May 24, 2004
Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin
Rose was up at dawn, packing. She had slept little the night before, and had fallen into a restless sleep only two hours earlier. The first faint light of dawn had awakened her again.
Daffodil awoke at the sound of Rose collecting her belongings. Blearily, she sat up, rubbing her eyes and looking at Rose sourly.
"What time is it?"
Rose shrugged. "Around four or 4:30, I guess."
"I know you want to leave, but this early?"
Rose’s mouth tightened. "I want to get out of here as soon as possible. Do you still want to come with me?"
"Yes, but can’t we wait until at least six?"
"No. I want to leave."
"For the love of God—"
"I’m almost packed. How long do you think it’ll take you to get ready?"
"A couple of hours. Let me finish sleeping."
"I’ll see you around, then—maybe."
"Dammit, Rose…"
"You know why I want to leave!"
"Yes, I know. And if you don’t pipe down, so will the whole campground, including Jim and Angel, who didn’t do anything to you."
Rose’s eyes narrowed. "I’ll be just fine on my own."
Daffodil held her hands up defensively. "I never said you wouldn’t. You survived before, and you’re a lot more capable of taking care of yourself now."
"I did it then, too!"
Daffodil sighed. "Whatever. Your bones would be scattered by coyotes by now if I hadn’t come along, but…whatever you say."
"Do you want me to leave on my own?"
"Dammit, Rose…no, I don’t. I want to come with you…but you’re seriously making me reconsider that idea at the moment." They glared at each other for a minute.
"Fine."
"Fine."
Rose began rolling up her bedroll, attaching it to the bottom of the backpack she had carried all the way from Masline. It was much the worse for wear, but still usable, and she had no intention of spending her hard-earned money on another until she had to.
"Rose, hold on." Daffodil crawled out of her sleeping bag and reached for a pair of jeans. "It’s not likely that Tim is even up yet. Jim knows that we’re leaving—I told him last night, and I’m sure he told Angel—but you won’t have to talk to Tim if you don’t want to—which is probably just as well, seeing as to how you were ready to kill him last night."
Rose sighed, tying up the ropes holding her bedroll in place. "I’m not going to kill him. I wish I could say that he deserves to suffer, after the way he kept things from me, but I’ve seen someone die of AIDS before, and it isn’t a fate I’d wish on anyone."
"I wouldn’t, either, but I can’t believe how he treated you. You trusted him, and—"
"More fool I. I won’t be so trusting again." She pulled a granola bar from her bag and opened it, sitting on the floor of the tent to eat her breakfast. "I can’t believe I was so trusting this time, knowing what I do about the way some men are."
"No two of them are alike, and Tim might have had me fooled if I hadn’t already known him."
"You suspected then that he was sick, too?"
"No, but I knew that he was a jerk. He was a creep growing up, and he’s still a creep."
"Don’t I know it."
Daffodil finished dressing and began to pack. "Why don’t you go and fill our water bottles? We may be roughing it again soon."
By the time Rose returned with the filled bottles, Daffodil had begun to take down the tent. Silently, they worked together, packing up their shelter and fastening it securely to the bottom of Daffodil’s pack along with her sleeping bag.
"Are you ready to go?" Rose asked, swinging her own bag onto her back.
"In a couple of minutes. I want to wash up before we leave."
Rose leaned against a tree, waiting for Daffodil to return. As Daffodil walked back towards her, weighted down by her pack, Rose saw Jim, Angel, and a sickly-looking Tim approaching her from their camp.
Rose quickly walked away, going up to Daffodil. "Let’s get going," she said, her voice low. "I don’t want to deal with Tim right now."
Jim and Angel had already caught up to them, while Tim walked slowly along behind, struggling to carry something and looking as if a gentle breeze would blow him over.
"So you guys are really leaving?" Jim asked, looking at them incredulously. Daffodil had told him, but he hadn’t quite believed her.
"Yes," Daffodil told him, turning to face him and gesturing to Rose to wait for her. "The band’s kaput, you know. With all the trouble here, and the trouble between all of us, and Tim—" She stopped, not wanting Tim to overhear her.
"Yeah." Jim shuffled his feet, not sure what to say. "Well, I guess this is good-bye. Angel and I will be leaving soon, too. We’re going to take Tim home to Texas, no matter how much he objects, and then…well, we’ll see."
"Yeah. Good luck, Jim, Angel. We’ll be thinking of you." She nodded, her expression cool, as Tim caught up to them. "Good-bye, Tim."
"Daffodil, wait! I have something for Rose…"
Rose turned, her arms folded stiffly across her chest. "I’ve already seen it, and I don’t want it."
"What?" It took him a minute to figure out what she was referring to. Then he blushed. "Not that. God, what do you take me for?"
"A loser."
"Rose, I want to apologize. I was wrong not to tell you what I suspected. The doctors say that I don’t have much time left, so I’m saying it now. I’m sorry."
Rose hesitated, still not approaching him. "I accept your apology, but I still can’t forgive you, Tim. I don’t know if I ever will. You could have killed me, and I’ve seen what AIDS does to people—it’s not something I ever want to experience. I don’t wish it on you, either."
"I know. Rose…I want you to have this." He approached her again as she watched him warily, then held out his guitar case. "I don’t think I’ll be using it again, and you have one of the most beautiful voices I’ve ever heard. You’ll go a long way. I’m just sorry I won’t be able to see you."
"I’m sorry, too." Rose took the guitar. "I should have known better than to trust someone so blindly—but this time I’ve learned my lesson. It won’t happen again." She stepped forward, hugging him briefly. "Thank you, Tim. Good luck." She nodded to Jim and Angel. "Good luck to all of you."
"Where are you guys going?" Angel had started to walk away, but turned back for a moment to say good-bye.
Rose shrugged. "I don’t know." She looked at Daffodil. "Where are we going?"
"Wherever the wind takes us…but for now, I’d like to go to Canada. I haven’t been there in about three years."
"We’re going to Canada," Rose answered Angel. "Maybe we’ll see you again someday."
"Yeah, maybe. Oh, and Rose…sorry I was such a jackass about what happened in the bar. It wasn’t really your fault."
"Well, I could have kept my mouth shut and not been so antagonizing—but thank you."
They lingered for a moment longer before Rose and Daffodil turned away, waving once before walking away. They might meet again in the future—or perhaps not. As Rose had learned long ago, no one could be sure of what the future held.