I Left My Love on Beartooth Mountain

Soft rain pattered the small town nestled in the valley as a car drove up a windy dirt road that snaked up a mountain side. After a while, the car came to a lone old house standing on its own. George and Madeline hopped out into the cold drizzle.

"Who's clamoring out there in the night? I'm warning ya if you're a bear or a robber - I got a shotgun!" The powerful voice of old Grandma Beth rang out as she shone a flashlight out of her front door.

"Mrs. Jones, it's me - George Robert," George called out as he and Madeline stepped out of the car holding the bags that Bill had given them. 

"Georgie Robert! I didn't think I'd ever see you again," Grandma Beth said in astonishment at the sight of him. "Come on in,  what are you doing here in the dark and cold."

"Just brining stuff from Bob. I won't be long."

"Nonsense. I haven't seen you in at least seven years. I'm getting you a cup of tea," Grandma Beth said as she hobbled back inside.

"We're on a schedule," Madeline said as she glanced at her watch.

"This won't hurt. You want any tea?" George said.

"No. Caffeine doesn't sit right with me this late at night." The two of them entered into Grandma Beth's house. An old white colonial house with chipped paint and creaking floors. A dusty and musky type of smell permeated the entire place.

"So Georgie, you're not here just to visit me are you? What are you doing up here so late at night?" Grandma Beth asked as she busied with a tea kettle.

"I wanted to go up to the summit. Madeline's never seen the view," George said as he pulled up a chair. Grandma Beth froze. She put down the tea kettle and came to the table to sit across from George.

"I've heard from your Maw-maw," Grandma Beth quietly said as she reached out her old frail hands to clasp around George's.

"Word sure does get around these parts quick," George noted. His face and tone stoic as ever.

"You're a brave boy, Georgie. But you must be going through a lot."

George gave out a shaky sigh, and for the first time, a tremor of uncertainty crept into his voice. "It's been three months - but it still feels like yesterday. There's this hole in my chest and I don't know if I can ever fill it up. I feel empty."

"That's what happens when you love. It's wouldn't hurt so much if it didn't mean so much."

George looked up and stared at Madeline who stood by the door glancing towards the summit. "How do you deal with it?"

"Georgie, you're still young."

"I'm twenty-five."

"Like I said - still young. When you get to around forty or fifty - you'll realize that you have known some people through entire phases of their life. People from birth until their a young adult. From a young adult to a parent." Grandma Beth returned to the kettle to pour the hot tea. "And once you start approaching my age - well first your parents, aunts, and uncles start to pass away. And then your siblings and your friends one by one all leave. You realize that your time is right around the corner as well."

"So why hold on? Doesn't it hurt? Don't you feel lonely?"

"Of course it does. But that love that hurts - those memories also keep me here. I don't know what will happen to me when I die. I'm not afraid. But I want to cherish these memories for as long as I can just in case I can't take them with me afterwards." 

Everyone in the room stayed in silence before Madeline called out to Georgie. "Come on, we're on a schedule." She ducked out of the old house back into the rain.

"Right. Granny Beth, thanks for the tea. But Madeline's in a hurry," George said as he got up.

"Nothing I can say to keep you from going?" Grandma Beth asked with a concerned look.

"Thanks, but Madeline is waiting," George said with a smile as he followed Madeline.

Granny Beth followed them to the door. At first she thought to implore them to stop and come back. But after a second, she called out "You're a good kid Georgie. I'll have tea ready for you when you come back down."

George stopped in his tracks for a second, before choosing to continue on. "You shouldn't make her wait for you like that," Madeline said as she got back into the car. George chose to ignore her as he got back into the driver's seat.

The two of them continued the long drive up to the summit. At this point, the clouds and rain had parted away to make room for the full moon to illuminate the rest of their way. The summit was a barren and rocky flat top that was surrounded on three sides by steep cliff faces. George and Madeline could clearly see the forest, river, and small towns dotting the valley below now that the moon could be seen.

"Worth the trip?" George asked as Madeline gazed in awe at the view.

"Very. Did you want to take in the view or get to it?" Madeline asked.

"This was mostly for you. I'm ready," George said as he walked over. Hands reached out to hold Madeline's in his own. She squeezed his hand and gave him a reassuring smile. The two of them walked over to one of the cliff faces.

"I'm glad you're jumping with me," Madeline said. But even as she said that, George paused. "What's wrong?"

"You're my angel. Even now that you're gone, you're my angel. An angel of death," George said, small tears starting to drop down on his cheeks.

"George, please don't leave me alone."

"I love you Madeline. And a piece of me went with you when you jumped that day," George said with a gasp as his chest throbbed violently. "But you were the one who left me that day."

"George, please jump with me. Please come with me."

George gazed at her lovingly before letting go of her hand. She squeezed her hands around his in an attempt to keep him in place, but he pulled away. "My love for you hurts. But, I can't imagine not having that love for you. Which means I can't go with you. I have to move on." 

He looked up and Madeline was no longer there gesturing for him to jump with her. He took a last glance at the view and started walking back towards the car to drive back down to Granny Beth's.