Apples and Trees
Story - Conclusion to Pool, Punctuation, and Citations
And now, the conclusion to Pool, Punctuation, and Citations.
Outside the Chunky Monkey after the Championship Match
Winter’s boot heels clunk against the asphalt in the parking lot. He reaches into his coat pocket. He finds only lint.
“Looking for these,” Gwen tosses the keys to Winter.
“My girl! You really put on one heck of a show in there.”
“I learned from the best. You know, you could've said something on the way out. It's not every day that some punk gets to beat her old man for the title.”
“I didn't have any catch phrases handy. Here, you drive,” Winter tosses the keys back to Gwen, “and why on earth would you tell them your name is Gwenny-Bird?”
“It's the first thing that came to mind. Now, which one opens this door?”
“There are only three keys on the ring. It's the blue one.”
“You know they sell cars with fobs now, right? We probably cleared enough tonight to get you one.”
“Ain't nothing wrong with Ol’ Freya. Let’s get on the road. We've got to get back home to help your mom finish packing. Costa Rica awaits.”
Gwen presses the clutch and brake and turns the key in the ignition. Freya fires right up. “I hope you're going to leave that god-awful jacket at home.”
“You bought me this jacket.”
“I was a different person then.”
“That was two months ago.”
“Time is irrelevant. People change.”
“You've got some sense of humor,” Winter laughs. “Gwenny-Bird.”
“Apples and trees, dad. Apples and trees.”
Ninjastroni 2026
Thanks for reading!
Loved reading this again. 💜 Still makes me smile. I'm glad you posted it for others to enjoy! 🙂