Chapter 3

While arriving at the Peterson estate, Callum noticed that, unlike every day since he started working there, the curtains in Faith's bedroom were still closed and she wasn't running her usual track around the property. Every day without fail, for a whole week, he had seen her open the curtains early in the morning, soak up the sun in front of the window and then go for a run around the property.

She's just like Rapunzel. Rarely leaves her tower. I hope she's okay... He thought. It's not like he was paying too much attention to her or anything like that, but it was the only time of the day he saw her out and about, aside from work-related tasks in the orchard. It was rare for anyone to catch a glimpse of her. If he didn't know she was indeed a real person, Callum could almost swear she was a ghost, wondering around the halls of the house, a mere spectre that one could only see through the corner of their eyes when glancing at the windows.

As Callum got ready to start working, he found himself recalling last night's events. He barely knew Faith and yet, for some reason, it had pained him so much to see her cry like that. Maybe the reason it disturbed him so much was the fact that it reminded him of his own breakup. The breakup he had spent the last months avoiding. He thought that if he took a break, went away for a while, and completely ignored the fact that his girlfriend was cheating on him with his best friend, that everything would be okay. That he would be okay. But he was starting to realize that it wasn't that simple. He wasn't okay. And he wasn't sure when he would be. The betrayal he felt was too much for him to even describe. The two people he trusted the most broke something in him that he didn't know how to fix, something he didn't know if it was even fixable. How will I ever trust someone again? He wondered as he felt drawn to take another look at Faith's window.

Time to work. Rapunzel is very demanding with her gardens. Callum smirked as he thought of Faith as a princess stuck in her castle, sneaking around the beautiful gardens in the morning fog, when everyone else was still a sleep. He wasn't sure why, but that's how he pictured her, and besides, she was already known as the town's princess, anyway. Although he was a newcomer in town, even he knew that town princess was Faith's title amongst the local gossipers. Callum wondered how that royal title began. It sounded innocent, but he realized that, for whatever reason, Faith didn't seem to like it one bit, and that made him even more curious about it. And for some reason it also made him want to call her princess more often.

Faith, as per usual, opened her eyes as soon as the sun started to rise. But unlike most days, she didn't feel like running or to do her chores or anything at all. The dinner with Ronnie and his parents took a toll on her. She was aware that she had been the one breaking up the engagement, and she wouldn't take back her decision, nonetheless, it wasn't an easy thing to do. She knew that she had disappointed everyone. And no matter how much she told herself that she was okay, the truth was, she wasn't.

She sat at her desk, right under the window, overlooking the gardens and the orchard, her favourite view, opened her laptop and browsed to the folders where she had hidden her memories with Ronnie. They knew each other since they were kids and they always got along pretty well. Their relationship hadn't been based on love and they both knew it, but despite that they still had a lot of good moments together, they were friends after all. But friendship wasn't enough, not for her. And she didn't want Ronnie to settle for friendship, either. He was truly a good guy. A perfect catch. Nice, smart, good looking, successful and charming. He deserves someone that loves him. Someone that looks at him just like in the movies. And as selfish as it might be, I want that too. She thought as she glanced at the pictures. In all of them, they simply looked like good friends and nothing else.

The next folder was the one Faith was dreading and the one she knew she had to delete. She felt like her laptop was staring right back at her, judging her, as she pressed delete on the wedding folder. The folder where she kept everything regarding their wedding. The wedding that almost happened, and that she cancelled just a week before the due date. She took a deep breath. Delete.

"I was wondering if you were sick. It's been years since you've woken up this late," Lydia said while pouring Faith some freshly brewed coffee. "I was about to go upstairs to check on you."

"I've been up for a while. There was just something I wanted to take care of first."

Faith took a sip of the coffee and again was astonished at how similar it tasted to the one she had last night with Callum. It's just coffee... She thought, and yet there was something about it. Lydia ground the coffee every morning and brewed it with care, slowly pouring in the water. Nowhere else did the coffee taste exactly the same, except last night.

"Lydia, about the coffee..."

"What about it?"

"How did you learn how to make it?"

"Kade thought me. His wife was a huge coffee lover. She couldn't live without her caffeine, a bit like you." Lydia had a nostalgic smile as she talked about her late friend. "But why? You don't like it anymore? Is there something different about it?"

"It's perfect. As usual. I was just curious about it." So, they both learned how to make it with Mr Grant...

Lydia frowned but didn't ask any more questions. She was used to Faith paying attention to the tiniest of details and obsessing over them, so instead, she put a plate of raspberry scones in front of her. "Eat."

"Yes, mam." Faith took a bite and couldn't believe how good they were. Crispy at the top and edges, buttery on the inside, and the raspberries balanced out the sweetness perfectly. "These are amazing. New recipe?"

"Tweaked the old one a bit."

"Are you going to give it to me?" Faith grinned.

Lydia raised an eyebrow. "Are you ever going to make them yourself, or are you just going to keep asking me to do it?"

"I'll bake them with you?" They both chuckled.

"Deal. I'll hold you to that. But I should stop indulging your sweet tooth."

"Please don't, Lydia. Your pastries and your food are the one thing I can always rely on. I need to drown my sorrows in your scones and in your muffins and..." Faith took another scone off the plate right before Lydia snatched it and put it away.

"What sorrows? Being too dramatic again, aren't you?" Lydia poured herself another cup of coffee and sat beside Faith by the kitchen island. "You did the right thing, love. You know you have my full support. Now, stop feeling sorry for yourself and move on."

"Thank you." Faith wrapped her arms around Lydia. "For always being here for me."

"Go on now, don't make me tear up. You know I cry easily." Lydia placed a kiss on Faith's cheek. "Finish your breakfast and go to work. The fall festival won't get ready on its own. And you are needed at the orchard."

"Yes, mam." Faith smiled tenderly at Lydia. "What would I do without you?"

"Drink bad coffee and starve to death or eat crappy sweets from the store." They chuckled.

After her breakfast and her time with Lydia, Faith felt ready to face the day. She always did after eating something made by Lydia and spending time with her. Lydia always knew what to say and with her, Faith could always be fully herself.

At lunch, Faith met with the event planner, that was getting everything ready for the fall festival that was going to take place at the Peterson farm in the middle of October. The fall festival was just a couple of weeks away and Faith had to make sure that the apples were ready for picking, that the pumpkins were ready for carving, that the food trucks and beverages would be there, as well as the band and decorations. The festival was an old tradition in town, but this was the first time Faith was fully in charge of it. She had helped out since she was a kid, but this year the responsibility was all hers and she didn't shy away from it.

In the middle of the afternoon, despite the rocky start her day had, she was done with her work and chores. That's how Faith Peterson operated. Despite her clumsiness, she was methodical and competent and got the job done better and before anyone else did. She had always been like that, even in school, for the most part she was always a straight-A student. But for what she had in knowledge and work ethic, Faith lacked in the personal life department.

Faith never had many friends — in fact Mira was the only really close friend she ever had — nor boyfriends. Aside from Ronnie, she had one other boyfriend during her years at university. Well... she couldn't necessarily call him a boyfriend since they only went on a few dates and none of the dates went particularly well. In fact, during the last the one, Faith managed to accidentally spill her entire drink on his pants. Despite this, Faith didn't feel lonely or incomplete at all. Her career fulfilled her, and her family and Mira were everything to her, but the hopeless romantic in her dreamt of more. But even though she was a hopeless romantic, Faith never acted on it. She only acted out multiple scenarios in her head as she stared at the horizon or the sky, or an empty wall. She would daydream about romances like the ones in books, but never gave herself the chance of having one of her own. She had always been too busy trying to be perfect and failing miserably at it.

On her to find Mr Grant, Faith took a stroll through the garden. The flowers were still in full bloom. She couldn't help but to look at them. She had always been fascinated by nature, probably the result of growing up surrounded by it. Kade and Callum were working on the garden just a little ahead of where she was, so she took her time getting there, taking the opportunity to stare at the flowers and study them. But because of having her gaze on the flowers, Faith failed to see the giant hole in front of her and fell right into it.