Twinkle Fiddles

Chapter Eleven

"I love working days like this!" Ruth wasn't shy about expressing her feelings. She leaned against the cubicle wall in front of Julie's office. "It's so much fun to see who gets flowers delivered. I could stay here all day. Holidays are the best!"

Her head was crowned with spiral antennae. Those were adorned with red satin hearts that bounced. It matched her red sweater, and red nail polish, and red shoes, and it was enough for Julie to call her on it. "It's not a real holiday, not actually," she jested.

Ruth pulled a miniature box of heart candies from her side. "Maybe this will convince you. Nothing like sugar to put you in the Valentine's Day mood."

Julie took the box. Rather than dump the contents into her palm, her finger pulled a single heart. It was dyed orange pigment and read, "Yes." She had the answer, now if she only knew the question.

As if a sign, Dylan stepped off the escalator before she could eat the candy or remove the next message heart from the box. He carried two burlap bags.

Ruth saw him first. She looked knowingly into the nearest bag, "I see butter," she said turning her comment to Julie. "He makes the best cookies!"

"I know how you love your holidays, Ruth. I found these red and white chocolate chips for you." Dylan finished a half hug to her. He tossed her a special edition bag of Tollhouse chocolate chips with red hearts on the outside of the bag.

Ruth caught the chocolates then bragged to Julie, "These are the best. His cookies taste like cake, so awesome! Can't wait!" She leaned down to place the festive chips over the butter box within one of sacks.

Dylan reached into his other bag and pulled a child's stuffed animal squirrel with a golf ball glued to its head. Julie rolled her eyes, "No you don't, not if other people are getting cookies!"

"It's not for you; it's Walter's. Have you seen the big man?"

Julie's only response was continued eyes rolling as Dylan promised, "I'll swing back through, and don't eat the orange ones." He pointed down to her box of candy, as he bent over, to retrieve his groceries.

Julie smiled as Dylan left to find Walter. She put the orange sweetheart candy into her mouth and bite into it. Her face puckered and wrinkled at the putrid taste. "Oh, yuck!" she grimaced.

Julie looked to see if anyone had heard her. She pulled the trashcan to her mouth and spit the remnants of the orange candy into it. On the interior side of the clear plastic trash bag, sliding down in wetness, toward the bottom, Julie read the heart again. It was broken in half with "Y" on one side, "es," on the other. She poured the remaining candy into her palm, removed the orange ones directly to the trash can, and tossed the others into her mouth in a giant handful of sugared caloric regret.

With Dylan's absence now stretching over two hours, Julie ventured down the hall to the company break room. She had been smelling his hot fresh cookies for far too long. The aroma now blanketed the entire third floor.

Dylan was lifting a spatula while standing in front of the full-sized electric stove. His iPhone was resting on the main folding table in the center of the room. A small round external speaker softly played James Taylor. It was turned low, not to disturb the others in cubicles and offices down the hall.

Julie quietly entered and sat at the table in the center of the room. A serving tray was loaded with four or five dozen baked cookies. They were large, slightly bigger than a hand. The edges were well formed but obviously undercooked and gooey in the centers. Dylan had his back turned to her as his licked his finger. She startled him. "Caught you!"