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Gloria watched from the front counter as Cricket stood outside arguing with a roughed-up Chip Whistler. She honestly hadn’t been paying attention at all that day to just about anything. It was just a normal work day until Cricket decided to March his stupid tail outside and pitch a fight. She couldn’t blame him though.
Chip’s newest plan to ‘foil the Greens’ as he called it (he really sounded like a cheap supervillain when he said that) was to steal their cow. Couldn’t farm without a cow to plow the rows, right? Wrong. She kicked him immediately. It was satisfying, sure, but Chip was stubborn, and stubbornness attracted stubbornness. Hence why Cricket was outside right now, causing a ruckus out in public. The kid really had no shame, did he?
They were so close to closing time, she could’ve gone home, and she would have if she literally didn’t live with the kid.
~~~
Gloria hadn’t made enough to pay for her rent that month. She felt so ashamed of herself, she really did. She felt shame. Her tears ran down her face and onto her phone as she dialed Bill’s number. She had no clue what to do. Her hands shook as her phone rang, and for a second she prayed Bill wouldn’t answer. Maybe she could scrounge up some cash somehow, maybe beg out on the street. She didn’t dare think about calling her parents. She shot that idea down quickly.
“Hey Gloria, how’s it going?”
“B-Bill—,” She paused, breathed, tried to contain herself, and immediately broke down. She sobbed and sobbed, she didn’t say a single word. Just cried. If she could just breathe, she’d thank Bill for not bombarding her with questions, but just letting her let everything out. Or maybe he wasn’t sure what to say either. Either way, she thanked him in her mind.
“Bill, I know y.. you guys don’t.. don’t make a lot of money but, I.. I’m really short on my rent. I can’t.. can’t pay it and I can rep.. repay you or.. or just help out with t.. the farmers market stuff,” she hiccuped, stumbling over her words while wiping her tears and snot on her navy blue sweater.
“Oh, Gloria..” Bill sighed in empathy. She knew it was empathy because she knew how he and the kids had gotten to Big City in the first place.
“I just… just don’t w.. want to end up outside and I.. I don’t have any.. anyone else in the city to.. to contact.”
“Hey, listen. Breathe with me, alright?”
After what seemed like hours, but only may have been a few minutes, Gloria followed Bill’s breathing. It was crackly and spotty (Bill really needed a better phone), but she eventually got herself grounded and calm. As calm as someone can be when faced with the prospect of being homeless tomorrow, that is.
“Listen, I’m going to be honest with you, but please don’t panic when I say this, because there are two things. The first is that, well, you’re right. We don’t have that kind of money. I don’t think we can help pay your rent without us also risking landing on the street ourselves. What we can help you with is housing.”
“H… Housing?”
“Yeah. As long as you can help provide and help around the house, I don’t think Ma would mind you staying with us, temporarily or permanently.”
Suddenly, her sobs began again, but they weren’t sad or scared, they were sobs of pure joy. Pure relief flooded the shabby room of her apartment. She cried tearful ‘thank-yous’ over and over again, even after she’d hung up and begun packing her bags.
~~~
Gloria’s first step into the Greens’ home was not what she expected. She’d never actually been here, but now that she thought about it, it looked exactly like what it should have. Shabby and run down, but homey and comforting.
Bill told her to make herself at home, so that’s exactly what she did. She didn’t have much, but she decorated the space in the basement with what she could. It didn’t look half bad until she realized nothing looked that bad to her. She’d been living in a run-down apartment for 3 years. This was normal to her. Not that that was a bad thing.
You know what? Her first night wasn’t as bad as she thought it’d be.
~~~
“Alright Crick let’s get you home,” Gloria sighed as she locked up the Big Coffee doors and yanked Cricket up by his overalls.
“What?! Aww, Gloria let me finish him off! I’ll kick his shin for ya.”
“Don’t you dare!” Chip yelled from his seated place on the outside window sill, his chipped tooth whistling. Wow, he looked awful now that Gloria had gotten a good look at him. The kick marks from Ms. Brenda showed themselves, as his shirt was torn up. It’s a miracle he didn’t black out and was still up and walking.
“No thanks, I’m good, but thanks for the offer,” Gloria said sarcastically as she tucked the boy under her arm and turned around. She waved a hand over her shoulder, “Seeya Songbird.”
“Wait, hold on.”
Gloria looked back, but not before settling Cricket down and motioning for him to go home. “I’ll deal with him,” she whispered. Quiet maniacal giggles erupted from him, and he ran off. He’d certainly be watching from the living room window.
“Yeah, what is it? Got another snarky remark up your sleeve, or will you whistle that out too?”
Chip’s face grew red, and she could literally see the metaphorical steam blowing from his ears.
“I don’t think you realize this, Ponytail,” Chip sneered.
‘Here he goes again with another one of his monologues’, Gloria thought.
“But I am madly in love with you—“
Gloria’s eyebrows perked up, ‘Wait what?’ How sudden was this guy? Just a confession? Out of the blue? Like, really?
“And I’m tired of hiding it. Every single time I see you I think about how lovely you are. You’re strong and caring, you’re not afraid to speak your mind. You’re absolutely gorgeous. I can’t stop thinking about you,” his expression softened. It looked almost hopeless, “And I wish I had told you as soon as I thought it. That night during the chase. It would’ve saved me some trouble, heh.”
He looked like he regretted it. Every single word leaked with worry and desperation, but at the same time, every single word dripped with awe. He loved her, dearly, and that was something neither of them could deny, at least not now.
As Chip stood tugging at the bottom of his teal-colored shirt, Gloria’s laugh filled his ears. At first, he thought of what a wonderful sound it was, and then it dawned on him that it was probably a mocking gesture. He doesn’t blame her. He’d probably have done it too if someone told him everything he just told her. He lowered his head in shame. What was he thinking? How could he have been so stupid?
“You know what I think?”
Here it comes, the rain of rejection. He felt it coming as soon as she spoke.
“I think you’re insane.”
Yep, he knew it.
“But I also think I get what you mean.”
“What? You like someone else?”
“Well, you certainly weren’t my first pick,” she laughed with an eye roll, “But I get what you mean. You love someone who’s never shown interest, but you just can’t get them out of your head. They occupy it constantly and you hate it. You hate it so much. You think about them all the time and it scares you to death to think of making a move and getting shot down. So you don’t. You stay on the sidelines and try anything to get them out of your mind.”
..Yeah, yeah she basically nailed it. That’s exactly what he felt.
“Even if that means going to the extremes, like, well, in your case, trying to go against my family. I still don’t know why you thought that was a good idea to get my attention.”
If he was honest, that usually wasn’t to impress her, but he couldn’t deny that sometimes he really did try to impress her by messing with that stupid kid.
“Regardless, I get it. I really do.”
She paused for a second. That terrified him. She hadn’t rejected him yet, but the impending doom was clear.
“And I think I’m willing to take a chance. You may be crazy and stupid, but I think that’s what’ll make this relationship interesting. Hows coffee sound? Saturday, 1 pm?”
Oh, she had to be joking. She was messing with him, right?
“I- uh— umm..”
“Great, sounds good. I’ll meet you outside Big Coffee around that time,” she hummed as she began walking off.
“W-Wait!” Chip shouted, grabbing her wrist, “Wait.. can I.. can I do something I may regret?”
He paused at her stare. She knew what he was thinking, and it made him blush harder than he already had been.
"I-I mean, can I kiss you?"
"Well," she laughed. "You've already done one thing you've regretted, so sure, I don't see why not-"
As soon as she gave him the go ahead, his lips pressed against hers. Every anxiety washed away from his mind, and he breathed clearly for the first time in months. His shoulders relaxed and he pulled away, only to be met with a red-faced and surprised Gloria. Except that surprise only lasted a second or two before her eyes welled with the reflecting constellations above her, and she smiled. She was absolutely stunning in his eyes.
He sighed, and smiled with her, “..Yeah, yeah I’ll meet you then.”
“Good. Still don’t understand the sudden confession. You’ll have to explain that to me Saturday.”
Chip chuckled, red as a tomato.
—
“What?!” Cricket yelled, watching from the living room window in horror. She had to be kidding!