The Eyes Have It

Chapter 12: The End Is Only The Beginning (Final Chapter)

We ended up parting on good terms as I had hoped, but like I predicted it broke me, I cried for months before I could allow myself to start living again. I don't remember it now, which I'm thankful for, in fact the only truly clear thing in my head is Ahkmenrah and my memory of him, it was such a long time ago, if not for the photos of him I'm not sure I'd remember what he looks like, but I have a good feeling about today.

***

"Ahk? You in there? Come on man, time to wake up" how long has it been since he last heard another persons voice? Has it been years? Days? Months? Decades? The last thing he remembers is Celeste, saying goodbye and not being able to hold all of the pain in. It became too hard to wake up every night and not see her there, dressed up for that nights adventure. He and his parents agreed that this was the best thing for him, to lay here and wait, how long has it been? "Hey buddy" Ahkmenrah's eyes slowly focus on an unfamiliar face, actually he does look familiar though, like a man he once knew "you don't recognise me do you? That's okay, I did get pretty old. It's me, Nick"

Ahkmenrah's eyes widen a little and then squint at the face to confirm it, it is him, he's not so young anymore "Nick?" He says in a croaky voice, it must have been ages since he last used it.

"Yeah man, look at me, time was not kind" he laughs in a different voice from the one that Ahkmenrah remembers, he sounds like a man. His face looks like his father, only god knows how many years older "eighty one years old, three grandchildren and here I am breaking you out of museum archives, just like the good old days, eh?"

"Why am I awake?"

Nick smiles, his wrinkles move as he does and it's odd for Ahkmenrah to see someone he once knew so old "I brought an old friend" Nick lifts up the tablet, still as golden as the last time Ahk saw it, but Nick quickly has to put it back down on account of it's weight "damn, I don't remember this thing being so heavy. Come on son, get outta there you got a girl to see"

Ahkmenrah sits up quickly, his back making a clicking noise as he does "Celeste? She's alive?"

"You told me to wake you up when the day was close, well it's close" his heart sinks, its been 60 odd years since he went to sleep, asking Nick to hide the tablet away from him and wake him up on this day "but you should probably shower first, you stink" Ahkmenrah takes in a breath through his nose, Nick is right he smells like a dead body "don't worry I brought you everything you asked for" he pats the young Pharaoh on his shoulder, smiling wide.

Of course he has lots of questions about Celeste, but he decides to wait and ask her himself, however difficult that might be, it depends on what situation she's in "so, you've got kids?" Ahk asks as he climbs out of his sarcophagus.

Nick laughs as he hobbles over to a crate with some clean clothes on it and other things that Ahk asked for "yeah, and grandkids too, little trouble makers, we decided to move to England just after my eldest was born, figured I could keep a better eye on you that way, plus I liked the chips here" he lays the tablet down and runs his hand over it "it was hard to hide this thing, your dad suggested the desert. God, I haven't seen it since I was a young man" he smiles "all those years ago"

This next question might be a touchy subject, but Ahk has to know "your father?"

Nick sighs and looks at his friend solemnly "he died a while back, but it was okay, it was peaceful" clearly he doesn't want to elaborate on the subject, Ahkmenrah just nods and stays silent "here, get dressed, you got a big day ahead of you" he hands Ahk a piece of paper "this is where she lives, she's probably waiting for you"

~

Has he ever been this nervous before? Dressed in a suit and on his way to see his 88 year old girlfriend, perhaps he should be calling her his ex now, but that seems wrong somehow. When he gets close to the house he looks off into the front garden, it's a luxurious shade of green with a neat little house sitting on it, with a front porch and a wooden chair that a woman is sitting in, soaking in the sun. He swallows and gathers himself in his mind, this is it, everything has been leading up to this single moment, this one point in time.