"I still can't believe Celia convinced you to eat it!" Kai exclaimed as Claire gulped down glass after glass of water trying to get the taste out of her mouth.
"Hey, it's gonna be worth all that free shaved ice," Claire said in between sips.
The festival was over and everyone else had gone home. Claire was only there to help with clean-up. Why? Well, she lost the rock-paper-scissors match. Thomas's bad luck was rubbing off.
"I didn't actually think you would do it. Now I actually have to give Celia shaved ice," he whined.
Claire laughed. "And me!" she grinned.
"Since when!" he questioned.
"Since you told me to make my hair look presentable for the festival today," she said wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.
"Touché," Kai said. "It's ok, though. I'll just give you vegetable-flavored ones."
"…they have those…" Claire asked wrinkling her nose.
"No," he admitted. "But let's be honest; they should. They would come in handy in situations like these."
"Whatever," Claire said throwing away the last of the cups and plates. "Well! This has been absolutely fantastic, but I really need to get back to work," she said wiping her hands on her overalls.
"Oh, yeah! Sure! Hey, Claire?"
"Ya?"
"If I promise not to give you anymore veggie pizza, you think you'll be coming back?" Kai asked.
"If I have the time," she shrugged. "Now, seriously, my pineapple seeds will die if I don't leave now."
"You have pineapple seeds?" Kai asked.
"Uh, yeah? It's a ranch, Kai." Claire explained.
"Oh." He blinked. "Your stupidity must be contagious. I've been hanging out with you way too long. Get outta here," he said playfully, whacking her with a hand towel.
"That's what I've been trying to do!" Claire called over her shoulder as she left the beach.
Claire set down her watering can and watched the setting sun. It was exceptionally beautiful with vibrant magenta streaks blending into the citrus sky. It was as if even nature was celebrating the arrival of Summer.
Claire pushed her thick blonde hair behind her ear. There was still plenty of daylight left, but nothing to do. The only place fun to go was the bar, but they were closed due to the holiday. She didn't feel like visiting anyone—she had her fill of being around people today. There was nothing better to do but sit down in front of the TV.
Claire plopped down with a bag of pretzels. Not the most healthy thing to eat, she knew, but hey, she had technically eaten vegetables earlier, hadn't she? Claire flipped through the channels, not finding anything good. Static, reruns, reality TV, static, reruns, reruns, cooking show, static. That was it. Nothing good. "Uhgg…" Claire groaned. She was soooo bored. She could read, but all she had were a bunch of instruction manuals. Stuff she already knew.
Switching the TV off, Claire tossed her pretzels aside and picked up the yellow legal pad and pencil that was sitting on the table next to her. Tucking her legs under her, she started doodling a picture of a dog, but, unfortunately, it looked more like a cow than a dog. Frustrated, she drew a dark angry "X" through the drawing. She threw her head back, blowing hair out of her face, when she heard a knock at the door. She swung her legs over her chair and hurried to answer the door. She had to admit it was strange having guests so late, especially after a festival.
"Hello!" Muffy chirped.
"Um, hi?"
"Hi, Claire! Sorry to visit you so late. I know you must be busy, but I'm here on business purpose only." Muffy said all this so fast Claire had a hard time keeping up. Actually, Muffy had such a habit of talking too fast, Claire tried to avoid conversation with her anytime she could. "I'm here to give you something," she said, inviting herself into Claire's home.
"Sure, come in," Claire muttered as Muffy kept chattering away.
"So here's the deal," Muffy started. "As you know, I work at the bar, but not when we're closed, of course. That would be stupid. Oh, my gosh, Claire! I love those curtains! Where did you get them? Oh, wait… Griffin said to stay on task. Anyway, I work at the bar. Griffin's been trying to get new drinks to put on the menus, but not just any drinks, drinks that will cause the bar to get lots of business, you know, stuff people like. So today I told him why don't we just sample out a couple bottles to see what will attract the most attention. Like a survey. And, of course, he said I was smart and that was a good idea. I wasn't expecting him to make me deliver them all, being a lady as refined as myself, but he did anyway. So now I'm here. And here's your sample," Muffy smiled as she held out a glass bottle.
Claire blinked, wrapping her head around everything Muffy had said. "Uh, May's Tailoring," she said reaching for the bottle. "And… thanks."
"Yep!" Muffy sang. "See you around Claire! Stop by the bar sometime!" she said heading out the door.
Even after Muffy had left, Claire just stood in the middle of her home in complete shock. Muffy was like a hurricane, chaotic, but she meant well. Claire lifted the bottle in her hands and read the label: Goddess Smile.
Along with vegetables, Claire hated alcohol. Not because she didn't like the taste, but because it brought back bad childhood memories. The only reason she went to the bar was to get a glass of water and maybe socialize. Claire sighed and placed the bottle on her table. She'd get rid of it later.