Ben, still wearing his wedding band after all these years, opened the cardboard box and pulled out little tins of mints. He put them on a wire display rack that was sitting on the counter next to the register.

"What brings you in today?" he asked.

"Just getting a sketchbook and a tube of primary red.” Mary navigated the narrow aisles to get what she needed. "What's new with you?"

"Same old, same old. Got some cool projects going on in the back."

"Really? Can I see?"

Local, and sometimes visiting, artists always had works-in-progresses in the workshop behind his store. Mary loved seeing the work of professionals.

He smiled. “Come on."

The studio was a little messy, but the hand tools were properly stowed in the tool cage and the table saw was clear and unplugged. A sign that read, "The most dangerous tool in this shop is the one you're using," hung over the large door in the back.

At the center of the room stood a magnificent sculpture comprised of metal and colored glass. It depicted a cluster of flames with a stunning bird rising from the center.

"Wow," she said breathlessly.

"Like it?"

"Love it! Whose is it?"

Ben smiled.

Mary looked at him. "This is yours? You're making art again!"

After Anna had died, Ben hadn't made anything. It had been a struggle just to open the store--to make her dream real--without her. The fact that he was making art again was a great step forward for him.

Ben chuckled, unconsciously playing with his wedding band. "I figured it was time."

Mary walked around it. He had arranged the glass and metal flames to make them look like they were moving.

"This is awesome.”

"Glad you like it. I'm exhibiting it at an art show soon."

"When? Do you need tickets to get in?”

"If you want to come, I'll hook you up. You can bring your grandmother and your mom, too."

"That would be awesome." She looked at the sculpture again. "I'd love to do something like this."

"What would you make?"

Mary thought for a moment. "Maybe a mobile of the planets." She pulled out her sketchbook and showed him a page.

"That would be awesome. You should do it."

She put her book away. “Well, I can't at home. There's no room. Also no power tools and stuff like that."

"You can make it here and use my stuff. No charge. And I can get you the same discount I use on my own supplies."

"Really? You would do that?"

He chuckled. "Sure. I’m a small biz owner. I know what it’s like when things are tight."

She smiled. "Thanks. I'll ask my mom."

Mary paid for her stuff before going to catch the next bus.

A couple stops later, she got off and entered a pleasant building with a sign that said "Agape Retirement Home."

A tiny Filipino woman behind the front desk smiled.

"Hi, Mary."

Mary signed the visitor's log. "Hi, Ms. Nancy. Do you know where my grandmother is?"

"She's outside, enjoying the sun.”

“Awesome, thanks.”

A pair of sliding doors in the back brought her to out to the courtyard. In a sunny corner, Mary’s grandmother sat before a canvas propped up on a tabletop easel. Her black and gray hair was pinned into a bun behind her head.

Good, Mary thought. That was a sign that Ba was feeling well today.

Still, she made sure to walk around to her front so that Ba could see her. Mary learned a long time ago not to approach her from behind.

“Hi Ba."

Ba looked up and smiled. "Hi Con. How was school today?"

"It's Saturday. I didn't go to school." She kissed her on the cheek before settling into the chair beside hers.

Ba looked at her curiously. "What happened to your hands?"

Mary had tried to cover her injuries with a long sleeve shirt, but it didn't hide the bandages on her hands. She and Mom had agreed not to tell Ba about the accident.

"I fell in the street on the way to school."

Ba added some paint onto her brush. "The way you just said that sounded like something more happened."

That was one annoying thing about Ba. When she was in her right mind, you couldn't hide anything from her.

"Are you okay?" Ba asked.

"I'm fine."

Carter suddenly popped into her head. He wasn’t fine at all.

She started getting depressed just thinking about him again, so Mary quickly opened her portfolio. "I brought my nebula. You remember I told you about the picture I found online?"

She took out a canvas and placed it on the table. It wasn't finished yet, but this was Ba. She'd seen pretty much all of Mary's projects before they were finished.

Ba’s face lit up. "That's coming along wonderfully! It’s not easy to make native media look like it’s glowing. It's just like looking through your telescope on the roof."

Mary laughed. "I don't think the scope is strong enough for that."

"Are you entering it in the school contest? You should also enter the one you did of the Northern Lights."

Mary unrolled her brush bag and took out a round brush. "I'd never win."

"You don't know that until you've tried. Paintings are meant to be seen, Con. You should let the world see the beautiful things you make."

Mary took the new tube of red paint and squeezed some onto an empty spot of Ba's palette. She mixed in a touch of black to make crimson.

As the paint came together, she realized it was the same shade as the blood she had seen on Carter's body at the accident.

No matter what she did, she couldn't get away from him.