Dream // Van McCann

37. I've Got Something for You

"Is everything alright, Mr. Carter?" I asked him. "I can make some tea." He turned to look at me and it looked like he was looking through me.

"I'm okay. Thank you. What's that you got in your hand?" I didn't realize I was fiddling with the thumb drive in my hand.

"It's a thumb drive full of photos. We're gonna drop it off at the funeral home on the way home." Mr. Carter looked at the wall again.

"I've got something for you," he said, getting up from his seat.

"Where is it? I can grab it for you," I offered. Mr. Carter slowly sank back into his seat.

"Thank you. Walk over to the table and open the top drawer." I did as I was told and opened the top drawer. "You'll find a voice recorder in a plastic bag. Bring it over for me." I handed him the voice recorder and he looked at it, his hands trembling.

"Before her health deteriorated, she gave me this voice recorder and told me to put it in a safe place. Do you know what she said to me? 'Give this to Van to play to Florence after he proposes to her. It's my dying wish.'" He handed the bag back to me and I took it wondering what she recorded on it. "Promise her you'll play it?"

I quickly nodded my head. "Of course. Anything she wants. Er—may I ask what's on it?"

I could hear Florence coming down the stairs and I quickly stuffed the bag in my pocket hoping she didn't notice. Her dad's demeanor didn't change. He continued staring at the wall as if the exchange never happened.

"Are you ready to go?" she asked and I nodded my head. "Alright dad, I'm gonna go now. Dinner is in the fridge. I'll stop by tomorrow."

She leant in to kiss her dad on the cheek and he didn't react at all. It was clear she was concerned about her dad. She even made extra food to bring to her dad so he had something to eat even though it wasn't necessary. A lot of relatives stopped by to give their condolences, even the neighbors, so the fridge and house was full of food. However, Florence would check in on him once a day and see that he's not touched his food. He's lost some weight as well but we daren't say anything.

"I'm worried about him," she sighed once we were in the car. "He's not eating his food. Everything's still untouched and you can see he's lost some weight. I don't want to be overbearing but I'm seriously considering staying at his place to make sure he's taking care of himself."

Florence was overwhelmed by everything. Things hadn't slowed down much at work and now she's got her mother's death to deal with and she has to care for her dad. Her sister on the other hand is the one who has it easy but she's busy nursing her husband who had surgery recently.

"I think it'd be good to stay with your dad for a few days. Your aunt is coming down on Friday, right?"

"Yeah. She's staying with my dad and will be here for one week. I was thinking I could watch him while he's alone at the moment, and as soon as his sister is here, I can go home for a bit." Florence told me her plan as I drove towards the funeral home. I offered to walk in to drop off the thumb drive so Florence didn't have to go in but she insisted that she go with me because she had a question to ask them.

It wasn't until 6 PM that we got home and at that point, we were exhausted. Luckily Florence cooked a lot of food so we didn't have to cook tonight. We had a quick dinner, took a shower, and got ready for bed. Florence passed out immediately. She's been running on fumes and I could hear her soft snores. I laid with my back flat on the bed and stared at the ceiling. All I could think about was the voice recorder and what message she put on it.

-

We were in a beautiful, scenic area with a great view of the mountains in the distance. If there's anything I'll miss about Washington, it's the mountains. We don't have anything like that in the UK. The sun was starting to set and I led Florence away from the main trail. I managed to find a little pocket where we could have some privacy.

I knew I was dreaming as I wouldn't be caught dead proposing on a hike, especially not when we're both gross and sweaty, but I was curious where this dream would go. Florence's back was turned to me and I immediately got down on one knee knowing that this was it. I was going to propose to her. I reached into my pocket for the ring but it didn't feel like the right shape so I took it out wondering what it was and was surprised to see the voice recorder. Florence suddenly turned around and I wasn't ready.

"What are you doing?" she asked, eyeing my suspicious position. Well I was going to propose to you but where's the fucking ring?! I felt everywhere for the ring but couldn't find it for the life of me so I stood up and had a look around. There's no point in proposing at this rate. The moment's ruined.

"I—I was looking for my lighter to have a smoke but I can't find it," I said lamely. Florence's eyes narrowed at my explanation but she carried on anyway.

"What's that in your hand?"

"Oh, this? It's nowt." I went to put it back in my pocket but Florence was quick to snatch it from my hands.

"It's a voice recorder," she murmured. "What's on it?" She turned it on.

"I—I don't think we should play it just yet!" I told her.

"And why not? It's not like you recorded your proposal on here, did you?" She played the recording and increased the volume so the both of us could hear.

"Hello Florence." Her mother's voice came through the recording and Florence's eyes widened. It was clear she was expecting to hear my voice, not her mum's. "If that stick you've fallen in love with played this to you like I told him to, he must've just proposed to you." Florence's mouth fell open as it was clear she wasn't supposed to hear this, and especially not when I haven't even proposed. She immediately pressed stop. I should be worried at what she just heard but I was still hung up on her mum calling me a stick. She always has to get the last word in!

"Look—I was going to propose but I can't find the ring. I thought I brought it with me but I must've left it somewhere..." I trailed off. She was on the verge of tears. One look and I knew she didn't think I planned to propose to her. "No, it's not like that! I intend to marry you! I picked up the ring earlier today!"

Florence started bawling saying I didn't love her and walked away. I reached out to try to stop her but someone jerked me awake. I opened my eyes to darkness but I could see Florence's figure in the dark.

"Is everything okay?" she asked softly. "You were shouting." She turned on the lamp and looked at me, pushing my hair out of my face and tucking a lock of hair behind my ear. I didn't realize I was sweating.

"Y-Yeah. Must've had a nightmare," I told her, trying to keep my voice even.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she offered.

"No, not really."

"Okay, then. Do you want me to get you a glass of water?"

"No, I'm fine, really. Let's go back to sleep. Sorry for waking you up."

I turned towards her and she wrapped her arms around me. If she could have it her way, she'd fall asleep hugging me but she knows it's not very comfortable.