#bretonstarters

“You can go in to see Ms. Robinson, but it will have to be a short visit. She still tires easily, and she needs her rest.” The nurse’s voice outside her door was all the warning Adelaide got that people were coming. She struggled to sit up in bed so that she could present a decent smile to her visitor, although she couldn’t really do anything about how pale she was and the tubes keeping her hydrated and medicated as needed. Still, when her visitor walked in she said as cheerfully as possible, “Hi, it’s so kind of you to come see me.”

@bretonstarters​

Elle’s booth was covered in pictures of all sizes. Big headed knight and princess caricatures were mixed in with skilled pencil sketches of smiling siblings and cuddling couples. She had a comfortable padded bench set across from where she was sketching at a large easel. As someone slowed in front of her booth, Elle looked up with a big smile. “Are you interested in a portrait? Or perhaps a caricature? I promise it takes 5 minutes for a caricature and a max of 15 for the portrait.”

When Javan heard the door open, he didn’t look up from the pan on the stove. “You’re just in time. I’ve almost finished this and I need a taste tester.”

With the requisite ‘pre-event panic attack’ mostly under control, Adelaide had stationed herself right near the front to be able to greet people as they came in. Still, she started to relax a little bit as she recognized so many of the people walking in through the door. “Thank you so much for coming! I hope you had a great time with all the different summer reading programs. The announcement of the winners will be in about 90 minutes, so you have plenty of time to enjoy some food.”

Adelaide muttered to herself as she replied to the text message, annoyance making her speak out loud as if it would somehow get the message through. “No, you don’t need to come. I’m sure you’re busy. I’ll be sure to send you pictures.” Looking up, she realized she was about to walk into someone and jerked to a stop. “Sorry! I should have been paying better attention, but..I’m sorry. Did I bump you?”