Lemon Drops & Candy Shops

24 | peanut butter and banana

24. PEANUT BUTTER AND BANANA

☀☀☀

[hana | liam | other]

[The scene opens on a humid Thursday afternoon outside of Brookside, the low brown-brick elementary school situated a few blocks north of May Fields between a recreation centre and a small park. After receiving a vague text to meet in the playground, the blonde-haired girl finds herself sitting on a mustard seesaw in the middle of an otherwise deserted sandbox. A few moments of silence passes by before her phone screen lights up again with a smiley emoticon and the brown-haired boy appears opposite of her with a shy grin.]

❝Boy, am I glad to see you. I thought I showed up to the wrong place at first.❞

❝I know it's a little unexpected.❞

❝It's a pretty nice after-school hangout spot though.❞

❝A little different from that too, actually.❞

[Before she can ask about this, a loud bell sounds and the doors of the building bursts open as children in colourful jackets and backpacks come flooding out into the arms of waiting parents. A handful, however, bound over to the playground, eyes lighting up when they spot the brown-haired boy.]

❝Hi Lime! Do you want to join us for hide-and-seek?❞

[A boy in a striped orange tee tugs on Liam's burgundy shirt while the others chorus in agreement.]

❝I've got my hands full right now, buddy, but how about in a few rounds?❞

[The boy nods in agreement before taking notice of Hana. All seven heads swivel in the blonde girl's direction at once.]

❝Who are you?❞

[A little girl with messy brown pigtails is the first to raise the question, before a barrage ensues.]

❝Are you a counsellor too?❞

❝Will you play hide-and-seek with us?❞

❝Can you tell Lime to play hide-and-seek with us?❞

❝Are you Liam's classmate❞

[At this, the brown-haired boy decides to step in after chuckling at the blonde girl's startled expression. His next words certainly don't help as a flush rises to her cheeks and she tries to unsuccessfully hide a smile.]

❝She's my friend. My girlfriend.❞

❝Like Lucy and me?❞

[A boy with unruly blonde hair asks this in a serious tone, waving at the orange-haired girl next to him.]

❝Not exactly—❞

❝Ew. Like they hold hands and stuff. My brother has one.❞

[She gets it, the blonde-haired girl notes wryly as the slightly taller girl with a brown ponytail explains this matter-of-factly and the rest of the group collectively wrinkles their noses at this new information.]