After their conversation, and a quick dinner that Kelsee had needed to assist her Grandma in making, she now found herself back in the guest room with the door shut. She was on the floor, staring up at the rose-colored wallpaper, contemplating all that had happened.

It was still a lot to take in. Grandma was a groundskeeper and Kelsee and her family hadn’t been any wiser. Grandma assured her that it was a very enjoyable job, and the Solis Garden was one of the most breathtaking gardens she had ever tended to. Even so, Kelsee couldn’t imagine it was a very easy job for her. Just who was this mayor who made old ladies take care of his garden anyways? She would like to meet him, just to see what a guy like him looked like.

But really, she knew she shouldn’t be concerned; Grandma was a tough lady. Hardly anything kept her from achieving whatever goal she had set her mind to. Even a broken arm was little more than a small obstacle for her to overcome.

Rolling onto her side, she dug a hand into her pocket and pulled out a wrapped candy. It was a butter mint she had snagged from one of the crystal bowls from the living room. She didn’t know what it was about being in this house, but the novelty of being away from home had triggered the sweet tooth in her. Perhaps it was the feeling of being released from responsibility, she had subconsciously taken it as an invitation to indulge herself in things such as cookies and candy.

The fact that her Grandma was a groundskeeper wasn’t the main thing that was troubling her. It was a much more important issue she found herself wrestling over. In the letter, Grandma had said that she would pay Kelsee for helping her. However, now that she had divulged that she was going through financial hardships, Kelsee found herself in the midst of a moral dilemma. To take her Grandma’s money now, would damn her to terrible granddaughter hell.

The primary reason Kelsee had come up to Grandma’s house was to lend her a hand over the summer, not get paid for it. The money thing had been a nice bonus, but it hadn’t been the main factor that had convinced her to help Grandma in the first place. Just the fact that she was away from the pressures of having to find a job was more than she could have asked for.

Kelsee resolved that when the issue of payment came up, she would gracefully decline. It would be a hard feat to accomplish. Indeed, it would be nearly impossible, she mused. Grandma was a determined person, and would undoubtedly try to force the money onto her with no regard of her own wellbeing.

Even if Grandma somehow was able to worm her way into getting Kelsee to take the money, she decided that she would just place the money in some obvious place just before returning home for Grandma to find later. Either way, Kelsee would not be another contributor to Grandma’s hardships.

Feeling much better after coming to this resolution, she got up and began making her preparations for bed. She had to make sure she would went to bed early tonight, Grandma had said that she wanted to take her to the Solis Garden tomorrow. And at 7 o’clock in the morning no less. Kelsee had gotten used to getting up at the crack of noon, due to her status of unemployment; the sudden transition was bound to be an unpleasant shock.

As she padded softly down the hall with a toothbrush and travel toothpaste in hand, her thoughts turned to the Solis Garden. The way Grandma had been building it up all night had made it out to sound like the Garden of Eden itself. Kelsee was sure it was bound to be impressive, not only because it was owned by the mayor, but because it was Grandma who was in charge of it. And if there was one thing her Grandma was good at, it was gardening. And now, Kelsee was going to get the chance to see what it was her Grandma had been up to as a groundskeeper.

The whole endeavor was bound to be an interesting experience.