“Morning. Do you have any sunflowers?” I asked.
She perked up even more. “We just received a new shipment this morning. They’re gorgeous.”
I followed her over to one of the refrigerators, where there were dozens of sunflowers.
“Aren’t they darling?” she asked as she gazed at the bright yellow blooms.
“How much would a bouquet cost?”
“You’re in luck. Because they’re in season, we’re running a special. A small bouquet is only seventy-five dollars.”
I ran my free hand through my hair, grumbling.
The woman must’ve spotted the hesitation on my face. “If that’s not in the budget right now, I might be able to do something. Hang on.” She pivoted and headed toward the back of the shop.
I stared at the flowers, mentally berating myself for not being able to afford a simple bouquet for my wife. But the dough I’d just spent to fix her engagement ring was about all the extra funds I had until I got paid the following week. We had a little money in our account, but I couldn’t touch that.
“Here we go.”
I turned to see the woman enter the main area of the store with a bouquet of sunflowers.
“These are a couple days old, but they’re still beautiful, aren’t they?”
I nodded. “How much?”
“I can let this beauty go for twenty dollars.”
“I’ll take it.” I didn’t hesitate. I would add on a few more double shifts like I’d been doing for weeks now.
“Thanks.” I gathered the bouquet and headed back to my Jeep to make the twenty-minute drive across town to get home to Savannah.
All the way home, I hoped the newly fixed ring and flowers would at least help bring Savannah some happiness.
For the past two months, the pain in her eyes had ripped at my very soul. It’d been eight and a half weeks since I’d had to witness my wife cradle our stillborn son in her arms and apologize over and over again.
I could probably count the number of sentences she’d spoken to me ever since. Most of the time, she told me repeatedly how sorry she was even after I’d assured her, just as much, that it wasn’t her fault.
These things just happen sometimes.
You’re young.
You can try again.
The doctor had spoken in a tone that lacked empathy of any sort. If I hadn’t had my wife to think about, I would’ve slammed my fist into the prick’s face for his lack of bedside manner.
I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind as I pulled into the parking lot of our apartment complex.
I took one final look at the new ring and imagined it, once again, on Savannah’s hand. After the engagement ring had broken, she’d only worn her wedding band, but the gold-plated metal had left her ring finger discolored, so she’d gone without it for months.
“She’ll love it,” I said, more to convince myself than anything, as I got out of the car. I took the stairs to our third-floor apartment, two at a time.
“Babe,” I called out as I entered before kicking the door closed behind me. When I didn’t get a reply, I paused to listen for the television, but it wasn’t on.
Savannah had taken to keeping on the TV in our bedroom at all hours of the day. Even when she would lie down in bed, staring at nothing but the wall, she’d insist I keep the television on.
“Babe,” I called again. I knew there was no way she hadn’t heard me call out to her. Our apartment was just over four hundred square feet. Neither of us could make a move without the other one hearing it.
I placed the flowers on the coffee table in the middle of our living room and pushed open the door to our bedroom. “Savannah?” Our bed sat neatly made and empty.
