Summer at the Kindness Cafe

by Victoria Walters

  ‘You’ll get used to it. You could do with slowing down a bit,’ Louise said, sipping her coffee. She had told Abbie off many times for how wrapped up in her job she had been. It had left little time for family and Louise had really missed her sister.

  ‘Joy told me that I now have to do my own act of kindness,’ Abbie said in a low voice so the others didn’t hear. Her expression made Louise laugh as she took a sip of her latte.

  ‘Is the idea of kindness really that shocking?’

  Abbie shook her head. ‘I can be kind if I want to be.’

  ‘When did you last do anything kind?’ Louise asked, with a teasing smile. ‘To a stranger, anyway. I bet never in London. But you’re in Littlewood now; we do things differently here.’

  ‘It’s all right for you, you’re paid to be kind,’ she replied with a shake of her head. ‘I honestly don’t know how you do it every day.’

  ‘Maybe it’s just what city life does to you; there isn’t really such a community feeling there as we have here, is there?’

  ‘I guess. I can’t think of an example of a stranger ever helping me out there, but everyone just looks out for themselves nowadays, don’t you think?’ Abbie said.

  ‘I think everyone could do with being a bit kinder,’ Louise replied.

  ‘Although if you ask me, you’re too kind to others,’ Abbie told her. Louise knew her sister thought she often let people walk all over her. ‘If anything, you need to be kinder to yourself.’

  Louise shook her head. ‘That’s not what the Kindness Board is about.’ She thought about what had happened a couple of years ago and how she had dealt with her broken heart by throwing herself into her work and new life in Littlewood. She supposed she had neglected herself as a result.

  ‘Actually, Abbie has a point,’ Joy chipped in as she came over to clear their table. ‘We should all be kind to ourselves, my dear. The world would be a better place if we were all kinder, I really believe that. Everyone is so wrapped up in themselves nowadays. That’s why we love living in Littlewood – there is still a tight-knit community here. It’s getting harder to find, for sure.’ She moved to Eszter’s table to take away their ketchup. She looked between the tables, the women all listening to her now. ‘Being kind is good for you. To others and yourself.’

  Eszter nodded. ‘I am definitely going to need to try to be kind,’ she said. ‘I’m here to see someone who I really don’t think will be at all pleased to see me.’

  ‘Where are we going to stay?’ Zoe asked her mother loudly, before Joy could respond to Eszter. Zoe’s accent was less pronounced than her mother’s and she cheerfully drank her milkshake, oblivious to the look of panic on Eszter’s face.

  ‘I wish I knew,’ Eszter muttered. ‘Is there a hotel nearby?’ she asked Joy, who was cleaning the next table to theirs. ‘I’d have to find work if we end up staying in one for a while though, I suppose. I don’t know how long we’ll need to be here.’

  ‘Well, the only hotel in town is Huntley Manor, but it’s quite pricey,’ Joy admitted, gesturing out of the window at the stately home behind the café.

  ‘I might be able to help with somewhere to stay,’ Louise piped up. ‘My landlord owns two cottages and the one opposite mine has been empty for a few weeks, he’s been trying to find someone to take it for the summer so I reckon he’d be open to negotiating on price if you wanted it. If you were thinking of staying the whole summer?’

  ‘I’m not sure, we have open return flights, so I suppose we might stay that long,’ Eszter replied, uncertainly. ‘The cottage sounds promising. Could you tell me how to find your landlord?’

  ‘I’ll do better than that. I’m driving us home once we’ve finished this so you can come with us; he lives just up the road from my cottage.’

  ‘Oh, thank you.’

  ‘And I can help with your other predicament,’ Joy said to Eszter. ‘We always get so busy over the summer and the girl that used to help us has gone travelling this year so we were just saying earlier how we really needed to find someone. Have you ever worked in a café before?’

  ‘I worked in one in Budapest for two years before I went into retail. Do you really need someone?’ Eszter’s blue eyes lit up.

  Joy smiled. ‘We really do. How about doing a week’s trial and we can see how we go?’

  ‘That would be so kind of you. Although . . .’ Eszter paused and glanced at her daughter. ‘I don’t know what I’d do about Zoe.’

  Joy waved her hand. ‘She would be no problem, I’m sure, if she came with you. If that would suit you both?’ She looked at Zoe.

  Her daughter nodded. ‘Will I get free cakes?’

  Joy laughed. ‘I think I can stretch to one or two.’

  ‘Thank you so much, Joy,’ Eszter said. ‘Really, I don’t know how to thank you, all of you.’

  ‘Wait to thank me until you see if you like it first. Why don’t you start on Monday? That’ll give you the weekend to settle into the town.’

  ‘That would be perfect.’

  The women finished up their drinks and left together, grateful that the rain had eased off and they could make it to the car without getting drenched. They just managed to squeeze themselves and all their cases in and Louise drove them through the town to her cottage.

  It was comforting having the others with her. Louise knew that as soon as she was alone she’d think about Peter and his news again and she wanted to put that off for as long as she could.

  ***

  ‘My husband never said his home town was so pretty,’ Eszter said from the back of Louise’s car, gazing out at the countryside as they passed by. Littlewood was perched on top of the hill, Huntley Manor making up most of the skyline, and the surrounding hills provided stunning views from most vantage points.

  Eszter couldn’t believe she was actually in England after hearing so much about it. She wished she had asked Nick more about it, never dreaming that when she finally came here, it would be without him. She thought of the letter in her bag that he wrote to her before he died, begging her to come here, including two plane tickets for her and Zoe, and asking them to fulfil his dying wish. She had done what he asked and jumped on that plane and now she had no idea what to do next.

  Eszter was pleased that her welcome so far had been friendly. She had been nervous about the trip, as Nick had always been against bringing them to the UK; he wanted their life to be in Budapest, but getting sick had softened him. He had seemed to think more and more about the past and his home town. In the end it was his family that had made him write the letter. She just hoped she could do what he wanted her to do. She was so used to having him beside her, supporting her, that it felt as if she was missing another limb as she undertook this journey alone. She glanced at Zoe who at seven was growing up faster than she ever thought was possible, and now she would have to do all the parenting by herself. She squeezed her daughter’s hand and sent a silent wish to Nick to look after them both here.

  ‘Harry and Joy are really something,’ Abbie said, breaking the thoughtful silence in the car. ‘They seem to love helping people.’

  ‘Honestly, everyone has been really nice since I came here,’ Louise replied. ‘But they definitely are the heart and soul of the place. Everyone knows them. What did you think about their kindness idea?’ she asked Eszter as they pulled into the parking space outside the pretty little cottage and Louise turned off the engine.

  ‘It’s strange, you know,’ Eszter said. ‘My husband wrote me this letter asking me to come here. Before he died. He wants me to find his mother. “Be kind to her,” he told me. “Be kind to each other.” I just hope I can be.’

  ‘I’m so sorry about your husband,’ Louise said.

  ‘Thank you. It’s been a difficult time but coming here has made us think about something else, hasn’t it, Zoe?’

  ‘We got to go on a plane,’ her daughter told them proudly, which got a smile from her audience.

  ‘I hope you can find his mother. Harry and Joy will k
now her, I bet.’

  ‘I’ll ask them, thank you.’

  They climbed out of the car, with Louise letting Abbie into her cottage before taking Eszter and Zoe to see her landlord a few doors away. ‘Make yourself at home,’ Louise called to her sister as she pulled her bags out of the boot. ‘Right, let’s find you a place to stay,’ she said to Eszter, who followed her hoping that she had made the right decision in coming to Littlewood. She supposed that she would find out soon enough.

  Chapter Three

  Abbie walked through the door into Louise’s home. It was as cosy as you’d expect a cottage to be, with low ceilings, wooden beams and her sister’s pretty belongings matching their surroundings. It was a home.

  Abbie thought of the flat she had shared with Kate with its rented furniture, none of it really hers, and envied her sister for creating this for herself.

  Abbie took her bags up to the spare bedroom that would be hers for the time being. She had known her redundancy money wouldn’t last long in London, so after losing her job she had reluctantly swallowed her pride and asked Louise if she could stay while she looked for a new job. Louise had been excited by the idea straight away, Abbie less so. She hated leaving London, but looking around the cottage, she had to admit this wasn’t really a hardship. There was three times as much space as she had in her city flat and she wouldn’t even be paying any rent as Louise had refused to accept anything. Abbie would definitely have to treat her to a few nice things to make up for it.

  It would be fun living with her sister again, Abbie thought as she unpacked her things. They hadn’t lived together since she had left home for uni ten years ago, and they hadn’t spent a lot of time in each other’s company since then. After uni, work had become Abbie’s focus and it had never seemed the right time to leave London for a visit to Littlewood. Even at Christmas, she had chosen to stay with her ex, Jack, and had ended up regretting missing out on a family celebration.

  If she really thought about it, she might even enjoy living here, if she could shake off this feeling of being an utter failure at being both out of a job and, essentially, homeless.

  ***

  When Louise returned from helping Eszter, Abbie had finished unpacking and was sitting in the living room, looking at jobs on her laptop.

  ‘He was so excited they wanted the cottage, Eszter was already hammering down the price for it when I left. She’s strong-willed, that one. So, what do you think of my place?’ Louise asked her.

  ‘It’s really homely.’ Abbie closed her laptop as her sister sat down in the opposite armchair.

  Louise yawned. ‘Sorry. I’ll have to head to bed soon. I’m knackered.’

  ‘That’s okay. I can do some exploring. I’ll get us some dinner later, if you’re up?’

  ‘Can you cook?’

  Abbie grinned. ‘No, but I can order us something. Um, do you even have takeaways here?’

  ‘We’re not completely in the back of beyond! We might not be able to get sushi delivered at four in the morning or something but, yes, we have pizza and curry, and a really nice Chinese on the high street.’

  ‘Thank God for that then. I need my spring rolls.’

  Louise agreed before saying, ‘I hope Eszter stays. I can’t believe she lost her husband. She’s not much older than us, I would think.’

  ‘I know, it’s crazy. I can’t imagine being married, let alone having a daughter and then losing your husband and coming to another country on your own like that.’

  ‘When I left, she promised she was going to repay my kindness. I think Harry and Joy got to her.’

  ‘That means I’ll have to do the same. And you. You’re meant to be kinder to yourself, don’t forget.’

  Louise got up, ready to head to bed. She shook her head. ‘If I see you do a random act of kindness for someone, then I promise I’ll do something kind for myself. Deal?’

  ‘Are we actually making a kindness pact?’ Abbie grinned as she shook her sister’s offered hand. ‘Okay then, deal. I shall walk the streets of Littlewood looking out for someone in need.’

  Louise laughed. ‘You do that. I’m going to bed. Call me for dinner, okay? We can watch a film or something?’

  ‘Perfect.’ Abbie watched her sister go upstairs, regretting that she’d never come to see her here before. Louise had fled Cornwall two years ago and Abbie was ashamed she hadn’t really been around to support her through it all; she’d been too focused on working her way up the ladder and falling for Jack. Both things that turned out to be a complete waste of her time. She was determined that the next thing she decided to do would be worth her while. Oh God, she realised. And now it had to be kind too.

  ***

  Louise listened as the cottage door shut before pulling on her pjs and closing the curtains to try to block out the blazing July afternoon. She hadn’t had the energy to tell Abbie just yet, and she needed some time to process it all. Now she was alone, she looked at her phone again. Another message had appeared.

  OMG I just saw the news Are you okay, hon?

  Louise sighed. She hadn’t been in touch with this girl for ages. Everyone was really crawling out of the woodwork after the news. She supposed it was no big shock; after all, she’d been the talk of the town for months. Which is why she had run as soon as she could.

  With a groan, Louise stuffed her phone into the bedside drawer and lay down on top of the covers. It was too warm up there to get under the sheets. She wasn’t sure if she’d be able to sleep anyway when all she could think about was Peter’s news.

  Two years ago, her childhood sweetheart had broken off their engagement just two weeks before they were due to get married. Louise had applied for the first nursing job she could find that was far away from her home town in Cornwall, and that’s how she had ended up in Littlewood.

  She’d been with Peter since they were fifteen and couldn’t have even conceived of a future without him by her side. She had been heartbroken and humiliated when he told her over the phone that it was over. He said she had pushed him into the wedding, when in reality it had been him who had surprised her with a proposal and a desire to get married that summer. But then suddenly, out of nowhere, he no longer wanted a future with her.

  Unable to bear all the pitying looks she received every time she stepped out of her front door and didn’t look back.

  No one in Littlewood knew she was a jilted bride – expect for Abbie now – and that was just fine with Louise. She had thrown herself into her new job and made friends and created a cosy home for herself. And she had resolutely stuck to her vow not to let another man get close to her. She couldn’t take that kind of pain again.

  She closed her eyes, willing sleep to block out her thoughts of the past. It was impossible, though. Ever since she had seen his news the night before, the words had been playing over and over in her mind on a loop like a slide show. They weren’t Facebook friends any more but they had so many mutual friends that her notifications had been ablaze with the news: Peter had got engaged to a girl he’d only been seeing for a few months.

  Louise’s heart threatened to break all over again, but she doubted she had enough of one left for it to do that. How is it that he had fallen in love so quickly and was now suddenly ready to commit the rest of his life to someone else? But the main question, the one she wished she could stop herself asking silently over and over again, the one that made her hate herself for being so pathetic, was – why wasn’t it her?

  Chapter Four

  Eszter couldn’t help but feel satisfied with a job well done. She glanced around the pretty cottage she had just secured for the summer. She had a job starting on Monday. Zoe was unpacking in her new room and had been excited by the sloping roof, wooden beams and pretty garden, as far removed from their city apartment back in Budapest as they could get. She had managed to do what had felt impossible when she had looked at the plane tickets that Nick had bought for them. Now all that was left was to find Mrs Harris and do what her husband had begged he
r to do.

  That could wait until the new week though. She would find out all she could about Mrs Harris first. Nick had always been so cagey, so she really had no idea what she was about to face. Eszter was prepared for the worst, though – she had to be. Nick hadn’t seen his parents for years. He had never really explained why, but she knew it couldn’t be good.

  She sat in her new kitchen at the small pine table and phoned her own mother back in Hungary. Her parents lived out in the countryside but Eszter and Nick had spent many holidays with them; they had both got on well with Nick, welcoming him into their family as soon as she had brought him to meet them. They had been as devastated as she was when he was diagnosed with cancer.

  Her mother hadn’t wanted her to come to England so soon after his death. She wanted them to stay with her, but Eszter knew that the longer she put it off, the less likely she was to do it, and besides, the tickets were there ready and waiting to be used. And it meant she could shove her grief aside even for a brief time and focus on something else instead. Their apartment had become claustrophobic with memories of their life together. Without Nick, it just didn’t feel like home any more. Her mother had asked them to move in after Nick died but her parents lived miles from anywhere, which would make school and work difficult, if not impossible, to organise.

  ‘You got there okay, then?’ her mother asked when they greeted each other in their native Hungarian. Eszter’s parents could speak some English but were nowhere near as fluent as she and Zoe were after being with Nick for so long, as well as learning in school and living in cosmopolitan Budapest.

  ‘It was actually an easy journey.’

  Eszter told her mum all about arriving in Littlewood and how she had already found a cottage and a job. ‘I thought I’d have to survive in a hotel for a while and live off our savings, so we’ve been really lucky.’

  Back in Budapest, Nick had worked as an English teacher and Eszter had worked in a clothes shop. Rent on their city place had been high, so they had never had lots of money when Nick was alive, and neither of them had even thought about getting life insurance at their age, so Eszter needed to work as much as she could even if they were just in Littlewood for a few weeks. She had sublet her apartment for the summer to a friend of a friend.