Kelsee left for Grandma Veronica’s three days later. She had feared it might be hard to convince her parents to let her stay over the summer; however, upon explaining the situation to them, their initial reactions were overall very positive. She didn’t ask, but she had the sneaking suspicion they were only so supportive because Grandma had offered to pay her over the summer. Either way, she had gotten the green light and began packing immediately.

It had been agreed upon that she should leave as soon as possible, and due to an overflow of paperwork Mr. Phillips needed to finish, Mrs. Phillips would be the one taking her to Grandma’s. So as soon as the weekend rolled around, Kelsee and her mom set off on a road trip.

“This is fun, isn’t it?!” Mrs. Phillips shouted, her hair flying around her head with the car window cranked down. The wind that was pouring in blasted past her and shot straight into the back, over Kelsee’s crouched form. She had donned a large sweater to shield herself from the cold 30 minutes ago, and sunk deeper into the thick material. How her mother could withstand this bone-chilling wind, she had no idea. She could have asked her to roll up the window long ago, but had become engaged in a strange internal battle to see how long she could endure the frigid environment. Plus, she didn’t want to ruin the fun her Mom was having.

“Girls trip!” Mrs. Phillips whooped for about the 30th time that day. Anything that differed from routine always seemed to excite her. A road trip out of the blue like this would be classified as such. Kelsee wondered if that same mentality tied in with her random shopping habits.

They had been traveling for about 7 hours and Kelsee had spent most of that time brooding over the contents of Grandma's letter. After getting over the initial excitement of knowing she was going to be spending her summer with her, she had been left with a lingering question.

Why had Grandma Veronica chosen her? She could have asked for anyone else to help her over the summer, aunts, uncles, cousins, or even Kelsee's parents were prime candidates. But no. For some reason, Grandma had chosen her. Perhaps it was because of the special bond they had formed when she was little and had gone over to her house to read books, play games, and garden. It was a sentimental thought to have, but there was the gnawing suspicion that Grandma was doing this on a whim of pity upon hearing how her time as an employee had ended. A large contributor to this idea was the fact that she would be paying her for her time. Kelsee tried to tell herself that it was no big deal if that was the case, but another part of her, her pride, was clawing on the walls in agony at the very thought.

In an effort to distract herself, she gazed out the window. She was beginning to recognize more landmarks they had begun passing. There was the old water tower that towered over the freeway. And there was the small lake that stretched alongside the road with several cabins around it. As they took the off-ramp, the familiar worn-down buildings and looming trees jumped out at her, giving her flashbacks to her childhood.

The town was called Bernsdale. Kelsee had lived there for a long time until her family had moved when she was 9 years old. Of course, they had visited Grandma several times after moving, but they had become so busy in their own lives that it had been a few years since they had returned to town.

She let out a breath she had been holding as the harsh flow of air eased with the reducing speed of the car. They passed small shops and houses set up along the sides of the streets. There were few people mingling on the sidewalks and minimal traffic in the streets. As they passed her old elementary school, it surprised Kelsee to see a colorful jungle gym set up in the recess yard. Back when she had been attending that school, the only playground equipment they had had were a few tractor tires in a bare patch of dirt.

They pulled into a neighborhood. In contrast to the uniformity of most modern houses, these buildings had been constructed long before she had been born, which gave them their own unique look. Some were large mansion-sized houses, with grand balconies and giant framed windows. Others were smaller, with a simple porch in the front and an oak tree with a tire swing. Kelsee remembered riding her bike along the cracked sidewalks that ran alongside those houses.

After a few twists and turns, they finally pulled up next to a dirt road that branched off from the rest of the neighborhood. Not far down the road, she spotted a familiar looking house.

Seeing Grandma's house filled Kelsee with the sense of having just dropped into a fairytale wonderland. It was a small cottage, formed with cream-colored and light-colored cobblestones. It had a thatched roof, with many beautiful flowers exploding with color in the front. Low-bearing walls extending from the house and swooped around the property, with green vegetation crawling up the sides. Yellow aspens and golden red maple trees dotted the property. The house's wide windows were thrown open, and a breeze rustled the yellow and red polka dot curtains.

Kelsee cringed upon seeing those. If it weren’t for those curtains, the cottage would have a quaint rustic countryside appearance. They served as a reminder of Grandma’s obnoxious tastes and stood out like disco pants at a cocktail party.

She smiled. It was good to see that house again.

Once she had gotten out of the car and had unloaded her two bags, Mrs. Phillips leaned out of the car window with her arms open.

“Alright Kelsee, time give your Mom a hug.”

“What, you’re not coming in to say hi?” Kelsee said, bending down and embracing her.

Mrs. Phillips shook her head, a flash of something resembling fear flickering in her eye.

“She always has those freshly baked snickerdoodles and vanilla chocolate chip cookies. If I go in that house, she’ll force me to take a dozen home, and I’ll eat all of them. I can’t take that chance with my diet. Just tell her I have an important meeting that I can’t afford to miss.”

“Mom-” Kelsee began in protest.

“WELL! LOOK WHO’S HERE!”

Kelsee turned, and saw the unmistakable form of her grandma moving up the property towards them. She was quite quick for a woman for her age, wearing simple clothes that were offset by the tie-dye fanny pack and plastic red visor planted firmly on her head. Kelsee immediately noted the hot pink cast on her left arm. She waved to them both as she rapidly approached.

Mrs. Phillips looked positively panicked now. She twisted the ignition, fumbled a last goodbye, and barely gave Kelsee enough time to back away from the car before taking off down the road.

“Kelsee!” Grandma Veronica said, immediately pulling her into her strong embrace. Kelsee wrapped her arms around the slight frame of her grandmother, breathing in the scents of mint and garden soil lingering about her. No matter what, she couldn't remember a time when Grandma didn't smell of those two things.

After releasing her, Grandma set her eyes on the retreating car with Mrs. Phillips inside. "What, is Bethany too good for her mother in law?" She remarked.

"No," Kelsee said, debating whether she should tell her the truth. "She had a meeting to get to."

"Mm-hm," Grandma said, with an arched eyebrow. Then she focused back on Kelsee. "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm so glad to see you dear. You're actually just in time. I just finished a fresh batch of cookies and have the kettle on the stove. Come on, let's get you settled." She bustled back down the road.

Kelsee smiled slightly. That was just Grandma. Even though she had a broken arm, she refused to let it slow her down for a second. She was always moving at the speed of light. Kelsee was suddenly glad she was here. It would be good for Grandma to have someone around to make her slow down and be helped.

Shaking her head, she slung one bag over her shoulder while grabbing the other, and followed Grandma to the house.