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“This is so much to wrap my head around.” I say. “It’s unbelievable that she would do that for me.” I snatch a tissue from a nearby box and blot my eyes. My mind is running in a million different directions. How did I walk into this house with my world crumbling around me, only to be leaving with this incredible lifeline offered to me by Hazel?
* * *
After a quick call to my boss, to use a personal day while I get settled into my new home, my dad and I venture over to Hazel’s house to see what it will take to get me settled in.
While dad goes to inspect the exterior of the house, I experience a quick struggle with a janky doorknob and I push my way inside. Running my hand along the wall in the dark, solely working by memory, I locate the light switch and illuminate the room. Thankfully, my parents hadn’t yet disconnected the utilities. One less thing for me to deal with right now.
I move through the little house slowly and take everything in. There are two bedrooms, one bathroom, a dated kitchen, a small dining/living room combo, and a small utility room. After my grandfather’s death, Grandma Hazel sold her home in the country and moved in here. She specifically chose this place because of the small stature. Her country home had sat on twenty acres and the chores were never ending. The amount of work was manageable when my grandpa was alive. He enjoyed moving and working in the yard. Hazel, on the other hand, did not. She just wanted a small space she could pay a local kid twenty dollars to mow twice a month, and to be close enough to walk around town if she wanted to.
This was the first place Hazel had ever lived on her own. She moved out of her parents’ house and directly into that farmhouse with Grandpa Karl after their wedding. Over the years, she had made that farmhouse homey, but she did everything with him in mind. It was his house too, after all. So, she decorated with lodge like touches to work around his deer and elk mounts hanging on the walls. When she moved into her new place in her fifties, she started from scratch and she made this place just as unique as she is. Hazel, who despised being called Grandma, was so young at heart. No matter her age, she was always far from old. Every inch of this house reminds me of her funky, eclectic self.
Every decorative piece in the house was carefully chosen, and always unique. It’s been this way for as long as I can remember. Most people decorate their houses following trends, but not her. What was trendy was never a concern to her. She was more concerned about surrounding herself with the things she loved. Every week, she would venture to a surrounding town in search of treasures at local thrift stores and garage sales. We never knew what she might find. She might bring home a random ceramic rabbit one day and a collection of old whiskey bottles to use as vases the next. Somehow, while most of us never quite understood her vision, she always did. She made it fit right in with her decor, almost as if that piece was made for her. This resulted in a light and airy space filled with funky feminine touches everywhere. And now, it’s all here for me to sort through. Thanks Hazel.
Just then, Dad steps into the entryway and interrupts my walk through Hazel’s antique store. He smiles softly. I’m sure after dealing with me throughout my teen years, he is terrified of being alone with me post breakup. Who can blame him? I cry far too easily, and I don’t blame him for treading lightly. “I walked all around the yard. Everything looks good out there. I think you’ll be fine to move in today if you want to. It really shouldn’t take too much to turn this into a place that you can call home.”
I nod. “I think this’ll be perfect while I try to decide where to go next.” My eyes move to meet his. “Just please remember, I don’t plan to stay in Fawn Creek forever. This is just a pit stop while I try to figure out what to do next.”
“Well, then what I would do is clean this place up, empty it out and do some updates. Then, when you are ready to get back out of here, put it on the market. The money you make, plus your inheritance, will be plenty to help you buy a new place somewhere else.” He pauses. “Maybe by the time you’re done here, you will know what you want to do. And if not, it doesn’t matter because no one is making you go anywhere.”
I ponder on what he says. “You’re right. I think a good reset is exactly what I need, and this is probably the best place for it to happen.” I say, agreeing with him. “But don’t be surprised if I am gone by the end of summer.”
Dad hugs me. “Don’t be surprised if you fall in love with Fawn Creek and decide to stay forever.” He whispers.
Doubtful.
* * *
Avery pushes through the front door and steps around the mountain of bags in the center of my living room. She plops onto the couch in a huff and shakes her head. “I can’t believe you fit your entire life into the back of a Honda Accord.”
“Well, if it makes you feel better, I was selective.” I frown, looking down at my heap of personal effects. “Basically, I only took my clothes, books and what I can’t replace. I sold all of my furniture and household stuff when I moved in with Elliott years ago. That house was pretty small, so I tried to be very selective about what I brought in. Honestly, I was a borderline minimalist.”
“Well, don’t worry.” Avery says with a chuckle as she stands and moves around the room. “For every item on the planet that you resisted buying in the last few years, Hazel bought seven.” She picks up a clown cactus pot from a shelf and holds it up dramatically, giving it a side eye. “What are you going to do with all this…. stuff?”
I raise a brow and swipe the vase from her hand. The clown is holding his pants open and a very dead cactus is poking out from the top of his waistband.
“First off, I’m being buried with this, so be careful with it.” I say with a smirk before swooping it out of her hand and putting it back on the shelf. “It just needs a new plant. I don’t know about the rest.” Even for such a small house, there is a lot to sort through. That’s going to be a huge job by itself.
“Was your mom upset Hazel left the house to you and not her?”
I shake my head. “I don’t think so. Mom actually did a good job today. Normally she adds to my anxiety, but today she was everything I needed in a mom. Maybe she’s just excited to have me home for a while.”
“So,” Avery takes one more look around the room, “What’s the plan here?”
I shrug. “Clean this place up, paint and get it on the market. I think I should be able to knock it all out by the end of summer.”
“Or… you could clean it up, paint and stay in Fawn Creek forever.” She winks. I knew it wouldn’t be long before she tried to talk me into settling down here.
I roll my eyes and rip open the first trash bag of clothes, emptying it onto the floor. “Fawn Creek is charming. I will give you that.” I say, beginning to sort my clothes into piles. “But city life has spoiled me. In the city, I can get my food and groceries delivered. Things are open past 8:00 at night and I can go outdoors without running into people I went to preschool with. Plus, my parents don’t know my every move.”
“The gas station is open til nine.” She adds with a smirk. “Besides, there are plenty of opportunities to stay out after 8 pm. Take this weekend, for example.”
I try to recall what she’s talking about, but I come up empty. “What’s going on this weekend?”
“Duh… It’s Mayfest.” she says, eyeing me suspiciously.
I frown. “Damn. I really should have hung out with Elliott for one more week.” I say dryly. The last thing I want to do is spend a weekend surrounded by the entire community. By this afternoon, word will already be around town that I’m back and I can only imagine the stories people are going to come up with.
She rolls her eyes. “I already got you a ticket for the Friday Night concert so you aren’t getting out of it. On Saturday morning, we can go check out the food and craft vendors.”
