The Loudest Silence (Part One)

by Olivia Janae

  “Her hair was scary. I didn’t like it, nope, nope, nope,” he said in a singsong as he splashed his spoon back into his remaining milk.

  “Bowl in the sink, please,” she called as she grabbed her phone. A grin split across her face when she saw that she had a text message.

  Ms. Flynn, here is the set list for the park concert. Shall we meet at noon? – V

  “Hey, buddy, do you remember Ms. Vivian?” she asked casually, knowing that the boy had spent the day after the “Mommy & Me” event talking of nothing else.

  “Yeah!” he grinned.

  “Well, she wants to take us to the park tomorrow to play and hear a concert. What do you think?”

  Max cheered, throwing himself off of his chair so he could flop on the couch, jumping up and down like a trampoline in his little tighty-whities.

  From then on, the day became about waiting for tomorrow. Kate was waiting as she practiced that afternoon. Max ate his peanut butter and jelly lunch, his foot ticking as he waited. She gave Max his bath that night, and they were waiting. Tucking Max tightly into his bed, washed and brushed in his sock-monkey footie pajamas, they were waiting.

  The waiting was torturing Max, giving him a case of excitement-induced restless leg syndrome.

  “You have to calm down,” Kate urged, “otherwise tomorrow will never come!”

  “Like Christmas!” he bellowed at top volume, making her wince.

  “Exactly like Christmas. Close your eyes.”

  He obeyed, slamming them shut and squeezing with all of his might.

  “All right, kid.” She laughed and kissed his forehead.

  Max was bouncing off the walls the next morning.

  “Is it time to go?” he shouted, scaring his mother awake at a bright and early 5 a.m.

  “What? No!” She had sat up fast, and her head swam as she grabbed it, trying to hold it steady. “Noooo, it’s too early. Come here.” She pulled the little boy under the covers with her and wrapped her arms around him. “It’s still sleep time. Come on, put your head down.”

  “But I don’t—”

  “Max,” she said. It was a clear warning, and he did as he was told.

  They slept for a few more hours before she was shaken harshly awake again. “Oh my god.” She flopped over. “I need to stop getting woken up like this. What’s wrong?”

  “Time to go! Time to – time to go, Mommy!”

  “Huh? No, not yet, kid!” Kate groaned but attacked his belly with raspberries. There was no way she was going to get him back to sleep a second time.

  “Wheeeen?”

  “Before lunch.”

  “Okay.” He moped and headed to the kitchen for breakfast, dragging his feet like a man walking to the gallows.

  Later, as Kate got ready, Max bounced by the door, yelling for his mother to “hurry up, hurry up, hurry up!” She had wanted to put Max in her favorite polo and jeans, something clean and nice, but Vivian absolutely insisted that Max must wear his swim trunks and she must bring him a change of clothes and a towel. She had also insisted that there was no need for either of them to bring any food. Kate wasn’t surprised by the food thing, there were vendors all over the place, but she couldn’t imagine why Max needed swim trunks in a downtown park. She was going to take Vivian’s word for it, though. She put him in a blue tank and his favorite orange trunks, hoping the sunny day would keep him from being too cold.

  “I’m coming!” She idly hummed “It Never Entered My Mind” as she made sure her hair was flowing in wild adventurous waves in that way she liked. She was going for a type of casual brilliance that said, “I didn’t spend thirty minutes in front of the mirror, I just threw on these jeans and this tank top, but check out how amazing I look!”

  It was an art form, to say the least.

  Max appeared in her doorway, hands on his hips, a mirror of his mother. “Moooom!”

  “Sorry, kid.” Kate chuckled, alarmed by his use of “Mom” instead of “Mommy.” She was starting to think that she needed to be a little less sarcastic and snarky around him, since he seemed to be picking it up so completely. “Okay, come on.”

  Hand in hand, they headed to the “L.”

  Once in his seat, Max twisted around to look out the window. They rarely went anywhere that was far enough to require a train, despite how much Max loved it.

  Kate had to laugh at herself as she craned her neck this way and that, searching through the crowded plaza. Max was on her hip, gripping her shirt in spasms of joy, his feet swinging. His excitement was making her own heart beat harder, nerves making her mouth a little too dry.

  She wasn’t sure if she was nervous or excited as she searched for their company. What if Vivian turned back into the Ice Queen? She wasn’t sure how she would respond to that, since she still wasn’t sure why Vivian’s behavior had changed at all. How would she react to that? How should she? She took a deep, shaky breath and tried her best to swallow down her nerves.

  She and Vivian had agreed to meet just south of their location the night before last so that they could bring Max to the Bean together.

  Max saw Vivian first. One moment they were trying to resist the tide of people and the next Max had clamped down on a handful of her hair, screaming like Wonder Woman herself was walking through the plaza. She had shouted in response, thinking something was wrong before realizing that he had simply seen Vivian.

  “All right, all right!” Kate released the squirming boy, letting him fly toward Vivian with elation on his face. The moment Vivian saw him, her eyes and mouth popped wide in dramatic excitement as she waved with both hands. He flew into her arms, and she scooped him up, smiling and hugging him tightly.

  Kate didn’t know which thing surprised her more: the fact that Vivian had just picked Max up like she had been missing him for years; the fact that as soon as he was settled on her hip she began to slowly sign to him, not bothering to speak as she did it; or the fact that, with a grin, Max signed something back. When exactly had Vivian taught him Sign Language? When had there been time?

  Vivian signed something else to him, and together they looked around until, spotting her, Max pointed.

  Kate jumped, her hands going to her pockets as Vivian caught her eye and, with a smile, sent her a wink in greeting.

  “Oh boy,” she let out in a breathy laugh. She embraced the topsy-turvy flipping her stomach was doing as she started toward them.

  Kate had to fight through the obnoxious band of tourists but finally she made it to their side. “When did you teach him that?”

  “At Mommy & Me. What did I teach you, Max?”

  Grinning proudly, he began to sloppily move his hand. His eyebrows drew down tight as he pumped his fingers into strange shapes.

  “What does that mean?” Vivian asked him.

  “It means Max!”

  “What else did I teach you?”

  His fingers moved again, the thumb of his open hand jabbing into his chin hard enough to leave a red mark. “Mommy!”

  “What did I just teach you?”

  He signed his first full sentence and shrilled, “Where’s your mommy!”

  “Look at you, buddy! You’re a little genius! How did you get so smart?” Kate laughed, high-fiving him. Then, because it seemed like the natural thing to do, she playfully high-fived Vivian as well.

  Kate’s mouth twisted a bit as she realized that their fingers had snared during the high five and, though their hands had dropped, Vivian hadn’t let go.

  Kate shot her a glance, but Vivian was so distracted by Max that it was clear she hadn’t even realized it had happened. That fact made Kate squirm, feeling guilty for noticing the innocuous touch herself.

  Embarrassed, she pulled her hand free to push a bit of hair out of Max’s eyes. “You need a haircut soon, buddy. Teach me something too?” she asked Vivian, winking against the sun.

  “In Sign?” Vivian grinned, seeming pleased by the request. “All right.” She thought for a moment and then showed her a small seri
es of motions.

  “What does it mean?”

  Vivian shifted Max on her hip. The sunglasses that Vivian was wearing were large and deeply black, still Kate was sure that she could feel her signature intense gaze digging into her. Kate was just beginning to wonder about her silence when Vivian finally said, “It means ‘your hands are very soft.’”

  The rush of heat started at Kate’s belly and spread in both directions like wildfire, moving down to her feet and up over her cheeks in a full and unwavering blush. Vivian’s smirk only grew when she saw the way that Kate was stumbling, trying to find something to say.

  “Riiiight.” She finally laughed, taking a moment to let her cheeks cool as her mind whined that it wasn’t true. She loved her job. She had found a life, a comfort and a happiness in classical music that she had never found elsewhere, but that didn’t mean that the deep, indented callouses on her fingers didn’t embarrass her. Then it dawned on her; had that been flirting? Was Vivian flirting with her? Why had she said that? Charlie said Vivian was a flirt.

  Kate looked back at Vivian, saw she was still watching her, and the process of letting her cheeks cool began all over again.

  “I’m happy to show you more,” Vivian offered. While Kate scoffed and ignored her, from then on, whenever Vivian spoke out loud, she accompanied her words with their proper signs, using both languages at once.

  “So, where are we going?”

  “You ready to get wet?”

  Kate pointedly and inelegantly choked on her gum.

  Vivian didn’t see, though; she was kissing Max’s cheek and settling him on his feet. “Ready?”

  “Ready!” Max copied her sign with a grin, and the three set off for the park.

  “What the hell?” Kate gasped as they rounded the corner.

  The downtown plaza opened into a wide space where children, teens, and parents alike were skittering and sliding across the water-laden floor. Two giant rectangular statues faced each other from opposite sides of the plaza, electronic faces of every size and shape appearing and disappearing across the video screens that covered them. As Kate watched, one of the faces puckered its lips and a huge fountain of water poured onto the giggling children below. Max’s eyes turned into wide saucers of amazement as he began to pull his mother toward it.

  “Did you see? Did you see?” he shouted, apoplectic with excitement. “It spit water! Mommy, it spit water! You’re not uh-s’posed to spit!”

  “Tell you what, kid, we’ll cut it a break just this once.”

  “Kay!”

  “It’s called the Jaume Plensa Crown Fountain. In the winter they are dry, but in the spring and summer …” Vivian gestured to the happy children.

  “Mommy, Mommy, can I go? Pleeeease?” The boy was tugging hard enough that Kate’s shoulder groaned in protest. Still, she chewed her lip, worrying about his knees if he fell.

  “I thought that perhaps we would tell him he can go if he promises not to run,” Vivian said.

  “How is it you always seem to know what I’m thinking? Is that some kind of weird deaf superpower?”

  “Like Profess’r X!”

  Vivian just beamed at her smugly.

  “Okay, Max… Max… hey, kid! Did you hear Ms. Vivian?”

  He nodded solemnly, so she pulled his shirt from him and grimaced as he bolted away at top speed.

  “Well, that promise didn’t last long, did it?” Vivian laughed.

  “No, but I didn’t really expect it to. It could be worse than a skinned knee, though. He’ll survive.”

  Vivian frowned, worry creasing her face.

  Kate grinned to herself, and had to inwardly admit that it was cute that she was worried about him, too. “He’ll be fine.” They watched him for a second before Kate asked, “So, how do you know about all of these awesome places?”

  Vivian didn’t respond so Kate gave a little wave. Still Vivian just chuckled a little, unaware of Kate as a torrent of water fell onto Max’s head, making him sputter and giggle happily.

  “Yo, uh, Earth to Vivian,” she said, pulling on her arm a bit.

  Vivian jumped, the smile falling from her face like stone. “I’m sorry, what did you say, please?”

  The intensity of the reaction surprised her, and Kate’s hands came out to calm her. “Whoa there, lady. It’s fine.”

  “I’m sorry,” Vivian repeated. “I try to stay atop of everything happening around me. I apologize. Please repeat what you said.”

  Mildly alarmed, Kate repeated her question, trying to give Vivian the most reassuring smile that she could.

  Vivian’s head tilted in thought after her overly intense eyes finally read Kate’s question. “I suppose I know of places such as this because I’ve lived here most of my life.”

  “Your family bring you here as a kid?”

  Vivian gave a snort. “No.” She didn’t explain further. Kate debated asking, but in the end she just nodded and looked back at Max.

  “Viv’n! Come on, Viv’n!” Max cried from the puddles, waving with both arms. “Viv’n! Viv’n!”

  “Max, she can’t hear you when you call her like that! You have to come over here and talk to her, remember?”

  He rolled his eyes melodramatically as if to say he knew that and waved his arms over his head until he caught her attention. “Come oooooon!”

  She shook her head. “I didn’t bring any clothes to change into like you did, little prince!”

  Kate eyed her, wondering what Vivian would do if she just threw her over her shoulder and ran through the water. She could almost hear the strangled screech Vivian would release. She didn’t quite have her pegged yet; would she be angry or would she laugh? Perhaps it depended on whether Kate remembered to remove their cell phones first. She supposed that doing something like that wouldn’t be appropriate. Vivian was far too stiff a person to play with in that way, and yet she had to bite down the creeping want to behave rashly, just to see what Vivian would do.

  From the bench, they watched Max scream and run, finding friends amongst the other children and diving in and out of the water until his teeth began to chatter.

  “Max, come get warm for a little bit!” Kate finally called when she knew the blue tracing his lips was no longer in her own mind.

  Max swooped under the spout of water again, pretending he couldn’t hear her.

  “Max!” Kate stood with her hands on her hips, scowling. “If you don’t listen to me now, then you won’t be able to go back out again once you warm up!”

  “I believe he’s calling you out, Ms. Flynn.” Vivian leaned playfully against her shoulder.

  For a moment Kate just looked at Vivian, surprised by the good-humored tone, before she scoffed. “I think you’re right.” She walked to the edge of the water, calling him again. He spun around, grinning with the devil in his eye. “Maaaax,” she warned. She knew exactly what was going to come next. Sure enough, he suddenly shot off through the crowd and, with three years of habit ingrained in her, Kate raced after him.

  It was one of his favorite games and had been since he was old enough to walk. He loved to be chased.

  “You can’t catch me, you can’t catch me!” he cried over his shoulder. “I’m da ging’rbread maaaaaan!”

  Kate laughed, calling in a threatening monster voice. “I’m going to squish the life out of you!”

  She supposed his disobedience should have angered her, but she could hear Vivian laughing and cheering Max on from the sidelines. The sound replaced any frustration before it could begin.

  He giggled, running with his arms out like an airplane as Kate caught up. She reached out again, her fingers brushing his little arm when she suddenly froze, shrieking at top volume. She hadn’t been paying attention, her eyes on Max, and had run directly under the water spout as it began to flow. The icy water poured through her hair, down her back, and into her shoes, soaking her through instantly.

  Max’s eyes popped, and he stopped running so fast that he tripped and landed on his but
t. His expression said that he knew there was a good chance he was really in trouble now.

  Howling, Kate jumped in place, shaking out her limbs and swearing at the arctic chill. She turned, wringing out her hair and caught sight of Vivian laughing into her hands at the edge of the water, looking far too amused for Kate’s liking. “Think that’s funny, do you?”

  Vivian tried to school her face, her whole demeanor turning back into that of her remote boss like the ice finishing on a pond. Kate’s eyebrow rose in surprise, but then a small laugh popped from Vivian’s lips and the facade was ruined. “Actually, I do, Ms. Flynn.”

  Kate stared, amazed, as she watched Vivian’s eyes twinkle, as she saw her try and fight back a smile that seemed far too familiar and mischievous for the woman she had first met.

  Sheepishly, Max approached, his bottom lip jutting out. Kate kneeled by him and wordlessly pointed Vivian’s way. It took the boy a second and then he was pounding toward her, accompanied by his mother, water flying behind them.

  Vivian’s eyes bugged, and she jumped back, screaming a protest and hurrying to put the bench between them. The obstacle caught Max, making him pause and evaluate how to continue, but Kate was having none of that. She vaulted over the top with ease, almost grabbing her as she dodged out of the way, yelling, “No, no, no!”

  “I’m gonna getcha!” Max cried, catching Vivian from behind while her eyes were trained on Kate. She yelped as the cold soaked her pants. Kate didn’t think to hesitate and instead caught her in a huge bear hug, soaking the side of her thoroughly. Vivian wailed in defeat, her whole body going slack against Kate’s.

  Maybe she should have hesitated before she wrapped her arms around the stranger, before teasing her this way. Breathing in deep, she realized that she could smell her perfume. Kate hadn’t noticed it before, light, smooth, and …

  She realized she was still holding on and, with a guilty swallow, let go sheepishly. “So, uh, I know you’re my boss,” Kate joked, scuffing her shoe on nothing. “So don’t fire me for this, okay?”

  “Oh, you’ve been terminated! Effective immediately!”