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| William Faulkner, 1943 |
He knew what had to be done. He walked towards the soft glow of the morning sunlight and the warmth that it radiated through the glass doors. The tapping of his worn combat boots reverberated through the silence and commanded the entire room, usurping the space of time and emotion. He basked in this newfound certainty and adrenaline surged through his veins, until he noticed an obstruction – the bright yellow tape that said, “Closed For Construction”. He paused mid-step. His determination wavered. The yellow gleamed against the sun like a jarring stop sign. He wondered if it could be a real divine intervention of the same dramatic fashion as his stories. Her condescending laugh interrupted his head rush.
You can’t even walk to your death with dignity. You truly are a deplorable man, Maurie. What do you have to hold you back?
This was the final push. Not this time. Not anymore. He refused to let her win. This was the end. It had to be. The world had tossed him around, one failure to another, and then finally shunned him into absolute disgrace. He knew shame, he knew loss, even passion, but happiness was alien. It had taken him fifty years to finally see the world for its true worth. He was humiliated by his naïve ambition – the parasitic hope that had devoured his marriage and his writing career, and left him with $200 in the bank and an empty apartment, decorated by dirty dishes and cigarette butts.
The dreams had been crystal clear; more real than any part of his desolate reality. He had known that his next novel would be his masterpiece – the home run. How could it not? This time, the Elizabeth of his novel would be just as real as his dreams, and she would be the puppeteer of her character, instead of his subpar imagination. But reality had reared its ugly head again, and shattered the last of his hope, with Elizabeth’s curt note – “This is the craziest of them all, Maurie. Its over.” It really was over.
In his head, he replayed his last meeting with Elizabeth, his agent and his ex-wife. Their love had been exceptional, the kind that lived up to the standards of every Hollywood cliché; the once-in-a-lifetime, we-can’t-live-without-each-other, kind; the magical kind. But since they were just two regular people, living in a society governed by the rules of reality, their marriage had not lasted.
***
In his head, he replayed his last meeting with Elizabeth, his agent and his ex-wife. Their love had been exceptional, the kind that lived up to the standards of every Hollywood cliché; the once-in-a-lifetime, we-can’t-live-without-each-other, kind; the magical kind. But since they were just two regular people, living in a society governed by the rules of reality, their marriage had not lasted.
“No Maurie, I CANNOT give you another chance. I’ve been trying so hard to help you. So much time, all this effort… oh God I’ve lost so much time. Sixteen years, and nine failed attempts to be precise. My career is on the line now.”
“Your job? My entire life is on the line. Why is it always about you, El? Have you forgotten about the five bestsellers I gave you? Why can’t you ever look past our problems and try to walk in my shoes? All I’m asking for is another chance.”
“The world doesn’t need another pair of your ugly boots. You walk around thinking that you’re better than us, that the rules don’t apply to you. But guess what, the world moves on. You were a star and you had it all. No, WE had it all. Until you decided to go ahead, and fuck it up.”
“By ‘fuck it up’, you mean I decided to get off your leash and write about stuff that I actually care about? People deserve to see the world as it is, El. They go on with their busy lives, in their little bubbles, and obsess over their petty problems, like a bunch of hotshots. On their day off, some of them try to read books about fictional characters to feel better about themselves, or to dream about some adaptation of a naïve idealistic life, which they saw in a movie. Meaning, it doesn’t exist. So tell me, El, what’s wrong with me trying to replace those fairytales with some real books that might contribute to their puny moral imaginations?”
“Maurie, your books make people sad. And not in the ‘oh I feel bad for this character, but I’m secretly happy that I am not as pathetic’ way, the kind of sad that is so hopeless that it sucks out your soul and fills you with complete despair. When will you get off your high horse Maurie, and realize that you are not so much better than them. They all have their own problems, and their own pathologies, and they don’t need you force yours onto them.”
“How– “
“That’s it. I can’t make more sacrifices. I just don’t have anymore to give you.”
“What the hell do you know about sacrifice? I gave you my heart and my life. I became your little pet writer, and made you very rich. All, just with the hope for a little pat on the shoulder. And look, I’m still here. Waiting for you to take me back, because you’re all I’ve got El,” Maurie coughed. He sounded like a man allergic to himself.
“The company is cutting costs for novels, Maurie.”
“And are you cutting costs in your personal life? No, listen. This time I’ll fix everything. You can make all your money back too. I have a new book.”
“Dammit… Do you have a sample?”
I was panting on all fours. My vision mirrored the rhythm of my breath. The brown landscape pulsated before my eyes. The emptiness was oppressive. Life was scarce. Yet she stood there. Waiting in all her glory. Brilliant and incandescent. A Kohinoor in dry sand. More bedazzling than Aztec gold. Pale skin bounded with luminous inky hair. The grace of a gazelle. A mirage. I felt the adrenaline. Urgency. She waited. I staggered.
“It’s going to be the same pathetic love story again. We don’t need another one Maurie, how do I explain to you?”
“Just let me finish this last one. This book is what’s keeping me going. Jeez, you owe me that much.”
“Okay, here’s the deal – send the story, and I’ll see what I can do. But if it’s a flop, the company isn’t covering it.”
“If it’s good, do I get a new contract?”
“And if it isn’t, you will pay the company back with that Indian art heist story.”
The setting sun made grotesque shadows on the peeling walls, as he realized how long he had been hunched over his table, but his fingers continued to move over the typewriter keys off their own accord.***
Her magnetic pull enticed him like an iron ore. They lay with their bodies adjacent to each other, staring at the brazen sun as the world around him disappeared. Even in the sweltering heat, he felt her warmth, and every fiber of his body tensed. She carelessly intertwined their fingers, leaving him tingly in the aftermath of electric jolts. Her scent intoxicated him but his senses remained heightened, aware of every twitching muscle. The jarring softness of her fingers against the desert sand, felt like home. He was safe with her, she was his oasis.
He scoffed internally because the cynical writer suddenly felt like a vulnerable adolescent. He wanted to reach for more, but he was hesitant to break the spell. He was Icarus.He lay down to take a break, but sleep caressed him the instant he lay on his threadbare pillow. He smiled with anticipation – tonight she would be in his dreams. Eleven divorced months and nine failed novels later, he had finally realized the missing ingredient – Elizabeth. Oh, it had always been her. She had hurt him and caged his passion, but she had given him the hope for a better life. The very hope that is impossible to live without. She had reined his madness and given him perspective. Yesterday, he had dreamt of her. Her vibrant beauty had haunted him and inspired him. He had chased her musical laughter in the rain. The clouds had bent lower to join their game, obstructing his vision. He was getting closer; her voice was just a few steps ahead.
He had the same dream again, but this time, she was within arms reach.
He woke up the next morning with a new high; hunger and weariness were things of the past. He rushed to his typewriter, eager to add the promised twist and end their love story, because this was his time to shine. He was the home-run-scoring star of this story, and if he could not have a happy ending with Elizabeth, the pathetic character in the story sure-as-hell did not deserve it.
He glanced at the street below and took in the incessant hustle, typical of Madison Square on a weekday afternoon. There were hoards of men and women hurriedly scuttling about, while several others were stationary, crowded together in Madison Square Garden. From the height of his vantage point, they looked like ants. He wondered what sort of demons each of them had, and if they were as insignificant as their physical bodies from his view. He imagined his fall, and wondered how it would feel to accelerate through the 300 ft. expanse between the closed-for-construction balcony and the blissful repose that would undoubtedly follow. He would be able taste the world that he was about to leave. The harsh cold of the air would berate his face but he would welcome the punishment. The toxic New York air would infiltrate his pores and he would probably feel nostalgia, or maybe regret? Would he be sorry? Would he wish for another chance, or would it feel like freedom?
His prized novel had not scored a home run, but maybe death instead, was the accurate metaphor for his home run. Could he commit this time? He realized the absolution of death. He thought of Icarus, again. Icarus had given the world a massive “fuck you”; he had had courage and imagination and had literally surpassed the limits of the world. However, the ignorance of humanity had turned his legacy into a cautionary tale. Indeed, such a world was not worth living in. People decide to die, when they see life at last, without any illusions. But that is what they would do with his story as well. Could he give them the satisfaction of claiming another victim? His death would be seen as proof of the danger in venturing outside the confines of social norms. It would mean a minus one, for those rare minds that threaten to breach the stifling boundaries of acceptability and instead, seek the brilliance of the sun. In the grander scheme of things, this really was bigger than him.
Still getting used to the plush sofa in his humble, but new apartment, Maurie fired up the 15” Macbook Pro, which had been a signing gift from his new agent. He wondered how such a small and shiny object could hold so much information, or how anyone felt comfortable even storing all his data on such an elusive machine that threatened to break at the slightest mishandling. The machine opened to a welcome note directing him to the pre-installed ‘Microsoft Word’ application, and urging him to get started on their 500-words-a-day, agreement.
He woke up the next morning with a new high; hunger and weariness were things of the past. He rushed to his typewriter, eager to add the promised twist and end their love story, because this was his time to shine. He was the home-run-scoring star of this story, and if he could not have a happy ending with Elizabeth, the pathetic character in the story sure-as-hell did not deserve it.
He advanced to embrace her, ardent to finally possess her. As he struggled to overcome his insecurities, he thought, “Icarus also flew”.
In fact, it was never meant to be a love story. His fiction had previously lacked reality. Happy endings were the stuff of fairytales, and magic did not exist in our world. It could not be perfect because real love stories were built with time and sacrifice. In reality, people got hurt and things seldom ended well. He had had trouble committing to his bestselling thrillers, even though the readers had loved them, just like he had difficulty committing to the cynical premises of his literary fiction. He had held onto the same childish idealism that he criticized, for the sake of his sanity.
She stood there for what seemed like eternity. Her previously warm, brown eyes were undecipherable, until something flashed in them as her high-pitched laughter resonated around them.
“How could you imagine that I would marry you? You are a pitiable creature, satiated by the mere crumbs that life throws you; incompetent to wrest from it, what you truly desire.”
***
He glanced at the street below and took in the incessant hustle, typical of Madison Square on a weekday afternoon. There were hoards of men and women hurriedly scuttling about, while several others were stationary, crowded together in Madison Square Garden. From the height of his vantage point, they looked like ants. He wondered what sort of demons each of them had, and if they were as insignificant as their physical bodies from his view. He imagined his fall, and wondered how it would feel to accelerate through the 300 ft. expanse between the closed-for-construction balcony and the blissful repose that would undoubtedly follow. He would be able taste the world that he was about to leave. The harsh cold of the air would berate his face but he would welcome the punishment. The toxic New York air would infiltrate his pores and he would probably feel nostalgia, or maybe regret? Would he be sorry? Would he wish for another chance, or would it feel like freedom?
His prized novel had not scored a home run, but maybe death instead, was the accurate metaphor for his home run. Could he commit this time? He realized the absolution of death. He thought of Icarus, again. Icarus had given the world a massive “fuck you”; he had had courage and imagination and had literally surpassed the limits of the world. However, the ignorance of humanity had turned his legacy into a cautionary tale. Indeed, such a world was not worth living in. People decide to die, when they see life at last, without any illusions. But that is what they would do with his story as well. Could he give them the satisfaction of claiming another victim? His death would be seen as proof of the danger in venturing outside the confines of social norms. It would mean a minus one, for those rare minds that threaten to breach the stifling boundaries of acceptability and instead, seek the brilliance of the sun. In the grander scheme of things, this really was bigger than him.
***
Still getting used to the plush sofa in his humble, but new apartment, Maurie fired up the 15” Macbook Pro, which had been a signing gift from his new agent. He wondered how such a small and shiny object could hold so much information, or how anyone felt comfortable even storing all his data on such an elusive machine that threatened to break at the slightest mishandling. The machine opened to a welcome note directing him to the pre-installed ‘Microsoft Word’ application, and urging him to get started on their 500-words-a-day, agreement.
The Deceit of the Taj? … no, The Enchantress of the Mahal?… this was what they wanted.
***
*I do not write fiction very often. I stumbled upon this short on my hard-drive, actually written a couple of years back for a creative writing class, and thought I would share.
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