The Dive

Joe Greco

I.

One Monday morning just before the alarm clock goes off, Charlie Boswell stands on the roof outside his bedroom window.  He looks down at the driveway twelve feet below.  He looks back at the open window.  His wife Martha is sleeping in their bed.  He takes a deep breath, looks back at the driveway.
…..Charlie springs, launching off the roof.  He tucks into a somersault.  He is spinning, spinning, smiling.  The wind blows cold against his face, ruffles his pajamas.  As he completes the somersault, he extends his arms, approaching the cement.  He hopes the cement will turn to water, that he will splash and swim away.
…..As he hits, Charlie’s arms break, crumpling.  His head slams, cracking his skull.  He is screaming.  Martha is grabbing his shoulders, shaking him.  The alarm is sounding meep, meep, meep.
…..“Wake up, Charlie,” she says.  “You’re having a bad dream.  Wake up!”
…..Charlie watches her shaking him.  She reaches over him and hits the alarm button.  She takes his face in her hands.
…..“Charlie, my God, what was that all about?”
…..Charlie breathes deeply, then smiles.  “I just performed the most beautiful dive,” he says.
…..“What?  Why were you screaming?”
…..“It hurt when I hit the cement.  Really hurt.”
…..“What cement?  An empty pool?”
…..“No, I dived off the roof, right out there.  Hit the driveway.  That’s what hurt.  But the dive, the dive was beautiful.  It was a somersault dive, like I’d do as a kid.  It seemed like I was spinning in the air forever.  Kind of like a bird, you know?”
…..Martha frowned.  “Are you OK?  Do you want to call in today?”
…..“Not at all.  I’m fine.  I have a lot to do at work this week.  Let’s have breakfast.”

II.

When they go to bed that night, Martha says, “If you’re going diving, make sure to dream the water!”  She laughs.
…..Charlie smiles.  “I’ll do my best.”

III.

Next morning, Charlie is spinning in the cold wind, smiling.  When he sees the driveway approaching, he believes that the cement will turn to water and that he will splash and swim away.
…..When he hits, his arms break, his skull cracks, and he is screaming.  Martha is shaking him, shouting his name.  The alarm is sounding meep, meep, meep.
…..“It’s all right,” Charlie says.  He pats Martha’s hand. “It’s all right.”
…..“Charlie, it can’t be all right.  What is the matter?  What is wrong?”
…..“Nothing is wrong.  I wish you could know how wonderful the dive feels.  It hurts when I hit the driveway, of course.  I really thought the cement would turn to water this time.  But it was worth it.”
…..“Worth it?  Charlie, you’re scaring the hell out of me.  You’re dreaming about killing yourself, and you say it’s worth it?”
…..Charlie frowns.  “Killing myself?  I guess I haven’t thought of it that way.  The place where I’m diving just doesn’t have water below.  Although I wish it did.  I really do.  And I’m not really killing myself, am I?  It’s just a dream.”  He hugs Martha.  “Let’s have breakfast.  I’ve a lot to do at work this week.”

IV.

Martha cannot figure out what is wrong with Charlie.  He always has been so sensible, so dependable.  This is not at all like him.  Everything had been going so smoothly until this dreaming, this screaming.
…..They have been married nine years.  They almost have completed their second five-year plan.  They have saved money, bought a house, stayed out of debt.  This year their budget allowed for a vacation.  They went to Disney World.  Everything had been going so smoothly.
…..The next five years have looked promising.  They could start to put some money into stocks, bonds.  Perhaps buy a second car.  They could even think about having children, if they want.  That’s how successful they have been.
…..Charlie should be counting his blessings, Martha thinks, not diving off the roof in his dreams.
…..Martha cannot figure out what is wrong with Charlie.

V.

Next morning, Martha opens her eyes and sees Charlie smiling.  Before she can awaken him, his screams mix with the bleating of the alarm.
…..“Charlie!” she shouts, grabbing him and shaking him.  “Stop it!  Stop it right now!  I am not going to put up with this every morning.”
…..“I’m sorry,” Charlie says.  “I’m sorry I’m upsetting you.”  He hugs her.
…..“How can you stand it?  To be crushed every morning?”
…..Charlie lies on his back looking up at the ceiling.  “I did a back flip.  It was amazing.  I could never even do that as a kid.”
…..“Charlie!  Enough!  You’re calling in today.  You’re going to see the doctor.”
…..“No, I can’t.  No time for that this week.”
…..“Charlie, you must!  We can’t go through this every morning.”

VI.

Charlie agrees to an appointment with the doctor at the end of the day.  He describes his dreams to the doctor.
…..“You don’t seem disturbed by these dreams,” the doctor says.
…..“I’m not.”
…..“Yet every morning you wake up believing you’ve died an awful, painful death.”
…..“True.  But I soon realize that I’m alive and I remember the dive.  I compare the pleasure of the dive in the air with the pain of the fall against the ground.  When I look at it that way, it seems worth it, you know?  Believe me, I’d rather that the cement would turn to water, but I don’t seem to have any control over that.”
…..“What is your job, Mr. Boswell?”
…..“I sell boxes.”
…..“Boxes?”
…..“Yes, cardboard boxes.  I work for a company that makes cardboard boxes.  I’m in sales.”
…..“Do you like your job?”
…..“Well, sure.  It’s a good job.  Pays pretty well.  Everybody needs boxes.  Sometimes I think of all the things people put in them, all these boxes I sell.  Heck, you’ve probably used some of our boxes yourself, doctor.”
…..The doctor smiles.  “I probably have.  Any troubles on the job lately?”
…..“No, no.  Like I said, everybody needs boxes.  Sales are good.”
…..“You’re married?”
…..“Yes, nine years.”
…..“Children?”
…..“No.  Not yet anyway.”
…..“Any problems at home?”
…..“No, not at all.  Other than my wife doesn’t want me to wake up screaming every morning, which, of course, I understand.  That’s why I’m here.”
…..“Do you want the dreams to stop?”
…..“They’re scaring my wife, so yes, they should stop.”
…..“But do you want them to stop?”
…..“If she wasn’t there?”
…..“Yes, if your wife wasn’t there.”
…..“But she is there.  So I have to take that into account.  Just like the fall against the cement.”
…..The doctor shakes his head.  “You know these dreams aren’t healthy, Mr. Boswell.”
…..Charlie shrugs.
…..“Even if we just consider you waking up with a racing heart every morning.  That alone is not healthy.  I’m going to prescribe some pills.”
…..“Will they stop the dreams?”
…..“They should.  Maybe not right away.  But they should.”

VII.

Charlie takes the pills.  The next morning he stands on the roof looking back at Martha, sleeping.  He looks down at the driveway and thinks water, please, water.  The wind blows, ruffling his pajamas.  He begins to launch but feels his feet slipping, his body twisting.  He awakes with a start.
…..“Charlie,” Martha says.  “What happened?”
…..“I was starting my dive, but I began slipping and losing my balance.  It was awful.”
…..She strokes his shoulder.  “The pills are working already,” she says, smiling.  “It’ll get better.  Soon you won’t have the dream at all.”
…..Charlie nods.  He lies back on his pillow.  The alarm sounds and he swats it off.

VIII.

The next few mornings Charlie sees himself on the roof, but unable to launch a dive.  His legs feel dead and he cannot raise his arms.  He only can stare down at the driveway, wishing that it were water and that he could dive and splash and swim away.
…..Soon Charlie doesn’t dream at all.  The alarm wakes him every morning.  Martha hugs him and says, “Great.  The pills really are working now.”

IX.

One Monday morning Charlie awakens before the alarm clock goes off.  He quietly climbs out of bed.  He gently opens the window and climbs out onto the roof.  The shingles are rough against his bare feet.  The cold wind blows against his face and ruffles his pajamas.   He walks gingerly to the edge of the roof, looks down at the driveway.  He knows that it will never be water.  He positions his feet, straightens his legs.  He turns his head and shoulders back toward the window.  Martha is asleep in the bed.
…..The alarm sounds meep, meep, meep.  Martha opens her eyes.  A gust of cold wind blows into the room.  Martha scrambles out of bed and runs to the window, screaming.

END

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Joe Greco practices law and writes in Northern California.

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