On a cool overcast spring morning, two old friends walk along an asphalt path that cuts through the forest of a local park. As they round a corner into an open area, the sun peeks through the clouds, lighting up the little clearing in front of them and bathing them in warmth. Lillian’s red linen blouse glistens.
They had been walking for about an hour without speaking. Betty broke the silence.
“Is that a new blouse?”
“You asked me that same question last week. No. It wasn’t new then. It’s not new now.”
“I asked you that last week?” Betty’s smile suggested that maybe she did remember.
“And it won’t be new next week either.”
“Okay. Then maybe … maybe I won’t ask.” Still smiling, Betty asked, “How long have we known each other?”
“Well, let’s see. You ask me that question about once a year, usually early in spring like this. You’ve asked me about 60 times. So I guess that means we’ve known each other around 60 years. We met in high school. We went to nursing school together. Back then, I had dark brown hair and you had bleached blonde hair. Remember?” Lillian laughed.
Betty’s smile softened as Lillian reached over and touched the back of her hand.
“You’ve been a good friend. I guess I don’t know what I would’ve done if you had not been around when Tom died.” Lillian’s voice cracked.
“Well, we were best friends in school. And then we had that little falling out when you stole Tom away from me.”
“Oh darn.” Lillian was annoyed. “Don’t start that again. I didn’t steal him. You broke up with him. Remember? You all broke up and Tom even asked you if it was okay to go out with me. And you said it was. And you got over it. Remember? You were maid of honor at my wedding. Remember?”
“I guess. That was a big mistake. But when that hunk of a quarterback asked me out, I knew I couldn’t do it and be true to Tom, so I broke up with him … I’m an idiot.”
“You took a chance. That’s what love is all about, taking chances. When I fell in love with Tom, I knew I was taking a chance too, but I didn’t care. He was a little wild back then.”
“Yeah. That’s what made him so attractive. That, plus him being the most handsome guy in school.”
“He was a looker in those days, wasn’t he?”
“Oh yeah.” Betty had a naughty twinkle in her eyes.
“Betty, I wish you had found someone, someone as good as Tom.”
“Me too. But there was something about losing Tom to you after making such a terrible choice with that quarterback. He was a bastard.”
“Ooh. Easy on the language, honey.”
“Well, he was. He ruined everything for me. Giving up Tom for him destroyed my trust in men. I had fun dating as a young girl. But I never could let it get serious. And now, here I am … no husband … no children … facing my final days.” Betty’s eyes teared up.
“Don’t talk like that.”
“I told you what the doctor said. There’s nothing they can do. And no way to know for certain how much time I have left. It could be a few years, or it could be a few months. And I’m all alone.”
“Betty … you are not alone. You’ve got me. I’m your best friend, and I’ll be there for you. You know I will.”
“I know, Lillian. But that apartment gets so lonely when it’s just me and my thoughts. I’m not even sick yet and I can hardly stand it. What is my life going to be like when my illness starts closing in on me?”
“I’ve already told you what you need to do. Just move in with me. My little house has two big bedrooms. You will need someone to care for you. And I need to do that. I was a nurse for a lot of years, just like you. I still know how to care for people when they’re sick. If I need to learn more … I will.”
“I don’t want to be trouble for you. You’ve been such a good friend to me … all these years. It’s going to get tough. I can’t put you through that.”
“But what is it going to be like for me if I know you’re in some care center somewhere with strangers around you? You need your best friend beside you. If we need more help, we can get it. You know I have money. Tom’s life insurance will last me for two lifetimes.”
Betty smiled.
“And I don’t think I’ll be living two lifetimes. One is plenty. But I’d like to spend the rest of this one with my best friend in the whole world. Move in with me. It’s the thing. It’s the right thing for the both of us.”
“Okay, I’ll think about it.”
“Honey, you’ve been thinking about it too long already.” Her voice was a bit harsh. Then she softened. “We’re coming up on the weekend. Both my sons are in town. They will help us move. All I need to do is ask them. You know they love you as much as I do. You were their favorite babysitter when they were little.”
“That was mostly because I slept part of the time they were there. I’d hear a noise, wake up on the couch and run through the house to see what trouble they had gotten into. That night shift at the hospital caused me to miss a lot of sleep. They started school and then I got promoted to the day shift. I loved that change, but I missed those two baby boys …” Betty stopped walking.
Lillian took a few steps and stopped also. She turned.
“Are you okay? Is something wrong?”
Betty looked at Lillian and reached out her hands. Lillian took them in hers.
“Okay. You’ve convinced me.”
“You’ll move in?”
“Yes. I’ll move in with you.”
“This weekend?”
“Yeah. This weekend.”
“Okay then.”
“But … I have to pay you rent. No arguments. I’ve got my retirement and money in the bank. I’m not rich like you, but I have plenty enough to pay my way.” She lied. Her social security checks barely covered her expenses. Her bank account had only a few hundred dollars from selling some of her furniture. And she knew Lillian wasn’t much better off. Tom had returned to his wild ways before he died and had left her with bills to pay. His life insurance barely covered them. They both needed this move, but neither wanted to say it out loud.
“Okay. I give in. Pay me whatever you want. I don’t need it, but I’ll take it just to shut you up.”
The two old friends embraced. They both began to cry. They were still standing there holding each other when a teenage boy swerved past them on his bicycle. He didn’t stop, or slow down, or say a word. He rode on as though they had not been standing there. He was young. His life was ahead of him. And he could not be troubled to care, or to wonder why two old women would be standing there in the middle of the paved path in a local park, hugging each other.