Stories of the Night

blind-sided.

Suzanne had been my client for two years now.

We had a routine and a camaraderie that I often found lacking in my other professional relationships. She was much more debilitated than many of my other clients, yet she was still capable.

Her blindness contained her only geographically; she worked as a translator for an international electronics company. She could speak Japanese, Mandarin and Spanish. For all of her twenty-two years, she was brilliant.

I knocked at the door to her cottage before letting myself in.

Jesper, her fluffy golden, trotted up to me. He'd failed seeing-eye dog school but Suzy loved him anyway. She rarely left the house anyway.

"Suze?" I called out. "Where are you, dear?"

"Hey Lorraine! I'm in my office!"

Smiling, I placed the grocery bags on the counter and put away the refrigerated goods. As I had learned with many other clients, their visual impairments often strengthened their other senses. Suzanne happened to be a very picky eater. She could tell if I added mushrooms to her soup or if the cheese was coming up on its expiration.

I pulled a pot out, filled it with water and placed it on the stove. Jesper panted at my feet. I slipped him a treat and rubbed his silky head. By the time I added noodles to the boiling water, Suzanne had made her way to the kitchen.

"How's work today?" I asked her.

"Mmm, interesting." She groped the cool granite countertop until she sat in her usual seat. "The negotiators are bickering. It makes my job so much harder when I have to act as a mediator too."

"I can't even imagine. You're tough, though. You can handle them."

Suzy smiled. Her teeth were white but crooked. I'd always found the look charming on her. Most people were afraid to smile if they were self conscious of their teeth. She couldn't see what they looked like and didn't care. Her smile was more genuine than anyone else I knew.

"What's for lunch?" she asked.

"Spaghetti. How's that sound?"

"Downright delicious."

"I didn't interrupt your work, did I?"

She shook her head. "No. I've actually been waiting for you to come today."

I studied her face carefully. She's devilishly good at making her expressions blank.

"Has something happened?" I asked, feeling a flutter of anxiety in my chest.

Her sister wanted Suzanne to live with her, and I always seemed to be waiting for the day Suzy would tell me she's leaving. Her sister wished to be the sole care taker and controller of her life. Something to do with their inheritance. I dreaded the day Suzy would break that to me.

"Well . . . nothing happened," Suzanne said. "It's more of what hasn't happened."

"What are we talking about? What hasn't happened?"

Her lips twitched. "I'm sure you know this, Lorraine, but I'm a virgin."

My body stilled. The wood spoon in my hand was placed aside.

"I wish I could see your face," she complained.

"Perhaps this conversation would be more suitable for your sister, Suzanne."

She shook her head defiantly. "My sister would have a stroke if I mentioned sex. I need someone I'm comfortable with yet have the freedom to express myself around."