Lan Zhan stretched gingerly. His joints said today would be cold. A warm pale blue robe and bunny slippers made the walk to the bathroom more comfortable.
He emerged and began to slowly go through a few basic yoga moves before losing track of where he was in his routine. Well, one day missed wouldn't hurt.
Soon, his white hair was brushed along with his teeth. Soft warm pants, a white turtle neck, and a pale blue woolen cardigan finished off his preparations for the morning.
He walked to the kitchen, and the man there smiled.
"Are you ready for breakfast?" he asked as he carefully placed the meal before the aged man.
"Mn." Lan Zhan replied as he seated himself at the table. He ate some of the congee. Drank all of his jasmine tea.
As he left the dining room and headed toward his study, he saw a picture on a small table. The man was laughing with abandon. Crinkled crows feet at the edges of his storm grey eyes, silver shot through his dark hair and a smile that made Lan Zhan pause.
"Who is this?" he asked the man who followed him.
"This way and I will show you." was the reply.
On a whim, Lan Zhan took the picture with him. Held it to his chest.
In his study, a comfortable chair was placed in front of a large television. Lan Zhan cocked an eyebrow in irritation. Televisions were not welcome in his study.
"What is this?" His voice was quarrelsome. "No television in the study. It is for learning."
"If you will seat yourself, I will show you. I think you will like it." The man was placing a DVD into a player at the side.
With a humph, Lan Zhan sat himself down. Still holding the picture to his chest, he settled a bit into the cushion against his back.
A button clicked, and the tv lit up.
It was a wedding. People dancing. Laughing. Eating and drinking. A younger version of the man in the picture smiled into the camera.
"Come dance with me, my love!" he coaxed.
Lan Zhan was startled to hear his own voice reply.
"Let me hand off the camera. I want all of today so we can remember this day forever."
The smiling man laughed and nodded.
Some odd jiggling of the picture, and there was Lan Zhan dancing with the smiling man. There was no one else for them. They were lost in each other as they gracefully waltzed around the dance floor.
It was beautiful.
The next section was a beach. The camera must be on a tripod because Lan Zhan and the smiling man were playing in the water. Laughing. Smiling. Kissing. Splashing.
For several hours, two lives were replayed. Holidays. Vacations. Birthdays. Everyday life.
At one point, there was a small boy in the smiling man's arms. His grey eyes were tear laden as he smiled and bounced the child.
"Our son is beautiful, my love!"
After that, there were pictures of the three of them Family picnics and play grounds. Soccer and school plays. The smiling man beaming at him and the ever growing boy.
As time passed, the smiling man's hair grew whiter as did his own. There were new wrinkles. Glasses placed on both their faces.
The changes in the smiling man were gradual but they were there. Thinner. His eyes held a shadow of pain.
Video of him in a hospital bed with a birthday cake before him. Oxygen tubes. An IV. But his smile was still so beautiful.
The man was painfully thin now. His head was covered with a beanie cap. His eyebrows were gone. His skin was too pale. Translucent.
He looked directly into the camera with love in his eyes.
'Today we found out why you are having trouble, my love. Why things are slipping from your memory. I wish... I wish beyond words I could be here with you but my time is running out, my love. Whatever I find in the afterwards, I will wait for you. I promise. I know there will come a time when remembering me will be hard, and that's okay, my love. Every piece you lose, I will carefully hold until we are reunited. All our memories are here with me. Safe. I will be waiting for you. Always, my beloved husband. I love you, Lan Zhan."
The lips might have lost their color, but the smile was everything Lan Zhan had ever needed.
"Wei Ying?"
All he knew was what he had seen, but it was enough.
He cradled the picture.
"Wei Ying is gone?"
"Yes. I'm sorry."
Tears fell as Lan Zhan struggled for memories beyond his reach.
"Please, play it again."
"Of course."
Lan Zhan watched his and Wei Ying's life for the rest of the day. His gaze always drawn to the vivacious man with storm silvered eyes.
He ate a little at lunch. Less at dinner.
At seven o'clock, the DVD ended again.
Lan Zhan sat in the gloaming. Quiet. Still.
The man behind him stood silently waiting.
"Promise me. Again tomorrow." It was a whispered plea.
"I promise."
A gentle nod and Lan Zhan stood. Slowly, he walked to his bedroom still carrying the picture clutched to his chest. He laid it on the nightstand as he went through his routine for bed.
Dressed in his favorite flannel pajamas with tiny white bunnies cavorting on them, he slid under the covers. Taking the picture, he looked at it again. Traced a finger around the outline of the smiling man's face.
"Wei Ying." he said softly in a contented voice as he faded into sleep. The picture firmly clasped to his thin chest.
As quiet descended, the door silently opened. The man who had watched over Lan Zhan gently slid the frame out of Lan Zhan's hands before tucking them carefully under the covers.
It was time to return the picture to the small table.
"Good night, A'Die. I love you." A'Yuan whispered as he silently closed the door.
~♡~♡~♡~
To all those dealing with the gradual loss of a loved one.
❤️🍫🫖❤️
