Professor next Door

by Summer Cooper

  The silence at the villa was deafening and Ben quickly turned on his telly. He tried not to go to the barn but found his feet taking him there. He sat down, the bottle somehow in his hand once more. Sitting at the table he saw the wall where he’d made love to Mary, knew the bed would hold her scent. He knew his own would as well.

  Slugging back more wine, Ben tried to tell himself it would ease, that he’d find a way to bring her back and that the pain would end. His lawyer was working on it now. He decided he needed more wine and went into his kitchen to search for some.

  * * *

  Mary watched the landscape of Portugal disappear, the sea full of jellyfish, and wondered when she’d see that coastline again. They had stops in Munich, one in New York, and another in Charlotte. It was going to be a long day and her mother was already doing her head in. She scoffed to herself, doing her head in, a term she’d picked up from Ben.

  She ordered a glass of wine as soon as the flight attendant started passing them out. Taking a deep gulp, she wished she’d ordered something stronger. This tasted of the cardboard it came in. Setting the too-dry beverage aside, she decided to try for watching a movie on her tablet. Her mother had the window seat and Mary couldn’t see much of the view outside of the plane.

  Mary knew she was trying to distract herself and the effort didn’t work. She missed him already and she’d had to hide her own tears more than once. Lillian had shed them the moment Ben disappeared from view and she’d held her daughter’s hand.

  “I’m so sorry we have to leave him, darling. I’ll see what your father and I can do once we get home. Have you decided on where you’re going?”

  “No, we haven’t decided if he’s coming to me or me going to him. It’s easier and quicker for me to go there. He’s missing some papers and it depends on how long that will take to sort out.” Mary had looked away, another instance of tears making her hide.

  “We’ll get it done, honey. I promise.” Mary knew there wasn’t much her mother could do but knew she’d do what she could. Her mother had made a promise, she’d keep it.

  Going back to West Virginia after being gone so long was eye-opening for both women.

  As they drove up the winding mountain road to get to their town they both looked at the area with new eyes.

  “How long has that house been collapsed, Mary? That’s new isn’t it?” Lillian was pointing out a house that everyone knew because it was painted a bright orange and green. You couldn’t miss it sticking out of the side of the mountain.

  “That’s been down for years now, Lillian!” Walter said from the driver’s seat.

  Mary looked at him, shocked. “You’re joking! Has it really?”

  “I guess you get used to seeing something and don’t notice changes after a while.” Mary heard something in her father’s voice and looked at him closely.

  He was looking at her mother as though he’d never seen her before as they sat at a stop sign, waiting for a load of coal trucks to get out of their way.

  “I sure have missed you, Lillian. I’m so glad you’re home.” Lillian had been looking out of the window and now she turned to her husband. She had the same look.

  “I won’t lie, sweetheart. I loved it over there. I’d go back right now if I could. But I wouldn’t want to go back without you. Never again. I kept turning to you, wanting to point something out to you and you just weren’t there. I hated that part.”

  Mary was shocked, her mother hadn’t told her any of that. She’d even begun to wonder if her mother was considering a divorce she’d been so carefree and happy. She’d worried over it but now she knew her mother had truly missed her father and had been filling her time until she came home to her husband.

  “You guys are going to make me cry again and I’ve cried enough today!” Mary was exhausted but she could feel her eyes stinging once more.

  Going back to her old home, the home she’d shared with her parents her entire life, was odd to Mary. It was the same but somehow everything had changed. She kept looking around as the weeks passed, trying to figure out what was so different about the room. She even went so far as to ask her father what he’d done to it, but he’d not stepped foot in it since she’d left. She finally realized, after talking with Ben one night on Skype, that it was her that had changed, not the room.

  Mary looked at herself in the mirror on her dresser and realized she looked the same but her whole worldview had changed. People were just people, no matter where they were. There wasn’t anything truly exotic about the places or the people in them, it was just that they were different. Fascinatingly different, but not so different that they were somehow not as good as being from the other place.

  Something else had changed and Mary knew it for certain when she woke one morning and had to run straight for the toilet. Retching her guts up, Mary mewled, knowing what the sickness meant. So did her mother.

  A knock came at her bathroom door and with a weak voice Mary replied, “What, Mom?”

  “I guess you barely had the strength for that. I also guess you brought something more than a stolen heart back with you, didn’t you?” Lillian’s voice sounded pleased but concerned.

  “Will you take me to see Doc Baker later, Mom?” Mary’s voice quavered.

  “I sure will. When are you going to tell Ben?”

  “I don’t know.” Mary pushed her hair out of her face, trying to stop the room spinning.

  “Well, he’ll figure it out sooner or later. You’re going to have to stop playing around, my love, and make a decision.”

  “Why are you so calm about this?” Mary’s voice broke off as she dived for the toilet once more.

  Lillian paused, waiting until the sounds stopped. “You done?”

  “I think so. Now, why are you so calm? I’m pregnant for fuck’s sake!” Mary was panicking, knowing it had to be true, test or no test.

  “It’s my grandchild, I don’t have to stay up in the night with it,” Lillian cackled as Mary opened the door and glared at her.

  “You might have to if I run away from home!” She stuck her tongue out now that she’d brushed her teeth and washed her face.

  “I don’t think I’d mind. I told you Ben would make pretty babies. I’d bet on it!” Lillian held her daughter’s hand. “Now when are you going to tell him?”

  “Soon, Mom, soon. Let’s go see the Doc first.” Mary shuffled to her room to change and headed out to the doctor.

  * * *

  “Yep, you got a bun in that there oven of yours, Mary. Who’s the lucky father?” Doc Baker, Mary’s doctor her whole life, grinned at his favourite patient.

  “It’s a long story. When will this sickness stop?” Mary held her hand over her rebelling tummy.

  “It should ease by your second trimester, but sometimes it’s for the duration. Try decaffeinated tea and some toast, sweetie. That should help you settle. Maybe some saltine crackers if your blood pressure remains as good as it is now. I’ll see you back in a couple of weeks, alright?” The doctor had turned away, his white hair going in fifteen direction as usual as he sought out something he’d just put down. Finding his prescription pad he began scribbling words on a prescription pad.

  “Why in a couple of weeks? I’m pregnant, not sick!”

  “Here, this is for your prenatal vitamins, take them! Especially while you’re sick. You’ll need the supplements they provide. And you need to come back so I can check on you and the baby, make sure everything is okay. Hear me? You don’t skip your visits, young lady! I know you hate needles but this is not the time!” He shook his wrinkled finger at her and Mary supressed the urge to stick out her tongue. Doc Baker handed her a sticker of a cartoon dog and opened the door. “You be good, Mary, and come back for your check-ups!”

  Mary nodded, staring down at the sticker the doc insisted on giving her, and stared at the doctor as he walked away. Yeah, she was home. With a bounce in her step Mary walked out to her waiting mother. With a nod, she confirmed the world truly had changed
for far more than just her. The tears in both their eyes were tears of happiness and hope. This was truly life-changing.

  Chapter 15

  Six Months Later

  Ben stared at himself in the mirror over his sink in the bathroom. For the first time in sixteen years he’d grown a beard and he needed a haircut. Running his hands through the scruff on his face, he decided that it was time to put this heartbreak away and do something about just how much he missed Mary.

  He went downstairs to his living room and saw the mess he still hadn’t cleaned up. His frustration had grown and he and Mary were spending most of their time online together. His home had suffered and the landlord would have a fit if they saw the mess. Picking up a cup, he set it right back down and swore. Nope, he just didn’t care. He’d hire a maid or something.

  Soon after Mary left he’d realized his passport was due to be renewed. He sent it in early thinking that would hurry the process up. It had become lost in the mail. The papers he’d filled out for a new one had also become lost. Three times. He’d considered going back to England for a moment but realized he couldn’t leave without a passport. Would immigration officers in Britain even let him back in? He’d heard horror stories from mates going back and forth. He’d finally made a call to his lawyer.

  Yesterday his new passport hard arrived. The papers he needed to bring Mary over were also in the post. Now he could bring the woman he loved over. She’d been acting odd lately though. She hadn’t turned her camera on in months without a blanket over her or with the angle solely on her face. She’d seemed distant too, as though she weren’t well and she was preoccupied. She insisted she was fine but he knew something was on her mind and that someone who stayed that cold must be quite ill. He knew ill, he knew what being cold all the time meant. He’d gone through it all with his wife.

  Surely Mary would tell him something serious like that, though? She wouldn’t just wither away. She wouldn’t do that to him, he just knew it.

  He had the papers they’d been waiting on now. It was hardly shocking that it had taken this long. Bureaucracy at its finest, he muttered to himself, scratching at his beard. Time to make a decision, he couldn’t wait any longer, something was wrong with Mary, and she wasn’t telling him so he had to go to her obviously!

  Going back to his computer he closed the article he’d been working on and opened the page of flights he stalked every day. He’d talked himself out of buying a ticket since the moment she’d left and he’d finally lost the battle. He could only go to the states for three months before he’d have to leave but it would be worth it. He could wait, apply for a visa and spend thousands for the privilege, but he decided to forego it for now. He just couldn’t stay in Portugal a moment longer. Pulling out his debit card, he started typing.

  * * *

  Mary went through the first trimester of her pregnancy hacking her guts up in between checking her email and pretending she hadn’t spent the morning over the toilet when Ben wanted to hold a video call. They’d spent the last few months fighting for paperwork, waiting, twiddling their thumbs, and Mary tried to creatively hide her growing breasts and stomach. She didn’t gain much weight but her breasts and stomach swelled until she thought she was going to pop.

  Now, she had two weeks left, according to the Ob/Gyn Doc Baker sent her to. The doctor was on standby, just in case, and Mary’s parents wouldn’t leave her on her own. Everything was ready in her room for the baby, she had clothes, diapers, toys, everything the baby would need. Now she just needed Ben. She was going to tell him two days ago, his papers were due, but nothing came from Ben.

  They’d paced, they’d waited, they’d cried during their separation, but now it was almost over. But where had Ben disappeared to? It worried her, had her mother said something? Her mother denied any involvement but still there was no Ben! An ache low in her groin made her wince and stop as she waddled into the kitchen, starting breakfast for her parents. These Braxton-Hicks contractions were a pain in the butt.

  Mary waited for the false contraction to pass then went back to pondering. Maybe he’d finally grown tired of waiting and had decided to pan it all. It was easy to swear loyalty and undying love over the internet. Maybe Ben wasn’t cut out for long distance relationships.

  She hadn’t told him about the baby yet because she wanted him to make a decision for her, not out of some old ideas about chivalry and providing. She was going to definitely tell him but only after they’d decided what they were going to do. And after the papers arrived. Not before, not when he couldn’t even come over to see her if he didn’t run away as fast as he could. She had faith in Ben, she knew he’d take care of his child even if they weren’t together, but she didn’t want him pacing when he couldn’t get to her and she didn’t want him to come solely because of the baby. Now he’d just disappeared. Maybe his internet was out? Or another power cut? Maybe he really had grown sick of it all. International romances weren’t easy.

  Mary winced as another pain hit her, bending over with how bad the pinching sensation felt. What the hell? The doctor had warned her about the pains but she hadn’t warned Mary that they could hurt this bad. Smoothing her hand low over her belly, she decided her parents were having frozen waffles and microwaved sausage for breakfast.

  Throwing the frozen meat into the microwave, Mary tossed some waffles into the toaster and leaned over the counter to wait on the pain to pass. Thoughts of Ben plagued her and even through her pain she knew she wanted some kind of response from him about their life because it was best to find out now, not later when the baby had graduated from college or something along those lines. Holding back her tears, Mary pulled her hair from her eyes and went to answer the knock on the door, trying not to growl about people coming so early. Who the heck was coming to their house so early? It wasn’t even seven o’clock yet!

  “This had better be… Ben?”

  A man with a long beard, wild hair, and a light coat was standing on the porch, his long sleeved shirt not enough to protect him from the cold air or snow. The hair, the beard, the unsuitable clothes did not scream Ben at her. Ben was too organized for that, but those eyes. Those were Ben’s eyes. “Ben?”

  “Mary? What’s, oh my God, what is wrong with you? Why is there water… Mary, get in the house!” Ben was just as shocked. She could see it on his face.

  Looking down at her wet feet, Mary looked at Ben in confusion. What was going on here?

  “Mary, who’s at the door? Shut the door, it’s cold! Ben, is that you?” Lillian’s voice came from around the corner of the living room and she was soon sliding as she stepped in the puddle at Mary’s feet. Ben caught her before she went too far.

  “Mary?” Lillian turned and looked at her daughter. She saw the puddle, the wet front of her daughter’s nightgown, and knew what had happened. “Walter! Get up! It’s time!”

  Lillian guided her daughter to the couch in the living room, told Ben to sit down before he fell down, and pulled Mary’s legs apart to have a peek.

  “Mary, why didn’t you tell us you were in labor, honey?”

  “I thought it was that false labor, I didn’t know, did I? How was I to know? This is my first baby.” Mary’s face flamed as her mother peeked at her privates once more before throwing a blanket over her.

  “Walter, are you on that phone?” Lillian wandered into the bedroom and Mary could hear him on the phone.

  Ben moved over to the couch and stared at Mary. This was obviously not the reception he’d expected. “A baby? Mary?”

  He sat down beside her, taking her hand. He pulled the blanket up and his eyes went round. Yep, that round belly was a good indication of what was happening down… there. “Mary, I think there’s a baby’s head down here.”

  “No! It’s too early! She still has two weeks of baking!” Mary slipped into the phraseology she and her parents had been using for her pregnancy. It had also saved them a few times when someone near the phone or computer mentioned Mary and her baby.

 
; “Baking? Is that why you’ve been baking so much? You’ve been “baking” our baby?” He looked down once more and knew there wasn’t going to be time to get her to a hospital. He didn’t think babies stopped once they got that far out.

  “Ben? You’re here for the important part. The rest can wait. Your daughter is coming whether we’re ready for her or not.” Mary shifted on the couch, moving a rug under her feet and reaching between her legs. “Can you sit behind me Ben? I’ve researched how this is done, just in case we got stuck in here by the snow. Oh my fucking god that hurts so bad!”

  Mary shrieked as the next contraction started and Ben jumped behind her, holding her and stroking her arms. He didn’t know what else to do so he muttered to her about his love, about needing her in his life, about missing her and why he’d come. And as his daughter slid into the world, he stopped talking and just watched.

  Lillian shouted for Walter and a pair of scissors and some cord.

  “We have to wait Mom, until the cord turns white.”

  Mary was exhausted but pleased. “Well, she was determined.”

  “Let’s get her cleaned up and warm, Mary, the ambulance is on the way.”

  Mary didn’t care who was coming or why. Her daughter was here and so was Ben. “She looks just like you, Ben.”

  “She does, it’s incredible. She’s just a little miniature me.” Ben sounded dazed but ecstatic. “My daughter. You’re sure?”

  Mary looked at him but knew she’d only just left a relationship when she’d met him. “Yes, I was making my ex-fiancé wait. He didn’t get the pleasure but you sure did. And look what we have for our efforts.”

  Lillian came back with the baby, her blond hair fuzzy on her head, wrapped in a blanket. “You have a beautiful little girl. Alisha, isn’t it?”

  Albert the dog came out when all the noise quieted down. He might get fed now. The humans were cooing around a little bundle of puppy-human and more people came in, demanding to see the new mother. Albert knew he wasn’t getting fresh food in his bowl and went back to his warm bed in Mary’s bedroom. He’d find Walter later, when it was quieter outside.