I could hardly believe my ears. “You don’t know who Poppy is?”

“Well,” said Callum, “I recognised the rest of the names but that particular one doesn’t ring a bell. Who is she?”

Something short of a squawk escaped my lips as I struggled to contain my happiness.

Calm down, Rosie-birdie.

I had to make sure first. I couldn’t count my chicks before they hatched.

“Okay, uh, she’s this girl – seventeen years old. Really pretty,” I started my description as he nodded along. “Slender, green eyes and long brown hair.” I made a flowing gesture down my head with my fingers.

Callum looked like it hurt his head just trying to picture the description.

“Oh.” I snapped my fingers. “She always wins Richard Town’s beauty pageant.”

“Ah!” Callum remarked as if his memory was jogged, and my heart sank subsequently.

With a shake of his head, he added, “I don’t pay attention to those competitions.”

My heart started to rise again. “Really?” I asked too eagerly.

“I’m not interested,” he expressed. “I never know who participates or who wins, so maybe that’s why I don’t know her.” He shrugged with an apologetic face. “Sorry.”

Ironic how he was apologising yet he had just given me the best news in two days!

I leaned back in my seat with a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank God.”

“Pardon?”

“That Ed is finally here!” I saved with a grin, having caught my dear friend’s appearance out of the corner of my eye. Wouldn’t want him catching on to what I had planned now, would I? This was supposed to be a natural conversation with no hidden agenda.

“Oh.” Callum’s facial features relaxed from confusion as Ed sat down with us.

“The samosas will be here in ten,” she announced. “So what have you two been talking about?”

“Isn’t it such a wonderful day, Ed?” I cooed, the warmth of utter bliss causing me to float and mellow. “The sun is shining and the birds are singing a happy sunny song...”

Ed grimaced at me. “The stars are coming up,” she deadpanned.

My grin stretched till it hurt a bit. “And they are reflected in your beautiful grey eyes. You are wonderful too, Eddie. Everything is simply wonderful.” I reached over and ruffled her blonde hair.

Ed slapped my hand away and whistled. “I always thought it was impossible for you to suffer heatstroke, Nkwanzi, but I suppose I was mistaken.”

I giggled. “What heat? It’s almost seven.”

“Delayed effect,” Ed countered, brushing me off.

*****

I couldn’t wait to tell Ed the good news. But as soon as we exited Mrs. Lawrence’s and waved goodbye to Callum, her mouth ran faster than mine.

“He is so cute!” she exclaimed to me, her eyes wide and sparkly. “Not only is he a prospective date but he’s tall and handsome just like you wanted!”

“That’s not all!” I squeaked, practically dancing on my toes.

“I know; he’s nice as well!” Ed stated. “A little awkward, but sincere. You better take that one to Establishment Day.”

“Trust me, I have to and I will,” I declared with determination. “When you went to order the samosas, I brought up the Poppy issue, and now phase two is clear!”

Ed gasped. “Clear? Clear as in he’s not interested in her or-”

“He doesn’t even know her, Ed!” I cut her off, unable to control my glee.

She gasped again. “No.”

“Yes!” I exclaimed. “He was completely perplexed when I mentioned her and he told me he’s not interested in pageants, which indirectly means it doesn’t matter to him who the most beautiful in Town is!”

Ed’s jaw dropped and she made the gesture and sound of her mind exploding. “Well then, nothing left to say but high five, my sister!” she lifted her hand and with enthusiasm, I squealed and gave her a high five.

I let out a breath, feeling as though a boulder had been extracted from my lungs. “All there is to do now is clear phase three – get him to ask me to Establishment Day.”

Establishment Day was on Saturday the following week, and it was just Tuesday. It meant I had ten days to accomplish my goal, which was more than enough time, right?

I was over-the-moon, so much so that I linked arms with Ed and we sang songs in a rather noisy and boisterous manner on our way to my home. We had to celebrate the recent success and how smooth and fast our plan was going.

A couple of people snapped at us to quiet down; that ladies shouldn’t be causing a public ruckus. But instead of stopping, Ed and I merely grinned and saluted them, much to their horror.

I was finally going to prove Poisonous Poppy wrong, and Callum was my ticket. My golden goose. It couldn’t have worked out better.

Ed placed a loud kiss on my cheek as farewell before skipping back down the street while I skipped up the terrace of my house. I heard voices inside, and wondered what the fuss was about.

When I opened the door, I found Mr. Vincent standing in the sitting room with my mother as they smiled and chatted. Mr. Vincent was the first to notice me.

“Welcome home, kiddo.” His greeting to me was lively.

I offered him a pleasant smile. “Good evening, Mr. Vincent.”

He was a forty-something year old man with silky coffee brown hair and pale blue eyes, with a bit of a stubble. He usually wore a hat, which at the moment, he held before him in his hands.

He was married once but it didn’t work out. I didn’t know the details; simply that it left him heartbroken and living alone. Ed was the one who told me about it. She definitely knew more, but I didn’t want to pry so I didn’t ask much.

My family moved to Richard Town right before Jerry was born, and I didn’t know Mr. Vincent until my father died two years after.

“Mr. Vincent made too many vanilla cakes and decided to share a batch with us,” My mother said to me. She clutched her black and white woollen shawl, which was draped over her frame.

I had never seen that shawl.  The pattern on it was in a diamond, kite like shape. It was simple yet visually pleasant – exactly my mother’s taste.

“If I remember correctly, vanilla is your favourite, isn’t it?” Mr. Vincent asked me sweetly.

“Yes, it is,” I replied.

“I swear, Mr. Vincent, you keep surprising me with your talents,” my mother praised. “When did you learn how to bake?”

He waved his hand in a dismissive yet modest gesture. “Oh, it’s nothing. Just something I picked up along the way. Figured it would come in handy some day, and it has.”

The two of them shared a laugh.

“Well, it’s getting late. I should get going,” Mr. Vincent stated and I stepped out of the way to let him pass, except he turned to my mother.

“It was nice seeing you, Elizabeth. And remember, you can count on me at any time.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you, Mr. Vincent.”

After a lingering glance at my mother, he turned to me and beamed. “The same goes to you, kiddo!” He stepped towards me and placed a hand on my shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.

I smiled back. “Good to know, Mr. Vincent.”

Although I never actually had to go to him for anything.

He wished us a good night and went on his way.

“Thoughtful man, isn’t he?” my mother said, moving to close the door.

“Yes, he is,” I murmured, my eyes trained on the woollen shawl she had on. Adding volume to my voice, I said, “I haven’t seen this shawl before.”

She flinched, and her movements slowed down a bit as she locked up.“Oh, that’s because it’s new.”

“You bought it?” I asked, knowing quite well she couldn’t have. The design and make was unique, and not native to Richard Town.

She turned around and smiled at me. “It was a gift.”

“From Mr. Vincent?”

She avoided my gaze and scratched behind her ear. “No, from someone else.”

Before I could interrogate her further, she quickly added, “I should go check on supper.” And practically fled from me.

What was she all flustered and nervous about?

As I walked into the dining room, I saw Jerry had already started gobbling down the vanilla cakes like the glutton he was.

I placed my hands on my hips and gave him a scathing look. “It’s nearly supper time, blockhead.”

“And the cakes are still food,” he muffled out with a shrug. “They’re delicious. I don’t know about you, but Mr. Vincent’s getting points from me.”

His words irked me even though I didn’t want to feel that way.

Mr. Vincent occasionally brought us things like treats or household equipment, and helped fix things around the house. My mother was open about it, so she definitely would have told me if the nice shawl was from him.

So if it wasn’t from Mr. Vincent, who was it from? And why did it feel like she wanted to keep the identity a secret?

*****

Who knew thinking of ways to get a boy to ask you on a date would be so damn difficult?

I was frustrated, I was chagrined, I was in pain, I was aggrieved even.

I’d spent most of my Wednesday thinking of ways to set me and Callum up, but none of them seemed right! Most of them were too forward, because I was more used to saying and doing things outright. And yet I was supposed to be subtle about it. Ugh. I had to make it seem like it was his idea to take me to Establishment Day, and make it so that he actually wanted to take me.

But another thought plagued my mind as I lay back on my bed with my head hanging off. Did he even ever attend the celebration? I’d seen his parents and his brothers attend a few times but not him.

Maybe he attended but I never noticed?
That would make sense.

Did he want to attend this year?

There was so much to think about.

**

I went to work at the salon on Thursday. After lunch and during my shift, the talk amongst the women gave me an idea. One woman had stated, “If I need to know or understand anything, I just grab a book. It’s amazing how much knowledge you can pick up from just one trip to the library.”

Everyone else had chastised her and rubbished her statement because apparently, all women needed to do was talk to each other.

And about each other.

So after my shift, I headed over to the library at about four o’clock. It was a storied building with only two floors. Each floor was divided into the bookcase section and the reading section.

I’d never actually had to go to the library because the books I needed to learn were either at home or at the Instructor’s home. And by ‘learn’ I meant English and basic Mathematics. I could acquire or borrow the novels from elsewhere in Town.

I didn’t exactly know what I was looking for, so I met the ground floor librarian at the reception desk, which was situated at the centre. He’d worn a dark green sweater vest over his striped button-up shirt, and had spectacles perched on his nose. His salt and pepper hair was gelled back neatly with a division on the side.

He looked up at me from above his lenses with lazy half-lidded eyes and after giving me a rather contemptuous once-over, asked. “How may I help you...madam?”

His mouth upturned in a sneer as he pronounced, ‘madam.’

I still smiled at him. “I actually don’t know what I’m looking for but-”

“Clearly,” he scoffed, and I tried to ignore the sexist insinuation behind it.

“-but I was hoping you would be able to help me,” I finished, like the patient angel I was. “Does this library have any work on, say, tips about teenage life or...maybe how to get someone to propose-”

“The romance novels are upstairs,” he cut me off in his irritatingly sluggish and nasal voice.  

I bit the inside of my cheek and struggled to maintain my smile as I gritted out, “I never said I wanted a romance novel.”

“And yet it is what you’re looking for,” he quipped. “Besides, what else would a...madam like you be doing at a library? All the cookbooks are checked out.”

Had I been Ed, I would have picked a bloody fight with this baboon ass. But because I was slightly better at keeping my patience in check, I just glared at him and walked away, seething.

He was lucky I wasn’t there for a book on mechanics or engineering or medicine. Then I would have really picked a fight.

But he did have a point although I hated to admit it; I could have actually found what I was looking for in a romance novel.

I went upstairs and luckily enough, came across a lady – one out of three ladies I’d so far counted in the entire library including myself – who listened to me and gave me some recommendations. So I sat down at one of the tables and tried to ignore the odd looks from the men passing by as I read ‘Fields of Temptation.’

Forty-five minutes into the book, I realised it was all about the protagonist trying to seduce a ranch owner. Granted, my and Lara Devine’s issues were quite different and so were our feelings and intentions, but I kept reading anyway. After forty-five more minutes of love triangles, libido, passion and 'tingles in loins', I called it quits.

Clearly that book was not targeted for an audience such as myself. I should have been suspicious when that kind lady from earlier led me to a dusty shelf. She’d peered around with caution before pulling out a bunch of dusty old books and snatching, rather swiftly, ‘Fields of Temptation’ from behind those dull books in the same way a chameleon would catch prey with its tongue.

Now I had to watch my back as I returned the book back to its hideout, and I felt as though I was committing a crime.

I really hoped I wasn’t.

I walked around the bookcases. They had signs indicating the categories of books, and I saw a sign that read, ‘Women’s Talk’ on top of a shelf which sparked my interest. It seemed like the section was only limited to one shelf of the bookcase, which was the topmost.

I wonder why.   

Huffing, I fetched a step-ladder and positioned it against the bookcase. Careful not to step on the hem of my dress, I climbed up so I could reach the shelf. Before I could stretch my hand to grab a book, someone tapped me on my leg. I looked down and saw the first floor librarian glaring at me. This one was in a tweed jacket and tweed trousers.

“Women aren’t supposed to use step ladders,” he whispered in a stern voice.

Was he flipping serious? And how come he singled me out so quickly? Had he been stalking me all this while?

I breathed in and out to control my anger. “Then how am I supposed to get the book I need?” I asked with as much civility as I could muster.

“Ask a man to assist you,” he replied like it was the most obvious thing on earth. “Now quickly get down from there.”

This place was, in all seriousness, wearing my patience down to a thistle.

“Let me just get the book I want and come right down, okay?”

“Madam, you are disobeying library rules,” the librarian’s whisper turned vicious.

And my patience snapped.

“Well, your library rules are utter balderdash!” I too, whispered viciously. “Stinky! Completely nonsensical without good purpose!”

“Their purpose is to prevent you from distracting the other readers!”

“Aha, and by ‘other’ readers, you mean men, am I correct?” I spat, so very riled up. “Because clearly this wondrous public establishment is meant to cater for the men, and fellow men climbing step ladders wouldn’t pose as a ‘distraction’, huh!”

The man looked downright furious and yet speechless, just like every other man who’d stopped to stare and listen to our yelling in hushed tones.

“Hmph!” I snorted. “You now stay silent because you realise the rules are bullshit, yes?”

The librarian gasped and stumbled back as though I was a rabid animal who’d lunged at him, and gave me a threatening glare. “Women should not curse!”

“Oops.”I pretended to have realised my slip by bringing a hand over my mouth, then took it away and enunciated my words. “Shit. Shit. Bullshit!”

I swear I saw steam come off him from how boiled with rage he was. “You!” He jabbed his finger at me. “Who are your parents!”

As if I would answer that.

While I searched for a fitting remark, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a familiar boy who’d just stepped out from behind one of the bookcases. In his hands was a large open book and his surprised blue gaze was on me.

It was miraculous, the way the fury fled from my body and excitement replaced it. 

“Callum!” I almost yelled. Actually, I did yell, because every single person there shushed me at once.

Callum just stood there frozen as I climbed down the ladder, moved past the gaping librarian and up to him. I gave him a toothy smile and greeted, “Hi.”

Callum’s eyebrows lifted as his eyes twinkled. He folded in his lips, drawing out his charming dimple, and I knew he was happy to see me. It just felt that way.

I heard the librarian speak from behind me, “Young lady, I am not done talking to you.”

Ugh.

Callum looked like he’d snapped out of a trance. He turned to the librarian and started, “Sir, I apologise for-”

Except I grabbed his arm and pulled him away from there quickly so the librarian wouldn’t follow. I lead him into another route between the bookcases and held him against one of them by his arms.

I then looked at him straight in the eyes and said, “There are some things you should be unapologetic about.”

“He...” Callum stuttered, “...he seemed angry, though.”

“He’ll get over it,” I brushed it off, releasing him from my hold. “He was just shocked that I actually talked back to him.”

It was really hard to keep my mouth shut about certain things. I used to, until I met the ever vocal Ed. My mother didn’t seem too bothered by it, but she did tell me to be careful – that a lot of people didn’t like assertive women like Ed and me. Poppy often teased me that it’s why no boy would ever want to be with me.

Suddenly, it came crashing down on me that I had just exposed myself in front of Callum. My prospective date!

Apprehension swirled in my guts as my throat dried up.

“You were shocked too, I suppose,” I croaked, clutching my fingers. “How...how long had you been there?”

Oh my God, if he had been there the whole time, then I was doomed. I was a soul in purgatory headed straight for Hell, I tell you most solemnly. He probably thought I was trouble, and wouldn’t want to be around a problematic person such as myself anymore. 

I couldn’t watch him say it - no, I couldn't. So I looked at the ground as I awaited, with immense trepidation, my judgement hour.

“I was there long enough to witness how courageous you are.”

My head snapped up to him in surprise. “Ka...courageous?” I echoed with uncertainty.

He nodded, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. “You are right. These library rules are balderdash. Along with a couple of our society’s rules.” His smile faded and his eyes lowered. “But I could never be able to argue or stand up to anyone the way you did. I just always end up...” He shrugged. “Apologising. It’s cowardly, isn’t it?”

Well...

“Sometimes it’s noble to avoid confrontation,” I said to him. “And besides, every single person is different in nature. When the humble ones are unable, the vociferous will fight on their behalf. And when the vociferous go too far with rage, the humble ones will pacify them and bring them back to middle ground.”

Just like he had pacified me instantly. Was it some sort of magic trick?

Callum’s eyes met mine once more and held my gaze for a moment. Then he whispered, “I admire you, Rose.”   

A/N

Here we are! Thanks for reading and please star⭐ this chapter 😊