And a better day it was for her, plus even more. The days that
followed her were all about watching the first snowfall of the season of
winter, about taking more thorough precautions with the animals, and about
having Cliff visit regularly to watch the animals with her, as was promised
in their bet. It was quite hard for her to handle the cold, and her theory
to that was how she had been born in midsummer. Still, it was a quite
peaceful time. With Cliff coming over so much, she barely had time to mull
over Jack--- Cliff seemed to be staring more at her than Cliffgard, whom
came to be his favorite horse, too.
Not that she never saw Jack recently, however. On the contrary, sometimes she would see him walking in town when she went to church-- and they would stop and have fun and humorous conversations like they did in the summer. The childlike playfulness was still in the air even though Jack would have to work harder in the wintertime. Her crush was making quite a name for himself all throughout the village, and some of the citizens' views about him were slowly evolving into something much friendlier than before.
One particular afternoon, it seemed as though nothing would happen all day except Ann's shivering herself to death even in the warmth of the animal barn, and Jack had come by at around four to pick up a few more bags of chicken feed. Ann was just making her way out of the barn and into the shop before closing time to give her father some company, and she had seen Jack loading his rucksack with the bags of chicken feed. His hard-worker image was cute, but at the same time it was quite annoying. Frequently Ann had begun wondering just when he had some free time-- even when they met in the mountains in the summertime he would have to run off to work capriciously. Then she thought that, if they married, it really could be for the better or for worse, as they say, because as well as them both being busy, Ann would be like his favorite childhood friend to play with.
She became submerged in this fantasy as she saw Jack leaving after he had waved to her. They would be working as a team, not arguing the way she did with everyone else but reasoning things out in a civilized way, and as long as they would be working as the excellent team that they surely were, there would be much more free time to explore Moon Mountain, play with the animals, and... and romance, too. That last thought made the rest of her face blush as cherry-red as her nose got in the wintertime. As embarrassing as it seemed to her right now, it was completely true-- and that meant Jack wouldn't always have to be so hectic as he was now. In the midst of his rush home Ann thanked the vast sky that his service card from the bakery fell out of his rucksack. Just as he was leaving, maybe she would be quick enough to stop him to hand it back to him, and this she surely tried.
"Jack!!" she said, feeling as if her mouth was stuffed with cotton as she was whenever she always tried to speak to him. "Jack, wait up!!"
Ann didn't know why she expected any worse; this was Jack after all, and she should have known that he would turn around and smile like a little boy at his own carelessness. She felt free enough again to run up to him and hand it to him.
"You dropped this. It seems you were in a bit of a hurry to get back to work! That's good, and, umm.... Oh, you've collected quite a lot of stickers," Ann flipped the card over and saw that most of the grid was filled up. "Wow! You really do like sweets, don't you?"
"I sure do," he said proudly, like a five-year-old announcing his love for candy. "Thanks, Ann! Gosh... I'd really be upset if I lost this."
"I can understand," she added, smiling and accidentally letting out a giggle that sounded oddly like Elli.
Good thing he hadn't noticed. "I'd have thought you were busy. I really appreciate you coming after me in the snow. Thanks so much! I'll have to do something for you to return that favor." He moved in close enough to where he could reach the service card and his face was only inches from hers. Jack didn't notice, of course, nor did he see put much thought into his fingertips-- his warm fingertips-- brushing against hers underneath the bakery's service card long enough for the heat from his body to be passed to Ann just through the touch of one of his fingers. It astounded her, but she kept it to herself as if nothing out of the usual was going on, as if Jack happened to lose his stupid bakery card every afternoon at their ranch.
"Nah, you don't hafta," she said, nudging him with her elbow.
"Sure I do!!"
Then there was an awkward silence in which he was staring straight into her face and she could see clouds of steamy breath puffing out of him in the bitter cold. There was a look about him that was so adventurous, but at the same time so honest and truthful. His expression was that of a young boy facing the world for the first time and ready to tackle it, but with those clear brown eyes it was like he could never, ever tell an untruth. A kiss was so distant from them, but a vivid and heavily detailed fantasy in her mind. In marrying Jack, she could capture moments like this forever.
"Well Ann, I uh... I gotta go. And thanks again," he said finally, scratching the back of his head and staring at the snow-covered ground.
"It was no problem," and then the two of them began crunching through the frost in separate directions, Ann's heart beating wildly as if something so simple had been one of the most thrilling moments of her life. Ann thought that maybe this was what love did to a person.
Wait---- love?!?!?!
Surely she didn't love him yet--- did she?
"I am not in love with him, I am not in love with him, I AM NOT IN LOVE WITH HIM!!!!" Ann shouted with her face planted deep into her pillow when she returned to her room. It was only a few minutes to five-o'-clock when she decided to relax for the time being, nearly a half hour earlier than she had usually been returning home.
Ann walked into Hall's office, which was empty at the moment, and picked up the receiver of the phone that was hanging on the wall. The padded upturns of her fingertips itched to dial Jack's number, but instead she called Maria. In the midst of all this trouble and joy she was struck with at the same time when seeing Cliff and Jack so often, she had forgotten to call on Maria and see how she was doing every now and then.
"Ann? Wow, it's you! How are you?" Maria began excitedly.
"Maria, I wonder if you could help me out," Ann started in a rush.
She wasn't there to see her do so, but she imagined Maria pushing her glasses up onto the bridge of her nose and preparing to use that superior brain. Dear, sweet Maria would help her, she knew that for sure now. "Okay," Maria started. "Tell me everything; you have my full and undivided attention."
"Maria--- I wonder, have you read many romance books in the library."
She loved Maria just then--- she could beat around the bush as long as she wanted to, and Maria would give her straight answers. No stupid questions!
"I had a few come in just recently and I flipped through a couple pages of some old ones. I can't say I know that much on the way they are written, because science and nature books tend to be my favorites. But how can I help you with the little I know?"
"Maria, trust me, you're the right person for this. Now... how do you know when you're in love?"
"I don't know how to answer this one," said Maria pensively as if it was a trivia question. "Well, most girls in the romance section always tend to feel some sort of tingle.... Oh, don't ask me this. I feel stupid answering it."
Ann sucked in her breath so hard that it was stinging her lungs. "Well, okay," she said, letting all that air out. "Here's the thing. I've liked Jack for the longest time, and--- today I viewed him so differently than I ever have before. I've never been... you know... in love with anybody before, but it would certainly explain things a lot better."
"Wow.... what happened? If you don't mind my asking, that is."
"Walking out of the ranch this afternoon-- in fact, not twenty minutes ago-- he dropped the service card to the bakery. The service card for cryin' out loud!! Okay, so I go to pick it up and bring it to him, and when he's thanking me for it and crap he just looks so... hot! Gorgeous! Extremely cute!" Ann's pink face broke into a huge smile and a daydreamy sigh followed. "Oh, gawd, Maria, I'm so dizzy and whimsical and happy all at the same time...."
Maria sighed dreamily too. "Wow, Ann! That's so deep! I wish I had moments like that. You see, I've never really had close moments like that with anyone. I mean, right now I like Harris (but don't tell anyone!) and I know that he likes me, but.... Gosh... I wish I could have moments like that. That sounds so awesome. I mean, at first I thought it was just fiction in a romance book, but now that I know it's okay and normal to feel this way, I feel relieved too!"
"So... what do you think? Am I in love with him, or what?"
"Sometimes it's too early to tell. But I think my best advice for you would be to wait and see what happens. I know it drives you crazy like it does to me, but sometimes that's the best way to keep from getting hurt or disappointed. Just wait and see what happens. Later on you can weigh in your mind all the good and bad outcomes, and then decide from there. Sometimes feelings like this take time to make themselves clearer. The Thanksgiving Festival is on the 10th, by the way, and maybe you can show him you care for him by baking him a cake." Maria was going to ask if Ann wanted help from Elli or a cookbook, but decided not to wreck her spirits. A unique cake from Ann was a sign of a big effort, and surely Jack would see and appreciate that.
"Thanks, Maria. You're a genius. But I'll have to go now, and thanks so much!!"
"Bye-bye, Ann. You take care."
Not that she never saw Jack recently, however. On the contrary, sometimes she would see him walking in town when she went to church-- and they would stop and have fun and humorous conversations like they did in the summer. The childlike playfulness was still in the air even though Jack would have to work harder in the wintertime. Her crush was making quite a name for himself all throughout the village, and some of the citizens' views about him were slowly evolving into something much friendlier than before.
One particular afternoon, it seemed as though nothing would happen all day except Ann's shivering herself to death even in the warmth of the animal barn, and Jack had come by at around four to pick up a few more bags of chicken feed. Ann was just making her way out of the barn and into the shop before closing time to give her father some company, and she had seen Jack loading his rucksack with the bags of chicken feed. His hard-worker image was cute, but at the same time it was quite annoying. Frequently Ann had begun wondering just when he had some free time-- even when they met in the mountains in the summertime he would have to run off to work capriciously. Then she thought that, if they married, it really could be for the better or for worse, as they say, because as well as them both being busy, Ann would be like his favorite childhood friend to play with.
She became submerged in this fantasy as she saw Jack leaving after he had waved to her. They would be working as a team, not arguing the way she did with everyone else but reasoning things out in a civilized way, and as long as they would be working as the excellent team that they surely were, there would be much more free time to explore Moon Mountain, play with the animals, and... and romance, too. That last thought made the rest of her face blush as cherry-red as her nose got in the wintertime. As embarrassing as it seemed to her right now, it was completely true-- and that meant Jack wouldn't always have to be so hectic as he was now. In the midst of his rush home Ann thanked the vast sky that his service card from the bakery fell out of his rucksack. Just as he was leaving, maybe she would be quick enough to stop him to hand it back to him, and this she surely tried.
"Jack!!" she said, feeling as if her mouth was stuffed with cotton as she was whenever she always tried to speak to him. "Jack, wait up!!"
Ann didn't know why she expected any worse; this was Jack after all, and she should have known that he would turn around and smile like a little boy at his own carelessness. She felt free enough again to run up to him and hand it to him.
"You dropped this. It seems you were in a bit of a hurry to get back to work! That's good, and, umm.... Oh, you've collected quite a lot of stickers," Ann flipped the card over and saw that most of the grid was filled up. "Wow! You really do like sweets, don't you?"
"I sure do," he said proudly, like a five-year-old announcing his love for candy. "Thanks, Ann! Gosh... I'd really be upset if I lost this."
"I can understand," she added, smiling and accidentally letting out a giggle that sounded oddly like Elli.
Good thing he hadn't noticed. "I'd have thought you were busy. I really appreciate you coming after me in the snow. Thanks so much! I'll have to do something for you to return that favor." He moved in close enough to where he could reach the service card and his face was only inches from hers. Jack didn't notice, of course, nor did he see put much thought into his fingertips-- his warm fingertips-- brushing against hers underneath the bakery's service card long enough for the heat from his body to be passed to Ann just through the touch of one of his fingers. It astounded her, but she kept it to herself as if nothing out of the usual was going on, as if Jack happened to lose his stupid bakery card every afternoon at their ranch.
"Nah, you don't hafta," she said, nudging him with her elbow.
"Sure I do!!"
Then there was an awkward silence in which he was staring straight into her face and she could see clouds of steamy breath puffing out of him in the bitter cold. There was a look about him that was so adventurous, but at the same time so honest and truthful. His expression was that of a young boy facing the world for the first time and ready to tackle it, but with those clear brown eyes it was like he could never, ever tell an untruth. A kiss was so distant from them, but a vivid and heavily detailed fantasy in her mind. In marrying Jack, she could capture moments like this forever.
"Well Ann, I uh... I gotta go. And thanks again," he said finally, scratching the back of his head and staring at the snow-covered ground.
"It was no problem," and then the two of them began crunching through the frost in separate directions, Ann's heart beating wildly as if something so simple had been one of the most thrilling moments of her life. Ann thought that maybe this was what love did to a person.
Wait---- love?!?!?!
Surely she didn't love him yet--- did she?
"I am not in love with him, I am not in love with him, I AM NOT IN LOVE WITH HIM!!!!" Ann shouted with her face planted deep into her pillow when she returned to her room. It was only a few minutes to five-o'-clock when she decided to relax for the time being, nearly a half hour earlier than she had usually been returning home.
Ann walked into Hall's office, which was empty at the moment, and picked up the receiver of the phone that was hanging on the wall. The padded upturns of her fingertips itched to dial Jack's number, but instead she called Maria. In the midst of all this trouble and joy she was struck with at the same time when seeing Cliff and Jack so often, she had forgotten to call on Maria and see how she was doing every now and then.
"Ann? Wow, it's you! How are you?" Maria began excitedly.
"Maria, I wonder if you could help me out," Ann started in a rush.
She wasn't there to see her do so, but she imagined Maria pushing her glasses up onto the bridge of her nose and preparing to use that superior brain. Dear, sweet Maria would help her, she knew that for sure now. "Okay," Maria started. "Tell me everything; you have my full and undivided attention."
"Maria--- I wonder, have you read many romance books in the library."
She loved Maria just then--- she could beat around the bush as long as she wanted to, and Maria would give her straight answers. No stupid questions!
"I had a few come in just recently and I flipped through a couple pages of some old ones. I can't say I know that much on the way they are written, because science and nature books tend to be my favorites. But how can I help you with the little I know?"
"Maria, trust me, you're the right person for this. Now... how do you know when you're in love?"
"I don't know how to answer this one," said Maria pensively as if it was a trivia question. "Well, most girls in the romance section always tend to feel some sort of tingle.... Oh, don't ask me this. I feel stupid answering it."
Ann sucked in her breath so hard that it was stinging her lungs. "Well, okay," she said, letting all that air out. "Here's the thing. I've liked Jack for the longest time, and--- today I viewed him so differently than I ever have before. I've never been... you know... in love with anybody before, but it would certainly explain things a lot better."
"Wow.... what happened? If you don't mind my asking, that is."
"Walking out of the ranch this afternoon-- in fact, not twenty minutes ago-- he dropped the service card to the bakery. The service card for cryin' out loud!! Okay, so I go to pick it up and bring it to him, and when he's thanking me for it and crap he just looks so... hot! Gorgeous! Extremely cute!" Ann's pink face broke into a huge smile and a daydreamy sigh followed. "Oh, gawd, Maria, I'm so dizzy and whimsical and happy all at the same time...."
Maria sighed dreamily too. "Wow, Ann! That's so deep! I wish I had moments like that. You see, I've never really had close moments like that with anyone. I mean, right now I like Harris (but don't tell anyone!) and I know that he likes me, but.... Gosh... I wish I could have moments like that. That sounds so awesome. I mean, at first I thought it was just fiction in a romance book, but now that I know it's okay and normal to feel this way, I feel relieved too!"
"So... what do you think? Am I in love with him, or what?"
"Sometimes it's too early to tell. But I think my best advice for you would be to wait and see what happens. I know it drives you crazy like it does to me, but sometimes that's the best way to keep from getting hurt or disappointed. Just wait and see what happens. Later on you can weigh in your mind all the good and bad outcomes, and then decide from there. Sometimes feelings like this take time to make themselves clearer. The Thanksgiving Festival is on the 10th, by the way, and maybe you can show him you care for him by baking him a cake." Maria was going to ask if Ann wanted help from Elli or a cookbook, but decided not to wreck her spirits. A unique cake from Ann was a sign of a big effort, and surely Jack would see and appreciate that.
"Thanks, Maria. You're a genius. But I'll have to go now, and thanks so much!!"
"Bye-bye, Ann. You take care."