After showering Bette slowly made her way to the calendar that hung in the kitchen pantry.  This had become part of her everyday ritual; for each day that Tina had been gone there was another "X" mark. Slowly and with tears in her eyes she gently traced a line leading to Christmas Day on the calendar.  It is a little over two weeks until Christmas thought Bette I don't think that the time could be passing any slower.   Since this was Saturday, she decided that her goal for the rest of the day was to go through the motions and at least pretend to enjoy the holiday.  She entered the storage building and walked to the shelves where the Christmas decorations were stored.  Each box had been carefully marked by Tina as to its contents.  Bette slowly began to pull the boxes down deciding which ones she could open without being flooded by yet another memory. 

            As she stood lost in her thought's she heard someone knocking on the front door.

Making her way back through the house she smiled when she saw Shane standing on the porch with a six pack of beer in each hand.  "Hey there Bette" said Shane as she entered the living room.  "Hey yourself" replied Bette, "it's really nice to see you today."   "I heard you rummaging around in your shed and thought I'd see if I could help you with anything" said Shane as she motioned towards the backyard.   "Actually I was just about to put up some Christmas decorations but could easily be persuaded to sit and have a beer or two instead" said Bette smiling softly at Shane.  As Shane entered the kitchen to put up the beer she noticed the calendar hanging on the wall.  Looking closely she saw that both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were circled.  Not wanting to make Bette uncomfortable about the calendar she closed the refrigerator and walked back into the living room.  "Hey Bette, are you hungry?" asked Shane.  "Actually I think that I am Shane" said Bette.  They decided to call and order from the deli down the street.  After the food was delivered, they went and sat by the pool and started to eat.  It was then that Shane noticed how broken Bette appeared.  With Bette, Shane knew that sometimes the best thing to do was just be there with her, for her.  As the two women sat and quietly finished their lunch both became lost in their memories.  Shane replayed the many happy events shared in this house by the group of friends she had come to regard as her "family".  Shane missed Tina terribly, but accepted her decision to leave Bette.  Both she and Alice spoke frequently to her, although neither woman had seen her since she moved to San Diego. 

            Shane was shaken from her thoughts by the sound of breaking glass.  Bette had dropped her beer and it shattered beside her chair.  The look on Bette's face was one of such sadness that Shane almost felt her pain.  "What's wrong Bette" asked Shane quietly.  "Listen" replied Bette.  Suddenly Shane realized what was happening.  The wind had begun to gently blow causing the many wind chimes in the garden to come to life.  The chimes had always been a source of calm and relaxation for both Bette and Tina.  Shane could not remember the number of times she had entered their back yard and found them wrapped in each other's arms listening to the chimes gently chattering in the breeze.  Tina had a habit of purchasing a set of wind chimes each time she replanted the flowers by the pool so there were chimes of all shapes and sizes, each with its own unique melody hanging all throughout the backyard.  Bette began speaking quietly to Shane "It's just the chimes Shane".  "We would sit here by the pool sometimes well into the night, without words being spoken and know that the world was right as long as we were together" said Bette.  The feel of Tina in my arm's and the soft sounds from the chimes seemed to go hand in hand.  We even on occasion  found ourselves waking up as the sun rose, still in the garden and still holding one another.  "God Shane I miss her so much" said Bette as she slowly lowered her face towards the ground.  Bette's shoulders began to shake gently.  "Look Bette, I know that I probably shouldn't say this but I'd be willing to bet that this is all just as hard on Tina as it is on you" said Shane.  "I don't know if that is true or not Shane.  You do remember that she moved away because she hates me so much don't you?"  I asked both you and Alice for her phone number, address, anything and you both made it clear that she did not want me to know how to contact her" said Bette sadly.  "Bette that's not because she hate's you, it's just easier for her to deal with everything on her own terms" replied Shane.  "You know the strangest thing is that I never thought about all the little things that we shared; now everything reminds me of her, of us" sobbed Bette.   "I love her with everything that I am yet I still managed to screw everything up.  She is like the air that I breathe, so much a part of me that I question how I existed before I met her.  It was as if she took my hand and led me from a cold dark place to a world filled only with warmth and love - her love.  "She is my everything Shane" Bette said as she wiped the tears from her face.  Shane sank to her knees beside Bette and reached out to hug her tightly to her chest.  Bette's cries became louder as she sobbed openly into Shane's shoulder.  Shane felt her own tears trailing down her face as she held Bette.  As Shane released Bette from her arms, she took her fingertip and gently raised her face.  Looking deeply into her eyes Shane said "You only find love like this once.  It's the kind of love that we all dream of but few of us ever find.  Never give up on love Bette because in the end it's all that is worth fighting for" said Shane gently brushing a tear from Bette's eye.