I spent hours that night just lying in bed and thinking about Leo. Even though our interactions had been brief, and he left right after the show was over, he had left an impact. I wasn't sure when I fell asleep, but thankfully I woke up in time to go to the grocery with my grandmother. She wanted to beat the traffic, so we left fairly early in the morning.
"Is there any specific fruit you want," she checked as I rubbed my arms in the produce section, which was freezing.
"I really love pears," I admitted.
"What color? They have green, red...," she trailed off as she dug through the various bags.
"Green's my favorite," I answered, looking down at the brown tiles beneath my feet. I was ready to move on to the pasta or even cereal aisle to avoid the cold.
"You can ask for anything while we're here. I'm not sure about everything you like."
"Thanks. Can we get Frosted Flakes," I requested, since it was a special treat at her house. My parents either avoided cereal altogether or opted for off brands.
"Of course. We should be heading that way soon. I just want to pick up some milk, meat, and peanut butter first."
It seemed like a fairly long list, but I just merely nodded as we shuffled along.
"Actually you could go get it yourself. I'll be right near here. We can meet at the peanut butter," she suggested.
"Okay," I nodded even though I never felt comfortable venturing in a store by myself. There were barely any customers though, so it wasn't as nerve-wracking. I stopped dead in my tracks after grabbing the correct, blue box, swearing that I caught sight of Leo. I had seen a glimpse of what appeared to be a tall boy pushing a cart around. When I blinked though all I saw was a woman with blonde hair. I held the container of food close to my chest as I hurried back to my grandma. My heart was thudding though when I saw her speaking with the lady from before. Leo was standing nearby with his hands casually in his pockets. He politely smiled when it was appropriate, but the other times he was glancing around at the shelves.
"Did you find your cereal," my grandmother happily asked me when I came into her view.
"Yeah," I simply responded, gently placing it into our deep cart.
"This is Irmelin. She's Leo's mom."
"Hi." I nicely smiled at her as she did the same.
"It's nice to finally meet you. Your grandmother's told me all about you at our crocheting club," Irmelin kindly said.
"I've been meaning to ask you. Would you like to come to our next meeting," my grandma directly asked me.
"Sure. I've never crocheted though."
"It's not too hard. Everyone's so good at explaining things. Leo picked it up in less than five minutes," Irmelin shared, him now paying attention as his cheeks turned slightly rosy.
"Mom...," he dragged out under his breath, seeming annoyed.
"Don't be embarrassed. Crocheting isn't just for girls."
She gently patted his arm as he added lowly, "But there are no other guys in the class."
"No, but that doesn't mean it isn't for everyone. You could teach Fern when she comes. It's tomorrow night already."
My thoughts were already racing as I held onto my opposite arm, daydreaming about Leo being that close to me. I figured he would have to help me hold the crochet hook just right, and... My eyes finally focused in the present as I realized how distracted I had been.
