Page 43 of Losing the Rhythm

“I’m going to go into the sciences. I’m not quite sure yet, have to look up some more things. Maybe neurology?”

“Oh? A doctor?” That was impressive. And a huge commitment. People normally wanted to get their four years done and then move on.

“I have a lot of respect for the field,” he said. “And we’re here.”

He turned the car and pulled into a rocky parking lot. It was nearly full, which was impressive with the size of it. I looked around until I spotted the sign.

“Berkin’s Family Farm,” I read. There was a newly painted sign that said ‘Berkin’s Pumpkin Patch.’ “I’ve never been here.”

“Really? It’s pretty commonly known.”

“I know. Just not something I ever thought about doing.”

“Well, first time for everything then. This is one of my teammate’s family farm. It’s a go-to for dinner, fresh produce, apples, and around this time, pumpkins. They even have a Halloween maze we can go through.”

“Our friendate is a pumpkin patch farm,” I said. That cold hardness that had been growing painfully inside of me thawed out even more, leaving room for the warmth that Paxon shared with me.

“They make really good apple cider. And we have to pick out some pumpkins anyway to carve. So I figured this would be a good place to take you.”

“Thank you.

We got out of the car, the soft wind blowing, bringing with it the smell of something sweet and fried.

“What else do they sell here?” I asked as we headed to the closest building.

“Apple cinnamon donuts. Don’t worry, we’ll buy a bunch. If I don’t, Toby will try to eat me instead.”

I could actually picture that.

Inside, Paxon went to the counter and paid for two farm experience packages. It gave us access to everything, including a hayride and to their maze, along with a voucher for one free medium size pumpkin.

The maze was simple and fun. Felt more like a stroll with brief dives to the side as kids tried to run us over with all their excitement. It left me smiling as we came back out of it and headed to the pumpkins.

I was crouched down, staring at a pumpkin when my mind started wandering again. This really was fun and I appreciated Paxon putting in the time to take me out on this friendate, but I still didn’t get it. Also, with how kind he was being, it confused me.

We were friends, right? The expectations of our relationship was friendship. So why did this feel like more than it should be?

“Do you like that one?” Paxon asked, joining me.

I looked back down at the pumpkin. It wasn’t perfect, a little slanted, a little wider than it should be.

“I do,” I said.

“Not a bad choice. Grab it. I was able to nab a small wagon so we can put our pumpkins in it.” He motioned to behind us where there was a small, dark blue wagon with three other pumpkins already inside.

Either he was fast at picking pumpkins or I really got lost in my thoughts. We put the two new ones in there.

“There, enough for all five of us to carve tomorrow,” he said.

“Is that the Halloween thing tomorrow? Carving pumpkins?”

“Yeah, the others are buying the carving supplies as we speak.”

Paxon didn’t say anything as he grabbed my hand and held it while tugging the cart with him. We headed toward a smaller building next to where we paid our entrance. People were leaving the smaller building with bags. It was obviously where their bakery was set up.

“I don’t get it,” I said.

“What?”

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