Page 4 of Building Haven
“Hey, do we have a dining room?I don’t think I’ve seen one yet.”I turn to Mathew, who’s eyeing a bookshelf with doors on the bottom half but where the shelves on the top half are open.
“Yes, technically...”He eyes me.“I turned it into the library.Actually, according to the original plans, what’s now my office was supposed to be the dining room, but the previous owner had already moved his office in there.The library was supposed to be a ‘meeting room’ of sorts.”
“There’s no dining room?Or a living room, for that matter?”Not that I would be surprised, the house is a weird mess anyway.That the previous guy decided he didn’t need a living room wouldn’t surprise me, from what Mathew told me about him.
“The large room next to the library was supposed to be a living room, but it was never finished.When I moved in it was used for storage.I use it for the same.”He thinks for a moment.“I should still have the plans for it.It was actually going to look pretty nice with a fireplace, and doors that open out to a deck, where you can enjoy the evening sun.But it lacks everything you’d need, from proper flooring to getting the walls finished and all of that.”
“Well.”I put my arm around his waist, suddenly excited.“I think I can make something of it.And I’d likethatto be our dining table.”I point to the table I’d seen before.“We’re going to need a real living room, we can’t keep living out of your office and our bedroom.”
Mathew eyes the table and nods.“Sounds good.Let’s see if we can find chairs to go with it and I need to pick up a few presents for Derrick’s kids.I promised their eldest a new desk for her birthday, she’s outgrowing her current one.”He smiles.
“Mathew...?”I don’t know if I should do this, or if it’s a bad idea.
“Yes?”He eyes me.
“Can we get some woodworking supplies?Oh, and also, a few welding bits and bobs.”
“You’re planning on making the room yourself?”He gives me a curious look.
“No.”I laugh.“Okay, maybe just a few things.”So that they’re exactly as I want them to be.
And maybe I can even make a few other things...
Their excitement for starting new projects seems to have caught me too.Uh, oh.
3
Vera
I touchevery skein and hank of yarn that’s stacked on the shelves, enjoying their textures as I try to decide what colours I like and which new types of yarn I would like to try out.
My first basket is waiting at the counter, already filled to the brim with a new set of my favourite crochet hooks, since I lost my old set two moves ago, a set of interchangeable knitting needles that Riley recommended to me as a great starter set, and plenty of balls of my favourite slightly higher quality acrylic yarn in a range of colours, for a couple of projects I want to make.
It’s quite heady to be able to buy a whole set of needles or all the yarn for a project in a single go.No more carefully saving up to get just what I need and nothing extra.And no more only buying ‘safe’ yarns that I know I’ll use for my next project, I can now experiment with them, see if there might be more that I like.
With the ‘basics’ —when it comes to what I want— out of the way, I’m looking at yarn to learn to knit with.Riley said that the yarn I already picked out is fine, but I’d like to try out a few fancier ones, now that I have the chance.
The current aisle I’m walking through is all wool, mostly merino but also a few other types.I’ve never worked with merino before, but I’ve heard it’s good for socks.One of the pairs that Riley was knitting was made with merino and they’re so soft and comfortable.Now I want to try it myself too.
“I like this brand.”Riley picks up a few skeins in different colours.“I’ve been using them for years, so I know what to expect.It’s great for socks that last a very long time.”She puts some in her basket.It’s only her first basket and it’s still a lot emptier than my second one.“But you need to go with what feels right for you.”
She reaches up, picking up a hank from one of the higher shelves and puts it in my hands.“You might like this one.It’s not good for socks, but you can use it for other things.”
I move the super soft hank in my hands.When I rub it against my cheek, it’s like a cloud or something.I want to disappear into it, it feels so nice.
“It’s not for daily use or daily wear, but with some patience, you’ll be able to make something fun out of it.It would make a great sweater.”
I eye the yarn, how thin it is.I like how it feels, but making a whole sweater out of it...I don’t think I’d be able to do that.“Maybe a thin scarf?”I laugh.
“Or I could knit something for you.”Riley leans closer, grinning.“It might take a while, but I’d be happy to do it.I’ve got the perfect pattern in mind too.”She looks up to the shelf where there are more hanks.“Do you like that colour, or would you like a different one?”
The one she handed me is a light purple and I can see a range of other light colours on the shelf.“I don’t know...I don’t know if a whole sweater out of this would suit me.”
“We can go with something more ‘safe’.”She grabs a light grey, a medium grey and a cream hank, but after a moment, puts the last one back and takes a darker grey instead.“These colours might be easier to wear and combine with other clothes?”Then she leans closer.“Though, the light purple dress you wore the evening we met looked stunning too.You don’t have to dress ‘sensible’ all the time, you look great in just about anything.”
My stomach flips at the desire in her pheromones and my cheeks heat up.“That’s easy for you to say, but a dress and a sweater are two very different things.If you’re going to make me something, I want to be able to wear it all my life, not just for the next few years.”
“You mean that you don’t think you should be wearing light purple when you’re a great-great-great-grandma?”She grins, giving me a quick kiss on my cheek.
