“It’s already been fifteen minutes,” Laurie complained. “I’m going to have to make a new sign for the shop that saysBack in thirty.”
“Sounds good to me!” Mia said. She turned back to the window to talk to her friend.
The side door opened, and ‘Iolani’s father walked outside. Kekoa was a huge man, native Hawaiian like Laurie’s dad, and she wondered how he managed to work in that little wooden shack.
He greeted her with a wave and a grin that made her heart do a somersault.
Good to see you,he signed.
Ditto,she responded.
Most of Laurie’s acquaintances who expressed an interest in ASL – classmates all throughout her school days, coworkers in her twenties, even other moms she had met through Mia’s old school – were quick to lose interest after a few signs.
Kekoa had picked it up quickly. He had a knack for it, which wasn’t so surprising. The man was good with his hands.
The real surprise was that he still hadn’t dropped it. One year later, he still signed every time they saw each other.
He had a new word or phrase to show off every time.There was always a glint of mischief in his eyes when he signed something new – like he knew that she’d expected him to quit, and he enjoyed exceeding her expectations.
“We don’t usually see you here,” Laurie said.
Kekoa owned the shave ice shop, but he had employees who ran it for him; he had turned his focus to skilled carpentry work.
The man was built like a linebacker – taller, probably – and yet he devoted those big hands of his to delicate artisanal work, carving joints so precise that his wooden furniture came together in perfect puzzle pieces.
Laurie had to smile at the flower-patterned apron that he wore over his clothes. Steam wafted out through the open door, heavy with the smell of strawberries and sugar.
“Ikaika has his driver’s test today, so ‘Io’s running the stand.” He glanced at his son, who beamed with pride. Kekoa winked at him and then turned his attention back to Laurie. “I needed to make some more syrups anyway.”
He didn’t know enough ASL to sign most of that, but his speech was easy to follow.
Her hearing loss made it difficult to hear women and children, and even most men – but with Kekoa, she never missed a word. He had one of the deepest voices that Laurie had ever heard. It helped too that the natural cadence of his speech was slow and deliberate, and that he always looked straight at her when he spoke.
Mia waved to get her attention, and she turned to look at the kids.
“Do you want an Italian soda?” asked ‘Io. “It’s like soda, but healthy! We got a machine to put bubbles in water. So now all the syrups we use to make shave ice, we can use to make drinks too!”
“Can I, Mom?” Mia asked.Please?
Sure,she agreed.
Thanks!Mia turned back to ‘Io and chose a flavor. Laurie didn’t catch the word – but a moment later, he handed over a fizzy pink drink.
“What flavor do you want?” he asked Laurie.
It tickled her to see him so lit up. She had seen him full of energy and good cheer plenty of times, but only when he was playing in his grandparents’ back yard. Usually, he was more reserved; that little spiel about Italian soda was the most she had ever seen him say in one go.
“Do you have lemon?” she asked.
“We haveMeyerlemon from Grandma’s trees! It’s so good!”
“I’ll try that, please.”
“Coming right up!”
Kekoa came closer, standing just outside of the window, and signed,How have you been?
Good,she responded.Busy.
