Colour My World

Jack stuck the brass key into the lock and heard the click as he turned it. He pressed his shoulder against the door, giving it a push to open it. It was a stubborn door, sticking each time it was opened. Jack made a mental note to add it to his to do list of things to fix. Stepping inside of his small house, he smelled an aroma coming from the kitchen.

"Hello Mrs. Adams, your husband is home," he said with a grin. He closed the door behind him and wiped his feet on the small welcome mat on the floor.

"Mrs. Adams. Husband. Those are words I have to get used to." The woman, Marie, wrapped her arms around him and pressed her lips against his. "I'm glad you're home, supper is almost ready."

"Good, I'm starving." Jack set his lunch pail down on the small dining table whose table cloth was faded and torn at the corners. It was a small table but it fit inside of the small house that they called theirs. It was plenty big enough for the two of them and with their low salaries, it was all they could afford. In an empty ashtray on the same table sat a golden band, a man's wedding ring. Jack reached out and picked it up, sliding it over his finger. He spun it around a few times, feeling the smoothness of its surface against his skin.

"Marie, I think we should just tell people. I think it's time!" he exclaimed. His mind was racing, the ring setting into motion a train of thoughts that he had to get out.

His wife stepped back into his line of sight, her dark curly hair pulled back from her face. He smiled at her beauty and stepped closer to her. She smiled back but shifted her gaze to the ground. Jack knew what she was thinking, she didn’t have to speak a word. She turned back around and entered the kitchen again, Jack’s eyes on her the whole time.

"Come on babe, it's not like we did anything wrong. We went up north and got married. We should be able to tell people. Wouldn’t it be great to tell our folks?"

Marie sighed as she carried two plates to the table, setting them down next to the silverware and mismatched glasses. Jack came up behind her, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist. His finger fiddled with the apron she wore over her dress as he kissed her neck. Marie's skin was dark, colored rich from her African American lineage. Jack's was pale white and when side by side, the two of them were in stark contrast with each other.

"I wish we could tell everyone. Tell them all that I am Mrs. Jack Adams," Marie smiled. But her eyes held a sadness that hurt Jack’s heart to see.

"Then why don't we?" Eagerness and hope filled his voice, hoping that she would finally agree.

"You know what this world is like, Jack. It's 1966. Times will change soon and we won't have to hide. The world will change. But for now, it has to be a secret."

A secret. Jack shook his head, bringing his hand up to his hair and running his fingers through it. He didn’t want to keep his love a secret any longer. He was always raised to tell the truth and never lie yet there he was, lying about loving a colored woman.

"The world is wrong though, telling me that I can't love you. It makes me feel like I can't be a good husband and that I can't take care of my family."

Marie slowly turned around and faced him, her brown eyes staring up at his. She touched his face, her fingertips running down his skin. She smiled sweetly at him before kissing his cheek. He leaned his forehead against hers and sighed. It wasn’t fair that they had to hide their marriage from the outside world. That the walls of their tiny home were the only ones that saw how true their love was.

"One day, Jack. But for right now, supper is almost ready."

"What if I want something before dinner?" The corners of Jack's mouth turned upwards, a grin spreading into his cheeks. His eyes softened as he leaned in and kissed his wife.

"What do you have in mind?" she asked, softly.

"You," he whispered to her as he drew her in for another kiss. It was a passionate kiss, his mouth secured tightly on hers, his hands grabbing her waist in his strong hands.

“But dinner…” she tried to say between kisses but the fire was already lit between them. The supper would just have to burn; neither of them seemed to care much.

“Dinner is not what I am hungry for,” he breathed.

Jack pressed up against her, even closer than before, and edged her down the hallway. The wall caught them first and acted as a support when Jack pushed Marie up against it, kissing her neck. Her slender fingers -- one of them showcasing a golden band much like Jack’s -- fiddled with the buttons of his stained work shirt. She slid her hands under the white t-shirt he wore and Jack sighed against her skin.

Slowly, they entered the bedroom, their lips hardly leaving each other. Jack unzipped Marie’s dress and smiled at her as he watched it fall to the floor, her undergarments -- a simple white bra -- stood out against her dark skin and Jack kissed her collar bone as he removed it as well. He stepped backwards, finding the bed and lying down. He pulled his t-shirt off and tossed it to the side and watched as Marie crawled over to him. She was on her knees as she playfully unbuttoned Jack’s pants and white underwear.

“I love you, Mrs. Adams,” Jack said, pulling Marie’s now naked body against his. Before she could respond, he was kissing his wife’s lips, his white skin pressed against every inch of her. In that bed, the color lines no longer existed; there was no black or white, only a man and wife in a moment of pure ecstasy.