Epilogue
Shawn
“You sticking around for trivia tonight?” I ask my best friend, Ryan. I should say my only friend, although that would be dramatic. I think it’s just that spring training is underway, and any other year, I’d be reporting to Arizona. I loved that part of the season. The possibility, the belief that this year could be our year. The excitement of the fans, the coaches…everything was better in the spring.
Now spring is just another season in the endless seasons of impossibility because I’m still working at this bar, and the rest of my teammates are starting without me.
Ryan nods. “Yeah, Deek and Tim are coming down. So is my sister’s husband Paul. Why don’t you join us?”
I shake my head. “I gotta man the bar.”
“So?” he says, “We’ll sit here, and you can help between customers. Come on, you should get to know the guys…maybe pick their brains about the academy. I know you want to do it,” he says, picking at that scab again. Reminding me there are possibilities out there. If I’d just take the next step.
Gayle’s sweet, soothing voice joins in, doing its best to cajole me. “You should listen to your friend. Hell, I’ll have Jo or Lottie cover the bar tonight so you can hang out if you want.”
I shake my head at Gayle. She’s one of the owners of the bar. “I’m good, boss.”
She hits me with a stern look. “Stop with that boss nonsense. And give me a scotch, please. Keeps my throat clear for the game.” She smiles demurely in Ryan’s direction. “My friends are here tonight. I’m sure they’d love some cute firefighters to play with.”
Ryan shakes his head. “No playing like that for me.” He nods in my direction. “You hear about any more wishes coming true?”
A woman walks up as we’re talking and stands beside Gayle. “Can you grab them a bottle of Syrah? Drinks are on me,” Gayle says.
Her friend holds up her hand. “That’s fine. We’ve got it.”
But Gayle gives me the sign to ignore her friend, and I listen to the boss. Her friend sighs. “So what were you saying about wishes?” she asks.
Ryan breaks it down. He’s heard me tell the story so many times, he can recite it word for word, but he puts his own spin on it. “People make wishes and write them down on the dollar bills.” He makes a sweeping gesture with his arm. The bills are hard to miss. They’re everywhere. “One of them fell a few months back, and we found out that the wish came true. Just wondering if Shawn has heard of it happening again.”
I smirk, knowing Ryan is going to lose his mind over this one. “The best friends…found out they ended up together after that wish fell.”
Gayle’s friend sucks in air as she shoves her hand into her pocket and pulls out a dollar. “Do you have a pen?” she asks excitedly.
I slide the black marker I keep by the register across the bar and watch as she writes her wish neatly and draws two little stars on either side of it. She kisses it and smiles, then shows it to Gayle, who laughs. Then she hands it over to me. I don’t dare read it though. I just grab the tape like I do every time and stick it to the wall.
It isn’t until hours later that I look over and realize the tape never stuck. The dollar—I know it’s hers because of the little stars she doodled—is lying faceup on the ground. “Oh brother,” I say with a sigh, exhausted by my night. The guys talked my ear off about fires in Southern California. Of the adrenaline rush they get when they put on their gear. Of nights in the department, playing cards and afternoons barbequing. And I suddenly envisioned a life for myself that didn’t sound so bad.
If only I had the courage to take the leap. To contact the doctor and find out if I could actually do it. All those decisions can wait for another day though. Right now, I’d rather worry about what Gayle’s friend wished for.
Please, Goddess of the Silver Lining, help my girl Scarlet find her true love.
I smile as I think about how this woman knew that the wishes were coming true, but rather than wishing for herself, she wished for something for her friend. As I lean back on the bar, I feel a renewed sense of hope.
Maybe I’m crazy. Maybe this is all nuts. But I really hope whoever this Scarlet is, she finds her true love.