A Christmas to Remember

A Christmas to Remember

Autumn Marie Sky

Synopsis: Rachel and Justin were approaching their five-year wedding anniversary and were both eager about finding something special to celebrate it. Unfortunately, there wasn't much they could find in their small little town, and taking a trip was out of the question. As if the universe had sensed their predicament, fate had intervened in the most peculiar manner to bring this couple a present they will never forget!

Author's Note: This erotic and fantastical story was inspired by a desire to learn how people expressed themselves back in the good old days, before topics like these were discussed openly. While this form of lovemaking was more exaggerated, as in Romance and Lust, by Anonymous, it often took on a much more subtle undertone that I unfortunately could not implement into this story. To make this a little more plausible, the characters have never heard of Kama Sutra before, probably because it was never mentioned to them, or because of how far into the future they were. I didn't have time to research Sir Richard Burton's career in full, only that he was a linguist, a captain, and an explorer, so please forgive any inaccuracies that may be present in this manuscript.

To my sighted readers, that is to say, to those who have vision, my apologies for not providing visual description. But, given that I, too, am blind, like the characters in this story, I thought it appropriate to write the story from their perspective. If you are unfamiliar with Seeing AI, it is an app developed by Microsoft Corporation, which uses cloud-based artificial intelligence to recognise all kinds of objects and texts. I have personally had sexual encounters with both blind and sighted people alike, so I can give some first-hand accounts of what that was like through this manuscript.

To avoid any confusion, only the first names of characters will be used. Any references to persons (living or dead) events, and locales are entirely coincidental.

The main characters in this story are married, named Rachel and Justin. Rachel is a 29-year-old blind student studying for her master's in clinical psychology. She has long, wavy black hair that spans down to her waist and beautiful deep blue eyes, and olive beige skin. to others, she might've passed as white, but that didn't really matter to her. Her husband is a 29-year-old blind student, a few months younger than Rachel, studying biophysics and biochemistry to become an endocrinologist. He has short blond hair and green eyes, and a dazzling smile.

During their spare time, they both love exploring new recipes to cook, research interesting experiences and things to do on Airbnb, or just locally in their community in Rochester, New York. They occasionally volunteered or found work to do from home; Rachel doing PR and marketing, and SEO research, and Justin teaching meditation workshops on Zoom.

It was nearing their fifth wedding anniversary, which was coincidentally during the holiday season, having previously been married five years ago on 12 December. Rachel, who has some Latina ancestry, proposed this date to get married, because it was the day in which the image of the virgin Guadalupe appeared as she seeked shelter to give birth, and Justin thought it was an excellent idea. In fact, she was the one who had initially broken traditions by proposing to get married, with Justin saying yes. Since both of them had similar scientific mindsets, they likewise found many things to be old-fashioned and out of date. In fact, they both chose to go by an entirely new last name, rather than Rachel adopting her husband's last name.

So anyhow, it was nearing five years since they've been married, and both of them didn't quite know what to do. they thought about going up in the mountains and camping either in an RV or tent, or even finding a log cabin and roasting marshmallows in a fireplace, with the freezing wind howling outside, or other similar romantic things. Justin even proposed going to visit Old Faithful at the Yellowstone National Park, but Rachel thought it'd be too expensive to camp there, plus the distance they'd have to travel, and it would probably be too cold. They explored everything from going on a dinner cruise to actually going on a week-long cruise to the Bahamas or taking another honeymoon in another country than the one they first went on.

'I'm having so much trouble deciding what to do, Justin,' said Rachel with a huge sigh, dropping a stack of Braille books onto the dining room table of their little two-bedroom apartment.

'Me too,' Justin replied, likewise setting down his things and turning on his laptop, prepared to study some biology coding for finals. Both of them sat silently, Justin plugging in a pair of earbuds so as not to distract Rachel from the rapid chatter of his screen reader.

After some time of deep concentration, Justin remarked, 'I'm gonna check the mail, 'kay?'

'Mmhm,' Rachel replied, hardly paying any attention as she was scarcely aware that he had gotten up and went outside, barely registering the light tap-tap-tap of his cane as he walked towards their mailbox in the communal room. Meanwhile, Justin dug his keys out of his jeans pocket and quickly searched for the one that felt slightly smaller than the rest, with a peculiar notch near the round part of it and located the correct mailbox, which had a plaque with raised print and Braille on it with their unit number. The door opened with a little squeak. Finding nothing, he was about to close it when his hand knocked over a piece of paper that had somehow stuck to the side wall of the mailbox. Quickly pulling it out, he at once groaned in frustration, as it was only in print. Then, remembering that he had his iPhone, he opened up Seeing AI to read what was on it. After quickly lining it up on the frame, the voice told him, 'Package received. Report to manager's office.' Like any typical person, he was excited to know what could be inside that package that didn't fit inside their mailbox. He quickly hurried over to the office, where by chance he found it still open.

After impatiently shifting his weight from foot to foot while a few other residents were picking up their packages, it was his turn. 'Need any help carrying this back to your unit?' asked the manager's assistant in what Justin perceived to be a patronising tone.

'No, it's okay,' Justin said, 'I can hold it in one hand.' Saying this, he held it neatly in the crook of his elbow while he expertly manoeuvred through some chairs that were near the front door. Without saying good-bye, he hurried over to their unit and unlocked the door.

'Rachel, guess what!' Justin's voice rang out, sounding all excited.

She quickly made a mental note of where she was in her book and answered, 'What?'

'Somebody sent me a package in the mail! I'm not sure who it's from, but I'm gonna find out!'

'Cool,' Rachel said matter-of-factly. She heard him make a few more scans with the app before she thought she heard it say, 'to Rachel and Justin, from Lisa and Edgardo, and Mark and Carol. Why, those are our parents! Rachel thought. What could they have sent us and why? she got the answer to her second question when she heard the next thing the voice said. ' To celebrate your five-year anniversary as a married couple. Please accept this gift with our blessing. We think you will have lots of fun with this!'

Rachel was also really curious to know what was inside, but she promised to finish up her exercises and help put dinner together, then clean up before they both had time to do whatever they wanted, so it wasn't until about three hours had passed since Justin had first got the package. But alas, the time came, and when both of them were settling in to watch an audio-described series on Hulu, she handed the package over to Justin. 'Grab a pair of scissors if you run into any trouble.' And, good as her word, she was back, for Justin had hit a few snags in the way the box was taped shut, so with a little effort, they both managed to pry it open. The contents inside the box, which had been tilted at an angle when it was opened, suddenly slid out and hit the floor with a thud. Rachel, quickly leaning down to grab for it, found a flat object which felt like a book to her. She quickly rummaged inside the box and found more books inside. How boring, she thought to herself. I really thought there was gonna be something really exciting! Then, noticing that they were in Braille, she read the title... K-A-M-A S-A-T-U-R-A. 'Huh?' She thought aloud.

'What's wrong,' Justin asked. He reached for the books, and he, too, read the strange title. 'Kam-muh Suh-truh?'

'What's that, anyhow?'

'I have no idea. Ziggy, what's Kama Sutra?'

The male voice that emanated from their Amazon speaker, which was embedded into their intercom said, 'Kah-muh Sue-truh is a book written by Vatsyayana in the second century, translated into English in 1883 by Sir Richard Burton. It is the most ancient book written to date that explores the sexual desire of human beings and describes several positions to satisfy each one.'

It should be mentioned here that like all couples, both were mutually drawn to each other's attraction and love for one another. Rachel admired Justin's lean body and hard erections, his hands big but gentle. Justin enjoyed feeling her girlish figure on his chest when she had her in his embrace. He liked girls who sounded mature instead of that typical valley talk some girls had. They were familiar with sex, of course, and both of them have engaged in various kinks and other kinds of fantasies. They even belonged to a couple of social media groups where they could be as open as they wanted to about their sex lives. And, better yet, even though they were married, they believed in ethical polyamory and required their partners to sign a legally-binding agreement that Justin and Rachel would never be accused of adultery or infidelity because everyone had given written consent. Still, Kama Sutra was something neither of them have ever heard of, so Justin asked, 'Can I read it before we go to bed?'

'Sure!' Rachel said. 'I'm gonna lie down and nap for a while. You can lie down next to me and read it if you want.'

With that, she and Justin got into their queen-sized bed while Rachel took off her shoes and stockings, Justin doing the same. He couldn't help rubbing his fingers up against Rachel's bosom, and consequently, he couldn't help feeling himself get hard. Thoughts of hugging her plump body against his lean and muscular frame overwhelmed his mind, but he forced himself to concentrate on reading the table of contents, so that at least he'd have a better idea of where to start. Rachel, used to her husband's random displays of affection, said nothing. Holding Rachel's right hand with his left, he used his right hand to lightly skim through the book. Rachel soon fell into a fitful doze, snoring softly into his left ear. Still holding her hand, he absentmindedly started playing with the pages of the book, which had come in several volumes, when by chance he happened to stumble upon a string that had been tucked neatly into one of the pages towards the end of the book. He should've known that books like these, given how old they were, would be made with a really hard cover. He hadn't seen books like these since he first found one at the American Printing House for the Blind's museum during one of the field trips he used to go to when he was little. Those books had seemed quite ancient compared to the sleep books made with today's standards, almost feeling like your typical paperback book, except that it had a removable binder. Some of the ways in which words were contracted were also odd. For example, wear was spelt w-ea-r, instead of w-e-ar. Interesting, Justin thought as he pulled the page open with the bookmark to see what it was about. He started reading, but Rachel's nap had been contagious, for a sudden overwhelming need to sleep quickly overpowered him, and he found that he could not read another word. Hardly knowing that he still held the bookmark, and wholy unaware that he wouldn't have been able to let it go, he quickly fell into a deep slumber that, without his knowledge, Rachel had also fallen into.

* * * * * * * * * *

Rachel was the first to awaken. She felt as if she had been dreaming that somebody had been holding her hand and pulling her faster and faster until she became so dizzy that she felt ready to throw up. 'Are we flying?' she had screamed to the person next to her, but there was no answer. She felt both of their bodies slam hard in a sitting position against the ground, which was what had actually jolted her into a wakeful state. She subconsciously reached for Justin, who usually slept next to her right side and was relieved to find him still there. But wait, something felt oddly strange. The bed wasn't what she remembered. It felt very foreign to her. She felt for the mattress underneath her and was surprised to find it coiled by ropes about every two feet. No wonder, she thought. I felt one of them press into my ribs. But why would my bed be covered in ropes? She quickly grew alarmed, thinking that Justin had bound her to the bed as part of their kink fantasies. But surely, he would've told me ahead of time. She quickly got up, noticing that the bed swayed a little, nearly causing her to lose her balance, and relief washed over her, finding that she could still move freely about. Then she noticed that the bed crinkled beneath her, and another strange thing occurred to her. The bed had a smell like something you'd find in a barn! She tried to recall what it was. She had smelt it a few times whenever she went to various pumpkin patches and horseback riding lessons. Hay? Straw? Wait... this is a straw bed! Oh my god, where am I? Rachel racked her brain, trying to remember where she heard about straw beds. It was during one of her history lessons back when she was in high school. But before she could utter a word, she heard Justin cry out, 'Rachel!'

Quickly rushing to his side, she whispered, 'It's okay, Justin, I'm here!'

'Curse it,' Justin muttered. 'What happened? I felt like we were flying and...'

Rachel gasped in utter amazement. 'What, you had that same dream too?'

'What dream?'

'I also dreamed that we were flying!'

'No way!' Justin also got up and noticed the way in which their bed had been constructed. He also nearly lost his balance when it suddenly lurched to one side. 'Rachel... you don't suppose--'

'No, don't say it!'

Realisation soon dawned on them as they both screamed, 'We're back in 1883!'

'Or sometime in the year 100,' Rachel said softly. 'We could be in India when Vatsyayana had written that book.'

'Let's not panic,' Justin said. 'We'll just explore where we are and hopefully someone here will know something. If we're indeed in 1883, it'll be easier to find English-speaking people.'

Rachel laughed a little, saying, 'Good thing I know Spanish, so that'd also come in handy, as well.'

But before either of them could go far, a male voice cleared its throat, which caused them to nearly freeze in their tracks. 'Ahem, what are you a-doing in my bed?' said he in tones of authority.

Rachel, being slightly closer to where he stood, gasped and nearly fell over with fright. Regaining her composure, she said, 'Uh sorry, I didn't know this was your bed.'

'Well,' the person said, 'here I am, seeing to it that my ship was set due north, about to retire to bed, when I heard voices, and what have I come to?'

'I'm so sorry, sir,' Justin said, getting up. 'I really didn't know this was your bed. Where are we going?'

'My good man, fear not. You are in the homey ship of captain Sir Richard Burton, bound for Liverpool.' His voice sounded gravelly, like your typical seaman.

'Oh,' Rachel and Justin sighed in unison. Justin added, 'We found your translation of Ka--'

'No! Speak not another word!' Richard's stern tone shut Justin up really quickly. 'My apologies, Sir Richard went on a few seconds later, his voice nearly softening. I have not finished my project. And, how came you to find it, anyhow, were you spying on me? Who may you two be, anyhow?'

'Erm, well,' Rachel said, feeling her cheeks flush with embarrassment, as if she had been caught red-handed. 'Erm, I don't know how we got here.'

'Don't know how you got here!' Ejaculated the captain, 'Are you two not stowaways aboard my ship?'

''N-no!' Justin stammered. You see, we're from the future. We woke up to find that we're no longer in our bedroom.

'I'm sorry we were sleeping in your bed,' Rachel added.

'That's the queerest yarn I've a-heard! How is man is able to travel in time?'

Rachel, who believed in equalism and supported inclusive feminism, flinched at the use of the word 'man'. She also thought queer was no longer used that way. She reminded herself that people in that time period knew nothing about political correctness. Justin also highly supported this too, and if she could've seen him, she would've been reassured that he, too, felt as uncomfortable as she felt. Deciding to let it go for the present, Justin said, 'Well, I don't really know. All I know was that I got a book in the mail--your book-- and I fell asleep with it, and it brought me here.'

'Well, I might believe you, or I might not,' Sir Richard muttered. 'Still, since we are just sailing back from India, and since I cannot let you flappin' gums about my project, I shall have no choice but to keep you here until I have announced it myself.'

'No, you can't do that!' Rachel gasped. She had read about similar things in other books she has read. She tried to find some way to reason with him, bribing him with something--anything--to be kept from being a prisoner on board a ship, with thousands of kilometers between them and home, and in the wrong time period. 'We promise we won't say anything about your book, I swear!'

Sir Richard, coming closer and lighting an oil lamp, saw that Rachel and Justin stared at him blankly. Although they couldn't make eye contact with anyone, they both naturally turned to where his voice seemed to come. 'Goodness gracious!' he said in disbelief. 'How come you both to be blind? Have you two suffered from some mere mishap, or were you come by some peculiar ailment?'

'Well,' Rachel said, 'I was born prematurely--'

'Born prematurely?' Sir Richard interrupted. 'What does that even mean? It is impossible to be born prematurely!'

'Well, in our time, if a baby is born too early, it doesn't die,' Justin explained. 'We have machines that can keep them alive until they are ready to come out. It's like an incubator.'

'How ingenious!' the captain remarked. 'I never knew such a feat was possible. I had always admired the inventions of Old Ben Franklyn and Thomas Eddison, but to keep a mere newborn alive is just marvellous!'Rachel hoped that by distracting him with explanations about medical science, he would forget to keep them both locked up. 'Anyhow,' she added, 'I was blinded because oxygen is very toxic to premature babies. It's called retinopathy of prematurity.'

'I am really sorry you were born without God's gift,'

Again, both Rachel and Justin groaned inwardly. If there was one thing that they highly despised was having people pray for them just because they were blind. While they both didn't let their blindness define their identity, and while they were most certainly open to getting their sight if it were offered to them, having someone pray for them felt very condescending. 'No, it's okay,' Justin replied. 'We've been born that way, so we're used to it. we read Braille--'

'Braille? The famous blind French church organist who died not long since? Poor soul. Was succumbed by a severe case of consumption.' He pronounced 'Braille' as 'Bray-ELLE'.