Hey everyone!! Sorry its been so long since I last posted, I was holding
out to see if I could get four reviews for one chapter. And would you look
at that, I did! (You can't see, but there's definitely a dance of joy
involved here.) So thank you to everyone who reviewed, you've made my day.
And to Puru Girl: I promise I'll finish this story out. I hate those
people who just leave stories hanging, too. Alright, on with the next
chapter. I hope you like!
Chapter Eleven - "A morning with the Tucks"
Over the next few hours Lily realized the reason why she had never baked bread was because it was much easier to just buy a loaf at the store. Making it at home took such a long time! Lily was aware that she wasn't a patient person, and decided it was a good thing she had never learned how to cook.
Luckily Mae was a patient person. As the bread rose she pulled Lily over to the couch to sit and talk.
"I'm sorry about Jesse. He sometimes gets into moods like that for no reason." Mae said.
Lily knew it wasn't for no reason, but Mae clearly couldn't explain the real reason for Jesse's anger.
"Its okay. I can be moody too." Lily responded lightly.
"He really does seem to like you. He doesn't often take to people anymore."
"Well, then I guess I should feel lucky."
Mae smiled a little wistfully. "He used to be such a different boy, so full of life. Now he's more like his brother Miles. Sad and bitter."
"He doesn't seem that sad or bitter, most of the time." Lily assured her.
"I think you're good for him. He needs to be around a girl again."
Lily raised a questioning eyebrow at this. She was playing her part well, pretending she knew nothing about Grandma Winnie and Jesse.
"It was a great heartbreak." Mae explained with a sigh. "For Jesse and for Miles. Neither one was the same afterwards. It's too bad. I miss how vivacious Jesse used to be."
"Maybe he'll get over it." Lily said, not because she believed it, but to comfort Mae.
"Yes." Mae said, brightening. "Maybe you'll help with that."
Lily was astounded. Was Mae trying to suggest she and Jesse get together? "I hope we can be friends" Lily responded, emphasizing 'friends'. It wouldn't help her to have Mae trying to play matchmaker. And what guy would go from one girl to her great granddaughter? Sure, not many got the chance, but it seemed wrong. Like dating your ex's sister or something.
"Of course." Mae said, a little disappointed. "Friends."
They went to check on the rising bread, but it wasn't nearly done.
"Wow, this takes forever." Lily said. Mae smiled.
"A few hours."
"Ugh. I don't know how you do it."
"A couple of hours isn't that long."
'Sure, not to you', Lily thought. To other people it might seem like a lifetime. If Lily ever got to be like Mae, she'd bake bread all the time. But right now she was growing impatient.
"Have you ever cooked?" Mae asked Lily to distract her from the wait. She had begun to fidget around the kitchen.
"No. I mean, I can make eggs and boil pasta, but that's it."
"Didn't your mother teach you?" Mae asked, surprised. Lily laughed.
"My mother can't even cook pasta. She's hopeless in the kitchen."
"Oh. So does your father do the cooking?" Mae asked.
"Not, Dad's just as bad. Mostly we get take out or ready made stuff from the supermarket."
"That's terrible!" Mae exclaimed.
"It's not that bad." Lily assured her.
"Well, I'm going to see to it hat you can cook. You can help me with the meals today."
"Okay." Lily said hesitantly. "But I don't want to ruin them."
Mae laughed heartily. "Don't be so timid, child! Grab on to new experiences!"
Lily smiled. That was exactly what she was trying to do.
Lily and Mae chatted for the rest of the time the bread took to rise. Lily told Mae about school and her friends, but she avoided the subject of family.
Just as they were putting the risen bread dough into the oven, Jesse came back into the house. He was carrying several small fish and a fishing pole. He propped the pole by the door and handed the fish to Mae. As he washed his hands of fish slime he turned to Lily.
"I'm sorry about before, if I seemed mad." He said quietly.
"Its no big deal." She assured him.
"It wasn't about you."
"I know."
"You do?" He asked, surprised.
"Yea. I sometimes get like that for no reason, too."
Jesse smiled and Lily smiled back. Lily looked over to Mae, and noticed the woman cleaning the fish.
"Ewww!" She exclaimed at the slimy, disgusting sight. Mae laughed.
"It does take some getting used to. I think this is a part of cooking class you can be excused from."
"Oh, thank goodness!" Lily sighed.
"Why don't you go outside with Jesse? From what you were telling me I don't think you spend nearly enough time outdoors."
She was right about that, Lily thought. Her parents barely let her out of the house. She had never really been in woods before she came here.
"That would be nice." She replied, glancing at Jesse. "But if Jesse doesn't want to, I could go alone."
"No, of course I'll go." He replied cheerfully. "Anything to get away from those fish." He whispered to Lily as they walked to the door. She cracked up.
"I'll be back in plenty of time for my cooking lesson." She told Mae.
"Have fun." Mae responded, shooing them out the door.
Outside they stood on the small porch, looking out at the lake. Lily had no idea what to say to Jesse, so she waited for him to speak.
"Are you homesick?" He asked, after a long silence. Lily was surprised at the question.
"Not really. Why?"
"No matter where I go, how far I travel, I always feel at pull to return to this place. These woods, this lake." He said, gazing out over the water.
"That must be nice." Lily said. "My house in Georgia never feels like a home. I have more of a connection to this place than I do to my real home."
"Really?" Jesse asked, turning to look at her for the first time since they stepped out of the cabin. "Why would that be?"
"Grandma Winnie." Lily replied. She could have avoided the topic of Winnie, but Lily felt that they were opening up to each other. She wanted to say what she really felt. "She was here and that made this the best place in the world. I always longed for our next trip up here, as much as my father dreaded them. I couldn't convince my parents to travel often, but when we did, we came here. These woods were special to Grandma Winnie, so they were magical to me. She made everything magical to me."
"You were lucky to have her."
"Yes, I was." Lily replied simply.
Jesse looked out at the lake again, and then said, "Come on. I thought we were going for a walk."
Lily smiled and followed him as he led her off the porch. He walked wit the air of someone who knew the way and Lily ambled behind him, breathing in the smell of the air and the nature all around her. Along the side of the small path they walked she spotted some sweet, white wildflowers. Smiling, she stooped to pick one. She admired its delicate beauty, and then placed it behind her ear. When she had all the time in the world she would make herself a crown of them.
Jesse paused on the path ahead of her, aware that she was no longer right behind him. He turned to see her stand and smile at him, the lovely flower tucked into her flowing hair. He gazed at her a moment and then returned the smile.
Lily thought her heart had stopped. She had seen him turn and the flicker of amusement in his eyes as he saw shy she had stopped. And then something in his eyes had changed. A boy had never looked at her like that before, and she could have sworn her heart stopped beating. And then it started again when she had a thought. Was that look in his eyes for her, or for Winnie? She smiled nervously and caught up with him.
"Sorry for the detour."
"Not at all." He replied, brushing a finger over the flower in her hair. "That's what the flowers are there for."
She looked up into his smoky eyes and sighed. Why did she have to look so much like Grandma Winnie?
"So where are we going?" She asked, resuming walking to keep her eyes off Jesse.
"For a walk." He replied with a laugh.
"You know what I meant." She said, rolling her eyes.
"When you go for a walk, you don't have to have a destination."
"So, we're just ambling?" She asked, bewildered.
"Right. Ambling."
"I don't think I've ever just gone on a walk. I was always going somewhere."
"That's a bad way to go through life." Jesse said wisely. "You need to be able to slow down and enjoy the wildflowers."
"That sounds like the nicest thing in the world." Lily said, wistfully.
"What kind of life have you been leading, where you never get to just amble?" Jesse asked.
"Not the kind I want to be leading." Lily replied.
"Then I think we need to change that." He said with a grin.
'We?' she thought. Why did she suddenly want to be a 'we' with Jesse?
"Come on. I want to show you something?" He said playfully. He started off down the path and Lily had to speed up to keep up with him.
At last they seemed to reach a destination. Jesse spread out his arms. "There."
Lily looked up at the massive tower of rock and drew in her breath. Not only because of its beauty, but because she knew what this was. The Eiffel tower. He had taken Grandma Winnie here. He had been here with the girl he loved, and now he was here with her.
"Its beautiful." She replied, a little numbly. Jesse didn't seem to notice.
"You have to come to the top." He said, taking her hand and pulling her towards it. She jerked her hand back like she'd been burned.
"Maybe later. I promised Mae I would be back to help with lunch."
"Okay." He said slowly, obviously confused. He wondered if he had done something wrong. And Lily was wondering if she was a substitute Winnie.
Chapter Eleven - "A morning with the Tucks"
Over the next few hours Lily realized the reason why she had never baked bread was because it was much easier to just buy a loaf at the store. Making it at home took such a long time! Lily was aware that she wasn't a patient person, and decided it was a good thing she had never learned how to cook.
Luckily Mae was a patient person. As the bread rose she pulled Lily over to the couch to sit and talk.
"I'm sorry about Jesse. He sometimes gets into moods like that for no reason." Mae said.
Lily knew it wasn't for no reason, but Mae clearly couldn't explain the real reason for Jesse's anger.
"Its okay. I can be moody too." Lily responded lightly.
"He really does seem to like you. He doesn't often take to people anymore."
"Well, then I guess I should feel lucky."
Mae smiled a little wistfully. "He used to be such a different boy, so full of life. Now he's more like his brother Miles. Sad and bitter."
"He doesn't seem that sad or bitter, most of the time." Lily assured her.
"I think you're good for him. He needs to be around a girl again."
Lily raised a questioning eyebrow at this. She was playing her part well, pretending she knew nothing about Grandma Winnie and Jesse.
"It was a great heartbreak." Mae explained with a sigh. "For Jesse and for Miles. Neither one was the same afterwards. It's too bad. I miss how vivacious Jesse used to be."
"Maybe he'll get over it." Lily said, not because she believed it, but to comfort Mae.
"Yes." Mae said, brightening. "Maybe you'll help with that."
Lily was astounded. Was Mae trying to suggest she and Jesse get together? "I hope we can be friends" Lily responded, emphasizing 'friends'. It wouldn't help her to have Mae trying to play matchmaker. And what guy would go from one girl to her great granddaughter? Sure, not many got the chance, but it seemed wrong. Like dating your ex's sister or something.
"Of course." Mae said, a little disappointed. "Friends."
They went to check on the rising bread, but it wasn't nearly done.
"Wow, this takes forever." Lily said. Mae smiled.
"A few hours."
"Ugh. I don't know how you do it."
"A couple of hours isn't that long."
'Sure, not to you', Lily thought. To other people it might seem like a lifetime. If Lily ever got to be like Mae, she'd bake bread all the time. But right now she was growing impatient.
"Have you ever cooked?" Mae asked Lily to distract her from the wait. She had begun to fidget around the kitchen.
"No. I mean, I can make eggs and boil pasta, but that's it."
"Didn't your mother teach you?" Mae asked, surprised. Lily laughed.
"My mother can't even cook pasta. She's hopeless in the kitchen."
"Oh. So does your father do the cooking?" Mae asked.
"Not, Dad's just as bad. Mostly we get take out or ready made stuff from the supermarket."
"That's terrible!" Mae exclaimed.
"It's not that bad." Lily assured her.
"Well, I'm going to see to it hat you can cook. You can help me with the meals today."
"Okay." Lily said hesitantly. "But I don't want to ruin them."
Mae laughed heartily. "Don't be so timid, child! Grab on to new experiences!"
Lily smiled. That was exactly what she was trying to do.
Lily and Mae chatted for the rest of the time the bread took to rise. Lily told Mae about school and her friends, but she avoided the subject of family.
Just as they were putting the risen bread dough into the oven, Jesse came back into the house. He was carrying several small fish and a fishing pole. He propped the pole by the door and handed the fish to Mae. As he washed his hands of fish slime he turned to Lily.
"I'm sorry about before, if I seemed mad." He said quietly.
"Its no big deal." She assured him.
"It wasn't about you."
"I know."
"You do?" He asked, surprised.
"Yea. I sometimes get like that for no reason, too."
Jesse smiled and Lily smiled back. Lily looked over to Mae, and noticed the woman cleaning the fish.
"Ewww!" She exclaimed at the slimy, disgusting sight. Mae laughed.
"It does take some getting used to. I think this is a part of cooking class you can be excused from."
"Oh, thank goodness!" Lily sighed.
"Why don't you go outside with Jesse? From what you were telling me I don't think you spend nearly enough time outdoors."
She was right about that, Lily thought. Her parents barely let her out of the house. She had never really been in woods before she came here.
"That would be nice." She replied, glancing at Jesse. "But if Jesse doesn't want to, I could go alone."
"No, of course I'll go." He replied cheerfully. "Anything to get away from those fish." He whispered to Lily as they walked to the door. She cracked up.
"I'll be back in plenty of time for my cooking lesson." She told Mae.
"Have fun." Mae responded, shooing them out the door.
Outside they stood on the small porch, looking out at the lake. Lily had no idea what to say to Jesse, so she waited for him to speak.
"Are you homesick?" He asked, after a long silence. Lily was surprised at the question.
"Not really. Why?"
"No matter where I go, how far I travel, I always feel at pull to return to this place. These woods, this lake." He said, gazing out over the water.
"That must be nice." Lily said. "My house in Georgia never feels like a home. I have more of a connection to this place than I do to my real home."
"Really?" Jesse asked, turning to look at her for the first time since they stepped out of the cabin. "Why would that be?"
"Grandma Winnie." Lily replied. She could have avoided the topic of Winnie, but Lily felt that they were opening up to each other. She wanted to say what she really felt. "She was here and that made this the best place in the world. I always longed for our next trip up here, as much as my father dreaded them. I couldn't convince my parents to travel often, but when we did, we came here. These woods were special to Grandma Winnie, so they were magical to me. She made everything magical to me."
"You were lucky to have her."
"Yes, I was." Lily replied simply.
Jesse looked out at the lake again, and then said, "Come on. I thought we were going for a walk."
Lily smiled and followed him as he led her off the porch. He walked wit the air of someone who knew the way and Lily ambled behind him, breathing in the smell of the air and the nature all around her. Along the side of the small path they walked she spotted some sweet, white wildflowers. Smiling, she stooped to pick one. She admired its delicate beauty, and then placed it behind her ear. When she had all the time in the world she would make herself a crown of them.
Jesse paused on the path ahead of her, aware that she was no longer right behind him. He turned to see her stand and smile at him, the lovely flower tucked into her flowing hair. He gazed at her a moment and then returned the smile.
Lily thought her heart had stopped. She had seen him turn and the flicker of amusement in his eyes as he saw shy she had stopped. And then something in his eyes had changed. A boy had never looked at her like that before, and she could have sworn her heart stopped beating. And then it started again when she had a thought. Was that look in his eyes for her, or for Winnie? She smiled nervously and caught up with him.
"Sorry for the detour."
"Not at all." He replied, brushing a finger over the flower in her hair. "That's what the flowers are there for."
She looked up into his smoky eyes and sighed. Why did she have to look so much like Grandma Winnie?
"So where are we going?" She asked, resuming walking to keep her eyes off Jesse.
"For a walk." He replied with a laugh.
"You know what I meant." She said, rolling her eyes.
"When you go for a walk, you don't have to have a destination."
"So, we're just ambling?" She asked, bewildered.
"Right. Ambling."
"I don't think I've ever just gone on a walk. I was always going somewhere."
"That's a bad way to go through life." Jesse said wisely. "You need to be able to slow down and enjoy the wildflowers."
"That sounds like the nicest thing in the world." Lily said, wistfully.
"What kind of life have you been leading, where you never get to just amble?" Jesse asked.
"Not the kind I want to be leading." Lily replied.
"Then I think we need to change that." He said with a grin.
'We?' she thought. Why did she suddenly want to be a 'we' with Jesse?
"Come on. I want to show you something?" He said playfully. He started off down the path and Lily had to speed up to keep up with him.
At last they seemed to reach a destination. Jesse spread out his arms. "There."
Lily looked up at the massive tower of rock and drew in her breath. Not only because of its beauty, but because she knew what this was. The Eiffel tower. He had taken Grandma Winnie here. He had been here with the girl he loved, and now he was here with her.
"Its beautiful." She replied, a little numbly. Jesse didn't seem to notice.
"You have to come to the top." He said, taking her hand and pulling her towards it. She jerked her hand back like she'd been burned.
"Maybe later. I promised Mae I would be back to help with lunch."
"Okay." He said slowly, obviously confused. He wondered if he had done something wrong. And Lily was wondering if she was a substitute Winnie.