My Journal

By Harriman Nelson

18

We’d stayed up late last night, Lee and I, after the others had already turned in for the night.

Jiggs, of course, had already returned to the Navy Lodge some hours before, sated with Roast Beef and Baked Alaska. Numbers hadn’t joined us for supper, something about ‘phoning home’, Lee said in all humor.

Lee and I sat behind the blackout  (from the outside and bullet proof) windows of his bedroom, nursing our hot chocolates, looking out at the illuminated DC landmarks.

“It looks so damn peaceful,” he snipped sarcastically," but underneath all the frosting, the cake is tasteless.”

“That's sounds pretty depressing. What’s on your mind, son?”

“Everything. I won’t bore you with the politics about some of the bills before congress and all of the bickering about what’s right for their constituents. Power plants vs. environment, global warming vs the needs of today…etc. etc.  The list is endless. But what’s bugging me the most right now, Harry, is that I think congress is going to vote no for the Salt proposal. And I’m not sure what might happen if so.”

“Afraid of what your future father-in-law might do?"

“There's the rub. I could remove our military from alert, a show of good faith, but..."

“But you feel it’s wiser to err on the side of caution, that it? You have no choice, even if you marry Melody. You’re practically the leader of the free world…you have to put our security first.”

“I told Mel that…even asked her if her world would do the same…but…even though she admitted it might, and that she understood, I can tell she’s disappointed. Dissapointed in me.”

“She sure didn’t act like it yesterday.”

“No, but how can I expect her to trust me if I don’t fully trust her father, her fellow beings? We’ll be beginning our married life with the sword of Damocles hanging over our heads.”

“Lee, Lee, Lee. Trust between our worlds has to be earned. If this trade agreement goes through, then both our worlds can enter into a kind of détente, I guess I'd call it.”

“Captain Al...er did Joe tell you that's short for Captain Alien? Yes, I must have. Getting forgetful with all that's going on...well, he's not really in favor of the wedding, that's for sure."

“No son-in-law is ever be good enough for a father's daughter.”

“I suppose. There’s another thing, Harry. I’m not sure if I’ll be returning to Seaview when my term of office ends. I want to. God knows I long to. But…with a new wife, I think it might be best to settle down…work more of a 9-5 job. At the institute.”

“Since when has our work ashore ever been 9-5? And son, thirty five of Seaview’s crew are married with families. They manage. Even newlyweds.”

“Mel is not your ordinary bride.”

“She’ll have to be, if she’s going to live on Earth most of the time. Lee, son, by the time you’re out of the White House, you’ll both  have settled down together. Returning to Seaview shouldn’t be a problem. And, do you really think she’d want you to be unhappy? And you will be, if you don’t resume command. I know it, you know it. Damn it, the whole crew knows it…and Chip knows it.”

“It wouldn’t be fair to him.”

“What isn’t fair, Lee, is that you were bullied into doing your duty as president, which removed you from Seaview and placed Chip in a position he didn’t and still doesn’t want. You just have a problem accepting it.”

“I guess…well it’s late and I’ve kept you up long enough…”

“You think you’ll be able to sleep?”

“No. But I want you to.”

I pulled out a book from the nearby bookshelf.

“How about an Agatha Christie? Looks worn.”

“Mom brought it…Harry, I know you mean well, but I don’t want you to have to read me to sleep when I can’t.”

“Just to help you nod off,” I said, sitting down in the chair next to his bed as he pulled the window drapes closed.

“You’re not going to budge on this, are you?” he asked with a grin.

“Nope…the teaser sounds interesting….”

“Well, don’t tell me,” he ordered and began to exchange his garments for a set of red plaid flannel pj’s. “And before you ask, Mom brought these too.”

“We’re barely into Autumn.”

“It’s a ‘mom’ thing.”

“Yes, your plaid robe is still hanging up in Seaview’s laundry. All right, now climb into bed and close your eyes while I turn off the lights except this one.”

“Yes, Mother.”

I laughed, and as soon as I’d settled into the chair I began to read. It took awhile for Lee to settle into a light slumber. I’d have stayed until I was sure he was in a deeper REM sleep, but I’d promised only to stay until he nodded off. I turned the lamp down to auto turn off after two minutes.

I could only hope, as I padded across the thick carpet of the suite and finally out that he hadn’t woken and was staring off into the blackness with one worry after another on his mind. But I’d never know.

My musings of last night were roused by Edward's knock on my bedroom door, which I quickly opened.

“Coffee, Admiral?”

“Thanks. What’s for breakfast?”

“Wouldn’t know. Mrs. Crane is at odds with the chef. He wants to prepare Eggs Benedict. She wants to make a couple of  Toasted Egg Sandwiches and is threatening to wake the president up to decide if the chef doesn’t come to his senses. Perhaps you’d care to intervene, sir?”

“Tell the chef I’d really enjoy Eggs Benedict but that I do know that Lee, er, the president, would really like his Egg Sandwiches, just the way his mother makes them.”

“You crafty old devil, you, sir.”

"Seems to be the standard opinion of me," I laughed as he took the message downstairs.

I decided to give the chef a bit of time to prepare my breakfast and take lessons from Mrs. C., unless she was preparing Lee’s sandwiches herself.

And so I’m finishing up this latest in my journal wondering what the rest of the day will bring.