20
AstheyapproachedtheOutdoor Amphitheater, it could have been just another hill rising out of the Refuge, but as they drew closer it sculpted itself into a shell-like structure with semi-circular rows radiating upward from the stage.
By the time they entered, many of the tiered seats were taken.People stood on the steps, chatting, or wandered around with snacks in hand, looking for the best view of the stage below.Between the voices and the warming-up instruments and the rattle of the nearby trees in the evening wind, it was louder than Corinthia remembered.
But Rosemary had slipped her arm through Corinthia’s, and because of this, Corinthia would have been fully content to stay there until the sun rose.
Then Rosemary waved happily at someone down in the seats.
“Corinthia!”Stevie called across the din.“We’re down here!”
Corinthia waved back, pressed her fedora on more securely, and proceeded with Rosemary down the steps to join Stevie and Drew, who had saved space for them.
Stevie, resplendent in gold, beamed under the lights.Drew, with her natural coolness upgraded by a black leather jacket over a black tank, accented by a silver star pendant, greeted them with her usual chin lift—plus a friendly handshake for Rosemary, who seemed pleased by everything.
Once they were settled, Stevie and Drew began to chat with one other.It was a perfect opportunity to engage Rosemary, but Corinthia found herself staring out at the stage, unable to come up with a single thing to say.She looked around, discarding conversational ideas as fast as she could think of them, until she saw a family passing a bucket of popcorn back and forth.“Would you like some popcorn?”
“Oh!”Rosemary said, seemingly enthused by the idea—but she quickly subsided, adding, “No, I’m all right.”Her usually impeccable posture wilted ever so slightly.
Why had she turned it down?Corinthia thought fast.Rosemary had no money of her own, and if she had said yes, it would have put Corinthia in the position of having to pay, and—oh, of course she turned it down!Corinthia could have slapped her own forehead.She should have just bought some snacks and given Rosemary her pick of things, as she had done with the chocolates, and now she had messed it all up.
Could she text Stevie and ask her to buy popcorn for all of them?That would work, but she was having such a nice conversation with Drew…
No, she would have to solve this herself.
“I’ll trade you some popcorn,” Corinthia said, “for a favor.”
Rosemary met her gaze, her expression lifting prettily.
“If,” Corinthia said, putting on her best librarian voice, the quiet-yet-firm one that had quelled rowdy teenagers at twenty paces, “you will teach me how you grew that chair in your cottage.”
“That sounds very fair,” Rosemary replied.
“All right, then,” said Corinthia, who was trying to be serious but got thrown completely when Rosemary put an arm around her shoulders for an affectionate squeeze, followed by what seemed to be a little snuggle.She finally managed to gather her wits, stand up, and stagger up the stairs to the concession stand, where, in a daze, she ordered a whole lot of popcorn.
She carried the four red-and-white cardboard containers back down, spilling only a few bright yellow pieces like wedding confetti, and briskly handed them to her friend, her friend’s date, and Rosemary.She seated herself again and began munching contemplatively, less out of hunger than as an excuse to sit quietly for a few moments and not have to say anything clever.
Rosemary plucked at the popcorn pieces, eating one at a time, neatly, with precision.
“Do you like it?”Corinthia asked, wondering if bird-Rosemary had already eaten popcorn, and if it tasted different in human form, and whether she should look up whether popcorn was good for birds, just in case.
“Crunchy,” Rosemary said, thoughtfully.“Puffy.”
“And salty,” Corinthia added, eating a few more, then noticing Rosemary’s gaze on her.“What?”
“There’s one stuck on your shirt.”
“Where?”Corinthia whacked at her crisp white shirt, looking desperately for the offending corn and wishing she’d bought a less messy snack.
“Holdstill, Corinthia,” Rosemary chided, amusement all over her face.
Corinthia stilled.Rosemary reached over—clever fingers grazing a pearl button, which caused Corinthia to inexplicably break out in a sweat—and plucked a small piece of popcorn from where it had gotten lodged under the point of Corinthia’s collar.
“You’re welcome,” Rosemary said, and then tossed the popcorn in her mouth, crunching demurely behind a self-satisfied smile.
Corinthia was outright relieved that the overhead lights dimmed, leaving them in partial darkness, because she did not like to be seen to be flustered.And Rosemary, with her smiles and her company and her green cottage and her magic, had flustered the living daylights out of Corinthia.
As the musicians raised their instruments and struck the opening notes, Corinthia realized that her feelings toward Rosemary were spilling over like the trees of the Refuge in her backyard, knocking down the fence she had carefully reinforced.
