Legacy

Meredith pulled the covers gently up over her young son, Jack's chest and sat down on the bed beside him.
Jack looked at his mother, his eyes bright, hopeful.
"Would you like a bedtime story Jack?" She asked.
Jack nodded enthusiastically. He loved the stories his mother told. They were always about the same boy, Caleb.

"Well," Jack's mother began and he snuggled into his pillow, closing his eyes in order to imagine the story in his mind and listened, hooked, as always, on his mother's every word.
"Caleb was about 12."
"Around my age." Jack whispered happily.
"Yes." His mother agreed. "Around your age. Anyway, one day, Caleb went with some of his friends to a dam not far from his house. Caleb took his little dog, Sandy. They all had to climb up a very big, steep hill to get to the dam, and by the time they got to the top, they were exhausted. So, they all sat down on the rocks around the water to rest for a while."
Jack could just see it. Caleb and his friends slowly climbing up the hill, struggling a few steps because he was getting tired. His little dog Sandy racing ahead, because that's what dogs did. They had endless amounts of energy. Jack could almost picture Caleb and his friends lazing around the dam, lying on towels in the sun. Sandy standing by the edge of the water, his little paws getting wet as he lapped up the cool liquid.

"After an hour or two, Caleb and his friends had their energy back and started to take their clothes off, leaving their swimmers on to go for a little dip. But, just as Caleb finished pulling his shirt up, over his head and let it fall to the ground, he realized he couldn't see Sandy anymore."
Jack's expression turned to concern. "What happened Mum?"
Meredith laughed a little. "Well, what Caleb didn't realise was, one of his friends had thrown a stone into the water for Sandy to fetch. He'd gone in after it, but he hadn't let the stone go!"
At that, Jack giggled, joining his mother's laughter. "Then what?" Jack asked eagerly.
"Well, Caleb had to go in after him, didn't he?"
Jack nodded. Of course. That would be the most sensible thing to do. After all, you wouldn't want your dog to get hurt.

"So Caleb dove into the water after him. Lucky he did too, because the dog was standing at the bottom of the dam, the stone still in his mouth, his fur soaked through. Caleb saw Sandy looked like he was struggling. So he slipped his arm underneath Sandy's belly and pulled him close. Then, he swam quickly back up to the surface. As Caleb took a big gulp of air, Sandy did the same, and then started panting."

By the time Meredith had finished the story, Jack had fallen fast asleep, so she carefully rose from the bed and kissed his forehead before leaving the room. Leaving Jack with his dreams of Caleb and Sandy, and how Sandy wouldn't let go of the stone and Caleb had to dive in after him.

Six years later, when Jack was 18, his mother sat him down in the living room.
"I'm really glad you're turning those stories you told me as a kid into books Mum." Jack spoke up before Meredith had the chance.
Meredith leaned forward and placed her hand on his knee for a moment. "Thank you Jack." She said, and sat up straight in the chair again.
"Now other kids can enjoy them. Just like I did."
"About them Jack. The stories I told you about Caleb. They were all true." Meredith confessed, her nervous voice almost a whisper.
"What do you mean Mum?" Asked Jack, confused. "They didn't happen to you, did they?"
"No Jack. To your uncle."
"But I don't have an uncle." Jack said slowly.
"You did. You do." She said. "I told you about him, remember?"
Jack sat frozen for a moment, lost in thought before nodding. "The one who passed away."
Meredith nodded. "I didn't want to talk about him dying. Especially when you were younger. So I told you stories instead. About some of the things he did, in his childhood and later on. To keep his memory alive."

Jack stayed silent.
"Have I done something wrong?" She asked worriedly.
"No!" Jack said, snapping out of his trance. "No. Not at all Mum. I was just thinking. These books, they're his legacy."
Meredith nodded. "That's what I was hoping."
Jack leaned over and picked up one of the books from the table. Settling back into his chair, Jack opened it to the page before the story began. For my brother. His mother had written as a dedication. Never forgotten