by Kitty Parker
Daisy shakes her head. "I haven't been baking… I don't have that much money."
"It'll be my treat," he's quick to offer.
She just blinks at him and he shrugs.
"Figure I owe you with the way you're always feedin' me," he explains.
She shakes her head again though. "No. I take care of my son and no one else."
Ever since that strip turned pink back in high school, she accepts help in people watching Matty for her when she's working – especially from her parents – but she will not accept money. Matty is her son and she's his mama and it's her job to be able to take care of him.
"A'right," he says and then visibly swallows as he pauses a moment. "So, who takes care of you then?" He asks her and all she can do again is just blink at him.
…
She pins the hair on the right side of her hair back but she makes sure the hair on the left side of her face hangs down and sweeps across her cheek, acting like a fallen curtain over her scar. Jack looks at her for a long moment and she waits for him to say something about it but he stays quiet.
They get to Aldi and Jack hands Matty a quarter for the shopping cart and the boy is eager to push it all by himself without neither Daisy or Jack helping him.
She has thirty dollars in her purse and that's going to be more than enough to get her and Matty some food – at least for this week – and she knows she has to get back to baking. She has a scar on her cheek, yes, but she can still bake and baking is how she keeps the roof over hers and her son's head. She is not going to move back to the farm with her parents. She's an adult with a child and she needs to be able to take care of the both of them.
She has a scar now, yes, but that scar isn't going to keep her from being a damn good mom. She won't let it.
She makes sure to get a gallon of milk as well as a half-gallon of chocolate as a treat to Matty for not letting having milk in their apartment in the first place and when they're at the baking section, she grabs some flour, sugar, baking cocoa and powdered sugar and from the dairy cases, she grabs a couple of boxes of butter and blocks of cream cheese and from the corner of her eye, she can see Jack's lips twitch as if he wants to smile.
…
She always wears her hair pinned up when she bakes and when she comes out of the bathroom, her hair braided and pinned up around her head, Matty is sitting at the counter, finishing his bowl of cereal and when he sees her, he grins widely. Without a word, she smiles and kisses him on the head and then goes to get her apron, slipping it on over her head and tying it back behind her waist.
"Let's see if there's anything in the queue," she says as she leans over and wakes up the laptop sitting on the counter next to him. The day before, she had made an announcement on her ordering website that she's open for business and back to baking and her stomach's in a knot now, wondering if anyone really cares about her silly little cupcakes anymore.
She had been doing so well. She had been out there in their small town, making a name for herself. But then the accident and her scar happened. She just hopes what she's been working so hard for isn't ruined now.
Matty crosses his fingers on both hands and she smiles at him before she opens the mailbox where the ordering forms go once people fill them out.
"Three, mama!" Matty exclaims and Daisy laughs, feeling her insides soar at the sight.
The first one has a subject of Welcome Back! and Daisy opens it up to read the order and message sent along with it. Sheriff Ames is turning forty and Tana wants to order some cupcakes for the party. Forty cupcakes and the man is a chocolate addict so anything Daisy feels like baking, it's her decision. As long as it's chocolate.
Daisy takes a deep breath and looks to Matty. "Want to help me with this one?" She asks.
"Oh, yeah," he nods and she laughs.
…
Daisy has promised them that she won't say a word and she purses her lips together as both Rosita and Maybelle sit in front of her, brushing makeup across her cheek before changing their minds and wiping it away to start again.
"Which shade is that?" Maybelle asks and Rosita takes another bottle of foundation.
"New Ivory. It's the palest shade," Rosita says, giving the bottle a couple of shakes.
"I'm not that pale," Daisy can't help but frown.
"Yes, you are," both Maybelle and Rosita say at the same time.
Daisy frowns at them but they just smile and Rosita begins to gently apply the makeup to her cheeks, focusing on the scar. She pauses for a moment to look over her work and then continues applying the foundation and then she picks up the powder and the brush. Maybelle smiles at how it seems to be looking and she gets up, going to Daisy's closet.
"It's just a barbecue," Daisy tells her when she sees Maybelle looking through her dresses.
"There's nothing wrong with looking adorable for a barbecue," Maybelle quips and Rosita laughs as Daisy rolls her eyes.
She doesn't argue though. She knows why they're making such a big deal about this and wanting her to look her best today. Not only has she baked the cupcakes for Sheriff Ames' birthday party that afternoon but Tana has invited her and Matty to attend.
"And don't you dare bring a gift!" Tana told her when Daisy had agreed over the phone.
It's the first place she's gone to since the accident besides the grocery store. She hasn't even gone to church on Sundays and though Johnathan and Annette do not agree with the decision, they don't pick a fight with her and take just Matty with them.
This is the first place she'll be going with so many people there and though over the past few weeks, she has told herself over and over again that it's just a scar and a scar doesn't define her and she almost believes that completely now, she's still nervous about this afternoon; about so many people being there who will be able to see her.
"You're wearing your hair up," Rosita decides as she still continues working on her makeup.
Daisy doesn't argue.
"You look so adorable when you braid it and pin it back. Like a Swedish milkmaid," Rosita continues and Daisy can't help but laugh at that and Maybelle and Rosita both smile as if they have never heard a sound better than her laughing.
…
She wears a yellow dress with white polka dots on it and her hair is braided and worn up and Matty wears jeans and a yellow polo shirt. They walk to the Ames' house from their apartment – it being not too far away and Daisy hasn't been too eager to drive anywhere lately – and carefully, she carries the two cupcake tray containers around to the backyard where Tana has instructed her to go.
"Mama, look!" Matty exclaims excitedly at the playground set the Ames have in their backyard, currently being overrun by all of the children at the party that afternoon.
"I see," Daisy smiles. "Help me first and then you can run off and play."
Matty nods and dutifully stays by her side as Daisy spots Tana and heads her way.
"Daisy, you're here!" Tana smiles and she looks so happy to see her – genuinely happy – it almost takes Daisy aback for a moment. She wonders if her choosing to be a hermit in her apartment for the past few weeks have been that obvious to everyone. "You look beautiful!"
Daisy's cheeks flush. "Thank you, Tana. And I've brought the cupcakes."
"Thank God. Casey and Adam both have been asking me about them," she says and with a hand fluttering over Daisy's back, she guides her over to a table that has been kept clear. "I hope I ordered enough. I probably didn't but I wanted everything to be forty today."
Daisy sets the cases down and then unclasps the lids, handing them to Matty to hold.
"God, your cupcakes always look like they belong on television," Tana says.
Daisy feels her cheeks blush and she smiles proudly. "Dark chocolate with a cherry filling, chocolate buttercream frosting and topped with a fresh cherry," she explains as she takes each cupcake and carefully begins arranging them in a '4' and '0'.
Before she can even finish with one number though, Tana puts her arms ar
ound her and hugs her tightly.
…
She lost track of Matty long ago – occasionally getting a glimpse of him on the slide or on one of the swings of the playground set, shouting and running around with the other kids.
Adam is at the barbecue, deeming himself in charge of all of the meats at the part that day, and he makes sure Daisy gets the cheeseburger on the grill that he deems to be the best. He slips it on the bun on her plate and gives her a grin and a wink and she smiles a little shyly at him in return. Tana's already told her more than once that Adam is a bit of a flirt and with her baking the way she does, she should expect Adam to flirt with her.
It's warm that afternoon and the coolers of drinks are kept inside, in the kitchen, where the ice has a chance to not melt immediately. As Daisy heads for the back door, she sees that all but two cupcakes are already gone from the table and she smiles a little to herself.
Inside the kitchen, Tana is holding the Ames' eleven-month-old daughter, Jessi, on her hip as the baby sucks on her pacifier and rests her head sleepily on her mom's shoulder as Tana pulls more cheese and cut veggies from the refrigerator.
"Do you need any help?" Daisy asks.
"Oh, no," Tana shakes her head. "You eat. Do you need anything?"
"I just came for something to drink. And I need to get Matty and get some food in him."
Tana smiles. "That boy is adorable. He looks just like you."
Daisy nods and smiles. Everyone always points that out to her and it's not like she'll ever admit that she's glad that he looks like her and not that much like Jimmy but deep down, she knows that she is. It wouldn't hurt to look at a mini-Jimmy every day but with Matty looking more like her, it definitely makes things a little easier on her; as if being a single young mom isn't hard enough without having to see the face of her high-school sweetheart.
"I need to give this to you," Tana says and goes to the desk kept in the corner of the kitchen. She rifles for something in a stack of papers and then turns, holding out a check for Daisy.
"Tana-" Daisy immediately begins to protest once she sees the amount written to her.
"No arguments," Tana is quick to cut her off with a shake of her head.
Daisy swallows a dry lump in her throat and looks down to the check once more. "Is this because you feel sorry for me?" She asks and can't help but wonder.
She hasn't actually thought of her scar for the past hour but that doesn't mean it's not there and even with the makeup Rosita has perfectly applied, it's still there to see.
"No," Tana says and looks at her straight in the eyes so Daisy won't be able to doubt her words. "It's because you make the best cupcakes I've ever tasted."
Daisy just feels the dry lump in her throat grow larger and dryer and she can't swallow it down no matter how hard she tries.
…
She and Matty are just leaving the party, walking down the sidewalk, when she hears the rumble of an engine and a pickup truck pulls to the curb just as she and Matty pass. She glances towards the driver and can't help but be surprised when she sees that it's Jack.
"Hey," Jack comes around the front of the truck and steps onto the sidewalk. He flicks the cigarette he's smoking into the street.
"Hi, Jack," Matty grins up at him.
"What are you doing here?" Daisy can't help but ask.
She assumes he's here for Sheriff Ames' birthday party but she hadn't even known that they are friends. Not that she knows everything about Jack and his life. She actually knows very little about him and she knows that it will probably always be that way – even though he seems to be trying harder to actually be her friend and no longer practices his disappearing act on her.
In all honesty, she's the one who's been keeping away from him lately.
"Casey and me are friends. Just got out of the garage and came over," he explains. "Any cupcakes left?" He asks, glancing to the empty trays she's carrying with her.
She shakes her head. "They went fast."
"Not surprisin'," he says. He pauses, looking at her.
There was a time not so long ago when her stomach would flap uncontrollably with butterflies whenever Jack looked at her but now, she almost squirms as if he is scrutinizing her. She doesn't want anyone really looking at her anymore. She wonders if it will always be that way for her now.
She hates just how a single second has changed everything for her. If Spencer had waited just one second more at that stop sign. If that woman had actually stopped at hers.
She knows it's useless dwelling and thinking of things that never happened; torturing herself with what ifs.
"You want a ride back?" He then asks.
Daisy immediately shakes her head. "No, it's a nice evening. We're just going to walk. And it's silly to drive us home when you just got here."
He shrugs. "Don' mind. This thing will go for hours."
He takes his keys from his pocket and goes to the truck, unlocking it and opening the passenger door, looking at her and Matty, waiting for them.
She puts a gentle hand on Matty's back and guides him towards the truck. Matty eagerly climbs up onto the seat and then she starts to climb up, too, feeling Jack's fingers ghost against her elbow as if he's helping her.
There are the butterflies.
Once she settles herself in the seat, he closes the door behind her and then walks around the front of the truck, getting in behind the wheel.
"Here, kid," Jack says and twists towards him, helping Matty get the seat belt across his middle. "Got it?" He asks.
"Yep," Matty grins up at him and Jack smiles a little, too.
Daisy clicks on her own seat belt but she notices that Jack drives without one. She doesn't comment on it though. It's none of her business. It's stupid but definitely none of her business. She notices that he usually smokes when he's driving – the few times she's seen him pulling into the apartment parking lot after work, there's always a cigarette dangling from his bottom lip. But he doesn't light one now and she knows he won't either with both her and Matty in the truck's cab with him.
"What is this?" Matty asks as he listens to the song playing over the radio.
"'s Lynyrd Skynyrd," Jack answers and then frowns at them both. "You never hear Lynyrd Skynyrd before?" He asks and when Matty shakes his head, he looks to Daisy. "What the hell are you teachin' this kid?"
Daisy laughs softly and shakes her head, not looking at him but rather looking out the front windshield. "I listen to all sorts of music. Just not a lot of Southern Rock," she tells him.
"Then you ain't listenin' to the right sort of music," Jack grumbles and she can't help but laugh again.
…
When Jack comes over for dinner a few nights later, she's not entirely surprised to see him holding a CD case and he hands it to Matty.
"Start with Simple Man," he informs the boy as Matty holds the Lynyrd Skynyrd CD and looks at it with excitement in his eyes.
…
It's not as if she doesn't like spending time with Jack. That's the problem. She does. She really does. But it hurts her so much at the same time because he's been spending more time with her but she knows it's only because he feels sorry for her.
She has a scar on her cheek now that some days, she lets absolutely cripple her and she knows that he looks at her and feels sorry for her and if she didn't have this scar, there's no way he would be around so much. That's not what Jack does. Jack's there and then he's gone and then he's back again and he confuses her and gives her whiplash but he doesn't stay.
Except he's staying now and now that he is, she wishes he wouldn't because she still has such a stupid crush on him and spending all of this time with him lately, it's going to absolutely devastate her when he disappears again.
So, she makes a decision.
She doesn't invite him to dinner as much. She usually puts a post-it on his door during the day to tell him that she's cooking dinner and he's invited but she doesn't do that anymore. She goes days without putting a post-it o
n his door and she knows he won't knock on her door and invite himself over but still, around five when he gets home from work, she stands tense in the kitchen, waiting for a knock on her door that won't come.
It's hard with Matty. She knows her son absolutely adores Jack and is more excited to see that man than he's ever been when seeing his own father.
But she needs to give her son a lot of credit because for a six-year-old, he's incredibly intuitive. He seems to always know whenever she's sad – whether it be over her scar or something entirely different, something he can never understand – and when she is, he wraps his arms tight around her neck and hugs her and tells her that he loves her and sometimes, that's all she needs to pull herself out of her funk. And when Jack doesn't come over for dinner, he doesn't ask her about it over and over again, pestering her as to why he isn't there that night. Matty just eats his dinner and doesn't ask her about Jack.
However, every time he sees Jack, he can't keep the happy smile from engulfing his face.
And Daisy doesn't know why she gets sad all over again when she keeps her distance from Jack and he does absolutely nothing to try and keep himself close. But she did the same thing. When he disappeared, she took the hint and left him alone, it obvious that he didn't want to be around her at the time. Maybe that's all he's doing. He's just taking the hint.
…
"You are such an asshole, Jack Belton!" The exclamation comes in the middle of the night, echoing from across the hall.
Daisy's not asleep. Instead, she's sitting up in bed, reading Anne of Green Gables for the fiftieth time and she pauses to listen to the sudden noise. It sounds like Carolina but like everything that has to do with Jack, it's none of her business – even if whatever is involving him is loud enough for the entire apartment building to hear. Daisy wonders why Dawn only complains about the noise she makes as opposed to the other tenants.