Caroline and the Surprise Shower

Chapter 5

Caroline and Richard are on a horse drawn carriage, being taken around Central Park. Caroline loves everything about it – the open carriage, the sights of the park, the driver wearing an old fashioned suit and top hat, the clip clop of the horse's steps. But most of all, she loves the fact that Richard asked her to go on it. Caroline excitedly shouts out and points to things as they pass. "Look at those kids playing tag!", "Look – those kites are gliding through the sky!" Richard watches her, and actually grins.

……

Later on during the ride, Caroline again leans onto Richard's shoulder. This time, he doesn't tense up, and puts his arm around her.

……

"Oh, this feels so good, so right" Richard inwardly sighs, a sigh mixed with contentment and despair. "If she could only 'sense' how I feel, maybe she wouldn't marry Del. Oh, don't be ridiculous! She'll be married in a few days. She must think of me as just a friend, helping her through a stressful time. And as a friend, I shouldn't even be thinking of adding more stress, by causing doubts. Still, I don't think I could stand working with her every day, knowing she's married to Del…doing the things that married couples do. It'd be too painful. Ohh!" But Richard is determined "I can't be grim. I'm supposed to be the one that's cheering up Caroline, not the other way around."

……

Caroline sits up and points to a squirrel. "Oh, look at that squirrel." Caroline coos. "He reminds me of "Rocky and Bullwinkle"" she giggles.

"Who?" Richard asks.

"Oh, c'mon Richard! "Rocky and Bullwinkle"? The cartoon with Rocky the flying squirrel and Bullwinkle the moose?" Caroline ignores Richard's blank stare "You know, with your black overcoat, you could be Boris, Rocky's arch-nemesis, the bumbling Soviet spy. You're way too tall, but if you stoop, and wear Boris's hat, maybe no one will notice" she giggles. "I guess that would make me Natasha, his femme fatale partner."

"You think of us as a couple?" Richard asks.

Caroline instantly stops giggling, and looks at Richard thoughtfully.

……

Towards the end of the ride, Caroline spots and points to a playground. "Look Richard! A playground!"

"So?" he glumly responds.

"Wouldn't it be fun to romp around in a playground? The ride's almost over. Let's go there afterwards."

"No, no, no, Caroline. You know all my experiences at playgrounds have been bad. When I wasn't being tied up, I was being beaten up."

"Oh please, please, please Richard? Pretty please?" Caroline pleads.

"Oh, alright" Richard grumbles.

******

Caroline and Richard approach the playground from the south, where the carriage had let them off. Caroline almost skips, Richard trudges, towards their destination. Richard looks at the playground ahead. "Oh good, it least it isn't that modern plastic modular crap" he thinks. As they get closer, he sees old, but well-maintained equipment. Wooden sides about a foot high hold in a sandy area, inside of which are old fashioned steel monkey bars and a jungle gym. Off to the side are a set of swings, four pairs of steel chains reach to a steel bar ten feet in the air, sturdy cloth straps attached at the bottom of each pair. Directly below the straps are indentations into the dirt, where countless play shoes have scraped. When they reach the playground Richard grumbles "So, we're here. What do you want to do?"

"Let's go play on the swings!" Caroline says brightly.

Caroline gets on a swing, and Richard stands behind her. "C'mon Richard, push me high, high, high!" He starts to push, and after a few swings, Caroline gets pretty high. "C'mon Richard, join me!" Caroline asks.

"I don't know" Richard replies dubiously.

"C'mon Richard. I promise not to beat or tie you up!" Caroline giggles.

Even Richard has to smile at that, though he tries to suppress it. "Oh, okay." Richard gets on the swing next to Caroline, and just sits for awhile.

"What's the matter?" Caroline has to almost shout to be heard 'cause she's swinging away from Richard.

"I don't have anyone to push me" Richard almost shouts back.

"Oh Richard, haven't you ever played on a swing before?"

"Well, actually…" Richard mumbles.

"Come on, Richard, it's easy!"

"I don't know…" Richard replies, and is about to get off.

"No! Wait, wait, wait! Here…" Caroline says, as she sticks her feet down and stops at the bottom of the arc. "… I'll show you. Just put your legs forward." She does so, and Richard follows suit. "Now pull your legs back."

"Yeah, okay" replies Richard, studying Caroline's movements as intently as he ever did any da Vinci or Tintoretto.

"Forward… back… forward… back… When you've swung back as far as you can go, put your legs forward. When you've swung forward as far as you can go, pull your legs back. You'll go higher and higher. It's that simple."

"We don't seem to be getting very high" Richard observes.

"Oh Richard! Don't be in such a hurry! It just takes a little longer when nobody's pushing. Have a little patience."

After not too long a time, they are swinging in unison, as high as ever.

"Isn't this fun?" Caroline gleefully queries.

"You know, actually, it is." Richard replies. "You know, Caroline, you're a pretty good teacher. I can learn a lot from you."

"Yeah, right" Caroline says, dubiously.

"No Caroline, really, I mean it. I may know a lot of facts, and a lot about academic subjects, but you know a lot about… uh, other things."

After swinging together awhile in silence, Caroline brings up the topic of love. "So Richard, did you think the Raisuli and Mrs. Pedecaris shared sincere amore?"

"What?"

"Didn't think I'd remember that, did you? You mentioned that on the first night we met, and I never forgot it. So, did you think the Sean Connery character and the Candice Bergen character had sincere amore?" Caroline repeats.

"I don't know Caroline".

Caroline, although she herself doesn't know why, is suddenly eager to hear Richard speak on the topic. She continues, trying to get more of a response from him "I know, I know. The relationship did get off to a rocky start. I mean, he did kidnap her and her children. And he was a tough man. But after she got to know him, she found out he had a gentle side, too. And he cared about things. He cared about his land, and his way of life, enough to want to oppose the corrupt ruler who was letting foreigners do as they pleased. And he cared about people too. He cared about her. Don't you find it romantic, a man fighting impossible odds for a worthy cause, a woman by his side? And she cared about him, too. She must've. She convinced the outnumbered Marines to try to free him from the Germans. I know, I know, she told the Marines we had to do it to protect American honor. President Roosevelt promised "Pedecaris alive or Raisuli dead", that if he freed her, then he wouldn't be punished. But you know she did it because she loved him."

"Caroline, Caroline, take it easy. It's only a movie, it's not real life."

"But Richard, I heard it was based on a true story."

"Well, half true, anyway. And that's stretching it. 'Hollywood truth' is to truth what 'Hollywood accounting' is to accounting. Raisuli did kidnap Pedecaris, and it was during Roosevelt's term. But Roosevelt never issued an ultimatum, though he claimed he did, to win votes in the next election. And he never sent the Marines into Morocco, and nobody died. He didn't have time to. Raisuli released Pedecaris on his own, only two days after the kidnapping. More to the point that you're interested in, Raisuli wasn't a rebel, he was just a brigand. And Pedecaris wasn't a beautiful young widow with lovely children, he was a middle aged banker. So I doubt whether they developed sincere amore during their two days together."

"Oh" Caroline replies, disappointed. She stops swinging. "So, I guess you don't believe that sincere amore exists in real life anymore."

Richard stops swinging also. He looks stares deeply into Caroline's eyes and says "On the contrary, Caroline. I believe it exists, I just think it's rare. So, you have to search for it 'til you find it. And once you find it, you must protect it and nurture it with all your might."

After gazing at each other for awhile, Richard notices how low the sun is on the horizon, and checks his watch. "Oh, uh… we should get back."

"Why?" Caroline asks.

"Well, because… you're not preoccupied anymore, are you? So now you can be much more productive. And that's what this has been all about, right? Not that I mind being paid for an afternoon on the town. I actually enjoyed it."

"What?" Caroline replies, feigning shock.

"I hope you heard what I said the first time, 'cause you're never gonna hear me say it again. Anyway, we really should be getting back, we have a lot to do."

"I guess you're right, Richard. Let's go" Caroline sighs.