Page 47 of A Bright Winter Season

Alexis wandered through the general store with a basket hanging on her arm. She was on a mission to start buying things for the baby, but she had never actually gone to the part of the store where the baby items were held before, and she didn’t know exactly where it was.

She meandered slowly through the Christmas decorations, pausing to laugh over a chubby singing Santa statue. There was a faint aroma of cinnamon and chocolate in the general store, making her feel in a holiday mood and even more excited for Christmas than she already had been.

She made her way into the next aisle, and a grin spread across her face when she saw that she’d located the baby items. She hurried eagerly up to the shelves, looking over all of the cute and tiny things. She picked up a set of baby bibs, all of which were in adorable pastel shades. She placed it inside her basket, feeling a thrill of excitement.

I don’t feel overwhelmed anymore, she thought gratefully.Now I’m just completely excited, and it feels so nice.

She continued to gather items and place them in her basket. She didn’t want to buy too much, since she knew that they were months away from the baby being born and that she wouldreceive items from the baby shower, but it felt good to start to prepare. All of the items in her basket felt like a celebration of their baby.

Once she’d collected a few things, she sighed happily and turned to leave the baby aisle. As she was making her way back to the front of the store, she noticed Hazel walking through the bakery aisle. Her sister was moving briskly, looking intently at the bags of flour and sugar as if she was on an important mission.

“Hey!” Alexis hurried forward, smiling. “Hazel!”

Hazel turned to Alexis and smiled back. “Hey.” She gave her sister a hug. “How are you?”

“Fine, but I’ve been wondering where on earth you’ve been the past couple of days. It seems like you’ve been avoiding me.”

“Oh, don’t feel like that! I’ve just been—well, busy. Really busy. Getting ready for the Christmas event. There’s so many things to do still—like picking out what color ribbon to tie the silverware with for the event. I finally decided on red with a gold edging, but I wanted to think about all of the other colors we have, and I had to make sure that shade of red went well with the other shades of red?—”

Alexis held up a hand, shaking her head. “Hazel. Come on. You’re clearly making up tasks in order to avoid facing something.”

Hazel bit her lip, and Alexis knew that she’d guessed correctly. She also guessed that the something that Hazel wanted to avoid facing was Jacob.

“Let’s go to Seaside Sweets Bakery and grab something fattening.” Alexis nudged her sister. “I’m craving it, and you look like you could use a pick-me-up. And then we can talk about whatever it is that you’ve been trying to avoid.”

Hazel sighed, but she nodded. “You see right through me. Okay. Bakery does sound great right now.”

“Probably because we’re in the bakery aisle.” Alexis laughed. “Every time I go to buy baking ingredients, I end up craving baked goods like crazy.”

“Before or after you got pregnant?” Hazel teased.

“Before. Now that I’m pregnant, I’m specifically craving a peanut butter flavored baked good.”

Laughing, the sisters went to the front of the store together, where they made their purchases. They placed their bags in their cars, and then met up again at the edge of the parking lot to walk to Seaside Sweets Bakery.

“We’ll have to eat outside though,” Alexis said, grimacing playfully, “because apparently I can’t stand the smell of hot chocolate right now.”

It was a sunny day, much warmer than it had been lately. They strolled along the sidewalk together, enjoying looking at all of the Christmas decorations on the houses they passed. Alexis felt the wind brush against her cheeks, making them tingle pleasantly from the cold. As they walked, she wondered what had happened with Jacob and Hazel since she’d last spoken with her sister. Had they had another conversation? Had Hazel been avoiding him, worried that she would act too differently around him now that she knew he was single?

They reached Seaside Sweets Bakery and stepped inside. As soon as she inhaled the sweet smell that filled the air, Alexis knew she was going to get nauseous if she stayed in the pastry shop.

“Nope.” She laughed. “I’ll meet you outside. Buy me a chocolate peanut butter cookie and I’ll pay you back later?”

“My treat. You go sit outside, Mother-to-Be, and I’ll be out in a couple of minutes.”

Alexis smiled gratefully at her sister and went back outside. The outdoor chairs and tables that usually lined the front of the bakery had been taken into storage for the winter, butthere was a bench placed along the sidewalk which had been cleared of snow. She sat down with a sigh, feeling tired but in a pleasantly sleepy way. She watched the cars passing on the road with a relaxed interest until Hazel stepped out of Seaside Sweets Bakery, carrying a white paper bag.

“Here you go.” Hazel handed Alexis a large, chewy peanut butter and chocolate cookie with a triumphant flourish.

“Thank you!” Alexis took a bite out of the cookie immediately. “Oh, wow. I really hope I still like peanut butter when I’m not pregnant anymore.”

Hazel laughed. “I hope so too. I’m glad you’re craving a form of protein.”

“What did you get?”

“A sugar cookie. Shaped like a snowman, see? Isn’t it cute? I got a second one for Samantha to eat when she gets home from school.”

The sisters wandered along the sidewalk until they reached the town square, where they sat together under the gazebo. Although it was a fairly warm day, it was still nice to sit somewhere that was somewhat sheltered from the wind.

---