I wrote a fun chapter playing around with the characters from my concept line, Trash and Treasure.
The quiet hum of the nearly empty classroom was interrupted by Reya’s loud declaration:
“Crochet? Pfft, how hard can it be?”
Sage stiffened slightly, the crochet hook poised delicately in her hand. She looked up from her nearly finished green scarf, her expression a mix of skepticism and irritation.
“It’s not hard if you pay attention,” she replied, her Southern drawl coming out just a bit sharper than usual.
“I always pay attention,” Reya said confidently, flopping into the chair next to her. “Show me how to make, I dunno, a hat. Hats are cool.”
Milo, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed, smirked. “This should be fun.”
Sage sighed. “Fine. But you gotta promise to listen.” She rummaged through her bag and handed Reya a ball of light blue yarn and a spare hook.
Lilith, seated nearby and sketching in her notebook, glanced up. “I’d love to learn, too,” she said, setting her pencil down. “I’ve always wanted to make a cute hat for myself.”
Sage’s eyes darted between Lilith and Reya. Her hands tightened on her crochet hook. “Sure,” she muttered. “Why not?”
Sage started by demonstrating the chain stitch. Her hands moved fluidly, creating a neat row of loops.
“See? Simple,” she said, holding it up.
Reya stared at the chain with exaggerated concentration. “Got it. Chain stitch. Easy.” She gripped her hook like it was a weapon, jabbing it into the yarn.
“No, no, gently,” Sage corrected, wincing.
Reya loosened her grip, but somehow the yarn still ended up in a tangled knot. “Uh… is this supposed to happen?”
“No,” Sage said flatly, taking the mess from Reya’s hands. “You’re not even holding the yarn right. Here.” She positioned Reya’s fingers.
Reya tried again. The knot got bigger.
“This is impossible!” Reya declared, throwing her hands up. The hook flew out of her hand and narrowly missed Milo, who ducked with a laugh.
“You’ve been at it for two minutes,” Sage snapped, her frustration bubbling over. “You can’t expect to be good right away.”
Meanwhile, Lilith had quietly started her project. “I think I’m getting the hang of this,” she said, holding up what looked like a very tiny hat.
Sage’s jaw dropped. “What is that?”
“A hat,” Lilith said proudly.
“It’s the size of a teacup!” Sage exclaimed.
“Oh,” Lilith said, tilting her head. “I might have… miscounted the stitches?”
Milo chuckled, walking over to inspect Lilith’s creation. “That’s not a hat. That’s a hat for a doll. Maybe a rat doll.”
“Don’t encourage her!” Sage groaned.
Reya was now thoroughly entangled in her yarn. “Help! I think I’m turning into a cocoon!”
Sage buried her face in her hands. “How did you even do that?”
Reya grinned sheepishly. “Talent.”
Milo took a seat across from them, casually working on a small steel sculpture. “Y’know, Sage, maybe you’re just not a good teacher.” The loud squeak of metal punctuates his sentence as he bends the metal with pliers.
Sage glared at him. “Excuse me?”
“You’re so focused on doing it perfectly that you’re forgetting they’re beginners,” Milo said with a shrug. “Maybe you should let them mess up a little.”
“That’s what she’s been doing!” Sage shot back, gesturing at Reya, who was now attempting to untangle herself with her feet like she was in a cartoon.
“Okay, but hear me out,” Milo said, smirking. “What if you just give up on teaching them and let them crochet chaos?”
Reya brightened. “I like that plan!”
Lilith looked thoughtful. “Chaos crochet… that could be an art movement.”
“No!” Sage cried. “Crochet is supposed to be neat and organized! The only way you can free-hand a pattern is if you already know how to crochet!”
After what felt like an eternity, Reya managed to make a wobbly chain stitch.
“Look! I did it!” she said, holding it up like a trophy.
“It’s… something,” Sage said begrudgingly.
Lilith, meanwhile, had adjusted her pattern and made a slightly larger hat. It still wouldn’t fit a human head, but at least it was progress.
“Thanks for teaching us, Sage,” Lilith said with a warm smile.
Sage softened a little. “You’re welcome. Just… maybe don’t call me for help next time.”
Reya grinned. “Oh, don’t worry. I’ve got this now.” She said, not realizing that each time she pulled her project, it unraveled little until she was just holding yarn. Reya looked down in shock at the unraveled yarn in her hands.
Milo laughed so hard he almost fell out of his chair.
Sage sighed, but despite her irritation, she couldn’t help the small smile that tugged at her lips. Maybe, just maybe, this wasn’t so bad after all.
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