Seal Beach

Chapter Three: Fresh Paint

For a few more weeks after the girls moved to Seal Beach, Maya continued working her corporate job remotely. Esther was a little luckier (or was she?) and was able to leave her job immediately, thus putting the brunt of the initial cleaning and sprucing up to her. Some might consider this an inconvenience, but Esther didn't mind. She liked having moments to herself to listen to music and paint the walls. Being crafty was one of the few ways Esther was able to quiet her otherwise buzzing mind.

"Okay so I'm going to get a coffee, pick up the paint and supplies at the hardware store, tape off all the walls, and get started on painting. I can pick up some groceries on my walk home?" Esther spoke this aloud almost more to herself than to Maya.

"Sounds good to me," Maya responded.

"And this is for sure the blue we're going with?" Esther held up a paint sample sheet of blues that could all be found in the sky on a bright summer day.

Maya looked up from her laptop to confirm. "Bluebell blue. Like the ice cream."

"Bluebell. Bluebell. Bluebell." Esther repeated to herself. "Okay, I'll see you later!" Esther turned her attention to their striped fur ball on the couch. "Goodbye my little Petey weetey. Love you."

"Bye!" Maya shouted as Esther walked out the door.

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As Esther exited their front yard, she paused for a moment. She looked at their house, then back down the street in front of her. She inhaled, then exhaled. This was the peace they were searching for. Even though they had an entire journey of cafe restoration in front of them, somehow it seemed so much less daunting than simply opening up her old corporate email account. The breeze picked up pieces of Esther's hair. She was safe here.

Esther walked down their street, admiring the other quaint houses on the way. One of her favorites was a pink house with a yellow door. It almost resembled a small Barbie Dreamhouse. She thought this house must look particularly cute around Easter.

She rounded the corner and thought to herself, 'I'm never going to get used to this view.' The ocean waves slowly rolled onto the beach and she smiled in awe.

Ding ding. The little bell above the door of Billy's Hardware jingled as Esther stepped through. She was instantly hit with the smell of metal, wood, and, ah yes - paint.

She excitedly walked towards the back wall of the store. Shelves and shelves of paint. Every color you've ever seen and then some.

She must have been smiling widely without realizing it because as she scanned the blues, she heard, "I don't think I've ever seen anyone as happy as you are to pick out paint."

Esther chuckled. "I know some people think painting is a chore, but I like it for some reason. It's kind of calming, and I don't mind some physical labor." She jokingly flexed her bicep and Billy chuckled back.

"Gee, can you repaint my garage then?" Billy laughed. He was the owner of the hardware store. Esther and Maya had met him briefly the day before when they'd come in to pick up the paint samples.

"I can if you want me to!" Esther replied sincerely.

"No that's alright. Have you decided on a color?"

"Yes. We're going with Bluebell." Esther pointed to a square on the sample sheet.

"That's funny. My wife painted our sun room that color. She wanted it to blend in with the ocean." Billy smiled softly.

"That's basically the same reason we picked it. It's the perfect shade."

"No argument there. You got the room measurements like I asked?"

Esther handed Billy a small piece of paper with numbers scribbled on it. Billy took it and turned around. He lifted the paper as he said, "I'll grab the cans."

As Billy walked through an inconspicuous back door, Esther heard, "He's got a gift." She turned around to meet the eyes of a tall young man. "He can look at the measurements of any room and know exactly how many cans of paint you'll need." The man smiled.

"That is a gift." Esther smiled back. "Did you paint a room with him? I mean--" Esther laughed as she stumbled through her sentence. "Did you buy paint from him, to paint a room?" Esther shook her head at herself.