Fade to Grey (17 page)

“They place them in day care—you would say a governess or nanny. But daycare is one big place with many children. Anyways, women don’t have so many children. Hardly anybody has twelve children anymore. One or two is more the norm.”

“One or two? That certainly must be easier on women.”

“It is. Bless Margaret Sanger.”

“Who is she?”

“Margaret was the mother of modern birth control.”

“You’ll have to explain that one, Donna.”

“It’s for women of child bearing age. The choice for women to be in control of their family size.”

“Is that humanly possible?”

“With advances in science and medicine, yes it is.”

“I must puzzle over that—it is mind boggling to say the least.” Just then the fax machine ran and he jumped. “What was that?” He watched as a piece of paper began sliding into the tray.

“My backed up faxes. Good.”

Donna went over to her desktop computer and turned it on. Soon, she was clicking away and then printed a one-page sign.

“Here, Royce. Tape this up on the door.” She indicated a tape dispenser near the chair where Royce was sitting.

“What is it?”

“Just a note saying I’ll be shut for a while because of a family problem.”

Royce did as she asked.

“Then I’m emailing the doctor’s office about getting you checked out for cataract removal as fast as we can.” Donna began furiously pounding away on keys.

Royce beamed at her. “How much will this surgery cost?”

“You don’t want to know.”

“Fine, I’ll drop that subject. Would you like me to read your, uh, faxes to you?”

“Please do,” Donna said, pausing as if to form a sentence. “They’re usually from business owners and there’s junk in there too about free Disney trips and cheap insurance. You’ll see some are one page and others are multiple ones.”

Royce picked up the top piece of paper and smiled. “I think you’ll like this one.”

“What does it say?” Donna asked absentmindedly.

“It’s from your mother. It reads ‘When are you going to introduce me to your new boyfriend?’”

Royce laughed uproariously as he watched Donna’s face darken. “It seems that someone’s been talking, Donna!”

* * * *

“Yes, mother, I’ve got a new boyfriend. Yes, his name is Royce and he’s from Saint Joe.”

Royce watched, bemused as Donna talked to her mother in her cell phone as she called it. He had seen hundreds of people talking into them downtown and was getting used to seeing them glued to everybody’s ears. He didn’t like to intrude into anyone’s private conversations, but all of them, like Donna, just talked away as if they were alone. So he continued eating his fried potatoes. Strange, but women didn’t talk much differently than the ones back in 1865. The restaurant was full of people, most in business clothing. The hour was late, seven o’clock, much later than he would normally have eaten in the past. But Donna explained with the advent of electric lighting, people stayed up until all hours, eating, drinking, working and reading books. All the people there were eating, drinking, and talking, most in subdued tones. There didn’t seem to be any families in there, only single people and couples, perhaps due to the late hour he figured. Donna said she wanted him to enjoy a meal with her in an intimate setting. He was happy to be with her, anywhere, anytime.

The décor was nautical, downright jaunty, he thought. Rope barriers were fastened to the walls dividing the seating areas. A large board filled with macramé knots was at the entrance, and old fishing nets hung from the ceiling. Even the waitresses and waiters wore sailor-themed clothing and smart white caps. Royce smiled and thought most of these young people had never seen the inside of a fishing boat, let alone even baited a hook. But he had to admit the food was mouth watering.

He was used to being inside after dark, with a small amount of time set aside for his scrimshawing or macramé. To tell the truth, he didn’t even have a clock on the wall, his life pretty much revolved around the rising and the setting of the sun. He did have his father’s silver pocket watch in his dresser for safekeeping, though he never used it. It was too fine a piece to carry around for everyday use anyway. The entire Brandenton household was the same way. Life here in the future seemed much more hectic, tense, and sped up. But he could get used to it. The scandalous way the women dressed was upsetting at first. The women in this restaurant were just as bad as the women he saw out in public. It took all the effort he could muster not to stare at them.

He was jarred out of his people-watching by the snap of Donna’s phone.

“Conversation ended.”

“Is she satisfied?”

“Not until she meets you. But I guess Missus Holtzclaw described you well enough that she’s very curious.”

“I’m flattered, I guess.” Royce stretched his legs under the table. “I’m sure we’ll get along.”

“Don’t be so positive. Mother irritates most people.”

“Everybody needs a friend. Why are you at odds with her?”

Donna buttered her roll with enough force to make the roll split in two.

“She’s always been onto me to give her grandchildren.”

“So? What’s wrong with that? That’s entirely natural.” Royce glanced appreciatively up at the waitress who had just brought him his platter of fried smelt.

“Yes, but I’m in no rush. I want to have a life, thank you.”

“How old are you, Donna?” Royce asked, his eyes twinkling with mirth.

“I’m twenty-eight, thank you.”

“I am the same age. In my time, a woman would have had quite a large family by that age. As a matter of fact, I know quite a few of that age who are grandmothers.”

“Yes, I know—and that’s all they would have had. I wanted a life and a career.”

Royce dipped chunks of his fish into some white sauce the waitress had brought in a small cup. He’d never had that before; the piquant taste went well with the meal. The little pieces of pickle made it pretty.

“I don’t want to pry and ask you about it. But don’t you feel there is a big void in your life –

being childless and all?” He didn’t want to anger Donna, but he was curious as to all this freedom that women had in the future. Freedom to do what? What about happiness and husbands and nurseries? The thought thrilled him.

“I’ve got a fantastic career, a new car, and a stylish apartment downtown. Isn’t that what every woman wants?” She stared at the uneaten roll on her plate.

“Some things money can’t buy. Can I please have another order of smelt and this cold chopped cabbage? I don’t know what you call it.”

“Its coleslaw and yes; just wave the waitress over here and tell her you’d like another plate,”

Donna said morosely.

Royce buttered another roll and watched Donna curiously.

“Donna, you seem to have everything and nothing at the same time. You said you admired this Sanger woman, what was her name again?”

“Margaret. Margaret Sanger.”

“Is she still alive in this time period?” Now the waitress was near the table and Royce managed to catch her eye.

“No, she’s long gone, Royce. But her legacy remains. Why do you ask?”

The waitress scurried away to the kitchen when Royce indicated he wanted more fish.

“I’d like to talk with her and see her opinion of what her work has wrought. The happiness or sadness of so many women with childless lives.”

“Not everybody wants to be totally childless, Royce. Some families only want one child. Or the man and woman are in agreement to space them out over a period of years.”

“Still, it seems so strange.” Royce moved his empty plate to the side when the waitress quickly returned with a new heaped platter. “I know the Schuck family in Baroda, they spread their children over twenty years.”

He moved the piece of parsley aside to get to the lightly breaded fish. “Donna, I hate to eat in front of you when you are eating nothing.”

“No, please, enjoy yourself. It’s just that my mother’s call upset me.”

“She wants you to be happy.”

“She’s just nosy.”

“Donna, I know you wanted us to have a romantic meal, but truthfully, if it wasn’t for leaving this wonderful food, I would just as soon be with you at your apartment right now.”

Donna seemed to snap back to reality. “I’m sorry, Royce. Let’s get takeout boxes and we can leave right now.”

“Good. I want to go back to your place and make love to you.”

* * * *

“The clinic’s only five miles from my apartment,” Donna said. “Your appointment’s at ten.”

Bemused, Royce watched her. Donna had been rattling on about the upcoming cataract surgery at her apartment, but he paid scant notice to her. They had showered together this morning, with him soaping her hair. He quickly found out he liked her double-sized shower. With a hand control and shower head at each side, it was more than adequate to hold both of them at the same time. Since they had overslept, they did not have time to make love again. Donna said they’d be late to see Dr. Kravitz and it was imperative that they be on time because they were working Royce in as a favor. He was still in a good mood from their love-making the night before. He hoped to catch Donna’s eye, but she kept looking at the traffic. He wondered how she could turn her emotions on and off so simply? With him, being with a woman was allencompassing, a total body and soul experience. They had taken their time the night before, when they returned from the restaurant. They slowly undressed each other, touching and caressing each other’s body. Royce took his sweet time. He was no inexperienced youth; he knew a woman took longer to bring to fulfillment. While a man was ready to go in a minute’s notice, a woman had need of lingering kisses and slow caresses. Though his own desires were greedy, he wanted Donna to experience as much pleasure as he did.

She allowed him to stroke her slowly, inching up into the wet tangle of curls between her legs. When he probed her and parted her flesh with her fingers, she shook at first, almost wilting with arousal. He clasped her around her waist and took her into his arms, carrying her across the room. He placed her on the bed, looking down at her in his lust, wanting all of her at once. She beckoned him with open arms. He cupped her breasts at first, brushing her peaks with his thumbs until she moaned deep and low. She ran her hands from his neck to his waist, then back again. She hesitated touching his manhood, as if teasing him. She was no virgin and he liked her that way. He needed to be inside of her and soon.

He slid his hands between her and the mattress, gripping her bottom. His mouth was hungry and open on hers, tasting her lips and tongue. Desire flickered through him with intensity. He now pressed his hard tight flesh through her legs, into her body. He could feel her tightening with anticipation, lifting her hips to receive him.

And then they were one, wildly mating, tasting each other’s flesh. They pulsed at first, deep and fast, then slowed to match each other’s rhythms. Soon shudders racked their bodies simultaneously and he had to rest his head on her chest. For a few moments neither one of them moved, not wanting the moment to end.

He enjoyed replaying the memory in his mind while he looked at scenery passing by. Donna had assured him there would be few complications if the doctor accepted him to be a patient. They had been doing the surgery for over thirty years and it was streamlined and routine nowadays. That was almost incomprehensible to him, that a doctor could operate on his eye and cure it. Since he knew nothing of medical practices in the future, he had no fears, not the slightest. Pain didn’t bother him, he was stoic in most things involving cutting or stitching up. Donna said now they had painkillers that were amazing if you needed them. Before they left their car in the parking garage, they kissed and held each other tightly.

“It’ll be fine. Don’t worry about a thing and if you have any questions, just go ahead and ask him.”

“I will, don’t worry,” Royce said.

The waiting room was plush, with thick gold carpeting and overstuffed chairs and two couches. Royce picked up a magazine, as he saw others had done. While Donna asked questions of the receptionist, he looked briefly at the other people in the room. There were five of them, male and female, all much older than him. He didn’t want to appear that he was staring, so he began flipping the glossy pages of the magazine.

When she finally finished with the nurse, she sat down next to him with a big smile on her face.

“It’ll only be a few minutes. The nurse said these people are just here for checkups and they’re all seeing technicians or nurses, not Doctor Kravitz.”

“Great!” Royce could have whiled away plenty of time since the room had a large set of windows looking out over Lake Michigan. The television began playing a raucous sort of show with flashing lights and bells and scantily clad women. The host, as they called him, was boisterous and eccentric acting. The participants from the audience were dressed in silly costumes and hats, trying to attract the host’s eye. It was strange and odd but also energetic and humorous. Just when he was starting to figure out the scoring and seeing who was ahead, a nurse came to the door and called his name. Sighing, he stood up. He didn’t want to disappoint Donna, but he was enjoying the silly show.

They went back to an examining room and in a few minutes, Doctor Kravitz knocked and entered. He was a smiling, ruddy-faced man. Since Donna knew him, Royce figured he was as good a choice as any for fixing his eye.

“What have we here?” Doctor Kravitz motioned for Royce to lift his eye patch.

“A cataract, sir. And Donna says you’re the one to remove it.”

“Let’s get an exam going here and I’ll see what my diagnosis is.” Dr. Kravitz pulled out a small flashlight, much tinier than the one Royce had seen Donna use in the stable. He turned it on, opened Royce’s eyelid and peered in, around, and under.

“Hmm. I’d say you have a standard garden-variety cataract. You’re quite a young man to have one, but yes, I think it can be easily removed.”

Royce felt happy at the prospect of having two good eyes. “So we can do it right now?”

Dr. Kravitz laughed. “No, Royce, it’ll be at least two days before I can work you in. Today I am seeing office patients and of course, you’ll have insurance paperwork to do beforehand.”