He’d been coming here every day lately. Even if he could only sit in silence for a little while, he still hoped for a single, fleeting moment when his grandmother would recognize him and call out his name, “James,” just once more.
But it never happened.
After her condition got worse, she forgot everyone. The only person she still remembered was the granddaughter-in-law she had always doted on.
The doctor said this was Grandma’s last obsession, the final thing keeping her mind grounded. If she let go of even that, there would be nothing left holding her here.
A sharp ache tightened in James’s chest.
His phone started buzzing in his pocket. On the screen, two words flashed.
Wife Calling.
He drew in a breath, the cold, snowy air stinging his lungs, and answered the call.
“Babe, how come you’re not home yet?”
Emmy’s voice came through, soft and drowsy.
James parted his lips, but it felt like his throat was stuffed with cotton. For a while, he couldn’t get any words out.
“Babe? Can you hear me? What’s going on?” Emmy sounded worried now, her voice suddenly more alert.
He took his time, forcing himself to sound calm. “Sorry, I just lost signal for a bit.”
“I might be home late tonight. You should go to bed first.”
But Emmy could hear the exhaustion and rawness in his voice, no matter how hard he tried to hide it.
“Are you okay? Was today really rough?”
“Yeah,” he answered quietly.
“So when’s your next day off? You really need to rest.”
“Probably not until New Year’s Eve,” James said. “There’s just a lot going on at the station right now.”
Emmy’s heart squeezed with worry. “Please, promise me you’ll find time to rest. I don’t want you getting sick.”
She paused, then added, “By the way, I was thinking of visiting Grandma tomorrow. I wanted to go with you, but if you’re busy, I’ll just ask Mom to come.”
“Alright. Be careful.”
“If you’re still at the station, maybe just sleep there tonight. Don’t keep running back and forth.”
James looked out at the city, the lights twinkling in faraway buildings. His voice was steady. “You go to sleep. Don’t worry about me.”


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