Soul Caress

by Kim Shaw

  Malcolm was not a bad man. In fact, he was giving and reliable by nature. However, with two scorned baby mothers on his back, hell-bent on making him pay for not wanting them anymore, and his only marketable skill being that of a laborer, Malcolm’s honesty had left him broke and at their mercy.

  Unfortunately, both of his former girlfriends had hated him. They tag-teamed him, dragging him into court for child support, denying him access to the children and otherwise making his life a living hell. Right now Malcolm was five thousand dollars behind in payments and had already served three months in jail for nonpayment of support. Things weren’t looking any better these days. Malcolm was out of work once again. That was why he was staying with Malik.

  “You say the dumbest stuff sometimes, man,” Malik said finally.

  “Just calling it like I see it,” Malcolm shrugged.

  “Yeah, but the problem is you don’t always see with twenty-twenty vision, feel me? Kennedy is a beautiful woman, and I enjoy spending time with her. Period. I don’t care about her money, her education, her blindness or anything else for that matter. She’s good people and I’m going to be there for her, to help her through all this for as long as she wants me to. Simple as that. Now, instead of concentrating on what I’m doing, I’d suggest you try to get your life in order.”

  “Whatever, man,” Malcolm grinned as he gave his brother a slap on his back.

  Malik knew that his brother meant him no disrespect. Malcolm’s troubles had just led him to become a cynical man who was always on the lookout for the gotcha in life.

  Malik left the apartment, eager to get back to Kennedy. He knew that he had sugarcoated their situation to Malcolm, but he couldn’t dare put into words what was happening to him. For Malik, Kennedy was a breath of fresh air. For the first time in his life, he felt like he mattered to someone. Her inability to see his face and his physical features had somehow allowed her to see into the very core of who he was. She had touched that part of him so profoundly that he finally felt alive.

  Malik recognized their differences, and in his heart believed that there was probably not much of a future for them. He still couldn’t make himself walk away. He meant what he said to Malcolm. He would stay put until time ran out for them. What he didn’t realize was that the end of their road would come sooner than he expected.

  Chapter 15

  “Malik, I’m not playing with you. Tell me where we are going,” Kennedy demanded.

  “I’m not telling. You’re going to have to beat it out of me. You’re always kidnapping me and taking me to the middle of the woods and stuff. Now it’s my turn.”

  Malik drove a rented car expertly down the busy streets of D.C. Kennedy leaned back, her head relaxed against the headrest. The radio was tuned in to an oldies but goodies station and she hummed along with tunes that she’d grown up listening to her parents sing and watching them dance to. Despite her protests, she enjoyed being whisked away by Malik. She had the utmost faith in him. She trusted that he would not take her anywhere that she didn’t want to go. He’d already taken her spiritually to places she had never imagined and physically to heights that she had never known existed. She still marveled at their lovemaking, each time discovering depths of pleasure and expression that surprised her. Warning bells were ringing in the back of her mind, as she recognized the fact that she had fallen hard and fast for him, but right now, she didn’t care to listen to them. All that mattered was the present and the fact that while God had seen fit to take so much from her, He, in His infinite wisdom had also seen fit to give her so much in return. Malik was no doubt in her mind the reason why she made it through those dark days and she had every intention of holding on to the sunshine he gave her for as long as she could.

  Kennedy dozed off without realizing she was even sleepy. She felt the car come to a stop and after a few seconds, began to stir.

  “Malik?” she called out.

  “I’m here,” he said. “I was just sitting here watching you sleep. You’re beautiful.”

  Malik leaned over and kissed Kennedy softly.

  “Thank you, baby. Are we here yet?”

  “Yep. Wait right there for a minute, though,” he said.

  The car chimed when he opened the door. He climbed out of the driver’s seat and shut the door behind him. Kennedy waited, listening for any telltale signs that would provide a clue as to where she was. In the months since the accident she had come to rely upon her other senses, especially that of sound, when it came to getting through daily tasks. Her hearing had become extremely acute and even from inside her apartment, she could tell what time of day it was by the sound of traffic and other noises coming from the outside.

  Her sense of smell had also intensified as she grew dependent upon it to tell her things like what foods were being placed in front of her and who had just entered a room. The various smells of the soaps that people used, cologne that they wore and the products they applied to their hair were her guides. Unfortunately, today either her senses were extremely dull or she was in a vacuum because there were no hints. Wherever they were, it was a place where dogs weren’t allowed because Malik had made her leave poor Muppet at a kennel.

  The passenger side door opened and Kennedy turned toward the rush of air that greeted her.

  “Come on, babe,” Malik said.

  He reached down and took Kennedy by the forearm. He helped her from the vehicle.

  As Kennedy exited the car, her arm looped through Malik’s, she inhaled sharply.

  “Smells like air…all I smell is air. A lot of it. Where are we, Malik?”

  “Just trust me,” he said, kissing the back of her hand.

  Malik led Kennedy through an empty field and into a large building that served as a hangar. Kennedy could hear voices as soon as they entered. They came to a stop before a group of people.

  “Reginald, this is the little lady I was telling you about. Kennedy, meet my cousin, Reginald,” Malik said.

  “Hello, Kennedy, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  “Likewise,” Kennedy said with a smile, extending her hand.

  Reginald shook her hand and held on to it.

  “My cousin here forgot to mention how beautiful you are, Miss Kennedy. Guess he was scared that I’d steal you away from him.”

  “Well, if I don’t find out what Malik is up to right about now, you just might get your chance,” Kennedy joked.

  “Woman, just relax and follow the man outside, would you?” Malik scolded.

  They exited the building from the opposite side of where they’d entered and walked several feet across rocky terrain. They stopped in front of a small shed.

  “All right, Miss Kennedy. I’m going to need you to slip into this jacket,” Reginald ordered.

  Kennedy followed instructions. After putting on the jacket and waiting while Malik zipped it for her, she heard the sound of metal clicking and of other fabric being zipped.

  “All right, now, this might feel a little awkward your first time, but you’ll get used to it,” Reginald said.

  “Malik,” Kennedy called breathlessly.

  “I’m right here.”

  “Are we about to do something crazy?” she asked.

  There was no disguising the excitement in Kennedy’s voice. Without knowing where they were or what they were about to do, she was turned on. Her willingness to step outside of the safe predictability of her life was one of the things about her that attracted Malik to her. He took her into his arms.

  “We’re going to strap on a pair of wings, jump off of a very big hill and glide slowly down into a valley like a beautiful swan with her friend the bald eagle by her side. Do you trust me?” he asked.

  Kennedy pressed her lips to his softly.

  “Yes, I do.” She smiled.

  “Good. I’m going to take you on the ride of your life, and I want you to trust that you’ll be safe. Know that I’m going to take care of you, okay?”

  With that, Malik released Kennedy and h
elped her get into the rest of her gear. He strapped a helmet onto her head, then secured his own. Reginald gave them a few more instructions before giving them the okay to launch. They would be using a foot-launching technique from a hill as opposed to either tow-launching from a ground-based tow system or aero-towing from behind a powered aircraft. Malik had done all the techniques before.

  Reginald assisted them strap into the hang glider. Theirs was a simple craft consisting of an aluminum-framed fabric wing. As the pilot, Malik was mounted on a harness hanging from the wing frame. He would exercise control over the craft by shifting body weight from side to side. Kennedy was secured next to him, free to just enjoy the ride.

  When they fell into a quick trot along the rocky terrain, Kennedy held on to the bar in front of her tightly. Her pulse raced and she grew light-headed from anticipation. The moment that she felt the ground give way beneath her feet was the single most exhilarating of her life. The wind smacked their faces, taking her breath away. Kennedy screamed with pleasure, gripping the bar even more tightly as they sailed away into the atmosphere. Her stomach lurched and her heart threatened to beat right out of her chest, yet with Malik by her side, she truly felt like she could fly forever.

  “Do you plan to have children someday, Malik?”

  “Where did that come from?” Malik asked.

  He looked up from Kennedy’s feet, nail polish brush dipped in cherry blossom paint poised midair. It was a Sunday evening, the day after they had gone hang gliding. Twenty-four hours later, Kennedy still felt like she was flying and pressed Malik to know when they would get to do it again. He’d teased her that he hadn’t done so bad for an urban city boy, as she liked to call him, before promising that he’d take her out again as soon as he could schedule time on his next day off from work.

  After spending the day lying around in one another’s arms, Malik had offered to give Kennedy a manicure and a pedicure. It was a skill he’d picked up from childhood when his big sister, LaToya, forced him and his brother, Malcolm, to play salon with her. Malcolm refused to touch anyone’s feet so he always got to be the shampoo person, but Malik actually liked applying the polish and little designs onto LaToya’s toenails.

  “Just curious,” Kennedy shrugged. “Answer me.”

  “That’s a hard question. I mean, sure I’d love to have kids, start a family with a woman, but I’ve seen so many people jack that up. People start off deep in love and the kids come along and before you know it, the love is replaced by demands and then anger. I look at people like my brother, Malcolm, and it makes me think twice.”

  “Well, I think you’d be good with children,” Kennedy complimented.

  “Yeah, but the question is, would I be good to them? What if things don’t work out with the mother, what then? I don’t want to be a weekend dad. Kids deserve more than that. Growing up, my parents were one of the few couples on the block who were still together. Isn’t that sad? I mean, I could count on one thing growing up, every day, and that was that my dad was coming home at nine o’clock every night with his newspaper tucked under one arm and his lunch bag under the other. That means something to me.”

  “I guess that’s the one thing you and I have in common. I don’t know what would have happened if my parents weren’t together. Although I guess I never really thought about it because I didn’t know any kids whose parents were divorced. I did know one girl whose mother had died, but she had her father and a nanny who was just like a mother.”

  “You were so sheltered,” Malik said, as if he’d just suddenly realized the fact.

  “You say that like it’s so horrible. At least I got to just be a kid. So many children today have to act like adults before they even reach double digits. That’s not right.”

  “No, it isn’t. That’s one reason why I’ve been thinking about doing something about it,” Malik said hesitantly.

  He had not shared his idea with anyone, knowing that it was a dream that many people in his limited social circle would laugh at. Since he’d met Kennedy, he’d been thinking about it more and more and lately it didn’t seem so far-fetched.

  “Doing something like what?” Kennedy asked.

  “I’ve always thought that if kids had someplace to go, to keep them occupied, they could have a better chance at escaping some of the B.S. out there on the streets.”

  “That’s true. I mean, you hear studies and stuff all the time about that very thing. So what were you thinking of doing?”

  “Well, see, that’s just it. I don’t think the studies really go deep enough into the problems. I mean, a lot of kids either don’t have two parents, some don’t even have one, or others have parents that don’t really give a damn. They’re too busy working or out there living their own lives to give their kids what they need. See, it’s more than just about having a place to go. There are recreational centers sprinkled here and there. Kids go to those places and they shoot basketballs around, play ping-pong or what have you. Now, don’t get me wrong. That’s great and all, but it’s not enough. There needs to be a place where kids can go to have fun and learn at the same time. A place where they can explore computers, get hands-on experience in different trades like automotive and electronics. A place where they can get tutored by professionals and learn specialized skills like culinary arts or interior decorating.”

  “Go on,” Kennedy said.

  She’d leaned forward, closer to Malik so as not to miss one single word that he was saying. He was fueled by her enthusiastic eagerness and he rushed ahead, surprising even himself at just how much thought he had given his ideas.

  “What I’m proposing would almost be like a school in some respects, but it would be free. It would be situated in an area where there was a lot of public housing and poor people—the ones who need the help more than anyone else. It would be a state-of-the-art facility and it would offer a wide variety of programs. Things like mentors and cultural activities. I’d solicit professionals in various fields to donate their time on a rotating basis. Basically, all of the stuff that these so-called experts have talked about for years as the leading reason why some kids excel when others fail. For teenagers there would be a workplace readiness program to help them learn not only how to apply for jobs but also how to conduct themselves once they are on the job. There’d be a college exploration program for high school kids.”

  “Wow. This would be an amazing thing to see happen. It’s a huge undertaking, but an amazing one at the same time. Do you have any ideas about how you could bring something like that together?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve been thinking about it for so long, but I’ve never actually gotten to the planning stages. I mean, I don’t know the first thing about teaching or instruction.”

  “Who says you need to know anything about that? I think it starts with the passion and you certainly have that, along with a love for kids and a desire to help people. Everything else is just icing on the cake.”

  “Yeah, I’d love to be able to do something like that for the community, especially around where I grew up. I don’t know, Kennedy, it’s just a dream. I can’t even begin to see how to make it come true.”

  “First things first,” Kennedy said, standing up.

  She moved slowly toward her spare room that served as a guest room and her home office. She counted her steps to the door and then moved inside. “Come here,” she called to Malik over her shoulder.

  Kennedy sat down at her desk. Malik pulled up a chair next to her in front of the computer.

  “First you need to know what others have done in the field. Are there other such facilities that you could model yourself after?”

  Before Malik could answer that question, Kennedy fired off three more. He had to stop himself from the compulsion to sit with an open mouth, marveling at the way her mind worked. It was a force that could rival the speed of light.

  They spent the next couple of hours conducting research. She gave the directions and he followed, typing in search words on the Int
ernet and reading the hits that popped up. She instructed him on how to tap into the national registries of not-for-profit agencies, gave him step-by-step directives on how federal funding was allocated and helped him to navigate through the jumbled language of Web sites designed for start-up businesses.

  “I love that you’re such a smart lady,” Malik told Kennedy.

  “And I love that you’re a dreamer,” she countered.

  The fact that their attributes complemented one another’s was not lost on either one of them.

  Chapter 16

  “Mom…what…what are you doing here?” Kennedy said as she stood in the doorway.

  Muppet sat diligently at her feet, staring up at the exquisite Elmira Daniels. Kennedy tied her bathrobe at her waist securely and then nervously pushed a strand of hair that dangled on her forehead. She’d snatched open the door without asking who it was, which was a bad habit Malik had often scolded her about. She’d believed it to be the Japanese food delivery person with their order of spicy Hamachi, tuna, miso soup and rice. The second she opened the door, the scent of Elmira’s signature perfume accosted her senses and she realized that it was definitely not her sushi order.

  “Kennedy, where are your manners? Aren’t you going to ask me in?” Elmira reproached.

  “Uh, sure, Mom, come in,” Kennedy said, feeling like a disobedient adolescent. “Muppet, here,” she commanded as she opened the door wider and stepped back to allow room for her mother to enter.

  Muppet moved to Kennedy’s side, continuing to regard the visitor quizzically. He sniffed at Elmira’s legs as she passed him by, but did not move from Kennedy’s side. Kennedy shut the door and took a deep breath.

  “I can not believe this,” she muttered beneath her breath.