John held his head in his hands. He was had a weird dream where was in a costume shop and that he was actually a teenage boy that was turned into a lumberjack and his uncle had turned into the tree that his kids used as a swinging tree. It was an odd dream and John looked at his husband right next to him.
Mike got up and sheets dropped as he sat up to reveal a hairy expanse of soild pecks and abs you could do the wash with. He put his hand on his husbands shoulder.
“What’s wrong my heartwood?” Mike said with worry.
“Oh nothing. Just a very odd dream, but I am going to go outside to clear my head. You go back to sleep. I won’t be long, my sugar maple.” said John with a smile and kissed Mike on his bald head, and John put on is pants and left the room for outside.
When John got outside, he went to the tree in his dream and looked at for the first time in 15 years. It was a strong tree, but now the tree’s heartwood was rotted out and would fall any day now. John had been meaning to cut it down for the last year, but just could seem to do it for some reason.
“Why don’t I cut this down today?”
--- 10 Years Earlier ---
John had just finished chopping down this pine with his ax and was watching it fall.
“Timber,” John yelled out as it fell.
John then noticed a man who was walking up and was about to be crush. John jumped to action and pulled the man away from the tree with no time to spare.
“You are a damned fool.” John yelled at the man.
The man had tires in his eye. “I am sorry. I was heading to my tree to cut and…”
“Didn’t you hear me yell?!”
“No. I mean yes, but it was for another tree.”
“You need to keep your eye open and ears tuned to the calls or you going to be dead by lunch.”
“I am sorry.” the man cries in John arms.
--- Present ---
John grabs his ax and walks to the tree and starts to chop.
Whap.
Whap.
Whap.
--- 5 years Ago ---
“Congratulation, Daddy.” says a 7 year old Jane. “and John… I mean Pop Pop.”
“Thank you, sweety. Smile for the camera” says John.
A woman takes a picture of two Men in flannel suits kissing. The man on the right is John and the man on the left is the man John saved 5 years ago. The man, Mike holds a little girl no older than 5 years old. The new family looks happy.
--- Present ---
John makes the final wack.
“Timber!”
The tree starts to fall.
--- Last night ---
John takes Mike in his arms. They lay there panting and smiling. They had been together work, loving, crying, and making plans for 10 years.
John looks over to Mike and say, “I hope this never ends.”
“I do too. I will love you forever.”
--- Present ---
The tree falls.
Silance.