The Second Cup in the Cupboard

Chapter 1Two Blue Cups

Bubby took down two blue cups.

Then she put one back.

Yossi looked at the cupboard from the kitchen doorway.

Since Zeidy had died in the winter, Bubby sometimes reached for two without thinking. One had a little chip beneath its handle. That was the one Zeidy had used.

Bubby's rose-coloured tichel was tied neatly above her apron.

"Do you want tea, Yossi?"

"Water, please."

She set his glass on the tray beside her cup.

Yossi had brought a book of riddles.

He decided it had arrived just in time.

Chapter 2The First Riddle

He asked the funniest one before Bubby sat down.

She smiled.

He asked another.

This time she didn't hear the ending. She was looking at a small photograph beside the window.

"Bubby?"

"Sorry. Say it again."

He repeated it more loudly.

She smiled again, but her eyes were wet.

Yossi turned quickly to the next page.

If he found a better riddle, perhaps he could make the whole room feel like last year's visits.

Chapter 3Not a Good Enough Joke

Three riddles later, Bubby put the book gently on the table.

"May we rest the questions for a minute?"

Yossi's fingers stayed on the page.

"I thought you'd like them."

"I do. I'm also missing Zeidy today."

He looked at the photograph.

"But we're having a nice visit."

Bubby nodded.

"We are."

That wasn't the answer he expected.

He had thought the visit could be nice or she could be sad. He didn't know where both things would sit at the same table.

Chapter 4The Walk to the Gate

When Mama came to collect him, Bubby thanked him for visiting.

Yossi carried the riddle book down the path.

Mama's navy sheitel was covered by a rain scarf. She asked why he was quiet.

"I didn't cheer her up enough."

"Did she say that was your job?"

"No. But she cried a little."

Mama stopped at the gate.

"You can keep her company. You don't have to make missing Zeidy disappear."

Yossi looked back at Bubby's window.

He still wished he could.

Wishing hadn't made the book responsible for the whole afternoon either.

Chapter 5What She Wanted

The next time he visited, Yossi brought the book but left it closed at first.

"Would you like riddles, a game, or company while you sort your knitting?"

Bubby chose the knitting basket.

He held the loose ends while she wound a small ball.

There were long quiet parts.

Yossi almost asked whether she was feeling better.

Instead, he asked which colour should go in the little side pocket.

"The pale green," she said.

He put it there.

It was one answer he could actually use.

Chapter 6Zeidy's Thread

Bubby found a short piece of red wool tangled around a button.

"Your grandfather used to save bits like this," she said. "He was sure every bit would be useful one day."

Yossi remembered Zeidy tying a loose box lid with three different scraps.

He told her.

Bubby laughed, then wiped her eyes.

Yossi stayed beside the basket.

He didn't change the subject immediately or demand another laugh to prove the memory had helped.

"I miss his boxes," he said.

"So do I."

They freed the button and put the wool with the other short ends.

Chapter 7The Call for Mama

After a while, Bubby asked whether Mama could stay for tea when she came.

Yossi said he would ask.

He didn't promise that he would visit every afternoon so Bubby would never be lonely.

His school, homework, and own evenings still existed.

Mama could help arrange visits with the family. Bubby could ask grownups for the company she wanted.

When Mama arrived, Yossi told her about the tea request.

She came inside and sat with Bubby.

Yossi carried the knitting basket to its shelf.

He didn't need to be the only person holding a quiet afternoon together.

Chapter 8One Riddle Later

Before they left, Bubby asked for one riddle.

Yossi chose a short one.

She guessed wrong and laughed at the answer.

Then she looked toward the photograph again.

Yossi closed the book without disappointment in its last page.

The laugh had been real.

So had the missing.

He kissed Bubby goodbye and agreed to the family visit planned for Tuesday, not an endless promise made because her eyes were wet.

In the cupboard, the second blue cup stayed on its shelf.

It wasn't something Yossi needed to hide, replace, or make Bubby stop reaching for before he could come again.

He could bring a book.

He could also bring himself, with room to listen.