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Then his heart quaked. “And now I feel bad for telling Heidi and the others that they couldn’t be here. Because that means I’ve subjected them to wondering how my last few minutes went.”
“Don’t worry. They’re all coping better than you think.”
“Easy for you to say.”
Yuri smiled. “Tell you what. How about I prove it to you?”
Keith frowned. “You can do that?”
“Of course.”
“When—now?”
Yuri shook his head. “There’s something else I need to do first.”
He gave a knowing nod. “I suppose this is where you tell me what happens next.”
Yuri’s eyes sparkled. “Not exactly.” He took Keith’s hand and led him toward the sink, standing beside him.
Keith laughed. “You have to wash your hands first before they let you enter the afterlife?” He stood in front of it, marveling at how he could feel the cool porcelain beneath his fingertips. He raised his head to gaze into the mirror, and—
The Keith Braxton who stared back at him was the same face he’d seen in the family Christmas photo.
Keith touched his cheeks, his nose. “This can’t be real,” he whispered. He looked at Yuri’s reflection, and his knees almost buckled.
Michael stood beside him, the nineteen-year-old Michael he remembered.
Keith moved so slowly, as if speed would shatter the blissful illusion.
It was still Michael standing there.
“This can’t be real,” Keith repeated.
Michael smiled, and it was as though the years rolled away. “I’ve been waiting for you for so long.”
It was Michael’s voice. Michael’s smile.
“But... why didn’t I recognize you?”
“Because I didn’t want you to, not until the right moment.” Michael paused. “Which is now.”
And then Michael closed the gap between them, and Keith lost himself in a kiss that seemed to go on and on, Michael’s arms around him, Michael’s body warm against his.
It was too much.
Keith broke, tears trickling down his face.
“This isn’t real, is it?”
Michael gripped his shoulders. “This is as real as you want it to be. And it will stay real for the rest of eternity.” He leaned in and claimed Keith’s lips in another sweet kiss. “That’s if you want to be with me forever.”
Keith gaped at him. “I don’t understand.”
“We can be together, Keith. Wherever you want.” Michael smiled, snapped his fingers, and all of a sudden Keith was standing in the snow, in front of a familiar tree covered in colorful lights that caught in the swirling snowflakes.
“This is Stillwater,” Keith exclaimed.
Michael nodded.
