But as he pulled me into a sitting position, he said, “You did it, Al. You bought our house. I can’t believe it.” He put his hand over his heart. I had never told anyone that we had dreamed of buying this house together.

As he pulled me into him, as I felt my body go limp with fear and dread and maybe a little relief, I knew it was him. Every cell in my body recognized that this was Jeremy, my love, my husband, the one I had pined for every day for eighteen years. “I love you,” he said in my ear. I realized he was crying. “I’ve loved you all this time, and I’ve been counting down the moments until I could come back here to get you.”

“Jeremy,” I whispered, breathing him in. I closed my eyes to savor the smell of him, the feel of him, his beating heart, his living body. Maybe I couldn’t reconcile what was happening, but all the same, tears of relief poured down my face. This was obviously a dream, but it was a good one; it was a dream I wanted to stay inside of.

I grasped his shirtsleeves, balling them in my hands, trying to figure out whether he was actually flesh and blood and here.

I pulled away. This was completely inexplicable. I was torn because I wanted to relish the feel of him, the sound of him, but I needed answers. It was too much to handle. “I don’t understand. You died. In an avalanche. I was there. I was at your funeral. I have cried and mourned you for eighteen years.” I paused. “Your mother and I send each other flowers every year on the day of your death and your birthday. You are dead, Jeremy.”

He shook his head. “Oh, Mom. So dramatic.”

It wasn’t dramatic for a mother to remember her son’s birth and death days. Finding my strength, feeling like I needed to be in a position of power, I stood up, still weak and woozy. Weak and woozy but undeniably awake. It wasn’t dramatic for a mother to do that unless… “Your mother knew you were alive.” Not a question.

He stood up too and tried to pull me back to him, but I pushed away. He scratched his chin. “Well, baby, see, I was in a little bit of trouble. I got mixed up in some bad deals with some bad guys, and this was the only way we could figure to get me out of it. You understand.”

I was aghast. “I what? No, I’m sorry. I do not understand.” I paused, thinking. “Jeremy, that avalanche was real. Other people died in it.”