Twelve Tiny Truths

by M Dauphin

  She doesn't take them but says, "Well those pies won't last long. I'll make sure to come back next week for more."

  "Good." I grin at her, then feel like a dick because she's not taking her things and she's already got a handful of bags. "God, sorry, you want a bag? You kinda got your hands full."

  "Yeah, that'd be great, thank you." She smiles a bright smile that tells me her friend didn't poison that pretty head, then swipes at her lip again.

  "I got it all. Promise." I wink at her then grab her bag. "Cherries right on top." I hand over the bag and she slowly reaches out. When she reaches for the bag, our hands touch and I smirk. "That's fourteen."

  She fumbles a minute with her wrist purse thing, then hands over a debit card. "Oh, uh, shit. I don't… I don't take credit. Uh… You know what? Don't worry about it. I got this. Just enjoy 'em and come back to see me next weekend."

  "Oh, I couldn't do that. I'm so sorry, my friend has the cash. She'll be right back," she rambles.

  "No, I'm serious. You're a first time customer. We're square. Especially 'cause I didn't get to get you that drink Thursday. I'll see you next weekend?"

  "Come on lady!" someone calls from the line and I jerk my head with a scowl, trying to find the culprit but notice the line's practically doubled.

  "Yeah, uh…sorry. Yes. I'll come back. Thank you for this." She moves to the side of the stand to allow more customers through and shifts on her feet while adjusting the bags in her hand.

  She doesn't walk away, she just stands next to my table, tapping her fingers at the edge and looking out into the crowd.

  "Sir?" The woman in front of me gets my attention with her bag of cherries.

  "Sorry." I weigh them and look over at Blue Eyes. "That's six dollars," I tell the woman and glance back at the girl. "Hey," I call out but she doesn't look. "Thanks." I smile at the woman and take her exact change. Before helping the next person, I reach out and get Blue Eyes' attention. "What's your name, anyway?" I ask when she looks back.

  "Oh! Um… I'm Charlie. Sorry, am I in your space still? I can move."

  "No." I grin. "You're good right where you are. Prime seats to people watch."

  She chuckles and nods looking back into the crowd.

  "Two pies," the man in front of me says.

  "That's fourteen," I tell him, trying not to watch Blue Eyed Charlie, but she's intriguing, and a little odd just standing there waiting. I think she wants me to ask her out maybe…

  "What about my free cherries?" the guy questions and I cock my eyebrow, noticing Charlie look back at me, then remember I gave her a free bag.

  "Sale ended. Fourteen." I hold out the pies.

  "Unbelievable. That's sexist, you know?" he mutters and I look up at Charlie who's got a grin but looking at me like I'm an ass for giving her free cherries.

  "Nah." I chuckle. "You woulda gave her free cherries too." I smirk over at her before taking his money.

  I expect her to walk away when she shakes her head, but she doesn't move.

  "Who's next?" I look into the crowd briefly before glancing at Charlie again. "So, Charlie? You want to go out tonight?" I ask, weighing the next customer's bag of cherries.

  "I'm not much of a partier." She smiles politely at me. "And call me old, but I like my bedtime to be before midnight."

  "Hey, no one said that's old. I do too. I work long days, and after this, I'm headed back to the farm. But tomorrow's Sunday, and I'm off on Sundays, so why don't I take you to lunch?" I smile at her quickly before looking at the customer. "Six dollars."

  "Can I pick the place?"

  "Yeah, that sounds reasonable. So what time's lunch for you?" I'm grinning at the next customer, but it's meant for Charlie.

  "Sorry to interrupt the romance with your girlfriend," the older woman smiles at me. "I just need two pies."

  "Two pies and a free bag of cherries." I wink at her and Charlie laughs. "I like the ladies," I claim as I hand over her bag. "Fourteen dollars."

  "Thank you, Travis." She squeezes my hand and I smirk. People know me by name, but I see too many faces to remember them, except Charlie's. I look over at her again.

  "That was sweet. You seem to have some repeat customers." She's got that smile that makes her look like an angel, but I know it was put there by the devil.

  "Travis is a good boy," the old woman tells her and smiles at me. "Treat him right," she says to Charlie before walking away and I laugh.

  "Treat me right, Charlie. What time's lunch?" I grab the next customer's bag.

  "Noon? Noon sounds like a good time for lunch."

  "I like noon for lunch. Twelve dollars please," I quickly say to the next customer then ask Charlie, "I'll pick you up?"

  "Me?" the woman asks with a chuckle.

  "I'd love to take you out on a date. But Charlie got to me first." I smirk at the woman who's blushing and Charlie laughs.

  "By all means, don't worry about me. I'm not one to want people to turn down an opportunity for true love. I'm just here to make sure he's happy anyway."

  "She's already worried about your happiness, I think Charlie is the better date." The woman chuckles and takes her cherries. "Good luck, you two," she says before walking away.

  "That's cute you're already worried about my happiness, Chuck." I smirk over at her and she looks away with a headshake again but I see the sign of a smirk.

  "Fuuuuck, I'm so sorry, babe!" I'll never forget the owner of that bitchy voice. It rings from somewhere in the crowd before she barrels through the line that's been steady for a while now.

  Charlie smiles and looks at me before her friend makes it over to us. "Tomorrow. Noon. Bistro on Third street. It's a little bistro on the corner. I'll meet you there."

  "Can't wait," I say and that evil one is glaring at me like she wants me dead. The heated anger on her face matches Bev's cherries right about now and before the top of her head blows off, she yanks Charlie away.

  I really don't like her friend, but it's not her friend I really want to get to know. It's cute Blue Eyes.

  At ten minutes to noon I glance inside the bistro but don't see her, so I wait outside, texting Bev.

  TRAVIS: I'll come over after my date and get it fixed

  One of the four-wheelers won't start and she won't listen to me and get out of the sun.

  BEV: I'm going to tinker. You enjoy that girl!

  Yeah, I'd like to enjoy her in more ways than one, but as it is, I'm going to have to cut this date short so Bev doesn't hurt herself 'tinkering.'

  I huff and look up seeing a puppy headed my way and grin. Everyone's a sucker for puppies. I squat, but before I touch, I ask, "Can I pet your dog?" Squinting, I look up at the girl and realize it's Charlie. "Oh, Chuck! This your puppy?" I grin.

  "He's not a puppy." She chuckles. "Gus is almost six. He's just tiny. Go ahead, he won't bite."

  "He's so little. Is he a Husky?" I reach out and am greeted with a docile nudge of his nose.

  "He's a Klee Kai. A mini Husky. I wanted a full grown one but with the apartment space this was the next best thing I could get. He was super trainable too."

  "Well he's awesome. I have a cat." I laugh and stand. "His name's Peter. Does Gus like to play with cats?" I grin at her.

  "Hmm. I'd think so, he's super playful." She shrugs. "You wanna grab a seat? I'm starving."

  "Uh…inside? Outside? We should probably sit outside with Gus, huh?"

  "He can go in or out. He's trained not to bother anyone." She smiles, adjusting her sunglasses. "It's really nice out here though."

  "Let's go in and order and we can come back out if you want. After you." I open the door for her and Gus and chuckle as the dog leads the way like he owns the place. "I've only been here once," I say close to the back of her ear and she jumps. "Just me." I smirk, putting my hand on her hip from behind. I haven't been on a date in seven months, and the last time, it was just for sex. Something tells me I'm not getting that from this girl, and I'm not really only interested in that. As long as
her friend stays out of the picture, I wouldn't mind seeing her again, I think.

  "Sorry." She laughs, shifting forward just enough to move from my hand. "Uh, this place is really good. I always get the chicken salad sandwich. It's amazing." She looks down at Gus and gives his leash a quick, gentle tug that seems to calm him down and I watch as he sits directly in front of her in line, no longer the dancing pup he was a second ago.

  "I think I'll get…" I skim the menu then look into her face that's directed down toward the dog and chuckle 'cause she's still wearing her sunglasses. Maybe she's hungover. "It's not that bright in here," I quietly say, not to embarrass her, and pull them off her face so I can finally see her eyes again.

  She looks into my face and I smile at those big blue eyes I've been thinking a lot about since seeing her again yesterday.

  "Thanks. Sometimes I forget those are even on." She lets out a nervous laugh and turns back to face the line.

  "I think I'll try the Italiano on a bagel this time. Ever have that?" I ask, moving a little closer to her and she immediately steps just a little farther away.

  I bite my lip and fall back, trying to discreetly smell my shirt. I don't stink. I guess maybe she's just not into me like I thought. But she seemed kind of eager for this date yesterday. I don't know why I'm over thinking this. She wouldn't have accepted if she weren't into me at least a little. If this girl turns out to be another one that's just into the 'bad boy' look I have going for me, I'm going to be annoyed. I'm getting too old for casual hookups anymore. I want to try and find something that's real.

  "I haven't, but my friend Kevin has. He enjoys it a lot," she says and I wonder if her friend Kevin was the guy she was laughing it up with here on Friday. "I stick to what I know typically. It's easier that way."

  The line moves again and it's our turn next.

  "I can respect that. Sometimes it's good to try something new though." I smirk at her, but she doesn't even look at me.

  "Hey, Charlie," the girl at the register says.

  "Hi, Caitlyn. I'll have my usual. Extra mayo for my fries please." She smiles and I cringe at her fries dipped in mayo but I'm not judging.

  "Hi." I smile at the girl. "I'm gonna try the Italiano bagel. Can I get a cherry Coke too? Chuck? You want a drink?"

  "Water, please. Thanks, Caitlyn." She slides her card out of her wallet and holds it out for the girl like she's about to pay for our date.

  "Uh. I got this." I gently push her hand away and hold out cash.

  "Treat’s on me, really. I owe you for the pies." She shakes her card at the poor girl behind the counter who's flicking her eyes between the two methods of payment, not sure whose she should take.

  "No. That's not how I do dates. I pay." I push her hand away again and hold out my money.

  Before the girl can take it, Charlie demands, "Take my money, Caitlyn, or I swear I'll call your boss and have you written up for not helping."

  "Evil!" I chuckle and yank her credit card out of Caitlyn's nervous clutch then hand over my cash. "Thanks, Caitlyn." I smirk then hand Charlie back her card. The grin of success on Charlie's face confuses me. Maybe that was her plan all along. I'm getting too many vibes off this girl. One minute she's sweet and cute as hell. The next she's kind of bitchy but still sexy as sin. "Where do you want to sit?" I ask and she tugs Gus's leash, making him lead the way. I chuckle when he takes us directly to a table by the door then he nudges a chair out for her. "He's so awesome." I pet behind his ear. "So how often do you come here with him?" I ask as we wait for our food.

  "Almost every weekend after Gus and I have our walk we stop in. Sometimes I stop by for dinner. It's close to home so it's easy to get to and from." She takes Gus's leash and ties it to the side of her chair gently before laying her purse thing on the table and smiling.

  "How close are you?"

  "Just a block down that way. That tall brick building behind the bright blue one is mine." She nods outside. "Like I said, it's close."

  "That's cool. I live in Boring. It's about forty minutes from here. Definitely not as busy as inside the city." I smile over at her and notice she's staring down at her dog.

  "That's good to know. So you'd say you're more a small town lover than big city guy?"

  "Uh…" I chuckle, not sure how to answer that. "Yeah, I guess. Just in the past few years have I really grown to appreciate the small town over a big city."

  "I completely understand that. I thought this was big city until I went to school in New York. This is nothing compared to that… I'll take my small-ish town life over that any day."

  "You've been to New York?" I smirk. "That's my home state. So did you grow up here then go to college there and come back?"

  "I was born here. Grew up here…and yeah, I guess you could say I came back after college." Her chuckle tells me there's a story, but she goes on, "I'm an only child. My parents needed me home. What about you? Siblings?"

  I pause a minute. Not wanting to screw up who I am now. There are certain things I can tell her that won't invite her into my seedy past, but I need to remember when to shut my mouth. "I have an older brother. Haven't seen him in ten years though. He lives in Paris." I nod and notice she's more focused on the table. It's hard to hold her attention. She didn't seem this distracted with the guy she was at lunch with on Friday.

  "I've always wanted to see Paris. The farthest I've ever been is New York." She sighs and smiles. "So have you been there? To Paris?" Her intrigue perks up, but she still won't look at me.

  "Once. I was…nineteen, I think. It was the last time I saw my brother."

  "Jealous. Did you see the Eiffel Tower?" Her eyes flick toward the counter and part of me thinks she's just trying to make small talk, but the interest in her voice seems so genuine.

  "Yeah, I went up in it."

  "I heard it sparkles at night. Did you see that? What'd it look like?" She's smiling wide now but still looking toward the counter.

  "What'd it look like?" I chuckle. "There was a lot of people. It was winter time so it was cold."

  "No, no, no." She laughs. "What'd it look like? The tower. Details and all. I want to know everything."

  "Okay." I smirk and lean back. She's still focused elsewhere and I can't have a conversation like this. "Charlie," I call her name.

  "What?"

  "Look at me." I lean forward and she turns her head. I smile looking into her pretty eyes.

  "Sorry."

  "You have beautiful eyes," I tell her as they search my face.

  She chuckles and shakes her head before looking down. "No."

  "You do." I wait, but she doesn't look at me again so I move on. "Okay, so the tower… Um, it was big. A lot bigger than I expected." I pause and think back to my one and only time in Paris, suddenly having more of an appreciation for it now that I'm an adult. "It did sparkle." I smirk over at her and she's wearing a smile, but she's focused on the napkin box between us while her fingers fiddle with it. "It was actually really pretty. It kind of reminded me of Christmas morning at my aunt's. There was one year me and my brother got to spend it with my aunt." I chuckle, remembering the best day of my life. "We didn't have big Christmases normally, but that year, my aunt went all out. There were Christmas lights inside and out of her house. A huge tree. Over eight feet tall, drenched in lights that twinkled. And then in the morning, when we thought Santa came, there were close to a hundred presents under that tree. It was nothing we'd ever seen before, and they were all for me and my brother. We were used to maybe four gifts a piece, so we were confused." I laugh and rub my hand over the back of my buzzed hair. "I know it seems like I got off subject, but that was what it was like seeing the Eiffel Tower. It was something so amazing you'll never forget it, but you also know you probably won't ever see it again. It's a sight that could move you, and makes you wonder why it's there. Like we were two bad little kids, man." I laugh. "We just couldn't understand why Santa left all those presents for us. Much like the tower. Sometimes I think people don't deserve
something so beautiful." When I look up at her again, her lips are parted and she looks enamored.

  That look makes me want to get closer to her and I reach across the table to try and take her hand. I'm dying to have contact with her. That's how I like to learn people that I actually want to get to know. Body language. The way their touch feels. How they react to my touch. Before I can take her fingers that have stopped fidgeting with the napkins, a crash coming from the kitchen makes her jump and direct her full attention that way, making me lose my chance.

  "Scared me," she says breathily with her hand to her chest.

  "That's coming out of someone's paycheck," I joke and she chuckles.

  "Uh, anyway. How'd you start selling at the farmers market?"

  "I started at the farm first then pushed Bev to open a stand on the weekends."

  "Bev owns the farm, I take it?"

  "Bev's Blooming Orchard. Her orchard's award winning but she doesn't only harvest cherries. All her fruits and vegetables are the best I've ever had. I may be biased but you had one of her cherries. You eat the pie yet?"

  "No." She chuckles. "Not yet. The cherries are the best I've ever had. She's doing something right."

  "She's one of the most caring, amazing people I've met. She's not in it for the money, she just likes to see people satisfied with something that came from her crop. She whispers to those trees." When she laughs, I grin. "I'm serious. She sweet-talks 'em. She babies the hell out of that farm and deserves a lot more than she's ever asked for. You'll never meet a more genuine person than Bev. I couldn't ask for better family." I smile.

  "You have passion, Travis." She smiles and I lose her attention back to the counter.

  "I've never been told that before," I admit the sad truth. Bev's the first person to compliment me in my life. It's not a woe is me situation. I just didn't have much for people to compliment before I came here.

  "You do. It's nice. So you said you have a cat, but are you an animal lover in general? What about your hobbies…other than cherries of course." The sound of her chuckle is starting to rank up there with my other favorite sounds. Like the start of one of the ATVs. The lawn mower. The breeze rustling through the cherry trees. Not all my favorite sounds are music to people's ears, but Charlie's laugh probably infatuates most people.