Afternoon Escape
Timed writing challenge for worldofscribble. Write for five minutes, including the words garden and dismiss.
"Your Mom built all of this?" Sean asked, staring at the terraced flowerbeds in my back yard in amazement.
"Well," I shrugged, "she had all us kids as built-in slave labor over the years, but yeah, the garden back here was always her hobby."
He turned in a half circle, the afternoon sun at first illuminating his profile, and then throwing out his shadow in stark relief.
"It's not as simple as you're thinking you know," I told him.
"And what," he said, turning back to face me, "am I thinking?"
I sighed. "You're thinking that she's convinced, that she accepts us as a couple now."
His infectious smile, the curve of his lips I desperately wanted to touch with my own, slipped away, and I was sorry to have caused its loss.
"You don't think she was? When she said we should spend some time together …"
"It was a dismissal," I mumbled, hands clenched into fists at my sides, "she'll just wait until she can catch me alone, and then …"
Unexpectedly, his smile returned, and before I could ask why, he was pulling me towards the yard's side gate.
"What?" I stammered, stumbling along beside him.
"Simple solution then, my man," he said, shoving me through the gate he had pulled open, "we'll just make sure she can't get to you."
"Your Mom built all of this?" Sean asked, staring at the terraced flowerbeds in my back yard in amazement.
"Well," I shrugged, "she had all us kids as built-in slave labor over the years, but yeah, the garden back here was always her hobby."
He turned in a half circle, the afternoon sun at first illuminating his profile, and then throwing out his shadow in stark relief.
"It's not as simple as you're thinking you know," I told him.
"And what," he said, turning back to face me, "am I thinking?"
I sighed. "You're thinking that she's convinced, that she accepts us as a couple now."
His infectious smile, the curve of his lips I desperately wanted to touch with my own, slipped away, and I was sorry to have caused its loss.
"You don't think she was? When she said we should spend some time together …"
"It was a dismissal," I mumbled, hands clenched into fists at my sides, "she'll just wait until she can catch me alone, and then …"
Unexpectedly, his smile returned, and before I could ask why, he was pulling me towards the yard's side gate.
"What?" I stammered, stumbling along beside him.
"Simple solution then, my man," he said, shoving me through the gate he had pulled open, "we'll just make sure she can't get to you."