Harvesting Acorns (15 page)

The
next day when Chloe arrived at work there was a huge bouquet of flowers with an
anonymous note, from someone who had been at the picnic that weekend,
congratulating her on the story and giving a little boy’s dream a voice. Her
e-mail inbox was also inundated with mails from all around the country and she
heard about people who were at the picnic who had travelled hundreds of
kilometres to be there, to meet James and to either collect an acorn, make a
contribution or both. Edward came in to tell her how proud he was and that he
was feeling so blessed by fortune that she had stumbled into Phoebe’s café when
she had and as a result into his company.

Ben
phoned that afternoon, the doctors had already drawn blood from him to begin
testing, he would hear in about a week if he could be the one to give Hannah
her ‘seeds of life’. Chloe said she would keep them both in her thoughts until
the results came through. 

Phoebe
invited her around for dinner that evening, earlier in the week than usual, but
Jean Pierre had left for an assignment out of town the day before and would be
arriving on the Wednesday, their usual dinner time. She said she would love
Chloe’s company that evening while he was away. Chloe sat at her desk and pondered
gratefully on how full and beautiful her life was at the moment. She had a
dream career, lived in a wonderfully quaint village and was surrounded by
amazing people. Life was perfect for her and she couldn’t imagine needing
anything more in her life at that point.

Her
week turned out to be very eventful. Everyone wanted to meet with her and
discuss the success of the picnic and her article. She made time for James a
couple of afternoons during that week. This had been quite overwhelming for him
and he had suddenly started to come out of his shell. Chloe sensed that he held
her in close comradeship and trusted her to open up a little more. He was so
excited for Hannah, and couldn’t wait for her to be healthy enough for them to
start visiting each other again. Chloe explained to him that it was still going
to be a difficult time for her, that a bone marrow transplant was a very severe
procedure and it would still be quite some time before he would be able to see
her again. But she promised that if he ever felt alone, or needed company or
just to talk about his concerns, she would be there if he wanted a friend.

C
hapter Nine

The
next weekend Chloe invited Grace over for tea. They had gotten closer too
during the recent events but had not had some time over the last week or two to
really chat and catch up. Grace arrived on the Saturday afternoon and Chloe
welcomed her into her home, it was the first time she was visiting. As they
went through to the lounge, Grace stopped in the doorway, seemingly frozen.
Chloe traced her gaze; she was looking at the drawing that Chloe had found in
the antique store, the one of the young oak in the park that had drawn Chloe’s
interest.

“Grace,
is something wrong?” Chloe asked confused.

“That
drawing, where did you get it?” Grace asked, ashen.

“I
found it while browsing in the antique store opposite the beach on my first day
in the village. It grabbed my attention immediately and I just had to have it.
Why, have you seen it before?”

Chloe
felt a sense of excitement rising. Another puzzle piece seemed to be forming.
Did Grace perhaps know who the artist was?

“Do
you remember when Joel and I told you our story?” she asked, and then continued
before Chloe answered. “We mentioned that when we were twenty years old, at our
full moon picnic after the second year apart, I gave Joel a drawing that I had
done of the tree in the park.”

Chloe
felt herself pale. Could it really be that this was that drawing?

“Are
you saying that this is the drawing you gave Joel that night?” Chloe asked, her
anticipation clearly unmasked.

“Yes
it is,” replied Grace, still rooted to her spot in the doorway.

“But
why was it in the antique shop?” Chloe asked.

“I
don’t know. Joel took it with him when he left for his sailing trip around the
world. So that he would remember our dream, have something to focus on. But
when the boat capsized they lost everything.” Grace began to shiver and Chloe
led her into the lounge and went to make her some tea.
Grace continued when Chloe had handed her a cup of tea and some rusks.

“I
remember how devastated Joel was at losing that drawing, he really treasured
it. He could barely tell me he felt so bad.”

“I am so glad I was the one to buy it,”
Chloe said, “ so I can now return it to you, but it really is a mystery how it
ended up in that antique store, and so many years after its disappearance.”

“Would
you mind if we take it to the antique shop?” Grace asked Chloe. “To  see if
they can tell us who brought it in and how long it had been in the shop before
you stumbled upon it?”

“Of
course, Grace, it is yours. I have no intention of keeping it now that I know
where it belongs,” she affirmed.

As
it was Saturday afternoon, they concluded that the store would already be
closed for the weekend so they would go together on Monday morning. Chloe would
let Edward know that she would be in a little late for work. This was too
intriguing to wait any longer than they needed to. They switched the
conversation to the events of recent weeks, the success of Chloe’s article and
the picnic and how excited and happy they both were that Hannah would be able
to receive all the treatment that she needed.

“That
Ben is a brave but humble man,” Grace acknowledged, “he devoted his life to
that little girl. Such a good man. We all thought he would marry again, have
someone to help him raise Hannah, but he has just hand a single-minded focus on
her, no room for anyone else in his life.”

Chloe
felt a little twinge. Again it baffled her so she brushed it off and continued
speaking about Hannah and James. They ended their visit and agreed to meet at
the store first thing that Monday morning.

Chloe
spent that evening curled up with her book as usual. Her mind kept drifting to
Ben and Hannah and their unusual situation. All the time one heard of single
mothers raising children alone, devoting their lives to this task with single
minded commitment. When it was a man doing the same it sparked a different kind
of admiration. Not greater, just different. Ben was different.

Chloe
had not dated as much as other single women her age, but she had been around
enough men to recognise something unique in Ben. It piqued her curiosity just a
little bit more, especially now that she had seen the light hearted more
exuberant side of him in the last few days. She ended up reading until way
after midnight and, after dozing a few times and waking as her book slapped her
forehead, she decided to call it a night and climbed into bed.

She
woke a lot earlier than she had intended for a Sunday morning and got out of
bed, bleary eyed and fuzzy headed, to make her morning cup of tea. In her lack
of sleep stupor she began to run water to wash the dishes and then nipped into
the spare room to find a dish towel. She noticed her gown hanging up, looking
very inviting and decided on a shower with the intention of cuddling into the
gown afterwards.

She
shampooed her hair and as she finished rinsing it and opened her eyes she
noticed she had company – a huge, winged roach cross moth of sorts had crawled
into the shower. Chloe turned into a naked ninja; it was funny how being in a
tight space with something a hundred times smaller than you could do that to
you. She flicked it out of the shower and saw it morph into a strange looking
wasp impersonation as it righted itself up. It was during her examination of
its little stunt that she heard what sounded like the Niagara Falls in her
kitchen. She had left the tap running to wash the dishes.

Her
heart sank at the sight; and wading through squelching water to turn the tap
off she realised just what the last couple of weeks had done to her
concentration levels. As she mopped up the mess she vowed she would not leave
the house that whole day. She would stay in her gown and just vegetate on the
couch with some good sitcoms and her books. She would indulge in hot chocolate,
nachos with avocado and cream cheese and just pamper herself from head to toe.
No, she would not even do that. She fully intended just to work on her
relationship with her couch.

Outside,
the rumble of thunder promised rain. It got closer and soon the rain poured
down, beating against the roof of Chloe’s house. She absolutely loved being
cuddled under a duvet during a thunderstorm and listening to the rain on the
roof. Her day was perfect and she would recover her physical strength and
mental clarity before beginning a new week.

She
must have dozed off because she roused at the sound of knocking on her door.
The rain had stopped and the thunder had moved on. She was not expecting anyone
and completely forgot that she was dressed in her robe when she opened the
door. Ben stood there with a bunch of flowers. Chloe was mortified when, as she
saw him, she remembered her appearance. He did not bat an eye. She invited him
in and excused herself to quickly throw something on. When she came back, he
handed her the flowers.

“Just
a small token of appreciation. All the tests are being done, and with each one
I think of you and your part in it.” He smiled at her. It really was a dashing
smile, she had not noticed before. The way his blue eyes lit up when he was
happy.

“Thank
you Ben. How have the tests been? Are they very painful?” Chloe inquired.

“Just
blood tests so far, but they took a lot of blood from both of us. Hannah is so
brave. She has had so many that she does not even fuss anymore,” he said
proudly. “Me, on the other hand, I wince like a baby!”

“You
should start getting results in anytime from tomorrow”, Chloe half stated, half
asked.

“Yes,
apparently this was the first of three levels of testing. Apparently there is
only allowed to be, at most, one mismatch on all three levels. Depending on the
result of this one, we will know whether further testing on me will be done, or
if we need to find a donor.” His emotions whirled like a kaleidoscope across
his face; hope, fear, optimism, doubt. Chloe really felt for him, it could not
be easy to stay optimistic under the circumstances, but he really was doing a good
job of exuding a positive attitude.

“I
am willing to be tested as soon as we know if it is necessary. I am about to
register as a donor, but will wait first to see if I may be a match for
Hannah,” Chloe offered.

“Thank
you Chloe,” Ben put his hand on hers trying to convey his sincerest
appreciation for Chloe’s gesture.

There
was that odd sensation again.
Chloe Dane, what is up with you?
She
thought to herself. It was not an uncomfortable or alarming sensation. Just
something she could not place and it therefore unsettled her for that reason.
She felt she knew herself well, could interpret all of her emotions even if she
could not control them. She had always felt that one of her greatest strengths was
understanding herself and knowing her weaknesses. She got up to make some tea
and Ben got up and stood in the doorway to continue their conversation while
she brewed the tea. He looked quizzically at the laundry basket stacked with
wet towels and blankets.

“Don’t
ask,” Chloe blushed as she saw him looking. She had grabbed everything possible
to mop up the mess and had put them in the machine just before she had settled
on the couch and dozed off. Ben’s unexpected visit had not given her the chance
to hang them out. She had been waiting for the thunderstorm to pass earlier
before she could do so.

“I
am asking,” he chuckled.

“Let’s
just say exhaustion has left me easily distracted,” she offered as the only
explanation she was willing to give.

“Well
then I insist on going out to fetch dinner for you. You relax and don’t lift a
finger. Chinese? Thai? Italian? What do you like Chloe? I don’t know you at
all.”

“Pizza?”
she suggested a little sheepishly, she didn’t know why.

“Good
choice! I will be back soon, and then will leave you to rest,” he ordered.

“As
long as you are joining me for pizza first. You may leave after that,” she
teased in a mock authoritative tone.

While
he was gone, she hung the wet towels out on the line and fixed herself up a
bit. She was a mess from her lounging around.

Ben
arrived back within half an hour and they laughed and joked over shared pizza
and then Ben left her to have some more resting time. She put the flowers he
had brought into a vase and smiled. When last had she been given flowers?
Besides through work and the like, when last had a man given her flowers? She
could not remember. She knew this was different, but it still felt nice. She
undressed again and got back into her gown and back into position on her couch.

On
Monday morning, as arranged, she met with Grace at the antique store. They took
the drawing through to the owner and asked if he could shed some light as to
who had brought it in and how long ago. He remembered the drawing, it had
grabbed his attention right from the moment he saw it. The artistry was unique,
but there seemed to be a sense of something wondrous about the subject of the
drawing. He had never figured it out but he had been sad to see it go. He had
watched Chloe the day she had come into the shop and saw her reaction when she
first held the drawing in her hands and really looked at it. No other customers
had given it a second glance. He knew it was going to a good home.