'What do you feel like?' asks the young assistant standing behind the bakery counter. 'Sweet or savoury?' She has short blonde hair over the top of which is a red baseball cap emblazoned with white letters that spell 'ENGLAND'.
I know I want sweet, but beyond that I am having difficulty in deciding. 'Do you like fruit, chocolate, cream?' she asks. Another customer enters and goes straight for the apple crumble cake. 'Is it nice?' I ask the assistant. 'It's gorgeous', she replies. I decide to take the plunge. 'It's especially nice if you dribble double cream on it', she says as she wraps it in a paper bag. I tell her that migth be difficult as I plan to eat it on a train. 'It's still delicious', she reassures me.
A man with his hands in his pockets strolls in. 'What are you doing here?' the assistant asks. 'Just came to say hello', he replies. 'Go away', she says, waving her arm at him.
As I pay, I ask my question. She gives me an answer. 'That's a good one', I say. 'Yeh', she replies. 'Frances was after the saint of the animals and Tiger-Lily came along when I was about two'. She pauses. 'I think my mum just fancied it'.
I thank her and take my apple crumble. 'That's a good moment to walk into a conversation', says the man. 'Have a lovely afternoon', says the assistant.
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