To the Moon and Back

Hanging On

I woke up to my phone ringing, and I open one eye to see it's Hunter. The time read 2:30am. I sat up and slid my thumb across the screen.

"Hey Hunter - what's-"

Before I could even finish, all I heard was Hunter in tears, struggling to breathe, let alone talk. "Hunter," my voice was firm but concerned, "what is going on?" My mind was racing, unsure what to think.

"Cole - Jenna, Cole had a heart attack." I didn't know what to say.

"Oh Hunter," tears escaped my eyes instantly. "were you home?" Hunter told me from beginning to end. He was asleep and was woken up by Cole whimpering. He got up and was petting him when he took a few weird breaths. Hunter decided to get him to the emergency vet because he was acting so weird. Ten minutes after they arrived, Cole dropped in Hunter's arms. My heart was breaking for him. "I'm so sorry Hunter. I wish I could be there." I consoled Hunter as best I could for being four thousand kilometers away. Eventually he made his way home, and I talked him into going to bed. "When you get up in the morning, call me - okay?"

"I will, thank you Jenna." I hung up and saw the time was 3:45am. I flopped back into bed and tried to get some more sleep. I woke up to my alarm at 8am, reminding me I  work in an hour. I checked my phone, no messages or calls from Hunter. I tied my hair up in a pony tail and made my way to work. It was so hard to concentrate, not from having my sleep disrupted, but that Hunter was going through this alone. I made it through the first half of my shift with out any calls or texts. A bit concerned, I shot Hunter a quick text.

J: Hey sweetie, I'm at work. Let me know when you're up XO I love you very much

I carried on with my shift and the clock struck 4. I made my way home. Still anxious that I hadn't heard from Hunter. I decided to call Sam. 

"Hey Jenna, I was gonna call you - have you heard from Hunter?"

"That's exactly why I called you." I briefed Sam on what happened. He was stunned and said he would head over to the condo ASAP. Hunter had no work commitments today but it wasn't like him to shut the world out. "Text me please - let me know he's okay."

The evening dragged on but I eventually got a text from Hunter.

H: Sorry, its been a hard day

J: don't be sorry. I'm here for you, just a call away

H: its not the same

J: I can get on the next plane if you need me

H: I can't ask you to do that

J: is Sam there? Babe I know this is hard. I want to be able to be there for you

H: Sam just left. I have to get it together I have meetings tomorrow for the project.

J: okay, I love you. 

H: I love you

I closed my phone and trudged over to my mom who was reading a book. This March had been a snowy one, a new lager of snow covered the sidewalk."Hey I have some bad news." She looked up from her book, concerned. In told her about Cole and she was very sorry to hear. I was sad I didn't have more pictures of him but for Hunter, Cole had been his road dog for the past 5 years. 

The rest of the week dragged on, I could tell in Hunters voice he was flat, just heartbroken over this whole thing. He was positive he didn't need me to fly down, but we had a few face time calls. "I know its been a rough week, but I have some news. I think you will be happy to hear" Hunter smiled, the first real smile I had seen all week. "I have successfully obtained the papers to file for a work visa in the States. I will actually need your help though."

"Jenna, that's great! How can I help?"

"Well, let's say I get a job down in Nashville, I need a place to stay and that is where you come in. You would be my support as far as housing goes, and your mom and dad may need to contribute saying I am who I am and that they've met me and approve of my request to work there."

"Whatever it takes," he winked, "the sooner you come down here the better. This condo feels empty and I think its the next logical step for us to explore." 

"I'll be there in two week time," I smiled, beaming at the thought of celebrating a year together, "you make my heart happy sweetie."

"I'm so lucky you're mine, Jen." 

Glad we were on the same page, we called it a night. I promised Hunter I would get what I needed from the government offices and organize it all. From what I read online, the issue of the work visa could take a few months. The follow up to a work visa would be applying for permanent residency if and when we get engaged and married.