Page 37 of Library or Lattes?

“What? And you didn’t tell me?” I dropped down on the floor beside her, and she deliberately avoided my stare.

“It’s kind of a secret. I mean, not between us, and I’ll tell Krista and Avery, but Sara’s parents aren’t really like mine. They don’t know she’s gay and I don’t think she’s ready for them to find out yet, so we have to keep it on the QT.” Lennie put a finger to her lips.

“I will not tell a soul. I promise.” I was finding it really hard to contain my excitement. I was so happy for Lennie. And I guess I’d never thought about how Sara’s family would be. I was so used to Lennie’s parents being so chill with everything—even her poh poh tried to set her up with “nice girls.” I forgot that not everyone was the same.

“Is she coming to Harvest Festival?”

“She is,” Lennie sang, with the biggest smile on her face.

And then all smiles disappeared. Mine anyway, when Lennie made me watch Nosferatu. I spent most of the movie hiding under a blanket and researching the backstory on my phone. Set in a fictional German town, but actually filmed in Prague.

And of course, right then, the email from the attorney’s office flashed in my head. I emerged from the blanket just as some dude was screaming in a tomb, surrounded by rats. Lennie was enthralled.

I wanted to tell her. I really did. I still had to call the attorney, like I’d promised Pop. But part of me still didn’t believe it was real, so why would I tell Lennie?

Or was the problem that, if I told her, she’d be so adamant that I had to travel, I’d be too scared to tell her I wasn’t ready?

The next morning, I got up at six for my run. I put on my Oak High sweatpants and hoodie and slipped out the door, taking my usual route down Maple Street and through town. Main Street looked different in the predawn light. The pumpkins that lined the streets were round shadows that I had to be careful to avoid, and the hay bales reminded me of sleeping animals. The skeletons of stalls were already there, and people were already setting up for the festival. James and I had done so much planning so quickly that I couldn’t believe the day was actually here.

But instead of running right through town, I turned left toward the apple orchards.

The temperature dropped as I jogged away from Main Street, where the buildings disappeared and the orchard came into view. Beyond the fruit trees, I could just about make out its silhouette, tall and proud against the brightening sky. The Kissing Tree.

When I reached the huge copper beech, I ran my hand across the rough bark, and tried to make out all the names in the darkness. It was impossible to distinguish one from the other, but there were so many. So many stories, so many generations.

They couldn’t cut it down. They just couldn’t.

Back home, I was sitting at the table catching my breath and hugging my coffee when I noticed the pile of mail. Pop must have gone through it last night before he went to bed, getting rid of the flyers for local businesses and the handwritten notes from teenage girls offering babysitting. I knew all the names, and together they were like a comfort blanket. These flyers would sit there for months before one of us would finally crack and throw them out.

Pop had clearly left one particular envelope on top purposely. It was addressed to me, with the return address Ray & Black Associates.

I held my breath, looked around for Pop, then slid the letter under my hoodie before going into my bedroom and closing the door to read it alone.

Was this the letter? Maybe it was an acknowledgment that an email had been sent in error and it was all a misunderstanding. I opened the envelope with shaking hands. And then I realized there were two letters inside, not one.

RAY & BLACK ASSOCIATES

Attorneys at Law

529 Madison Avenue, New York,

NY 10022

Dear Ms. Taylor,

Further to my previous correspondence regarding the estate of Ms. Lisa May Vaughn:

his letter serves as formal notification that you must indicate your acceptance or declination of the bequest by November 26, 2026 (Thanksgiving Day).

To accept the inheritance and its conditions, you must:

1. Complete and return the enclosed documentation.

2. Provide proof of documented travel plans that satisfy the condition of “seeing the world beyond Oak Falls.”

Should you decline the bequest, or fail to respond by the stated deadline, the funds will be distributed to the American Association of Travel Writers, as specified in Ms. Vaughn’s will.

We have not yet received a response to our initial correspondence, dated October 1, 2026, a copy of which I have enclosed here.