“Do you want me to help clean the plates?” Vanessa gestured to the forgotten dishes still left on the table, neglected on account of her and Minnie getting distracted playing Candy Land with Jo for an hour after dinner. If not for Minnie having to stand up and turn on the lights so they could see the game board clearly, neither of the two adults would have realized how much time had passed, though time didn’t seem to exist when they were in their own little world with Jo together.
“No, I’ll do it. It’s late, anyway, and you should probably get going,” Minnie sighed. Glancing at the clock, she added, “It’s also almost Jo’s bedtime. Jo, brush your teeth and change into your pajamas and I’ll be right there to read your bedtime story.”
“Okay!” Ever enthusiastic, Jo skipped to the bathroom as Minnie knelt to put the loose game pieces back into the box.
“If you want, I can read Jo her bedtime story while you clean the plates,” Vanessa nonchalantly proposed as she picked up the Candy Land box and stacked it on top of the pile of board games nestled in the corner of the living room.
“You would?” Minnie asked, relief seeping into her voice matching the appreciative gleam in her eyes.
“Yeah! It’d be my pleasure,” Vanessa grinned. “Besides, it’s a better chore than washing plates.”
Smiling, Minnie thanked Vanessa, who happily walked to Jo’s bedroom to find the girl sitting in bed, her blankets pulled up to her chest as she sat, patiently waiting.
With curious, wide eyes, Jo glanced around the room and asked, “Where’s Mom?”
“She’s cleaning the dishes. I’ll be reading you your bedtime story tonight! Which book do you want?” Vanessa ran her hands along the spines of the array of books on Jo’s crowded bookshelf. There were so many books, clearly loved over time — maybe these had been Minnie’s once and she was passing down the stories she loved to her daughter. Vanessa smiled at that thought.
Jo pointed to the book on the top of the shelf. “Can you read ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar?’”
“Sure!” After picking up the book, Vanessa sat down on the edge of Jo’s bed, flipped open to the first page, and began reading. Though the words weren’t easy to read in the dim lamplight, Vanessa didn’t let that deter her from animatedly telling the story by making faces that made Jo giggle with delight.
And once, Vanessa concluded the story (with an energetic “And that’s the end!”) and closed the book, she pulled the blankets higher up on Jo’s shoulders and stood up, prepared to leave.
Jo snuggled deeper under her covers, partially burying her face with the blankets as she spoke. “Vanessa?”
With her hand on the light switch, Vanessa turned around to look at the young girl. “Yeah?”
“Are you gonna be my new mom?” Jo asked in the most bashful voice Vanessa had heard from her yet.
Hoping the partial darkness obscured her blush, Vanessa playfully replied, “Maybe after a few more rounds of Candy Land. But for now, sleep tight, and don’t let the bedbugs bite!”
Vanessa closed the door, her smile still frozen on her face as she realized that her new fantasy of living a domestic life with Minnie could be more achievable than she imagined.
~
Though Vanessa often came over to Minnie’s house to spend time with her and her daughter, she and Minnie rarely spent time outside of chatting at the motel or the diner during lunch. So, one day, out of the blue, Vanessa suggested over lunch, “Let’s go out on a date. You’ve been busy with work lately, and I figured we could do something fun this weekend. Just you and me.”
As Minnie parted her lips to reply, Vanessa quickly added, “I know you’re worried about Jo, but why don’t you ask your parents to just watch over her for one day? You deserve a break.”
Realizing that the last time she had gone out of town was to go to Denver with Vanessa and Jo, Minnie determined that she was due for some time off. “Sounds good. But on one condition: this time I get to choose where we’re going.”
And that’s how Vanessa found herself treading carefully on the dirt path, trying not to trip over loose branches or camouflaged gnarled roots of trees as she followed Minnie. In the tall branches of trees, birds chirped in disjointed melodies that rolled over the whispers of an afternoon breeze twisting its way through the forest.
“Look!” Minnie exclaimed, and Vanessa glanced up from the ground to see the vast expanse of a lake, stretching out in front of her. There were rarely moments where Vanessa was stunned into silence, considering she used to pass the Empire State Building on her way to college. But as she stared at the picturesque reflection of the cotton-like clouds in the lake, she struggled to find words to describe the emotion unraveling in her chest.
Through her awestruck haze, Vanessa managed, “How did you find this place?”
“My uncle used to have yearly picnics here with my whole family before he moved. I’ve always really liked how calm it is here,” Minnie explained as she laid a blanket down on the dirt and opened up her picnic basket. “Actually, my uncle was the one who gave me this necklace on my sixteenth birthday. We were always close when he was still around.”
Holding up her plain but elegant necklace, she added, “He told me that this was his mother’s and that he wanted me to give it to my daughter once she turned sixteen too. Pass it down like a family heirloom.”
“It’s gorgeous. And I was serious when I said it looks good on you,” Vanessa insisted, earning a bashful blush from Minnie.
As Minnie told stories about how she and her family members used to skip rocks by — and sometimes in — the lake as they ate lunch, Vanessa still was trying to absorb the beauty of her surroundings. Even though she had been visiting nature plenty during her time in Colorado, there was something special about this specific space that she couldn’t identify. But when Vanessa turned to see how beautiful Minnie was in the clear sunshine, she realized that having someone to love while surrounded by nature, Earth’s unequivocal love for life, was what had made the moment so memorable.
Suddenly, Minnie cleared her throat and pulled her knees up to her chest. “Um, I know this might kill the mood, but are you leaving soon? You’ve been here for a month already.”
Vanessa paused for a moment, picking up a rock off the ground and rubbing her finger across its rough edges as she thought for a moment. A month sounded long, but she didn’t even feel like a week had passed. Maybe this is what life is like when you’re living in the moment.
The sound of water splashing gently up against the edges of the lake permeated the space once reserved for silence. The moment dragged on. Finally, Vanessa inhaled sharply and, while gazing out into the vast blue of the lake, informed, “I got an offer for a job from a huge business in New York. It has really good pay and amazing benefits.”
She turned to Minnie, her nervous fingers still on the rock clutched in her hand, and added, “But I also found a job in Denver. It’s not too far from here, and even though it doesn’t pay as much, it’s more than enough to cover living expenses, including rent for an apartment in Fort Lupton.”
Minnie anxiously sucked in a breath, her hand fiddling with her necklace. “So, what are you going to do?”
“I think I’m going to stay.” Minnie released her breath. She was going to stay. Vanessa smiled, looking over at Minnie like she was the entire world and Minnie looked at Vanessa like she was the entire universe. “After all, I have a reason to.”
~
“There we go!” Minnie declared, zipping up Jo’s orange jacket. Summer had returned a year after Vanessa first arrived, right on schedule, and as it was beginning to fade into autumn again, evident by the low morning temperatures, Minnie had to make sure Jo dressed appropriately.
Jo stuck her arms out and spun around to showcase her outfit. Smiling, Minnie gave a small round of applause, and her daughter giggled with delight as she picked up her purple backpack with both arms. “School is so fun! I wanna stay in first grade forever.”
Minnie chuckled, “Well, you’ll have to go to other grades too. It gets harder, but you also learn more.”
“I guess. But I do think it’s cool that you’re going to college to be a teacher! My friends all say they hope you can be their teacher one day,” Jo beamed, and Minnie had to fight not to let her eyes grow too watery. Ever since Vanessa had moved in with her to their new house and helped take care of Jo, Minnie had more time to spare, which she used to go to college and start studying to earn a teaching degree.
“Oh, Jo! Don’t forget your lunch,” Vanessa called, zooming out of the kitchen with a brown paper bag.
“Thanks! Bye, Van!” Jo waved as Vanessa walked backward to the kitchen, blowing Minnie a kiss on her way out of the living room. Minnie pretended to catch the kiss and clutched it close to her heart.
Taking Jo’s small hand into hers, Minnie offered Jo an encouraging grin, “Are you ready to seize the day?”
Jo nodded determinedly, and she and her mother stepped outside and faced the world together.
