“Dunno, Jimmi.” Patrick stared at his cell and the clouds that gathered there. Building themselves into a wall of alarming color, they ticked across the screen until the county outline was obliterated, over and over again. “Weathercast says storms all day. The summer festival is gonna be a washout.”       

“You spend too dam’ much time on that phone, fool,” Jimmi said mildly. Glancing up from his book, Kerouac’s ‘On the Road: the Original Scroll’ he added, “My trick knee says this’ll pass through quickly, once it clears out yesterday’s dust and heat.”

The two sat in silence on their respective benches outside their stores in the shaded, stone-floored hallway that ran between their two businesses. Patrick, the younger, was a believer in music. His store windows were fully covered in vintage vinyl, a light behind each one to showcase the variety and fine artwork that drew in collectors.

Jimmi dealt in televisions and all the technology that went with them. He preferred literature but was a practical man. Attracting just enough well-monied customers to keep him afloat and put away extra for retirement, his business left him time enough to read all his favorites during work hours. Neither expected the summer festival to bring in their preferred clientele, but new buyers might wander in to escape the rain.

Phonso, seated further down the hallway, snorted in half-sleep. Same conversation every day. Same weather blowing through, too. He lifted his head, amused, as blazing morning sun faded to heavy cloud cover.

© Liz Husebye Hartmann (2024)

Many thanks to Jenne Gray and C.E. Ayr for their photo prompt, The Unicorn Challenge (07/05/2024). No more than 250 words in length.