Coming Right Up

I reach the bakery just as someone turns the sign to OPEN.

“I am an amazing good luck generator.”

Breakfast seems like a fine place to start.

Inside, a woman is sliding warm rolls onto a tray. One has come loose from its neighbor, leaving a soft edge that steams when she pulls it apart.

I order it with coffee and butter.

There is an empty table by the window. I settle into the chair, stretch my legs, and take out my phone.

Yesterday, someone bought one of my books. This morning, she has sent a message. She meant to read one chapter before bed.

She read three.

I remember reading those sentences aloud in an empty room, stopping to change a word and starting again. Now I picture the book open in someone else’s hands, the bedside lamp glowing.

“Something positively amazing is unfolding for me right now!”

I begin typing a reply. Halfway through, I read it once and smile.

Thank you. I’m so glad you’re enjoying it.

I press send.

“I get out of the way, and the blessings come pourin’ in!”

My breakfast arrives. I put the phone in my pocket and make room for the plate.

The roll opens easily in my hands. Butter slips into the warm middle. A few crumbs fall onto the table, and I gather them with my fingertip.

“Money flows easily into my life.”

I lift my cup and take a sip.

For a little while, I sit with the pleasure of it: someone stayed up late with a story I wrote. Someone else has been up making bread, and here I am, eating it warm.

Sunlight reaches the handle of my cup. Its curved shadow stretches across the table.

There is a pen in my pocket.

I turn the receipt over to its blank side and write the first sentence of something new.