Ten years later, Elli would be nearing sixteen and quite a popular girl in the countryside village, notorious for her skill
at baking cakes. Her parents were now long deceased but their recipes lived on through Elli with the help of her
grandmother and Jeff, her father's apprentice she had known since early childhood. Trademark blue dresses were still
worn, only now she had earned her way up to wearing her mother's white lace apron. The apron was now a talisman
that boosted her spirits and made her feel that her cakes had the magic that sweets seem to have that is known to
cheer up everyone around her.
"Everyone's here!" she burst excitedly one early-spring morning, coming in from the side door of the bakery
leading into the garden, where she had gone to deliver her old grandmother a cup of tea. A group of girls more or
less her age were seated around the sole table, the less-feminine girls with their elbows propped up onto the
checkered tablecloth and the young ladies with their legs crossed in dresses and skirts.
"Whoa!" said Jeff from behind the counter. "Looks like a busy day today, huh?" he asked Elli, coming in
from the back room where he had been checking the inventory. For a moment Elli felt truly sorry for him. Jeff was
now thirty and sweating even on a chilly early-spring morning, his ebony-black bangs curling in the front and
hanging in his dark, beady eyes. Having become master of the bakery after her father's death, he had put on the
usual red bow tie and white shirt (although he looked more like a stressed-out waiter than a cheerful bakery master).
Jeff hadn't gotten into the flow of things even after these years but could handle the responsibility, although her
father made it seem like it was nothing at all to run a bakery. Elli missed those days but it was no good to mull over it
now when business was booming as people, traditions, customs, and places grew older.
"We'll be having five cups of tea, if you don't mind," she requested in the manner of a customer as she took
care of the veryberry pie fresh from the oven, which, as everything else, she had made by herself.
Popuri hadn't changed much, she noticed as she served the pie to her first, going clockwise around the
table. She was still pretty and ladylike with her long, wavy sugar-pink hair, kept neat with that red headband. As Elli
herself had grown into baking cakes, Popuri had grown into becoming an expert at botany as her mother's apprentice
at the flower shop just across from her. Undoubtedly Popuri was the cute and sweet beauty of Flower Bud Village,
but in Elli's opinion the little-girlish benightedness was still evident where she should have been sentient and
mindful. Nonetheless, Popuri was closest by and was there to witness everything Elli had been through, whether Elli
liked it or not. Popuri was her best friend.
Karen was something else, on the contrary. Her own beauty was fresh and edgy. She was not a tomboy but
had her harsh tones and attitudes, both at the right times and wrong times to have such dispositions. Once you got
to know the belle that lived on the vineyard, with her long brown hair that fell to her thighs and her honey-blond hair
in the front, she was spontaneous, crazy and a lot of fun to be with. The pretty green eyes didn't hurt the overall
picture either. Karen would always be Karen, wearing the purple vest and boots for harsh environments, always
enjoying drinking, dancing, and flirting. It was the kind of personality Elli wanted but couldn't get away with.
It was Ann from Green Ranch that was the tomboy. She and Karen were something of a pair. Ann was
rough but at the same time gentle because she was animal-obsessed. Most of her decisions were not only on the
spur of the moment like they were with Karen, but were rooted from feeling and spirit, and not mind. At times it
seemed that all Ann aspired was winning the Local Horse Race that came every spring and fall, but Ann was also a
girl of reason, wanting to carry out her argument to the fullest climax like Karen. Her trademark reddish-blond braid
and overalls spoke for themselves, accenting her free spirit and disregard for petty things like clothes. Which was
obvious because Ann couldn't cook to save her life. It wasn't envy passing between Ann and Elli but fascination at
their differences.
Ann was the lifesaver of Maria, the mayor's daughter and quiet little receptionist at the library. Ann was
quickest to jump to Maria's aid mainly because the brunette had a hard time speaking up for herself. She was
definitely the smartest of the bunch, but extremely shy. The breaks she allowed herself were occasional, and were
spent playing the organ in church, finding different species of bugs up in Moon Mountain, or reading mysteries at
home. Elli was always clung to Popuri, with or without free will, but she had a particular fondness for Maria because
she knew there was some sort of mutual respect and sisterly love that communicated itself simply when they passed
by each other on the streets. It was something that they never spoke of but Maria had her own special charm and
endearment in Elli's heart.
"So, did any of you meet the new guy yet?" inquired Karen, jerking her thumb in the direction of the path
that would lead out of the main part of the village. "I didn't talk to him yet but I caught a glimpse of him on one of my
bad days. Unfortunately he caught me when I walked out on my father yesterday."
"Ooooh," winced Ann. "Well, the mayor pointed out our farm to him and he volunteered to take Cliff's
brother," she referred to the pony they had been keeping on their farm for a long time. "His name is Jack."
"I saw him on his tour of the town," Popuri announced as she scooted over for Elli to be seated adjacent to
her, accepting her slice of pie. "Personally, I think he's cute."
Count on Popuri to comment on boys, thought Elli, although not in a negative way at all. Popuri would be
turning sixteen this month, and sixteen was the ideal marital age for girls in the village. She had every right to check
him out. Elli, on the other hand, remembered Jack too, but he only smiled politely when they were introduced by the
mayor and she offered him to drop by for a bite.
"Isn't he though!!!" Karen practically shouted, startling everyone. "Ooh, thank you!" she said to Elli
gleefully when she was given her slice of pie, out of her love for spring veryberries. She dug in as she continued on
with very particular comments on his height and body structure. Karen was seventeen now and didn't care in the
least about the pickel-barrel the rest of the town regarded her name with (in relation to the fact that she was still
unwed).
"Did you see him, Maria?" Elli asked politely, folding her hands and resting her chin on them, risking
interrupting Karen's dramatic chatter. Maria had taken tiny bites of the pie and long, quiet sips of her tea as she
listened to everyone else.
She pushed her glasses back on the bridge of her nose and stared down at the checkered tablecloth.
"Well," she started with her hands folded in her lap, "I-I, uh, I saw him yesterday when he was walking with Father,
and--uh--yeah, he is cute, b-but.... I--I didn't say anything to him."
"Well, why not?" Ann and Karen blurted at the same time, meaning no harm but saying it almost
obnoxiously. Popuri sighed, knowing those two as the perfect pair to say something like that and hoping Maria
didn't take it the wrong way. Elli still listened calmly and attentively.
"B-because I... I didn't... I didn't think he would be interested, and he would be busy, and..."
"I'm telling you, don't miss out on your chance, girl!!" Karen almost immediately forgot her own opinions on
Jack. "You wouldn't wanna miss out; I surely wouldn't. He might like you!"
"Now, how am I supposed to know that?" Maria pondered, peering over at Karen. "Besides, nobody likes
me-"
"Harris," declared the other four girls firmly.
"Yes, w-well...."
Elli didn't want to start on a subject that embarrassed her so much. "Well, Maria, what makes you think he
wouldn't like you? I mean, sure he's busy, but Karen and Ann have no problem imposing on him; why shouldn't
you?"
"Because I'm not outspoken," she admitted openly. "I'm not good at anything like you are, I'm not cheerful
and fun like Ann, and I'm not beautiful like Karen and Popuri."
"Oh, Maria!!" Popuri said in her own way of thanks in an aww-how-sweet-of-you tone of voice.
"Heh heh, beautiful isn't everything, honey," Karen grunted.
"Well, in a sense of reality, maybe we shouldn't really get our hopes up," Ann suggested reasonably.
"Even if he does stay long, maybe he won't be into marrying as young as we do in this village. He might not like any
of us at all, no matter how unlikely that seems. Let's just promise that we'll stay friends, no matter what happens, and
we won't ever stop meeting in a group like this."
"That's right," added Popuri. "Let no man come in the way of our friendship, not even one that all five of us
compete for at the same time." Which was surprising coming from a romantic, daydreamy girl like her. Beautiful
Popuri was sure to be the girl of Jack's dreams.
"Because friendship was here first," Maria said hopefully. The five of them joined their hands in the center
of the table and folded them, as if an attempt for each of them to hold each other's hand. It was a gesture that could
come from a feminine, ladylike girl or a tough tomboy in total control of herself. Hands were univeral, something
comprehensible in all the hidden languages of personality.
Even as their hands disengaged, Elli couldn't help but privately wonder what the future held for the five of
them romantic-wise. Surely someone like Jack was bound to come and push them into womanhood and attraction to
boys. Their friendship might truly be as special as it seemed and hold out even as long as when they all became
mothers, or maybe marriage and parenthood was a part of reality that would eventually have to be accepted. It was
just a shame that all Elli could do was wonder....
at baking cakes. Her parents were now long deceased but their recipes lived on through Elli with the help of her
grandmother and Jeff, her father's apprentice she had known since early childhood. Trademark blue dresses were still
worn, only now she had earned her way up to wearing her mother's white lace apron. The apron was now a talisman
that boosted her spirits and made her feel that her cakes had the magic that sweets seem to have that is known to
cheer up everyone around her.
"Everyone's here!" she burst excitedly one early-spring morning, coming in from the side door of the bakery
leading into the garden, where she had gone to deliver her old grandmother a cup of tea. A group of girls more or
less her age were seated around the sole table, the less-feminine girls with their elbows propped up onto the
checkered tablecloth and the young ladies with their legs crossed in dresses and skirts.
"Whoa!" said Jeff from behind the counter. "Looks like a busy day today, huh?" he asked Elli, coming in
from the back room where he had been checking the inventory. For a moment Elli felt truly sorry for him. Jeff was
now thirty and sweating even on a chilly early-spring morning, his ebony-black bangs curling in the front and
hanging in his dark, beady eyes. Having become master of the bakery after her father's death, he had put on the
usual red bow tie and white shirt (although he looked more like a stressed-out waiter than a cheerful bakery master).
Jeff hadn't gotten into the flow of things even after these years but could handle the responsibility, although her
father made it seem like it was nothing at all to run a bakery. Elli missed those days but it was no good to mull over it
now when business was booming as people, traditions, customs, and places grew older.
"We'll be having five cups of tea, if you don't mind," she requested in the manner of a customer as she took
care of the veryberry pie fresh from the oven, which, as everything else, she had made by herself.
Popuri hadn't changed much, she noticed as she served the pie to her first, going clockwise around the
table. She was still pretty and ladylike with her long, wavy sugar-pink hair, kept neat with that red headband. As Elli
herself had grown into baking cakes, Popuri had grown into becoming an expert at botany as her mother's apprentice
at the flower shop just across from her. Undoubtedly Popuri was the cute and sweet beauty of Flower Bud Village,
but in Elli's opinion the little-girlish benightedness was still evident where she should have been sentient and
mindful. Nonetheless, Popuri was closest by and was there to witness everything Elli had been through, whether Elli
liked it or not. Popuri was her best friend.
Karen was something else, on the contrary. Her own beauty was fresh and edgy. She was not a tomboy but
had her harsh tones and attitudes, both at the right times and wrong times to have such dispositions. Once you got
to know the belle that lived on the vineyard, with her long brown hair that fell to her thighs and her honey-blond hair
in the front, she was spontaneous, crazy and a lot of fun to be with. The pretty green eyes didn't hurt the overall
picture either. Karen would always be Karen, wearing the purple vest and boots for harsh environments, always
enjoying drinking, dancing, and flirting. It was the kind of personality Elli wanted but couldn't get away with.
It was Ann from Green Ranch that was the tomboy. She and Karen were something of a pair. Ann was
rough but at the same time gentle because she was animal-obsessed. Most of her decisions were not only on the
spur of the moment like they were with Karen, but were rooted from feeling and spirit, and not mind. At times it
seemed that all Ann aspired was winning the Local Horse Race that came every spring and fall, but Ann was also a
girl of reason, wanting to carry out her argument to the fullest climax like Karen. Her trademark reddish-blond braid
and overalls spoke for themselves, accenting her free spirit and disregard for petty things like clothes. Which was
obvious because Ann couldn't cook to save her life. It wasn't envy passing between Ann and Elli but fascination at
their differences.
Ann was the lifesaver of Maria, the mayor's daughter and quiet little receptionist at the library. Ann was
quickest to jump to Maria's aid mainly because the brunette had a hard time speaking up for herself. She was
definitely the smartest of the bunch, but extremely shy. The breaks she allowed herself were occasional, and were
spent playing the organ in church, finding different species of bugs up in Moon Mountain, or reading mysteries at
home. Elli was always clung to Popuri, with or without free will, but she had a particular fondness for Maria because
she knew there was some sort of mutual respect and sisterly love that communicated itself simply when they passed
by each other on the streets. It was something that they never spoke of but Maria had her own special charm and
endearment in Elli's heart.
"So, did any of you meet the new guy yet?" inquired Karen, jerking her thumb in the direction of the path
that would lead out of the main part of the village. "I didn't talk to him yet but I caught a glimpse of him on one of my
bad days. Unfortunately he caught me when I walked out on my father yesterday."
"Ooooh," winced Ann. "Well, the mayor pointed out our farm to him and he volunteered to take Cliff's
brother," she referred to the pony they had been keeping on their farm for a long time. "His name is Jack."
"I saw him on his tour of the town," Popuri announced as she scooted over for Elli to be seated adjacent to
her, accepting her slice of pie. "Personally, I think he's cute."
Count on Popuri to comment on boys, thought Elli, although not in a negative way at all. Popuri would be
turning sixteen this month, and sixteen was the ideal marital age for girls in the village. She had every right to check
him out. Elli, on the other hand, remembered Jack too, but he only smiled politely when they were introduced by the
mayor and she offered him to drop by for a bite.
"Isn't he though!!!" Karen practically shouted, startling everyone. "Ooh, thank you!" she said to Elli
gleefully when she was given her slice of pie, out of her love for spring veryberries. She dug in as she continued on
with very particular comments on his height and body structure. Karen was seventeen now and didn't care in the
least about the pickel-barrel the rest of the town regarded her name with (in relation to the fact that she was still
unwed).
"Did you see him, Maria?" Elli asked politely, folding her hands and resting her chin on them, risking
interrupting Karen's dramatic chatter. Maria had taken tiny bites of the pie and long, quiet sips of her tea as she
listened to everyone else.
She pushed her glasses back on the bridge of her nose and stared down at the checkered tablecloth.
"Well," she started with her hands folded in her lap, "I-I, uh, I saw him yesterday when he was walking with Father,
and--uh--yeah, he is cute, b-but.... I--I didn't say anything to him."
"Well, why not?" Ann and Karen blurted at the same time, meaning no harm but saying it almost
obnoxiously. Popuri sighed, knowing those two as the perfect pair to say something like that and hoping Maria
didn't take it the wrong way. Elli still listened calmly and attentively.
"B-because I... I didn't... I didn't think he would be interested, and he would be busy, and..."
"I'm telling you, don't miss out on your chance, girl!!" Karen almost immediately forgot her own opinions on
Jack. "You wouldn't wanna miss out; I surely wouldn't. He might like you!"
"Now, how am I supposed to know that?" Maria pondered, peering over at Karen. "Besides, nobody likes
me-"
"Harris," declared the other four girls firmly.
"Yes, w-well...."
Elli didn't want to start on a subject that embarrassed her so much. "Well, Maria, what makes you think he
wouldn't like you? I mean, sure he's busy, but Karen and Ann have no problem imposing on him; why shouldn't
you?"
"Because I'm not outspoken," she admitted openly. "I'm not good at anything like you are, I'm not cheerful
and fun like Ann, and I'm not beautiful like Karen and Popuri."
"Oh, Maria!!" Popuri said in her own way of thanks in an aww-how-sweet-of-you tone of voice.
"Heh heh, beautiful isn't everything, honey," Karen grunted.
"Well, in a sense of reality, maybe we shouldn't really get our hopes up," Ann suggested reasonably.
"Even if he does stay long, maybe he won't be into marrying as young as we do in this village. He might not like any
of us at all, no matter how unlikely that seems. Let's just promise that we'll stay friends, no matter what happens, and
we won't ever stop meeting in a group like this."
"That's right," added Popuri. "Let no man come in the way of our friendship, not even one that all five of us
compete for at the same time." Which was surprising coming from a romantic, daydreamy girl like her. Beautiful
Popuri was sure to be the girl of Jack's dreams.
"Because friendship was here first," Maria said hopefully. The five of them joined their hands in the center
of the table and folded them, as if an attempt for each of them to hold each other's hand. It was a gesture that could
come from a feminine, ladylike girl or a tough tomboy in total control of herself. Hands were univeral, something
comprehensible in all the hidden languages of personality.
Even as their hands disengaged, Elli couldn't help but privately wonder what the future held for the five of
them romantic-wise. Surely someone like Jack was bound to come and push them into womanhood and attraction to
boys. Their friendship might truly be as special as it seemed and hold out even as long as when they all became
mothers, or maybe marriage and parenthood was a part of reality that would eventually have to be accepted. It was
just a shame that all Elli could do was wonder....