Managing
Shelley J Alongi

 

It was 3:45 PM on a Thursday when Anne parked her car in her driveway. The sky labored under a thick layer of fog, the cool air wet and heavy as she stepped out of her car and threw a brown canvas bag over her shoulder. She was glad to be home. It had been a hard day. School disciplinary actions had been taken, budget cuts had been announced. She needed an evening to relax; she needed to simply unwind.

Andrew would be getting home tonight from playing air taxi for a group of businessmen who wanted to take the expensive way to a conference. She would be glad. Sometimes just seeing him was comforting. She had made all the decisions and run the house; all was pretty much in order.

Anne stepped up the path to the familiar door and opened it. She let the door swing inward, the house was warm and welcoming. She stepped inside, shrugged out of her coat. It had been a cold day today; the thermometer hadn�t climbed above 65 degrees all day and now her bones were chilled. The warmth of the house sank in and she was grateful for it. She shut the door behind her, hung her coat in the closet so it would be ready for tomorrow. She hung her purse there and her keys. She turned into the kitchen, washed out her coffee mug, put away her lunch dishes. She removed the butter and cheese and cold cuts and small produce items from her canvas bag and put them in the refrigerator. The canvas bag went in it�s usual place in a deep drawer under her kitchen cabinet.

Already her heart was lighter, there was just something about this place that could renew her spirits. She stepped into the living room and turned on the light. She stepped back, seeing a silhouette curled on the couch. It couldn�t be! She stepped in closer and smiled in delight. Her husband lay curled on the couch, sleeping. He obviously had gotten home early! She stood for a moment and turned out the light again; she wanted to drink in his position here; his head gently against the pillow, the blonde hair over his forehead. His body hugged the couch as if utterly and overwhelmingly exhausted. She got a closer look at the brown eyes; they were closed peacefully; his breathing was easy. She stood for a moment, tears filling her eyes. Had God been good to her? Seeing his gentle face here was reassuring in itself; bills would get paid, life would be good. She glanced quickly around having missed his flight bag in the corner. It stood in it�s usual place; worn with use, comfortable. She came in, gently stepped to the couch careful not to step on his fingers. His hand had fallen to the floor in sleep. She knelt beside him, let her hand lovingly caress his cheek, rest above his eyes, trace the scar that was the reminder of their fateful meeting twenty years earlier.

�Hey you,� she said gently. She stayed there watching him sleep, putting her hand on his chest, feeling it�s confident slight movements. He breathed deeply; she reverenced this moment almost as if she were in church, she felt his warm hair. He had been here a while. She moved to his face, kissed it. The gentle touch of her lips on his skin made him stir and he opened his eyes, looked around. She gently smoothed back his hair.

�Hi, Andrew,� she said softly. �You got back early!�

The pilot turned and looked at her.

�Annie.�

His voice was hoarse with sleep, his eyes sparkled.

�Hello stranger. You are back early.�

�Yeah.�

He lifted his hands and rubbed at the sleep in his eyes.

�What time is it�

�It�s 4:00, honey. You didn�t call me to come get you?�

�We got back about 1:00. I knew you were in the middle of class. It was early. Karl drove me home.�

�You must be tired,� she said gently, rubbing his head again. �You didn�t make it upstairs.�

�Long flight,� he said easily, stretching. He sat up and patted his knee. She sat next to him. She hugged his warmth; he put his head on her shoulder.

�Careful,� she said, �you�re going to be asleep.�

�Tired,� he said. �I�m going upstairs in a minute.�

�Of course you are.�

Just the thought of her husband being at home in bed was comforting. She turned and brushed his cheek with her lips.

�Glad you�re back,� she said, �welcome home. I love you. Come on, let�s put you to bed.�

She slipped her hand into his. Sleep still lay heavily in his face. Somehow it made him look youthful; boyish; it became him. She helped him to his feet and walked upstairs with him. He walked sluggishly into the room, undressed with fumbling, unsteady hands. He stood in his shorts, a bit confused. She led him like a child to their bed; she had pulled the blankets back. He sat down, swung his feet over the side, lay back onto the pillows. Anne suddenly felt like joining him, but she had some work to do. It really wouldn�t take so long to do the work, it was just that seeing him pull the sheets over him made her think of how tired she was. Andrew lifted his head; caught her eye.

�You wake me up?�

�What time?� she asked turning reluctantly to leave the room.

�Be sure I�m up by 6:00 tomorrow morning.�

It was ritual. He always got up; there really was no way to fight jet lag, but he would get up and unpack and work on things for an hour or two before going back to bed. Somehow he had made this system work for him.

�Sure. That�s when I get up,� she said. �Oh, Andrew,� she said gently as his eyes closed and he drifted off to sleep, �I�m very happy to see you.�

Anne sitting at her computer typing frantically or at a more leisurely pace was glad that Andrew was upstairs. It seemed to make the evening go more quickly. She could not solve all the state�s problems with one evening and she had, over the years, become an excellent financial manager. Andrew had helped her immensely with this task. Both on their own before marriage, it was now impossible to think of them ever not having been together. The confidence Anne gained while alone still showed up in the way she ran her life. She was, it seemed a very confident woman. She was indeed confident; she loved her job and she loved her husband. She sat there listening to music and deciding she had read enough for now. So she got to her feet and shut down her computer. Making sure all was in order, Anne walked across the beige carpet and out of the office. A singular quiet enveloped her. She could hear a clock ticking in the hall and she could see the pictures of she and Andrew going to the airport; their picture of flights, they were a good couple. They were deeply in love. Now she wanted to join him in his moments of peaceful slumber. She gently walked into the bedroom. All was quiet there. She looked over at her husband sleeping so gently under the covers. His face seemed to radiate new life as he slept. She had always liked his smiling eyes and the way his mouth gently curved, but today he seemed wearier than usual. She wanted to reach out; to touch his face, to feel the stubble on his cheek, to kiss the gentle wrinkles under his eyes. He looked pleasant enough there; calm, quiet, reassuring. He was a happy man; he had arrived home early and had been welcomed into the arms of his home by a heater set to seventy degrees and a clean house. Heavy-eyed, fatigued beyond belief, he had thought to only sit on the couch for a few moments, but his head had fallen back and he had fallen instantly asleep, the hand of his wife waking him three hours later. Now he turned gently under the sheets, his body sprawled in it�s comfortable position, stretching further as his body heat and the comforting blankets warmed him. Anne knew that his back might be tense from sitting so long in the cockpit. She undressed quickly, put her things away and gladly got into bed beside him. The bed was warm where he had lain for so many hours. She moved gently to him, curled up beside him. She placed her sock-clad feet on his knees. He only turned slightly, allowing her to cuddle next to him. She leaned over to him, stroked the warm hair on his head, let her fingers stray to his face, lay gently above his eyebrow. He did not stir. She leaned back on her pillow in his warmth and then she gently laid her hand on the small of his back and gently caressed it. She kissed his neck. He lay still; deeply sleeping. She began to relax. When she woke gently his head was on her breast, his hand curled on his knee. His arm was heavy and reassuring; warm, quiet, kind.

�Andrew?� she breathed to no one.

�Hmmm.�

�You awake?�

�Not yet,� he said sleepily and returned to his quiet state. Anne didn�t� want to look at the clock; it would mean turning away from him and so she just lay there and would listen to the mantle clock tell her the time. She would hear it from the hall downstairs. She liked that clock; it signified their years of peace together. Her fingers still lay on his back; she gently caressed it again and slept. She loved the idea of these moments; with him. He turned easily, his heavy eyes opening.

�What time is it?� he asked sleepily.

�It�s 11:00, honey.� She rubbed his back.

�Does your back hurt?�

He sighed.

�A little. Manageable.�

�Well,� she smiled and placed the palm of her hand between the sheet and his warm, smooth skin. �Go back to sleep, sweetie. It�s not 6:00 yet.�

�I know.�

She kissed him; her lips found his cheek, caressed his skin, her mouth easing along the seductively rough cheek. He lay quietly, his eyes half opened. She loved his eyes half open, they were gentle and brown, and lovely. He let his lips curl into a smile; serious-eyed he wasn�t tonight. �Hey, Annie.� He moved a little in order to get the full benefit of her hand; it felt like a gentle massaging breeze. �Next time I�ll bring you in the cockpit with me.�

�Yeah,� she said, teasing, �and I�m sure the insurance guys would love that! No liabilities here!�

Andrew tensed only slightly; then he chuckled; a gentle laugh that said he could care less about that right now.

�You�re no liability, Annie. You�re an asset!�

He stretched lazily.

�I don�t think,� he said catching her eye, �I can sleep till 6:00.�

�And what would you like to do?�

The pilot smiled a little, unwilling to give up this position.

�Oh,� he said a bit mischievously, �I didn�t have anything in mind.�

�Sure you didn�t. Just tell me what you want.�

Andrew snuggled closer. She welcomed him to her. She took his slack hands, moved to allow him more room, placed his fingers on her breasts. She smiled a little. He made to move his hands away; they lay gently on the smooth skin, resting lightly; she could feel the warmth pulsing through the roughness of his hands from doing his own maintenance, sometimes. He wasn�t aggressive, he eased his fingers along her breasts, feeling the curve, the rings around the nipples, claiming what was his. She helped him; he was easy, gentle, finally together, working as a team, he sighed in great relief, his head on her breast.

�Now what?� she said into his ear, feeling it�s warmth on her lips. His mouth answered her question, and gently led her till he turned his head and laid it gently on her shoulder. Her arms lay across his back, her fingers still at the small; his weight laying heavily on one of her legs; she moved slightly.

�Sorry,� he said easily, gently, moving himself from her. Andrew placed his warm hands on her waste. The covers tangled about them and she kicked them off and moved to him. He put her head on his chest.

�Sleepy?� he asked her, his own passions eased.

�A little. Hard day.�

�Was it?�

They liked to talk after their intimate moments, even when Andrew was tired. It usually lulled him to sleep.

�Meeting,� she said gently. �Budget cuts and things like that. It�s not a terrible thing but a little stressful.�

�Someone lost their job, honey?�

�I think I might lose mine. I don�t know yet. Kind of all up in the air depending on the new signing. Maybe.�

�Hmmm,� said the pilot, �and you could work for another school, of course.�

�I don�t know; it�s all up in the air; for now I�ve got a job. I can think about that later.�

�My Annie, you always think of something.�

He hugged her gently.

�It�s why I love you. You always think of something.�

Anne curled up with him; he wasn�t the richest man in the world but somehow they managed to get through the stresses of life. If she lost her job, they would manage. They would see to it.

�It will be fine. I love you.�

�Hmm,� he said. And what else?�

�nothing new; overstaffing; work�s really fine except that. The roses are fine. Anna is fine.�

�Anna?�

�Your student girl.�

�Not a student anymore,� he said with a sense of accomplishment. �heard her in the traffic pattern today.�

�Really.�

�Hmmm. Wanted to say something to her but didn�t. ATC was busy today.�

�She came into the airport?�

�No.�

�Where was she going?�

�Not sure, exactly. She was just transitioning that�s it. She said good afternoon and gave her number. I know that number.�

�On your way back?�

�yes.�

She caught him up on life and then her eyes were heavy.

�My girl�s a tired girl,� he said, moving his hand gently to her face, to her neck. �Go to sleep.�

�Andrew,� she said gently.

�Hmmm.�

�I�m glad your back.�

 

 

Copyright © 2004 Shelley J Alongi
Published on the World Wide Web by "www.storymania.com"