Distant+Whispers

Toni!
Just ahead of him two cars, packed with college students, had pulled up even with each other and
were slowing traffic even more on the two lane highway. A group of young white girls, their faces red
from early summer tans, giggled at the frantic efforts of pleading freckle-faced boys in the other car to
get their attention. They had slowed to a crawl as one boy held out a pen and pad, pleading for a
phone number. They were oblivious to the screaming horns behind them. The road ahead of them was
clear. In the distance Mikell could see the sign to the large plant nursery that marked the boundary
between its acres of shrubs and trees and Toni’s property. Mikell beeped his horn. He wanted to
reach Toni’s house before 4pm, when her son would be returning from school. The two cars in front
of him responded by slowing even more, as they tried to navigate their cars closer to each other.
Suddenly Mikell veered the Saturn onto the grassy, rock strewn median strip that divided the north
and south traffic. He slammed his foot on the accelerator. The small car hesitated, shuddered then
kicked up pebbles and dirt as it fish-tailed past the red Jeep, filled with four huge white youths. The
driver cursed and swung right, causing the white convertible Volkswagen Passat to veer onto the
shoulder. Other cars behind Mikell took advantage of the opening and cast angry stares at the shaken
youths as they streamed by. Chastised, the red Jeep pulled fully into the slower right lane.
Mikell was oblivious to the events behind him. He kept his eyes fixed on the huge billboard far
ahead of him, the one that stood just behind the grove of plum trees, next to the small house
surrounded by rows of blossoming lavender.
* * *
Mikell stood at the front door, afraid to knock. Despite all of the affection he had received from
Toni, he feared that maybe her attention was just a display of the courtesy that was a part of the
culture of this place. Toni was a beautiful woman. She was intelligent. How could she not have a
boyfriend. After all, she spent a lot of time in that place where she went to college. It was probably
full of intelligent men. Men who didn’t speak English as badly as he did. Probably successful men
who wore suits and ties. Mikell had never worn a suit and tie in his life. He was just an art teacher.
He hooked his fingers in his back pocket and stared across the yard.
Toni’s sturdy white door slowly creaked ajar. Her head peeped from behind the door. Mikell
swallowed. Toni grinned, raising deep dimples on her face. Her eyes twinkled at Mikell. She eased
through the door and stood inches from him, wearing an orange, oversize South Carolina State
Bulldogs t-shirt over worn blue jeans, ripped at the knees. Mikell avoided Toni’s searching eyes. She
smiled, folded her arms tightly against her body and looked away from him also. Mikell’s stomach
tightened.
“Did you find him,” Toni asked softly.
Mikell sucked in his breath at her voice. She was being polite again, he thought. That’s all. When
he needed a place to stay, she just happened to know of a place that was available. She brought food
because, as Abraham said, that was the custom of this part of America. Everybody did it…for
everybody. It was nothing special. Everybody had tried to help him, not just this woman. Mikell
began to feel stupid for mis-reading her actions.
“Yes,” he said, trying to remove any emotion from his voice. “I found who I was looking for.”
Toni chuckled. “How was it? Did everything work out?”
“It was wonderful,” Mikell responded.