Like Bees to Honey | gxg

1. Farmer's Market Rules

Sabina didn't recognize the first ominous sign that her plans for the summer would end in disaster. This was unfortunate. There was nothing she hated more than things that didn't go according to plan. If she had realized that her entire life was about to be upended like she was a smoke-addled bee shaken off a hive frame, she might have been able to do something about it.

Maybe she didn't notice because it wasn't quite 5 AM and she was buzzing with excitement at finally being allowed to take charge of her family's stall at the farmer's market (that was step one in her four-step plan to make this summer unforgettable). Maybe she was distracted by the sight of the sky pinking as the sun woke up and stretched on the other side of the mountains, promising a perfect day. Or maybe it was because she had spent the drive to the market explaining her summer plan to her best friend Riley, who slept the whole way and didn't listen to a word she said.

Whatever the reason, when she drove the van into the farmer's market parking lot and saw someone else parked in her spot, she was annoyed, but she didn't see it as the horrible omen it was.

She slammed on the brakes, the weight of the loaded van fighting the pedal, which jumped twice under her foot. "You've got to be kidding. That's my parking spot!"

The white trailer wasn't so much in her spot as across it, parked at angle through two spots because the trailer and truck together were too long to fit in one. There were already three plastic folding tables set up end-to-end under an awning in front. Two people in grey hoodies carried crates of produce down a ramp from the trailer to stack them behind the table.

In the passenger seat, Riley yawned and stretched. "What's the big deal? Just park somewhere else. The spots aren't reserved, are they?"

Sabina pushed out a sigh. "I forgive your ignorance because this is your first market. But that's not how this works. No, the spots aren't officially reserved. The spot you claim on the first day of the season is your spot for the rest of the summer. But it's not that simple. The same people have been coming to this market for years, and every year, those people park in the same spots."

"There's an open spot two spaces down. What's wrong with that one?" Her best friend shrugged, rubbing knuckles against their puffy eyes.

Riley didn't like waking up before noon. They had protested loudly when they learned that working the farmer's market meant getting up at 3 AM to make the hour and a half drive into the city. Sabina had been forced to make some promises she knew she was going to regret in order to convince them to help her out.

Wrinkling her nose, she explained, "This spot is perfectly positioned to maximize our business. Look, we're three stalls down from Gretel's Pretzels." She pointed at the green truck with a giant, salt-sprinkled pretzel painted on the side. "Just enough time for the strollers to enjoy a few bites of the pretzel they bought before they reach us. Salty treats make people crave sweets, so that makes them more likely to buy our honey candies. And we're across from Ambrosia Bakery. Their famous fluffy whole wheat loaf is to die for when you spread our honeycomb on it. They always send people our way."

"Bina, I love you, but maybe it's not that deep. I don't see how being five spots instead of three from Gretel's or two from Ambrosia is going to make a difference."

Sabina shook her head. She shouldn't have expected Riley to understand the sacred trust of the farmer's market. "My family has been setting up our stall in this exact spot for my entire life. Besides, that spot you're looking at two spaces down is where Singh Family Farms sets up. I'm just going to talk to these people and tell them to move."

"They're already set up. They're not gonna move."

"They might if I ask nicely. Maybe they're just new and don't know the etiquette." She yanked the parking brake, creaked open the door, and hopped down. Behind her, Riley groaned loudly. It embarrassed them when she acted like this, but they just didn't get how important this was.