I’m awakened from a deep sleep by someone ringing our doorbell. It’s late in the morning, so I know ma is probably at work. That means it’s up to me to see who’s at the door. Part of me wants to ignore it and crawl back under the covers, but it could be Uncle M or Roni, so I reluctantly climb down from my bed to see who it is.
Pop-pop enters the house from the backyard just as I open the door.
Kai: There’s a lady out there.
Quincy: See what she wants.
I turn towards the woman.
Kai: Uh – hey, how can I help you?
Gladys: Good Morning, my name is Gladys, and I’m a friend of Quincy’s. You must be his grandson. Is he around?
I let her in.
Kai: Pop-pop, it’s a friend of yours.
Pop-pop puts his dish away and hurries over to Gladys. I grab breakfast from the refrigerator and sit down to eat.
Quincy: Hey, Gladys. I’m surprised to see you.
Gladys: Hey Q. Where are you off to, handsome?
I chuckle to myself. Handsome? Does Pop-pop have a girlfriend and hasn’t told us?
I don’t know why people seem to be so comfortable having complete conversations in front of me. It’s like I’m invisible. But if they are okay with talking in front of me, I feel it’s only natural that I listen in.
Quincy: Uh – Willow Creek, to bury my sister.
It becomes evident to me that they’re not dating.
Gladys: *suddenly embarrassed* Oh – I’m sorry. I – I should go.
Quincy: Was there something you needed?
Gladys: No. I have something I wanted to tell you, but it can wait until our next meeting.
Pop-pop pauses for just a second.
Quincy: Want to come with me?
I almost choke on my food. Did Pop-pop just invite this lady to go out of town with him?
Gladys: To Willow Creek? That’s a long way.
Quincy: Yeah, it’ll be an overnight trip.
Gladys’s voice goes up a few octaves.
Gladys: I – uh, sure. I’ll come. I just need to go home and pack up a few things.
Quincy: We can stop by your place on the way out. Follow me, and I’ll get my bag.
I can almost hear Gladys squeal behind as she follows Pop-pop out the door. She’s obviously attracted to him, but either Pop-pop is oblivious, or his game is incredibly smooth. I’m almost jealous.
I clean up the kitchen, then head upstairs to prepare for my day – but I realize I don’t have anything to do today. It’s embarrassing that my Pop-pop has women just showing up at the door, and I don’t have anyone to speak of. He has more of a life than I do.
Quincy and Gladys arrive at the cemetery in Willow Creek, the final resting place of Alida, Alida’s mom, Michelle, and now his sister Sophia. They dawdle on the way to Sophia’s grave.
Quincy: *deep sigh* This is getting old. I don’t know how many more people I can say goodbye to without completely losing it.
Gladys: I admit, it’s one of the most challenging things to do. I’ve lost a fair share of loved ones over the years. But I have to remind myself that they’re in a better place – no more tears, no more pain, and loneliness. Do you believe that?
Quincy: Sometimes, I don’t know what to believe. The selfish part of me wants them here with me, no matter what.
Gladys: That’s not the selfish part; that’s the sim part.
Q spots Sophia’s fresh grave.
Quincy: She’s right here, next to her husband.
Gladys: Right next to the heart-shaped pond – seems appropriate. At least they’re together again.
Q thinks about Gladys’s words and hears them as useless things sims say to make themselves feel better. But, right now, it’s not comforting and doesn’t stop the tears from flowing.
Gladys waits patiently as Q sobs until the tears begin to fade away. Finally, Q takes a moment to compose himself, then walks over to Sophia’s husband, Duane’s, grave.
Quincy: I’m older than both of them. Shouldn’t I have been the one to go first?
Gladys: It wasn’t your time. The Watcher has her reasons for doing things a certain way, and maybe we’ll never understand those reasons. Our job is to keep going the best way we can.
Q has heard that theory repeatedly, and the only thing he gets from it…is that it doesn’t make sense. Furthermore, he’d bet that the Watcher has no control over any of it. It’s just random.
He steps away from the Talla graves, and Gladys follows him to a bench. He wants to visit Alida, but it feels odd having another woman here with him, even if they’re not involved with one another in that way.
Quincy: I’m wondering if it was a mistake to bring you here.
Gladys: *shocked* I’m sorry. Have I said something wrong?
Quincy: No, but there are some things that I need to do alone, and it wasn’t right for me to invite you way out here like this. My grief is my grief. I should never have subjected you to it.
Gladys: I came as a friend. That’s all. If that means sharing your grief, then I’m okay with that.
Quincy: That’s the thing. This moment is something I don’t want to share. I want to visit my wife, and it feels like I’m betraying her.
Gladys: I –
Quincy: I need to do this alone.
Q gets up and walks towards the Banks family tomb, leaving Gladys sitting on the bench by herself.
Q doesn’t mean to be rude to Gladys. But, he can imagine what Alida would have said if he had ever brought a woman to their house that she didn’t know. He can imagine her walking in and her eyes becoming narrow. “Who’s this?” She’d ask. He’d try to explain that the lady was just a friend of his, but Alida would still be suspicious, gazing over at the woman with a side-eye. Somehow, this feels the same way. He has so many mixed feelings, and the one person he wants to talk to about it is gone.
Quincy: *to Alida* Hey ma. I don’t know what I was thinking bringing someone here. I hope you don’t feel disrespected because I’d never intentionally disrespect you. *emotional sigh* I just miss you so much, and I’m so lonely. *sobs* I don’t know how to be here without you.
(Generation 3 Chapter Summaries)
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