Chapter 26 Plans are Made
As happy as they were, as lovely as the time had been, as beautiful as the moment felt, their future had to be discussed. The happiness of their confessed love were clouds and rainbows, the plans for their future were the bricks and mortar that had to be laid to live there. Things were discussed like her hope that she could finish the summer at the library, and his request that they wait to be married until he could find a suitable place for them to live and a car that would enable them to live in a nicer, safer area on the outskirts of the city. Roger worriedly told her that whatever he could find and afford would probably be small, she insisted she did not mind, she only wanted him. He also worried over the late hours he worked and the move she would have to make away from her home and the people she knew, she reminded him again that she did not care and she wanted only him. He seemed in awe of all this and they finally settled on speaking of things that weren't related to marriage as they sat and felt the nearness of the other in comfort.
'How bad is where you live, truly?' Belle knitted her brows at Roger, showing her desire for him to be honest. 'I'm worried about you, you know.' She had taken one of his hands in hers, though she couldn't help twisting her wrist every so often to watch the sun interact with the new ring on her finger. She could not get over the feeling of it on her hand and what the implications of wearing it were-that she would marry Roger and they would be a family together.
'It's old, but not so bad so you should worry. It'll do until I find something more appropriate for the two of us.' He smiled shyly once again at the use of language that insinuated them being, well, together. 'The stairs are my biggest struggle though,' he admitted. 'And I cannae say I won't be glad when I get something firmly on the ground. Y'know, because I am a cripple, Belle, are you sure this is…' he began but Belle had to interrupt him…again.
'Roger.' she spoke in mock severity. 'Are you having second thoughts about me?'
'No!' He protested, his tone seemed shocked that she would think such a thing.
'Then believe me when I say that I have no second thoughts about you, alright? I want you in sickness and in health-whatever that means for us. I want you, my dearest Roger. To be together for the rest of our lives seems like the greatest adventure I can undertake.'
'You're too kind to me, sweetheart.'
Belle smiled at his choice of endearment and loved it as Roger blushed as he realized he had spoken the name out loud.
'Have you heard from your friend, Jeffries?' Belle was eager to change the subject. Roger thought so little of himself that it broke Belle's heart.
'Aye, just before I left, and I sent the reply from my newest address. Spoke about things that made hardly any sense, which I believe means that he was doing quite well.'
Belle was glad to hear, though she could sense there was much more to the story, if Rogers red cheeks had anything to do with anything, but did not pester him for more details. He also seemed to feel the need to change the subject.
'The lad, David, have you seen him since you left?'
Belle nodded. 'Yes, once, with Cathy and the other boys at one of the summer programs at the library. It was hard but I indirectly asked how things were going. He wasn't allowed to even follow me to find a book he had asked to find without Cathy or John or Micheal trailing us. I got the impression that his brothers are relentless. His father too, but it was hard to get that sort of information.'
Roger nodded in understanding though his face was grim and he didn't say much.
'I think you might ought to talk to someone.'
'Yes, yes, I know. I did speak to his old teacher the other day about some of my fears-It's hard, I still, um, shake when talking about Morris.' She brought up her hand, now involuntarily shaking just speaking indirectly about Morris-Belle hated it. Roger took the hand, it was the ringed one, and squeezed it in comfort. 'And it makes it hard to talk without looking and sounding like a scared rabbit. But I gave the impression that I was scared for him. She understood enough that she was going to stop by his house unannounced one day and check on him.'
Belle sat with her head down, teeth in lips, the world tended to get a little darker when thinking now about how David was still stuck in that house while she was here, enjoying happiness and freedom. Roger had said something like 'that's good.' and then sensed the need to change the subject yet again.
'And your stay with the Cat Lady? Still going well?'
Belle looked up and smiled. 'Yes! Quite well. Everything really, it's been going so well- It's been…well, It's like I was on stormy seas-before- waves crashing everywhere, threatening to tear my tiny boat I was perched upon, and now suddenly there's a bit of sun and calm (even if a few cats have climbed aboard my tiny boat)' They both laughed a bit, which was a good change from the heaviness of the previous conversations. 'Somehow, I did not know the extent of the waves until I experienced the calm. I can't thank you enough for being there for me, Roger.' She began to rub his hand in hers again and the look he gave her nearly caused her to cry with joyful tears.
'You being safe and happy, that's all I want Belle.' He whispered.
'Thank you.' She sighed with much emotion. 'You are like a sunny harbor that my boat is headed toward. The storms behind the calm beneath me, the safe harbor before me-I am looking forward to reaching my destination.'
'Quite poetic my dear Belle, I've never heard myself quite so idealized before, I'm afraid the safe harbor might be fraught with a few rougher patches than you give me credit for.'
'Then we'll go through those together, yes?'
His eyes were warm and soft. 'Aye, I suppose we will.'
Sunset had thrown its array of colors across the western sky by the time she made it back to Mrs. Mildred's cat-filled home.
'There you are, Belle! I was beginning to worry about you! I tried to not become frantic-It's Saturday, after all and you're young and…oh!' Mrs. Mildred's eyes went large as she took in the new addition to Belle's hand as she placed it on the counter. The dear cat lady let out a few oohs and ahhs, squeaks and squeals, and had to see the ring from every angle. 'The handsome soldier that you brought a couple of weeks ago?'
Belle smiled and it was still new enough to her that she reddened. 'The very one.'
'Now I've got to know the full story of you two love birds, come, come, I've got the kettle on-shoo pan, shoo!' Pan was on the counter, as he always tended to do whenever it looked like food would be served at some point and he looked interested in the ensemble of tea things that Mildred was gathering. Belle took the tray as she finished setting it up and they brought it to the living room. And Belle told the story. About the Red Cross campaign. 'I remember that,' Mildred mused. And then about the response-how she had figured out that he was Scottish and how they bonded on a mutual love of literature and poetry. Her father's passing and his injury was only mentioned in passing. As for the loss, Mildred was only too aware how difficult such things could be to speak of, and for the injury, it was such a hard thing for Roger to speak of, even now, that Belle almost felt like she was betraying him if she spoke too much on it. He was injured, and he recovered, those were the main points and so those were gotten through as quickly as possible.
'And so you fell in love over letters.' Mildred sighed. 'How romantic.' Belle smiled. 'Always thought Floyd and I had a great story-not letters, I'm afraid. Just plain meeting each other at church. My daddy had taken him under his wing-he was a barber you see. Taught him the trade and then Floyd made the shop into a two chair one. Never a lot of money in that, but we were always fed and happy. Daddy liked him so much that he invited him to meet the family after church.
I had a little persian kitten-always did have a heart for the little furry creatures, and when Floyd came over for dinner, little Heathcliff (for that was the kitten's name) while sitting on my lap, got spooked and upturned the gravy all over Floyd and his Sunday best. I felt truly awful and without thinking began trying to clean his shirt and tie with a wet hankie. We locked eyes-he had the handsomest green you ever did see-did I say he was a redhead? Well, he was-fiery red and a face full of freckles and a tenacious temper to match. As I said, we locked eyes and the rest is history. He was a good man. Kind even if his tempers could be short (his temper was hardly ever at me-normally over politics or something of that nature) and they say red hair is the longest to turn gray, so it was only ten years ago or so that I finally had to see it turn.' Her voice broke a little and Belle felt for the dear old cat lady, imagining how it would feel to lose Roger, and they had not even known each other a year! She could not imagine the string that seemed to connect their souls being severed and being forced to live without him, and so she mourned for her landlady. 'Good man.' She heard Mildred repeat. 'And so is yours, I think-he sounds like a good man.'
Belle gave a soft smile. 'Yes, yes he is.'
That night, Belle looked down at her letter. She had written to Ruby as soon as she heard about what was going on in France. She didn't know exactly where Ruby was, but she needed to know that her friend was safe. There had been no reply yet, it had only been a few days, but she knew she needed to share her news. She felt guilty that she had been so vague with her friend, but she had felt so uncertain about Roger's feelings towards her that she didn't want Ruby's pestering. She set the record straight now.
'Ruby,
Who knew that a poem about Haggis could turn my head so, but I found it did and I am not sorry for it. I told you in my last letter that I was working at the library now and had left Morris' house so you could finally stop worrying about me. What I did not say was that Roger traveled all the way from Texas just to see me, did not particularly like Morris either, and wonderful man that he is, couldn't rest until he had helped me get out of my brother's house and get situated here at Mrs. Taylor's-Mrs. Smith, the librarian's friend. He went to Portland to look for work and wrote to me six days ago, telling me that he loved me, and then surprised me today by proposing to me at Heritage Park. You may not be surprised, but I certainly was. I think you will like him, Ruby, there is so much caring behind each thing he does that I'm liable to be spoiled if you do not come back soon and give me a set down. I am not sure of the exact date on when I'll get married, but I can only hope the war will be over in the next couple of months and we can plan it together-double wedding perhaps? What else can I say, how else can I describe the happiness I feel that will not have you rolling your eyes at my literary sentiments. Do I dare say, if I loved him less I might be able to talk about it more? (please tell me you still remember where I've plucked this quote and tweaked it to suit my needs?)
I hope you've already received my other letter and sent a reply telling me that you are safe and well. I worry for you daily, pray for you constantly, you, your dear Archie and all your dear men that you tend.
Come back soon,
Your Friend,
Belle'
Belle went to bed that night, her fingers feeling the ring on her hand, lifting her hand in the moonlight to see if the tiny diamond caught and smiling until she was sure her cheeks would ache the next morning. That night she thought of the past only as it gave her pleasure which, it turned out, gave her much to think of in terms of her future, and that made her just as happy.
Author's Note:
History Stuff: For the amount of articles and things I've read, for both this and the upcoming couple of chapters, there is surprisingly little for me to include here. There is talk of Roger wanting a car and a house-and I've done A LOT of research on prices, how much he might make, how long he would have to save, etc..., but I plan to share those things probably in the next chapter. Just be rest assured that I normally don't throw out numbers and phrases willy nilly, but try to make them as realistic as possible :) I do appreciate all your comments on his role in the law practice and how he probably could work up the ranks (to be a lawyer at this time you still needed to pass the bar exam, which first requires a bachelors) and be mentored into a position. I do have a plan in the works for him, it will just take a chapter or two to work out. I appreciate people who know more about these things letting me know, as I know so so little! Story Stuff: Heathcliff is a nod to Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte-a book I read while my hair stood on end but hated once I had finished, lol. Floyd, Taylor, barber shop...these are nods to a classic show that my family enjoys-Andy Griffith. I called a case file that needed the 'McAlister case, which is also a nod, as that is thrown around in the show as well. This chapter has a lot of fluff and transition, all the action and drama comes very soon, I promise! I thought it would be fun to include Mildred's love story, for Belle to have someone who had a long, loving relationship to talk to since she wouldn't have had good examples in her own family (her mother dying when she was born). The quote in the letter to Ruby is from a Jane Austen novel...anyone know? extra points if you know the answer, lol I love hearing what you think! Thank you so much for reading!
