Home » The Archives » Chapter 5 » Learning to Live in Paradise
| Re: Learning to Live in Paradise [message #1358 is a reply to message #1357] |
Thu, 26 July 2012 20:20   |
artisticrainey
Messages: 1228
Registered: July 2012
Location: Northern Ireland
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Field Commander
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Friday 13 April 2065, 10.45am local time, Tracy Airbase Hospital, Kansas
The day had gone in far too fast. Since when did it take five minutes to fly from the South Pacific to Kansas? And at what other time had been seen right away in a hospital? Wasn't this sort of thing supposed to take hours? But no, having the Tracys on your side apparently meant swift service. He wasn't sure whether it was a good or a bad thing. Body surgery was one thing. Eye surgery was something entirely different.
"You look a little scared, if you don't mind my saying," Dianne said from her seat beside him.
Dominic shrugged and tried to loosen the death grip he had on the chair's arm. It wasn't happening.
"I've never had surgery done before. I mean, I've assisted thousands of times but I've never actually gone under the knife, as the saying goes. And my eyes... I keep saying to myself, what if something goes wrong? But then, they're a bit useless as they are, so it wouldn't make much of a difference."
"Nothing will go wrong, Dom. These are trained professionals who've been doing this for years. It'll be fine, I promise you."
A young nurse appeared from inside the surgery room and glanced down at her notepad, and then over at them.
"Dominic Kelly?" Dom nodded, and the nurse looked at Dianne over the top of her glasses, a slight twist in her lips. "Ah, yes, the observer. Well, come on through. Doctor Houston is ready."
Dominic caught the slightly offended look on Dianne's face, but said nothing. She assisted him into the surgery room, because he very nearly walked into the wall, and he squinted and tried to make out the surgeon.
"Ah, hello there my friends."
Dominic spun around and saw a white blob behind him.
"I'm Doctor Houston. You've made a good choice with surgery. We'll have you seeing as well as anything in just one hour!"
Something about the man made Dom feel uneasy. Why does he remind me of someone... He shrugged aside the thought and climbed up onto the bed when he was told to.
"Thank you very much for allowing me to observe this surgery, Doctor Houston," Dianne said. "I've never seen this kind of thing done before."
"For a doctor of such renown, how could I have refused?" Ha said. "I've heard a lot about you, Doctor Tracy, and all of it good."
Dianne graciously took the compliment, and Dominic tried to remember who he sounded like. If only he could see him!
"Well, I assume you were briefed at your earlier appointment with the optometrist, so I won't bore you with the details again. Just to recap, I'm going to cut a flap in your cornea, and you'll be seeing wonderfully afterwards. We're actually going to have another observer in. She'll be along in a moment. A trainee, you know. My daughter, actually! Now, for the aesthetic."
Soon, Dominic found himself practically strapped in to the reclining chair, with the monstrous machinery pulled around and ready to go. Doctor Houston had numbed him eyes and cleaned the area, and they were waiting. Thoughts were rushing around his mind, and he gripped the chair more out of fear of the identity of this woman, than fear of the surgery. His heart pounded; he could feel sweat upon his face. It can't be, It can't be, it can't be...
"Ah, here she is. Doctor Tracy, Dominic, meet Margaret Houston, my daughter. She's training to be an optical surgeon too."
"Good morning," the woman said.
Dominic's heart broke. It was her. How could he forget that voice? Those dulcet tones, that gracious voice. If only he could see her properly, if only he could know for sure.
"Let's crack on, shall we?"
The surgery was over before Dominic knew it; only ten minutes per eye. He had barely even noticed. Everything had fallen away from him except the ache in his heart. It was her. It was her.
"Now, I'm just going to put these protectors over your eyes. We don't want you straining to see and undoing all my good work now do we? Come back in an hour and we'll remove them, and then, you'll see!" He chuckled at him own joke.
Dominic cursed the wait. He needed to see now, he needed to know. Dianne helped him up and took his elbow, leading him out of the room.
"Dom?" She asked. "You don't seem too happy here. What's wrong?"
"What did she look like?" He asked, more sharply than he had intended. "His daughter, Margaret, what did she look like?"
"Uh, long blonde hair, skinny, big eyes. And one thing: a big meteor of an engagement ring on her finger." Dianne said. "Why?"
"Did she have a beauty spot on her left cheek, just on the bone, down from the corner of her eye?"
"Why, yes, she did. How did you...?"
Dominic hung his head, wishing he could press his palms to his eyes.
"Dom? You're scarin' me a little heah."
"That was Margaret Houston, my wife."
There was stony silence between the two of them. Dominic threaded his fingers through his hair and tugged, trying to force the sick fear and abject sorrow back down where it had been before.
"Oh my," Dianne said at length. "Ah c'n see it now. She's Joshua's mother, isn't she? Ah c'n see it now. Oh Dom, Ah didn't know. You nevah told us."
"I know, I know," he said. "I was trying to forget it all. She only married me because she was pregnant, and her parents would have killed her. I was head over heels for her. She asked me to propose and I did. Bought her the biggest rock I could afford, which wasn't much. We got married without them knowing. Her plan was to bring me home as the love of her life, and hopefully they would understand. But she knew deep down that they wouldn't, and asked for a divorce six months into the marriage. A few weeks later she had Joshua, packed up her things, and walked out on me. She didn't even care about the baby. At least I got the ring back. I should have sold it, but I still have it." Dominic tugged harder on his hair and shook his head. "That was the first time I ever met her father. They still don't know we were ever married." His lips curled in a snarl as anger flared up. "Part of me wants to blow it all, reveal her little secret, let her see Joshua so she knows what she's missed. But... I can't. I...I still love her. I'm such a fool."
Dianne placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed.
"Yoah not a fool, Dom. Love does this t' people. Ah'm a little overwhelmed by all this," she said, and said no more.
The hour passed in a moment, and when Dominic found himself in the room again, he was trying to sense Margaret's presence. It'll be better if you don't see her, Dom, he thought, because otherwise you'll just make a fool of yourself.
"Ready to see?" Doctor Houston asked. At Dominic's nod, he began the removal of the protective shields. It was painstakingly careful work, and seemed to take an age. Dominic's heart was pounding so heart he thought it would burst out of his chest. Just concentrate on what's happening here, he said, you'll be able to see, at long last. No more glasses. He felt Houston cover his eyes with his hand, shading his vision.
"Now, I'm going to very slowly take my hand away. Ready?"
Dominic nodded, and as the hand was removed, the world exploded into shape and line, detail and sharpness that he could never remember seeing before unaided.
"Oh my God. Oh my sweet Jesus. I can see!"
He could make out everything, and touched his face to make sure the glasses weren't there. But the joy was only pure for a moment, and he found himself searching for Margaret. She wasn't there. He turned to the Doctor Houston and smiled at him despite the pain and his resemblance to his daughter.
"Thank you, Doctor," he said, though he wished he could say, I hate your daughter, I hate her. "This is... This is fantastic."
Houston beamed and clapped his hands.
"Ah, always the best part of the job, am I right, Doctor Tracy?"
"Absolutely," Dianne said, smiling at Dom's joy.
"Margaret!" Houston called. "Come in here! This is the real payment."
Margaret walked in. Dominic seriously thought he was going to throw up. There she was, his only ever love, the woman who had tramped all over his heart, used him, left him. She didn't even seem to know him. She had always been a good actress.
"You see that joy, Margaret? Some day you'll be able to give that to someone."
"Yes, Doctor," she said. Her eyes lingered on Dom for a moment, but she had to look away.
The nurse from earlier popped her head around the door and adjusted her glasses.
"Your twelve-thirty is waiting, Doctor," she said.
"Very good, very good," Houston said, and stepped forward to shake Dominic's and then Dianne's hands. "As I'm sure you were told already, there may be some slight pain. Ah, I see you've got some weeping. That'll clear up in a few hours."
"Thank you, Doctor," Dominic said.
Houston smiled widely, and showed them back out into the waiting room. Dominic didn't stop walking, and Dianne hurried to catch up. Finally he could see, at last he had what he had always wanted. And what was one of the first things his new vision brought him? An aching heart, a broken spirit. It was her. It was her. It was her.
"Dominic, wait up!" Dianne said.
He slowed down and wiped the tears from his face. He wasn't sure if he was crying or if it was from the surgery. Either way, he didn't like it.
"Are you okay?" She asked.
He shrugged, and then sighed.
"I don't know," he said. "I really don't know. I think I just need to be with Josh right now, you know? I'll finally be able to see his face again. Even though he looks so much like her... I don't care. He's my son, not hers. He's the one thing she didn't take away."
Dianne nodded, and without another word they walked to the exit where Dom said Tom would be waiting. Sure enough, there he was, with Joshua in his arms. Dominic said nothing and took the child from him, holding him tight. It was one thing she could never take away.
Post by ArtisticRainey on 31/05/2005
  
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