Chapter 7 Greenland

"Your mother and I are traveling to Greenland next month," Ray announced in the middle of dinner, causing both Will and Susan to drop their spoons and stop eating. He was done eating, although he took the last bite when the words escaped his mouth. Judging from the point of Ray's hatred for a speech at the dining table, Sharon inferred that the excitement of their trip got the best of him and made him defy his own rules. Still, what hadn't changed about Ray since he left the hospital that day?

He was back to being organized. He took a lot of burden off Sharon by setting the table for dinner, doing the laundry, and arranging their clothes. However, he still found it hard to adjust to the small size of the apartment in the senior community, and that contributed to why he made plans to get them out of there into someplace bigger and better. It was then that he mentioned Greenland. Sharon was more than excited.

In all truthfulness, 'excited' didn't do justice to the doubled speed of her heartbeat. It didn't explain the racing butterflies in her stomach and how speechless her tongue became. Greenland was a long-time promise between Sharon and her husband. When Ray was first diagnosed, she couldn't stop thinking about the trip. She grieved the loss of the trip as well as the gradual loss of her husband. She was doused in a slough of pain and hurt. It was one of the things that made her long for the wellness of her husband.

With time, she started to forget about it, remembering only once in a while and whenever she did, it was a reminder of something that would never happen because of her husband's disease. The hope elevated when he mentioned it and now that he was telling their children at dinner, Sharon could understand the rush. However, Will and Susan didn't seem to share the same thoughts, judging by their reactions and how they stared at their dad.

"Greenland!" Susan repeated, her eyes wide with fear.

"What for?" Will frowned, reminding Sharon of when he was a teenager. She could imagine that he wore the same expression when she called him a week after the high school reunion. She didn't want to call them immediately for fear that Ray would relapse. She couldn't overlook the possibility that his affection was only a result of one of his episodes. It lingered in her heart. She smiled when he spoke and took care of him as usual but it took a while for her to realize that life was taking a turn she never expected it would ever again.

A difference that started after a small accident she thought would claim the life of her husband. It was indeed a disguised miracle. Ray went back to the hospital for tests and checkups, the results showed that he was completely fine and free from Corticobasal degeneration. The heart disease that haunted him for seven years of his life, made him vulnerable and almost without help. Sharon slowly started to accept that her husband was fine. After a week with only improvements and no strange differences or depreciation in his health. Sharon chose to believe and that was when she called Will and Susan.

Sharon didn't pass up the chance to scare her grown-up children when she called. She wasn't willing to serve them the good news on a platter of gold. She wanted them to come running and to see for themselves the miracle that seemed to have happened. So she retrieved all the acting techniques she learned in school, polished her voice, and relayed the information to Will like something dangerous, and life-endangering occurred.

"Something's happened, Will!" Her voice trembled. "I think you need to come to the senior community. Your father was rushed to the hospital." The silence at the other side of the line intrigued Sharon. That's how she was convinced that the bright smile with which he greeted her when he picked up the call, was slowly turning to a frown. She was inspired to continue acting.

"What do you mean by the hospital, mom?" Will's voice was cold, confirming the contours she imagined would have disfigured his pretty face. She didn't respond, so he probed further. "Are you alright, mom? Is dad fine?"

She sighed, her sigh so deep, she hoped he thought she was fed up and longed to give up. "You might have to see for yourself to know. I need you." Her tone didn't give her away. She was glad. Maybe because that little part was true. She longed to see them and experience joy with them. She needed them to see their healthy father, rather than be told about the development via a phone call.

"I'll be there tomorrow." He said and Sharon ended the call without giving him a chance to ask any more questions. She was glad that her words had worked so far, she couldn't be sure that she could keep up with the stance for much longer. It was better to end the call in a desperate mode than to be caught.

Susan's call came in before Sharon could dial her number. Sharon wasn't surprised. She knew Will would call her first. The closeness of her children was one of the things she was proud of. She put in so much effort to make sure her children loved each other dearly. They were barely inseparable. Sharon thought that it would be difficult for either of them to get married and live apart from the other. She could remember how much Susan cried the day her brother went to college. Age was never a disturbing factor in their sibling relationship.

"Will told me dad was rushed to the hospital. Is everything fine, mom?" Sharon couldn't place which emotion she read in Susan's voice.

"You forgot to say Hi," she reiterated, ignoring the question.

"Hey mom, I'm sorry. Why was dad rushed to the hospital?"

Sharon didn't want to be too emotional with Susan. At the same time, she wanted to make sure she sounded like she needed a lot of help. "It's a long story,' she sniffed and sighed. "But everything is fine. I just think you and Will need to be here as soon as possible."

"We are coming over tomorrow, that's what Will said. I love you mom. Tell dad I love him too."

They showed up the next day as they promised. Sharon didn't know exactly how to break the news of their father's miracle - because it was indeed a miracle - to them. Instead, she told Rayl she was leaving for the mall the moment they called to announce their arrival in town. She didn't tell her husband that Will and Susan were coming. She simply left him to the house cleaning that he busied himself with. She didn't go far or to the mall as she insinuated. She only wanted to watch the drama that would ensue when they figured their father wasn't in any trouble as she implied. She wanted to see how they would react when they figured he had recovered from his illness.

Susan was the first to enter the house, and Will followed her behind her. Sharon saw them from where she was in the neighbors. She tiptoed after them back into the apartment but stayed behind the closed door, peeping from the window. Ray was doing the dishes in the kitchen.

"Mom! Dad!" The two of them called. Ray seemed to have answered subconsciously and that brought both Will and Susan to a stop. Ray, who also seemed to have realized what was going on, emerged from the kitchen, his hands in gloves, and an apron around his waist.

"Is that you, Dad?" Susan said as she came face to face with Ray. Sharon slipped into the house. Susan covered her face with both her hands and Will groaned beside her. Ray extended his arms for a hug. Susan rushed into them and the tone of her voice as she uttered her next words gave away the tears in her eyes. "Mom said something happened." She wept. "She said you were rushed to the hospital. Did she lie on purpose?"

Will stood where he was and held his head back to stop the tears that seemed to tug at his eyes. He was trying to look away when he caught a glimpse of Sharon at the door. He rushed towards her and whipped her in a hug. The tears in his eyes fell. "You got me really scared, mom. I thought–" He sniffed. "I thought dad was going to die. I didn't know how to contain my fear or how I was feeling, I just wanted to see, but this–" He pulled away from Sharon and looked at his dad.

Susan didn't let go of Ray. She quashed him in a tight hug and Sharon knew that if she didn't stop herself, she would cry soon. She was tired of shedding tears. She wiped them off and pushed Will towards his father. The family reunited and Sharon told the unbelievable story of how Ray was healed of his disease.

That happened two days ago and it seemed like the family had bonded together enough for Ray to throw the bomb of their trip. Sharon decided to save Ray the stress of explaining their decision. "Listen, Ray and I have wanted to do this for a very long time. It was supposed to happen once I retired, but things took another turn. Not only was your father stranded, immobile, and out of traveling shape, but we also started to run out of money."

"Aren't you still out of money?" Susan said.

"I got another contract with the military," Ray said, pulling the words out of Sharon's mouth.

"What?!" Will and Susan echoed.

"Why would you start working again, dad? You are still recovering, you should be spending the rest of your days resting right here, among people like you."

"You shouldn't speak to your father like that, Will?" Susan corrected. "He's only trying to do what's best for us. We have missed out on seven years of our relationship and I trust his decision. Your father is not an invalid, you shouldn't treat him like one. We are traveling to Greenland, he is doing remote work with the military and that's final. Respect your father." She didn't raise her voice. She uttered each word in complete calmness.

"We are only worried about you, mom. We don't want you to get stranded like before. We want the best for you, trust us. Right, Will?" Susan responded and Will answered in response.

The family remained quiet, Will and Susan dragged the rest of their food with the spoons in their hands, moving it from one corner of the plate to another. Ray held onto Sharon's hand until Will broke the silence.

"After you leave, are you coming back here?"

Sharon and Ray were quiet. They hadn't thought about it. When Ray mentioned it, she didn't ask him if it was for a short period or a permanent move. She couldn't be sure what to think. She just wanted to spend time with Ray without considering what the next day had for them. To that question, she had no answer. They had no answer.

"We are not coming back," Ray said after a while and Sharon uttered no word. "It's a retirement plan, even if I have taken a few remote jobs. Your mom and I will remain in Greenland until death does us part, I suppose." His eyes lingered on her as he spoke the last few words. She thought she would cry as she remembered Jessica's words on that day of the reunion. If it really were the last days they had with each other, it was best to spend it together the way they wanted, not doing things they didn't love, but engaging in activities that would please them and save them the stress of many regrets on their deathbed. She could only wish that death didn't come soon. She could only hope for the best.

Will and Susan left the next day. Sharon and Ray spent the ten days that were left until the end of the month setting their house and luggage in order.

Ray took charge and placed calls to get a house ready for them by the time they arrived in Greenland. Sharon merely did the menial jobs, getting their bags ready and finalizing and closing the deal concerning the senior community apartment.

After Ray was sure they had a house, he made phone calls to the people who used to work with them at the mansion. Sharon was satisfied with what she saw about the house, the pictures and videos were convincing enough. Of course, Ray had managed to secure another mansion. Although it wasn't as big as the one they previously had. The rooms were much smaller and many other features didn't compare to the former, but she didn't care.

She was glad that she didn't have to work with new people in the upkeep of her house, happy that Ray was making efforts to hire the workers again. But she was disappointed when she realized that many of them wouldn't make it. Greenland was too far away for them to make it. Although they were glad that Ray was fine and well. Ray made some other connections in Greenland and ended up hiring a few local hands in advance.

On the first day of the next month, the couple flew out to their dream city. The journey reminded Sharon of the first time she met Ray. She whispered it to his ear from where she sat beside him. He chuckled and nodded his head, of course, he remembered too. The memory wasn't hers alone.

Sharon could not describe how she felt, reliving those memories with Ray. She wondered how hurt she was when the memories were hitched only in her mind and Ray wouldn't have remembered even if he wanted to. She wondered if life could ever be happy for her if Ray didn't get better.

Life couldn't have been as happy as it was at that moment. She knew because the joy that cooked in her heart since the day Ray came back was unexplainable. She wondered what it would have been like if they decided to take a train for their journey. The queasiness in her stomach made her feel like the nineteen-year-old she was, those fifty years ago when she first fell for Ray.

She looked at him and gave him a peck on the cheek. She didn't mind that eyes were fixed on them or that they were old and people watched. Ray was the quiet and observant one. She was the rebellious and annoying one.

If a person could fall the same person again, she was more than certain that her thumping heart, heightened breathing, sweaty hands, uneasiness, and everything that made her body both comfortable and uncomfortable were the signals that communicated her new love for Ray. One thing was for sure, she would love him for the rest of his life and he would love her for the rest of his life. There was no iota of doubt.

***

The first person that Don wanted to show his daughter's book to after he read it, was Jasmine, but even then, he figured that the book was just an excuse to see her. It didn't matter how enlightening, important, and scary what his daughter had written was. Don thought of Joan less with each passing day. It must have helped that Edith wasn't moved by her absence and didn't seem to care if she was around or not. She never asked about her once in the two months since she got better. On the day of her performances, the concert where she played the cello and the art festival where she played the piano, Don was worried that she would be missing her mom and he tried to fill in her spot or find a friend, but those things weren't needed. Edith was always cheerful.

He held onto the first draft of his daughter's book for as long as he could, although she disturbed him every day, almost the same way she hammered her wish to write the SAT examination. He was sad to refuse both of her requests but also concluded that it was wise to do too. Yet, he couldn't hide it any longer after watching Edith play at both events.

If he weren't the one who employed teachers to teach her, he wouldn't believe that she only started to play the piano and cello less than three months before. She displayed her skills with unmatched confidence and mature coordination. Don almost doubted that he had given birth to her. He couldn't understand where she got her brain and intelligence from. He doubted Joan had that level of wisdom too. She was smart, yes, but even her smartness didn't measure up to Edith's.

The day after the concert, Don finally made up his mind to meet with Jasmine and show her the masterpiece he had held in his mail for close to a month. It wasn't hard to fix an appointment with her. Don didn't have to worry about Edith either. She had proved many times that she could take care of herself. Her teachers were supposed to show up that day too.

Jasmine was as glad to see Don as he was. She didn't hide it in the way she threw her arms across his shoulders and wrapped him in a hug that communicated more than she wanted to. Don tried not to communicate how he felt too. They met at a small restaurant, a few meters from the hospital. It was only a few minutes past Jasmine's closing time, early in the evening.

"How has nursing been?" He asked as soon as she was settled, while they expected the waiter to show up with their meals.

"Same old, same old. How is Edith? I think I caught a glance of her playing at the art festival on the television a week ago."

"Yes," Don tried but failed to resist the nervous chuckle that rang from his lips. "She's been learning the piano as she requested."

"You mean she only just started? Or she has been playing since she was two? Because she definitely didn't sound like a learner to me."

"I wonder sometimes too if she was taking other classes without my knowledge, but the more I think about it, that's not the case. So what if she used to play the piano, can we say the same about the cello or the fact that she wrote a mathematics test for the 11th grade and aced it?"

"What?!" Jasmine's voice drew the attention of the sparse crowd in the restaurant before she covered her mouth with her hands and repeated the exclamation with wide eyes. "Isn't she in the third grade?"

"That's not the only surprising thing, Jasmine. Edith is drawing the kind of crowd no one expects the other day–" His next words were interrupted by the arrival of the waiter with the meal they requested. He served both sides of the table and they watched in awkward silence. When he was done, he asked if they were pleased or if they needed anything else. When they didn't request anything more, he walked away. Don smacked his lips, "The food looks delicious."

"This is always my go-to restaurant. They serve the best kinds of meals. You should come again, maybe with Edith," she stuffed her mouth at the end of the statement.

Don pretended like he didn't catch her subtle invitation to see him another time. He would have, but he was uncertain, unsure, especially when she mentioned Edith. Edith deserved to live with her undeserving mother. If he tried to get hooked with someone else, the chances that he would hurt his daughter were high and that was a luxury he wasn't willing to afford. He continued to eat and at the same time thought of what else he could say to break the awkward silence.

"I came to show you something." He said.

"It's not a wedding invitation card, is it?" Jasmine chuckled and coughed. She beat her chest and gulped a glass of water. The two of them laughed as she calmed down.

"Of course not." Don's face switched from a smile to a frown in a millisecond. "It's still about Edith."

His hands flew into his pocket and he retrieved his phone. He opened his email, opened the manuscript of his daughter's book, and gave the phone to Jasmine. She collected the phone, held it, and stared at Don, waiting for instructions.

"Read that!" He pointed to the phone in her hand and she turned her face to its contents. She took some time, reading the introduction of the book, almost as carefully as Denis did the first time he received the mail from Edith.

"Wow! This is both enlightening and interesting." Where did you get it?" She set the phone on the table in front of Don.

Don shook his head before answering. "Edith wrote this," He picked up his phone and waved it in her direction.

"What?!" Jasmine exclaimed loudly and drew the attention of the entire restaurant for the second time in one night. They bowed their heads in different directions in apology. "You've got to be kidding me." She muttered. "How is that even possible?" Don could tell she was bewildered. Her face revealed more than it ever had since the day Don met her.

"That's what I thought too. When she first sent the draft to my email, I thought it couldn't be her. She must have copied it from somewhere. I decided to run a plagiarism test, catch her red-handed, and scold her for stealing someone else's work, but it didn't matter how many tests I ran or the websites I used. Her book was always a hundred percent original. I decided to hide it away, pretend like she never gave it to me, and ignore all of her rants about me reaching out to a publisher for the book. But after seeing her performance at the concert yesterday, I don't know anymore, Jasmine. What am I supposed to do with the brainy wizard sharing a house and blood with me?"

"She's a prodigy, Don." Jasmine covered her mouth with her hands. Holding back the loud laughter that was exploding in her chest.

Don remained serious. "It's not funny, Jasmine. It is scary."

"There is nothing to be scared about, Don." His name escaped her lips in a soft whimper. He ignored the loud thumping of his heart. She stretched forth her hand and grabbed his, bringing them to settle on the table. Her eyes were fixed on his and she wore a contagious smile. "You should be proud of her, not scared of her. You should be screaming her to the world, showing off how talented your little girl is, paving her way and protecting her with every fiber of life in you."

"Are you sure?"

"I couldn't be more sure of anything in my life and that's what makes me tired of your cowardice." She sighed. "If Joan turned you into this sort of man, unsure of himself and the things around him, I'm glad she left."

"Don't say that!" He snapped.

"It's a simple truth, Don. And if you have always been like this, it's time you changed." She picked up her bag and walked out of the restaurant, leaving Don behind. It took a couple of minutes for him to realize that her reaction was only a result of how he shouted at the mention of Joan. He sped after her.

She was entering a cab when he reached outside. He didn't seem anything he could do. Although that wasn't how he planned the night to be. He thought he would at least bring her to see Edith and probably drive her home too. But it was too late for any plans. He turned, entered his car, and drove home.

Edith was typing away on her laptop in the dining room when Don got home. She put the laptop away as soon as Don entered the room and flung herself at him. No matter how mature she behaved, Don loved that during times like this, she was still his little girl.

"Did your teachers show up?"

"They did, but not for long. I told them I have the assignment to submit."

Don questioned her statement with his eyes and waited for her to explain further. She buried her face in her palms, hiding a smile. "I wanted to work on my book again. I thought it wasn't good enough because you refused to give me any feedback or give the draft to a publisher."

"Oh! Edith," He threw her into his arms in an embrace and she hugged him back tighter. "Your book was too good. I have been living in fear and uncertainty for the past month. I didn't know what to do with it. Or what to do with you?"

"You should publish the book, dad."

"That's what I'll do honey. I'll call one of the university publishers tonight and arrange a meeting with him."

"Thank you, dad," She withdrew from the hug and looked at her dad with the tears that hung in her eyelids and the corner of her eyes. "I love you."

"I love you more, honey." He said and kissed her on the forehead. She hugged him again and the two relished the atmosphere of love around them.

***

Edith's book on Pseudoscience and Astrology became a bestseller a couple of months after it was published and released. The publisher was so impressed immediately after he came in contact with Edith's manuscript that he was eager to process the book for publishing. He was even more shocked when he realized that the writer of the book was a young girl of eight.

When the book was released, Edith stopped going to school. They didn't know what to expect at first, a backlash from readers, commendations, or whatever, but the book received a warm embrace into the world.

It was elating when the front of Don and Edith's house became a second home to journalists and fast-increasing fans. They came from everywhere willing to have a few minutes with the prodigy, the eight-year-old who wrote and published a difficult book on a difficult topic.

Edith got many different invitations to interviews with various dignitaries. It didn't end and it didn't help too when the world found out about her talent with the piano and the cello. Unexpectedly, Joan showed up with her bags and luggage.

The moment Don heard the news that the first hundred copies of Edith's book were sold out, he called Jasmine. She answered his call, but he could tell that she was not altogether cheerful. She was happy for Edith but was angry with him. He didn't need to ask her to know why especially when she declined to go out with Edith and him to that restaurant by the hospital like she suggested that day.

He could tell the reason she was pissed. It was because of how he treated her the other day. He wished he could do something about, her attitude and withdrawal, but he was not sure of himself. Edith must have noticed the difference between them because she asked him what was wrong after the call.

Don wasn't sure of how to narrate his heartache to his daughter, but judging from the intelligent achievements she had made in such little time, Don itched to share his heart pain with her. He did. She was quiet at first, ruminating and seeming to figure out the right words to say, but the moment she opened her mouth, Don was glad that he told it to her.

She told him to go for it. He realized that he had been holding back his feelings because of how he thought Edith would feel about him for liking another woman, who wasn't her mother. He was worried for nothing all along, she was in strong support of whatever he wanted to do, but she wanted him to be with Jasmine.

"Mother is too toxic for you, dad. You are better off without her. Think about all the things she held back from you and didn't let you do. I'm your only child because she didn't think you could give her a normal child. With mom, it was never about you, or me, or us. It was always about her." She showed him reasons why she didn't think Joan, even though she was her mother, wasn't the best woman for him.

"But have you seen the way you look at Jasmine? Have you seen the way she looks at you too? You don't want to tell me you haven't noticed how she pushes you to do more and encourages you always. Jasmine is the right woman for you, dad. Don't let her go. You should go to her right now, even." She chuckled.

Don couldn't believe he got all the advice he did from a child. He hugged her tight before running out of the house in search of Jasmine.

Two days later, the appearance of Joan all of a sudden would have thrown the normal Don into fits of confusion. He would have panicked and wondered how to fit the life of Joan and Edith but he was lucky enough to have two women who had seen the best and required the best in him. Joan didn't get him worried or confused. Her arrival was too late.