On Wednesday evening of the following week, Nina was in the living room, working on her new purple dress. When she’d tried it on, she’d noticed the hem was crooked and puckered. She frowned.
Her grandmother had come down with a headache and was lying down, and her father was at the inn with Levi and Selah, who were discussing an upcoming English wedding, their first one booked. Nina was glad they weren’t involving her in the preparations. She was content with them telling her what they wanted her to do.
For the past few days, Nina had kept busy helping Grossmammi cook and can and making her new dresses. She detested sewing, but it was time she stopped complaining about what she didn’t like to do and just do it. She’d made three of them—this mauve-purple one and a dusty-blue one and a light-green one. Her cleaning job at the inn had also kept her busy. They were even booked until September now, which made Levi and her father especially happy.
She hadn’t talked to Ira since the ill-fated picnic last Saturday, and she’d avoided him at church on Sunday. That was where she’d learned Margaret was his cousin, making her feel like an even bigger fool.
She’d have to face Ira eventually. She couldn’t avoid him in their small district forever. But as long as she could put off that moment, she would.
Yet she was still thinking about him. She believed what her grandmother told her about God healing her heart, but that didn’t keep her mind off Ira.
She was halfway finished with the hem when she heard a knock on the door. Frowning again, she stood. They weren’t expecting anyone as far as she knew, but then again, none of them minded a little company. As long as it’s not Ira. Nina grimaced. She was sure she didn’t have to worry about that.
“Hello,” Margaret said when Nina opened the door.
Nina gaped. Margaret was the last person she’d expected to see on her doorstep. “Uh, hi.”
“Do you mind if I come in? I’d like to talk to you.”
Dumbfounded, Nina nodded and let Margaret inside. She noticed that even the woman’s steps were delicate and graceful, and she felt like an awkward clod next to her. Still, she wouldn’t be rude, especially to someone who didn’t deserve it. And maybe if she pretended her behavior at the pond hadn’t been awkward and strange, Margaret would too.
“May I get you something to drink?”
“Nee, I won’t be here very long.” She sat down on the couch, and a slight frown came over her face.
Forgetting about her insecurity, Nina sat down in the chair across from her. “Is something wrong?”
“Not really.” Margaret looked down at her lap. “I feel a little silly talking about this, but I can’t help it.” Her gaze met Nina’s. “You know mei onkel is having a singing this Sunday, ya?”
Nina nodded, feeling the same pinch in her heart she’d felt when she’d heard about the singing after last Sunday’s church service. The singing Ira didn’t invite her to. “Ya, but I don’t plan on going.”
“Oh. I thought you might.”
Nina shook her head. “I don’t care too much for singings.” Which was true, but that wasn’t the real reason she wasn’t going. She hoped Ira hadn’t told Margaret what she’d admitted to him after she ran away from the pond.
“I think they’re great fun. But, well, I told mei aenti I came to visit Birch Creek to spend time with the family—and that’s true—but I also came for another reason, one I haven’t shared with anyone. Not even her.” She looked a little sheepish. “A few months ago, Aenti Mary wrote to mei mudder about all the single men in this community.”
“Ah,” Nina said, understanding dawning. “And you wanted to see that for yerself.”
Margaret nodded. “I’ve known everyone in mei district since I was a kinn, and I’m not interested in any men there. I thought maybe if I met someone new . . .” She let out a small laugh. “The singing on Sunday is the perfect opportunity.”
“It is,” Nina said in agreement.
“But now that it’s almost here, I’m not so sure. I know girls a few years younger than me will be there, but I really want someone there who’s mei age.” She looked at Nina squarely. “Would you meet me there, so I won’t feel so alone?”
Nina paused. Margaret really had no idea what she was asking. Ira would certainly be there, and that would put an end to her plan to avoid him as long as possible. She also wasn’t sure she had the energy to witness all the single young men in Birch Creek fawn over Margaret.
“Please?” Margaret said. “I know it’s a strange favor to ask, especially since we don’t know each other well. But it would mean so much to me if you would.”
Great. How could Nina turn Margaret down when she knew how important this was to her? “All right,” Nina said, her stomach churning at the idea already.
Margaret grinned. “Oh, danki, Nina. I really appreciate it. And if there’s ever anything I can do for you, just let me know.”
Nina couldn’t help but smile back. Margaret did seem like a genuinely sweet girl. Although it wouldn’t be easy for Nina to do this, it made her feel better to be helping someone. “What time does it start?”
“At five thirty, but how about coming a bit early? That way we can get ready together.”
She nodded but wondered what Margaret meant by “getting ready.” For every singing Nina had been to, she just threw on a dress and made sure her kapp was clean. “Okay,” she said.
Margaret got up from the couch and moved toward the door. “This is going to be so much fun!”
After Nina told her good-bye, she shut the front door and leaned against it. Fun—something she was certain Sunday’s singing would never be.
* * *
Ira paced the length of his bedroom as he waited for the singing to start. His mother and sisters had already shooed him from the basement as they were setting up tables with food and drink—twice. They said they had everything under control and didn’t need help. It wasn’t as if he was going to filch some of the chips and dip Ivy brought, although he’d done that at past singings. But he’d also been a lot younger. Still, he needed something to do or he would go ab im kopp.
He looked in the mirror over his dresser and smoothed down his hair. Margaret had told him about her talk with Nina, which had been her idea. Asking Nina to be here tonight ensured Ira would get a chance to talk to her, and he planned to talk to her alone. That made him a bit nervous, but tonight would be the perfect time to set their relationship back on track. He just wasn’t sure how he was going to do that.
Deciding he couldn’t stay cooped up in his room, he went downstairs. When his foot landed on the last step, he heard a knock on the door. He opened it to find Nina standing there. For some inexplicable reason, his pulse started to race, and he couldn’t take his eyes off her as he swung open the screen door. “Is that a new dress?”
Her cheeks turned red. “Um, ya.”
“It looks . . . nice.”
“Better than mei old tight ones, ya?” She muttered the words as she looked away. “Is Margaret here?”
“Ya,” Margaret said from behind Ira.
He turned around. He hadn’t heard his cousin arrive. She moved past him and threaded her arm through Nina’s. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
“Sorry I’m late. A water pipe burst in one of the guest rooms this afternoon, and it was a big clean-up job.”
“That’s all right. Let’s geh upstairs to mei room.”
The two women glided by him and started up the stairs before Ira could blink. Too-tight dresses? What did Nina mean by that? He always thought her dresses looked fine. Besides, it wasn’t her dress that caught his eye. He said that only because he couldn’t say what he’d really noticed—her rosy cheeks, her soft brown eyes with long, thick lashes, and her perfect nose that had a touch of sunburn. She was the same Nina, but for a reason he couldn’t fathom, she seemed different to him tonight.
He gave his head a quick shake. He couldn’t take his focus off his goal—to get things back to how they’d always been between them. That was what mattered, not how pretty Nina was or how his pulse was still thrumming. Nina would realize their friendship was the important thing, not any romantic thoughts she had about him. She’d get over those. Maybe she already had.
“Why are you standing there with the door open?” Zeke Bontrager—his twin brother, Zeb, trailing behind him—walked past him and into the house. Several of Zeke’s brothers followed, each of them telling him hello and heading straight for the basement.
Once they were all inside, he shut the door and glanced at the stairs. What was taking them so long? He waited a few more minutes for the two women to come down so Margaret could leave him and Nina alone. But when they didn’t appear, he went to the basement. He would wait for Nina there, and then they would talk.
* * *
“You have such pretty eyebrows.”
Nina blinked as Margaret took a tiny rounded brush and ran it over one of her eyebrows and then the other. She had always thought they looked like giant caterpillars above her eyes. It was nice to get a compliment on them by someone as pretty as Margaret.
“I know I probably shouldn’t have this,” she said, slipping the brush back into a tiny black bag. “It’s an old mascara brush I cleaned up, left over from mei rumspringa. But it comes in handy sometimes.” She chuckled. “Sometimes I run it over my eyelashes, just for fun. It reminds me of when I used to wear makeup.”
“You wore makeup?”
“Before joining the church.” She put the bag on her dresser. “There. We look presentable. Are you ready to geh downstairs?”
Nina nodded. She had seen Ira and had survived the encounter. Yes, she was being overly dramatic, but the result was the same—she could be around him without dissolving into a puddle of tears, or anxiety, or whatever. And as long as she stuck to Margaret like a bee on honey, she would continue to survive. That’s all she was hoping for—survival.
They went down to the basement, where the group was already singing. Although according to what she’d heard, more females were there than in years past, many of them were barely old enough to attend a singing. That was fine for the younger boys, like Judah and some of the Bontrager brothers, but a problem for the older young men.
She and Margaret took their places with the other women, well away from the men, and Nina started to softly sing. She made sure she could barely be heard, which was best for everyone concerned. She also avoided looking at Ira. When they took a break from singing, she and Margaret made their way to the refreshment table, and several young men followed them. Or at least they were following Margaret, which wasn’t surprising.
“Hey, Nina.”
She turned around to see Zeb holding two cups of apple cider.
“Hey, Zeb.” He was a nice guy, on the quiet side, and different from his twin, Zeke.
“Would you like a drink?” He held out one of the cups. “I’ve already tried the cider. It’s really gut. And it’s cold.”
“Danki.” She accepted the cup and took a sip. “You’re right. It is delicious.”
“Phoebe made it,” Zeb said, referring to his sister, who was the oldest and only female among the Bontrager siblings.
“Then I’m not surprised it’s gut.”
Zeb glanced down at his feet, a lock of his sandy-brown hair falling over his forehead. “I, uh, wondered if you have a ride home tonight.”
Nina’s brow shot up. Zeb was asking to take her home? That usually meant . . . Oh boy. She couldn’t believe it. Zeb Bontrager was interested in her.
His cheeks grew red. “If you do, that’s fine. I just didn’t want you to walk home by yerself.”
She had to smile. He had a sweet if oafish way about him, and she was flattered. “That’s very nice of you, Zeb, but I don’t want you to geh to any trouble.”
“It’s nee trouble.” He smiled back. “I don’t mind taking you home.”
“You’re not taking her home.”
Nina and Zeb both looked at Ira, who had appeared out of nowhere. He suddenly took Nina by the arm and practically dragged her away from Zeb and to the basement’s back door.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Nina said, looking at Ira’s hand on her arm.
He let go. “I was about to ask you the same thing. How can you consider going home with Zeb?”
“I never said I was.” Nina scowled, wondering why Ira would ever consider Zeb a problem. Did he know something about him she didn’t? Or was he just interfering for some reason that made no sense? Either way, how dare he manhandle her?
“But if I do geh home with him,” she said, “it’s not yer business.”
Ira scoffed. “Oh ya, it is.”
“Since when?”
“Since . . . since . . .”
Nina lifted her chin. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to enjoy the rest of the singing.” She turned and went back to Margaret, who held several of the Bontrager boys’ rapt attention, even the ones too young for her. Zeb was listening just as attentively when Nina stopped beside him. “I’d like that ride home,” she told him, and then she turned and glared at Ira. If she needed a reason to forget about him, he’d just given her one.