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I draped the tablecloth over the stand. La Patisserie Dans La Lune was painted splendidly in acrylic. Emmanuel finished setting up the stand with the tarts and trays of chocolate with fruit. On the side there were caramelized and sugared fruit candy. Emmanuel had joked that at the town's Farmer's Market we should try to get a little healthy. The morning left us with ample time before the market opened. I'd painted the shop's little logo on each box, and even a pattern of the fall-themed sweets we offered this time of year. I placed the assorted sweets into a paper box. After ensuring that our art supplies were all accounted for, I smoothened down my blue apron, stretched my cramped neck, and sighed. Painting was therapeutic, but I had underestimated how intense it would be. And to go all that way to paint the stars, moon, and constellations, only to flip it over and redo it in the aesthetic that fitted Hannah's bakery. My painting skills needed work. I certainly would have appreciated Vihan's assistance.

Still, he didn't come. The cool October sun made its slow arch over the sky. Fortunately I had the sense of wearing a proper jacket, though the fur-lined inside made me feel too comfortably warm, like a blanket in bed. The shadows of the bare tree branches stretched and receded on the cobblestone walkway. Other vendors came to set up their stalls. Soon customers would be trickling in.

We had a full hour before the Market opened. I glanced at Emmanuel. He gave the slightest shake of his head. "Not surprising, but was it too much to tell us in advance?"

"I'm sorry," I murmured.

Emmanuel looked around in exasperation. "Where did he go? He has to understand that he can't disappear without telling me."

Hannah stopped by in her fall jacket, short of breath. "Hey. Danielle is wondering...Oh, that looks absolutely gorgeous!"

"Thank you." I ran my fingers on the uneven, star-speckled cloth, comparing the minimalist style to the vivid masterpiece I had in mind. Allison's style was hard to imitate. "It took me a couple tries to get it right."

"Is something wrong? Where's Vihan?"

She took our silence as an answer. She deflated, switching the shopping bags in her hands. "I'm sure he'll come."

"Give me a minute," Emmanuel sighed.

He wandered towards the nearby park, dialing his phone.

Hannah said, "If I knew this would happen, I wouldn't have left this to you. You're busy tomorrow too, right? With your company and the new Timberline library? You're not as excited about it. Maybe you should take a break."

I've nearly forgotten about it. No, actually. I had been hard at work, getting in the final touches while handling communications with the other department managers. They were already thinking about the next project on the line. That was what I should do. The future was more predictable than the past.

"You're rambling, Hannah. It's okay." I forced a light smile, tilting my head to the breeze. The faux fur lining of my jacket ticked my chin. "I need the distraction."

Hannah wrestled with my lie. She stepped closer. "Do you want to talk more?"

I hadn't seen Hannah in person lately. To be fair, Hannah went to great lengths to ask me, every day, how I was feeling. We conversed regularly by phone. As of lately she seemed extremely occupied. She'd reassured me that it concerned her own affairs. That was a sort of relief. Hannah would drop everything at the minute if I wanted to talk to her in person.

But now she looked close to crying. Whatever for?

I opened my arms like an uncertain fledgling. She dropped her shopping bags and gave me a tight hug. I barely felt it. She smelled of French things. A glittering country far, far away.