Rhapsody In Blue
By Scarlett Elizabeth Cooper
Rated G
Summary: Roger finds the girl of his dreams. But is she really all that he expects or more? And will he, and she, be able to overcome the restraints of her family? And how will his new relationship with her affect his relationship with the Nelsons?
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of IDoJ they belong to their creators. This story is written purely for entertainment and not for profitable purposes. I do, however, own all original characters and the plot. If you would like to use the characters I have created, please ask first.
Archival: Here, IDoJ Fans and elsewhere with my written permission. Just ask:)
Timeline: This takes place in 1975.
Character list: Visit the IDoJ page in the Fanfiction Archives on my website for a list of all original characters in this story.
Chapter 1
The Park Bench
Sunlight warmed her face as she walked along the concrete path. Occasionally she passed a cooler spot that was covered by the leaves overhead. She could smell the sickly sweet scent of funnel cake, smoky Bar-B-Q, spicy sauces, sizzling vegetables. She smelled the scent of honeysuckle as she passed.
She had counted the steps to her park bench, then made a right angle turn and took deliberate six steps before turning and with a quiet sigh she sank down onto the slats. It wasn't the most comfortable spot, but it was refreshing to be out in the morning air.
Outside always seemed so light and airy, even at night when darkness surrounded her, but inside, in her home, most of the time it was dark, dank and still. It was not that her home was dirty, it was just that everything seemed dark.
She had inclined her head as she listened to the conversations passing by.
"…did you hear what he said about Dotty? I mean, I'm half inclined to believe him, but still…"
"…Now Joey, I've told you time and again, that you are to be polite to your auntie Lou…"
"But Mommy, she hugs me too tight!"
"…Hey! Wait a minute Freddy, I'll get it…" the last voice was closer and was coming towards her. She swallowed as she felt a ball roll and hit the tip of her foot. It was not hard, but it had startled her.
"Hello," the voice sounded excited.
"Is this yours?" she stooped to pick up the ball.
"Oh, yes!" he sounded breathless. "But oh! You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen!"
She stared at him incredulously. She did not idly accept flattery, but the fact of the matter was she'd never received such a complement. It kind of threw her off kilter. "Well, I don't know about that…"
"Uncle!" cried a young voice.
"Oh…well…wait right here. I'll be right back," he took off towards the child's voice. Before he had returned she heard the voice of her sister, calling her. She shrugged. Whoever he was would forget her by that afternoon.
Major Roger Healy sank down into his seat behind his desk. He'd looked all over the flea market for her, but the beautiful woman had disappeared. She'd had the most beautiful dark golden blonde hair he'd ever seen. And her eyes, oh! Her eyes were the clearest blue he'd ever seen. The exact color of a clear blue sky. Except they didn't seem to focus on him exactly right. But, what did that matter? They were beautiful and she had been wearing a lovely light blue dress that accented them perfectly, a bit old fashioned, but it seemed to suit her.
He feared that he would never see the lovely woman again. She was probably just a passerby on her way north or south. It made him feel depressed that he had let yet another woman pass him by. Ever since his best friend, Major Tony Nelson had gotten married, he'd been thinking about getting married, even more so since the arrival of their two children, Freddy and Carrie. Twice already he had been close to marrying two nice women, but they had broken the engagement before they'd even gotten to the wedding plans. Roger knew he fell in love to easily, but all he wanted was what everyone else wanted: someone to love and care for and to love and care for him in return.
Such were his thoughts as Tony Nelson walked through his office door with two files in his hands. "Are you ready for that flight simulation this morning?" he asked cheerfully.
"Yeah, I guess so," Roger dropped his hand onto the desk and made a move to get up.
"Freddy sure enjoyed you taking him to the flea market yesterday," Tony complemented. "You sure do have a way with him, Rog."
"Yeah, well, I enjoy spending time with him. He seems rather bright."
"He is. He'll be starting school soon. Sometimes I wonder how Jeannie's going to manage without them around the house all the time," he smiled and opened the door, but before he went through it, he closed it again. "Something's wrong."
Roger related the incident with the young woman and how she had disappeared when he had returned to the bench. "You know what I think?" he said, nodding. "I think she saw me and her first thought was the first chance she could get to run as far away from me as possible."
"Now, Rog, I'm sure that's not true," Tony patted him on the back. "Perhaps she was called away or she had an appointment to attend and needed to leave before you got back."
He looked at his friend, a gleam of hope catching in his eye. "You really think so?"
"I know so, Rog."
"You know what…I'll bet you're right. I'll bet she had to go meet a friend for lunch or she had to go home to feed her cat or…her carriage would turn back into a pumpkin by noon!" Tony didn't even attempt to stop the flow of thoughts as he followed Roger Healy into the hall.
She sniffed the musky smell of an old house mixed with the scent of eucalyptus as she dug her toes into the soft rug. She mentally reminded herself that she needed to help her younger sister Periwinkle shake out the dirt. She cocked her head to catch the sound of footsteps approaching. Her mother's footsteps she determined.
"Good morning Momma," she said, rising from her seat and crossing the room, her arms outstretched so that she would not bump into her parent.
"Good morning Rhapsody. Did you and Gryta have a good morning?" the woman had stood still in the doorway until her middle daughter had reached her.
"Yes. It was a delightful morning. So fresh and airy. You ought to join us sometime," she carefully took her mother's hand and led her to the sofa she'd just vacated. Feeling for the arm she made sure that she set her mother down on the proper side of it, not letting her sit on the floor, or rather the lamp table.
"Who was that man that was speaking to you, Sody?" Gryta asked from the corner where she was rapidly making silk flowers. She could make them faster than any other member of the family. Although Rhapsody came in a close second. She made hers by raised patterns specifically designed for her, rather than by eye as Gryta did.
"I don't know. His nephew's ball had rolled over to my feet and he had come to retrieve it."
"He seemed awfully excited about something," Gryta responded with a hint of reproach in her voice.
Rhapsody shrugged and felt on the table top next to the sofa. She found what she searched for, a hard covered book. She ran her fingers over the raised bumps on the cover to ensure it was the one she sought, a copy of the Tales of the Arabian Knights, a family favorite. "Do you want me to read it aloud?" she asked while she searched for the spot where she'd left off last time.
She heard two distinctly emphatic answers. One from Gryta, a definite "No," and one from Periwinkle, who'd just walked through the living room door, an enthusiastic "Yes." While the story was a family favorite, Gryta tired of it before the rest of them.
"Why don't you read from the Arabian Knights for a little while and then we can read from something of Gryta's choosing," their mother responded, always keeping peace, even with her grown daughters.
"That's a good idea," Rhapsody nodded.
"But the book I want to hear from we don't have in Braille," Gryta shook her head.
"I can read from it then," Periwinkle volunteered. So it was settled. Rhapsody smiled. And the rest of the afternoon was spent quietly with the family.
She inhaled the scents of the spring morning air as she tapped her way along the sidewalk. It seemed more fragrant than even the week before. She assumed that meant there were more flowers in bloom. She always loved this time of year; it was more interesting than any other time. There were more things to tickle the sensory palette.
Again she'd counted out the steps from the flower seller in the flea market to the park bench. She called it her park bench, but of course it was not. Once she'd gone the specific number of steps she walked to it, thumping it with her cane.
Before she'd come to a complete stop she was surprised by a voice, suddenly to her right. "Oh! Oh! There you are! I thought I'd lost you forever, but…but…but…here you are," he was excited. She resisted the urge to laugh at his excitement.
"Well, why wouldn't I be here?" she asked, unable to contain a chuckle.
"Oh, but I thought you were…I thought you were just someone passing through and…that you were from somewhere way up North or somewhere else far away…and I thought you'd never come back."
She laughed delightedly. "Goodness. Aren't you the man with the little boy from last week?"
"Oh yes, that's my sort of nephew Freddy."
"Sort of nephew?"
"He's the son of my best friend."
"I see. Do you have him with you today?"
"No, no, not today. I was planning on staying here all day to see if you came."
"Why are you so interested in me anyway?"
"Why am I so interested…why you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen! You have the most beautiful, clear blue eyes."
She chuckled. "In your admiration for my eyes, you may have missed a very important fact," she hesitated. "I'm blind."
"Blind?" he did seem surprised and taken aback slightly. "I'm-I'm sorry, but they're still beautiful though."
She cocked her head. "Well thank you, but I will have to just take your word for it," she smiled. "So do you have nothing better to do with yourself that sit on a park bench all day?"
"Oh, no, I mean yes," he seemed perpetually flustered.
"Perhaps I should rephrase my question? What is it you do, Mr. ?"
"Oh, Major, Major Roger Healy."
"Major Healy, I'm sorry."
"Oh, no, don't be, it's all right."
"So you're in the military?"
"Yes, I'm detached to NASA."
"You're an astronaut? Oh my sister would love that! She always enjoys listening, watching or reading about the space programs."
"Really? Then maybe she's heard of me?"
"I don't know, possibly." She shrugged. "Oh," she stood up quickly. "That's my sister calling, I'd better go."
"Your sister?" she could hear Major Healy stand up.
"I have to go," she hurried away.
"Who was that man you were talking to?" Gryta demanded.
"Oh, just a man who was already sitting on the bench. Should we go?"
Spring was quickly passing by. It was already much warmer now as she walked towards the bench. She went to sit down and knew immediately that she was not alone. "Hello?" she said to the person sitting on the bench.
"Hello! I was…kind of, hoping you'd be back."
"Major Healy?" she was surprised. "What are you doing here today?"
"What am I…?" he laughed. "You didn't give me your name last week."
"Well, I suppose I didn't. My name is Rhapsody Davis."
"It's a pleasure," he took her hand and lightly brushed a kiss on the back of it. She felt her face grow warm, but tried to remain dignified. "Why…why is it you come here every week?"
"My sister and I sell silk flowers to a seller at the flea market," she remarked.
"Your sister makes silk flowers?" he asked.
"Well, yes, both of them and so do I."
He was quiet a moment before asking. "How can you make the flowers?"
"It's simple. Gryta or Periwinkle cuts them out for me and places them in a divided box. All I have to do is apply them in the proper spots. I can feel real flowers or the ones Gryta makes so I know about how they should look," she grinned. "Well, not exactly how they should look. The notion of 'sight' is more of a concept for me rather that a reality. My 'sight' comes from what I touch, smell, hear and feel. But I'm probably boring you to death."
"Of course not," Roger said seriously. "I…I find it fascinating to learn about how you see the world…"
"Oh!" she rose from the bench. "There's Gryta calling me. I'm afraid I have to go now Major Healy."
"I'll see you next Saturday Rhapsody," he called after her. She didn't reply but waved to him. She didn't really know how to reply. She really didn't understand why he would want to waste his mornings on that bench waiting for her or even talking with her, however brief a period of time it was.
This morning it was overcast and Rhapsody could smell the scent of rain. It would rain on the flea market before the end of the day she predicted. And she could predict better than a weatherman. She had reached her bench, a cane in her hand to help guide her. She could usually do without it if she were in familiar territory, but her father had always insisted that she use it when she was out of the house.
She knew before she sat down that someone was there. "Major Healy?" she asked.
"At your service," he responded jovially.
"Are you going to meet me here every week?" she laughed as she sat down.
"Well…" he hesitated, squirming on the bench. "I was wondering if I could take you out on a date?"
"I beg your pardon?" surely she had heard him wrong.
"I…I…want to take you out on a date," he repeated nervously.
Rhapsody realized her mouth was hanging open and promptly closed it. She swallowed not knowing how she should answer. She'd never been asked such a question. The only person she knew personally who'd been asked and accepted was Gryta, but the poor fellow had not come back after the first time he'd come by their house.
"Well, Major Healy, my father is very old fashioned about who any of his daughters date. He would want to meet you first and have you dine at our house."
Roger seemed to fidget and cleared his throat. "Well..." she was half afraid he was going to jump up and run away right then. "Well, that'll be…that'll be just fine. Where do you live?" She gave him the address and phone number so that he could call in advance as she rose hearing Gryta calling her again.
"It will be nice to see you Major Healy," she said, trying to control her excitement that seemed to be building within her. "When you come calling."
"Would you just call me Roger?" he playfully admonished. "I feel like I'm being addressed by a colonel or a sergeant!" She chuckled and waved goodbye to him.
(To Be Continued…)
