Title: Far From Home
Author: Black_Wingedbird
Rating: G
“The territory of the Awabagal covered the area between the Hunter River and Tuggerah Lakes, NSW, including Lake Macquarie. They were neighbours with the Kuring-gai and Darkinung peoples to the south, the Worimi people to the north, and the Wonnarua people to the west-”
Blair was interrupted from his reading when his cell phone rang, it’s vibrate feature causing it to clatter across his wooden desk. He looked up from the assignment he was grading and cursed at the time. He grabbed the singing phone and answered it, knowing without looking that it was Jim.
And Jim would be irritated.
“Hello?” Blair ventured innocently.
“Don’t hello me Sandburg,” Jim huffed. “You said you were leaving half an hour ago.”
Blair set his elbows on the desk and rubbed his temple with his free hand. “I know man, I’m sorry. I’m leaving right now, I swear,” he said, piling all the organized papers into one large clump. “Hear me leaving?”
“See that you make it to your car this time. The game is gonna start in twenty minutes.”
Blair shoved the papers into his pack back and rose from his desk. “I’m on my way. Seriously this time.”
“See ya soon, then.”
There was something in Jim’s voice that caused Blair to believe that the older man didn’t have much faith in his words. “You can bet on it. Bye.”
Blair shrugged on his coat and turned out the light as he flipped the cell phone shut and pocketed it. He made sure he hung up before Jim could comeback with a ‘You don’t have any money to bet, Sandburg’. It was a fact Blair was always a little pressed for cash, and even more so with the holiday season approaching. The lack of funds added to Blair’s already substantial list of things to stress about. He would be glad when the holidays were over and he could get back to his normal level of poverty.
Blair was only five miles from home and feeling very proud of his old car for not giving him any grief when he saw it. A figure in a dark coat ghosted amongst the other shapes in his headlights, causing the anthropologist to do an immediate double-take as he passed. Now slightly in front of the dark figure, Blair searched the reflection of his side mirror to find that there was indeed a human walking along the road.
Blair came to a stop as fast as his balding tires would let him. The person was an old man, wrapped in a drafty winter coat. His arms were wrapped tightly around his middle in an effort to ward off the cold. He stopped his weary stride as Blair got out of his car.
“Are you alright mister?” Blair questioned, venturing no further than the trunk of his car.
The old man looked at Blair. His eyes were watery, perhaps from the frigid temperature or maybe something else. A small smile grew on his wrinkled face before he replied, “Oh, I’m alright. Just a little cold out tonight.”
Something warm radiated through Blair upon hearing the old man’s sincere voice. He reminded Blair of the grandfather he never had, and had always wanted. “Do you need any help?” Blair asked, taking a small step closer.
The man remained were he was, his breath floating into the night sky as he replied, “Well, I do have a small problem.” He looked away then, almost looking embarrassed.
Blair’s hands were starting to burn from the cold. He shoved them in his pockets, intrigued by the old man before him, and what kind of problem he might have that would cause him to be walking alongside the road on this freezing December night.
The man looked back to Blair and said, “I can’t remember how to get home.”
Blair physically felt his heart break at the admission. “Do you have a wallet?” he asked, hoping for both their sake’s that this small favor would be granted.
The old man felt his pockets and Blair noticed that he was wearing gloves. Wherever he came from, he had been prepared for the weather when he left. The man pulled out a square leather wallet and handed it out to Blair.
Blair stared for a moment, lost in the innocent trust by the old stranger. He blinked, clearing the frost from his eyes and took the wallet. “Do you know you’re name?” he asked as he opened the wallet.
“John Morris,” he replied easily.
Blair looked at the driver’s license through the clear plastic window in the warm wallet. “Your address is in here, and it’s not too far away,” he said, his voice trailing off in thought. He had told Jim he would be home soon, but one look at the shivering old man before him and Blair knew he would drive John home. Jim would understand.
He folded the wallet and handed it back. “Get in, I’ll drive you home.”
John sighed, his breath as white as his hair in the cold air. “Oh thank you,” he said, a bigger, warmer smile spreading over his face now. “I’m sorry to put you out like this, I’ll compensate you for the ride-”
“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Blair dismissed. The two men got in the car simultaneously. “It’s Christmas time after all. And besides, I could never let you wander the streets of Cascade to freeze to death.”
“You’re truly a kind soul,” John said as he warmed his hands on the dashboard heater. “A lot of cars just drove on by.”
Blair fought the urge to shake his head in disappointment. He should know very well by now how cruel the world could be. “So why is it that you can’t remember where you live?”
“I remember what it looks like, just not how to get there,” John replied, embarrassment coloring his words. “You know this car is a classic,” he started, changing subjects so smoothly that for a moment, Blair was envious. “I used to have one just like it.”
“Really?” Blair beamed. “Don’t let my roommate hear you say that. He hates this car with a passion.”
“It’s a good car,” John replied. “Good year.”
“Do you have any family?” Blair asked, because he didn’t really think the year had been that great.
“I have a loyal, loving wife at home. Our son moved out a few years ago and got married. In one month, we’ll be grandparents.”
Blair smiled at the pride in the man’s voice. “Boy or girl?”
“Girl. Samantha.”
Blair turned onto the street that was recorded on John’s driver’s license. “Congratulations. You must be very excited.”
“Excited would be putting it mildly,” John chuckled. “Oh, are we here already? Why, I could have walked!”
“Nonsense,” Blair replied, stopping in front of a modest brick house. A few tasteful Christmas decorations glittered in the darkness and a thin feminine figured passed in from of the living room window. Blair was relieved that the man had a warm and loving home he belonged in.
Everyone need one of those.
His own may not be so warm when he got home, after having to endure the big-brother wrath of Ellison for missing the first few minutes of the game. Jim really hated having to retell all the major moves, claiming ‘You would’ve had to been there.’
Blair was interrupted from his musings by a gloved hand grasping a five dollar bill. “Here, take this. You didn’t need to go out of your way.”
Blair pushed the hand away. “It was no big deal. Keep your money. Buy the baby something from me.”
John searched Blair’s face for a moment, then returned the money to his pocket. “God bless you,” he said, giving Blair a genuine smile. “You’re a dying kind, young man.” His hand went to the door handle. “I never got your name.”
“Blair Sandburg.”
“Nice to meet you Blair,” John replied, shaking Blair’s hand firmly. “Thank you for the ride.”
“Anytime. You just stay safe,” Blair said, watching as John stepped onto the curb.
“You must come inside and meet my wife,” John said as he leaned down to look through the passenger window at Blair.
“No thanks, I’m a little late as it is, thanks for the offer-”
“Well then wait here a minute. I’ll bring the wife out to meet you.”
“No, that’s-” Blair started but John was already halfway across the front yard. Blair sighed, looking at the clock. “Well, I’m already fifteen minutes late, what’s a few more minutes?” he asked himself dryly. John had good intentions, and Blair always found it hard to refuse an honest person.
“Evelyn, meet Blair Sandburg.” John appeared at the driver’s window with a elderly lady in tow. She smiled brilliantly, even though Blair imagined that she must be a little off-guard. She was in her night robe.
Being raised a gentleman, Blair stood to accept her proffered hand. “Nice to meet you young man,” she greeted warmly.
“Same to you Mrs. Morris,” Blair responded. ‘Please don’t invite me in for milk and cookies unless you also intend to feed a large, over-protective detective as well.’
“John tells me you drove him home, that was very sweet of you.”
“Well he was walking down the highway in the middle of the night, I couldn’t just let him freeze.” Blair glanced to John. “When he told me he couldn’t remember how to get home, I found out he lived close by. Wasn’t a big deal at all.” Blair glanced at his watch.
A flicker of something unreadable flashed over her features before the replied. “I thank you again. Please come in and-”
“Now Evelyn, the boy has somewhere to be. Probably a pretty young wife at home, with dinner waiting on the table.”
Blair smiled an uneasy grin, like when someone was wrong about you but the truth was boring anyway. “Not quite. But I do have an impatient roommate waiting, so if you don’t mind, I will be on my way.”
“Of course,” Evelyn said. “You have a Merry Christmas now.”
“Thank you. Merry Christmas to you too.”
Final goodbyes were said and Blair waited until John and his wife had entered the house before pulling away. He was left with a warm feeling, both from knowing he had done a good deed and from the spirit of the man himself. Battling an annoyed Jim would be much easier knowing that tonight, he had made someone’s life just a little bit better.
It was what Christmas was all about.
~o0O0o~
“John! Where have you been?” Evelyn exclaimed as her husband closed the front door behind him.
“I told you, I went to the park.”
“You’ve been going to that park for fifteen years, how could you get lost?”
John blushed. “I wasn’t lost… I was just too tired to walk all the way home.”
End