On the rainy morning, Elise's shoes sank into the soft, muddy ground, leaving small pits behind. Holding a lavender lace umbrella, she walked slowly, careful not to let the mud stain her white canvas sneakers—it would be impossible to clean off.
Next to her, a man in a navy plaid suit and tan Oxford shoes walked in silence. When the traffic light turned red, he stood completely still, like a human-shaped sign. For a moment, she thought she was walking with a statue.
"Do you remember what Auntie said earlier? We need to get tortillas, ground beef, and..." Elise scrolled through her phone to check the list Braden's mother had sent.
"Scallions," Braden chimed in.
"No, wait, it's Vidalia onions. your mom said she prefers those," Elise corrected, her eyes lighting up as she adjusted her messy buns.
"You remembered but still asked me?" Braden shot her a cold glance, a stark contrast to his usual gentle demeanor toward her.
Just last night, he had pushed through his work, finishing ahead of schedule. He had barely drifted off to sleep on his soft mattress when Mylee's call came through. He hadn't expected her to bother him in the middle of the night.
He had thought turning off his phone would save him from the nightmare, but he had forgotten to shut down his computer. Of course, with her cleverness, Mylee quickly called through a social media app. In the end, he had to turn off his computer too.
"You should really spend more time with your mom," Elise nudged his arm, sounding like a concerned parent.
"I finally managed to get some sleep, and she woke me up first thing in the morning. You too—why aren't you sleeping in on a Vargasday? What are you doing at my place so early?" Braden grumbled, his deep voice carrying some misplaced frustration, as if blaming Elise for being like Mylee.
"Today's the anniversary of your dad's passing—twelve years now." Elise wasn't fazed by his change in attitude. Her voice was soft and gentle as she reminded him, "Ruth and I always come over to keep your mom company on this day if we're free. Did you forget?"
For a moment, Braden was speechless. A wave of guilt tightened around his chest, lingering for a long time. How could he have forgotten such an important day in the rush of his busy life?
"Ruth should already be at your place. She said your mom loves sweets, so she went to buy a cake. We're in charge of getting the ingredients for lunch," Elise said, glancing down at her phone as she double-checked the grocery list.
As the green light flickered on, a warm hand, without any hesitation, grabbed her cold, wind-chilled hand, leading her across the crosswalk.
"The light's green. Put your phone away for now," Braden reminded her, his actions as natural as ever.
Elise let him lead her like a little sidekick. Maybe it was because it was Braden—there wasn't any of that romantic, bubbly feeling.
After making their rounds through the supermarket and grabbing all the necessary ingredients and supplies, Braden pushed the cart while Elise called Braden's mom to check in.
"Mrs. Howe, we're about to check out. We'll be back soon," Elise said through a video call, making silly faces now and then to make Braden's mom laugh.
Without realizing it, Braden found himself watching Elise, remembering the framed photo on his desk—the one she'd insisted they take in their graduation caps and gowns. The girl who once dragged him along had quietly grown into a thoughtful woman.
Time had flown by, but one thing that hadn't changed was how she always clung to him when she was single, never letting him out of her sight.
The checkout lines were packed, with customers crammed together like sardines. It took nearly half an hour before it was finally their turn.
The cashier swiftly scanned their items, but after announcing the total, she added something awkward.
"We just launched a new add-on product for a bargain price: a shampoo and body wash set—cedarwood and musk shampoo, sage and sea salt body wash. A lot of newlywed couples have been buying it. It's only ten yuan! Isn't it a great deal?" The cashier went on, oblivious to the lines of discomfort spreading across their foreheads.
"We're... siblings," Braden quickly substituted the word "friends" with "siblings," sparing them from any more assumptions by the overly enthusiastic cashier.
Elise played along perfectly. "Yep."
"Oh... sorry, sorry!" The cashier awkwardly laughed, trying to cover up her embarrassment.
Back at the Braden's house, Braden carried the groceries into the kitchen and started organizing the pile of ingredients they had bought.
Mrs. Howe walked over to Braden, rummaging through the groceries until she found the pie crusts and ground beef she needed. She grabbed a large mixing bowl as well.
"Braden, chop up the onions and bring them to me," Mrs. Howe said as she opened the package of pie crusts and called out toward the kitchen.
Rolling up his sleeves, Braden responded simply, "Got it."
"Mrs. Howe, are we making pies today?" Ruth asked, putting on gloves and examining one of the pie crusts closely.
"Pies symbolize warmth and togetherness. It's not a holiday, but I just really felt like making pie today," Mrs. Howe said as she wiped down the table with a clean cloth and carried a few bottles and jars from the kitchen to the long dining table in the living room.
"Isn't it tradition to bake apple pie for holidays? Apples are supposed to bring good luck!" Elise said with a smile, pulling an apple out of her pocket.
"When it comes to holidays, aren't we supposed to prepare a whole feast? It sounds like so much work." In her mind, Ruth imagined the hard work behind preparing a big American holiday meal, and she quickly shook her head. "Thank goodness you can order everything ready-made nowadays."
"I actually think it's nice if everyone works together. If a family can get along and share the work, preparing a big meal doesn't feel like a burden." Elise couldn't help but recall the time when Mr. Vargas and Mrs. Vargas had berated and humiliated her—she'd almost ended up trapped in that nightmare.
"It's a shame that you and Braden only see each other as friends, while people around you come and go. Have you never thought about giving it a shot with each other?" Mrs. Howe smiled as she poured the ground beef into the bowl, adding salt, spices, sugar, and red wine, waiting for the chopped onions.
"Oh..." Braden accidentally cut his finger with the kitchen knife, and droplets of blood began to slowly trickle down. He placed the knife on the cutting board and turned on the faucet to clean the wound.
In his mind, he silently protested. Out of all the topics, why did it always circle back to him and Elise?
Elise glanced towards the tall figure in the kitchen at the sound. Deep down, she admired his ability to draw boundaries, using even a cut to make it clear that no one should entertain any fantasies about them having a future together.
Ruth saw this and couldn't contain her laughter. She pinched her thigh several times but still couldn't stop herself from giggling.
"You cut your hand? I've always said your hands are only good for playing video games. You hardly ever set foot in the kitchen, and now you're being so diligent." Mrs. Howe nagged as she moved toward the kitchen. Her tone softened a bit once she was closer, "Did I hit a nerve? I'm working hard to help you, you know."
"Mom, if you hadn't said anything, I wouldn't have cut myself." Braden widened his eyes and, under the guise of washing his wound, exchanged glances with his mom, signaling her to drop the subject.
Unfortunately, Mrs. Howe wasn't quite skilled enough to catch his telepathic plea.
"Why are you making things so hard?" Mrs. Howe sighed in frustration, her eyes full of disappointment as she watched her son dismiss her hopes.
"I'm just telling the truth." Braden met her gaze and immediately regretted arguing with her.
Dad had been gone for twelve years, and now Mom had nothing better to do than focus on his love life, probably just to find some sense of closure or to occupy her time.
Ever since Dad left, his world had felt reshuffled. Everything changed. He no longer liked living such a serious life. Although he wasn't reckless with love, he did adopt a carefree attitude, living in the moment without worrying about the future.
That year, his mom had cried so much she barely spoke and didn't smile for a long time. He never wanted to experience that kind of heartbreak from loving someone too deeply, constantly reminding himself not to lose himself in love.
Elise was different. She always loved people with an optimistic view of human nature, endlessly believing in them until she was left with nothing. When he had someone, she wouldn't come to him with her woes, but when he didn't, she'd always show up like a patient, seeking him out, the doctor, every day.
"That's why I said you're not being honest." Mrs. Howe stuck out her tongue playfully, flipping her right eyelid with her finger.
It was only then that Braden realized he'd been tricked. His mom's pitiful act had just been a way to coax the truth out of him.
