Chapter 28 #3
“Williams.” He smiled a little. “Clarence Williams. Just Clarence is fine, though.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Clarence. I sincerely appreciate you working so late so that my friend and I may enjoy the fair by ourselves for a little while.
I hope some of the money that I paid for this has made its way to you.
More than your usual hourly rate, I mean.
Because I specifically requested that everyone working tonight be paid triple.
” He paused and raised an eyebrow. “Are you, in fact, being paid triple for running the wheel tonight?”
“That I am,” the man confirmed. “Thank you.”
“Oh, I should be the one thanking you. I know this was a bit selfish of me. But . . .” Arthur trailed off and shook his head. “Anyway. Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome.”
Clarence turned and opened the car that was waiting for them at the platform.
Arthur’s stomach tumbled the moment he stepped inside.
Goodness, the car was large. Larger than even an ordinary streetcar.
Enormous windows lined every side of it.
Thirty or so twisty wire chairs sat in the middle, but there was plenty of other space as well.
Probably fifty or sixty people could fit in here, if needed.
Arthur closed his eyes and tried to picture the wheel from the outside.
It had to have been fitted with over thirty cars, which meant that it must have normally carried over two thousand fairgoers.
But tonight, it would run with only two.
Jesse and Arthur shuffled toward the center of the car, both of them taking a seat while Clarence locked the door, securing them inside. Arthur’s heart pounded as fear and excitement struck him in the chest in equal measure. Exhaling a shaky breath, he turned to Jesse.
“All set, Mr. O’Connor?” he said, trying to sound much steadier than he felt at that moment.
“I’m terrified,” Jesse said. “Truly and honestly terrified.”
All of a sudden, the car stuttered and began moving backward.
Despite the slow pace, Arthur’s heart continued to beat with a ferocity he couldn’t recall ever feeling before in his whole life.
He and Jesse continued to stare at each other, unmoving, as the car then lifted.
Jesse’s eyes were wide and wild, very likely mirroring Arthur’s own.
Arthur’s eyes were still teary, his sense of overwhelm threatening to spill forth at any moment.
Once their car was perhaps fifty feet up, Arthur reached for Jesse’s hand and laced their fingers together.
“My God,” Jesse whispered.
Tears began to fall from Arthur’s eyes, and he sputtered a laugh.
“Can you believe this? Oh my Lord, how fun! I’m scared, too, of course.” He paused to sniffle and blinked a few times. “Especially since we’re the only ones up here.” He wiped his eyes with his free hand, careful not to knock off his spectacles. “I’m sorry I’m crying again.”
“If I wasn’t practically frozen in fear, I’d be crying too,” Jesse said, his voice wobbly.
“I’m here. I have you,” Arthur said, wanting to comfort his companion a little, though he was plenty scared himself. He squeezed Jesse’s hand. “We’re safe.”
Jesse squeezed back. “Thank you.”
Beyond the mess of iron rods and the wood-covered iron frame, Arthur could make out the end of the Midway Plaisance and the start of the fair, though most of the structures were cloaked by the darkness of night now.
Some, though, were still lit up, shining as though they’d been outlined in a magical pencil, one that left a sparkly trail of light behind it, rather than charcoal.
Slowly, but surely, Arthur’s fear seemed to recede and was instead replaced by an intense feeling of wonderment as the wheel turned and brought them higher in the sky.
“Spectacular,” he whispered, barely even loud enough for the word to register in his own ears. He rubbed Jesse’s hand with his thumb. “Oh, it’s so magical up here. Magical and—”
“Terrifying,” Jesse finished for him. Arthur looked over to see Jesse take a pause and swallow. “But worth it.” One corner of his mouth ticked up to form an uncertain half-smile. “Sometimes, or maybe even most of the time, the most terrifying things we want in life are worth pursuing. Aren’t they?”
“Indeed, they are.” Arthur raised Jesse’s hand and kissed it, pouring every bit of comfort and love and joy he felt into it. “I’m so happy, Jesse. I’m so happy to be with you.”
Arthur’s stomach swirled as Jesse’s tentative smile slowly blossomed into a real one.
“I’m happy, too.”
Not one second later, the car suddenly stopped. Both men tightened their grips in tandem, their smiles vanishing instantly as their eyes widened with worry. Seconds passed while they stayed like that—as still as statues, the car rocking ever so slightly back and forth.
And then, at the exact same time, they began to laugh.
“Good God,” Arthur said through his relieved laughter. “How wonderfully horrifying that was! I really thought that was it for a moment there.”
“Jesus Christ,” Jesse blurted out, lifting his free hand to his chest, some of his laughter fading, though his smile was still wide and happy. “I really wish Clarence had mentioned that we’d be stopping up here.”
“Ah, but it was more fun this way.”
Jesse let out a long breath. “I suppose.”
After a few more seconds of their car rocking, Arthur leaned in, and they shared a long, passionate kiss, both of them breathing blissful and contented sighs while their lips moved together. Once they parted, they looked out over the White City.
He twisted around to look back over his shoulder to see the rest of Chicago for a moment before righting himself again. He couldn't help but think about the history of their city right then. Soon, he began to voice his thoughts out loud.
“It’s incredible to think that the entirety of Chicago once nearly burned to the ground.
After it happened, a part of me thought that the city might never recover.
But now look where we are! Look at how spectacular the fair is!
Right now, we’re the very center of innovation.
Our city is a symbol of progress. Of triumph over such a monumental catastrophe.
” He paused as the last word escaped his lips, the specifics of Emma’s news story and several of Giuseppe’s rants fluttering into his mind.
“Or, well, it’s meant to be those things.
But . . .” He frowned. “It’s complicated, isn’t it? ”
Jesse squeezed his hand. “It is.”
Allowing for some time to let that sentiment take root in his brain, Arthur continued to stare out at the horizon. Some time passed before he spoke.
“Our city wanted to prove itself,” he finally mused.
“To rise like a phoenix from the ashes of ruin. And we have in some ways. We’ve persevered.
But people are still struggling. Many, if not most people, in fact.
People who lost their source of income, like Giuseppe.
People who lost their families, like Charlotte or like you.
People who are fighting to break free from the chains of convention or persecution or social norms or inequality or oh-so-many other types of prisons.
I mean, we, the people of Chicago, have put together this truly magnificent fair to showcase how beautiful the city is and how far we’ve come over the last twenty-two years.
But there’s still a long way to go, isn’t there?
For Chicago and for the rest of the world. ”
Jesse smiled sadly. He rubbed the back of Arthur’s hand with his thumb.
“I, too, wanted to soar like a phoenix,” Arthur continued.
“And only now can I see how foolish I was. God, for so long, I tried to repair my reputation and somehow win my parents’ love.
But even if I had managed those things, I’d have still been trapped in a life that wouldn’t have ever made me happy.
Not like I am now that I’m with you. I’d have still been in the same cage that had been hindering me, hurting me, confining me for my whole life.
” He turned and cupped Jesse’s cheek. “But you set me free, Jesse. Thank you for helping me find the courage to be myself. You helped me not only embrace who I am—in so many respects—but you helped me recognize that regardless of what my parents think or what society thinks, I am worthy of love and respect, exactly as I am as well. What’s more, Jesse, you helped me finally let myself see what it was that I wanted in life.
Your love emboldened me to seize it for myself, too. And for Emma.”
Jesse’s smile turned bashful, and his eyes fell to the floor of the car.
“Oh, Arthur, I’m not sure how much I really helped with that.”
“You helped more than you know. Thanks to you, I know that I am more than my past mistakes. I know that I’m more than what my parents and the cultural milieu of Chicago’s high society has tried to make me into.
All the happiness that I’ve found lately is because of you.
You’ve made me a better man, Jesse O’Connor. And I love you.”
Jesse’s cheeks reddened. “I love you, too, Arthur.”
Arthur’s hand slipped to cup Jesse’s chin. He lifted it slightly, urging Jesse to meet his eyes.
“You’re enough for me. Don’t ever forget that.
I’m sorry that you’ve spent so much of your life feeling like you are less.
But you’re not less. You’re perfect. Smart and kind and clever and handsome and—” Arthur had to stop to try to rein in yet another bout of tears.
“Oh, I would ask you for your hand right now if I could. I want to spend the rest of our lives together, Jesse.”
Tears sprang to Jesse’s eyes. “I want that too.”
“Really?”
Jesse nodded as one tear escaped. “Really.”
Arthur wiped it with his thumb.
“Will you, then? Will you spend your life with me? Perhaps you can move into my home. Giuseppe can, too. I was thinking that perhaps we could have you and Claire pose as a couple. Husband and wife. It would explain why you’re living with me, if she becomes my maid.
Regardless of whether you’d like that, though, I want to leave Prairie Avenue.
It’s a lovely enough neighborhood, but there’s nothing I’d like more than to rebuild myself and my life somewhere else with the people who matter most to me.
I was thinking of Kenwood, maybe, since both you and Giuseppe could make it to the print shop from there by train.
Some other families—relatively wealthy families—are settling there lately.
Building new homes and such. So, I’m hoping that our large household won’t look terribly out of place there.
I really think that such a location could be perfect for all of us.
” Arthur leaned forward and tipped their foreheads together.
“What do you say, Jesse? Do you want to spend your life with me?”
“Yes,” Jesse said, a smile splitting his face. “Of course, yes.”
Jesse caught Arthur’s mouth in a long, passionate kiss. Soon, the wheel started to move. Arthur broke away with a happy chuckle and a lovesick sigh.
And then, together, Arthur and Jesse watched the city as the wheel slowly turned.