Time in a Bottle

© 2012, 2021

by BADSAM

Pierre and Roxanne have an unwavering love for each other.

He is her Romeo, her Mark Anthony, her Samson and her Lancelot; she is his Juliette, his Cleopatra, his Delilah and his Guinevere. Together they are the classic Shakespearean romance.

They met in the student cafeteria at the college they both attend. It was ten minutes after two in the afternoon; the lunchroom was about half empty. She was sitting alone reading from her notes while eating her lunch. He sat down at the table next to the coed; it was the table nearest the window.

He immediately began to unpack his backpack. His laptop, a cell phone, a thermos, an apple, a roast beef sandwich, reading glasses; the paraphernalia kept piling up on the table. Within a minute he had the entire table filled with these things plus his textbooks, an algebra workbook, several pens and pencils and a notepad. He put his backpack on the floor near his feet.

He looked around at the things he had placed on the table. He frowned, got up and went to the lunch counter to get some napkins.

He opened two of the napkins, meticulously placing one on top of the other, creating a placemat. Next he opened a pocketknife and began to carefully cut his apple into quarters. After that, he cut out the center of each quarter, returning each quarter to the edge of the opened napkins. He put the cut out pieces onto another napkin on the opposite side of his table. Then he opened another napkin and covered the four pieces of apple as he brushed away a fly.

As soon as the student was finished with his apple, he opened two more napkins - again carefully placing one on top of the other. He took his sandwich out of its plastic container and cut it diagonally in half. He placed one section near the opposite edge of his makeshift placemat and covered it with another napkin. He put the other section in the center of his placemat.

He turned on his laptop, placed his cell phone next to his computer, put his glasses on, opened his thermos and began to eat his sandwich, occasionally biting into an apple quarter. He did this, while reading what appeared to Roxanne, to be notes on the screen from a word processor.

All his detailed actions interrupted Roxanne and distracted her from her own reading. But she couldn't help smiling. Never before had she seen someone exhibit such thoroughness when eating. "To each his own," the undergraduate whispered to herself and went back to her own reading and lunch.

Several minutes later someone on the other side of the dining hall yelled out, "Fuck, I'm late for class!" and ran out of the cafeteria, leaving his drink and half eaten pie on the table.

Pierre immediately apologized to Roxanne. "You'll have to forgive some of my classmates. They have no respect for women."

"What?" Roxanne answered him. His statement interrupted her and confused her.

"That student who just ran out of here; he cursed."

"Oh, that doesn't bother me. It's not like I've never heard profanity before. I have two brothers, one older and the other one younger than me. Besides, I don't have anything against it. I try not to use it . . . but," she smiled satirically and left her statement unfinished.

"Me too," Pierre replied. "I curse myself. But there's a time and place for everything. When I'm with mixed company I try to watch my language."

"You're a real gentleman," she quipped. "They're hard to find these days."

Pierre blushed several shades of red.

It was at that moment - when his face turned crimson - that Roxanne decided that she liked this attentive, meticulous white boy. His long black hair and thick black eyelashes accentuated his deep blue eyes. He appeared to be short with broad shoulders. His muscled arms gave him the look of someone who regularly works out. She could just barely make out his rippled stomach beneath his Boston College T-shirt. The rest of him was hidden below the tabletop.

For a brief moment the coed thought about joining him at his table but then thought better of it - he might not appreciate someone sitting close to him. They might "spread their germs" all over his stuff. She did however change her seat to one that was closer to his table; another table next to the window.

She asked him his major. He told her that he was a sophomore studying accounting; he wants to open up his own tax preparation business someday. When she pointed out to him that that is seasonal work, he added that he also hoped to own and captain a charter yacht for those who want to vacation in the Virgin Islands, the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands or other exotic places in the Caribbean Sea.

She informed him that she too was a sophomore studying geology but has no idea what she wants to do once she is finished college. Nor did she know why she was studying geology. She liked reading about dinosaurs when she was in middle and high school. But so far she had only taken one course that covered the subject. All her other geology courses had been about plain rocks.

Pierre and Roxanne are as different as any white man and black woman can be. He is conservative; she is liberal. HeJHHHHHHhhhhhhnh

He likes quiet evenings home alone; she likes wild raucous parties. He knows exactly what he wants to do and where he is going with his life; she has no directions and is taking each day as it comes. He is neat, careful, tidy and organized; she is sloppy, chaotic, lackadaisical and disorderly. He is from the poorer section of Boston and is working his way through college. She is the daughter of a former mayor of New Bedford; her tuition and books are paid for by her parents. He shares an apartment with a friend near the campus and works part time as a waiter in a restaurant; she lives with her parents in Cambridge. She spends her free time drawing pictures of nature.

But then it is their differences that attract them to each other. The two students begin dating and soon develop a strong love for each other. They are inseparable, going to night clubs, restaurants, parties, sporting events, picnics, camping and doing many other such things together. They also take long peaceful walks in the park together, go to the local theater for a movie together - usually a romantic comedy - or spend many quiet evenings together in his apartment just watching television and eating popcorn - when his annoying roommate isn't there to interfere with their intimacy.

In fact, it is their constant togetherness that puts an end to their plans.

They were scheduled to spend the weekend with some friends on Martha's Vineyard off the coast of Massachusetts. But at the last minute the two of them decide to drive up to his uncle's hunting and camping lodge on the outskirts of Colchester, Vermont. Their main reason for doing so is so that they can have a romantic weekend alone together. Pierre's birthday is the following Sunday and they want to celebrate it in a special way.

So, the last Friday of a cold December afternoon, they say good-bye to their friends, load up her sport utility vehicle with some food and winter camping gear and head for the mountains. What they don't know is that there is a heavy snowstorm heading south from Canada as they are heading north.

The snowflakes start to come down just before they cross the Vermont state line. It is still coming down when they turn off Interstate 93 onto Interstate 89 for their trip into Burlington. Roxanne comments how wonderful it will be to have a white winter on his birthday. She tells him that she intends to build a snowman in front of the cabin just for him.

By the time the two lovebirds arrive in Burlington the snowfall is coming down hard. They debate whether or not to proceed north on the old Roosevelt Highway for the last leg of their journey. Pierre checks with the state police and they tell him that the roads are safe for the time being. The enthusiasts stop to gas up the car and to get something to eat at a fast food restaurant.

Unbeknownst to Pierre and Roxanne, it is while they are eating that the weather takes a turn for the worst. As they are coming out of the restaurant and into the parking lot, a gust of arctic air blasts them. Both travelers are too anxious to return to the warmth of the SUV to notice that the temperature has suddenly dropped considerably.

***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****

It is after they have been traveling along the highway for quite some time that the snow really gets bad and starts to come down even harder. It has become a blinding whiteout. Pierre is driving but he can't see much farther beyond the front of the car. The automobile keeps sliding all over the icy road.

Pierre is worried about getting into an accident with another vehicle. He reduces his speed. Roxanne only wants to get to the cottage before it gets too late. She wonders whether or not Pierre is lost. She hasn't noticed any road signs for quite a while; she is hoping that she just overlooked them.

"How much further?" the coed asks, trying to hide the anxiety in her voice.

"It's not much further," Pierre responds. "I think I saw a bungalow that I recognized a few minutes ago. It shouldn't be long now."

But silently he is worried. He only half recognized the lodge he spoke of. In truth, visibility is too low to distinguish anything. He continues to drive into the night.

After ten or fifteen minutes, Pierre slows the car to a crawl and looks hard out of the right side window. Roxanne looks too. Yes, there is a cabin there. But he can't identify it; it is too far from the road. Turning his attention back to the front windshield, he sees that the road has suddenly turned to the left. He quickly turns the steering wheel but the sports van skids into the ditch alongside the road.

The two occupants are thrown to the passenger's side of the car - neither was wearing a seat belt.

Pierre comments that he is glad that the air bags didn't deploy; they were driving too slow and the accident wasn't serious enough. However, Roxanne did hit her head against the side window.

Pierre attempts to back out of the ditch. But the tires only spin wildly. He climbs out and examines the vehicle. They are stuck.

He gets back into the auto. Roxanne complains about her head; Pierre's upper right arm is beginning to hurt him a little bit. After sitting in the SUV for several minutes discussing their predicament, the two lovers decide to go to the cabin they just passed. Roxanne again moans that she is dizzy. The passenger's door is jammed, so the meticulous student helps his girlfriend out through the driver's side of the car and into the blinding snowstorm.

They slowly make their way to the lodge; twice, the howling wind nearly blows them down. He shoulders the woman most of the way there, using his left arm.

Luckily the front door of the small retreat is not locked. Pierre helps Roxanne to a tattered green sofa just inside and to the left of the door and then goes to see if he can find a blanket and some pillows. He returns a few moments later with one pillow - minus a pillow case - and a thin Army blanket that he found in one of the bedrooms; he places the coverlet over the coed and then his jacket.

After covering her up - she is just lying on the green sofa with her eyes closed - he feels for his cell phone. But it is not in his jeans pocket. He figures it must have fallen out when the automobile crashed. He knows that Roxanne's phone is in her purse; still in the car. He sits on the floor next to her and ponders what he will do next - go for the phones or rest a bit.

Pierre decides to rest first. There is no hurry; neither of them is hurt too bad. Besides, a tow truck probably won't come out at this time of night in this storm.

He closes his eyes.

***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Pierre wakes up with a start; it is morning. Roxanne is still sleeping. He goes to the door to try to push it open but he can't; it is stuck. He peeks through the blinds out the window to the immediate left of the door. The snow is about waist high and piled up against the entrance.

He starts to survey the bungalow.

It has a small kitchenette and one large living room, with a short entryway leading into two small bedrooms that are separated by one undersized bathroom. The restroom is windowless. He does not enter any of these locations; he just steals a glance into each one.

Hanging on the wall, to the right of the entrance leading into the little hallway, is the head of a stuffed ten point buck above what used to be a fireplace; it has been sealed up with bricks. Directly below the taxidermy mount is a large framed photograph of a man kneeling on one knee next to the animal. He is holding a bow and a quiver of arrows in one hand; the other hand is holding onto the whitetail deer's antlers. He is wearing an orange vest and smiling broadly.

Hanging above the mantle and below the trophy is a polished wooden plaque. Carved into the plaque is the testimonial: 'Sam's Hideaway.' There is a large butane gas heater in front of the former hearth but it does not have a butane tank attached to it.

On the opposite wall of the living room, to the left of the front door as one looks at it, is a clothes tree with a white plastic clothes hanger on it. There is a rectangular coffee table below the window of this wall. One of the legs is somewhat shorter than the other three - it is resting on a brick. Lying on top of it are two girly magazines, a hunting magazine, an empty coffee mug and an instruction pamphlet on how to professionally carve up a deer.

There is a black imitation leather easy chair and one small end table in the far left corner. On the table is a copy of a nudity magazine and a lamp with a torn lampshade. Along the far wall, next to the chair, is a dark red couch with a large oval stain in the center of it. There are large double windows behind this couch, looking out toward the road. The drapes on both of the windows are old and dirty.

To the left of the red sofa in the corner is a three light lamp stand. Also in this corner is another end table. There is nothing on it. Next to it and midway between it and the fireplace is a television cabinet minus the cable box and TV; the cable to the television is curled up on the floor. On the empty TV stand there is a DVD of the 1988 fantasy comedy movie

Beetlejuice

, directed by Tim Burton and starring Geena Davis, Michael Keaton and Alec Baldwin. The hearth is further to the left and directly across from the front door.

The door leading into the bedrooms and bathroom is to the left of the former fireplace, as one looks at it. The green sofa - the one upon which Roxanne is stretched out upon laying - is near this door, midway between it and the front door. This couch also separates the living room from the breakfast bar area which is behind it. The breakfast bar separates the living room from the kitchenette. There are three mismatched barstools in front of the bar - one is cushioned, the other two are bare wood.

There is no phone, television, radio or any other communication device in the living room, in any of the bedrooms or any place in the hunting lodge.

Pierre is hungry so he goes to the little kitchenette in search of food. Both the cupboards the refrigerator are full of food - canned vegetables, canned meats, several cans of peaches, pineapple, fruit cocktail, peanut butter, jam, syrup, canned soft drinks, beer, bottled water, several boxes of cereal, rice, spaghetti, sugar, cooking oil, instant coffee, instant potatoes, instant oatmeal and instant macaroni and cheese. In the refrigerator are butter, more drinks, beer, water, a gallon jug of sweet tea, a carton of iced coffee, frozen French fries, waffles, pancakes, pizza, chicken nuggets and ice cream. There is enough food to last several campers a couple of weeks.

His girlfriend comes and joins him as he is looking over the provisions; she puts her arm around his waist. They tell each other that they will leave a note explaining about their accident. They will also leave some money in the refrigerator for any eatables that they consume.

Roxanne then puts some frozen waffles in a toaster she found in one of the cupboards while her boyfriend puts some plates and utensils on the bar. He gets the syrup from the cabinet and butter from the refrigerator.

The two lovers eat their breakfast while making plans on what they want to do as soon as the snow melts enough for them to get out of the cabin. The first thing Pierre wants to do is inspect the damage to her SUV. He tells Roxanne that he didn't get an opportunity to do it the night before. He says that he is going to try again to drive the car out of the ditch and failing that he will call a tow truck.

After breakfast Pierre again tries to open the front door while Roxanne washes the dishes. The door is still stuck. He looks out through the blinds on the window to the left of the entrance to inspect the weather conditions. It is still snowing but not as hard as the night before. He returns to the kitchenette just as Roxanne is wiping off the breakfast bar. He puts his arms around her waist, hugging her tightly from behind. He kisses her on the nape of her neck.

She turns in his arms, puts her arms around his neck and kisses him hotly on the lips. Their tongues entwine. He caresses her left breast with his right hand; his left hand is in the small of her back. She moans as he presses himself against her yielding body. She presses her hips into his lean figure.

"Want to make love?" he asks his affectionate mate. He is smiling. His eyes are sparkling.

The woman sarcastically replies, "We can't do that here. This isn't our private chalet. Besides, suppose the owner comes in and catches us?" Then she throws her head back, closes her eyes and offers her neck to his caresses.

"We are snowed in. No one can come in or out. We'll be here for a day at the least." Her lover continues to kiss her on her neck and caress her breasts, while pulling her into himself.

"Are you sure? I wouldn't want someone to walk in on us while we're having fun," the nymph asks him as she wraps her right leg around his thighs and rubs her groin against him.

"I'm sure," he picks her up and carries her to the green sofa. Within seconds they are both completely naked and deep into their sexual escapade.

After, they are wrapped together in the Army blanket, lying side by side.

"Wouldn't it be great if we were trapped here, snowed in for months, just the two of us?" the coed mischievously inquires. She toys with a locket of his hair. "We could spend the rest of the winter naked, doing it every day together."

"Why wish for just a couple of months? Why not dream that we're stranded here for the rest of our lives."

"Oh Pierre, my love I could spend an eternity here with you. I would spend every moment of it naked and making love with you." She kisses him on his lips and pulls his body closer to herself.

After they break the kiss, Roxanne asks him, "How's that song by Jim Croce go? 'If I could put time in a bottle, I'd save every day just to spend them with you till eternity passes away,' or something like that."

"It's something like that," he answers her. He sits up. He looks down at her supple breasts. He flicks her left nipple with his first finger.

"You are the most beautiful person I have ever met."

"I'm not beautiful," Roxanne answers him shaking her head. "My breasts are too small."

She gets up and walks naked across the room to the front door. She tries to push it open but it won't budge. She turns to face her sex partner, pouts, leans against the door with her hands behind her back and then gives him a provocative smile. He is just staring at her, at her beauty, at her whole nude body.