Chapter Text
May 16th, 2025. 6:00 p.m.
“We’re back in the saddle again. Back in the saddle again! That’s right, we’re back from Los Angeles here in Lillington, North Carolina-”
“Woah woah woah. Where’s the saddle?” Came my voice from off camera.
“It’s imaginary. Don’t get a shot of my-crotch.” We both chuckled. “There’s no saddle down there. We’re back in Lillington, North Carolina, where you gotta use heat to be comfortable.”
“That’s right,” my voice again. “And none of this-”
I clicked out of the video, and clicked on another one. I clicked almost a minute into the video. I was saying, “…we have a new, undisclosed location studio. We don’t know what to call it, but we’re in it right now, it is being worked on. And, uh, Link. Why don’t you take ‘em on tour?”
“I’d like to give you a quick tour, we’re excited about this spot.” I clicked further in. “I think my big desk is gonna go here, and your little desk is like, gonna go right there.”
“Yeah, my kiddie desk. My playskool desk.”
“We’ll put a couch over here and some white-boards. So much magic is gonna happen in this room, I just feel it!”
I smiled. I was sitting at my desk, staring at my computer. Hours after the work day ended, and I was the only one there late, or at least I thought I was. I had the door to my office open. Stevie poked her head in. “Hey, boss. I just finished up and I’m heading out.”
I looked up from my computer, and smiled. “Okay, Stevie. See you on Monday.”
She hesitated, lingering in the doorway. “Is there anything…you need me to do?”
“No, I’m good. Just working on some stuff.”
“Is everything okay?”
“Yeah.”
She studied me for a minute. “No, I know you. Everything’s not okay. What is it?”
“No, really, Stevie. Everything’s fine.”
“But, you’re just kind of…” She gasped, her hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, my god. I just realized. It’s May 16th, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, so? It’s just like any other day.”
“No, it isn’t. Rhett…it’s the anniversary, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. I was hoping you didn’t remember.”
“How long has it been?”
“Fifteen years.”
“You’re thinking about him.”
“It’s hard not to.”
Stevie came over, and sat down in the chair next to my desk. “You really loved him, didn’t you?”
“He was my husband. In every way but legally.”
“Some people lose their partner and move on…but there’s never been anybody else, has there?”
I reached into my desk drawer, and pulled out my wedding band, turning it around repeatedly in my fingers. “No. I’ve had some relationships over the years, but they were all short lived. They could tell my heart wasn’t really in it. It couldn’t be. Can’t blame them, you can tell when the love’s not there. They were all lovely people, all nice in their own way. But…they weren’t Link.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You know, just a few years later, we could have been married legally. The government would have recognized our marriage. I wished he could have seen that. We could have celebrated.”
“You don’t talk about him much. To us, at least. Can you tell me something about him?”
I smiled. “He was pretty tall. Shorter than me, about six feet, but he always complained that people always thought he was shorter when he was standing next to me.”
She chuckled.
“He hated tomatoes, he would pick them out of any food he was eating. He loved tomato sauce and ketchup, though. Something, I guess, about raw tomatoes that he disliked. Actually, there were a lot of foods he disliked. It became a running joke with us.”
“What else?”
“Cereal was one of his favorite foods, he kept multiple boxes in the kitchen and at the studio.”
“And what else?”
“I love horror movies, but he hated them. He was a big scaredy cat. I could never get him to watch them with me.”
She smiled.
“Our dream was to move to L.A. and be real filmmakers. We never made it out of North Carolina. He was always so goofy, always hamming it up to make people laugh. He loved to dance.”
Stevie smiled again. “I wish I could have met him.”
I smiled, sadly. “I do, too. I think he would have liked you.”
“Hey. How about you come stay over at my place, we can watch some movies, make some cocktails. I’ll make up the guest bed. I’m sure Cassie wouldn’t mind.”
“No, thanks, Stevie. I’m just going to go home.”
“Rhett, you shouldn’t be alone tonight.”
“I’ll be fine, Stevie.” I gave her a reassuring smile.
Stevie looked doubtful, but she hugged me. “Call me tomorrow, okay? And you can text me tonight whenever you want, if you want to talk about stuff.”
“Okay. Thanks, Stevie. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight, Rhett.” And she left.
I said to myself, “Stevie, if everything goes right tonight, by tomorrow we’ll have never had this conversation.”
I found it funny that I was putting the finishing touches on the machine tonight. Ironic. Of course it had to be tonight. It’s fate. Seemed fitting, somehow.
I pulled into the driveway. The front yard was well kept, so as to keep up appearances. The backyard was a different story.
I headed into the kitchen, grabbing a soda instead of my usual beer. I had to be clear-headed tonight. I grabbed a Stouffer’s mac and cheese from the freezer. I chuckled. “Your favorite.” I said to the empty kitchen. I sat at the kitchen island, finishing my meager meal quickly. I didn’t bother cleaning up, the kitchen would be completely different when I got back. He was always the neat one, anyway.
I walked through the dark living room, opening the French doors. I walked across the weed-riddled backyard to the willow tree. I knelt down at the small headstone. My hands traced the engraved letters just visible in the moonlight.
CHARLES LINCOLN “LINK” NEAL, III
JUNE 1ST, 1978 - MAY 16TH, 2010
BELOVED HUSBAND, ADORED INTERNETAINER
FOREVER MYTHICAL
I rose, running my hand across the top of the headstone as I stood.
I entered the garage, and pulled the tarp away, revealing the machine I had been working on for fifteen years. I ran the wires, checking the connections. I bolted the maintenance panel shut. I turned knobs, flicked switches, and made sure all the lights were lighting up. I double checked that my tool bag and emergency rations were stashed in their compartment under the seat. I climbed into the seat and buckled myself in, checking that the restraints were holding me securely. I turned my attention to the settings on the control panel. I had opted for a mechanical dial to read out the settings and date and time instead of an electronic display. What could I say? I’m a sucker for the H.G. Wells aesthetic. Made it feel cooler.
I entered the date and time into the panel. May 16th, 2010. 8:00 a.m. I pulled my wedding band out of my pocket. The engraving on the inside read, Forever yours, Link. I slipped it on.
I flicked the switch, and the machine hummed as it powered up. The lights glowed blue. I couldn’t help but feel proud in that moment. I smiled.
“I’m coming, Link.” I murmured. I threw the lever.