The Broken Oven

In January the oven broke. Owen stood outside the dark shop, calculating repairs he could not afford. The nurse, Tessa, found him there after her shift. She did not offer money. She knew a community kitchen with an unused oven before seven. Owen borrowed the space and carried bread back on a bicycle. Tessa helped deliver orders on her days off. They learned each other's habits in the cold: he counted doorways, she remembered every customer's dog. By February, the repair fund was nearly full.