Pears on the 21st floor

Penny slowly walked toward the floor-to-ceiling glass window in her two-bedroom apartment on the twenty-first floor on Lake Shore Drive, holding her mug of freshly brewed coffee. She smiled back at the sunbeam that was already peeking through the glass and gently stroked the leaves of the pear tree, growing in a large flowerpot next to the window, then sat at her self-designed armchair and silently gazed at the picturesque view. She had been living in one of Chicago’s most famous and recognizable buildings—Mies Van Der Rohe, twin apartment towers—for the last two years, and she loved it. The flat provided a spacious layout and all the modern amenities she needed, and living in the Gold Coast neighborhood was suitable and convenient for busy city life, not to mention the stunning views of Lake Michigan and the downtown Chicago skyline it afforded her.

It was Saturday morning, but for Penny, it was just another busy day. The sun was rising over Lake Michigan in vibrant orange-yellowish colors, making the sunrise cosmic-like and welcoming. Boats and yachts were swaying down in the water, and Penny remembered about the invitation to a yacht party tonight, which she would probably miss, as usual. For her twenty-seven years, she was a successful young lady, building her own company from a scratch. She’d begun two years ago, after graduating from The Illinois Institute of Technology, where she had majored in industrial technology and design and become passionate about creating furniture for people with disabilities.

Penny was enjoying her quiet morning, lost in her thoughts about her new armchair design until her best friend and roommate darted into the room.

Jessy was wearing her usual youthful smile, as always, bearing a small tray of freshly cut pears.

“Can you smell it already?” Jessy held out the tray, then pulled it back teasingly. “Now that I got your attention, want to remind you that today is the day. The landscaping company is down there, and they will begin shortly.” Jessy finally passed her the tray of fruit.

“How kind of you!” Penny looked at her tensely. She was having a hard time pulling herself out of her project. “And, no, today will be Penny’s Day. I have to go over lots of details and calculations.” She smiled nervously and bit a piece of the juicy fruit.

“I see now why trees are keeping you better company.” Jessy kissed her forehead and headed to the front door. “If you change your mind, I’ll be down there with hot guys. Do not hesitate to crash the party.” Jessy smiled widely and winked.

Penny waved goodbye and buried herself in her work.

She and Jessy had become best friends in their first semester at the Institute. They were both children of first-generation immigrants from Europe whose parents had worked many long, hard hours to make their children’s dreams come true. Despite their differences, Jessy and Penny remained very good friends, supportive and empathetic, enough to keep a friendship of more than five years solid. Very creative and ambitious young women, they were already harvesting the accomplishments of their hard work.

Jessy, too, was a successful graduate from The Illinois Institute of Technology with a major in landscape architecture and had a few successful projects done around the Chicago area.

Penny was so absorbed in work that she did not notice it was already noon. She slowly stood up, stretching her body, when her phone played the message tone. She looked at it, annoyed, thinking it might be Jessy. To her surprise, the message was from the currier who was bringing the parts she needed to build the prototype of her newly designed armchair. Excited, Penny was in the corridor in no time, eagerly pressing the elevator button.

She sped up her steps when she saw the currier, thanked him politely, then turned to the doorman for help with the bulky package. She was standing impatiently by the windows in the common area, waiting for the doorman to bring the cart, when she saw Jessy outside, holding a flowerpot with a hydrangea plant, talking to a man in a green shirt. Penny hesitated for a moment, then went outside to check on Jessy.

“No way, her majesty left her chamber. To what do we owe this honor?”

Jessy looked at Penny, excited, ready for her sarcastic answer. Penny frowned her forehead but gave a friendly reply: “The stuff to build the prototype of my new chair has just been delivered. So, I am returning to my chamber shortly. You all are doing an amazing job here, obviously.” She smiled teasingly and turned to go back to her apartment.

The man was watching the two women, intrigued by Penny’s appearance.

Penny walked a few steps toward the building and stumbled over a big flowerpot with a tree in it.

Jessy couldn’t hold her laugh. “Perhaps we should wrap the flowerpots around with flickering lights, and maybe even make them vocal.” She giggled harder.

Penny did not even look at her, and to her surprise, she discovered that the potted tree was a pear tree. She recognized the medium-sized, oval-shaped green leaves, and her best guess was that this was most likely a Bradford pear tree, very popular in urban areas.

“You did not mention you were going to plant fruit trees in Van der Rohe Plaza. This is something new and unusual for city landscaping,” Penny finally said.

Jessy smiled. “No, silly, this tree is not part of my project.” Before she could explain, the man with the green shirt stepped in.

“The tree is for my grandma. I apologize for the confusion. We had to take it out from the trunk so we could drop off the other plants,” he said and smiled at Penny.

Still embarrassed by her clumsiness, Penny looked at him. Their eyes froze in that moment, as if they were coming from an ancient time.

Penny shook her head like waking up from a dream and with a husky voice, breathing frequently, introduced herself: “How silly of me, I am Penny.” She gave her hand for a handshake.

“Steve.” The man smiled and shook her hand gently. “And you are quite an expert on trees, it seems. Perhaps I could rely on your expertise.”

“I am a designer, quite an expert in creating chairs for people with disabilities.” Penny was watching him with interest.

Jessy couldn’t believe her eyes. She had not seen her friend interested in a man for as long as she had known her. She had even started to worry a bit whether Penny would ever consider a date.

Today, Penny was glowing, and she couldn’t have been happier for her friend.

“Very interesting!” Steve couldn’t take his eyes off Penny either. “I would like to take a look at your designs. I am looking for something new for my grandma.”

“Of course! I have a website you can check on. And I am open to new ideas and custom-made designs if you are interested,” said Penny excitedly and started to look for a piece of paper.

Steve handed her his company’s business card. “Here, I’ve got your back.” He smiled and turned the card to the blank side. His eyes continued to stroke her face gently. Penny was mesmerized by his glowing hazel eyes. They gazed at each other longer while she was handing back the card, until finally, Penny waved goodbye and quickly walked back into the building.

By the end of that day, she had caught herself staring into space several times, thinking about Steve. However, her work took up all her time and energy until around Christmastime. The project was a success.

Finally, Penny fell peacefully into thoughts about Steve one winter morning while gazing at the sunrise. She was scrolling down her emails, and surprisingly, she saw that Steve had sent her an email a few days ago, regarding one of her armchairs.

“Dear Penny, my grandma was very satisfied by the armchair we bought her for Christmas. She would like to meet you and thank you personally, if possible, and share some thoughts about pear trees as well.” There was a smiley face emoji at the end of the sentence, at which Penny smiled back unawares.

She was thrilled. In a few days, she was driving to the suburbs to meet Steve’s grandma, thinking it might not be such a bad idea to move to live in the suburbs, away from the buzz of the big city. After all, her pear tree would be much better if grown in a garden instead of in a flowerpot.

She chuckled at her last thought.

Penny couldn’t forget those hazel eyes that had often visited her dreams in the last few months. How could she!

Since the day they met, Steve had been looking for her warm, brown eyes in the eyes of strangers. She had built a home in his soul, a home that he’d been carrying around with him the past few months. He was longing for her visit more than he realized.

He nervously opened the door, inviting her in. Penny walked into the room warmed by the flickering of the fireplace, her heart pounding fast. The Christmas decorations added festiveness and warmth she couldn’t remember feeling for a very long time. It made her feel dreamy and lost in time.

Steve’s grandma was sitting comfortably in the chair Penny had designed, in front of the fireplace. Memories dawned over Penny, of her grandparents sitting like this, but in uncomfortable chairs, close to each other, holding hands and chatting ’til both fell asleep. This was the reason why Penny wanted to design chairs for elderly people, so they could rest comfortably.

The two women chatted for hours. Steve was quietly sitting around, enjoying the magical atmosphere. He couldn’t take his eyes off Penny. With every word she said, it changed his breathing and made him feel like everything now made sense, because before Penny, nothing had made sense.

Any time Penny looked at him, she chattered a bit, and even blushed. The warmth of a true home created a special bond between the three of them. She realized that the longer she stayed in this home, the harder it would be to leave. Ever!

Steve walked her out to the front door, talking about his new project that would start next spring.

“I might design a few benches, if you like. I am always open to new challenges,” said Penny.

Steve loved the idea of working with Penny. What better opportunity to see her again?

“I look forward to discussing new ideas with you. I hope the Starbucks around your apartment offers the seasonal Caramel Brulee Latte. See you there next week?” Steve looked at her, hopeful.

“If not, we could always check the Starbucks in your area.” Penny laughed.

From that moment on, she knew this was the beginning of something she’d longed for the last few months, and she realized she finally had to face her fears.

“She is a keeper, Steve.” His grandma smiled. “A woman with a heart and passion. All that you need to turn a house into a home, you know what I mean. I am looking forward to spring, when we both will plant our pear trees in the garden where they belong. You won’t disappoint an old lady, would you?”

It was time for Steve to face his fears as well. Deep inside, he knew Penny was the woman he wanted to plant trees in their garden.

Penny, too, was looking forward to planting her pear tree in Steve’s garden and enjoying watching it grow and change throughout the seasons, just as she remembered the pear trees growing in her grandparents’ backyard.