Meena glanced at Wally, who sat with his chin on his paws. The poor dog looked so pitiful.
“Meena.”
“It’s a communal garden, right? Besides, it’s on this side of the building. I’m not going to mess up anything she’s doing. I just want to claim this little patch of grass.” She’d spent a lot of time thinking of ways to wage a silent battle against Sabina. Maybe too much time, but Meena couldn’t let go of the fact that Sabina didn’t want her here. And that she’d likely made Neha feel the same way. It was for Neha that she was doing this. Neha would have appreciated Meena’s efforts.
“To plant what exactly?”
Her eyes lit up as excitement coursed through her. “I watched a lot of gardening videos. Did you know that the easiest things to grow are wildflowers? And they all have these incredible names like yellow rattle, red clover, and Yorkshire fog. And what even is a lady’s bedstraw? According to the Gardening Guru YouTube channel, you get the seeds, push them into the earth in the fall. And let nature do its thing. When spring comes around, they’ll start to sprout, and by summer, it’ll be a full-on wildflower patch right here. Chaotic and unruly.”
Sam paced with Wally to get the pup moving. “And you’re going to tend to it? Take care of it?”
Meena shrugged. “That’s the best part. It doesn’t need tending. It can be left alone, and the seeds will do their thing.”
“I see,” Sam said.
“I’m not doing anything wrong.” Meena tucked her hands in the pockets of her jacket. “This garden doesn’t have to be only what Sabina wants; it could be for everyone. I bet even Tanvi would love wildflowers.”
“And what’s to stop Sabina from mowing them down?”
Meena’s excitement was dampened. “I haven’t thought that far ahead. I’m kind of winging things.” She wiped her hands on the front of her jeans, unsure what to do with them.
“This isn’t natural for you, is it?”
She laughed. “Not even a little. But hey, it’s never too late to learn a new thing.”
“But that’s not the only reason,” Sam said.
Meena shrugged. “I think Neha would like it too.”
“Why are you trying to get under Sabina’s skin?”
Meena began to walk toward the porch. “I should go back inside, make coffee.”
She heard his sigh. Somewhere along the way, they’d become friends, or at least become friendly with one another. She stopped and walked back to him. “I’m trying to settle in. See what it would be like to make this place one of my bases.”
“When’s the last time you lived somewhere?” He sat down on the short iron bench.
“College, I guess.” She sat next to him.
“It’s not so bad here.”
She looked at him. He’d thrown a coat over his green-and-black-and-gray flannel pajama bottoms, hair wild as if he’d just gotten out of bed. “No. It’s not bad at all.”
“Maybe you’re ready to put down roots,” he said.
Meena stood up and paced. She took the leash from Sam and led Wally to a sniffing spot. “I was in Romania one summer, six years ago. Most people think vampires when they imagine Transylvania. But there’s a region nearby that had the most incredible wildflower meadow. I was going through photos of it recently, and I thought, That would be nice here. Not on that scale but just along the fence. To muss up some of the perfect landscaping.”
He stayed quiet. She liked that he didn’t push. It was his superpower, really, because it made her want to talk, reveal things she rarely did. “I don’t know if I’m the type to stay in one place. I keep busy, keep moving. If I’m not doing . . .” She didn’t know how to finish that thought. “I’m just wired to stay on the move, I guess.”
“Have you tried self-help books?”
She laughed. “No. I had my fair share of therapy after I lost my parents.”
“They say therapy is a lifelong endeavor,” Sam said.
She’d been raised to believe that she was responsible for solving her own problems. Even Neha had said that after thirty, you shouldn’t blame anyone. She’d fixed herself. “If I were a less nomadic person, maybe.”
“Already planning your next trip?” Sam asked. “Don’t you want to see the wildflowers bloom or at least see Sabina’s reaction?”
“That would be fun,” Meena said. “But I won’t be around much after the holidays. I might be gone for months.”
“Guess I’ll have to record Sabina’s reaction.”
“I’d love that.”
“You don’t like her.”
“I don’t like that it all has to be her way.”
“Problem with authority?”
“Who made her boss of this building?”
“History, legacy, and a lot of paperwork,” Sam said.
Meena sat down next to him and crossed her arms to create some warmth in the cold.
After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Sam took Wally’s leash from her and unclipped it from the collar. Wally lay on the cool grass by Sam’s feet.
“You might consider adding a few bricks around your wildflower bed, so the lawn mower doesn’t destroy your vision.”
“Yeah, that’s a good idea.”
“Mahoney’s Garden Center,” Sam offered up. “The best nursery in Boston. The Brighton one is close. You can probably get your seeds from there.”
She tucked her hands into her jacket pockets again. “Thanks for the tip.”
“If you want,” Sam said, “I can drive you.”
“I appreciate it. But I can manage now that the cast is off.”
“Right. You don’t need any help.” He gave her a small smile. “I need to get Wally inside.”
That was abrupt. She didn’t know what she’d said. She didn’t need help, not with small things like going to a gardening store. “I hope he feels better.” She moved over to her patch of land, finished jotting down the measurements, and went inside to look up the garden center Sam had mentioned. She picked up the postcard she’d found in the dictionary. Bravery is in small acts.