AllFreeNovel
Share Us
DESSERT
“Cornbread in a glass of milk”
Whipped milk ice cream with crispy brown butter cornbread pieces
It seemed an absurd amount of food to Zoey. She hadn’t expected this, and as soon as their server filled their water goblets and walked away, she leaned forward and whispered, “What if I can’t eat it all?”
“Each course is a tiny portion, don’t worry. They’re like little works of art,” Charlotte said. “I used to work for a place like this in San Antonio, years ago.”
Zoey tucked away that interesting fact for later.She used to live in San Antonio.Right now, Zoey had bigger concerns. “But what if I can’t finish and I hurt Mac’s feelings? I mean, our names are on the menus.” She waved her menu for emphasis.
Charlotte lifted her water goblet and took a sip. “Some restaurants will print out commemorative menus for special occasions, like for birthdays and anniversaries.”
Zoey sat back and grinned.
At her silence, Charlotte said, “What?”
“He thinks you’re aspecial occasion.”
“I can’t take you anywhere.” Charlotte tried to hide her smile as she took another sip of water. She didn’t want to let it show, like she didn’t like for anything to show, but Zoey could tell the thought pleased her. And that tiny crack let Zoey see inside to the only part of Charlotte’s story she figured she really needed to know:
We all want to think we’re worth the trouble.
The first course arrived quickly. When the bowl was set in front of her, Zoey looked down to find it empty save for three dollops of creamy white marshmallow. The waitress proceeded to pour sweet potato soup onto the marshmallow from a small white pitcher.Zoey looked to Charlotte as if to ask if this was normal. She’d never had soup poured for her before, and she worried that it was because the waitress didn’t trust her to do it herself. But Charlotte gave her a reassuring nod. Zoey picked up her spoon and tasted it, and she was immediately and startlingly transported to a perfect autumn childhood day, the kind of day when sunlight is short but it’s still warm enough to play outside.
For the second course, the chilled crab cake was only the size of a silver dollar and the mustard cream and the green endive were just splashes of color on the plate. The visual experience was like dreaming of faraway summer while staring at Christmas lights through a frosty window.
The third course brought to mind the first hot day of spring, when it’s too warm to eat in the house so you sit outside with a dinner plate of Easter ham and corn on your lap and a bottle of Coca-Cola sweating beside you. Zoey could feel the excitement of summer coming, and she couldn’t wait for it.
And then summer arrived with the final course. And, like summer always is, it was worth the wait. The tiny container looked like a miniature milk glass, and the whipped milk in it reminded her of cold, sweet soft-serve ice cream on a day when the pavement burns through flip-flops and even shade trees are too hot to sit under. The savory bits of crispy cornbread mixed in gave the dessert a satisfying campfire crunch.
Zoey set her spoon down after she finished, blinking like the lights had just gone up in a theater.
“I feel like I’ve been listening to a story Mac was telling,” she said in a daze. “He mustreallylike you.”
Staring into her empty glass, Charlotte didn’t respond, but she seemed to be taking it under thoughtful consideration.
Because it was clear that this wasn’t the kind of meal someone prepared for just anyone.
Full and cheery, two things she wasn’t used to feeling separately, let alone together, Charlotte said good night to Zoey as she pushed her scooter onto her dark patio.
“Hey, Charlotte,” Zoey called when she reached her balcony.
Charlotte turned to look up at her. Zoey’s yellow dress was billowing in the island wind. She looked like she’d flown there on golden wings.
“I think you’re a special occasion, too.”
Charlotte laughed. “Go to bed.”
Zoey unlocked the balcony doors and waved her commemorative menu at Charlotte before she went inside. She was going to stick it to her refrigerator, she’d said, because she wanted to always remember this evening. Without Zoey seeing, Charlotte had taken her menu, too. It was hidden in her backpack.
As soon as Zoey was safely inside, Charlotte brought out her house key and stepped to her doors.
There she paused, her smile fading.
She slowly reached out and put her palm flat against one of the glass panes, and pushed.
The door opened on its own.
