Ocean Beach Fire Island, New York, June 1878
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Captain James W. Biddle sat alone in his study on the second floor of his home in Ocean Beach and stared into space, wondering what to do with the day ahead, when there was no more work left for him to do.
For a moment he thought about going over to his wife’s place. It would be just like the old days, she’d always make sure that he had coffee ready in the morning, and then they could spend the afternoon talking over the news from home, as usual.
But he quickly dismissed the idea. He didn’t have anything important to talk about with her, not since the last time he had visited, anyway. They might as well just enjoy their time together instead of discussing anything too serious. Besides, he felt that it wasn’t really appropriate for them to see each other now.
“What’s up?” Shelly asked as she came back inside the house with a tray with some fresh-baked rolls and butter.
He turned towards her and smiled at how pretty she looked this early in the morning. “Nothing much, honey,” he said and gave her a kiss. “I’m having a bit of trouble coming up with something fun for us to do today.”
Shelly laughed and put down the tray. “You’re such a big baby sometimes,” she said. “Come here,” she added and took him by the hand. “Let me show you something I did yesterday while we were out shopping.”
James followed her into the living room where she opened up one of the drawers in her vanity table. There she pulled out an old wooden box, about six inches long and three wide and deep, but only four high. She placed it on top of the small desk in front of the window.
“It’s called a box camera,” Shelly told him. “They’ve been around for almost two hundred years now.”
She opened it and showed it to her husband, who leaned in closer. “Wow!” he exclaimed. “That looks amazing. Do you know if these things are still available?”
“Yes, actually. They’re just not very popular anymore.”
“Well, that’s good,” he answered with a smile. “If you bought one of these things, I don’t think anyone would want to take our picture. That is unless your face was made of gold or silver.” He winked at her, and Shelly giggled. “I guess I can wait a little longer.”
He picked up the camera from off the desk and held it up in his hands. “This thing has so many different lenses and attachments that it must be worth a fortune.”
Shelly rolled her eyes. “Please,” she said in exasperation. “Don’t say those things to me. You’ll give my age away every time we have this conversation. Anyway, this one is quite expensive; maybe twenty-five dollars, I believe. It’s not really valuable, though.”
James smiled. “Then why do you own one?” he asked.
Shelly shrugged. “I thought that it would be nice to have something to remember the past, you know? We’re both getting older now, and I figured that it will get harder for us to keep track of all our memories as time goes by. So I found this antique store in town and picked it up. And I’ve started taking pictures of everything around here. Even some of us together, if you can believe that.”
James nodded his head. He couldn’t help but think about how lucky he was to be married to this woman, especially after seeing what had happened to so many men and women during the Civil War and its aftermath. The world was still recovering from that war and the terrible destruction that it wrought, and there were some places that still hadn’t completely healed.
It wasn’t like there weren’t any people who wanted to find love again, and there was no shortage of couples who tried their luck in the cities—even though they were more dangerous than ever before, with all the gangs trying to control them. But James didn’t think that Shelly needed to worry about anything.
If anyone was capable of keeping him satisfied in bed, it was this beautiful creature before him.
“I think I understand,” he said. “So you have been taking pictures of the two of us?”
Shelly laughed and shook her head. “No way! Not yet, anyway,” she said as she got up from her seat and walked over to him. “We should probably try and look more presentable first.”
James chuckled. “Yeah, right,” he replied. “You always say that we need to look good when we go out in public so that people won’t judge us, but I’m pretty sure that most of them would be too busy looking at me instead of paying attention to what I’m wearing or doing. They’d be too busy staring at me, thinking how lucky you are to have a man like me.”
Shelly giggled and kissed him on the cheek. “Maybe they wouldn’t stare if I dressed you up more often, huh?” she teased.
James shook his head and gave her another kiss on the lips. “There’s nothing wrong with the way I dress,” he said, then he took her in his arms and held her close. “Now let’s get back to that bed, huh? I want to make sure that you feel as good as you make me feel when we’re making love.”
Shelly sighed. “Yes, sir,” she said with a laugh.
They headed upstairs, and James could smell Shelly’s perfume before he entered their bedroom. His eyes scanned the room, taking in all the familiar sights. This was where he spent most of his free time when he was home.
He had a large desk in the corner where he wrote letters for the newspaper that had taken over his father’s printing press, and there was a couch across from his desk where they sometimes sat with a bottle of wine and shared their stories with each other.
A small wooden wardrobe with brass handles was placed next to their bed, and James’ eyes followed the path of the door as he looked at the old wallpaper that ran along the edges of it.
“What’s wrong, darling?” Shelly asked as she came into view.
“Nothing,” James said quickly. “Why don’t you come to lay down with me? We can talk about whatever you want while we wait for dinner to cook.”
Shelly smiled. “That sounds lovely,” she said as she took off her jacket and began walking towards the bed.
James watched her with fascination. It had been a while since they made love last, and he couldn’t deny that he was feeling excited at the prospect of going through a new experience with the woman he loved. Shelly slipped under the sheets and began kissing him on the neck, and he could tell that she felt the same way.
She was always so eager for sex that James almost didn’t mind anymore. Maybe it was because she was so good at giving him pleasure, or maybe it was the way that she was always smiling when they were making love. James couldn’t imagine what life would be like without his wife. He would be lost.
He reached over to take the box of photographs from his desk drawer and place it on top of the dresser near them. As he did, he noticed how Shelly’s face lit up when she saw the box. Her smile was one of the things that he loved the most about her, and he hoped that this night would be filled with many more smiles from her.
James lay down beside her, and they held each other close in anticipation of what was to come. After a few minutes, the aroma of a roasted chicken wafted through the air, and both James and Shelly looked at each other in excitement.
The meal had been ready for an hour and a half, and after eating together, they would continue to talk and cuddle until it was time to go to bed. That was their routine when they were home, and James couldn’t have asked for anything better.
“Come here,” Shelly said, then pulled him into a passionate kiss. James kissed her back eagerly, letting himself go completely into their moment.
After a while, Shelly stopped and stared deep into her husband’s eyes. “I love you so much, you know?” she whispered.
James smiled, then leaned closer and kissed her again. “I love you too,” he said, then added, “and I hope that we have many more years ahead of us before we start having kids.”
Shelly’s eyes widened in surprise as he said those words. “Really?” she said, then laughed nervously. “Don’t get your hopes up just yet,” she added quickly.
James chuckled. “Okay, okay,” he said with a nod. Then he reached out for Shelly’s hand and kissed it, then continued, “But someday…someday soon I think it will happen.”
Shelly bit down hard on her lip, then looked at the floor for a minute and nodded.
James felt relieved and excited, but then he remembered something that his father had told him not long ago.
“It’s going to be a busy year for you at the paper, son,” he’d said, then added with a chuckle, “but keep an eye out for a pretty girl that might need some help.”
“Dad, I’m not looking for a girlfriend,” James said. “I’m happy being married!”
His father just smiled and shook his head. “You never know who might need your help,” he said.
Then, a couple months later, Shelly walked in one morning and announced that she was pregnant.
James couldn’t believe it; his whole life he had been dreaming of having children with the woman that he loved, and now that dream had finally come true. But then, just as quickly, James realized something else that his father had mentioned. He was going to be starting a new job at the newspaper in only two days!
The timing couldn’t have been worse. He didn’t want to leave Shelly alone all day for several hours each week. Plus, they still weren’t financially set to start a family. There was no way that he was going to give up his position at the paper though—not unless she wanted to do that. They decided to try and figure it all out over the next few months.
As they finished kissing, James rolled onto his side and stared at his wife’s beautiful face. “Are you sure you’re happy with our life?” he asked.
“Absolutely,” Shelly said as she laid her hand on his arm and gave him a loving smile. Then she reached over and took the photograph out of its box, looked at it for a moment, and placed it on the table by the bedside.
After dinner that night, James sat alone outside his house and looked up at the stars as the warm breeze gently blew around him. It had been two days since he’d left the house to begin his new job, and he couldn’t believe how nervous he felt. For nearly seven years he’d spent every single day helping his father in one way or another at the newspaper.
Now that he was leaving that behind, he felt a little lost. He wasn’t really sure where his future lay anymore. All he knew was that he loved his wife and wanted to make sure she was taken care of. And, most importantly, he wanted to provide for his family. He was grateful that Shelly’s job allowed her to work part-time from home, but money was still tight and they needed some more income.
Just then, he saw a young man walking toward him along the path in front of the house. He must have been about seventeen years old and appeared to be heading home from the tavern where he worked as a busboy. As he got closer, he saw that the boy’s clothes were dirty and worn, and he had several scratches and bruises on his arms and legs. He seemed exhausted and very tired.
“Good evening sir,” the boy said, his voice ragged and broken from lack of sleep.
James smiled as he stood up from where he was sitting, then walked to meet him. “What can I do for you today?”
The boy’s eyes grew wide as he saw James, who looked like a man that probably owned the neighborhood. “Oh no sir, nothing at all,” he answered quickly. “I was just headed back to my place for the night after a long day of work.”
“No problem,” James said with a nod. “Where is it? I live nearby.”
As they both started to walk together, the boy explained that his name was William and that he lived near the end of the street a couple houses down. “How much are you making?”
William blinked in surprise before answering, “Two dollars per hour, but I’ve been working here for a few weeks now and haven’t seen any pay raise. I think it’s because I don’t speak very well.”
James’ stomach tightened as he heard this. This poor kid didn’t know anything about business; what if he was fired and couldn’t find another job? “Well then, maybe you should talk to the manager tomorrow,” he suggested. “I’m sure he’ll understand why you deserve a raise.”
As they reached William’s home, the boy turned to say thanks, but James stopped him.
“There’s no need, Will,” he replied kindly. “I know how tough it is for young men like yourself to find work these days.” Then, with a gentle squeeze to the shoulder, he smiled as he headed back towards his own house.
It was almost a full minute before either of them said anything as they watched the sun rise into the sky. James felt himself beginning to relax as they continued walking together. When they had passed through the gate that led onto the main street, William glanced back to see if he was still there, then he turned and ran off into the sunrise.
A few months later, James received an anonymous letter in the mail. It seemed that William had finally found a new job at another tavern, one that paid four times as much as the first. With the extra money, he bought his parents a new house next door to their current home.
He had never told anyone about his secret job—about taking advantage of the poor kids in town so that he could feed his family. But looking back, he realized how foolish he had been. He wished he’d given those young men the same opportunity to better themselves that he had given his son.
That’s when the guilt began to creep in. His heart began to pound as he thought of all the things he might have done differently during his life: If only he had been more supportive of Shelly. If only he hadn’t been so stubborn. If only he hadn’t made such reckless decisions.
All of that changed when James’ eyes met his son’s for the first time.
The End