A Daughter's Dream (14 page)

Friday, September 18

S
o, what did you think of last night's homework?” Meghan, Lilly's high school tutor, asked.

Soon after her family had decided to allow Lilly to be tutored, her teacher had invited Meghan to stop by the Amish school to meet Lilly. They'd immediately hit it off. Meghan came over the next day to tutor her. So far, they'd had four sessions. Meghan was earning school credit for tutoring Lilly so she was available to come to the school every couple of days.

They'd decided during their first tutoring session to work outside, apart from the other kids, and now they had a pretty good routine. If they attempted to work together in a corner of the room, too many people focused on what they were doing instead of their own assignments.

For her part, Lilly loved the opportunity to work outside in the open. She also loved having Meghan's attention completely
on her. Meghan's perceptiveness and many questions challenged Lilly in a way that she never had been before.

Now, as they settled into their usual spots at the picnic table, Lilly thought about homework that Meghan had assigned. “It was hard.”

“Too hard?”

“
Nee
,” Lilly answered with a sheepish smile. “Just hard enough.”

“I'm glad about that.” As Meghan opened up her backpack and started taking out supplies, she filled Lilly in on everything that she'd been doing since they'd met last.

Her chattiness was one of the reasons Lilly enjoyed working with her so much. Meghan was a senior. Her stories about applying for college and the antics at her part-time job at the Homestead Restaurant were always entertaining. She also always had a story about her boyfriend, the past weekend's football game, or her little sisters.

And she was really smart. She could answer Lilly's questions without having to look up answers and explained things well. Their time together always passed too quickly.

“Before we get started, what did you think about the science book I left for you?”

“That was harder, but I did okay.” Biting her bottom lip, she said, “I mean, at least I think I did okay. I memorized a good bit of the periodic tables, though I'm not really sure what knowing the symbol for magnesium is going to do for me.”

Meghan pressed a hand to her chest in her usual dramatic way. “Lilly, you're wounding me! You're supposed to think that everything I am teaching you is worthwhile.”

“I'm trying for it to be.” She grinned then.

“Trying? Try harder.”

Lilly laughed.

“Lucky for you, Lilly Yoder, that I came prepared for my know-it-all student.” Meghan reached into her book bag and pulled out one very big textbook.

Lilly looked at it with some misgiving. It looked heavy and hard. Not a good combination. “Uh-oh. What is that?”

“Chemistry.” Meghan grinned like she'd just announced the best thing, ever. “Yesterday, I talked to my physics teacher about you and she gave me suggestions of what we should tackle next.” Looking at Lilly with a gleam in her eye, she added, “What do you think? Are you ready to tackle freshman chem?”

Flipping through the pages, Lilly bit her bottom lip again. “I'm not sure. This all looks pretty complicated.”

“That's why you have me, silly girl. We're going to do this together. I would never make you work on it alone.”

Lilly smiled and couldn't help but think that what Meghan said was true. Now that she'd opened herself up to accepting and asking for help, everything was becoming easier.

“Lead the way, then, Meghan. I'm all ears.”

“You are too cute.” The high school girl grinned as she flipped to a new page on their spiral notebook and opened up the textbook to the first lesson. “Now,” she began, “the first thing you need to know is the difference between organic and inorganic chemistry.”

Lilly wrote that down. Then thought about nothing but what Meghan was teaching for the next hour and a half. In many ways, it was the fastest ninety minutes of her life.

“
S
O, HOW DID
it go today?” Peter asked after school when they were walking back home. “Did you learn anything new?”

Lilly grinned. He always asked that. Ever since he realized that she'd already learned what Mrs. Mast was teaching and wanted to learn new things, too, he acted like her education was the most important thing in the world.

She thought it was very sweet.

“Meghan decided that we needed to start chemistry today. So that's what we did.” Holding out her book bag, she said, “Feel this.”

He grabbed ahold of it, then looked at it in shock when he realized how heavy it was. “What did she give you? Rocks?”

After setting the bag on the dirt path, she dug out her new textbook. “It's a giant chemistry book. From the high school.”

“What are you going to do with that besides get sore arms?”

“Ha-ha,” she said as she bent down to place it back in her tote. “I guess I'm gonna learn chemistry.”

“Why? What will you do with that?”

“Actually, I have no idea. I guess one day I'll figure that out.”

He smiled. “I bet you will.”

She'd just picked up her bag when he held out his arm. “Give me that.”

“Peter, I can carry my own bag.”

“I can, too.”

“But there's no need.”

“Lilly, I'm here, I'm stronger. Let me, okay?”

Since it was probably past time to give in gracefully, she nodded. “Thank you.” As they started walking back on the path between the two farms, Lilly looked at Peter. “What about you?” she asked.

“What about me?”

“Come on. I'm tired of us always talking about me. What did you do in class today?”

He shrugged, and his expression shuttered. “Nothing too special. Just the regular stuff.”

“Don't you want to talk about it?” She never wanted him to think that she wasn't interested in him, too.

“Not really. I got most of my work done, which was all I really care about.” Puffing up his chest, he said, “I'm working at Kinsinger's today.”

“Again?” She was surprised. “You worked yesterday. I thought you only worked a day or two each week.”

“
Nee
, I
used
to only work a day or two each week. Now I am working four.” Looking really proud of himself, he said, “Mr. Kinsinger himself talked to me on Monday about taking a new position at the mill.”

“What are you going to be doing?”

Peter stopped. Turning to her, he smiled. It was a beautiful smile, one that made her realize that while he often looked amused, he didn't often look truly happy.

“I'm gonna be a runner,” he said.

“What does a runner do?”

“You see, most of the employees are taught to work on computers when they are hired. But Mr. K. said some of the men aren't liking that method real well. They miss interacting with people or something. Because of that, I'm going to deliver different messages and such around the offices and warehouses a couple of times an afternoon.”

“It sounds kind of fun.”

He nodded. “
Jah
. I think so, too. Plus, I'm going to meet a lot
of important people there. Most of my messages are going to go to the team leaders and those are the men who do a lot of the hiring. If a couple of the men there take a liking to me, I won't have to worry about getting full-time work as soon as school gets out.”

She felt a little dismayed, though she carefully tamped down that emotion. “You don't like school, do you?”

“It's not that I don't like it, I am just tired of it.”

“It's a blessing that you've found someplace where you want to work.”

“
Jah
. It is.” Looking really pleased, he added, “I can't wait to work there full-time.”

“Guess what? My uncle Jacob is working at the lumber mill now, too. He really hated farming.”

“I heard he was there. Someone said that some of the old men farmers in the area were making fun of him. Is that why he stopped?”

“
Nee
. Oncle Jake doesn't let other people's opinions bother him too much. He told me that he just knew that God hadn't given him a farmer's mentality. He didn't understand how to read the soil and crops and such. Plus, he hated working alone every day.”

“I would hate that, too.”

“My uncle said he was meant to be a carpenter.”

“It sounds like it.”

They were at Main Street now. To the right was the way to her grandparents' farm. To the left was Kinsinger's Lumber Mill.

Lilly was startled that their afternoon walk had happened in a flash. How come time with Peter always went by far too quickly? “I guess this is where we say good-bye.” She held out a hand. “You better hand me my book bag.”

“Here you go,” he said as he handed it to her. “But do you have to say good-bye just yet?”

“Well, no . . .”

“Want to come to the mill with me? You could go inside and see what it looks like.” Peter brightened. “Maybe you could say hi to your uncle.”

“I don't want to bother him.”

Eyes sparkling, Peter said, “You could see Miss Rebecca, too. She's at the reception desk.” He lowered his voice. “Everyone says your uncle and her are sweet on each other.”

“I know they're friends,” she said hesitantly. Although, to be sure, she'd seen both Rebecca and her uncle stare at each other when they thought no one was looking.

“They're more than that,” Peter said confidently. “I think they might be a real couple now.”

Lilly gaped at him. But then, as Peter's words sank in, she realized he was probably right. Furthermore, she kind of thought it made sense. Both her uncle and Rebecca had experienced loss yet still carried a positive attitude with them wherever they went. “If that's the truth, I think it might be a good idea to say hello,” she said with a smile.

“
Gut
. Now we don't have to say good-bye to each other yet.”

Lilly didn't add anything, but she was secretly glad about that, too.

“
R
EBECCA,
” L
UKAS CALLED
out, “did we ever hear from the shipment that's late out of northern Michigan?”

“We did. It should be here within the hour.”

“And did you talk to Roman about the famous football player who wanted him to design two enormous front doors?”

“Not yet,” she answered as the front door opened and Peter and Lilly walked in. “But Peter just got here. I'll ask him to do it.”

Lukas, who had been standing in his doorway as was his habit, both talking to her and anyone else who walked by at the same time, grinned. “Peter, you are exactly who I need to see.”

Peter raised his brows. “Any reason why?”

“
Jah
,” Lukas said, “I've got a list of things for you to do about a mile long.”

Peter's lips curved up. “Don't know if I'll get everything done, but I'll do my best.”

Lukas grinned. “
Gut
, because I've got to tell ya that every team leader has taken time to tell me that he's impressed with you. Watch out, son. You're well on your way to becoming indispensable.”

“I'm not real sure what that means,” Peter quipped, “but I'm hoping it means something good.”

“It means they are starting to depend on you, Peter,” Lilly said.

Rebecca watched the boy pull back his shoulders and nod importantly.

“I'll do whatever you need me to do.”

As Lukas's gaze drifted toward Lilly, he raised a brow. “Any special reason you decided to bring your girlfriend to work?”

Lilly's eyes widened. She also flushed from her hairline to her toes.

“
Nee
,” Peter sputtered. “This here is Lilly Yoder. Her uncle just started working here. She wanted to say hi to Rebecca.”

Lukas looked even more confused. “Why Rebecca?”

“I think I'd better leave,” Lilly whispered.

“
Nee
, stay!” Rebecca called out. Getting to her feet and cir
cling around the desk, she said, “Lilly, I'm so sorry. My
bruder
doesn't always say things in the best way. He's teasing you, I promise.”

Lilly relaxed. “Oh.”

Peter had taken a step closer to the girl. Rebecca thought his protectiveness was quite sweet. She just wished her brother would sometimes stop being so bossy.

Turning to Lukas, Rebecca said, “I met Lilly when I was volunteering. And you know Jacob. He's our new hire for shells. You know, from Pinecraft. Now, be nice.”

“Oh. Now I understand.” Looking far less scary, Lukas smiled Lilly's way. “It's
gut
to meet you, Lilly. Do you want me to send your uncle out front?”

“Nee.”
After darting a look at Peter, she said, “I don't know why I came here with him.”

“I'm glad you did,” Rebecca said. “Do you have time to have a snack or a drink? The café is open upstairs.”

“I have time.”

“
Gut
. All right, then. Let me go see if Mercy can come take my place. Then you and I can get a cool drink and visit for a few moments before I go back to work,” she added, just in case Lukas was going to start worrying that she was done for the day.

Lukas rocked back on his heels. “Now that Lilly is settled, Peter, come with me. I'm gonna write out a note I want you to give to Roman in woodworking. Then, I've got another job for ya, too.” As was his way, he was talking and walking at the same time. “Hey, do you have a locker yet?”

“I do,” Peter said as he looked back at Lilly.

“
Gut
. Go put up your things while I write out the note,” Lukas called out from his office.

“See ya, Lilly,” Peter said.

“Bye,” she said, blushing again. But this time, Rebecca noticed that her blush wasn't from embarrassment, it was from something far different.