"Who's there?" Jeff grunted sleepily when a light rapping came to the door leading out into the garden. Elli had just been preparing snacks and drinks when she heard it, and her grandmother gathered up her shawl.
"It's Jack," the young adolescent's voice rang out in a sing-song voice. "I've come to pay a call on Miss Elli, if I may have the pleasure of doing so." Elli didn't have to open the door to know that he was smiling at his joke, and she chuckled.
"For goodness' sake, Jeff, it's only 7:00," she poked fun at him and opened the door herself. Jack grinned widely and had a huge, round white egg, beautifully smooth as porcelain in the palm of his hand. He grabbed Elli's hand and placed the egg in it, then curled her fingers over it, before even saying hello.
"And how is my very best friend in the whole wide world doing this evening?" Jack's boyish smile still hadn't faded; in fact, his face brightened to see Elli's look of shock.
"Jack!!" she exclaimed first. "Is this really for me?"
"Yeah," Jack's face fell, as if worried that she hadn't seen an egg before, or else she was disgusted by them. "A gift. Unless you don't-"
"Wow, thank you!!!" Elli's smile was as youthful as his, and her cheeks were pink. "That's so helpful….It's a joy to have a good source of eggs close by. I tell you what," she turned around and looked for a sheet of paper behind the counter. "I'll give you something. I was going to make this as soon as we had eggs to spare, but….." She left her sentence hanging in midair and found a recipe that she had scrawled out in that pretty, loopy cursive. "Bread pudding. You can make it at home, if you have a private kitchen. You'll like it."
"I'm sure I will," Jack said slyly, folding it delicately and placing it into the pocket of his overalls. "Thanks a bunch."
A breeze of silence made its way in though the door was closed, and Elli stared at the floor having made Jeff take the egg to the refrigerator in the back. She felt peculiar and thrilled to have company like this after the bakery's business hours, and did not quite know how to entertain her favorite guests when there wasn't easy access to the oven for a fresh cake. One thing was for sure-Jack was a whole lot different from Popuri.
The grandmother saw what was going on inside their minds and smiled, then came to the rescue and spoke up, "Well, the fireworks should be starting soon. We'd better get outside before we miss them." Her tone was warm and friendly, and Elli wondered just what would happen to her if she didn't have her dear old granny.
"Sure," Elli said, but couldn't force the words out without blushing. She took her grandmother's arm in the crook of her own and opened the door to the bakery as Ellen wobbled along,
"I'll get the chair for you, ma'am," Jack volunteered with a straight and dutiful face. He lifted the wooden rocker with one hand and carried it out into the hot air of the first summer's eve.
"What a good child! Thank you, Jack." Ellen smiled wistfully and lowered herself into her favorite chair, then began watching the sky.
"Here." Elli carried out three pouches of warm cookies she'd made before his arrival, and handed one to her grandmother and one to her new friend. Jack was sitting down on the fresh, cool grass like a little child, and she joined him. Her blue dress spread out like the petals of a flower and her mother's white apron draped over her knees. The warm sweetness of the freshly-baked sugar cookie melted in her mouth and spread across her tongue, and instead of looking at the purple rain that came down she noticed that Jack's hand, spread out with his palm supporting him, was almost touching hers in the long, springy grass. It was so close to hers that she could feel the heat of it radiating with hers. Elli hadn't meant to attach any particular importance to this, and tore her eyes away from it and onto Jack's expression. His face lit up and broke into an inevitable smile. She couldn't help but think it was so cute, but turned her head so as not to miss it herself.
At that moment it was like Jack and Elli were really having a conversation in front of the grandmother. It was a conversation that didn't need words-it came of its own accord and expressed itself in the joyous bursts of the fireworks, like the lark that burst into song with its high-pitched, melodious singing or a burst of laughter. Elli was too breathlessly thrilled and terrified to figure the meaning of it, but enjoyed it and smiled the way Jack did. After about twenty seconds she looked at Jack's face and saw that he had been staring at her since she formed that smile.
"The one thing about the Fireworks Display," Ellen sighed and broke the silence, making the adolescents sitting on the grass jump suddenly. "The thing about it is," she repeated, "when you're young it's nothing special, but when you're older and older, you realize how special it is to see it, beautiful as ever now, but you never know if you're going to be around to see it next year. I hope you two remember that and treasure it this year."
"Of course," Elli said without looking at Jack, although she couldn't help wondering why her grandmother was already speaking as if Jack was already as close to her as Popuri.
"Why not?" Jack turned around and smiled at the wise old woman. "This is the first Fireworks Display I've ever seen here, and I'm going to remember it for a long time. And let me tell you it's far more beautiful in the countryside than in the city," he rushed his last sentence so as to exonerate himself from giving the impression that he was going to say something romantic. Then he thought of his way out, put on his joking smile, and saved himself. "And why wouldn't it be? I've got the two loveliest young ladies in the world watching it with me."
Elli and her grandmother chuckled out loud and Jack's grin made his ears rise a little. He was so comical and yet you never knew if he was trying to be sweet. As unromantic as she'd tried to make this outing be, Elli couldn't help but think to herself that she'd eventually figure that part of him out.
The last firecracker, red as blood, fury, and passion, faded away quicker than the soft glow of burning cigarette ashes, and Ellen stood up. "Well, I'll go to bed now. Those were sure beautiful, weren't they? You two finish your cookies, I'll be fine."
It wasn't until Elli escorted her grandmother back into the bedroom they shared that she and Jack could really talk. Even though they'd both long anticipated it, the absence of Elli's grandmother only brought more silence and both forgot what they were going to say.
"Oh yes," Elli blushed, then took out two long, narrow cylinders from the pouch of her apron that were the size of elegant candlesticks. "I forgot about these-sparklers. I don't think they're as much fun as what you've seen in the city, but I've managed to get a hold of some of them. I saved them for a long time, and got tired of seeing them so I thought I may as well light them. To bring a little bit of the city to ya." She said this in a casual tone, and didn't realize until several days later that what she said was so symbolic and quite, well… romantic.
"Sure!!! I used to light these babies all the time," Jack said, "but never only one or two. I've never seen them by themselves before, and I always lit them at parties with all my cousins. We used to line them up in rows around our lawn or something." He rubbed his hands together as if waiting to open birthday presents and started lighting his at the same time Elli got hers started up.
"Kind of pathetic, aren't they?" Elli stared at hers gloomily and thought of how big and flashy the actual display in the sky had been.
"No, not really. Look, they're just like two fireflies." Jack had to shake his head for his brown bangs to get out of his eyes. Those clear eyes flitted from the sizzling end of the wand to Elli, who didn't stir or look up although she could feel his eyes on her. For that moment she felt pretty and desirable, worthy of his attention. It was almost as if Jack could sense this feeling of self-appreciation emanating off her aura and he smiled, looking back at his own sparkler with a warm heart.
It was as if all the stars in the sky were swallowed up in the black ocean over their heads, and the sparklers died down. They got up again, and for awhile it was just Elli and Jack standing outside the door to the garden. They smiled at the same time, and Jack thanked her most appreciatively for tonight.
"It was peaceful and relaxing, a kind of fun I haven't known for a long time." Jack lifted the cap on his head politely and set it back down. "You have a nice evening, Elli, and I hope I can see you later this summer if I'm not busy."
"You know where to find me," she said graciously with a nod, and they waved before turning and walking in separate directions. Elli closed the door to the garden behind her and leaned her back against it. She felt as drunken with summer spirit as a blade of grass with its richest color of chlorophyll, and as if she could, too, waft in the sweet-smelling breeze. Then the heat began to stifle her again and she walked into her bedroom, clenching and twisting her mother's apron in both hands until the knuckles turned the palest of white. Yessir, she told herself, this Jack character is a keeper.
"It's Jack," the young adolescent's voice rang out in a sing-song voice. "I've come to pay a call on Miss Elli, if I may have the pleasure of doing so." Elli didn't have to open the door to know that he was smiling at his joke, and she chuckled.
"For goodness' sake, Jeff, it's only 7:00," she poked fun at him and opened the door herself. Jack grinned widely and had a huge, round white egg, beautifully smooth as porcelain in the palm of his hand. He grabbed Elli's hand and placed the egg in it, then curled her fingers over it, before even saying hello.
"And how is my very best friend in the whole wide world doing this evening?" Jack's boyish smile still hadn't faded; in fact, his face brightened to see Elli's look of shock.
"Jack!!" she exclaimed first. "Is this really for me?"
"Yeah," Jack's face fell, as if worried that she hadn't seen an egg before, or else she was disgusted by them. "A gift. Unless you don't-"
"Wow, thank you!!!" Elli's smile was as youthful as his, and her cheeks were pink. "That's so helpful….It's a joy to have a good source of eggs close by. I tell you what," she turned around and looked for a sheet of paper behind the counter. "I'll give you something. I was going to make this as soon as we had eggs to spare, but….." She left her sentence hanging in midair and found a recipe that she had scrawled out in that pretty, loopy cursive. "Bread pudding. You can make it at home, if you have a private kitchen. You'll like it."
"I'm sure I will," Jack said slyly, folding it delicately and placing it into the pocket of his overalls. "Thanks a bunch."
A breeze of silence made its way in though the door was closed, and Elli stared at the floor having made Jeff take the egg to the refrigerator in the back. She felt peculiar and thrilled to have company like this after the bakery's business hours, and did not quite know how to entertain her favorite guests when there wasn't easy access to the oven for a fresh cake. One thing was for sure-Jack was a whole lot different from Popuri.
The grandmother saw what was going on inside their minds and smiled, then came to the rescue and spoke up, "Well, the fireworks should be starting soon. We'd better get outside before we miss them." Her tone was warm and friendly, and Elli wondered just what would happen to her if she didn't have her dear old granny.
"Sure," Elli said, but couldn't force the words out without blushing. She took her grandmother's arm in the crook of her own and opened the door to the bakery as Ellen wobbled along,
"I'll get the chair for you, ma'am," Jack volunteered with a straight and dutiful face. He lifted the wooden rocker with one hand and carried it out into the hot air of the first summer's eve.
"What a good child! Thank you, Jack." Ellen smiled wistfully and lowered herself into her favorite chair, then began watching the sky.
"Here." Elli carried out three pouches of warm cookies she'd made before his arrival, and handed one to her grandmother and one to her new friend. Jack was sitting down on the fresh, cool grass like a little child, and she joined him. Her blue dress spread out like the petals of a flower and her mother's white apron draped over her knees. The warm sweetness of the freshly-baked sugar cookie melted in her mouth and spread across her tongue, and instead of looking at the purple rain that came down she noticed that Jack's hand, spread out with his palm supporting him, was almost touching hers in the long, springy grass. It was so close to hers that she could feel the heat of it radiating with hers. Elli hadn't meant to attach any particular importance to this, and tore her eyes away from it and onto Jack's expression. His face lit up and broke into an inevitable smile. She couldn't help but think it was so cute, but turned her head so as not to miss it herself.
At that moment it was like Jack and Elli were really having a conversation in front of the grandmother. It was a conversation that didn't need words-it came of its own accord and expressed itself in the joyous bursts of the fireworks, like the lark that burst into song with its high-pitched, melodious singing or a burst of laughter. Elli was too breathlessly thrilled and terrified to figure the meaning of it, but enjoyed it and smiled the way Jack did. After about twenty seconds she looked at Jack's face and saw that he had been staring at her since she formed that smile.
"The one thing about the Fireworks Display," Ellen sighed and broke the silence, making the adolescents sitting on the grass jump suddenly. "The thing about it is," she repeated, "when you're young it's nothing special, but when you're older and older, you realize how special it is to see it, beautiful as ever now, but you never know if you're going to be around to see it next year. I hope you two remember that and treasure it this year."
"Of course," Elli said without looking at Jack, although she couldn't help wondering why her grandmother was already speaking as if Jack was already as close to her as Popuri.
"Why not?" Jack turned around and smiled at the wise old woman. "This is the first Fireworks Display I've ever seen here, and I'm going to remember it for a long time. And let me tell you it's far more beautiful in the countryside than in the city," he rushed his last sentence so as to exonerate himself from giving the impression that he was going to say something romantic. Then he thought of his way out, put on his joking smile, and saved himself. "And why wouldn't it be? I've got the two loveliest young ladies in the world watching it with me."
Elli and her grandmother chuckled out loud and Jack's grin made his ears rise a little. He was so comical and yet you never knew if he was trying to be sweet. As unromantic as she'd tried to make this outing be, Elli couldn't help but think to herself that she'd eventually figure that part of him out.
The last firecracker, red as blood, fury, and passion, faded away quicker than the soft glow of burning cigarette ashes, and Ellen stood up. "Well, I'll go to bed now. Those were sure beautiful, weren't they? You two finish your cookies, I'll be fine."
It wasn't until Elli escorted her grandmother back into the bedroom they shared that she and Jack could really talk. Even though they'd both long anticipated it, the absence of Elli's grandmother only brought more silence and both forgot what they were going to say.
"Oh yes," Elli blushed, then took out two long, narrow cylinders from the pouch of her apron that were the size of elegant candlesticks. "I forgot about these-sparklers. I don't think they're as much fun as what you've seen in the city, but I've managed to get a hold of some of them. I saved them for a long time, and got tired of seeing them so I thought I may as well light them. To bring a little bit of the city to ya." She said this in a casual tone, and didn't realize until several days later that what she said was so symbolic and quite, well… romantic.
"Sure!!! I used to light these babies all the time," Jack said, "but never only one or two. I've never seen them by themselves before, and I always lit them at parties with all my cousins. We used to line them up in rows around our lawn or something." He rubbed his hands together as if waiting to open birthday presents and started lighting his at the same time Elli got hers started up.
"Kind of pathetic, aren't they?" Elli stared at hers gloomily and thought of how big and flashy the actual display in the sky had been.
"No, not really. Look, they're just like two fireflies." Jack had to shake his head for his brown bangs to get out of his eyes. Those clear eyes flitted from the sizzling end of the wand to Elli, who didn't stir or look up although she could feel his eyes on her. For that moment she felt pretty and desirable, worthy of his attention. It was almost as if Jack could sense this feeling of self-appreciation emanating off her aura and he smiled, looking back at his own sparkler with a warm heart.
It was as if all the stars in the sky were swallowed up in the black ocean over their heads, and the sparklers died down. They got up again, and for awhile it was just Elli and Jack standing outside the door to the garden. They smiled at the same time, and Jack thanked her most appreciatively for tonight.
"It was peaceful and relaxing, a kind of fun I haven't known for a long time." Jack lifted the cap on his head politely and set it back down. "You have a nice evening, Elli, and I hope I can see you later this summer if I'm not busy."
"You know where to find me," she said graciously with a nod, and they waved before turning and walking in separate directions. Elli closed the door to the garden behind her and leaned her back against it. She felt as drunken with summer spirit as a blade of grass with its richest color of chlorophyll, and as if she could, too, waft in the sweet-smelling breeze. Then the heat began to stifle her again and she walked into her bedroom, clenching and twisting her mother's apron in both hands until the knuckles turned the palest of white. Yessir, she told herself, this Jack character is a keeper.