by J W Rocque
“Hmm… you do realize that I would need a passport even to get into Canada with you?”
“Oh… that"s right.”
“So… Quebec in the winter? I thought we were doing so well avoiding the very hot climates in the summer and the very cold climates in the winter.”
“Sometimes I kind of miss the cold, snowy winters.”
“Ugh… you"re really trying to age me, aren"t you? An integral part of my staying healthy, I always wanted to believe, was making sure I kept moving to the temperate climates.”
“But I never saw the winter carnival in Quebec City.”
“Very well… and only because I"m hopelessly in love with you.”
Michelle squeezed his hands. “You"re the absolute best.”
“Well… I suppose that Canada will be the easiest testing grounds to see if I can gain access across a border. We"ll obviously be crossing the border by car. We"ll need a plan… and at least if it fails, the two countries are on friendly terms.”
April, 1966 Mr. Cacharelli was very pleased with Evan"s work and friendliness toward the customers. Many customers praised him for hiring „such a nice, polite, mature young man". Indeed, Mr. Cacharelli had noticed much the same qualities in Evan as his patrons did. Evan was also a huge hit with the youngsters who patronized the shop for ice cream, candy, bubble gum cards and comic books. For someone so mature, he sure has a way with kids, thought his boss. Each year, he gave Evan a small raise, and in the past year he told Evan that he would no longer charge him rent as long as he was working at the sundry shop.
“I need to go run an errand for a while. Do you mind running things while I"m gone?”
“No problem, Mr. C.,” said Evan as a group of boys came up to him with packs of baseballcards in their hands. “Getting ready for baseball season by buying some trading cards, eh, guys?”
The boys all answered in the affirmative and proceeded to talk to Evan about their favorite teams and players. “Hopefully one of you will find Koufax or Mays in one of your packs.”
“I want to find some Red Sox players,” said one of the boys.
“Red Sox players?” said Evan. “I think Koufax and Mays would be worth more. I don"t think the Sox will be winning any pennants soon. Okay… what do we have?”
“Each of us has five packs.”
“Well… that"s a quarter from each of youthen.” Evan took their coins and put them in the cash register. Then some girls came up to the counter asking for a couple of ice cream cones. Evan took their orders and went over to the soda fountain to scoop out the ice cream for the cones. When he returned, not only were the two girls ready with their money, but the boys still stayed to continue their conversation with Evan.
Evan had a difficult time keeping the names straight until he had seen the children a few times. He enjoyed them all, and they could sense that his friendliness was genuine. The crowd was still there when a mother and daughter appeared behind them with a few items. Russell, one of the new fifteen-year-old hires, walked behind the counter to start his afterschool shift. “May I help you over here?” he asked the lady.
“Ah, the cavalry"s here to save me. Thanks, Russ,” said Evan with a smile.
“Someone new?” asked Mrs. Fleming to Evan.
“Yes, Mrs. Fleming. That is Russell. He"ll take good care of you.”
“Nice to meet you, Russell. Did you get what you wanted, Michelle?”
Michelle looked up at her mother and asked, “I can pay for my own candy, Mom. You gave me the money, remember?”
“Yes, dear, but the other line is much longer. Russell will take your money, won"t you, Russell?”
“Sure.”
“But, Mom,” pleaded Michelle, trying not to express anything that may embarrass her. “I don"t mind waiting.”
Mrs. Fleming smiled and shook her head. She knew that Michelle, like all the other kids, was part of the flock that loved to gather around Evan. As Russell scurried to find a few things on Mrs. Fleming"s list that she could not locate, the crowd of kids dissipated to allow Michelle to boldly advance to Evan"s counter. “Hi, Evan,” she said with a victorious smile. Her patience had paid off.
“Hello, Michelle. How are you today?”
“Very good… and you?”
“Oh, it"s a great day. It"s always a great day when I get to talk to a lot of my friends.”
Whenever Michelle stopped to talk to Evan, she would drop down with her elbows on the counter and her chin resting on her hands and herfingertips on her cheeks. “I"m one of them, right?”
Evan looked at her hopeful smile and cute face. Though Evan loved them all, there was something about Michelle that he had a hard time expressing in words. He questioned himself about the wisdom in having any favorites, but there was no denying that, for some reason, Michelle was his favorite. “Are you one of them? My dear, you are right at the top.” Evan told her the truth because he did not want to lie, though he did his best to dismiss his feelings for Michelle as misinterpretation on his part. She’s so young. If she were older, then maybe… what am I thinking? Why am I thinking it? What is it about this particular girl that tugs on my heart and soul? Evan, you need to stop thinking about it… that’s what you need to do. There was no explanation that would make sense to the modified, accepted behavior of late twentieth century western society. The human body is merely a finite encasement for the infinite soul. The human brain is part of the body and is therefore finite itself. Society dictates to the brain and therefore deprives the soul.
Michelle looked over at her mother, who was busy reading off her list to Russell. Then she quickly turned back to Evan, wanting to talk quickly so her mother would not hear her. “When"s your birthday?”
“When"s my birthday? Why do you ask?”
Michelle tried her best to hide her embarrassment. “I just wanted to know.”
Nobody ever asked Evan that question, at least not in his recent memory. He wasn"t even sure of the answer himself so he made up a date. “Uh… November 18th.”
Michelle nodded as she stored it in her memory. That seems like so long away. I hope I can remember. At least that gives me time to get more courage. “That"s a nice date,” she said. Then she immediately thought how stupid that must have sounded.
“So when is yours, Michelle?”
“Mine"s this month… the 29th,” beamed Michelle.
“Really? Why, that"s in about three weeks from now. Tell you what… when you come in on your birthday, the candy is on me.”
Michelle beamed even more and was speechless. The glow in her pretty green eyes captivated Evan for yet another moment. “Let"s go, sweetie,” said Mrs. Fleming, breaking the momentary spell between the two of them.
“Goodbye, Mrs. Fleming. Goodbye, Michelle. See you both soon, I hope,” said Evan.
“Yes, Evan, I"m sure you will,” replied Mrs. Fleming as they walked away. Evan pondered what his senses experienced after they left. He knew that he was no love-struck teenager. After looking into countless sets of eyes over twenty-three centuries, he was certain that he was given a glimpse of a spotless soul.
December 15, 1983 Michelle opened her eyes suddenly. It was early evening. She had been asleep for eight hours. “We"re going to crash!” she exclaimed.
“Take it easy, sweetheart.”
“Evan… Evan, is that you? Are you alright?”
She felt a gentle touch on her forearm. “It"s me… Nurse
Connie.” Michelle acclimated herself to her surroundings and recognized the inside of the hospital trauma unit where Mabel had brought her.
“Mabel?”
“No, honey. Mabel went home for the day. I"m Connie. My shift started in the afternoon. I"ve been looking in on you along with Mabel. You just woke from a bad dream. We were hoping you would have a good sleep and it seems like you did for most of the past eight hours.”
“I was dreaming about Chicago and how we drove from there into Canada. We were planning on going to Quebec City for the winter carniv
al. It was a good dream until I crashed into the tree. Evan wouldn"t have gotten hurt if it wasn"t for me. I never drove on icy roads before.”
“It"s okay, honey. It was just a dream.”
“No, it was all real. I remember the road we were on… just outside of Ottawa. Evan"s leg got pinned against the tree and… did he die or did I just dream that he died?”
“If you"re talking about your friend that was supposed to be admitted here… he wasn"t in the ambulance that brought you here.”
“He wasn"t? Yes… he was. My father killed him, didn"t he? That wasn"t a dream, was it?”
“A man did fire a gun into the ambulance but there wasn"t anybody shot.”
“Yes, there was. Evan"s leg started turning to ashes after the accident, but after he got shot his whole body turned to… ashes,” Michelle sobbed.
“Listen, honey. There"s a lady who would like to talk to you about everything… the accident, the ambulance ride, the shooting… everything. She"s a doctor… a psychologist. She wanted to know when you were rested and awake. Are you up for that?”
“Why does she want to talk about it?”
“It"s her job. She"s very nice. She may be able to sort out which parts of your dreams are real and which are not. Here… take this cup of water. You can use some fluids.”
Michelle took the cup and sipped. “Thank you… and I already know that the whole dream was real.”
“I believe you,” said Dr. Barrett as she entered the trauma unit. “I"d still like to hear about it. It would be good for you to talk about it.”
“I"ll leave you two alone. I have other patients I need to see,” said Connie.
Dr. Barrett sat down beside Michelle"s bed. “My name is Liz. And you are Michelle?”
“Yes.”
“You"ve been through a lot today, Michelle. You were hysterical earlier this morning due to a traumatic experience involving a gunman. That"s a perfectly normal response.”
“My husband was killed.”
“I can tell that you believe that you have a husband and that he was killed by the gunman. Sometimes when we are traumatized, we start believing things that cannot possibly be true.”
“It istrue. I saw it with my own eyes.”
“Michelle… you"re simply not old enough to have a husband. Do you know why you might believe that you do?”
“Well… we never got married in a church but we"ve been together for over ten years.”
Liz gave a reassuring smile. “How old are you, Michelle?”
“I"m… twenty-nine.”
Liz ran her hand through Michelle"s hair to remove any possible feelings she may have that she is being interrogated. “Michelle… how old are you really? Thirteen? Fourteen?”
“I"m twenty-nine.”
“Michelle, in order for me to help you, you need to be completely honest with me. Why do you lie about your age? Do your parents put a lot of responsibility on you?”
Michelle scrambled for her purse next to her on the bed and pulled out her license with her photo and birth date on it. “Maybe this will help you see that I am not lying to you.”
Liz looked at the photo with the birth date and then looked back at Michelle. “How did you get this?”
“When I registered for my license, they took my picture. Then whenever I renewed my license, they would take a new picture of me.”
“This is an American license from the state of… California. Is that where you are from?”
“I was born in Rhode Island.”
“I"m not a policewoman, so you can tell me in confidence… is this a real license or is it a counterfeit?”
“What kind of question is that? Of course it"s real. How would I know how to produce a counterfeit driver"s license?”
“So you"re telling me that it"s real.”
“Yes… I am.”
“And I believe you, Michelle. Let"s go to my office where we can talk in private. I want to make sure that you"re going to be okay after everything you went through today.”
June, 1966 Evan left the sundry shop after another day"s work. He enjoyed a job where he could be himself. He still loved the theater and visited The Providence Repertory a couple of times since arriving in Riverside, meeting Kim on one of the occasions. But there was something very refreshing at being able to do a job without putting on a performance. He especially liked working the soda fountain and chatting with the kids while serving them.
A group of young people were hanging around the outside of the store as he stepped onto the sidewalk. They always had a lot to say to Evan, and he always made the time for them. This day, he planned on taking a walk up to the amusement park, not to mingle with the crowd but to sit on the pier after closing time to be alone with his thoughts. Amongst the chatter of the children came a soft voice that automatically drowned out all the other conversation.
“Hi, Evan. You"re not working today?” As Evan looked at Michelle standing to the side of him, it seemed like everything else melted into the background, except for the song playing on the transistor radio he was carrying. Michelle, ma belle. These are words that go together well, my Michelle. “Michelle… it"s so nice to see you.”
“I need to pick up some things for my mother. I was hoping you were working.”
“I just ended my shift. I was just heading to the pier to sit and listen to the waves.”
Michelle pictured the peaceful setting in hermind. “That sounds nice. I wish I could go.”
Evan wanted to invite Michelle to go with him, but then thought otherwise. “Your mother would be wondering where her packages went.”
“Yes… she would… and I would get in trouble.”
“Well, as always, Michelle, I"m glad I got to see you again today. You really do brighten up my day.”
“If I need to come to the store tomorrow, I"ll make sure I come earlier,” she said as she pressed her lips together shyly. Then she nervously blinked her eyes as she entered the store. Evan watched her go inside, and then he started walking toward the park.
As he got to the pier, all he could think about was Michelle. Why do I keep thinking about her? She’s just a kid with a crush. Still… why does my heart feel captive?
November, 1983
“May I see your passport?” Michelle did her best to hide her nervousness as she showed her passport to the customs agent at the Ontario border. “Here it is.”
The agent looked at the passport and then at Michelle. “Do you have a photo id?”
“I have a driver"s license.” Michelle scrambled into her purse. “Here it is.”
The agent grabbed it and compared the photo to Michelle"s face. Then he looked at the license again to verify the date of birth. At Evan"s suggestion, Michelle had put on a lot of makeup. It had bothered her since she had applied it some miles back at a restaurant. She was not used to wearing makeup of any kind. But the makeup, especially the eye shadow, and a knit hat, along with a cushion to make her appear taller behind the wheel of the Camaro RS, helped cast enough doubt in the customs agent"s mind for him not to question her age. “What is your purpose for entering the country?”
“I"m meeting my family in Quebec.”
“How long do you plan on staying in the country?”
“A few months… long enough to see the winter carnival.”
The agent gave a cursory glance into the back seat of the car. “Are you bringing anything into the country?”
“Just my luggage.”
“Any goods from the United States such as tobacco, alcohol or firearms?”
“No, sir.”
“Very well. Have a nice visit with your family.”
Michelle drove away from the booth in a sweat. Her hands were shaking. She did not realize that customs agents do not do intense searches on people who appear harmless… and Michelle was cute as a button, even with all the makeup. After driving another few miles, she pulled into a truck stop. She parked in the most remote part of the truck stop, stepped out of the car, look
ed around carefully, and then she opened the trunk.
“Are you okay in there?”
“Of course,” said Evan as he was curled up in a fetal position inside the trunk, “though it seemed like an eternity. I don"t know how we"ll ever pull this off when we try to go by ship to Europe.”
“I just appreciate you coming to the winter carnival with me.”
“No problem at all for the one I love,” groaned Evan as he gingerly climbed out of the trunk. “It"s a good thing I eat the right foods and take care of myself. A man my age could mess up his back contorting himself like that.”
“You"re so funny.”
“Well, at least it will be a few months until we have to pull the same stunt on the way back into the States.”
“Yeah, and we can take our time getting to Quebec City. The carnival isn"t until February.”
“Quebec City in frosty February… I can hardly wait.”
“I"ll keep you nice and warm.”
“Ah… I knew there would be a benefit to this trip. We"re a long way from Hawaii… or even California,” said Evan wishfully. “Nevertheless, I enjoy fulfilling your wishes, Michelle. It"s part of the curse of being absolutely and completely in love with the woman of one"s dreams. So… no problem at the customs booth, I take it?”
Michelle smiled impishly. “No problem at all. The customs agent obviously didn"t see me sweating bullets.” Then she goton her toes and put her arms around Evan"s shoulders. “I love you, Evan.”
“I love you,too, Michelle.”
December 15, 1983 “It"s so strange, Liz. That"s the last thing I recall before the accident. I think it"s because I blocked out a lot.”
“That"s normal,” said Liz as she sat on her office chair facing Michelle, who was leaning back on the couch. “Most people in traumatic accidents tend to block out not only the unpleasant event, but also the moments leading up to the event. So it sounds like your adventure across the border was a pleasant experience.”
“Oops… I shouldn"t have told you that, should I?”
“That"s okay. I"m not a customs agent and I don"t believe you are any threat to our national security.”
“That"s a relief.”
