In Remembrance of Audrey Hepburn

Happy Birthday, Audrey Hepburn! Her grace, elegance, beauty, compassion and kindness have inspired me for years. And, one time, in the spring of my junior year of college, I wrote a short story which finds its roots from her movie, "Charade". In honor of Ms. Hepburn's birthday tonight, I thought I would share the story here!

NOTE: My Creative Writing class elected that I title the story "Charade" as well, but I think I prefer the original title of my draft, "Not Like The Movies", so that's what I am sticking with today. 

Not Like The Movies  (Written on: April 25, 2011)

Cassaundra E. Bell 

~ * ~ * 

The wooden-framed screen door of the cabin smacked shut as a gust of wind ripped past it and thunder roared through the skies. Lightning danced in the darkness, reflecting off the lake.

“It’s bad out there,” twenty-two year old Lexi called into the cabin as she shuffled through the door, hauling her luggage behind her. The wheels grated across the bare, wooden floor.  “Stupid weatherman. He promised sun, sun, sun, for all of Labor Day weekend. This sucks.  Hey.” Her green eyes brightened when she saw the television sitting on an antique table in the corner of the room. “We get cable up here? What’re you watching, Mandy? It looks old.”

Mandy laughed from where she knelt in the cabin’s broom-closet-sized kitchen.  She was unpacking

food from a nearby cooler and putting it in the refrigerator. “Oh, I’m not really watching.” She pushed up the sleeves of her University of Michigan sweatshirt as she stood up, revealing thin arms untouched by the sun.  “It’s just on as background noise. It’s one of my favorites, though. Charade. And it’s not that old. Made in 1962. Oh, look!” she exclaimed pointing to the screen. “This is one of the best scenes.”

 Mandy rushed to the couch, and plopped down, curling her slender legs up to her chest. Her brown eyes widened with the smile on her lips.

On screen, Cary Grant was trying his best to evade the romantic advances of the much younger Audrey Hepburn, as she climbed into his lap and peppered his neck with kisses.“Uh-oh, oh! Hey, knock it off. Now, come on, Reggie, listen to me,” Grant protested.

Hepburn sighed and leaned back. “Oh, here it comes--the fatherly talk. You forget; I’m already a widow.”

“So was Juliet. At fifteen.”

“Mmm, I’m not fifteen." Hepburn purred the line, and resumed kissing her tanned co-star.

Mandy giggled at the lovers on the television screen. “They’re so cute together.”

“He’s way too old for her,” Lexi groaned.

“No, he’s not. They just have a May-December relationship,” Mandy explained.

“What’s that?” Lexi asked as she rounded the couch and sat next to Mandy.

“Oh, ” Mandy began. “a May-December relationship is when there’s a considerable  age difference between the man and the woman. Usually the guy is older – that makes him December  – and the woman is younger, like spring, or, the month of May.  Oh,” she sighed and gazed longingly back at the screen. “I want to meet my own Cary Grant someday.”

Lexi raised an eyebrow as she pulled her blonde hair into a pony and laughed. “You and your old man crushes. I don’t get it.” She stood,bored with the movie. “I’m going to go set up the sleeping bags, and

then take a hot shower. Can I have the bottom bunk?”

“Go for it.” Mandy smiled. “Besides, this technically is your place, since your parents rented it out for us.”  

Within a few minutes, Mandy heard water sputtering through the pipes. Its sound added comfort to the cozy log cabin. This weekend was going to be exactly what she needed. With her final year of college looming before her like one of the thunderclouds outside, Mandy needed to get away with her best friend.

She reached behind her and grabbed an old blanket that had been resting on the back of the avocado

green couch, and wrapped it around her shoulders. Mandy tried focusing on the film, but the storm outside was vying for her attention, distracting her from he romance on screen. The cold rain beat against the windows, shaking the glass in its panes, and through the pops of lightning, Mandy saw the pine trees whip violently with the storm. The waves of the small lake churned and frothed.

Electricity ripped through the sky, and then all of a sudden, she was in complete darkness. The cozy lamps around her died, and the image of Cary Grant on the TV blacked out.

From the bathroom, Lexi yelped. “What the heck?!”

“Power’s out,” Mandy called. “Are you OK?”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Could you just find my flashlight? I think it’s on the lower bunk.”

“Sure thing,” Mandy responded.  She inched around in the darkness until she found the sturdy wooden table at the far end of the room, right next to the fireplace. She grabbed her flashlight and turned it on, its beam providing a small halo of comfort in the darkness.

Mandy tiptoed to the small bedroom, and found Lexi’s flashlight on the bed. She grabbed it, and headed to the bathroom.

She knocked. “Got your flashlight here, Lexi!”

“Come on in,” Lexi said and Mandy pushed open the door. “Over here.” Lexi’s hand stuck out from behind the shower curtain, and Mandy handed her one of the flashlights.

“I noticed there was a fireplace. I am going to try and find the matches that I brought, and see if I can start a fire.” Mandy said.

“You can do that?”

“Well, I said, ‘try’.” Mandy laughed and left.

She walked back to the bedroom and knelt next to her bag where she had packed some matches for fire-building. Then she made her way back to the main room and set the flashlight on the ground. Holding the matches to the beam, she struck and watched as a little spark of light grew on the match head. Placing it in the fireplace, she frowned when it sputtered out. The wood was probably too damp.  Frustrated, she decided to look for some candles. She could light those, at least.

She looked through all the drawers until she found three candles and candlesticks in the top shelf of the kitchen cupboard. Soon, the room became enveloped in the haunting glow of the candles. Mandy placed the candles strategically around the cabin.

Someone knocked on the door.

“Don’t answer it!” Lexi hissed. She stood in the doorway of the bathroom, dirty clothes collected in her hands, and her hair dripping wet over her clean sweatshirt and jeans.

 “Oh, would you cut it out?” Mandy tossed back at her, but she had to admit, she was a little nervous as well. She called cheerfully to the stranger at the door, “One moment, please!”

 A voice, robust and friendly answered. “No need to hurry. It’s Jay Washburn, the manager of these cabins. I saw you girls pull in and came by to see if everything’s all right with the power outage.”

 Mandy gasped and rushed to the door. She yanked it open, her flashlight trembling with her excitement. “Jay Washburn!”  Before he could respond, she bounded into his arms. He staggered backwards, nearly falling off the tiny porch and into the rain. Mandy backed up, embarrassed by her jolt of enthusiasm.

“Oh my God, Mandy Jones,” he exclaimed and smiled that familiar crooked grin. “What the hell are you doing here, up in the woods like this, kid?”

 His ruddy face was the same as she remembered, and his dark blue eyes surveyed her in surprise. The salt-and-pepper of his hair glinted under the flashlight’s beam.

 “Well, I wouldn’t necessarily say I’m a kid anymore,” she said quickly as she brushed a  loose strand of dark auburn hair away from her face. “I’m going into my senior yr. at U of M. I’m here on vacation. What are you doing here, Mr. Washburn?”

“I manage these cabins during the summer. It gives me something to do, plus a little extra income, which is always nice. Who’s your friend?”

“Oh, this is my best friend and college roommate, Lexi. Lexi, this is Jay Washburn. He was my English teacher during my junior and senior years of high school.”

Lexi stepped forward and took Jay’s hand, a mannerly smile on her lips. “Hello.”

 “Has it been nearly four years since you were in my class?” he asked as he turned to Mandy in amazement. “You look so different.”

 Mandy blushed, hoping he meant it as a compliment. “You haven’t changed, Jay.” She was determined to address him by his first name.

He chuckled and winked. “Part of my charm. Are you ladies all right?”

“Well,” Mandy began, filing his wink away in her memory. “I can’t get a fire started over there. If you could help us with that, we’d really appreciate it.”

He walked over to the empty fireplace and knelt. "Sure thing."

The beam from Mandy’s flashlight followed him, spotlighting the work he was doing. Mandy grinned. Her blush deepened as she thought about how strange it was that she would run into him after four years.

Soon, the fire was crackling in the hearth. Jay surveyed his work and stood, wiping his calloused hands on his jeans.  He turned and smiled at them. “There you go. opefully this will give you enough heat and light until I can see about that power outage.” The candlelight and crackling glow from the fire softened his aging face.

“Jay, thank you so much,” Mandy smiled. “Oh, I’m so glad to see you!” She shook his hand, and then looked to Lexi before she continued. “Um….if you’re not busy tomorrow morning, we’d love to have you over for breakfast, as a way to say thanks for your help.”

 “Well, I can’t say no to a good breakfast. Besides, I can’t wait to hear how my favorite student has

been since she left me.” He patted her shoulder.

“Say, ten, tomorrow morning?” Mandy suggested, trying very hard to ignore the compliment he had just paid.

“Come hell or high water, I’ll be here.”

 Mandy laughed a little too loud, walking behind him to the door. “Bye, Jay.” She closed the screen door, and then bolted the heavier door behind it. When she was sure he was out of earshot, Mandy let out a juvenile cry of delight, and fell dramatically into the arms of a nearby chair, her excitement spilling over into a wide and exuberant grin. Finally.

“Oh my God. Really, Mandy? Him? He’s like, fifty!” Lexi sat down on the couch.

 “No…” Mandy began slowly. She brushed the splitting ends of her hair behind her ear. “He’s not fifty. He’s in his forties. OK, he’s forty-six.”

“Forty-six?” Lexi exclaimed. “That’s like—what? Twenty-five years older than you? He’s old enough to be your dad! In our freshman year of college, when you told me you had a crush on your high school English teacher, I was picturing some young, hot thing. Not him.”

“Stop,” Mandy commanded. “Lexi, just stop for a minute.  You don’t understand. It’s so much more than his looks, OK? I have had feelings for him for a very long time.”

“’Have had’? As in, ‘still do have’ feelings for him?” Lexi’s voice filled with concern. “Is he married? What do you even know about this guy?”

“No, he’s not married. He sings and plays guitar and he can quote Shakespeare like nobody’s business. He’s kind and gentle, and he’s smart.  He’s passionate about literature and writing, and he’s funny and I just…care so much about him.”

The two sat in silence for a few moments before Lexi hesitantly began, “So, I’m curious. How did these feelings for him start?”

Over the next hour, Mandy told the story of how she had fallen for Jay Washburn.  She had been seventeen years old at the time, a junior in his high school English class. It was spring semester, and they had been analyzing the work of Robert Frost. On this particular day, the discussion revolved around the poem, “Bereft.” She remembered it all so clearly.

“So, folks, talk to me. What’s the poet trying to get across here? What is the tone?” Jay had asked the class. When his question remained unanswered, Jay supplied, “It’s sad, isn’t it.  But, what does this sadness convey? Is it about old, lonely Jay Washburn?” He chuckled, then opened the book and began reading the last few lines of the work. “ Word I was in the house alone / Somehow must have gotten abroad, / Word I was in my life alone, / Word I had no one left but God."

In hearing him read these lines, especially after such an odd insight into his singleness, Mandy felt sadness for him, and a sudden longing to relieve whatever loneliness he had hidden away in his heart. For the rest of the semester, she caught herself wondering about him, focusing on parts of his personality that she found most charming, and by the end of the year, she realized how hard she had truly fallen for him.

In the fall of her senior year, Mandy enrolled in his Shakespeare class. Not because she had a particular fondness for the Bard, but rather because of Jay’s passion for the subject. She spent countless afternoons in his classroom, seeking his guidance in paper writing and scholarship applications, and delighted in the one-on-one time they spent together. The two found commonality in their love of nature, and in the way they teased one another. Jay even wrote a letter of recommendation for Mandy in which he devoted an entire paragraph to her witty sense of humor and engaging personality.

“And so, I’ve continued writing to him,” Mandy concluded her story. “Just to keep him updated, you know. He doesn't respond to every e-mail or letter, but when he does, he’s always so encouraging of how I’m doing at school.”

“Did you ever get any hint that he was potentially attracted to you?” Lexi asked.

“Well, he wouldn’t have been able to show it, would he? Not with me being in his class, like that.” Mandy gazed at the ceiling in thought, asthe retreating thunderstorm reverberated around them. “I don’t know. I mean, I felt like there was a chance that there might have been…something?” She blinked. “I want to talk to him this weekend. You know, see how it goes at breakfast tomorrow and proceed from there.” She leaned back into the couch cushions, and nibbled on her lower lip in thought. After a moment she said, “I wish I had Audrey Hepburn’s confidence.”

Lexi took her friend’s hand. “Audrey Hepburn only had that confidence because it was a movie. Someone scripted that for her, Mandy. Your life isn’t a classic Hollywood film.”

“I know, I know,” Mandy said. “Look, Lexi, is this crazy? I really, really want to see if I can have a conversation with him about this.”

Lexi shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She began to pick distractedly at the fringing hole in the knee of her jeans. “Just be careful,” she finally spoke. “See how breakfast goes tomorrow, and then go from there. Don’t make any rash decisions. This is going to be weird for him, too, you know. Because, I’m not gonna lie, he probably hasn’t been thinking about you for four years, especially not in the way you’ve been thinking about him. I would hateto see you get your heart broken.”

****

Labor Day morning came with clear blue skies. It was mother nature’s one last brilliant attempt to preserve the brightness of summer before giving way to the chilliness of fall that lingered in the breeze.

Mandy and Jay sat at the end of the long dock, each in a folding chair with a small table stationed between them. Steam from a kettle on the table top curled to the sky above. Mandy watched it rise before gazing beyond the steam and at Jay. His eyes were fixed on a point over the water.

Mandy reflected on the past three days. They were perfect in their relaxation. Mandy had spent just the right amount of time with Lexi in the great outdoors, hiking in the surrounding area and canoeing out on the tiny lake. She also spent some time with Jay. They went into town together to get groceries, and at night, around the community campfire, Jay entertained all of  the guests with the lookin'-for-trouble way he played his guitar.

“So, another year to go, Miss Jones?” Jay broke both the silence, and Mandy’s train of thought as he turned and looked at her.

Mandy curled her fingers around her thermos. “Yes, thank God.”

“Hey now,” Jay’s voice lowered in concern. “You’re too young for that kind of bitterness.”

Mandy choked back a laugh. “I didn’t mean for that to sound bitter. I just…I’m ready, you know?”

Jay smiled as he reached across the space between them and patted her hand in a fatherly manner. “God, what I wouldn’t give to be a college kid again. You need to enjoy every moment of it.”

Mandy shifted in her seat so that she could face him better. This was not how she wanted their conversation to begin.

Look, I know it's  asking you to stretch your imagination, but don't you think you could pretend just for a moment that I am a woman?

Audrey Hepburn’s words to Cary Grant fired in Mandy’s mind as something she would like to say at that moment, but she knew she couldn’t.

So instead she began with, “Jay.” She tilted her head looking for what to say next. Because it had to be now or never. “You know those letters I always sent to you? Even after I graduated?”

“Yes.” he nodded. “I read them all.”

“Well, I just…you need to know why I sent them. Uh, it’s not that I didn’t appreciate your teaching, and your—” she struggled to find the words. “ —interest in my academic endeavors, but I always felt that  you and I – I mean, what I mean to say is, you always – you’re special to me. I know we have an age difference, but that doesn’t matter to me. It never has. I just – I would like to – I want to see if we could --”

Not at all the eloquence of Hepburn.

Jay’s smiled with sad understanding. “You’re so young, Mandy. You’re only what, twenty?”

“Twenty-one,” she corrected firmly, her voice cracking. “But, I—I don’t care.”

He took a deep breath. “Mandy, I thought you might feel this way about me. My suspicions were confirmed this weekend when you so eagerly offered to help out with things around here. I’m very flattered that you would find an old guy like me attractive in that way but…” His voice softened. “I was your teacher. You were a minor when we met. What about my job? Do you know what people would say if they found out I was dating a former student?”

“I know I was your student, but I’m not anymore. And I know that people would talk.” Mandy’s voice rose. “I would work through that with you. I just -- You mean the world to me, Jay,” she began. “You always have.  And I just want you to know how much I…” Mandy’s voice broke.

When Audrey Hepburn cried in the movies, men swept her up in their arms, and said things like, “Oh, why didn't you tell me I was in love with you?” But that wasn’t going to happen, here. Mandy knew that. She wasn't Audrey Hepburn. So, she didn’t cry. She just felt pathetic.

Jay rose and took her hand in both of his. He pulled her to her feet. "We can't, Mandy."

Mandy took her hand from his and laid it across his cheek, wishing with all of her heart that he would change his mind. With one last look in his eyes, her gaze begging him in vain, Mandy turned and walked back up the dock.

***~~~******~~~