After the Dream

by Stan Mason

  ‘You don’t really know how old I am, do you? She challenged with a smile touching her lips.

  ‘To me you look about twenty-seven or twenty-eight,’ he told her smartly believing it to be near the truth.

  ‘I’m almost forty-four,’ she revealed although she didn’t know why she was being so candid with the man.

  ‘Wow!’ he exclaimed shaking his head. ‘You really are a stunner. Do you know that? A real stunner. If I’d met you instead of my first wife I reckon we’d still be together. But that’s how the cookie crumbles.’

  ‘But you wouldn’t have enjoyed yourself so much with your second and third wives,’ she fired back at him.

  He burst into laughter and shook his head. ‘What makes you think I enjoyed myself with them? I was a fool....a complete fool! A pretty face and I fell for it. Do you know why women suck up to me? It’s because they want to get into movies and become stars. That’s the only reason. And I was nuts to think they were in love with me.’

  ‘Now there’s a tale that Shakespeare would have loved to write about,’ she returned, admiring his good looks.

  ‘The difference is you’re not one of those dumb blondes I married. You’ve got poise and style and you’re intelligent. I could live my life with you very happily. I know it.’

  ‘Well the invitation was for dinner....nothing more.’

  He burst into laughter again. ‘Gee, you play hard, Diana,’ he told her jokingly, ‘and you have humour as well. I like that. You have everything a man could want.’ His hands moved across the table to take hold of her hands. ‘And whatsmore, you’re beautiful...really beautiful.’

  It was evident that he was ecstatic about her but it was a one-way street. She couldn’t possibly fall in love with a man who had married and divorced two women and was about to do the same to his third wife....whatever the reason. It was inconceivable! For a while she did dwell on the idea of having a brief romantic affair with him but there was a serious problem which could emerge to cause her great difficulty. Lawyers had already been employed to undertake his current divorce. If she became involved with him, she might be quoted as a correspondent in the case. He was a well-known figure in the film industry. As soon as the facts were revealed, she might well be quoted in the litigation as a women committing adultery with Greg by a detective employed by his third wife. It was too dangerous to become seriously involved regardless of what the man had to offer her. She could well do without the hassle. She would act in his film but, despite his worldly charm, his good looks, and the way she really felt about him, that would be the end of it.

  * * *

  Diana stayed on in America with her sister for a further two months, travelling to San Diego, the ghost town of Calico, the Grand Canyon and, Hoover Dam before spending three days I n Las Vegas. The trip to the United States had proved to be exciting in every way. In addition, she was staying with the rest of her family and they had been very kind to her. The main concern about imposing on her sister were very wide of the mark but there was always a right time to leave and Diana decided that it had finally arrived. She would let her sister, Mac and their children enjoy their own space and the peace of their home by themselves. During the period of her stay, she went out with Greg a number of times. He had tried his utmost to create a relationship with her but Diana would have nothing of it. She actually allowed him to hold her and kiss her many times fully on the lips and he fondled her intimately on a few occasions but, at the back of her mind a little imp danced about vigorously telling her that on no account must she succumb to his whims. Nonetheless, she had to admit that the kissing and fondling, the gentle touching of her body intimately, were much to her liking, making her feel like a real woman again. On occasion, it was all she could do to prevent herself throwing caution to the winds, let her inhibitions run wild, and throw herself at him. But it had to come to an end. When she told him of her decision to return to England he appeared to be devastated but she regarded his attitude as a mixture of good acting as well as part of his charm. He begged her to come back to Los Angeles in the near future, promising her a much bigger role in his next film. Not surprisingly she declined the offer for a number of reasons yet she felt an emotion of sadness for him. When all was said and done, he had married three times and would shortly be divorced again which meant that he had to suffer three separate periods of unhappiness and rejection. Such damaging incidents took their toll on people’s lives even though they pretended to overcome them in due course. It was emotional baggage they were forced to carry for the rest of their natural lives.

  On arrival at Heathrow Airport, she was met by her son, Robbie, who hugged her dearly and kissed her on the cheek.

  ‘You really live the high life, don’t you , mother?’ he began, relieved that she had arrived back safely. ‘You can’t fool me. I’ve been talking to Aunt Laura about your antics.’

  ‘You rang your aunt?’ she questioned with surprise as he picked up her suitcase and they walked towards his car.

  ‘She told me you were an up-and-coming film star,’ he went on, opening the door on the passenger’s side for her.

  ‘Hardly that!’ she retorted flatly. ‘I was in the film for about ten seconds.’

  He drove off with a smile touching his lips. ‘My mother a film

  star,’ he rambled on. ‘I can’t wait to see the disc. I’ve never thought of you as an actress.’

  She laughed at his enthusiasm. ‘I hope you’re not going to expect much,’ she said with humility although in her mind her esteem bgan to rise with the unexpected fame.

  ‘One day,’ he predicted with a laugh, ‘I’ll expect to see your name up thee in lights and a star with your name on it outside Mann’s Theatre in Hollywood.’

  She struck him lightly on his shoulder in mock anger. ‘Don’t be silly!’ she chided.

  When they arrived at her house, she waded through a mass of letters laying in the hallway. Most of them were confirmation of bills that were paid for by her husband together with lost of junk mail. She herded them all together and placed them on the telephone table in the hall. Then she opened her suitcase, removed the disc of her in the film, and played it for her son in the lounge. As he watched it, which was only a ten-second clip, he clapped his hands with joy.

  ‘Will that be in the film?’ he asked, laughing heartily at the sight of his mother as an actress.

  ‘I’ve been told that it’s the highlight,’ she joked, enjoying the expression on his face. ‘Everything revolves around that scene. Now I’m sure you’ve got better things to do while I unpack.’

  ‘I’m going to watch it a few more times and then I’ve got to go,’ he told her. ‘Stella’s expecting me in half an hour. ‘We think she might be pregnant. We’re not certain yet. How will it feel to be a grandmother?’

  Although she was delighted with the news, she screwed up her face at the idea unsure whether to like the term. A grandmother....it made her sound so old. There was no doubt that she was pleased for Robbie even though he was uncertain whether Stella was pregnant or not. He left shortly afterwards and she went into her bedroom to unpack. She reflected on her visit to America and her sister’s family. Suddenly a vision came into her mind of herself and a much younger Laura making-up in front of a mirror in their bedroom. At the time they were seventeen and fifteen years old respectively and both of them were going to separate parties that evening. She viewed the image calmly as they dressed in clothes she had long forgotten they had worn. As they giggled with their efforts, she rearranged Laura’s hair in front of the mirror. Se didn’t know how long the memory lasted but when she returned to normality she mused on the vision hoping that it would be one of many. In some ways her memory was beginning to come back.

  She went downstairs to sort out the mail and found one letter with a strange postage stamp. She looked at it more closely to determine that the postmark stated Morocco. She
frowned as she opened it, wondering if it had been sent by Dr. Mahmoud but she was mistaken. To her surprise it was from Ahmed. He had written to her pouring out his heart to expunge the guilt he obviously carried on his shoulders.

  Dear Diana.

  I felt I had to write to you to apologise for my rudeness

  when you came to see me. I now understand that you came

  as a friend and I rebuffed you horribly. It was very wrong

  of me. You are indeed one of my good friends and I shall

  Welcome you most sincerely when you come to Agadir

  again. Please forgive me for my actions. Keep me for ever

  in your heart and in your mind.

  Sincerely and affectingly, Ahmed.

  She placed the letter down on the table smiling as she did so. It was so touching to receive the apology from him that tears began to form in her eyes, What had caused him to write such a letter? Surely it wasn’t simple friendship! It mattered little to her if she never saw him again and had believed that he felt the same way. So what prompted him to write to her? Sincerely and affectionately he had ended. Affectionately? She was confused. They didn’t love each other....she couldn’t with all the barriers between them, so why should he write that? Puzzled about his attitude towards her, she went into the lounge and turned on the television to watch an old film that had just started. The theme was about a scientist who was experimenting on how he could keep people looking younger, setting them on a course for a life of eternity. Diana wondered if Dr. Mahmoud had seen the film because it was exactly his aim. As the film rambled on, Diana fell asleep. When she awoke, she sat looking puzzled. Carol singers were outside singing and the room was quite cold. She went to the door and listened to the carol, placing a few coins in their collection box.

  ‘A merry Christmas,’ called out one of the singers as they went on their way.

  ’Christmas?’ muttered Diana in a muffled voice. ‘What are you talking about?’

  ‘It’s Christmas Eve, ma’am,’ came the reply. ‘A merry Christmas and a happy new year.’

  She went back inside and sat on the settee trying to get her head into gear. Everything was so different. It was Christmas Eve....what had happened to the rest of the year?

  If Diana thought that the festival would be a dull run-of-the mill event she was to be very much mistaken. Fate had decided to take a hand and intended to turn her world upside down. The house was decorated very sparsely mainly because it was too large and also because the children had grown up and had left to lives elsewhere. However in one corner of the lounge stood a small Christmas tree embellished with many coloured baubles and small bulbs which set it alight. A modicum of other decorations covered the front windows of the house but nothing more. After a while she pulled herself together and decided against watching television sitting back to read a magazine. Shortly the door opened and Robbie entered hold a small box in his hand.

  ‘Hi, Mom!’ he greeted cheerfully. ‘How are you today?’

  ‘As usual, Robbie. Is all well with you?’

  He nodded and poured himself a cup of coffee from the jug on the coffee-table drinking it greedily. Then he handed her the small box with a grin on his face.

  ‘What’s this?’ she asked with a puzzled expression on her face..

  ‘It’s your Christmas present from Stella and me,’ he told her. ‘I hope you like it. You can open it now if you like. It’s not as though you have to wait until Christmas morning.’

  She tore off the wrapping and opened the box to stare at a pair of very expensive ear-rings. ‘Oh they’re lovely....really lovely. Thank you so much.’

  He felt into his inside pocket to produce another present. ‘I didn’t bother to wrap it because it’s only a diary,’ he told her passing it to her.

  She opened it to examine the pages and then burst into laughter. Robbie looked at her totally perplexed.

  ‘They may a real faux-pas here,’ she laughed. ‘They’ve put the wrong year in. It’s ten years ahead. Now that is a big mistake. I wonder how many diaries they produced incorrectly. Someone should have pointed out the error before they sold them.’

  Her son took back the diary to examine it closely. ‘No, mother,’ he returned. ‘It’s correct. That’s the date for next year.’

  ‘But it can’t be,’ she said with a worrying though crossing her mind. ‘When I left the hospital in Agadir, I remembered the date most clearly.’

  He paused to think how to tell her the truth. ‘Mother, you left hospital in Agadir ten years ago.’

  ‘What about my treatment with Dr. Mahmoud?’

  ‘You’ve been going back to Agadir every six months. Don’t you remember?’ The room fell silent as her head went into a spin. ‘You came to my wedding with Stella eight years ago. Jack was born two years later.’

  ‘Jack?’ she echoed dumbly. ‘Who’s Jack?’

  ‘He’s your grandson. You’re a grandmother!’

  A grandmother! What had happened that ten years had passed. She didn’t remember a moment of it. She had been forty-three years of age....now she was fifty-three! My God, it was a quarter of her life gone in the blink of an eye.

  ‘I think you might have caught me at a bad moment,’ she managed to say as she tried to recover.

  He took a photograph from his pocket to show her. ‘He’s a fine lad. I think he has your eyes and chin.’ He stood up and went to the door. ‘Don’t forget. You’re having Christmas dinner with us tomorrow. I’ll pick you up at noon. I‘ll see you then.’ He closed the door behind him and left the house.

  Diana sat in shock for quite a while. Ten years had gone by. How could that have happened? It was impossible. Not only did she have amnesia but it was encroaching on the present day. It had to be either the Beotag or the ferradil-x tablets. There could be no other reason.

  She went upstairs into her bedroom to stare at herself in the full-length mirror. She looked exactly the same as she always did. Smooth silk skin like alabaster....not a wrinkle or any sign of ageing apparent....and a beautiful figure that most women would die for. And now she was fifty-three! She recalled nothing of going to Agadir every six months...nothing about Robbie’s wedding or the birth of her grandson. She considered that she would enjoy meeting them on Christmas Day. In her own mind it would be the first time she saw Stella and her son Jack. If only she could get her head around the fact that ten years had gone by unnoticed. The shock of it would remain with her for some time.

  Chapter Thriteen

  Diana struggled gamely to come to terms with the loss of ten years of her life as she stood in the kitchen preparing her breakfast the next morning. Then the doorbell rang and she went to answer the call. It was Samantha standing on the doorstep with a worried expression on her face.

  ’I’ve been trying to get hold of you for ages,’ she began anxiously. ’You seemed to be away for a long time.’

  ’Tell me about it,’ countered Diana ruing the loss of time in her life. ’Come in side and tell me what’s going on?’ She led her into the lounge and they both sat down.

  ’It’s not good news I’m afraid.,’ related Samantha starting to become upset. ’Gloria’s got cancer and it’s pretty much advanced. She knew that she had it but didn’t tell anyone. Now she’s terminal.’

  ’I’m so sorry to hear that,’ responded Diana with sympathy. ’How has she taken it?’

  ’Badly I’m afraid. Very much to heart as you can imagine. It was bound to knock her for six.’

  Diana shook her head slowly. ’How old is she?’

  ’About sixty-two I think. She’s still relatively young.’ Tears began to well up in Samantha’s eyes.

  ’Can anything be done about it?

  ’They say it’s terminal but who knows whether they’re right or wrong?’

  ’They do wonders with chem
otherapy and radiation treatment these days,’ advanced Diana meaningfully.

  Samantha nodded in agreement. ’I heard last week about a man who had a brain tumour. The doctor gave him three months to live and the tumour simply disappeared. They don’t know how it happened. It’s a complete mystery. So they’re not always right.’

  ’I know a man in Morocco who might be able to help her,’ suggested Diana offering a modicum of hope. ’He has a great record when it comes to curing cancer patients.’

  The other woman raised her hand pitifully. ’You know what Gloria thinks about people abroad. She xenophobic....hates foreigners. She wouldn’t travel there even if she believed that your man might cure her.

  ‘That’s stupid. I’m going to visit the same doctor in a week’s time. She could travel with me.’ Samantha shook her head slowly. ’Can’t we visit her and make her see sense?’

  ’She won’t listen to us. You know what she’s like.’

  Diana considered her own situation. What would Samantha say if she revealed her secret to her? She would obviously think that she was out of her mind... mad... completely mad! For that reason she bit her lower lip and said nothing. It was sad news about Gloria but if the woman refused to place herself in Dr. Mahmoud’s hands there was nothing she could do about it. He was so good at healing cancer patients She recalled the situation of Betty Naylor at the hospital who had been cured by him. But then, if Gloria refused to travel abroad, there was really no hope for her. She would simply be left to die. How difficult it was for people who contracted deadly diseases or who were disabled in the world. There was only hardship, pain and suffering for all of them.

  Chapter Fourteen

  A few months passed by and it was time for Diana to fly back to Morocco to see Dr. Mahmoud again. Her diary was empty so she didn’t bother to take it with her. She wondered how the doctor was coping with the experiment after all these years and was eager to hear more about his work. However, the journey was not without incident. The aircraft was flying at thirty-two thousand feet over France when, much to the surprise of the other passengers, she suddenly stood up in the aisle, her body trembling, shouting “Buses!” The image in her mind was a past experience when she and Laura were hurrying to school one day. Carrying their satchels, they had run for a bus, which in those days had a driver and a conductor, and Diana managed to get on to the bus helped by the conductor. Laura who was running behind her stopped watching the bus disappear without her into the distance. Consequently, Laura was late getting there and had to do an hour’s detention after school was over.