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Martin, Revisited:
CHAPTER TBD
A BIT OF HEAVEN
Copyright 2016 - 2020 Christina M. Guerrero
INTERMEDIATE DRAFT
PROLOGUE, FIRST SECTION - Martin - Thoughts while falling asleep. Which led to a short story. Which led to a novel.
CHAPTER ONE - The English Rose - Martin in love.
CHAPTER TWO - The Mooch Message - You may think words don't matter. But they do.
CHAPTER THREE - Congratulations - Time to celebrate. Or is it?
CHAPTER FOUR - The Heart Of Man - Who we are.
INTERLUDE NUMBER ONE - Turning A Writing Project Into A Novel - A few things to consider.
CHAPTER FIVE - The Dead Thing - The green spaceship theory.
CHAPTER SIX - TBD
CHAPTER SEVEN - TBD
CHAPTER EIGHT part one - Their Children, Again - Life as a child.
CHAPTER EIGHT part two - Their Children, Once More - Growing up.
CHAPTER NINE - TBD
IN PROGRESS
CHAPTER SIXTEEN - The Spirit Of A Good Man - Don't underestimate people. You'd be surprised what they're capable of.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - G-Rated Swear Words - What pays the bills is not easy.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - His Place Full Of Space - What makes a place a home.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - Hallelujah - In search of the truth.
CHAPTER NINETEEN - Recovery - The body, soul, and spirit need time to recover from injustice.
CHAPTER UNKNOWN - A Bit Of Heaven - The holidays are difficult for some.
CHAPTER UNKNOWN - Who's The Hero? - Looking for hope.
DEDICATION
This is for Martin.
STORY BEHIND THE STORY
Thinking about Martin, and all that he could have been.
He's been haunting me so I'm writing about him, and there's a lot to say.
This would be speculative nonfiction, but it's in fiction for now.
ABOUT THE DRAFTS
Challenge: write a chapter or portion of a chapter that will fit into a much larger story. Accepted.
DISCLAIMER
Except for the first section of the prologue, this is a work of fiction.
The rest is either a product of the author's imagination, or used fictitiously.
Any resemblance to real persons, places, things, or events is coincidental and unintentional.
Martin stood on the west side of Manhattan, looking across the river.
He looked. Once he found it, he was supposed to text his friend.
He had been standing there, in the cold, waiting. There were ambient city sounds close by. But here, within a one-block radius, he was strangely alone. He liked it; it was giving him time to appreciate the gift.
Whatever it was.
He looked. He was supposed to look toward New Jersey right about this time.
His phone dinged. He checked: His friend had discovered the present Martin had given him. "THANK YOU! YOU ROCK!" Martin smiled, and shook his head. He sent back, "I hope you're smiling. I hate your frowns."
His friend sent back a photo. There was a big smile and a thumbs up.
Martin went back to looking.
He heard the city around him; people were out and about. Some were working, some were partying. The river was a bit busy. Across the way, New Jersey twinkled.
Something red flickered where there had been no red.
Martin watched with interest. It was a black patch but the red appeared to be coming to life.
He looked around. No one was paying any attention to him. He hoped no one would. Usually, people left him alone. He was medium-sized, had great upper body strength, and could shout loudly if necessary. But he also had cerebral palsy and used crutches. Anyone took those, and he was up the creek. Or the river. Or the river, the bay and the ocean.
He laughed at the possibilities, then looked again for the red.
And then, as if it had been doing so for the past twenty minutes, it blinked twice, then again and again.
Martin smiled.
The sign blinked "MART N." There was a space between the first four letters and the N. There were spaces after the N, indicating that perhaps a long time ago an apostrophe and an S burnt out. Or perhaps that was the official name of the business. There were stranger names, for sure.
He watched in wonder for a while, remembering their promise: Christmas would mean good conversation, a happy meal with those who wanted to be with them, and as little work as possible.
Also: no exchange of tangible gifts. Any gift had to be experienced. They had made the rules right before buying the house together. So far, they had met all requirements for the holiday.
Martin thought about the store his friend was examining. He sent a note: "How could you not know of it?" The response: "I never really thought about such a thing. I'll be here the minute it opens for business in a couple of days."
He watched the sign blink. He smiled again then sent, "I see a red sign. MART N. Nice."
His friend sent, "That's it. Merry Christmas, my friend. Ready to eat?"
"Yes."
Martin turned and moved toward the closest cross street, being careful of wet patches. As he moved along, his phone dinged again. He checked and saw "after dinner" and a picture of a tie. He sent back, "Gotcha."
As he waited for his transportation he muttered, "Dude is more disabled than I am and gets more action." He grinned. "They'll get married soon, I bet."
When a limo pulled up, he watched with caution.
A door opened and his friend's girlfriend called, "Come on, Martin. It's cold out there."
"Wait," Martin said. "We're not supposed to spend money."
"This is free. It's part of the settlement. Remember? Limo for a year?"
Martin said, "Oh yeah."
He checked out the vehicle, then awkwardly got inside ... and found his own girlfriend hiding to his left.
He stared. He thought she was out of town until February.
She smiled and he had the same thought he always did at the sight of her face: A bit of heaven.
He sat next to her and when he could send a text message without being observed, he sent a tie to his friend. Then he felt silly for trying to be furtive. They were all looking at their phones.
He received, "Gotcha. Merry Christmas. Thank you for the experience."
Martin sent, "Merry Christmas. And thank you. My belief in heaven has been slightly revived."
"I think that's what the holiday should be for those who celebrate it."
Martin had a last glimpse of the sign before the limo turned and headed back to their place. He held up one thumb to his friend, who just nodded and held up his own thumb -- which was bionic, and which was a reminder of what had brought about the rules for Christmas, and the presence of the free limo.
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