The Sale

“Meredith?” Heather asked from behind the display of canned baked beans. They were having a sale for the 4th of July. So the big obnoxious blue sign was on display with a cardboard cutout Beanie the Magic Bean gesturing to it in his patriotic top hat.

Meredith turned around and smiled big, “Heather!” She said in a rich but truthful tone. She was wearing her light blue circle dress and managed to put her bright red hair in a beehive hairdo. She had read in a magazine it was the most fashionable thing you could do with your hair.

It was wonderful to see Heather again. She missed her.

Heather looked at her friend with her eyes beaming. She took one step to give her acquaintance a hug but stopped herself. She was in public.

“Oh Meredith! It’s so good to see you! How have you been doing? I haven’t seen you in so long,” she grasped her shopping basket tighter the more she smiled and the louder she got.

“I’ve been good. Well, I’ve been busy. Mark got a promotion at the bank two months ago so it’s been a one parent household for a while, but beggars can’t be choosers.”

She grinned bigger and made an audible hum. Heather followed suit.

Meredith rearranged how she was standing. Even though a lot of her weight was leaning on her full cart, she felt uncomfortable in how she was standing. Explaining her situation about her family, was something she was used to but not to Heather, Heather knew her well enough that she could read between the lines. 

Heather switched weight to her right leg and looked at Meredith. She was dressed much more comfortably than Meredith, in her black cigarette pants and her tucked in white sweater, but she did curl her short blonde hair that day, in hopes she would bump into the person she was waiting for for so long.

“Oh I bet you’ve been dealing with it like a champion,” Heather said, “You’ve always impressed me with how much you can handle.”

Meredith’s eyes shined a bit brighter with the compliment.

“And how about you? How have you been?”

Heather beamed and she brushed one curl strand behind her ear. The light scent of the lavender shampoo she was using, gently touched Meredith’s nose. 

Meredith rearranged how she was standing to hide the goosebumps that were forming.

“I’ve been good. I, um, divorced Tom,” she finally said.

“You did?” Meredith responded in surprise, “I, uh, wow.”

“He was happy about it. I mean, he was surprised at first, but he was happy about all of it. We have shared custody of the children, and he’s going to make sure that I’m well taken care of.”

Meredith gulped, “Oh… Wow…”

Meredith was now fully standing without the support of her cart. She was transfixed by what she just heard.

Heather gave her shy grin. She stood back a bit and waited for Meredith to say something, anything, that could take her away from this moment of vulnerability. 

Meredith looked down and adjusted herself, “I’m happy for you, I really am.”

Heather frowned.

“I see you’re going to get some baked beans,” Meredith said desperately, “I absolutely love them wi—“

“You’re not going to tell Mark?” 

Meredith shushed Heather pulling her in closer to her. Heather’s soft touch made Meredith’s heart prance erratically like a modern dancer’s attempt at improvisation. She looked around to see if anybody heard that, only to see Mrs. Jenkins look at her with disdain, but that was Mrs. Jenkins' usual look, so Meredith believed that she was safe.

“Quiet!” Meredith hissed.

Heather yanked her arm away from Meredith.

“I can’t believe you!” She hissed back.

She was shaking in disbelief, she was almost about to run, when Meredith looked at her and begged her to wait.

“Listen,” Meredith said in a whisper, slowly clasping Heather’s hand, rubbing the back of it with her thumb, “I want to tell him, but I need time.”

“You had two months…”

“I know but it’s hard…”

“I told Tom…”

“You were always better at doing things than me!”

“I thought we were doing this for us?”

“We are, please just wait a bit longer!”

“I thought you wanted to be with me…”

“I do. More than anything,” Meredith said placing her hand on Heather’s cheek. She looked into Heather’s brown eyes and yearned for her in a way that would never happen with Mark. She wanted those moments when the two of them baked cookies late into the night for their children’s bake sale. She wanted that moment when she kissed Heather for the first time, both of them covered in flour. She wanted the summer of them together, with their families, at the cabin, and the moments where the two of them went off “to do girl things.”

But how was she going to give away her family? Her reputation? That was something she couldn’t bear doing just yet. 

Heather closed her eyes and rested her cheek in Meredith’s hand. Meredith, instinctively, almost kissed those thin rosy lips, but held herself back. 

Someone might see.

Meredith placed her hand to her side and stepped back. 

“Please,” she said looking up at Heather, “Please understand I would be giving up a lot. Please, I just need you to wait a little longer.”

“A little longer?” Heather nearly yelled. 

Meredith shushed her again and looked around the aisle. 

“A little longer?” Heather continued, but a bit more quietly, “Meredith I’ve been waiting for you since the moment we realized what this is. I’ve been waiting for what this could be. You say that you’re giving up a lot but what about me? I gave up my husband, my family, for you. If you don’t do this soon, I don’t think I can wait any longer.”

Heather looked at Meredith hoping for a sign. Hoping for any sign in which this eternal wait would lead to finishing the story into a happy ending. She tugged her black cigarette pants higher for they were a little too big on her and she needed to get them tailored soon. Meredith looked down and a strand from her neatly placed beehive hairdo popped out.

“I know,” she said, “I’ve been making you wait far too long.”

She let go of the shopping cart and went to Heather, kissing her with all the passion she was hiding since the moment their eyes met. When she pushed Heather against the wall of the aisle three baking soda boxes fell to the floor. 

She didn’t care.

It was time. 

It was time for her to want something for her again. Heather held her and nearly ruffled up her new circle dress she bought for the church social. It was something she bought so Heather would notice her, but she would never let her know that. They kissed like it felt like they finally said I do. Then, hand in hand, they left the market.

Mrs. Jenkins would pass by and show major disdain, but that was a comfortable part of her look, so Meredith didn’t care.

She would tell Mark about Heather a week into their move to New York. He would receive a long drawn out letter at first, but then a phone call. He wouldn’t understand, it’s usually hard to, but Meredith could never trade the soft touch of Heather’s cheek for the cold feelings she had for her husband.