Splintered Heart Read Online Free PDF Page B

a little grey.
    Marian still wouldn't go out with Marty on a date, not a real date with him picking her up at home and paying for her dinner. But she'd permitted him to escort her to an out-of-town convention. They'd stayed at the same hotel, had breakfast, lunch and supper, after-dinner-drinks together. It was difficult to stick to the principle of not getting social with an employee when he was so helpful with baggage. When he was always opening doors, bringing sweet rolls and flowers for her desk and managing to get front row seats for the Philharmonic.
    Skinny Martin was also changing. He was filling out. Perhaps it was because he was working with weights, or because he was getting older and wiser but the fact was, Marty was getting to be a reasonably attractive man.
    How a person looked didn't seem to be all that important anymore — for instance, the twigs at the corners of her eyes, the indentations on her cheek — they seemed to be there most of the time, when she was smiling or not smiling. Or the grey hairs that she'd found, just a few among the light brown — didn't everyone get a little grey hair sooner or later?
    Somewhere around that time, Marian stopped talking to the girl in the mirror. For the first time in her life, she began to feel depressed — not deeply depressed as Mamma was, after a visit to Ralph. Just vaguely heavy, dull and sleepy a lot of the time.
    It seemed sensible to heed the telephone advice from Aunt Paula — they spoke at least once a day about Hannah's blood pressure. "Marian dear, you work too hard. It's time for you to begin to take it easy."
    Of course, Marian continued to do fulfill all her jobs at the store. She didn't shirk any of her responsibilities, but the fact of the matter was, it really wasn't necessary to work so hard. She watched more television, read more books — didn't finish most of them because each week there was so much to catch up with from last week's Sunday Times .
    A birthday went by without anyone acknowledging it. Marian didn't bother to remind Mamma and Mamma forgot to buy the usual cake. The concerto was put on the shelf temporarily. The shopping, the domestic chores were attended to without objection. Her clothes seemed snugger at the waist and hips but she needed the nourishment, she was too tired at the end of a day, to bother with counting calories and carbohydrates.
    It was as if the intellect-energy battery needed to be replaced or recharged and Marian was too worn out to do the job.
    Faraway in the corner of her mind she knew that her father was right as usual when he'd said, "A young person, once set on course, cannot change directions." There didn't seem to be any new directions to try.
    It would have been helpful if she could have talked about all this with somebody. She couldn't talk about it with Mamma. Mamma was her only friend but Mamma had become a bit of a nag.
    "Clean up your room dear. Those papers on the spinet, it looks dreadful, Marian darling!"
    "Marian dear, did you forget to bring home the new shower curtain? This is the second time I've asked you. We need a new shower curtain dear!"
    "Why don't we have the Sheldons to dinner Marian dear? I need to discuss the insurance. Did you talk to Paul yet, about our taxes?
    "Finish the vegetables Marian, a girl your age needs the vitamins and minerals.
    "Darling — your toothbrush, it's pink! My goodness, you better make an appointment with the dentist immediately!"
    "Yes Mamma." "Of course, Mamma." "Right away, Mamma." Whatever, whenever Mamma needed, requested, suggested, nagged — Marian simply obeyed.
     
    Miss Cresset, the receptionist and assistant at the Dentist's office, was happenstance. Perhaps if Marian had brushed her teeth regularly, if there hadn't been pink on the toothbrush, if Mamma hadn't nagged, LIFE might never have changed. It was luck — fickle, blind, lucky coincidence.
    At least twice a year, for the past thirty years, Marian had passed by Cresset's desk.
    A bit