Three Cheers For the Sweet Ghost of You

Helena

On that day, Gerard woke early in the morning with his cellphone ringing loudly close to his ears.

“Hello?” he asked, half asleep. “Who is it?”

“Gerard?” he couldn’t recognize the voice, but he could tell it was a man’s voice and there was a lot of crying in the background.

“Who is it?”

 “Gerard, it’s me… Your father”

He fully woke up when the man said it was his father, and soon he recognized his voice. It had been a while since the last time they spoke to each other and he probably wouldn’t call that hour in the morning if the matter wasn’t truly important… And also, there was the crying in the background. A woman’s cry.  

“Father? What’s wrong? he asked, trying to keep his voice low so he wouldn’t wake Lyn-z up, who was sleeping peacefully by the other side of the bed. He tried to calm himself before he could say another word. “Please, father… What happened?”

“It’s your grandmother, Gerard” his heart stopped for a moment.

“W-what h-happened?” his voice was trembling and his hand and legs were shaking “What’s wrong with grandma?”

“She died yesterday” his voice was cold as ice.

“And you tell me that now?” he tried not to scream or put his voice in a higher tone and left the room.

Tears fell down his face.

He couldn’t stop anymore. The one and only woman in the world who ever supported him to do something different with his life before Lindsey appeared in his life like an angel of music. His legs failed his and he fell on the ground.

“I’m sorry, son. I’m really sorry.” His father said on the phone “The funeral will be in two days. Me and your mother hope you show up with your… girlfriend”

“I don’t want to start this conversation with you, father, but, Lyn-z is my wife, we are happy and have a very loving relationship and if you don’t like her, I am very sorry, but it’s not my problem, now if you excuse me, I have to go and mourn” and finished the call without waiting an answer.

Without standing, Gerard left his phone on the ground and crawled to the bar. Set on a chair and took a cup of whiskey without ice and lit a cigarette. He took another few shots and lit another two cigarettes leaving the chair to the ground, until he fell asleep there.

“Gee…?” he woke up with the angel voice of his wife close to his ears “Again, my love?”

“Shit happens, Lindsey… Shit happens” he said while sitting, still half asleep.

“What happened, Gerard?” she was serious now? “What shit actually happened?”

He took a deep breath.

“My grandmother passed away yesterday” he said, starting to cry again. “My father called me early in the morning to give me the shitty news”

Lindsey had a pity look in her eyes.

She did not know his grandma, she was already very ill when they married.

Sadly, Lyn-z never met her, but yet, she knew all her stories because Gerard made her the blessing favor of telling everything about his loving grandmother and how she was important to him. Oh, Elena… Blessed Elena to have a loving grandson like Gerard.

“I’m sorry, Gee” yet, even without knowing her, Lindsey was sad for Gerard, for his family and of course, because such a good person was gone “It’s better this way, my love. She’s now in peace, resting in heaven”

She set by her husband’s side, rose his head and kissed him.

“Thank you, Lyn-z my wife”