Jolene’s mouth dropped open again.
“Because thatiswhat you’re called, right?”Mabel asked.“The Island Mouth?”
“I … I … I don’t know.I have never heard that before.That’s rather rude.”
“No.It’s factual,” Mabel said, her tone still deadpanned.“Even though it’s not physically possible for an island to have a mouth, the term is used in a manner to suggest that you gossip.You spread rumors and talk about other people.I didn’t come up with the name.I was told it by other people.Warned of you by other people.”
“Who?”Jolene demanded.
“Doesn’t matter.”
While we hadn’t exactly drawn a crowd, people who otherwise would have probably kept moseying along past the vendor tables seemed to be covertly sticking around to listen in.
“You’ve met me.So now we’re good.Please leave me and my dad alone.Let us live in peace, and we shouldn’t have a problem.”Mabel gave Jolene a nod, then turned to face me.“Snow cones, then Spinosaurus.”
“Snow cones, then Spinosaurus,” I repeated, following my kid off toward the snow cone tent.
Her teeth chattered a little as she rushed toward the line for the snow cones.“I don’t like that woman,” she said, with a slight shake in her voice.She was getting more and more dysregulated by the second.Maybe staying for snow cones wasn’t such a good idea.
“You did phenomenal, kid,” I said, wrapping my arm around her shoulder and giving her a tight squeeze.She shuddered in my arms.What she needed right now was deep pressure to help calm her nervous system.She’d just done something so out of character and was in a big crowd of people she didn’t know; the overstimulation was piling up.“Spinosaurus?”I asked.“We can skip the snow cones.”
She leaned into me, and I squeezed her harder.“No.I want a snow cone.I want grape.”
“You’re sure?”
She glanced up at me and nodded.“Yes, Dad.I want grape.”
“Then grape you shall have.”
“Did we win?”she asked me, still feeling like a live wire, jittering and trembling in my embrace.
“Wedidn’t, kiddo.Youdid.You vanquished that dragon lady like a warrior.You should feel very proud of yourself.”
“We’re a team.Wewon.”
And here I thought I couldn’t love this kid any more than I already did.Damn, she was amazing.“Okay, then.Yes,wewon.”
Mabel nodded, but it was a bit absentmindedly.“Are you getting green apple like always?”
“No sense deviating from the norm,” I replied as we moved with the line.
“I don’t want to see people for three days after this,” she said.“Just you and birds.”
“Just me and birds.You’ve got it.”
She was doing her box breathing exercises to help calm herself down.So I matched her breath and we did it together as we patiently moved with the line, waiting for our snow cones.
“Do you think she’ll leave us alone now?”
“I hope so.”
“I want to go see Oakley.”
“I thought you didn’t want to see people?”
“Tom said I could go to his house and see Oakley without them being there.They’re all at the winery for opening weekend anyway.He gave me the code for the gate and the house.”
“Wow.That’s trustworthy.”
