Elodie and Heloise (12 page)

“Wow has he gotten..... wow.....”

In an effort to not look like a fool, she opened to a new page of her notebook and pretended to be writing and reading something intensely, with the occasional glance up at him to see if he even noticed her.

Suddenly she heard his voice, lower than she remembered but still with a friendly tone to it, crying out, “Elodie DeGarmo, is that you? Wow, I almost didn’t recognize you without your glasses!”

She sat up straight with a start, then tried to make herself look as casual as possible. “Duncan? Duncan Matos?”

His face broke out into a smile as he said, “Come on now Sprocket. Come along now.”

On seeing a new human sitting nearby, Sprocket immediately began to bark and run towards her, only to be drawn back, of course, by his leash. He was more than eager to meet someone new and he put his paws up on Elodie’s lap, whining for attention with his tail whipping the air around him.

“Awwww, he’s so adorable. At least, I’m assuming it’s a he.” Come on, you’re a natural with guys. Duncan’s just another guy. Get over yourself. She reached out her hand to give the dog a pat on the head, his big brown eyes scrutinizing her face with unadulterated happiness. 

“Yes he is. He’s my parents’ dog. They’re out so I decided to take him for a walk. He was getting a bit antsy in the house.” Duncan now stood about three feet from Elodie, holding on to the end of Sprocket’s leash as the dog writhed in happiness from Elodie petting his head. Being so close to Duncan, Elodie thought she would completely lose it. She didn’t realize that seeing such an old crush would bring back so many old feelings.

“Well he’s very cute. And very social.”

Sprocket then barked loudly and began rolling around on his back on the ground, his way of asking for a tummy rub.

“Yeah, that’s how he’s always been. He’s a little older now so he’s not actually as jumpy as he used to be. You should’ve seen him when he was a puppy.” Duncan watched Elodie as she pet Sprocket’s belly and he whined in happiness. Elodie was not much of a dog person, but she could appreciate and love smaller animals like Sprocket.

“All right boy, here you can go free now.” Duncan reached down and took Sprocket off his leash so that he could run around the park. Sprocket made a beeline for the flower beds across the park from them and proceeded to ignore Duncan and Elodie while he reveled in something unseen. 

Elodie turned to Duncan and asked, “So how have you been? It’s been a while since we’ve seen you. My God, it’s been what, seven years? I thought you’d, you know.... dropped off the face of the planet or something.”

“Yeah it has been. Seven years since we last saw each other. And hey, I didn’t quite drop off the face of the planet. My parents moved to northern Virginia before I started middle school and I went to private school there. They thought I’d be getting a better education there, it seems.” He took a deep breath. “So that’s why I disappeared. It’s too bad really. I had a lot of fun.... you know, hanging out with you.”

“I... I did too....” Her voice trembled as the memories of their friendship came back to her. How he was her only friend after her friends decided to turn on her halfway through fourth grade for whatever reason girls decide to betray one another at that age.  The games they played together in her backyard and the secrets they would share with each other. Then there were the notebooks she filled with his name and hers entwined in loopy cursive. There were the nights she spent awake pining for him and looking for any sign that he might like her too. 

Then a nauseous feeling came over Elodie. She then remembered the pure agony she felt on the day he told her his family would be moving in a week. She’d wanted so badly to give him her address so that they could at least write to one another, but she was far too shy to go through with it. Even more, she knew it just wouldn’t be the same. So she spent many hours crying to herself and wishing he would return. It was almost too much for her to remember those painful months.

“My parents moved us suddenly, but they decided to move back here to retire, so I’m back. I’ve only been back for about a month now. And I’m taking some online courses for college since I’m studying to be a teacher, and I’ll be done in a few years. How about you? Are you still in high school?” 

“Yeah I’m graduating this year. Finally.” She rolled her eyes. “I can’t wait to get out there on my own and figure out what I want to do. Not much of a fan of schoolwork. Blah.”

Duncan chuckled. “Well you probably wouldn’t like college then. Term papers, exams, everything like you’ve gotten before except it’s harder. But you get used to it.” He ran his fingers through his hair again while giving Elodie a sideways smile that almost made her fall off the bench. It was the same smile from seven years ago, one that always made her tingly inside.

“So you’re.... still living at home then?” 

“Yeah. At least until I can get a job and get my own place. I’m only twenty so there’s time.”

“Well since you have time, if you find yourself bored some evening, I’d love to meet you for a movie or something. I mean, as long as you’re not.... you know.... already seeing someone.....” Elodie sat a little more forward on the bench, crossing her legs and propping her head up with her left hand. She knew she was being forward by launching into asking about getting together with him sometime, but she didn’t mind. If she didn’t ask, she wouldn’t get.

Duncan chuckled and a shy, nervous look came over his face. “No, I don’t have a girlfriend. I mean, I dated a little of course, but right now, I don’t have anyone. If that’s what you’re asking.” 

It was all Elodie could do to not tremble in happiness. He was single. Perfect!  Maybe, just maybe..... “Well, in a roundabout way, I guess I was..... I just don’t want to intrude on anything......”

“Don’t worry. I’d really like to see you for a movie like you suggested. Definitely.” He smiled his sideways smile again, obviously happy at the idea of seeing Elodie again. 

Elodie and Duncan looked at each other for a few moments, a comfortable silence hanging between the two of them. It wasn’t that they were unsure of what to say, but rather it was a combination of Elodie’s old feelings for him that were being rekindled as well as Duncan giving her a once over. Elodie wondered if he remembered their childhood friendship as well as she did. From the wistful look on his face, she was sure that he did. Sprocket meanwhile was finished frolicking in the park and now sat patiently at his master’s feet, waiting for him to take him home or somewhere else. 

Now impatient, Sprocket barked loudly to get their attention. Duncan leaned down to give Sprocket a pat on the head. Sprocket then took off across the park again, making Elodie and Duncan laugh out loud as Sprocket ran around on the cold grass. First Sprocket ran under a bare tree at the corner of the park, then he went over to the playground area only fifty feet away.

“So you mind if I sit here?” Duncan pointed to the open space next to Elodie on the bench.

“Not at all,” Elodie responded. “You look like you need a rest anyway.”

Duncan laughed. “Yeah Sprocket is.... very animated. So no pets at the DeGarmo house?” 

“Nope. One day maybe, but Mom is really allergic to cats and Papa doesn’t really like dogs. He says they’re too much work. Which I find surprising since he’s French and Mom always went on about how many dogs she saw while in France.”

“Oh really? See I’ve never been to France but, well yeah dogs can be a lot of work. But I wouldn’t trade Sprocket for the world. He’s such a sweet little dog.” He sounded as if he wanted to say something else after that, but instead his voice trailed off and he looked off into the distance again, watching Sprocket tackle something invisible.

“I love small animals though. So maybe someday.” She turned to face Duncan, her right arm lying across the top of the bench and her head tilted a little to the left, eyes completely focused on Duncan. She examined his face, from his intensely blue eyes to his slightly disheveled brown hair to the way he crinkled his nose a little.

“So.... wow, what else is up with you then? I hope I didn’t get you at an awkward time or anything. Were you studying?” He gestured toward her backpack.

“Oh yeah, that.” Elodie laughed and replied, “No, it’s just that I came here straight from school and.... wanted to get away for a while.” She didn’t want to mention anything about her writing at first, but since he was not one of her classmates that she had to keep up an appearance for, she figured it would be all right to mention it. “Actually, I wanted to work on some songwriting. I don’t really tell anyone else about it, but I’ve been playing guitar for a few years and I like to write songs in my spare time. It’s kind of my own little secret.”

Duncan looked a little surprised. “Secret, eh? So what kind of songs do you write?”

“Oh I don’t know what they’d be classified. Right now it’s just me and my guitar, so I guess you’d say folk or pop. Not like Taylor Swift because I’m definitely not country, but... I don’t know. For now I’m just me.”

Duncan chuckled at Elodie’s reference. “I don’t listen to Taylor Swift but I get the reference. I’m much more of a Death Cab fan myself.”

“Really? I would’ve never pictured you as being a fan of their music. They get to be so depressing. Most of the time I wish Ben Gibbard would finally get a girlfriend and be happy or something.” 

“Let me guess. You’re more of a pop person, aren’t you.”

“Not really. I just like a bit of everything, but I want it to be upbeat, you know? Which I guess is weird for me to say because some of the music I’ve been writing lately has been.... kind of sad. At least some of it has.”

“Oh,” Duncan responded. “I’m sorry to hear that.” He reached out and put his arm across the top of the bench, leaving just a few inches between his hand and Elodie’s. 

“Everything’s OK, really. It’s just....” She shook her head, not wanting to discuss anything about her love life, or lack thereof. “Anyway, enough about that.”

“Well, I hope you continue writing, Elodie. I’d love to hear something sometime. If you don’t mind of course,” Duncan replied.

“Oh they’re not ready yet. But.... yeah I’ll show you sometime.” She turned to look at Sprocket as he rolled over in the grass. She could feel Duncan’s eyes on her as he looked over at Elodie, her head resting on her hands as her long black hair flowed like a curtain around her down to her thighs as she leaned over. At that moment, Sprocket came running over like a shot, barking away impatiently at his master. 

Duncan reached down and put the dog back on his leash, then glanced at his watch. “Well I better get going. Sprocket’s getting a little impatient.” Duncan stood up slowly, leaving Elodie still sitting on the bench looking up at him.

“All right then. I probably should too.” Elodie picked up her backpack and stood up about two feet from Duncan. “Listen, it was.... really good to see you. I’m glad we got to catch up.” 

“Yeah me too.” Duncan smiled as Sprocket barked impatiently again. “Say um... about seeing each other for a movie or something. Want to go see a movie next weekend? We could eat at Roma Pizzeria first and then walk over to the movie theater. I mean, I’m not sure about your schedule but.....” Sprocket yanked on his leash, jerking Duncan forward as he spoke. “Sprocket! Stop! Heel!”

Sprocket immediately stopped and sat right in front of Duncan, peering up at him and Elodie with a pleading look in his eyes. “As I was saying, I don’t know what your schedule is but I’ve got classes during the week, so..... we could do something next weekend.”

“Of course, yeah, let’s do something. I’d love to!” 

“Here, let me give you something. Do you have a pen?”

“Um yeah sure.”

Elodie fumbled through her bag for a pen and paper, her heart beating loudly in her ears. She finally got a piece of paper and pen and handed it to Duncan. He dropped the pen a few times from his shaking hands and they both laughed nervously each time it fell and Elodie bent down to pick it up. He scribbled his phone number on the paper as quickly as he could. 

“Here’s my phone number. Feel free to call or text me.” He folded up the paper and handed it to Elodie, who eagerly took it and placed it in her jeans pocket. She wasn’t afraid of him anymore; he’d spent so long talking to her, so she knew he was interested.

“Will do,” she said with a smile. “Here, let me write down mine for you as well.” She tore out another piece of paper from her notebook and just as quickly wrote down her number for him. She put the paper in his eager hands just as Sprocket started tugging on his leash again, leading Duncan away from Elodie. “Call me any time! I’ll talk to you later then.”

“Definitely! See you later!”

Elodie waved goodbye and knew it was time to head on home. As much as she wanted to stay there in the park reliving her conversation with Duncan, she knew her mom would be worried about her if she didn’t come home soon. That wouldn’t be the last time she’d see Duncan, of that she was sure.

But before she left, she had something she needed to do. Elodie quickly got out her notebook and pen and opened it to a new page. 

The intoxicating smell of mushrooms and cream filled every nook and cranny of the kitchen. Suddenly Heloise and Francis were no longer in a little kitchen in southern Virginia. They were now transported to a French kitchen where butter and cream mixed with the flavors of leeks and lemon juice while some fresh veal cutlets kept warm in another pan.

Francis was taking care of the mushroom garnish while Heloise stirred some flour in a large saucepan with some melted butter to make a roux. She had made a roux many times before, so this part was not hard at all. She could almost do one in her sleep. Except this time, she had to add the cooking liquid from the veal and take care to stir after each addition of liquid until the mixture was smooth to make a wonderfully rich sauce for the delicious veal cutlets that were the center of the dish.

“This isn’t nearly as hard as I thought it would be.”

“Do not forget that you successfully made a coq au vin just a month ago with my help. And that is far more complicated than a blanquette de veau.” Francis started adding some chopped mushrooms to a small pan half-filled with boiling water, then he picked up sliced bits of butter and a small glass dish of lemon juice to add to the mixture.