Page 35 of Talk Birdie to Me

Truth was, she only framed these because they reminded her of the festival during the rest of the year. It wasn’t as if she wanted to show them off to herself. And no one else came around to view them. It seemed silly to go to that trouble with any of her other photographs.

He looked back at the three on the wall. “You have an eye for people.”

She turned to look at him, waiting for a sign that he was teasing her or just being polite. But everything about his expression displayed sincerity.

Sincerity from him was unexpected. As unexpected as his thoughtful choice of pizza.

This side of Cody was shattering all of those first impressions she had. She was so lost in this new side of him that all she could manage in reply was a small, “Thanks.”

Cody turned from the wall to face her, and they were now just inches apart.

She felt seen. By the man she never thought she’d see again after their disastrous date.

Yet, here he was. Seeing her.

Sure, he’d dropped a foul-mouthed parrot in her lap, but he’d also brought her favorite pizza. And he liked her photos. It was almost as if he liked her.

But that couldn’t be.

They had nothing in common.

Still, she felt a connection to him that she couldn’t explain. And that connection grew stronger with every second he was in her home.

Now, as they stared at each other, she was physically drawn to him.

Were they inching towards one another?

“Bet your asses!”

The pull was broken, and Geena wasn’t sure if she felt disappointment or relief at Gary’s interruption.

They both smiled as they looked up in unison at Gary, still perched on the fan blade.

“All right, knucklehead,” Cody said. “You gonna poop or what? Don’t make me a liar.”

As if he understood every word, Gary spread his wings to fly in a circle around the room, gliding in descent until he reached the coffee table. Almost immediately upon landing, he relieved himself on the paper.

“That’s kind of amazing,” Geena whispered, hoping not to startle the bird mid-poop.

“I know, right?” Cody nodded at Gary. “Wish I could take credit for that, but it was all his previous owner.”

Suddenly, Geena realized the glaring flaw in all of this amazingness. “Um, how do I get him back in the cage?”

“Oh, that’s easy,” Cody said. “Berries.”

“Berries?”

“Yup. He can’t resist them.” Cody pulled a small container out of the box he brought and handed it to her. “He can’t have too many, so save them just for when you want him to go back inside. It’ll work like a charm every time.”

Geena opened the plastic container and pulled out a handful of raspberries. She placed them in his food dish, and as promised, Gary flew back into his cage to snack on them.

“See? Any berries will do.” Cody shut the metal door. “These are his favorite, but blackberries, blueberries, or cut-up strawberries will work. Just a little though, or his fun poop-on-the-paper trick won’t be so reliable.”

“Ah. Gotcha.”

“Well, I think that’s it. I’d better get going and let you have the rest of your night.”

Geena fought the urge to tell him it was fine. He could stay as long as he liked.

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