Living & Breathing, Etc.

I didn't tell Nora about the near-collision with the Mercury. Or about the collision with Duke, Kara, and their group of friends. I had a deep fear of her being closely acquainted with either of their mothers. As much as I knew I needed to start being friendlier, the idea of play dates with either of them horrified me.

Even worse, the root beer tingled my taste buds like no other. I wished that I gotten the second gallon. No wonder the stand sold it in the big cartons. My pride ached.

It rained that afternoon, preventing me from getting any work done outside. And after Duke's comment on bad luck, I wasn't feeling up to delving into the mystery of the missing photo albums or whatever the heck was going on in the blue room. After perusing Nora's bookshelves in the study, I landed on a collection of poetry from the early twentieth century.

I did eventually convince Nora to teach me how to make those delicious fried apples, even though I accidentally (but really on purpose) ate most of the apple slices before they made it to the frying pan. The sweetness of the fruit really could not be matched by anything I'd ever eaten in Houston. I fully intended to buy a stock for my room from the Elliot's farm when I went over the next day.

The rain continued on into the evening. Its lullaby, combined with the relaxing rhythm of the book of poetry and the post-dinner sleepiness, put me to sleep around eight o'clock. Around two in the morning, though, I was awakened by the sound of glass breaking. I sprung straight up and breathed heavily.

The sound came from next door, from the blue room.

I thought about how my mother had always scolded me for my wild imagination.

The more I thought about it, the more sense it made to take Jack's old red pickup instead of the Buick. I wasn't exactly sure how much I'd buy from the greenhouse, but I didn't want to get mulch all over the carpeting in Nora's car. I recalled Nora pulling her car keys from a drawer in the entry hall back by the garage. She probably kept her other keys there, too. I walked back there and selected the set of drawers that I felt confident were right. When I pulled on the top drawer, it stuck. I moved on to the middle drawer, which opened easily. I discovered the little basket of keys and pulled out the one labeled "pickup." Grabbing the key, I retreated to the inner rooms of the house to look for Nora.

"Aunt Nora?" I called. She appeared from the kitchen.

"What can I do for you, Tegan?"

"I thought I'd head on over to the Elliot's greenhouse, but I figured you wouldn't want me to get your car dirty. Is it okay if I just take the pickup?" I asked. Nora shook her head.

"Naw, I don't know how that thing runs. I'd feel better if you just took the Buick, okay? And don't mind about the dirt," she insisted.

"Oh. Well, okay," I shrugged. I returned the keys to the basket and exchanged them for the Buick's.

"Be back before it starts raining," Nora yelled as I shut the door behind me. I looked at the sky and saw the sun beating down on the dry grass. Rain. Yeah. I shook off her warning and climbed into the car.

It was painfully hot outside and the air felt muggy. The Buick's air conditioning wasn't stellar, but within a few minutes, I felt relieved of the oppressive weather. I really oughtn't to have been so affected, particularly because Houston was probably about eight degrees warmer with ten times the water in the air. I sighed and turned off the main road down a little curvy, paved street. After about three minutes, the trees began to thin and the hills settles down a bit. I saw white canvas tents in the distance. Before long, I'd pulled into the dirt driveway behind six other cars. Crowded, I observed. It seemed at though the Elliot's greenhouse experienced a good amount of success, considering the size of the town. I climbed out of the car and locked the door, which I realized later was probably unnecessary. The majority of people milled around inside one of the large white tents. I strolled that way, feeling a bit uncomfortable. I'd never shopped for vegetation before and wasn't sure what I was looking for or who to ask. As I approached the tent, I noticed the fields behind the tents, covered with tall, green plants. Beyond that, dark bushes sprung up from the ground. Berries, perhaps? I started browsing at the tables just outside the greenhouse. Various fruits and vegetables covered the tables. I selected a tomato, pretending to examine it for freshness or ripeness... or something. I set it back down and moved on to the large watermelons.

"Can I help you?" I turned around, grateful for the offer. But instead of a helping hand, I found myself face to face with Duke.

"Thanks, I'll just find someone who works here," I said in annoyance, deciding to look for an employee inside the tent.

"That'd be me," Duke replied cheerfully, cutting off my path. "Duke Elliot. Elliot's Greenhouse and Farm, at your service." I scowled and crossed my arms.

"Do you seriously work here?" I asked suspiciously.

"I help out during the summer. Family business and such," he grinned. "Now, City Girl, are you going to ask for my help or keep wandering around like a lost cow?"

"I'm still pondering on the pros and cons," I snapped back, feeling quite indignant.

"I promise I don't bite," Duke laughed, I sighed.

"I need some plants for my aunt's yard. I'm redoing the beds," I relented. Duke grinned.

"Well, let me give you the grand tour," he said, leading me into the tent. "What sort of things were you looking for?" I shrugged.

"I don't really know much about... this stuff," I admitted. "Just some nice flowers or something."

"No requests at all?"

"Something easy to take care of, I suppose," I replied. "I don't want to leave Nora with a burden." Duke nodded and shifted his weight, analyzing my face with his eyes. I frowned and turned away.

"How about some begonias?" he suggested. I considered it for a moment, examining the small flowers.

"They'd go nicely in by the entry."

"And some azaleas for the front beds?" Duke added.

"You seem to know much of my aunt's landscape," I said pointedly, brushing some of the buds on the flowers with my fingertips.

"Your uncle... he was well-liked." I shrugged.

"Oh."

"You didn't know him?"

"I just met him once," I replied. "We spent two weeks here a few years ago." Duke nodded.

"Well. How many flats do you want?"

"Huh?" I asked. A flat?

"A flat," Duke repeated. "One box of these." He hefted up one of the short trays containing the begonias.

"Um," I said uncertainly.

"Never mind," Duke laughed. "I'll just get a few and if you have any left over, you can just bring them back."

"Thank you," I replied gratefully.

"Jett!" Duke waved over a shorter, broader boy with darker hair and brown eyes. He approached with the same large grin on his face that seemed to mimic Duke's.

"You Nora Green's niece?" he asked. I nodded, unnerved by how everyone in this small town seemed to know who I was.

"This is my little brother, Jett," Duke announced. "Can you help load enough flats to cover the entry at Mrs. Green's place? We'll go get the azaleas. And we're taking them where?"

"To the Buick," I confirmed. It figured that Jett and Duke were related. Their smiles were practically identical and even now, I could see the similarities in the rhythm of their gaits. Not to mention the unusual names. I wondered at how Duke's name reminded me of Duke Ellington. Perhaps his mother was a fan? I shrugged it off and followed Duke to the larger potted plants.

"Now I don't know if all of these are going to fit into your car," Duke pointed out as he motioned to the azaleas.

"Yeah, I don't think they will," I agreed. Each plant was about a yard high and a yard in diameter. I might have been able to stuff one or two into the small Buick, but certainly no more than that, and by no means enough to fill the front beds. "Do you have any bright ideas?"

"We can probably get all of the begonia flats into the trunk and the backseat, but I'll have to bring the truck by with the azaleas." I sighed, not too enthusiastic about Duke hanging around the house. On the other hand, I also wasn't too keen on having to carry ten or so of these bushes all by myself. Duke would likely consent to playing muscleman for an afternoon, it seemed.

"Okay," I relented. "When can you come by?"

"Today."

"What time?"

"I'll just follow you back to your place," Duke replied.

"Okay, that's fine," I agreed. "How much do I owe you?"

"See the lady over there with the money apron? She'll fix you up." I followed his pointer finger to a shorter woman closer to the front of the tents. After Duke filled out a small slip of paper with a stub of pencil held between his dirty fingers, I walked over to the woman.

"Excuse me?"

"How can I help you, honey?" she asked with a friendly grin.

"Um, here's my order," I said, handing her the slip of paper.

"Ah, you're Nora Green's niece from Texas, aren't you?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"I'm Mrs. Elliot. You've met Duke, right? My son? He's your age." Another Elliot.

"Yes, ma'am."

"I'm so glad you came to be with your aunt," Mrs. Elliot said sympathetically. "Poor Nora. She's distanced herself so much from the community after, well, you know. We just haven't had something like that happen in so long. I guess you were pretty young then, huh? Duke was, what... seven? Eight?" She shook her head in pity and patted me on the back. What? Was she talking about Uncle Jack's death?

"I was seven, I think," I replied, still confused.

"Yes, yes, so young," she nodded, handing me back the receipt with my charge. I forked over some cash we walked over to where Duke and Jett were loading the azaleas into the back of a green pickup.

What exactly hadn't happened in so long? She had to be talking about Uncle Jack. I tugged at my memory, trying to remember the details of his death. Nothing new came to me. My mother had picked me up after school one day in first grade. Uncle Jack had an accident, she'd said. We'd packed that evening and left for Corbin the next morning. Just an accident. That was all she'd said. An accident. A whiff of stench grazed my sense of smell and I shivered.

"You cold, City Girl?" Duke chuckled as he walked me to my car. "It's nearly 95 degrees out here." I glanced back at him and his smiling expression slowly turned to one lightly laced with concern. I wondered if he knew that I was afraid. Afraid, yet very...

Curious.