against his clothed chest. "I know." – she did. She felt it. She saw it. No smile, no small gesture, no special date – even after all these years – went unnoticed. She felt it in the gentleness of his touch, on the worry in his eyes, on those rare moments he allowed himself to sleep in and relax next to her, heavy, tired arms keeping her close and soft kisses reminding her she belonged to him.
She knew it.
Softly, she pushed him away as she felt slightly nauseous.
"Starving. Out for waffles. Shall we?"
Henry smiled.
The young girl in golden hair and checkered apron took their orders and smiled, leaving the table.
Henry looked across the table at Jo and smiled, stretching out his hands to catch hers.
"Where would you like to go?", he asked.
"Uh, today?"
He shrugged. "Whenever. Anywhere you want."
"Jersey to visit my sister!"
He laughed. "Come on!"
She smiled and thought. "I… don't know. Maybe Italy. Never really thought about it."
"Surely there's a dream tucked in there somewhere?", he narrowed his eyes at her playfully.
She looked down at their hands. "A few."
She smiled awkwardly and he didn't say anything.
She cleared her throat. "I guess Italy would be nice."
He nodded and let go of her hands when the waitress arrived and set the dishes on the table.
They thanked her and briefly looked at each other before eating.
Shortly after that, though, she felt she needed to talk. "I'm sorry, Henry. I don't want to put any pressure on you. I don't want to bother you… it's just… you gotta understand there are things I want as well."
He wiped his mouth and nodded, taking her hand into his once again. "I know that. I want it too, but it's…so hard for me. I'm just… terrified."
"Moments, Henry. Keep that in mind. Moments are what matter. This, here and now, is what matters. Allow yourself some happiness for once, without letting fear eat you up. You could live a thousand years, but if you don't actually live… what's the point? Is that how you want to live?"
He knew she was right, even if it was awfully hard for him. She was completely right, he had been living his life in fear of loving, of happiness, of suffering, of living. He was never one to take too many chances emotionally; he'd, as much as any mortal human, shield himself from heartbreak.
"Ok. Let's move elsewhere. We can go to Italy. Or France, or… England. Please, just not Jersey." She smiled, and he went on. "Let's have as many kids as you want, but you'll have to deal with it if they end up with the same situation as I'm in. But let's do it. Let's live a full life for as long as we can. And someday… you…" he trailed off and shook his head. "I'm really sorry."
Jo didn't say anything, merely looking at him. She knew he would make concessions, not without heartache, and she too feared the day she would leave him alone. They could lead a happy life, but never without the bitterness of immortality. He was cursed indeed.
"There is hope, though", he said, interrupting her musings. "I… may have found a way."
She frowned. "A way? Is this what I think it is?"
"Yes. I think I know it now."
She swallowed hard. As much as she'd hate leaving him, the opposite was not a much brighter option. "How?"
"Adam had a roommate."
"He did?", she echoed in surprise, remembering the creepy, creepy guy that used to stalk Henry, scare the wits out of everyone, till the day he disappeared – for good. She knew Henry had investigated into it, but she was too disturbed by the guy to ever care to ask.
"Yes. She was the only person he allowed to get near him. Also, he had an antique weapon in his possession. His roommate found it and was scared. One day, she confronted him, with this weapon in hand. He seemed scared, she demanded an explanation, but accidentally shot him."
"How do you know all this?"
"I interviewed her. He made sure to leave me some clues before-hand. It was all premeditated. I guess I wasn't the only one looking for a way out."
"Wow. That's quite a plain death. A plain death for somebody that didn't die… that actually killed him?" she snorted. "Sounds like a bad plot to a B-movie."
"It does. Except, it seems, this girl cared for him, and he must've cared enough for her to let her stick around."
"So… you're saying… he was killed by somebody who loved him?"
"I suspect so. That… or the old weapon working as a charm. Which is an even worse plot.", he smiled. "I'm more inclined toward the first theory, but I got the weapon just in case."
"Huh… yeah… I prefer the second option. Hey, maybe yours is your pocket-watch. Ever thought about it?", she side-tracked, feeling the tension in her stomach.
"It was my father's. It had belonged to my grandfather. Neither was immortal. Come on, Jo."
She looked outside the window at the people passing by, hands tucked into their coats as winter approached, eyes looking at the crowd without looking at anybody in particular. Her eyes filled up with unshed tears, not sure she could hold them much longer. "I don't think I could do it."
He pulled her hand and brought it to his face. "Look at me."
She hesitated.
"I trust you with all my heart. I want to live with you the happiest moments of our lives, and then be granted rest when your time comes, too. Knowing I can count on you, will lift a huge weight off me."
She covered her eyes with both hands and cried. She wanted to cried and say she wouldn't do it, she could never do it, but she couldn't. So she just cried as quietly as she could; as much as she hated putting on a scene in public, at this time she just didn't care.
She felt him sit next to her and leaned into his chest as Henry hugged her. She nodded. How could she not?
Little did she know, but she would see a much more positive Henry from that moment on. Because he felt finally he could be in peace.
Hope you liked it!
This is a one-shot, but there's another ending to it, which will be posted as part II; it is, however - and I must warn you - quite...extremely... sweet. So if you're not into fluff, you might wanna skip it xD Either way... read at your own risk! You've been warned xD
Reading this fic over I must admit their relationship seems quite...developed, and it might seem off to you guys too, but keep in mind that it takes place way off in the future, 7 years after Abe's death but not exactly seven years from now. Perhaps it would be fifteen from now, who knows; I left it open on purpose.
Comments are always fun! Thank you :)