MALACHI BLOOM
"mal-ah-kai" 39, journalist, father. i was stumbling right by, like a wreck i came to you. so i staggered through the night, seeking out your rescue blues. gonna burn your name right across the sky, so I never forget what the feeling's like
I saw MALACHI BLOOM at a coffee shop in BROOKLYN today. I forgot how much HE looks like MICHIEL HUISMAN. They are a THIRTY EIGHT year old JOURNALIST who’s been in NYC for HIS WHOLE LIFE now. Every time we run into each other, they are always LEVEL HEADED & FOCUSED but I’ve heard people say they can also be SELF-NEGLECTING & CLUMSY. TEARS IN HEAVEN BY ERIC CLAPTON reminds me of them every time it comes on the radio.
we’re back bay-bee.
tw. sudden death, car crash, and fertility issues
malachi was born to a small but well respected jewish family in brooklyn. the community was surprisingly tight knit, seeing as in big cities such as new york it’s not that uncommon to not know your neighbours.
nicknamed ki, or mali as a kid, malachi grew up watching his father work in the newspaper printing business. the family patriarch proudly sported his curious son around the factory, expecting he’d enter the news industry at some capacity. and malachi would.
malachi met his high school sweetheart eva in softmore year, and absolutely fell head over heels. by the time they were eighteen and both graduated, the pair would promptly get married. a nervous, fumbling malachi proposing on a holiday. she accepted.
he has many good memories of eva, one particular of painting their new apartment together and getting the paint absolutely everywhere due to the play-fight they got into, chasing each other with the paint brushes.
everything seemed to be going to pairs way for a while, malachi got into college for journalism, they were on top of their bills, and eva got her dream job by sheer coincidence of right place right time. the only thing that would make it complete, was a baby.
after further testing, eva would soon discover she had a low ovarian reserve, meaning after five years of trying she would suddenly learn her chances of conceiving were very low. but as the couple usually did, they tried to look on the bright side. they tried ivf, and other methods they worked hard to afford. and so a few months after malachi’s thirtieth birthday, over ten years of trying, eva was pregnant.
charlotte naomi bloom was born at a health weight of 3kg, in 2013. life was perfect, apart from the more stressful duties of being parent, but malachi didn’t mind.
but their happiness wasn’t to last long. on july 22nd 2017, eva was driving to work like any other morning, when a distracted driver hit her from the side. she died on impact.
if it wasn’t for the love of his daughter, malachi would of spiralled. but that’s not to say it didn’t cripple him. he was inconsolable, not only for the loss of his beloved wife, but explaining to his then four year old daughter that mum wasn’t coming home.
malachi is so very occupied with being the best dad he’s letting some of his self care and mental health go and not really dealing with his grief. charlotte is his pride and joy, and so he funnels all his energy into her needs.
he's the quiet dad that drops off his daughter at ballet with messy hair, but always smells like cedar wood for some reason. he likes to wear jumpers with deep blues or browns, and worn denim jackets. it’s the family joke at some point they’re going to burn his wardrobe and get him some more modern clothes.
this year will mark the fourth anniversary of eva’s passing, and malachi hasn’t made much progress on moving on. but for the sake of his daughter, his family is gently encouraging him to do so. however, the journalist isn’t so sure just yet.
Finn made an unimpressed face at Mal. “That’s all I get? A name?” He should have suspected he’d be tight lipped about it, but considering Finn was the only reason Mal was even there that night, he felt he at least deserved a little more than just that. Mal was more of the romantic type, Finn knew that. But every man had needs. “Come on, you gotta at least tell me if the drought is over and then I’ll leave you alone,” he joked quietly, so Charlotte couldn’t hear. He took a sip of his beer as he leaned over the edge of the seat that he was perched on. “This is for your sanity and my own.”
﹃﹄
mal let’s a gentle smile escape his lips, he was never really one to kiss and tell. but maybe this case was different, finn did want to see him happy again, however their definitions of what brought happiness were most likely very different. maybe just a few details wouldn’t hurt. considering annalise seemed just as interested to get to know malachi better, there’d be a chance might eventually meet finn, but it was still very early days. “the drought is over.” a small smile breaches as mal’s lips, curving upwards, he has to look away, “happy now ??” as finn leans over the table, malachi playfully pushes the mans shoulders back.
“journalism?” annalise was unable to hide her suprise as her eyebrows raised, betraying her in the process. “apologies, i wasn’t quite expecting that.” distancing herself from him, she narrowed her eyes and gave him a glance up and down - it was playful but still an inspection. “you do look like a writer. it’s always the babbling types that take you by surprise.” a light chuckle followed as she adjusted herself on the stool. the natural conversation comment did encourage her to relax a bit more, reminded her not to launch herself at people with the hope that they would like her.
that had to be what it was about. annalise had come onto her soon to be ex husband a few days ago and he had rejected her despite her begging. that was how badly she had degraded herself so needed some kind of validation, any kind of validation. no, annalise aldridge didn’t need a partner to determine her self worth but after she had lost her daughter and was now losing her husband through a divorce she didn’t even want, the titles of mother and wife were seemingly being dropped and she was having some sort of identity crisis. ella was everything to her and the only person that could understand her pain was him. instead of support, she was shunned and in turn, his pain was passed to her.
it was kind of him to compliment her and she couldn’t help but giggle slightly and look a way, slightly embarrassed. however, it was what she thought she needed. “that’s kind of you. i’m a translator and interpreter, prefer interpreting but seem to be doing more translation recently.” if she was doing any work at all. that was another ‘title’ she had left off the list in her head when describing herself. she was well respected, or had been until she stopped replying to emails. annalise knew she should have set a target for herself to clear out a couple of emails a day but she didn’t have the tools to keep up a healthy routine. as she spoke, she had naturally leaned in closer to the other.
﹃﹄
he knows that look, the hint of surprise that graces peoples features when he voices his career. watching the strong arch of annalise’s brow hike, the corner of his lips began to turn, spilling out a gentle bout of laughter as he glances back down to the floor. “no need to apologise.” there never was with him, “i get that a lot.” he can almost feel her gaze drifting up and down his frame, imprinting on his skin, as if the woman had reach out to touch him with her own hands. it raises the hairs on the back of his neck. catching her gaze as it rises, malachi finds enough confidence within him in effort to hold onto it. in a moment of reprieve from the build up of stress between his shoulder blades, malachi inspects her in return. noting how elegantly her hair rested on her shoulders, weightless, framing her features the journalist had to fight not to stare out. there was beauty, then there were those who were truly transfixing. eva was one of them, he remembered first catching a glimpse of her in the middle of a class, staring until she walked over and demanding conversation if he was going to gape at her like that. they had become fast friends by the end of the class.
“are we ??” is that a smirk that he sports ?? subtly shifting forward in his seat, in an astonishing act of courage. “i spend my days with the written word... i guess it’s only natural it’d be easy for to be lost for words. especially when presented with pretty women who kiss you at bars.” who was this man, making sly jokes ?? surely it wasn’t malachi. of course, the devious tough doesn’t last long, discerning a flush of redness building up in his cheeks.
unable to help himself but mirror her smile, dark orbs linger on the lips that had moments ago graced his. wishing he had of been able to savour the moment when caught in his state of shock, would he be lucky enough to repay the favour ?? the journalist runs his hand over his beard, before reaching out for his beer. anything to occupy his hands, hyper-fixating on seeming relaxed, disguising the nerves itching at the ends of his fingertips. “a translator ??” his features peak, suddenly the beer already half way towards his mouth doesn’t seem so interesting anymore. “how many languages do you speak ??” he understood yiddish, and a fair amount of hebrew thanks to his mother, however to malachi it didn’t seem that interesting much of an interesting skill to note in conversation.
“Don’t worry. I have a plan.” Which obviously included the assortment of decorations contained within the box he was carrying. Nanda, who was meant to have been his loyal sous-chef, had already ran off with Mal’s daughter into her room to check out God-knows-what, leaving the two fathers unsurprisingly fending for themselves.
“It’s a really good one this time.” Meaning it likely wasn’t. He sets the box on the balcony with a dramatic thud, triumphant. “You’re gonna do the baking, and I’m gonna decorate. It’s gonna be great. I’ll do little soccer balls on ‘em, some cleats, a goal. The girls will love it.” Mal just had to do the arguably less difficult part. If you asked Gael’s opinion on the matter, that is. This was a fair trade.
﹃﹄
mal lifts his arms in disbelief as the kids scamper off towards the bedrooms, half way through his protest of their absence before sighing gently, arms falling to slap by his side. “i’m not losing it, right ?? the cakes were their idea.” with a shake of his head, allowing a hint of an amused smile to dance in the corner of his lips, taking in the sight the box gael had lugged out onto the balcony. “good. i don’t have any artistic ability. however the cooking, that i can do.”
the chime of the front door across the little store is what alerted Frankie to the presence of someone walking inside, and is what prompted her to put down the pile of orchids she was carefully trimming the bottom of the stems from. she had the entire store to herself; the owners weren’t around, which was exactly how she liked it, even if the couple that owned the flower shop had always treated her like one of their own. “welcome in.” she smiled, wiping her hands on the front of her apron that was tied carefully around her waist. “how can I help you? if you’re here to talk about your wedding flowers, congratulations– but I’m working on like, fourteen wedding arrangements right now and I’m at the point with it where I might direct you to the place a few blocks over. Would kind of like a funeral for a change.” she joked, taking a moment to wonder if what she said was a little insensitive. “And if you are here for a funeral.. we ship within a day. And I’m sorry for your loss,”
﹃﹄
malachi pushes through the metal ajar, pacing through the grand store full of flowers of a multitude of colours and scents. it was routine, every week, malachi would come to eva’s grave to give it a dust, pull out the weeds, and replace the flowers. all before sitting down and having a conversation with her. he was never certain if he believed in a deity, despite participating at temple occasionally at the request of his mother, along with other jewish celebrations. although, he liked to imagine eva’s spirit was out there somewhere, watching down on him and charlotte, and could hear what he had to say.
“—oh.” he catches the presence of the individual behind the counter, offering a gentle smile. “don’t worry, i won’t be in your hair long. just looking for some lilies.” those were eva’s favourite. in their home, prior to the apartment mal currently in, there was always a fresh bunch in the living room, sitting comfortably on the window sill, basking in the sun.
Finn pushed the box inside the apartment, to make sure it didn’t get stolen out in the hallway. Bending down, he picked up the bow and leftover wrapping paper, taking it to the trash can in the kitchen. Wordlessly, Finn sat down at the dining table, watching Charlotte pitter-patter away to make what would no doubt be a masterpiece. Waiting until she was out of earshot, he thanked Mal for the beer he got handed and got down to brass tax. “So tell me about the other night,” it was not a question. “I was pretty preoccupied myself but it seemed to go over well?” He referred to the auburn haired woman Mal seemed to get along with. The end result of the night was not something he’d been able to witness.
﹃﹄
malachi eases into the wooden seat at the dinning table, sliding finn’s beer across it, before opening his own with a beer can opener adorned with a fuzzy cartoon canadian bear holding the nations flag. his mother bought it from quebec, every-time he uses it mal makes a note he’d some day love to cross the border and explore more than the east of america. but it was always never the time with him. plopping it down beside a stack of papers from charlotte’s school, malachi takes a swig before running his hand over his beard. in any other circumstance, he’d call out finn for jumping to wanting the dirty details of his night at the bar before exchanging pleasantries, not even taking the moment to ask how his day had been... but mal knew that how finn was feeling was the very last topic he wanted to explore right now, so the journalist would humour his curiosity. “annalise.” a curve pulls in the corner of mal’s lips, unaware he’s doing so, “thats her name, annalise.”
it was all strange timing when annalise was concerned. eleven years ago, her job had taken her to another country and there she had met an older, yet refined, gentleman that she had ended up marrying in a heartbeat. it had been a worry to her parents but they soon gave up with exressing their concerns to her. now, she had just been on the phone with her soon-to-be-ex husband, begging for him to take her back, leading some very harsh words despite them having a moment together a week before… now, she was kissing a random yet beautiful person in a bar in an abrupt manner. her feelings towards the person who she was married to had a complicated past that she had not dealt with. annalise wasn’t avoiding them so to speak, this felt right in the moment but surely enough would come back to bite her in the future. everything was incorrectly timed for her.
it briefly crossed her mind but she couldn’t let him be on her mind for this amount of time. coming back into the room, annalise looked at the other in the eyes and nodded. “really.” that was the first thing she had said in a while with such confidence. “ i like ‘verbose babble’”. she raised her eyebrows before a chuckle escaped her, or it may have been more of a giggle. his attitude towards her made her feel more relaxed. she had taken up the habit of being wreckless when she was everything but that a few years ago and it wasn’t healthy. offering herself up as a consolation prize to him and arguing with her best friend wasn’t what she wanted at all yet she couldn’t stop herself.
a smile instantly displayed itself on her face without warning when the bartender started pouring, her gaze averting as she poorly tried to hide her expression by looking down and away from him, though, she quickly looked back right up. “to fish out of water.” she raised the glass he had generously bought her before taking a sip and mouthing a ‘thank you’. she could have said it aloud but had chosen not to. annalise had done this the wrong way around, she knew it but the fact he was still there after she had acted like that spoke volumes.
﹃﹄
he had met eva in high school. like he, she was dutch, but of a catholic family. but she never came off as such. she was adventurous, always taking steps that malachi was afraid to. she opened his eye’s to the world outside of his comfort zone, like she for many others, and malachi was convinced he’d be married to her to the day he died. that being said malachi once mentioned to eva he had to go first, believing he couldn’t possibly function if she died before he. a cruel sense of irony, spending the last three years with the lingering memory of his dead wife, taken so quickly by a drunk driver. malachi, the hours after, had so much hate for the man, speeding down the wrong lane while four times over the blood alcohol limit. but he knew that holding onto that hatred wouldn’t bring eva back, she was gone at the mercy of a freak accident.
the very notion of flirting with another woman, let alone looking at one, sew seeds of guilt within his chest. finn had told him it was time to move on to find happiness once more, but he didn’t know what it was like to face this kind of grief. maybe with his parents, but they weren’t really close. fastening his grip around the beer glass, malachi swallows down the knot beginning to form in his throat, focusing on the beautiful face smiling back at him. repeating over like a mantra in his head, the he deserved to find happiness again.
“i work in journalism, so you’d expect me to be a bit more articulate than i am...” a gentle chuckle escapes from his lips, glancing back down at his shoes again, “give me a piece of paper and i can write eloquently —” he cannot help but laugh at himself, rubbing his palm over his beard, “—things i'd like to say, but sometimes struggle to when coming up to someone at a bar. like about how pretty you are. because you are, uh, very pretty...” a sheepish smile draws across his features, “so, uh, what do you do with yourself ??”
