Waiting

Cold heavy cream.
Chives.
Salt.
Paprika.

I mixed these ingredients, watched as the butter and buttermilk separated. The butter was pink and green, a nice Christmas combination. I piped rosettes of this butter onto a cookie sheet and stuck it in the fridge. The butter was beautiful, like a bouquet of flowers, minus the stems, and on a cookie sheet instead of wrapped in paper. Guy admired my work. "Never knew how serious you were about butter," he said.
"I'm pretty serious about butter," I said. I told him about Pike and the Homesteading Club.
"Call him up," Guy said. "Don't be afraid."
"I'm not afraid," I said.

I popped a rosette of butter into my mouth. It was delicious! I decided I wanted to share my butter with Pike and the rest of the club, so I called him up. "Hello," someone said on the other end.
"Pike?"
"I've been waiting, Curt."