“It hurts a little but I’ll be okay.”

“I figured you might say that, “reaching on the tray she grabs a tall glass of water and two ibuprofens placing them in her hand. “Here take these.” Alice taking both the glass and the pain medicine pops them into her mouth and then washes it down with the water. Tasha then takes the glass from her and gives her back her cup of tea.

“Better, “Tasha says.

“Yes better.”

“I didn’t think it would be best to make you any solid food because your lip is still sore so I made you some vegan chicken noodle soup.”

Alice was speechless all she could do was stare at her in admiration.

“Sorry I don’t have a television but I do get the morning paper so it’s on the tray if you would like to read it.”

Never noticing it before, “You don’t have a tv?”

“Nope, or no cell phone or radio.”

“If you don’t mind me asking—–but why?”

“When you have been deprived of so much for so long it humbles you so coming back certain things became wants while others became needs.”

“What determines one from the other?”

Tasha smiles.

“Yeah, I know I’m asking too many questions——sorry I just really miss talking with you.”

“Don’t be its okay, uhmmm well a perfect example would be tv, radio, computer, cell phone things like that are wants things I don’t need and can live without.”

“I understand,” Alice says taking a sip of her tea. “And what is it that you need?”

“You.”

“Me.”

“Yes, you——–you’re the need I can’t live without.”

Hearing those words warmed Alice heart and she smiled bashfully.

Tasha noticing she had finished her tea gently takes the cup out of her hands and hands her the entire tray with her soup on it.

Taking a slurp of her soup, “Wow, this is really good the spinach taste really fresh!”

“Well it should be.”

“Did you get it from a market nearby?”

“No, actually it came from my garden.”

“Your garden?”

“Yes, when I bought the property this cottage wasn’t what impressed me it was the land itself. I wanted to keep myself occupied as much as possible so I started a garden and vineyard.”