I'd like to thank kenjisato, again, for the great editing and my friends for their input. If you find any mistakes, it's probably something I did after editing.
Active sexual activity only involves characters over the age of eighteen. Any similarities to persons, living or dead, are purely coincidental. Names are mostly made up.
Love at first sight?
From tragedy to love
Love at first sight— some describe this feeling as an instant connection, a deep attraction, a sensation of
'
butterflies in their stomach
,'
or a belief that they've met the person that they're destined to be with forever.
The how and why my Valentine
'
s Day is the way it is.
My name is John Martin Jr.; I have a kid sister, Juliet, or Jules. I am a high school Industrial Arts teacher, mostly woodworking. Having played sports in high school, some in college, and standing five-foot-ten, my 197 pounds looks okay on me— giving me an intimidating stature, which I rarely use in my everyday life.
I work out with the school teams at my school, the coaches have asked me to help with workouts many times because I try to set a good example. Now, to keep in shape, I officiate high school and college sports. During the summer, I umpire baseball and softball.
But today, I took a personal day (a mental health day), and I am delivering flowers on Valentine's Day. I love the expression on people's faces when they open their doors or see me walk into their office— it is a good mental lift for me... a
mental health day
.
Why a mental health day?
The reason I needed a mental recharge was because I had lost Barbara, my wife of four years, in an accident on a light-rainy evening in Arizona just eleven-and-a-half months ago, February 28th.
She was pregnant, and it was her predicted delivery date, but she had not gone into labor yet. I had booked a room in the hotel across the street from the maternity entrance of the hospital; we were going to wait in the comfort of a suite. I just had to get her out of the house! Barbara had said she had cleaned and rearranged the same closet, the same dresser, and the same kitchen cabinet a million times, so I was ready to help as much as I could. She liked doing jigsaw puzzles, playing cards, and watching movies— rom-coms, what else? I had bottled water, and of course, I had her go-bag. Two, the one I carried around, making sure I had 'everything Barbara might need, and I kept one in her car' in case I forgot the one in the house, you know how expectant fathers are (I have heard why the term Boil water came about it was to get the husband out of the way) Ha Ha.
Our lives together.
We had been friends since junior high and boyfriend and girlfriend since our freshman year in high school. We had our first date, and our first kiss together; we discovered lovemaking together. We went to the same college, where we roomed together for our last two years, and walked across the stage for our degrees, as we had done in high school.
We married a week after college graduation.
I had been there for her when her parents were killed in an auto accident while we were in college. After getting married, Barbara and I even taught at the same school, Trailblazer High School— go Pumas— we signed our teaching contracts within an hour of each other. We were the sweethearts of Trailblazer; no other members of the faculty were related. Our students loved the fact that we were married.
Let there be a Child.
We figured we had conceived our daughter on the Memorial Day weekend, Friday night 'til Monday! Barbara had read that some foods were good for men's 'little swimmers,' and for the week before the holiday, Barbara had fed me walnuts, bell peppers, tomatoes, eggs, beef, garlic, and dark chocolate! Breakfast was steak and eggs; lunch was a salad with a lot of bell peppers and tomatoes with a garlic-type dressing. As for snack items, there were walnuts and dark chocolate. Dinner was a mix of all the foods.
During the weekend, we made love right through dinner time! It was three-plus days to remember. It was loving, romantic, erotic, lusty, and sexy as could be! We only took pauses from lovemaking to eat and to use the bathroom. We tried new ways to make love, as we were both young and limber; we tackled several positions and ways to make love. (Thank you, '
The Joy of Sex
'.) We went through four sets of sheets on the bed and enough towels for a basketball team. (Did I say how much fun shower sex is?) We had lost count of our orgasms by Saturday midnight. If we hadn't conceived, we would have been surprised. By late afternoon Monday, both of us felt we had run three triathlons!
Having a pregnant wife was a lot of fun. (Under '
The Code Of Married Men
,' that is all I am allowed to say).
I never saw the truck that ran the light.
I was driving to the hotel because Barbara was having trouble fitting behind the steering wheel of her Honda Civic. She loved her little Honda, and I rarely got to drive it. It had been just a year since she had pleaded with me to buy it because, as she said, "It is so cute." Being pregnant, she had trouble climbing up into my F-250 crew cab. So, it was the Honda we took that eventful night...
I was about four car lengths from the absolutely clear intersection, when the light turned green for me...
...It would take months for me to piece together my memory of the drive to the hotel.
A truck blew the red light and took out our Honda Civic! The police, EMTs, and firemen had to cut us out of the car; they were surprised I was still alive and that my pregnant wife, Barbara, was barely alive.
I woke up hours later. I had a broken leg, two broken ribs, trauma to my lungs, almost a punctured lung, a concussion... a dead wife, and a brand-new baby girl, who had to be delivered by emergency cesarean section performed on my fatally injured wife.
My mom, Jean, dad, John Sr., and my sister, Jules, had been at the hospital for over twelve hours, waiting for me to come back to the living. When I woke up, I was told what had happened. I was quiet for a long time— a long, long time— Mom and Jules embraced me for what seemed like hours.
I told Mom and Dad to please go home because they were both retired.
My sister, Juliet.
Jules had just finished college and was now a 'teacher.' Jules was my kid sister, just five years younger. I had held her when her first boyfriend broke up with her in junior high. Later, in high school, I punched a dude in the face who had gotten fresh with Jules on the
FIRST DATE
! I had friends who swore that I was with them the whole time.
Many a girl trying to flirt with me caught Jules's wrath since I was a typical oblivious male and not able to recognize some 'Delilah' who would cause trouble between Barbara and me. She had become one of Barbara's best friends. She even did her student teaching with Barbara. We fought like cats and dogs, like any other brother and sister, but going against one of us, we became a force to be reckoned with.
It had become Jules's turn to hold me in my sadness and pain.
Life without Barbara.
My district arranged a long-term substitute for me. I was given paid bereavement-paternity leave for as long as I needed it. There was a private grant that had been set up for just such emergencies as I had had, thanks to an anonymous philanthropic donor.
On the day of the funeral, I was wheeled to Barbara's service. I gave a tear-filled eulogy in a wheelchair from the sanctuary floor since I could not step up to the raised pulpit. The church was full of people from our school. My daughter was still in the hospital, and I would be taken back there after the service. Thank God for CNAs and RNs, I had one of each attending to me at the church.
Jules was my bodyguard. My students kept a respectful distance. I did receive a shoulder pat from some of my male students and some sweet, little cheek kisses from my female students; many of Barbara's students had to be led out of the church service in their sorrow.
My family came to my rescue when my baby girl and I were discharged and came home. A cousin showed up and went into temporary 'mommy mode' to help with my little girl. After two days, Jules moved out of Mom and Dad's house and into mine to take over from our cousin, who could then return to her children. My cousin had a very understanding husband; we are not just family but great friends to this day.
Mom came over every day. Dad took puppy duty; we had two miniature dachshunds. I called them 'my puppies,' Bella and Charlie. Barbara had spent the last month of her pregnancy housebreaking them, so Dad just kept them out of the way. Bella and Charlie did spend time looking for Barbara; if only I could tell them that Barbara still loved them.
Susie, the art teacher at school, had made 'good for one free hug' tickets that my students forced me to use when they saw me get melancholy. Susie was a good friend of Barbara's.
When I was able to walk with a cane and a walking cast, I had little Barbara Jean baptized. I named her after Barbara and my mother, Jean. I named Juliet as her godmother.
