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“I don’t think it has a name.” Michael kissed his cheek. “Look behind you.”
He turned, and the breath caught in his throat.
Before them lay a green valley, with hills rolling in toward a small town filled with warm stone buildings and lush trees around its borders.
“Do you like the look of it?”
Keith smiled. “It’s pretty.” He chuckled. “It reminds me of Stillwater.” Then he caught movement. “There... there are people down there.”
“Yes, there are. Lots of people, just like us.”
Keith glanced at him. “Dead people?”
Michael chuckled. “I prefer to think of them as people who’ve been given the chance to find the happiness that eluded them during life.” He gestured to the town. “Right now it’s spring, but you should see it in deepest December.” He grinned. “What am I talking about? You can see it.” He snapped his fingers, and the green hills disappeared under a thick layer of snow. At the heart of the town, a tree rose majestically, covered in lights, and even at a distance Keith heard Christmas carols, carried on the breeze.
He stood still, enraptured by the sight and sounds. “I still don’t understand.”
Michael turned Keith to face him. “I’ve been waiting for you so we could be together. Forever. We don’t have to stay as we are. If you want that, fine. If you want to age a little, that’s fine too. But Death is not on the horizon. You’ve already passed through it.” He smiled. “For the rest of eternity, we get to love each other. The way we would have loved each other if our lives had taken a different path.” He locked gazes with Keith. “We shared something not many people get to experience. We had true love, Keith. It was unselfish, honest... The kind of love that lasts a lifetime, if you’re lucky enough.” He pointed to the town. “That’s what we have in common with all those people down there. They all loved someone the way we loved each other.” Michael’s smile was serene. “We’ve been given the chance to let that love grow and flourish.” He took Keith’s hand in his. “I love you. And now I get to tell you I love you for more days than there are stars in the heavens.”
Keith looked toward the ocean. “And I’ll love you for more days than all the grains of sand on that beach.”
Michael laughed. “So it’s a competition? Bring it on.” He blinked. “Oh. I almost forgot.” He reached into the air and plucked a book from nowhere. He handed it to Keith. “Remember this?”
Keith gazed at the book’s worn edges. He opened it reverently, and his breathing hitched when he read the date.
July 13, 1985.
“This was our copy.”
Michael nodded.
“And can we still...”
Michael chuckled. “There’s a house down there, waiting for us, with a wide, comfortable bed. Why don’t we find out?” Another kiss, only this one held the promise of heat. “We’ve waited long enough.”
He led Keith by the hand toward the town, Keith’s heart thumping all the way.
So much lay ahead of them, and he couldn’t wait to discover it.
With Michael at his side.
The End
