Apple-y Ever After - Chapter 13
Somehow, Milo had all but accused Saskia of being a flake, and thanks to her addressing his concerns with the utmost grace and insight, they had another date on the books.
Reluctant to conclude the call, he asked, “So what have you got going on this week?”
“The holiday market season is fast approaching,” Saskia said. “I need to make a lot of pieces. This time of year provides the bulk of my income.”
“What will you make this week?”
Saskia replied breezily, “I don’t do a lot of planning. All of my jewelry is one-of-a-kind. I usually start the day going for a walk, and when I see an inspiring shape or texture, I take a photo. Then I go back to my studio and see what happens. I don’t question it. Once that inspiration is exhausted, I will go back out and seek another source.”
Milo, who spent his days with his nose in accounting software, terrified he might accidentally break the law, could scarcely imagine working with so few constraints.
“Do you ever share the photos you take?” he asked.
“I never have,” she answered. “I like to maintain a little mystery about my work. Do you want to see them?”
“Very much.”
“Then I’ll share them with you,” she said.
Now he had much to look forward to this week beyond his Wednesday tennis match and his Friday night Broadway show. “I’d love to see the finished pieces as well, if you’re willing to share. But I don’t want to put you on the spot.”
Saskia chucked. “I will definitely let you know if I feel put on the spot.”
Milo felt like he was on the easy downslope after summiting a jagged peak. He had worried he and Saskia might be fundamentally incompatible despite their obvious attraction to each other, but communicating through it gave him renewed confidence he might actually have a girlfriend pretty soon. Assuming she was the kind of person who was willing to take on the role of girlfriend. He wasn’t going to push.
The view he got into Saskia’s mind over the following week made him question whether he’d ever had an original idea in his life. Her photos, of a subway passenger’s psychedelic crocheted sweater, four people riding one Citi Bike, and a row of deli salads at a bodega inspired energetic and unquestionably jingly pieces of jewelry. Remarkably, he could see how each original photo translated into her finished work. It inspired him to look more closely at his own surroundings as he commuted between the Upper West Side and his Midtown office. And it made him eager to see Saskia again.
When Friday night rolled around, he anxiously awaited her instructions for the next day. Some small part of him was still worried that she would cancel on him or forget their plans altogether. But she came through with a very unexpected text message.
Saskia: I’ll meet you at your apartment at 10am tomorrow. We’re going to a corn maze!