chapter705

"How's your foot doing?" Owen Reynolds asked as he stepped into the apartment, noticing the opened delivery box by the door. It was a sure sign Roseanne was back from the hospital.

"The doctor said it's nothing serious. As long as I apply the ointment on time, I should be fine for the follow-up next week."

Roseanne looked down, seemingly lost in thought. "That day... I don't know what I would've done without you and Corley Sullivan. I might not have made it through..."

Especially after she developed a fever.

She'd heard that Owen brought the fever reducers.

Even though she was out of it from the high fever, she wasn't completely unconscious. She remembered Owen moving her behind a sheltered column, and both he and Corley huddling around her to keep her warm. They tirelessly used alcohol and cloths to bring her fever down.

Roseanne remembered everything.

Including what happened at the hospital and the conversations they had.

Owen spoke up, "The day you got into trouble, Mamie Finch called me, but I missed it at first. I'm sorry I was late."

"But you got there in the end, didn't you?" Roseanne replied, meeting his gaze.

Their eyes locked, and she smiled softly. "Professor, there's no need to apologize. You weren't obligated to save me. It's me who should be thanking you. I've lost count of how many times you've helped me since we met."

Owen chuckled, "Alright then, let's leave it at that."

"Deal!"

"Oh, I have something for you. Hang on a sec..."

Under Roseanne's curious watch, he slipped back into his apartment, returning with a large shopping bag.

The bag was big, but whatever was inside was even bigger, wrapped in a black plastic bag, with a portion sticking out.

"What's this?" Roseanne asked, blinking in surprise.

"Open it and see," Owen replied with a grin.

"Okay."

She invited him in, and Owen casually slipped off his shoes, making himself at home.

As Roseanne unwrapped the plastic,

she had a hunch about what it might be, but seeing the complete pecan

pod Still took her by surprise

"This..."

It was bigger and darker than the one she'd tried to get seeds from before, and

most importantly, it was untouched and whole!

"Professor, where did you get this?!"

"After we found you, we discovered a small grove of pecan trees nearby. I figured that's what got you turned around."

Roseanne sheepishly scratched her head. "You get an extra 20 points for finding rare plant specimens..."

"Smart move, knowing you couldn't carry the whole thing, so you just took the seeds."

She didn't dare admit that she hadn't taken the pod because it had been damaged. If it had been as perfect as this one, she might have been tempted...

Owen continued, "Near where we found you, behind two rocks, there was a patch of dried vines. This pod was nestled right in the middle, well-protected."

"And then?" Roseanne prompted when he paused.

"I just picked it up when I went back later."

"No way," Roseanne said skeptically. "I remember you weren't carrying anything

at the time..."

And it wouldn't have fit in the bag...

Owen laughed, "Silly girl, your condition was too critical for me to grab anything then."

Of course, he'd marked the spot and returned to retrieve it later.

Roseanne blinked did he just call her a silly girl?

...

When Scales Dixon and Mamie heard Roseanne was back home, they hurried over to check on her.

By the time they climbed to the seventh floor, Mamie was out of breath, lugging a bag full of apples that weighed a good twenty pounds!