HERE THERE AND EVERYWHERE CHAPTER 1 THE FEENY FAMILY
Lucy read through the article she had just typed on the lack of support for domestic violence victims. Satisfied, she took it out of the typewriter, took an envelope from her desk drawer and put the pages in. She would drop it into the magazine tomorrow. She enjoyed writing articles on social issues rather than fluffy pieces about fashion or plastic surgery. It made her feel that she was doing something worthwhile like on her student newspaper all those years ago when she had written impassioned articles on the injustice of the Vietnam War.
Lucy looked at her watch. It was nearly 3pm. Nearly time to get the twins up from their afternoon nap and then collect her older daughter Julie from school. She looked across the room behind which her husband Jude did his artwork. He hadn't come out all afternoon so he must be really engrossed. When he got his teeth into something he lost all track of time.
Lucy went into the kitchen, made herself a coffee then went back to her desk. As she sipped it, she looked around the house she and Jude had bought two years ago. It had been almost falling down but it had been such a bargain they couldn't turn it down. They had worked like slaves to fix it up with some help from Max and a few others. Lucy remembered the evenings they had sat on the floor and sipped wine after a hard day's work. They had stripped wood, mended walls, pulled out old doors and scrubbed the place from top to bottom. With his artistic skills Jude had soon got the place decorated with fantastic wall murals like the surreal sky scene in their bedroom.
The house was a great source of pride for them both. It had been the first place that was totally theirs. For years Jude had worked to establish himself as an artist while Lucy finished College. It was only by the birth of the twins that they had been in a position to buy this place. Jude was regularly displaying and selling his erotic work as well as being the in-house designer for Sadie and Jojo's record company, Strawberry Jams, and Lucy was working as a freelance writer, regularly selling stores and articles. They were not rich but enjoyed financial security.
Jude's paintings hung all over the house. There were several of the kids and her, the latter of which was a bit embarrassing. The really erotic ones hung in their bedroom, away from the kids' eyes. Then there were the portraits of different aspects of New York life from prostitutes to Hare Krishnas to working men along with abstract Picasso like compositions. Jude put his soul into his work and it always aroused emotion in Lucy. She knew she was his main muse and if things were ever wrong between them Jude's work reflected this.
Seeing that it was now 3 o'clock Lucy washed her cup and went to get Jude so they could wake the twins. Jude had insisted on it, even his work wouldn't interfere with that. He had grown up without a Father and he was determined not to miss out with his own kids –from bathing them and putting them to bed to playing with them and cuddling them. He had been at their births, holding Lucy's hand during her labour, and had cried tears of joy when he had first held them.
Lucy couldn't help smiling as she remembered her 18 year old self saying that she would never have children as it was only people putting out carbon copies of themselves. Now here she was in her early 30s and she had three. The children she and Jude had produced were an expression of their love and devotion and although they had some of their parents' characteristics they were personalities in their own right. She actually enjoyed being a mother – and because she did most of her work from home it gave her time for her family. She had to admit she was quite content with life as it currently stood.
Her eye caught the picture of Max standing on the mantelpiece. He was standing in front of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco with his partner Billy with whom he ran an antiques shop. The family had gone to visit him last month and he had seemed happy. The Vietnam War had affected him psychologically but thank God it was now over and Lucy now longer had to live in fear of receiving that message. The War had been a pointless waste of lives on both sides and Lucy hoped that nobody would ever have to go through anything like it again. It had caused agony for the families and friends of those fighting as she knew only too well. She did miss her brother but Max had assured her that he would eventually return to New York.
Lucy tiptoed into Jude's workroom where he was bent over a sketch. His dark hair was as long as when she had first met him, he wore jeans and a t-shirt and his feet were bare.
She came up behind him and began massaging his shoulders. He was sketching a conglomeration of tangerine trees and marmalade dotted with tall yellow and green flowers. Lucy stared at it in intrigue a moment before saying
"It's time to get Sean and Loretta up, honey."
Jude looked up at her with that boyish grin. He had changed little since they had first met. His brown eyes still had that twinkle, and she loved his warm Scouse accent that had hardly diminished in all his years in the USA, his unique expressions, the way he called her love and the way he looked at her as if she was the only woman in the world. He was not only her husband but her lover, her friend, her confidante and her protecter.
He now twisted around and grabbed her around the waist. Lucy kissed the top of his head than glanced at the sketch.
That's interesting," she remarked. It was no use asking what it was because Jude could never explain himself when he drew from imagination.
"I was gonna put you in it but I'm not sure where yet."
"I'm in almost everything you do," exclaimed Lucy. "And I don't see where I'd fit in there."
"I was going to put you in the sky with diamonds. Don't worry. I wouldn't make you any less beautiful that you are."
"How about more beautiful?" teased Lucy.
"That's not possible, love." Jude pulled her to him and sat her on his knee. "You can't improve on perfection."
And he meant it. To Jude, Lucy grew more beautiful every time he saw her. Her sculptured features, her perfect teeth, her amazing blue eyes he could drown in and her shimmering golden hair that caught the sun. And childbearing had not had too much impact on her figure thanks to jogging and tennis. Everytime he saw her she took his breath away. And she had given him three beautiful children that he loved to death. He had her, and them, his art, this house. He could think of nothing more that he wanted.
He kissed her on the lips, his hands moving up her back. He undid her ponytail, allowing her hair to fall loose, the way he liked it.
"Do you know we haven't touched each other for three hours?" he murmured as he tenderly pushed a loose strand of hair from her face. "I wish we could go to bed right now."
"It would be nice, Jude – but we have two kids to get up and another one to collect from school."
"Well, why don't we all drive down to the beach this evening? The fresh air will do us all good."
"Sounds good," agreed Lucy.
A few minutes later Jude and Lucy went into the twins' room and got them up from their nap. They came into the kitchen, Jude carrying Sean and Lucy carrying Loretta. They both had Jude's dark hair and features but while Sean's eyes were brown Loretta had inherited her mother's stunning eyes. Their eldest child, Julie, was the image of Lucy with her blonde hair and angelic face.
Jude now tickled and cooed over the twins while Lucy fixed them milk and cookies. God, he loved them just as he loved his eldest daughter. Becoming a Father had been one of the best things that had ever happened to him. These were a right pair of scamps, constantly exploring and poking about. They were particularly intrigued by Jude's art materials and Jude wondered if they would have an aptitude for art.
That evening Jude and Lucy drove their ten year old Chevrolet to the nearby beach, their family in the back. Sean couldn't wait to kick a ball with his Father (not yet four he already had good ball sense and loved to hear about Liverpool, the great football team from his Dad's hometown) while Julie insisted that at eight years old she could swim in the sea without aids.
They found a quite spot on the beach and spent the time enjoying the water, building sandcastles, playing ball and after hotdogs and ice-cream walked along the beach, Jude and Lucy with their arms around each other. Later, Jude lay his head on Lucy's lap as her gentle fingers stroked his forehead. Nearby the twins played in the sand while Julie collected shells.
"I kind of wish that we could take them with us," said Jude.
"Well, we've already talked about it and it's not possible this time," replied Lucy. "The twins are too young for such a long trip and I don't want to take Julie out of school. Anyway they'll be fine with Sadie and Jojo."
In a couple of weeks Jude would be paying his first visit to Liverpool in nearly ten years. The last time had been to his Mother's funeral. This time it was for a happier reason. His favourite cousin Michelle was getting married. She had visited New York last year and had made Jude and Lucy promise faithfully that they would come to her wedding. Jude would have liked the kids to see where he was from and where their own roots lie. But he determined that he would bring them back one day – perhaps in two or three years time when they would be old enough to appreciate such a trip. .