Chapter 29 Bink and Viv Part 2

I checked my watch and tapped my foot as I sat inside the steakhouse. I had been here for about half an hour, and Vivian was still nowhere to be seen. Which… you know, didn't exactly sit right with me. Why hadn't she shown up yet? I had explicitly told her to meet me here at… at…

Oh crap, I forgot to specify what time. I groaned and slapped myself on the forehead. I… I'm an idiot. I couldn't believe this; how could I be so stupid? Thanks to me not using my brain properly, I had completely thrown away my chance to strike a deal with Vivian. I… wow. Like, WOW Bink, you are next in line for the Darwin Award. Groaning, I got up from my chair, about to tell my waitress that I was about to leave when…

"Oh!" I smiled upon seeing Vivian come into the main dining area. "Vivian, over here!" I waved at her, and when she spotted me, both of us broke out into a big, sightly smile. I let out a breath of relief as I sat back down, and she did the exact same thing.

"Hi, Bink, it's nice to see you again." She curled a strand of her candy floss colored hair around her finger. "I forgot which time you said, so I hope I'm not too late…"

"You're right on time, Vivian. And…" I chuckled sheepishly. "The reason you don't remember is because I… didn't exactly say a time." I chuckled some more as Vivian gawked at me. "I am so sorry. I don't know how I forgot; usually, I'm right on top of things like this."

Vivian giggled. "Well, everyone makes mistakes."

I snorted. "Not when you're me you don't." I sighed just as the waitress came in and took our drink orders (thank goodness; I had told her to wait until Vivian arrived and I was REALLY thirsty). Once she went away, I put on my business face and looked back at this shadowy girl. "So, these blankets you've talked about?"

"Yes, yes, I have them right with me." She snapped her fingers, and about three rolled-up blankets appeared right next to the table. She stood up and unfurled one. This… honestly, this blanket could easily pass off as a painting. It showed a rainbow overlooking a sea filled with cheep cheeps and even merpeople. The blues used for the ocean and the sky were striking, and the rainbow… holy crap, it looked incredible!

I couldn't help but gawk as I looked at Vivian. "You made this?"

"I know, I know, it's not exactly the best…"

I did a double take. "Not the best? NOT THE BEST? Vivian, do you even hear yourself? It's beautiful! It's the most beautiful blanket I've ever seen!"

"You really think so?" Vivian asked with a blink.

"Yeah!" I smiled, staring at the blanket again and noticing little details I missed at a first glance. Little grayish-blue dolphins jumped out of the water, and the clouds were made out of a puffier yarn than the rest of the blanket. It also looked like she had used sequins to the sea to make it appear sparkly. Now, I didn't use the term "love" lightly, but… "I love it! It's incredible!"

Vivian turned the front of the blanket her way, looking stunned as she examined it. "Wow." She smiled. "Thanks. I worked really hard on it; took me about three months to finish it."

"I can tell." My heart hummed with excitement. "Can I see your other blankets?"

Vivian nodded and unfurled the others. One showed a scene in space, with colorful planets encircling a bright and shining star. The other one showed a fireworks display. That one was the most impressive to me because, believe it or not, Vivian actually managed to make it look like the fireworks were glowing. I didn't know how she could do that with YARN of all things, but she did it. I stared at it for about two and a half minutes, completely and utterly transfixed.

"I want that one." I pointed to the fireworks blanket. "I'm taking that one, it's mine."

"Alrighty then!" She rolled it back up and handed it to me. "Enjoy it for me, okay?"

"Oh, I will." I reached into my suit pocket and pulled out my wallet. "Now, how much are you charging for this?"

"Charging?" Vivian asked with a blink.

I raised an eyebrow. "Uh… yeah. No one gives away a blanket this well-crafted for free."

Vivian shook her head. "Well, I do. You don't have to give me anything for this. It's a gift from you to me, that's all."

I WAS about to complain, but I stopped myself for two reasons. One, I shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. And two… well, Vivian could apparently spawn money out of thin air. If she could do that, she probably didn't need any money I could throw at her. Which was good for me, because there was no way I was departing with my cash. No way. I was building toward millionaire status, I couldn't afford to depart with my coins.

Of course, this blanket, if it was for sale, would be worth every penny.

"Alright, whatever floats your boat." I put my wallet away and grinned at Vivian. "Thank you."

"No problem." She paused and looked me in the eye. "You really like the blankets?"

"With all my heart," I said with a grin.

Her face turned magenta. "Wow. That's…" her smile grew bigger and bigger. "I thought they looked terrible."

I snorted. "Well, I suppose everyone's worst critic is themself." Right at that moment, the waitress came back with our drink orders. Telling Vivian that I would order for her, I asked the waitress to get us both a ribeye. Once she left, I looked back at this strange shadowy girl. "But seriously, you are really talented. I mean…" I looked back at the blanket. "You managed to make it look like the fireworks are glowing with just yarn! THAT is beyond impressive!"

"Hehe, thanks." Vivian put her hand to her chest. "Honestly… I've never really thought my blankets looked good. I think you're actually the first person I showed them to." She frowned. "I ran through about twenty blankets before coming here, trying to determine which one looked the least terrible. Which one was… worth showing to you."

I stared at her, on some level not believing what I was hearing. "Why would you think that?" I once again gestured to the blanket she gifted me. "How could you look at something so beautiful and so expertly made and think it looks terrible?"

Vivian sighed, tightly gripping the edge of the table as she cringed. "I just…" she shook her head. "I don't know. I really don't. I guess this is just an example of how I need to be more positive. And… this also shows how I need to build up some confidence."

"Oh yes. Definitely." I adjusted the way I sat in the chair. "Everyone needs confidence. Being able to look at yourself and know you're capable of amazing things is an absolute must. That I know for a fact. I mean… do you think I managed to secure a position at Beanstar Co thinking I couldn't make something of myself? No. I buckled down. I woke up every morning and gave myself a smile in the mirror, cause I KNEW that I could do great things. I KNEW it, and I didn't doubt it for even a millisecond." I leaned forward. "You know what I mean, Vivian?"

Vivian thought about this before nodding. "Yeah. I do." She chuckled and looked me in the eye. "And you do have a point. Just the fact that we're in one of the most expensive steakhouses in the Beanbean Kingdom is proof of your position."

"Yep! You know it!" I adjusted the cuffs of my sleeves. "And if you decide to practice confidence, Vivian, you can do whatever you want with your life. Like… well, where do you want to be in five years?"

"Five years?" Vivian smiled. "I want to be living in the Flower Kingdom."

I beamed. "Well, confidence is your one-way ticket to get there. If you have confidence, you'll accomplish any and all goals. You can move to the Flower Kingdom… heck, you could even go beyond that. You can set up a blanket-selling business. You can make a name for yourself. Everyone in the Mushroom World will know who you are!"

Vivian sucked some air through her teeth. "Yeeeahhh… I don't know if I want that. I mean, my kind has kinda been operating in secret for… reasons that I'm not gonna get into. That's not to say everyone knowing who I am would be impossible, but… honestly, I don't like the idea of being in the spotlight."

I blinked before bursting into laughter. "Be serious; everyone likes the spotlight!"

"Not me. I never liked the idea of being famous or even well-known. It's too stressful, and it's not for me. I just want a normal life. I want to wake up every morning and make myself a nice cup of coffee. I want to be able to breathe in the scent of the countryside. I want to feel the wind gently blowing my hair. You know, simple things like that."

I stared at Vivian for what had to be the millionth time since we entered the restaurant. "Wow." I continued staring at her right as the waitress came back with our steaks. As Vivian thanked the waitress, she gave me an expectant look. It must've sat in place for five minutes straight before I managed to find my voice. "You really are the most fascinating person I've ever met." I didn't take my eyes off Vivian as I started cutting my steak. "That life you just described is so… normal."

Vivian nodded. "It is. And it's exactly what I want. I'm tired of the way my life has been going, so…. Normalcy is the only thing I want. If I could have a normal life, free from any and all stresses or dangers, I'd be the happiest girl in the world."

I nodded slowly while chewing on my bite of steak. "Well… personally, I think just aiming for normalcy is silly, especially when you can have so much more. But if that's really what you want, then… you aim for that." I swallowed. "If I need to, I will help you achieve that."

Now i was Vivian's turn to stare at me. "You'd do that? You'd take time out of your busy schedule in order to help me?"

"Sure, why not?" I said with a shrug. I took another bite of steak. "You're kind and thoughtful. You're treating me with a lot of respect when we literally just met and you know very little about me. You're giving me gifts out of the kindness of your heart, not because you want any monetary gain. That…" I laughed. "Honestly, that makes almost no sense to me. If I were in your position, I'd charge fifty dollars for the blanket AT LEAST. But the fact that you genuinely just want me to have it, when you don't even know that much about me…" I smiled. "I think me helping you out would be the most natural way to return the favor."

Vivian sniffled while smiling. "Thanks, Bink." She wiped a tear from her eye and picked up her fork and knife. "I… guess that means that we're friends. Right?"

I swallowed, thinking about those words for a few seconds, before smiling. "Yeah. I think it does."

"Good!" Vivian cut a bite of the ribeye and chewed on it. "Mmm. This is so good."

"Yes." I smiled at my new friend. "It is."