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CSW: Deb?
FD: Evening, Charlie. Everything alright down there? Griff and Titus were grousing away for ages.
CSW: It’s—it’s all good. Fine. More than fine. It’s great to hear your voice. Ha! Damn great. This telephone is marvelous. Can’t believe it’s still working—how lucky am I, how lucky am I.
FD: [laughs] Are you alright? Have you got scurvy? If you’re getting soppy, something must be terribly wrong…
CSW: No, I’m serious.
FD: …Sure.
CSW: So, uh—how—how are you?
FD: You know how I am! Precisely the same as I was when you left this morning. No miracles—still laid up, achy as ever. I’m inclined to snap about anything, even moreso now that most everyone has gone. Griff helped me over to the telephone just now putting on this horrid voice of an aged retainer, I thought you’d have socked him if you’d been witness, but I couldn’t work up the will.
CSW: Your knee—right. You’ve got to be more careful, you know.
FD: I’m very careful.
CSW: You’re—not immortal.
FD: Sure, and neither are you.
CSW: Well. We’ll see about that.
FD: If you’re really all that worried about me, you should have signed up to go West again.
CSW: You know, it rubbed at me more than I let on. Glory of the Pole, the history books and all that, but I’d have liked another few weeks on the trail with you.
FD: [pause] Well… I would rather have you than Trigger any day, you know that.
CSW: Ugh. Just—watch out for him, will you.
FD: Gee, I thought you thought he was alright?
CSW: Sure, he is now. But the rot was there from the start, anyone could have spotted it.
FD: You’re being awfully strange. Are you sure there’s nothing wrong? The Owner in another strop?
CSW: I just wish I—Deb, listen here.
FD: … I’m listening.
CSW: I should have told you before I left. I’m a fool, and I didn’t. I never did.
FD: Tell me what?
CSW: Ah, fuck.
[pause]
CSW: Did you—I mean, do you ever think about what you’ll do after?
FD: After the expedition? Well—oh, work up the results, I should think. Publish them and perhaps do some lecturing…
CSW: You’d never come back? To the Antarctic?
FD: No, I doubt it. Haven’t we have had enough for a lifetime? Especially if we stay another winter! I’d like to study different environments—deserts, coastlines. But what about you?
CSW: Oh, yes. [laughs] I’d come back, sure.
FD: Well—in that case, hm. I would, I suppose, but only if I could come with you.
CSW: With me?
FD: I mean—I hope that’s not too terribly presumptuous of me. But I think we travel well together. Here or anywhere.
CSW: Yes. Canada—you’ll love Canada.
FD: Is that—hang on, are you inviting me?
CSW: Sure. Let’s say I am. Something to look forward to. Out on the Barrier that’s what I’ll be thinking of—I’ll confess that now—me and you, in a canoe, somewhere in British Columbia. It’ll keep me going like anything.
FD: Charlie… are you worried you won’t come back?
CSW: No, I’m not worried about that at all.
FD: You are immortal, if anyone is. I swear, there isn’t a crevasse on the continent that wouldn’t spit you back out in pure fear if you swore loud and long enough. It might be blindly optimistic of me, but I don’t think there’s a chance you don’t come through. Trust me. I’ll see you again. I promise. I can’t let myself think I won’t, otherwise I don’t know what would become of me, to be quite honest.
CSW: Oh, you’ll certainly see me again. But I—Deb, I know it’s funny to think about. But what if that winter was the best days we ever had?
FD: Has Titus finally broken into the brandy? You do sound a little hoarse—
CSW: You’re the brightest, most wonderful, most beautiful boy I ever met, Deb. I was so lucky. Even with everything—I wouldn’t trade it for anything, anything in the world. Damn the glaciology, damn the pendulums—what a discovery I had in you.
[pause]
CSW: Are you still there?
FD: Yeah. Christ, I just—how could you say that to me—
CSW: I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have—
FD: —when I can’t do anything about it? When you’re not here? It’s cruel, Charlie, cruel!
CSW: When I come back, you’ll do something about it. I’m sure. Ha! Imagine if you did. Imagine if it was me, now, telling you to do it, that made you do it. I always wondered… It came out of nowhere, I thought… not that it was unwelcome… not at all.
FD: You’re talking nonsense. You’re tying me up inside, terrible knots—you really infuriate me sometimes, you know that?
CSW: I like to wind you up. Can you blame me? When you’re so damned—oh, you know exactly what you are.
FD: And I let you. I can’t not let you do whatever you want. And I really—hang on—[indistinct voices]—sorry—Sunny Jim wants to talk to you, something about the blizzometer.
CSW: Sunny Jim! That old bat. Well—I can’t, actually. I’ve got to go. No, really, I don’t think I have a choice—I don’t know if the line will hold if you let go. I really only wanted to talk to you. That’s all I ever really wanted.
FD: I guess—well, I wanted to talk to you too. Always sort of do, you know. Thanks for the call.
CSW: I’ll miss you very much.
FD: It’s just a few months!
CSW: Yeah. Yeah, it is. It’ll pass in no time for you, eh.
FD: Are you—
CSW: [sniffling] I’m not.
FD: Right.
CSW: Right.
FD: Goodbye, then. Safe travels!
CSW: Safe travels to you. Wherever you go. I’ll see you, Frank Debenham. I’ll see you soon enough.