“But Eleanor,” I said. “Why on earth would you hide it? Why keep the door closed for six months? Why not just… bake in my kitchen?”
Her eyes filled up again.
She looked over at Harold. Then down at her hands.
“Because Harold teases me about it,” she said quietly. “Sweetly. Endlessly. He has for thirty years. ‘My flour girl.’ ‘Ellie and her science projects.’ ‘Who’s she talking to in there, the yeast?’ And at home, I love him for it. I do. It’s ours.”
She twisted her ring again.
“But I couldn’t bear the idea of it echoing through your house, Claire. For six months. In front of you. You’re so… put together. You run your own business. You have your spreadsheets. And I’m a seventy-one-year-old woman who talks to jars of flour paste in a closet.”
She took a breath.
“I was a church secretary for thirty years. I typed other people’s bulletins. I organized other people’s bake sales. I never had one thing that was just mine. This is the only thing I’ve ever been really, truly good at. And I didn’t want it to be a joke. Not here. Not in front of my son’s wife.”
“So you kept the door shut,” I said.
“So I kept the door shut. I washed our sheets myself so you wouldn’t see the flour dust. I vacuumed every day so it wouldn’t get in the carpet. I opened the window so the smell wouldn’t go down the hall.” She laughed a wet little laugh. “Apparently not well enough.”
The room was very quiet.
Harold’s face had crumpled.
He sat down on the mattress next to her and took her hand in both of his big, rough shop-teacher hands.
“Ellie,” he said. And for once in his life, he wasn’t shouting. “I thought you knew. I thought you knew I was just being silly. I’m so proud of you, I can’t see straight. I tell the guys at the VFW about your bread every single week. I thought Claire would’ve loved it.”
“I would have,” I said.
My voice cracked.
“Eleanor. I really, really would have.”
Ethan Blake is a skilled Creative Content Specialist with a talent for crafting engaging and thought-provoking narratives. With a strong background in storytelling and digital content creation, Ethan brings a unique perspective to his role at TheArchivists, where he curates and produces captivating content for a global audience.
Ethan holds a degree in Communications from Zurich University, where he developed his expertise in storytelling, media strategy, and audience engagement. Known for his ability to blend creativity with analytical precision, he excels at creating content that not only entertains but also connects deeply with readers.
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