Author's Note: You know what to do- read, review, go see Tuck Everlasting this weekend.

Chapter Eleven: Tom

By dinnertime, Winnie was feeling well enough to leave the room and eat a meal with Rebecca and her husband, Tom. Tom was the manager of a small shop in town that sold farming equipment. As Rebecca told her, Tom just about ran the business himself since the owner was always out of town. The two of them were trying to save up all the money they could to buy the store someday.

"I'm glad to see that you are finally feeling better this evening and could join us for dinner," said Tom as he held out Winnie's chair for her. "I just hope my wife doesn't burn the roast like she did last time or you may not want to eat here again."

Rebecca smirked at him on her way into the kitchen. "I've never burned a pot roast in my whole life, Tom Ferguson, and you know it. Now you just don't listen to him, Winnie. He'll fill your brain with all sorts of nonsense."

Tom grinned at Winnie mischievously, and Winnie smiled back. Tom Ferguson was a tall man of average built with straw colored hair and a handlebar mustache. Winnie's father had kept his own mustache trimmed neatly his entire life and she mused over what he may look like with one like Tom's.

Rebecca returned seconds later with a steaming plate and placed it on the table. When the aroma of the roast filled her nostrils, she felt her mouth watering again. It wasn't as though she hadn't eaten at all that day; Rebecca had fixed her a turkey sandwich for lunch. Winnie decided that she must have worked up a large appetite from eating next to nothing the day before.

Tom blessed the food and Winnie was glad that she had remembered to wait before eating this time. However, when she finally did put the first bite of roast in her mouth, she nearly groaned out loud. "Rebecca, this roast is wonderful."

Rebecca narrowed her eyes at her husband and pretended like she was going to swat him. "See? My pot roast is always cooked right."

Tom pushed a piece of it over with his fork. "I don't know. This one looks a little burned to me."

"Oh, it does not!" Rebecca glared at him, but Winnie could see her eyes dancing. Tom grinned at her like a little boy and returned to his meal.

Winnie was fascinated by the way the two expressed affection for one another. Her parents rarely teased one another and would never touch the other in front of company. She could feel herself staring at them and forced herself to concentrate on her dinner. However, she couldn't resist one last peek. She glanced up to see Tom smiling fondly at his wife from across the table. Rebecca gazed at him sweetly and lowered her eyes back to her food.

At this, Winnie felt something indescribable tugging at her chest. It was obvious that they were in love. She could see it in the way they moved and spoke and laughed when they were around each other. They were happy, and Winnie wondered if she would ever find something that wonderful in her own life.

Have you forgotten about Jesse? Winnie blushed at the thought of her and Jesse making eyes at one another from across the dinner table. He did say that he would marry her when she was seventeen, but that was six years ago. Maybe he had decided that he liked being alone and didn't want a wife. After all, he was only seventeen and he always would be. Seventeen-year-old boys didn't think about marriage the way seventeen-year-old girls did. In fact, he was probably sitting in his home right this minute eating by himself and thinking about how glad he was that he never did find himself a wife.

The thought left Winnie feeling dejected and she ate the rest of her meal in silence, trying not to think about Jesse Tuck.