Page 60 of The Music of Us
I shook myself out of my daze, pushing those thoughts away. Right. Jake asked me if I was okay after the fall. “Nothing to it.”
He snorted. “Yeah?”
“That’s what you said, isn’t it? Besides, it’s just falling. Falling is easy.”
“Yeah,” he said, voice soft, quiet. “Easy.”
Chapter Fourteen
ASPEN RAY: Our upcoming Sweet Torture Tour’s sold out! Thanks to everyone who’s supported the Ungrateful Serpents! I—What? [Unintelligible background whispers] Why are you shaking your head? What did I—Oh. I meant thanks to everyone who’s supported the Usual Suspects. The auto cue had an autocorrection. I’m jet-lagged and just reading off what they wrote, guys, don’t blame me. We could be the Unsocial Sandwiches right now for all I know.
—Morning Glory AM Newstranscript
Iwas in the back parking lot behind The Tiny Tiger, emptying the trash cans, when I spotted Mrs. Dodge—the longtime owner of the yarn shop next door—getting a sign out of the trunk of her car.
I waved hello, but she didn’t see me, so I returned to my chores, setting the trash can in my hands down and picking up the next one.
Thud.
I glanced behind me. The sign now lay face down on the concrete, and Mrs. Dodge stared down at it hesitantly. She shifted her purse to the crook of her other arm and braced her hand on her upper thigh, like she had to prepare herself before kneeling down.
Mrs. Dodge was in her sixties. That was older than Mom, but her stance was one I recognized. Admittedly, before Mom’s car crash, I probably wouldn’t have realized that it might hurt Mrs. Dodge to do something as simple as bend down.
But knowing how Mom struggled after her accident made me realize that sometimes things that would be simple for me weren’t easy for everyone. It made me want to watch the people around me closer, and to be kinder when I could.
“Hi, Mrs. Dodge,” I called out, distracting her before she could bend down.
She stopped in her descent, looking over at me as I approached.
“Oh, hello, Lucy.” She shaded her eyes against the sun to study me. “You look so grown up now.”
“You say that every time you see me. I can’t look any older to you than I did last Monday,” I joked.
“I’ve been running the shop next door since long before your mother moved in and turned that place into The Tiny Tiger,” she chided me. “I even babysat you once or twice while you were still in diapers. I’ve earned the right to think you look older every single week.”
Giving her a sunny smile, I swooped down to pick up the sign for her without asking. That’s another thing I learned from Mom. Sometimes people didn’t like to admit they needed help, even when they really did need it. If you kept things casual, theyfelt less embarrassed, and were more likely to let you do things for them.
Sometimes I still wondered how much Mom wasn’t telling me. Were there signs I missed every day?
“It’s really nice out today, isn’t it?” I asked Mrs. Dodge, though I really wasn’t expecting an answer. I was just chatting so she wouldn’t protest my carrying the sign to the back door for her. She’d probably stubbornly try to take it back from me like Mom often did with everything, but I knew she’d have to fish around for her keys and this would make things easier for her. “Perfect summer weather.”
“It is,” she replied with a nod. “How’s your mom? I’ve missed seeing her here every day. Is she still on track to recover by the end of the year?”
I pursed my lips together, mentally running over what the doctor said. “She’s supposed to be.”
“But you’re not sure?” Mrs. Dodge prodded, picking up on my hesitant tone. “It’s okay. Sometimes healing can be tricky. It took me two months longer to recuperate from my hip surgery than the doctors were expecting, but I recovered and now I’m as right as rain. These things just take time, it doesn’t mean she’ll be on crutches forever.” She laid a hand on my arm, making me turn to face her, and she gave me a firm look. “Just promise me you’ll make sure she’s not running this place alone when you leave for college, okay? Make sure she has the staff to help so she can take it easy. She won’t be fully healed when you go. If she pushes her body too far, she could seriously injure herself. Permanently.”
My stomach sank as I heard my fears confirmed aloud. Mom would very likely still need help in the fall.
But if the café kept doing this poorly, she wouldn’t have themoney to hire full-time staff. What would happen if the livestream didn’t work? When I left? Would Mom lie to me over the phone while I sat in another coffee shop miles away from her, not having a clue that she was straining herself too much? Would she have to give up the café? Would I leave here one day and never be able to come back?
“She won’t be alone,” I said quietly. “I promise.”
No matter what it took, I’d keep it.
Mrs. Dodge squeezed my arm. “Good girl.”
She unlocked the back door, and I shifted the large sign over in my hands, preparing to set it down, when I caught sight of what was printed on it.
