Dear John

John’s father dies seven weeks later. John returns home for the funeral. His father’s lawyer says that John’s father had written and told him that John had the coins in his possession and to update his will one last time. The lawyer hands him a record of the coins, precise just like his father, and the only existing photo of the two of them, beaming at a coin show. Only two past co-workers, the director of the extended care facility, the lawyer, and his neighbor attend the funeral. It makes John sad to think that these were the only people who saw his value in his father’s life. After, Lucy, an ex-girlfriend from before the Army, comes to visit him. She asks if he is in love, and he admits he is, and he tells her everything. She leaves, and he paces the house, thinking about his dad and Savannah and realizing there is somewhere else he needs to be.

John sleeps in his father’s bed and then goes to the care facility to pick up his father’s things. He keeps driving, memories flooding him until he reaches Lenoir, Savannah’s hometown. He checks into an old motel and goes to a run-down pool hall. He chats with the bartender and asks about Savannah, and he learns that Savannah lives on a ranch next to her parent’s house. John drives there and finds Savannah working with the horses. She is shocked to see him, and when John sees her, all the memories and feelings come rushing back; even though she has changed, she is the same in many ways. When she questions why John is here, he admits his father has died, and he just needs to be here with the person closest to a best friend he has. She invites him to work the horses with him, and they chat as they work. She is married now, but her husband isn’t anywhere to be seen. He asks about the Hope and Horses sign he saw driving in. Savannah explains that Alan took to it more than other kids, and she hasn’t been able to reach as many kids as she hoped she would. Finally, he asks if she is happy, but she wonders whether he means if she loves her husband. She admits that she does. Savannah invites him to stay for dinner, and John notices that she has a combination of reticence and sadness about her.

Savannah and John catch up over dinner. John talks about his father, their relationship over the last couple of years, and John’s time in Iraq. Savannah talks about her wedding, which took place here, and how much she has changed—she is even having a glass of wine for dinner. John asks if he can meet her husband, but Savannah explains he already has. It is Tim. She explains that they had classes together as graduate students and spent a lot of time together. He was there for her while she missed John. Then, his parents were in a horrible accident, and they died, leaving Tim to take care of his brother. Savannah was mourning John not being home, and Tim was mourning his parent’s tragic death, and while consoling each other, they fell in love. They got married and moved into his parent’s house with Alan. John still thinks there is something that she isn’t telling him, but she doesn’t answer when he asks where Tim is. Seeing that it is late, John gets up to leave, and Savannah invites him back the next day to see Tim. John is hesitant, but Savannah is persistent, and he agrees.

John returns the following morning, and Savannah drives him to the hospital. Tim has been in the hospital for skin cancer treatment. Alan is in the room with Tim, rolling his head back and forth, sitting by his brother. Savannah and Alan leave, and John asks Tim how long he has been sick. It started with an itchy mole on his calf and moved quickly. Tim doesn’t handle the interferon treatments well, so he is in the hospital on and off. They talk about their parents’ deaths and how Savannah is holding up. Savannah returns, and Tim falls asleep. Savannah and John talk about how she is dealing with Tim’s illness. Everyone treats her differently, and she has no one to talk to about how terrified she is. She also struggles with Alan, as he doesn’t know how to process what is happening to his brother, especially after his parent’s death; Tim was the only one who could console him. They want to try an experimental treatment, but the insurance company won’t pay for it, and it costs more than she can ever hope to pay. They spend the rest of the afternoon in Tim’s room, leaving a little after dinner.

Back at the ranch, Savannah asks him to stay, and they share the leftover lasagna that her mother made. Inevitably, they bring up the past, and Savannah shares that she still thinks of their relationship, and she always looks at the full moon to remember their time together. John says that she should have waited for him. She replies that while she enjoys her life with Tim, she sometimes wonders if she should have waited. Savannah realizes that their love was real and John would have married her. John admits that he still would. As they almost kiss, Savannah jumps back and spills the wine she is holding on both of them. While in the bathroom cleaning his shirt, he sees Savannah changing, and she turns to face him. A moment passes between them, but she eventually turns away. Suddenly, a loud wail echoes in the house as Alan returns home. They rush to Alan, who is now slamming cabinets in the kitchen. John asks if she needs help, but she explains that this sometimes happens when Alan gets home from the hospital as he processes what is happening to his brother.

John leaves and spends the night thinking of her, their time together, and the emptiness it has left in him. The following morning, John visits Tim in the hospital alone. Tim explains how he worries about Alan. If something happens to him, he knows it will be difficult for Savannah, but Alan may not recover. He also questions whether it would be fair to expect Savannah to take responsibility for Alan. Tim suggests that if something does happen to him, John should marry Savannah—Tim knows that John still loves her. Even though Tim loves her, he knows it is not the same as the love John and Savannah share. John doesn’t say anything and leaves. Outside the hospital, John thinks for the first time that his love for Savannah feels wrong as if he were coming between her and Tim. He sees that Savannah has parked next to him. He explains he is leaving and needs to return to Germany. Savannah asks if she can write to him, and John says no, explaining that she is married and he cannot come between her and Tim, who he needs her. They say goodbye, and John leaves. But, before doing so, he calls a coin dealer to sell his father’s collection.

In 2006, six years after meeting Savannah Lynn Curtis, John sits on the hillside by her ranch. After selling his father’s coin collection, he only kept the buffalo head nickel and the photo. He can see his father reading the Greysheet in his office when he holds the coin, and he doesn’t feel so alone. He knows that the money he donated anonymously to Tim was well spent and has given him more time. While it may not be a cure, he is home and better, and from the hillside, he can see him, Savannah, and Alan on the ranch. Evening settles in, and the moon rises; Savannah quietly walks out front and stares at the moon, and for a small moment, they feel like they are together again.