Page 15 of A Fowl Match

“Nothing! You don’t have time so I’ll just leave.” I know all too well that she will want what’s in this bag. I spin on my heel to rush out the door. I know what she’s going to say. Something like, “Wait! Please!” Or maybe, “I’m so sorry. Stay all day, Violet.”

“Wait!”

I told you.

“Come back, please. I’m sorry; I didn’t mean it honey. What’s in the bag?” Okay, maybe I wasn’t exactly right, but I was pretty close.

“Only a couple strawberry pop tarts from the Olive Bean. But it’s okay if you want to play bingo. I’ll be going.”

“No! No! Get back here, it's so nice to see you. Please stay all day, Violet dear.”

There it is!

“I thought so,” I mumble under my breath, smiling at our exchange. She’s my only family left. I love her more than anything in the world. I also love to tease her; besides, I inherited most of my puns from her. It’s been getting harder to tell when it is a good or bad day. Today seems to be going well. She seems to remember everything, not questioning or becoming confused.

She takes a huge bite of the sugary goodness and grins with delight. “You’re unusually bubbly and smiling today. What’s going on?” she says as she continues to devour the treat.

“Nothing much is new. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Liar! I’ve known you since you were a baby. I know you better than I know myself. It’s a man, isn’t it?”

“What? No…”

“Yes! That’s it. What’s his name.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“It’s Dustin, isn’t it? I heard you were paired with him for this year's small business games. He’s handsome, why wouldn’t you be head over heels with him?”

I blush scarlet. “What? Ew! One, I’m absolutely not. And two, how do you know what he looks like?”

“I’m not dead yet. We do have phones in here. Constance keeps me updated on you anyways.”

“Constance and I are going to have a chat.”

“Absolutely not, she is my only form of entertainment in this place other than bingo.”

“You know you don’t have to stay here. I didn’t want you to leave. I would have taken care of you.” My voice softens.

“I wanted to be here with my friends. Besides, you need your own space to blossom.”

“Like flowers in spring,” I say, smiling at the memory. It’s something she always told me growing up. After I lost everything.

She continues to eat as we sit in comfortable silence.

“I came here for one more thing. I have something to show you.” I pull out the purple notebook from my purse and hand it over to her.

She gasps in surprise as one hand grasps the notebook, the other over her heart. “I thought this was gone forever. I couldn’t find it anywhere.”

“I found it under the old tower computer. The one that you’ve had since you opened the store. Would you mind if I read them?”

“Of course you can read them! I wrote about so many things. About the shop, about my life. Even tips on running the shop. It may be helpful to you. I don’t mind.”

The question lingers in the depths of my mind. I might as well come out with it. “Who is H?”

“No one important.” Her answer is clipped.

That was not the answer I was expecting.

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