10.9 Part One: Gone... Gone? Gone!

   "Lovely loft on the third floor. Now, what do you think? It's a spacious row home, perfect for the young individual who is busy, yet still has a social life and loves throwing gatherings, with plenty of spare room for when the time comes when you want a family."
   "It's quite lovely, thank you." I said, hesitantly smiling. "But honestly, I don't need anything this spacious; see, I'm working on my PhD at Stanford and simply need a nice place to rent that is close to the laboratory where I work part time and allows me to work on mechanics."
   "Ah, see, there's a quaint yard space near the front, perfect for that science thing."
   "Thank you, but honestly, it's a bit above my budget; three floors and all."
   "I'm sure I can negotiate with the landlord. Best investment you'll make; real estate is in a wonderful place, you don't even need twenty percent down. Besides, head the Golden Gate Bridge, near the San Fransisco hotspots, in a few years when you're looking to sell you'll probably have people dying to live here and make a nice profit."

    "Ah." I said, gritting my teeth. I had gone from realtor to realtor, Mabel to find one who comprehend that I didn't wish to spend a fortune, I just needed a place for two years, then I'd have my doctorate and be able to head back to LA; San Fransisco was temporary. Furthermore, not to sound too proud, but, having scored in the ninety-eighth percentile of my GREs and in the ninety-fifth percentile on the ACTs, I'd concluded that my IQ might be a smidge above average; they couldn't use synonyms with better connotations to convince me that I had to put in an offer for whatever place they were desperate to sell. "Well, Thank you for showing me, I'll consider it, I've got a class in half an hour and simply must go."
   "Here's my card." She said, handing me a fifth business card. "If you're interested, be sure to call quickly; another lady's expressed interest and she seemed very adamant."
   "I'll keep that in mind."

________________

   "Awnt-wee Why-win! Hehe, yous can heaw mwe?" Jack, Remy and Zander's two year old toddler giggled, struggling to say Auntie Ryelynn.
   "I can!" I exclaimed into the phone, smiling. "Can you hear me?"
   "Yeahs. Mommy gaves mwe uh phones! Guessy whaty!"

   "What?" I asked, placing the phone on my lap, on speakerphone, while sitting on the third floor's balcony railing, staring out at the skyline. The realtor had, despite my determination to not buy anything, to buy the row home; perhaps it was the crown molding, perhaps it was the hot neighbor, perhaps it was the fact that a Nobel prize laureate use to live here, either way, I know owned a surplus of rooms.
   "Guess." I heard another toddler, Jillian, who was now four, shout into the phone.
   "Hm... The sky is purple?"
   "No, swilly, it blue." Jack giggled. "Daddy say you gonna be docta! Docta should know cowows."
   "I should know my colors." I agreed. "Now, what was I trying to guess?"
   "Looksies outswides."
   "Okay." I said, glancing from the skyline, to the ground, to see a frazzled blonde, two giddy toddlers, and a father, bogged down with luggage.

   "See wus? Supwise!"
   "Jack, can I talk to mommy?"
   "Hehe."
   "Jack?"
   "Yeahs." I heard some scuffling, then, from what it looked like outside, Remy was now holding the phone. I had lots of work to do, soon I'd have to submit my dissertation, I was almost finished with my doctorate, soon I'd be Dr. Ryelynn Janes, not Miss. Ryelynn Janes; I didn't need any distractions.
   "Ryelynn, I'm so sorry, I just, please, I..."
   "What?" She sounded urgent, I stood up, rushing to the stairwell, practically flinging myself down it so I could reach the front door.
   "It's dad."
   "Remy?" I asked, flinging open the front door, to see her tearing up, clutching her cell phone, as the toddlers hung onto her leg. "Remy, what do you mean it's dad? He's okay, right? He has to be, we're going to a LOTR convention next month. He's only seventy-two. He's healthy. Remy, Remy, why are you crying? Remy, please stop."
   "Mama?" Jack asked, as Zander hugged her.
   "I'm sorry." My brother-in-law said. "We thought it'd be best to tell you in person, considering how close you two were."

   "Were? No, Zander, are, are. There has to be some, some, I don't know. Issue. Problem. A mistake; that's what it is."
   "Ryelynn." Remy said, looking at me with wide eyes."I'm sorry. It's a mistake."
   "Why... Why wasn't I called when he started deteriorating?" I murmured, staggering backwards. Gone. Daddy. Gone. I'd never get to say goodbye, hug him again, get to thank him for supporting him. He believed in time travel. He didn't think it was foolish; I was working on the mathematical theorems, time travel was theoretically probable. He knew that. He did. He supported me. He couldn't be gone.
   "It was sudden. Peaceful, unexpected, but peaceful."
   "No... No, Remy, please, tell me you're lying. Please, tell me I'm dreaming. Dad- he can't... Gone? Daddy?"
   "SCD. Sudden cardiac death. No one could have know, Rye, he was healthy, it just... Happened."
   "Daddy... Gone?" Them came in, Zander helping me to the sofa, as I stared into space. It couldn't be. Seventy-two. He wasn't that old. He had at least five more, ten more years. He couldn't be... Gone... Gone? Gone! The word kept replaying in my mind, until it lost all meaning. First a G, then an O, then an N, and lastly an E... Gone.