Hattie’s health was not good; she needed to sleep in a very quiet room at night to sleep well. She slept lightly, easily startled by any movement, and she didn’t feel very secure.
As for the hotel, Micah took a long time to choose a quiet and comfortable one. It had to accommodate their dog, be close to the festival, have good transportation nearby, and options for shopping. The hotel’s breakfast and lunch also had to be top-notch.
Although they could order takeout now and eat outside, Hattie had a delicate stomach and couldn’t eat too much. At home, she could prepare nutritious recipes, but outside, she would have to make do with the best restaurant available.
Now that the weather was getting colder, Hattie was afraid of the cold and slept a lot. She was not willing to get up early in the morning, so she had to eat the hotel’s prepared breakfast.
Micah was very familiar with Bankshire, having grown up in the area. After much searching, he finally found a satisfactory hotel. Everything from the accommodations to the meals was good, and they even offered stomach-soothing soup for those with poor digestion.
Over the years, Micah had pampered her like a child. Every night, he would ask her to soak her feet and give her acupressure, then he would have to coax her to sleep and tell bedtime stories.
Tonight, Micah told Hattie “The Little Prince.”
Hattie asked, “Can Dr. Baker paint sheep?”
“No, but I can paint you.”
Hattie had seen Micah’s drawings before and honestly, his skills were average. But when he painted her, it really looked like her.
Drifting off to sleep, she nestled in Micah’s arms. Even in her sixties, she was like a child. With her hand tightly gripping his fist at her chest, Micah carefully turned off the lights and adjusted the blanket.
His hand, which was previously outside while he turned the pages of a book, was cold. He put his cold hand on his stomach, waiting for it to warm up before holding Hattie’s hand. Her hand wasn’t warm enough, but as long as he held her hand, even in the cold winter, it wouldn’t feel cold.
Hattie’s tightly clenched fist slowly relaxed in Micah’s palm.
As people grow old, they tend to have small health problems, and Micah was no exception. He couldn’t afford to get sick; even a slight cold would make him worry for a long time. He was afraid that if he got sick, he would not be able to take care of Hattie. In the hospital, he saw too many farewells and deaths. He thought he would get used to it, but as time went by, and as he grew older, he became more and more afraid of leaving Hattie. If he passed away first one day, what would Hattie do?
On the bedside table was a bunch of pink roses, emitting a faint fragrance at night. Once it was cut and removed from its growing place without water, it would wither the next day.
The next morning, Hattie sighed while holding the wilting bunch of flowers in her hand, “I forgot to water them yesterday. Look, the flowers have withered.”
“They’ve withered, we can buy new ones.”
Micah often gave Hattie flowers, and roses were the ones he gave the most, in various colors.
Despite the flowers wilting and losing their color, Hattie only felt a sense of regret. She carefully placed the flowers in the trash.
Their first goal was to go to the festival. Micah helped Hattie put on a thick scarf and gloves. Bankshire’s winter was cold and damp, and he also prepared a hat in case Hattie got a headache.
Hand in hand, they went out. Along the way, they stopped to try local snacks, and finally, at night, the city was brightly lit, with lanterns in the river and sky lanterns in the sky.
Micah bought two sky lanterns, dipped a brush in ink, and wrote down their wishes for the new year.
-“Hattie, happy this year and every year after.”
-“Peace and safety for Micah every year.”
“Are you done writing?” Micah put down the brush and asked Hattie.
She looked at her writing with a satisfied smile. “I’m done.”
“Then I’ll take them down to the bridge, you wait here, and we’ll release the sky lanterns later.”
Taking two lanterns, Micah gave his instructions and carefully made his way to the bridge. Many young people wearing traditional clothing were there too, and when they saw Micah, they made way for him to have a spot to release the lanterns.
“Careful, sir.”
Micah said thank you and released the lanterns into the water, watching them float away.
He stood up, smiled, and a young person nearby asked, “Sir, are you alone?”
“No, I have my love waiting for me up there.” Micah stood up and turned back towards Hattie, who was standing by the lanterns. Even her delicate silhouette appeared warm.
Micah suddenly remembered a line of poetry, “Suddenly looking back, the person was there, in the dim light.”
“I released the lanterns, did you see them?” Micah walked up to Hattie.
“I saw them, they’ve drifted away.” Hattie pointed to the small river. There were many lanterns on the river, almost all the same, blending together, but Hattie could distinguish them, because she had been watching all along.
They took the sky lanterns and went to an open space. When they let go of the lanterns, they rose high into the air, looking up at the night sky.
Micah said, “Peace and joy.”
Hattie replied, “Everything will go well.”
The night wind was a bit cold. However, as long as Hattie held Micah’s hand, she didn’t feel a hint of cold. The warmth from Micah’s hands reached her heart through her fingertips.
After releasing the lanterns, they returned to the hotel.
“The lanterns have been released. Let’s go to the concert.”
“Okay, I’ll accompany you.”
“What about dancing?”
“No, it’s too dangerous…” Micah suddenly saw a group of middle-aged and elderly people dancing in the nearby square. He nodded and smiled, then let go of Hattie’s hand and stood opposite her, bowed, extended his right hand, and with a charming look in his dark eyes, he said, “Madam, may I have the pleasure of dancing with you?”