For this week’s 15 random words I’m using:

• 1 word that was left in the comments of last week’s post:

avocado

• 14 words from https://randomwordgenerator.com. To the right is a screen print of the words it gave me:

large – vegetable – rich – quantity – flash – bulb – second – position – tax – scratch – money – ranch – define – grow

Below is the short-short I wrote using these words creating a scene using the characters from To Love and To Cherish. Unlike the book, which was written entirely from Nash’s POV, this scene is from “Grampy’s” POV. Like today, this scene takes place the day after Thanksgiving (USA), which is also the day after the book ends.

“What are you two up to?” I startled a bit at Emmitt’s words. I hadn’t heard him enter the condo.

His practice wasn’t holding office hours today, since it was the day after Thanksgiving, but he’d been on call and had rushed out to take care of an emergency this morning. I laughed, because it was wonderful to see my grandson smiling so widely. He and Nash grinned at each other like a couple of loons. Ha!

Emmitt kissed my cheek while Nash replied. “We’re making a vegetable guacamole.”

Nash’s kiss lasted longer than the chaste one I’d received. I chuckled again, thinking about the role I’d played in bringing those two dunderheads together. Not that they weren’t both plenty book-smart. You just wouldn’t know it judging by how they’d run their personal lives before I’d stepped in to sort things out for them. I sure wouldn’t have bet good money on their chances without my so-called interference.

When they came up for air, Emmitt glanced over my shoulder at the TV. The second half of the Washington, Washington State matchup was on. The Oregon game would be starting at four.

Nash held out his hand, and I plopped the final avocado into it. Emmitt nodded toward it and said, “Those are rich in fiber, Grampy.”

My grandson never missed an opportunity to push anything high in fiber on me. Just to be contrary I replied, “I’m kinda in the mood to dunk my chips in a ranch dip. Do you think we could make some of that, too, Nash?”

Emmitt snorted. He knew I was messing with him. Nash grimaced at first, but I knew the moment the figurative light bulb lit up over his head as he realized I was just having a little fun with them. The eye roll was a dead giveaway. It only took about three seconds, so it didn’t tax his brain too much.

“I’ll be back in a flash,” Emmitt said. He darted toward the stairway leading to the master bedroom.

He’d said the same thing this morning. Maybe he needed to define “flash” for us.

“Since Emmitt’s home,” Nash said, “let’s get these tortillas fried up.”

We had a large quantity of corn tortillas already cut up into chip-sized wedges. Nash spread a little grapeseed oil on the preheated griddle then began to position the tortilla wedges, carefully spacing them out.

“I’ll get out the sandwich fixin’s,” I said. I wasn’t overly steady on my feet yet and still used a cane. Probably would for the rest of my life, for the added stability. But the refrigerator was just across from the island where we would set up our little buffet line, so I could handle transporting the bit of leftover turkey Gil and Julia had so kindly sent home with us, along with some lettuce, onion, sliced tomatoes, and mayo to the countertop.

In no time at all, the buffet line was ready to go, and a freshly showered Emmitt rejoined us, passing out another round of kisses. A collateral benefit of Emmitt wanting to smooch on Nash all the time was that I got bonus kisses to my upturned cheek. Not that Emmitt had ever neglected me in the past—on the contrary, he’d always been very attentive and loving toward me—but I wallowed in the extra attention I was reaping now. From Nash, too. I couldn’t have asked for a better grandson-in-law if I’d picked him out myself. Which, of course, I had done.

We settled in the living room so we could watch the football games while we ate. Emmitt sat next to Nash on the sofa. I kept my eyes on the TV to give them a little privacy (or at least the appearance thereof). Couldn’t close my ears, though. I let my imagination have a little fun trying to figure out what was causing the scritchy-scratch noise coming from their direction.

Nash had announced this morning that he might try to grow a beard, so he had a face full of stubble. It wasn’t too much of a stretch to picture Emmitt running his fingernails across it. The added unmistakable sound of lips smacking confirmed that to my satisfaction.

“Are you two going to make another attempt to go see The Little Mermaid?” I asked, partly to save them from getting too worked up over there, but mostly because it would be fun to see if I could make them squirm. They’d never given me a complete explanation for whatever had happened when their recent date night at the 5^th Avenue Theater dissolved with a bit of drama.

I turned around at the sound of Nash falling into a coughing fit. Emmitt raised a feigned censorious eyebrow at me, but I knew he was enjoying Nash’s equally affected discomfort. When Nash caught his breath, he bit his lip and turned cow eyes toward Emmitt.

Emmitt grinned and snickered. “Of course we can still go see it.”

Yeah, Nash already had Emmitt wrapped around his little finger. After all, he was learning from a master, so I expected no less.

Once again, because I can’t resist a good challenge, I’ll take the first 15 prompt words given to me in the comments, below, for next week’s Flash Fiction Friday post. One word per commenter, please. I’ll make up the difference using the random word generator site if I don’t get 15 here.

Click here for more information and review & buy links for To Love and To Cherish.