Amour and Douleur | Complete

Amour and Douleur

"Peggy, I've been thinking. . ." began Marty Brown. He sat on a neglected love seat in the lobby of a hotel in Hawaii. The love-seat was a disturbing gray color; Marty had been thinking it may have originally been white but had dulled in color over time. Marty was on a honeymoon with his new wife, Peggy, in Honolulu. So far, they had visited two aquariums with breathtaking sharks, pink jellyfish, shining fish, and much more. But now, they were doing nothing, which provided opportunity for Marty to think further ahead into his future.

"Marty, honey, it is rude to just stop in mid sentence," said Peggy, eager to hear what her husband was thinking. A tropical visit to a rain-forest came to her mind. Brightly colored parrots flew from tree to tree. Colorful tree frogs sang. Marty holding her close in a banquet of sunlight.

"I've been thinking that I'd like to. . . murder," Marty wiped the sweat from his brow.

"Oh dear, baby, have you been drinking?" asked Peggy, concern quickly spreading throughout her face.

"No, no, Honey, I can't fight the urge! I want to plot and have the joy of succeeding. . ." said Marty.

"I'm calling the doctor," said Peggy. She set her chipped cup of cold tea on the coffee table and approached the old phone hung on the wall in the corner of the lobby.

"Sugar, I'm fine!" said Marty. The man behind the desk put his stack of papers down and left.

"Trust me, this is for your own good!" said Peggy. She jerked the phone from the wall and dialed. Marty approached her but she gave him a warning look and he stopped, his hands on his sides. Peggy put the telephone to her ear.

"Hello. . .yes. . . he thinks he needs to murder someone. . . yes. . . yes. . .no . . .yes . . .OK . . .Mental issue? Saturday?. . . now?!. . .Marty Brown . . .my husband. . .thanks!"

"Okay, Marty, they are ready now! Come, come." said Peggy, smiling, pretending all was well.

"I can't. . .they will call me insane. I'm not going." said Marty.

"You have to."

"I'm sorry but,"

"Marty, please!" tears spilled from Peggy's eyes like tiny crystals of fear and anger and sadness. Rolling like tiny stones down her rosy red cheeks.

Marty stood and proceeded towards the lobby door. "You leave me no choice, Peg,"

"Marty please!!!" Peggy wiped her eyes with her fists. Anger and fear and sadness consumed her.

19 years later

A man. A baby. A woman. The baby cries and delivers his bowl of milk and cereal to the floor. The woman does not pause to see how the cloudy silhouette on the floor appears to be a perfect cat with its back arched and its tail high. Instead, she washes the floor with her red apron. The man smiles and the woman smiles back. She bounces down carpeted stairs to a laundry room where she inserts the wet apron into the washer.

The man and the woman and the baby all sit on the couch, the baby slobbering on the woman's lap.

"Peggy," said the man, quite suddenly, "look at this!"

"I am, Jason, I am," said Peggy. A man in a cream colored suit sat behind a glass desk on the screen. He spoke in a low voice.

"Today, the police investigated a crime scene, the murder of Darwin Harper. Darwin Harper's loyal coworker, Toby Robbin, has joined us to express what he feels about his lost friend."

"Thank you, Henry. I am happy to be here this beautiful morning. My friend and coworker, Darwin Harper was innocently walking through a path in between cubicles. A masked man jumped out from one of the cubicles and stabbed him through the heart. I was there. It was the most horrible sight of my life. I recall crying and crying and crying. Luckily, my lovely wife Marge, was there every step of that morning and night." said Toby. He wiped a tear from his eyes.