Forearm gainst kitchen door jamb, back of wrist to forehead, Kim yawned. With hand that cradled swollen tummy, she pulled over sized t-shirt up to her little pug nose, breathed deep. Her eyes closed. His scent wafted warm. She opened eyes. "Well there he is the love of my life in the sunrise light." She smiled, but shook her head. "Every morning, every morning at that kitchen island," she sighed, "wearing another one of those kooky avocado t-shirts, cut-off jeans and that same frayed straw hat." She paused, pulled out the front of t-shirt from her bosom. Giant green avocado stared up at her. She frowned. "The man has got to be stopped!" She giggled.
Oblivious to the plot hatching behind his back, Bob at kitchen island danced to Caribbean beat on the radio, while adding finishing touch to extra-early morning brunch. "Simple, yet elegant, nothing like fresh avocado, lime, and..."
...Soft hands slid around his waist. Bob looked down. Something was boring hard under his right armpit. It felt like a rib being taken. Between arm and ribs, moppet haired head popped out. The attached nose crinkled, sniffed. Her lips declared, "Why does lime, avocado, and fresh homemade tortilla chips haf-ta smell so good!"
"Your craving, or baby's?" Bob smiled.
"Ooh, just one!" Kim reached out, snagged chip.
"Hey, you are eating my art!" Bob complained.
"It is pretty neat how you spiraled serving tray with chips, avocado and lime round poblano chiles." Kim offered misdirection compliment, seized opportunity to snatch another tortilla chip.
"You little sneak!" Bob clamped her in head lock, kissed moppet head.
Like a spotted owl twisting neck, Kim looked up at him, demanded, "On the lips, old man!"
Bob bent over to comply. Kim's warm breath caressed his face. His lips brushed hers...
...Kim snitched hand full of chips, escaped, scampered out kitchen to balcony table.
"You mischievous little twerp! You wrecked the spiral! It was gonna be my masterpiece on Chirpagram." Bob lamented, carried serving tray out to chip munching wife; sat down beside her.
"Bob, Bob, your whimpering is not silent. I can hear you." Kim teased. She bumped shoulder into his arm, added, "And since you are perturbed at me anyway, I might as well use this time to ask..." Kim halted speech; knew, that like all typical men, Bob could not let unfinished business lie.
Bob squeezed lime wedge over avocado slices and tortilla chips, combined the two. In mid munch he mumbled, "So, like what, Kim?"
"Sweetie, you know I love you..." Kim stopped again; hid half smirk with chip in hand; patted self on back with thought, "Mistress of manipulation, that's me."
"...But?" Bob bit.
"But sweetie, we are about to bring a little Bob or Kimette into this over sized beach hut. Should we not be a little more responsible? Say, maybe consider giving up childlike fixation on all things avocado? I mean, like are we going to dress our kid in avocado garb the rest of his or her life? Come on!" She tried to elbow a smile out of him... but Bob grew eerily silent, a tad too silent, tellingly silent, silence that screamed... "Bob! You didn't!" Kim whipped frayed straw hat from his head; frisbeed it from balcony into avocado garden below. "You already bought avocado outfits for the baby, didn't cha, Bob? How many, how many did you buy?" Tears began to well in Kim's eyes.
Bob hugged Kim close, rocked her in his arms, soothed, "Kimmie, let us never forget love is the best fertilizer for little avocados to grow in. Us papa and momma avocados just gotta wrap 'em up in our branches, hide 'em from them beaky birds and marauding possums, until it's time for avocado pod to peel open and assimilate... Resistance is fruitless..."
Kim burst into full blown fake sobbing... careened into belly laughter...
Bob chuckled, observed, "Doctorette of male psychology meets match."
"I have got to stop laughing before I pee myself!" Kim stifled chortle.
The baby kicked... Kim hugged her round tummy... Bob hugged Kim,,,
Kim sighed, "Not just another avocado sunrise..."
And looking east out over avocado garden and over the Caribbean waters beyond, Bob said, "Praise the LORD for three hearts beating as one..."
Genesis 2:22, "And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, He made into a woman, and brought her unto the man."
2 comments:
Nice job on the dialogue. I'm curious about your choice to leave out article words like, "the" in this particular story. Now I want to eat avocados. I enjoyed the part about her snatching the food and running with it the most.
Great short story! Thanks for sharing with all of us!
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