After strolling through a few more lonely alleyways, the Future arrived at the doorstep of an old jewellery store. Behind the scraped display glasses twinkled many different gems and trinkets, and note hung on the entrance with scribbly handwriting:

CLOSED

UNTIL FIVE TODAY.

My sister pushed the knob without success, then paused for a few seconds. The sound of feet stomping through the snow appeared from down the street. Oce a moment had passed, she swung her bag over her other shoulder, turned around and took the steps down.

Crash.

An old man collided with her, which caused her to stumble against the wall of the house. Her bag clapped against the bricks with a loud rattle and the man let out a surprised cry — though he managed to catch the Future before she fell to the ground.

“I am so very sorry!” he exclaimed, and immediately jumped up the stairs to push the door in a frenzy. Only then he noticed the paper hanging in front of him. After taking a glance at his wristwatch, he slumped down.

“Two… hours,” he gasped, still out of breath. He turned around and sat down at the first step. “That’s terrible…”

His jacket was open and dishevelled and as he rested to regain some composure, he made no attempt to correct his appearance. The Future still stood right next to him and looked to the ground. Her two white sandals poked out from beneath her old cloak. When she stamped on the ground a few times to get rid of the snow and mud, the old man’s gaze fell upon a book lying on the ground right next to her.

He figured it must have fallen out of the large bag, so he picked it up. My sister was now kneeling down, busy wiping the snow off her green painted toenails.

“Oh,” he exclaimed softly when he took a closer look at the cover. The book was called Returning Home, written by a woman called Latanya Mitchell. The cover art showed a brick wall collapsing behind a man walking past it. When he turned it around, he saw several small pieces of opinion plastering the book’s back, the uppermost reading: “A great tale about making the right decision when it matters.”

The man smiled. The girl had finally risen again, so he looked at her and said: “This is my wife’s favourite book.”

He stretched out his hand to give it back to her. Instead of taking it, she just stared at him.

“Is everything okay?”

His glance wandered over her body and his facial expressions derailed. “My dear. You look awful ― Do you need help? Did I hurt you? I am sorry, I should have watched out!”

A moment passed as the snowstorm continued engulfing them, but the Future didn’t move a muscle. He then pointed to the door. “I need to go in there. You too? Do you belong here? Is this your home?” He shook his head slowly. “Why, for all the world, do they open late on such a day?”

With a grave gesture, he wiped a few snowflakes off his face. “Probably it being such a day is precisely the reason,” he sighed. “Well, at least they’ll be opening at all. Want to wait here together?”

Hearing this question must have felt terrible. My sister didn’t move. Sometimes, even our best efforts prove not to be enough. She sat down next to him while her gaze wandered across the street apathetically. On the other side, there stood a bench in front of some trees and bushes with a small playground behind them.

The wind rushed through gutters and twigs. The chirping of a blackbird emerged from the undergrowth of the park. A few minutes later, the street lights sprang on.

Once it was dark enough, the little girl sneaked over behind the shrubs towards the playground. Then, she cowered down inside some arborets, from where she could watch the Future unseen. Behind her was the large city park, at the end of which laid the university campus.

The child concentrated on understanding each and every word the old man spoke, even though he made long pauses. He said pointless things, just smalltalk about the weather, explained how he couldn’t wait to get back and generally seemed self-confident and even excited. While observing him and the Future, the little girl sat there, completely frozen. Not the slightest shiver ran over her body — even though she was only dressed in a white gown.

At some point, a small blackbird landed next to her and started jumping around the foliage. When she saw the bird, the expression on that girl’s face changed ever so abruptly towards deep, deep, disgust. The animal continued scuttling around her. His black plumage formed him into a round shape and every now and then, he would poke his orange beak into the ground. Sometimes, he let out highly pitched squeaks, or sang happy melodies that then transformed into clearly distinct sound notes.

He didn’t seem to recognise the little girl as a being of her own, given how she didn’t move in fact, didn’t even breathe, and emanated no warmth. He spent his time crawling over her feet and poking at her as if she was merely a statue. It’s not like this bird could have known any better. It was just a bird, after all, and yet, she felt extremely irritated by his presence, and when the bird finally picked on one of her toes, he sealed his fate.

The girl clenched her fist in anger and dematerialised in a flash of light, so as if she had sprung into a thousand pieces of cubical, sparkling glass. Only now did the bird try to make off, but then, the same happened to him: he shattered in the midst of his flight.

Once he had completely vanished, the girl reappeared out of thin air. But now, she was holding a very small egg in her hands; a pale green one, with countless red dots scattered around its shell. The egg had been so freshly laid it warmed the tips of her fingers.

Wondering if she had missed something important, but with her eyes still laden with contempt, she looked back to the two people on the other side of the street. By now, the Future seemed rather unsettled. She fidgeted around in her place, sometimes she even poked the man’s hands. There was obviously something she wanted to tell him but he remained completely oblivious.

“What is it with this boy?” the girl wondered and focussed on the old man’s figure for a few seconds. It was as if she was lost in a trance until she sprung out of it just as quickly.

“Ah,” she whispered, looking impassively surprised. “My dear, again wasting yourself on ill fates.”

His impending demise not recognising, the old man instead just gazed through the now slowly fading snow drifts with his tired, brown eyes, still holding the book in his hands. He did not even seem to even remember the fact that he had company. The Future had completely disappeared from his mind. Every now and then, he would scratch his scruff, immersed in his thoughts about the distant past.

September 17th, 1965

It was a warm afternoon in autumn when a young man sprinted through a carefully cleaned, empty park. In his hurry, he ignored any and all pathways and instead trampled to death countless flowers. His loose clothing, especially his long tie, danced with the wind around him. Finally, behind a row of alders, he saw the building at which he was supposed to meet his friend.

“You are late!” she shouted right after seeing him walk out from behind the trees. “… Again,” she added. The man immediately recognised the gloominess in Tamira’s voice. It appeared as though the exam hadn’t gone quite so well. She was sitting there on the stairs leading up to the juristic faculty of the Atlas-University.

“I’m sorry,” Calvin panted. He looked at his watch and realised she must have been waiting for him for well over an hour. Of course, none of the other students were still here. Silently cursing himself for missing the train, he eventually asked, in a precarious tone: “How did it go?”

Tamira, paying no mind at all to the dirt on the stones, rolled over the stairs, groaning. “Well, what do you expect?” she sighed. “I didn’t make the cut. Everything’s over now. I am a disgrace.”

Calvin slouched his shoulders for a moment, but then he sat down next to her, took her hand and pulled her up to give her a hug. She thankfully accepted and cuddled herself into his arms. As if she only realised the extent of her troubles now, she let out a deep sob. “Five years, all for nothing,” she fussed. “I’m really stupid to mess this up.”

Calvin didn’t know how to react, so he placed a kiss onto her forehead while continuing to hold her.

“I’m very sorry for you to have ended up with such a useless girlfriend,” she added.

“Hey now, don’t exaggerate,” Calvin intervened. “Don’t worry about it. Of course, it’s unfortunate, but we’ll make the best out of it. We’ll figure something out, okay?”

Suddenly, she started smiling. “Thank you! It sure took quite some effort to get some words of consolation out of you…!”

Upset upon realising he was being messed with, he exclaimed: “Stop that! You know well enough how bad I am at comforting people…”

Calvin was probably the most embarrassingly awkward person that Tamira had ever met, but she thought that this was very cute. At the same time, it was way too easy to poke fun at him.

“True. And yet, I already feel better. And, oh well. I messed this whole thing up. I’ll be angry with myself for quite a while as well. But things are as they are now, and I’ll probably, hopefully, eventually get over it. I think. I’m just worried, because…”

Her voice trailed into nothingness as her gaze turned downward. She seemed rather uncomfortable.

“Because?”

She took a deep breath. “Well, because of the money.”

Calvin gulped.

“It’s… it’s going to be fine,” he said. ”First off, just because you didn’t pass this exam, that doesn’t mean everything is over.”

“Well, at least it means I can never be a lawyer…”

“That’s right… I was just trying to say, as for the money… You know. I’ve been working some extra shifts. Because I wanted us to maybe move in together after your exam. What I am saying is, don’t worry about money too much right now.”

Tamira smiled at him. She knew how much he hated his job. That had been one of the reasons why they’d decided on her going the career path and him staying at home to take care of the eventual children.

“Yeah, I knew about those shifts. You were terrible at hiding it. So that’s what they were for, huh? I thought the money’d be for something different. But thanks. Let’s work this out.”

After saying this, she kissed him, and cuddled herself against his shoulder. They sat there for a few minutes until Calvin suggested they go into the city to get something to eat. Shortly after, the two of them strode through the park. Usually, Tamira was quite talkative, but now, she had fallen silent. It was easy for Calvin to guess her true mood, even though she tried fairly hard to hold back her disappointment.

Eventually they sat down under a large parasol at the table of an ice cream shop. While looking through the menu, Calvin realised that Tamira was looking at her student ID card. Obviously, now she wouldn’t need it anymore.

“Tamira Vera Merldeath,” she read her name out loud and pouted. “Say, dear Mr Coast, when will you rid me of my unpleasant surname? You heralded your soon-to-come proposal months ago, and yet, nothing has happened!”

Calvin gulped. “Uhm… so…,” he explained, “… that’s true.”

Tamira raised her dark eyebrows. “So?”

“Well, I mean,” he started with an embarrassed smile, “Truth be told, my plan was to do this much sooner, but then, somehow, I… I was waiting for the right moment. You see. And of course, waiting for the ring as well. Especially waiting for the ring, very much so. But due to a string of unfortunate events, I am still not in possession of anything resembling said ring, regrettably…”

While he was stuttering, he hid his face behind one of his hands. His girlfriend rolled her eyes and brushed her overlong bangs out of her face.

“And, I mean, during the last few days, you were occupied with studying, which is why I postponed everything to today, but then ― Ah, I’m sorry! I will place an order for a ring tomorrow! Right then and there! And then, I’ll propose! It’ll be a big surprise party, I promise!”

Tamira looked at him sceptically. “Listen, Calvin, I love you a lot, but your promises and assurances in such matters are, to put it mildly, completely worthless. I am sure, if I leave things to you, I’ll have to listen to your proposal while lying on my deathbed… If you don’t end up being too late for that as well,” she laughed. “I mean, you are still doing the dishes, right? While I study. So I can’t get to them first. It’s been two months!”

He stared at her. “I am doing the dishes because I like to do the dishes,” he said unconvincingly.

“Don’t lie to me. You are doing the dishes because you promised to read me a chapter of my favourite book for my birthday, but instead, we somehow ended up making love all day, and you felt bad about it.”

He looked at her as if she had just read his verdict, while she grinned back. “So, that’s why…” she wanted to continue, but got interrupted.

“No, Tamira! This time I really mean it. I’ll get that ring. Wait, I’ll even give it to you in writing,” he proclaimed, drawing out a small notebook from his front pouch. Then he scribbled down a message, placed a signature under it and held it in front of Tamiras nose:

With this, I promise to obtain a wonderful engagement ring for Tamira Vera Merldeath.

If not today, then tomorrow. If not tomorrow, then on any day to follow.

―Calvin Coast

He tore the paper out and placed it into Tamira’s hand. She laughed. This was the peak of awkwardness, just as she knew him. Still, she carefully placed the paper into her own notebook, before putting it into her bag, still smiling.

“Really, though,” she said. “You don’t need to make promises that you might not end up being able to keep. I know you. In the end, you will only burden yourself with relentless remorse and spend way too much effort atoning. Especially when it’s about things that don’t actually matter that much at all. I love a nice ring, but what I want the most is having you here with me.”

Tamira thought for a moment, then she cast a clandestine glimpse at her boyfriend and grasped his hand. “Honestly though, I hate my name. And since you already prepared for us moving in together, it’s about time, right? I want to make it official.”

Calvin wanted to protest. He opened his mouth, and half a sound managed to escape from it, but then she cut him off: “I don’t have a ring, but… my dear Calvin Coast, do you want to marry me?”

January 7th, 2017

After about an hour, the snow finally stopped falling. Complete darkness filled the sky, but the street glimmered in a bright, untouched white.

The man sat on the stairs stoically. Next to him my sister, curled up into a ball, massaged her cold feet. Both of them were powdered in snow. She watched the street with an empty, stiff gaze, until she made out a movement. A clear, young voice resounded from up there and she observed two people in thick winter clothing leaving one of the buildings ― a young girl and a boy in his teens, who was presumably her older brother.

At first, they walked hand in hand, but soon enough the girl let go and sprinted towards the snow-covered playground.

She jumped around for a while, throwing snow at the play equipment, until she eventually took note of the two lost souls sitting on the stone stairs. She ran up to them excitedly. “Look, Noah! There’s people here!”

“Don’t bother them!” he shouted with a deep voice, but his words seemed to have no effect on her, as she ran over the street anyway.

“Hello!” she greeted the two, and only now the old man awoke from his daydream and provided her with his attention.

“Ah, hello there!” he said and peeked at his clock. As he did so, he was startled a bit by the presence of the Future next to him. It was as if he only remembered her being there now.

“What are you doing here?” the girl asked and added: “I’m Sonia. We are here to play in the snow.” She pointed to the playground with a smile. “I waited for the whole day until mom let us go.”

“I am Calvin,” he answered with a smile. “And I am waiting for this shop to open.” He pointed behind himself. “I need to buy something. An engagement ring for my wife.” He chuckled when he heard himself say that.

“I said you shouldn’t bother them,” the boy scolded the girl, but she shrugged him off.

“No, it’s fine! It’s not like she is interrupting anything. We don’t have much to do here anyways,” Calvin said.

“Aaand… What's your name?” Sonia asked after turning towards the Future, who, however, did not answer. Instead, she had an empty, despondent look on her face.

“Hello?”

Still, no reaction.

“Hello?”

Calvin shrugged. “Some people just don’t talk much, you know,” he whispered to Sonia. “When I was young, I also barely talked. I just never knew what to say. And whenever I did say anything, people looked at me as if I had just flattened a frog. Was not easy, I tell you.” With a smile, he shook his head.

“And now you talk more?”

“Oh yes!” he exclaimed. “Talking is beautiful, I think. I just needed time to find that out. My wife really helped me with that.”

“What’s she like?”

“Well, she talks even more than you and I together! And she can read people like children’s books, I swear. Yesterday I cleared up our attic, and I found one of her old note books.”

He took it out and showed it to the girl. Then he opened the book to take out an old, yellowed, half decomposed slip of paper. He showed it to her so she could read it:

With this, I promise to obtain a wonderful engagement ring for Tamira Vera Merldeath.

If not today, then tomorrow. If not tomorrow, then on any day to follow.

―Calvin Coast

“Back when I gave her this, she was confident I’d never end up actually doing it. But here I am! And I am going to do it! All those years, it had slipped my mind. But now that I remembered, I want to surprise her with it. I’m guessing she won’t expect it!”

“Yes, I bet she won’t,” the boy affirmed dryly after having read the note over the girl’s shoulder.

Shortly after, both of them switched to the other side of the street and tried to build a snowman next to the bench there. In watching them, time went by quickly for the old man, until it came as a surprise to him when the owner of the shop eventually actually did open the door to let him in. He was probably half Calvin’s age, a man with a round face, who looked fairly surprised at actually seeing people in front of his store on that day. Because of that, he hurried a bit and waved Calvin inside the warm place.

Meanwhile, my sister was still sitting on the lowest step, looking sad and miserable enough for Sonia to discreetly ask her brother what might have happened to her.

“I want to buy a diamond ring,” Calvin explained to the shop keeper after entering the shop. “We need to hurry though, I quite don’t have much time. The ring needs to be pretty and fit well! That’s what’s most important.”

“What’s your ring size?”

“Ah, the ring is for my wife. Wait a second, I have written down her size somewhere… You know, my, my memory isn’t the best anymore… Well, not that it ever was! But nowadays, you see, even remembering some small numbers can be quite… Ah damn, I must have left the note at home. But, I think I should still have her old ring with me…”

The Future heard a scowl, then further rummaging. “I need to buy that ring as fast as possible!” Calvin cried, panicking.

“First, let’s calm down,” the shop keeper said in a soothing tone. “Take a deep breath. I’m sure you’ve got that ring with you. You just need to search for it a little more, okay?”

“You are right,” Calvin said. “You are right… Just a moment.”

An old phone started ringing in its monotonous tune. “Please wait for a second. That’s mine,” Calvin said as he left the shop to answer. He walked up and down the street and in doing so garnered Sonia’s attention who watched him together with her brother.

“I understand,” Calvin said, softly and with a quiet voice, while carefully listening to the sharp words that were piercing out of his small device. “No,” he rasped a few seconds thereafter. “No, no, no… I was just about to… no…”

He continued listening to the voice for the next couple of minutes, nodding weakly, making feeble noises every now and then. Eventually, he put down the phone, pressed a button to end the call and put it back into his pocket.

His shoulders collapsed as if they were leaking out while he stumbled back to the stairs to take a seat adjacent to the Future. He placed his arms onto his knees and looked at the ground.

“My wife just died,” he whispered.

“What?” Sonia asked, shocked. She and her brother had come over. “What happened?”

“… A week ago she was admitted to the hospital. She had a seizure. I was with her the whole time, but yesterday I went home for a bit to tidy our home. That’s when I found the notebook, you know? And I remembered that ring.”

His voice was weak and shaky. The shopkeeper had come closer as well, to see if something was wrong.

“I really wanted to make good on that promise.”

He pressed his hand on his forehead and started to tremble ever so slightly. The Future noticed he was crying. She hesitated for a moment but then stretched out her hand to place it onto his cheek. In doing so, she gathered a tear from his face, to discreetly drop it into her test tube.

A few minutes later, Calvin decided to finally return to his wife.

He left the others in a gloomy mood. Sonia was crying. The boy tried to comfort her and succeeded in making it worse: “Don’t cry, Sonia. It’s his own fault, really. I mean, who waits until decades after marriage to buy an engagement ring! And then sits here for hours while his wife — OUCH!”

Sonia angrily kicked his knee before he could complete his thought and he started cursing.

The Future turned her back on this scenery. She dragged her bag with her while looking at the wedding ring she had stolen from Calvin at the moment of their collision.

Not getting the message from that book was one thing. But why had he also not checked?

Why had he not checked whether he still had that ring on him? If only he had checked and returned to his wife in time. What could my sister have done better? How could she have succeeded in making him leave?

I can never be sure, but this is what I presume she might have been thinking about when she let that ring fall into the duffle bag and continued onward with heavy steps.