Chapter 19 #2
Juniper raised an eyebrow. “It’s very selective.” She leaned further out the window. “She hears what she wants to hear, don’t let her tell you otherwise.”
Juniper leaned back in the window and caught the way Rowan still looked confused. She sighed. “I’ll tell you later.”
Thankfully changing the subject, Wren called out to Rowan, “What do you know about chili and frybread?”
“What I’ve learned in the last… six hours? I don’t know,” she looked toward Juniper, “Junie, time doesn’t exist in this food truck.”
Juniper shrugged. “Told ya.”
Wanchese leaned up to join the conversation. In his very matter of fact way, he reminded them, “I ordered an Indian taco.”
Chuckling, Juniper pushed Rowan back through the window to work on her nephew’s order. Juniper continued chatting with Wren until Sam called her attention.
“Junie, look what we did.”
Juniper casually turned toward them but double blinked when she realized what she was looking at. “No fucking way. I turn around for less than a minute, and this is what you guys come up with?”
Rowan and Sam shrugged as they looked down at the plate they jointly held like it was some sort of prize-winning elementary school science experiment.
“Explain.”
Rowan looked at Sam and back to Juniper. “Well, we thought it would be fun to make Wanchese a kid-sized Indian taco.”
Sam interjected, “And make fun decorations on it.”
On a half-size disc of frybread that Rowan had made, Sam had used the toppings to decorate it with a smiley face. It had cheese for eyes, tomatoes for a nose, and the most egregious part of all, was a line of taco meat for a lopsided smile.
Juniper burst out laughing. “Wren, Wren, please,” she waved her cousin in closer, “look at this Frankenstein frybread they made.”
Sam and Rowan walked the plate to the window for Wren and Wanchese’s inspection. Wren joined in on the laughter, but Wanchese reached up to take the plate.
“No, Nuqisus, we’ll make you a new one.” Juniper still laughed.
“Auntie, I like this one. You should make a kids' menu.”
Sam pointed to Juniper with a pair of tongs as he waited for the next batch of frybread to finish in the fryers. “He’s got a point, Junie. And who’s ever going to say no to this kid?”
“My mama says no all the time.”
Wren gave him a disbelieving look and swatted him away. “Go find us a seat, baby water bird.”
Rowan passed up the next order’s plate, and Juniper was surprised to read off the name it belonged to.
“Lightfoot?” She called out.
From her spot leaning against a tree in front of them, Beckett untucked her hands from her pockets and approached. Juniper caught Wren flick her eyes casually toward the unsuspecting approaching guest, back to the service window, and then back to Beckett within seconds.
Juniper thought for a second. “Have you two met?” She asked.
Wren’s “No-” was interrupted by Beckett’s “I don’t believe so-”.
“Wren, this is Councilwoman Lightfoot. Wren is my cousin.”
Beckett flipped her blacked-out aviators on top of her head. “Nice to meet you.” Her gaze flickered briefly over Wren. “It’s Beckett outside of Council engagements.”
Juniper had to admit she looked good that day in her black sweater-style polo that strained against her muscled biceps.
She was wondering if somehow Wren also thought the same thing, judging by the out-of-character way she was tracking the movements of her arms as she leaned past Wren to grab napkins and a fork.
“You’re on Council?” Wren asked.
“That’s what Juniper said.”
Wren narrowed her eyes at her. “I know that. I’m just trying to make conversation.”
Beckett gave her the slightest smile. “Then ask me something else you don’t know the answer to.”
“Are you always an asshole?” Wren fired back.
“Woah, Wren!” Juniper whisper-shouted.
Beckett swiped a thumb against her bottom lip to hide a slightly wider smile as she reached up for her plate. “Is that another question you already know the answer to?”
Wren breathed out sharply through her nose. Ignoring both Juniper and Beckett, she called into the service window, “Hey, Rowan, you should throw a bonfire at your new house.”
Rowan did a double take as she struggled to process where the conversation was going. “Uh, sure. In a couple weekends?”
“Perfect.” Without saying anything else, Wren turned on her heel and walked toward the picnic table Wanchese was sitting at.
“Sorry, I don’t know what’s gotten into her,” Juniper apologized.
“Nothing to apologize about.” Beckett smirked as she looked from Juniper to Wren, then back to Juniper. She double-tapped the service window ledge. “I do love a good bonfire.”
◆◆◆
Rowan passed the next two plates to Sam for his finishing touches with the toppings. She used the hand towel she’d draped over her shoulder to wipe down the prep area. Sam finished the plate and slid it to the service area.
“I know almost calling her the b-word wasn’t right, although I will defend myself and say it was mostly teasing.
” Rowan cut her eyes at Sam, and he held his hands up.
“Mostly.” He dropped his voice down to an utter as he stood shoulder to shoulder with Rowan on the assembly line.
“But you can’t deny she’s fucking bossy. ”
Rowan smiled to herself and looked over at Juniper absolutely handling shit amongst the mayhem. “I’ll allow that.”
Sam let out a strangled sigh. “Don’t tell me you like that shit.”
Rowan slapped the brim of his hat so it fell backward off his head. “I don’t know you seem like the type too, Little Sammy.”
“Fuck off, Birdsong.” They laughed together as they assembled another Indian taco. “I really missed you, man,” he added.
She bumped his shoulder. “I missed you too.”
They both felt Juniper’s stare. Sam raised his voice. “Hey, keep that sappy shit to yourself until later, Birdsong.”
“I would believe that if I didn’t know you were made of total mush inside. Get back to work. I’m personally inspecting and grading everything that comes off that line from now on.”
Rowan’s lips twitched at the excitement of earning an A. And being graded by Juniper.
Over the next two hours, more and more items were crossed off the Banks Bites menu as their supplies dwindled.
Even though the crowd had been consistent, it hadn’t totally overwhelmed them.
They’d even had a few more orders for the kid’s menu Indian taco, which Sam deemed a hit and decreed it a permanent item on the menu.
“See, my brain can do more than chase pus–”
“Sam, please stop there,” Juniper held a hand up.
“What, I can’t say pussy? You two definitely love pussy.”
“I’m not talking about pussy with you either, Sam,” Rowan insisted.
“I’m not asking you to talk about my sister’s.”
“Aye, this is a family business, remember!” Anita admonished loudly from the back of the truck.
They all covered their mouths to snicker quietly together like the group of kids they once were.
“Hey, say pussy one more time,” Sam lost his last shred of self-control and laughed louder.
After they’d closed up Banks Bites two hours early like Anita suspected they would, Anita encouraged them to watch the rest of the powwow while she took care of the clean-up.
Rowan and Juniper settled onto an old blanket on the ground.
Rowan stretched her legs out in front of her and leaned back on her palms. Juniper balled up the long sleeve shirt she’d long since stripped off, set it on Rowan’s thighs, and laid her head in her lap.
Rowan’s entire day was marked by genuine warmth and nostalgia.
Even though she’d sweated profusely, gotten popped by grease multiple times, and cut her finger and had to wear a bandaid with a glove over it, she’d also been able to not only say hi to people she hadn’t seen in over a decade, she’d been able to feed them.
Each interaction served as a reminder of the deep connections and fond memories she had with her community.
She wanted to do something about this renewed sense of belonging and further rekindle her ties with the place and people she once called home.
Sam rocked onto his butt beside them and brushed his shorts down. He leaned forward to wrap his arms around his knees, and he dangled his can of Coke between them. He tilted his chin back to take a long swig and settled back into place.
“That was actually fun, Junie.”
“It was fun with you guys there. Doing it alone sucked.”
Rowan caught Sam looking thoughtfully at the dancers in the powwow circle. “Yeah, I’m sorry about that.”
When Juniper didn’t respond, Rowan wondered how many times she’d heard him say that over the years.
“Maybe I’ll find me a nice girl to settle down with tonight.”
“To settle down into bed with and then get back up before morning?” Juniper teased.
“Shut up, Junie,” Sam laughed. “Who said we’d make it to the bed?”
“You’re gross. And annoying.”
“Yeah, yeah. Can I use the backseat of your car?”
Juniper blindly reached over to slap at him while still laying down.
“Aye, Junie, quit!”
Rowan chuckled as she grabbed Junie’s hand to help her make contact with Sam’s leg a few times before she wove their fingers together and tucked their joined hands back beneath Juniper’s balled up shirt she was using as a pillow across Rowan’s lap.
“I’m serious, though, Junie. We’ll come up with a schedule, get some other younger cousins trained, and you can let the food truck go, okay? I’ve been working on an online cybersecurity certificate, so hopefully soon between my new job and your new job, we can take care of mom that way.”
Juniper maneuvered her head to look at him. “I didn’t know you were doing that. I’m so proud of you.”
“Eh,” he minimized. “We’ll see.”
Juniper’s warm smile bloomed at Sam so affectionately, it reminded Rowan so much of a younger Juniper, unencumbered by the world, who would share her happiness with those around her so easily.
The way Juniper loved was so deep, so authentic, so complete, it made Rowan’s eyes sting.
She pushed away the guilt that threatened to overtake her chest that she had played some role in the way Juniper had hardened over the years, and instead committed herself again, more fully, to loving Juniper that way too.
Sam elbow-bumped Rowan and whispered, “Let’s take care of our girl, yeah?”
Rowan nodded her head and used her thumb to swipe a tear from the inner corner of her eye before it could fall.
Sam leaned over to kiss the top of Juniper’s head. “I’m gonna see if anyone needs me to sit in on the drum for a song or two.”
He stood up and walked towards the drum arbor.
Rowan stroked the flyaway hairs that had escaped Juniper’s large, messy bun. “What do you think about that bonfire idea?”
“I think that sounds fun. What about in a couple weekends before we head to New York?”
Rowan shifted to lightly scratching Juniper’s back as she watched a new round of dancers fill in the dancing circle in front of them. “Yeah. I like that idea.”
As Rowan watched the young women dancers with brightly-colored and intricately-designed shawls flit around the circle, she felt Juniper’s breathing grow steadier.
“You asleep?” She asked quietly.
When she didn’t hear a response, she settled into watching the final moments of the powwow alone. Then it dawned on her. When she was home, she was never truly alone.