Page 50 of Searching for Bristol
Bristol nodded. “I have to admit I’m kind of excited to see the shirts and stuff with Bigfoot on them. I’m gonna have to get some for myself, and my mom too. She’ll get a huge kick out of it.”
Rocky smiled. Then said, “Oh, and did you hear about Tony?”
Bristol frowned in concern. “What about him? Is he okay?”
“He’s fine. I meant that he’s gonna get an award at the parade.”
“Really? What kind?”
“Every year, Fallport names someone their ‘Hero of the Year.’ After what happened with his dad, and how he managed to get himself out of the situation he’d found himself in, driving back to Fallport all by himself to give his mom and everyone else a head’s up about what his dad was planning, he was nominated for the award. And he won. As did Zeke, much to his disgust.”
“Why disgust?” Bristol asked. She’d heard all about what had happened to Tony. How his dad actually tried to have him killed for a life insurance payout. When that failed, he’d taken Elsie—for whom he’d also bought a healthy policy. She’d escaped into the forest off the interstate, and Zeke had found her easily. “I mean, he’s definitely a hero, as are all of you guys for what you do.”
Rocky shrugged. “We’re just a bunch of guys doing something we love. Using the skills we’ve learned from our previous jobs. We don’t like being called heroes.”
“Well, that’s silly. Youare. And I’m glad the town is recognizing that.”
“That means a lot,” Rocky said quietly. They shared a tender look before he continued. “Anyway, Tony gets to ride on a float. Well, it’s not actually a float, but he gets to sit on top of the mayor’s SUV, through the sunroof, and wave to everyone as he goes by. He’s also pretty excited about the crown he’ll get too.”
Bristol smiled. “I bet.”
“Zeke’ll be with him, but he’s a little less excited about the attention. And I hear he’s gonna refuse to wear the sash and crown that goes with the title.” Rocky smirked.
Bristol laughed outright at that. “Yeah, I can’t really see any of you enjoying that part. But it’s cool for Tony.”
“Yeah. He’s been a trooper. He was pretty devastated about what happened for a while Thought it washisfault his mom had been put in danger. But with the help of Elsie and Zeke, not to mention everyone else in the town, I think he’s pretty much gotten over it. The Hero of the Year thing and getting to be in the parade will help even more.”
“Oh, it definitely will.”
“You asking for his autograph when you first got here was pretty awesome too,” he told her.
Bristol smiled. “I was serious about keeping that napkin. He’s gonna do great things, and when he’s famous, I can say I knew him when.”
“I’m thinking we should all be asking foryourautograph,” he said.
Bristol rolled her eyes. “Whatever.”
“I’m serious. I looked up some of your stained glass, you know. I’m impressed.”
He couldn’t have said anything that would’ve pleased her more. “Thanks.”
“You’re talented. Very talented. How’d you get started?”
“I was in Girl Scouts when I was young, and a local artist came to one of our meetings, and we all got to make miniature stained-glass ornaments. I was fascinated by the whole process and bugged my mom to death to do another. She finally found a local lady who agreed to take me on. I think everyone thought I’d get tired of it…but I didn’t.”
“And now you’ve got your art in buildings all over the United States, and even overseas.”
“Pretty much,” Bristol said with a shrug. “The thing is, I’d be doing this even if I didn’t make any money at it. There’s just something so satisfying about taking little individual pieces of glass and putting them together to make a bigger picture that’s meaningful, and that everyone can enjoy. Being able to make a living doing it is just icing on the cake.”
“I agree. If only hiking in the woods paid as much.” They both laughed, then he nodded at her plate. “You did a pretty good job on that.”
Looking down, Bristol was surprised to see how much of a dent she’d put in the huge mound of food he’d heaped on her plate. “I guess I was hungrier than I thought,” she said. “But if I get as big as a house, don’t go blaming me.”
To her surprise, Rocky leaned over and said in a serious tone, “I don’t give a fuckwhatyou weigh. I like who you are in here,” he said, lifting a hand and tapping her temple. “You’re funny, outgoing, talented, friendly, empathetic to others, and strong as hell. None of that’s gonna change if you gain fifty pounds. I want you to be healthy so you can be around for a very long time, but life’s too short to worry about that shit. Be who you are. Screw what society shoves down people’s throats about the ideal body size. You, Bristol, are fucking beautiful. All four feet, ten inches of you.”
She was almost overcome with emotion after he stopped talking. But she managed to say, “Four-eleven. That extra inch is important.”
He chuckled. “Right, sorry. Now, you want a bowl of ice cream for dessert? I got your favorite…cookie dough with pretzel pieces.”
