ocular rewritten

rebekah sighed, watching the blur of quaint towns and lazy fields pass by her window. she propped her heels up on the seat and relished the solitude of her empty train car, closing her eyes languidly and letting the warm sunlight reach through the glass and caress her lovely face. a smile curled at the corners of her red-tinted lips, the curve of her mouth quirking in an enchanting, mischievous grin as she watched the landscape slowly fade from dewy forests to untouched white-sand beaches studded with wispy, wind-tossed grass. her excitement grew the closer she drew to her destination, bright blue nails tapping the window impatiently. she couldn’t wait for the trouble she would cause in rhode island.

finally, the train pulled into rebekah’s stop. she exited quickly, giving a cheery wave to her fellow passengers as she leaped off the train step, landing with a fairy-like twirl. she hiked up her narrow, patterned skirt in a very un-ladylike manner as she clambered onto a bicycle, heading for town.

along her merry way, she passed charming houses, freckled children, and spotted dogs, saying hello to each and every one. once she reached the bustling town square, she parked her bicycle outside of a small café and set off to explore.
before she could, however, a gentle, careful hand tapped her on the shoulder. rebekah turned around to find a young, handsome man with a confident smile, a diamond watch gleaming on his wrist. he had a poised air about him, his immaculate blazer and creamy tie accentuating a slender, striking figure. a button on his lapel read standard oil.

“hello,” she said, drawing closer. “good afternoon,” he responded, casually leaning against the brick wall of the café. playing with the leaves of a nearby tree, he plucked a plump, white flower from the branch and offered it to rebekah playfully. “a flower for the pretty lady?”
she smiled, taking it and placing it behind her ear.

“i’m rebekah.” she said smoothly, extending a hand, which he leaned down to kiss. “i’m william, but you can call me bill. would you allow me to show you around town?” he asked, and, as she nodded, he took her arm in his and took her on a tour, pointing out cute restaurants and local shops. together, they examined sweet-scented candles, sampled delicious treats, and bought brightly-colored vintage glass bottles. “they’re full of secrets,” rebekah explained at bill’s questioning glance. “maybe this bottle was owned by a sailor’s wife, or a doctor, or a fortune-teller! maybe i’m just carrying on the legacy of bottle-owners.”

bill smiled, playing along. “maybe this bottle right here washed up on the shore after falling off a traveling merchant’s cart. or maybe it held a young princess’s perfume, or a bottle of vanilla for a wedding cake!”
“exactly!” rebekah replied. “i think you’ve got it, dearie.”

from across the shop, the cashier called to them, “hey, lovebirds! are you guys planning on actually buying anything?”

—

“you may now kiss the bride.”

polite clapping filled the lavishly-decorated apartment rooms of 730 park avenue as rebekah and william embraced. the chilly october air wafted through the open windows, autumn leaves from nearby trees scattering the aisle and tangling in rebekah’s veil as william laughed. a centerpiece of weathered glass bottles filled with daffodils (the bride’s favorite flower) adorned each table, but the beautiful decorations didn’t make up for the whispers floating around the room.

“who is this rebekah, anyways? how did she capture the heart of william hale harkness, the richest bachelor our town has ever seen?”
“i heard she used to live in saint louis and loved the ballet.”
“i’ve heard it said that she spiked the punch at her sister’s debutante ball with mineral oil.”
“one of her old school friends told me that rebekah told everyone that she ‘set out to do everything bad’.”
“ooh, i’ve heard she married her first husband just because she ‘didn’t have anything better to do’. I hope she doesn’t break poor bill’s heart.”

rebekah pretended not to notice the whispers, let her confidence thicken into a shield that not even the judgmental murmurs could break. “don’t worry, lovely, they’re just jealous. soon they’ll come to love you just as i do,” bill said softly, squeezing her hand. rebekah returned his smile gratefully, threading her arm through his as she cleared her throat. “esteemed guests, i have wonderful news!” she called to the room, waiting for their full attention before continuing.

“do you all know that charming house back home on watch hill, the beautiful one overlooking the ocean?” she paused dramatically, then said with a flourish, “well, bill and i have bought it! and just for all of you, we’ll be having a housewarming party next week in our newly-dubbed ‘holiday house!’’’

this time, the clapping was genuine: all the socialites were curious to see what kind of party rebekah would throw. her reputation thus far was one of barely-disguised wildness, and a raucous party would put her in the history books forever as the maddest woman the town had ever seen.

the party was exactly that. rebekah debuted her brand-new fish tank (filled to the brim with scotch) and let the libations flow freely, leading to a night of laughter, love and some poor choices. during the celebration, rebekah and bill stood together on the balcony, overlooking the festivities as elegant, sweeping music echoed from somewhere down below. as the song drifted up to them, the couple looked to each other with matching expressions of affection. “becky…” bill sighed, trailing off as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders and she wrapped hers around his waist. “i love you, dearie,” she finished for him, and they swayed together under the stars, knowing that they’d forever be the center of each other’s universe.

—

“all in all, a great night,” one woman declared to another, rubbing her head as she exited the manor unsteadily. “this rebekah harkness… i think i like her!”
“yes, i agree,” another woman replied, taking a seat on the damp ground and pulling off her shoes. “she and bill seem so happy together! i hope it lasts…”

—

years wore on as the parties continued: years full of rumpled sheets, stolen glances, feather-light laughter, and subtle, infectious, beautiful happiness. with each new event, rebekah’s wild reputation grew, catapulting her to fame, until she was on the cover of vogue magazine and in every local’s mind, all longing for an invite to one of rebekah’s notorious parties. meanwhile, the happy couple gave birth to a beautiful, bright-eyed little girl named edith, and each new day felt like another stolen heaven they both didn’t want to leave. but, alas, it wasn’t meant to be.

“bill, dearie? is something wrong?”

she found him on the floor, a shattered glass in his clammy hand, the sculptor he was posing for staring at the body in frozen shock. a horrible shriek echoed through the house, and when the doctor finally arrived and proclaimed his death a heart attack, rebekah let a single tear drip down her cheek and onto the slick floor. then she turned her back on her lover as they carried the body away, but never turned her back on his name: she would forever be known as rebekah harkness.

—

the whispers came immediately.

“did you hear? will harkness’ dead!”
“i bet it was all the parties.”
“ugh, rebekah’s probably getting all the money…”
“ i wish i was her right now. poor william, though. he couldn’t keep up with his wife.”
“they were a lovely, mad, beautiful couple, don’t you think?”
“ah, yes. especially the woman. i wonder what she’ll do, now that she’s had such fun destroying our town… ”

—

“welcome to holiday house, ladies!” rebekah crowed, lounging on the couch with a bottle of wine. “just like old times, right? remember all the trouble we used to cause in school?”

the girls laughed along with her, nursing their own bottles and reminiscing about stories of their youth. around them, others milled, slightly bored. the extravagance of rebekah’s famous parties had significantly decreased since william had died, but she had a surprise in store for her tired guests.

“ladies and gentlemen, i ask that you please head to the pool,” rebekah called with a giggle. “there’s a special surprise!”

the guests made their way down to the pool, murmuring. rebekah followed behind, conversing loudly with her friends as she walked. as soon as the group arrived, an appreciative gasp arose from the crowd.

rebekah harkness had filled her entire pool with champagne.

she addressed the crowd again, gesturing to her left, where a long line of beautiful dancers streamed out of the mansion. “i would also like to introduce the beautiful ballet dancers of joffrey ballet school, who have generously agreed to perform a show for us!”

a man with a curled mustache and a crooked smile walked up to rebekah and threaded an arm around her waist as the others crowded around the dancers. “fancy a card game, becky?”
“oh, sal…” she sighed, “perhaps just one…”

one turned into two turned into five turned into twenty, and soon rebekah found herself spreading yet another handful of coins down on the table as salvador smirked. “you sure are good, sal…” she sighed, slurring her words a bit from exhaustion as her eyes began to close. “yeah, honey, i am,” he responded with a smile. “hey, you look tired. oh, look at that! it’s three in the morning already. you should get some rest, becky.”

taking her hand in his, he guided rebekah to her bedroom, threading through the few stray guests who still remained. “thanks, sal,” she said, half-asleep even before she fell into bed. before he even closed the bedroom door, she fell asleep, dreaming of dancers and daffodils.

—

“oh my goodness, guess what? rebekah harkness dressed up as a maid and served drinks at her own party to hear the gossip.”
“i know, silly, i was there!”
“ugh, lucky. that woman is the craziest thing to ever happen to our town.”
“imagine if she had never moved here…”

—

“did you see rebekah last night? she was out at midnight, just wandering around the beach…”
“yeah, she’s been acting stranger than usual lately. did you hear that she put up a giant blue dome on her lawn?”
“oooh, i saw that…”
“well, turns out the neighbors sued her for zoning violations, and she dyed one of their cats bright green in revenge!”
“goodness, the audacity of that woman… it’ll be the death of her someday.”

—

of course, the whispers were right. at the age of 67, after a life of dance, parties, and philanthropy, rebekah harkness passed away of stomach cancer. her ashes were placed inside a $250,000 spinning vase designed by salvador dalí, allowing her to continue dancing, even past her final breath.

half a century later, the holiday house property passed onto another great, wild, blonde musician, but the echoes of the legendary rebekah harkness fill the halls of holiday house, even now. listen closely, and you might hear her lovely voice in the creaking of the walls and the subtle music drifting through the air. listen closely, and she will tell you her story. listen closely, and she might even call it… folklore.

—