jonna

Jonna set her bag down by the side of the road. Cars were flashing past in a way that reminded her of a film made in the 60's about Austria right before the war and it was 10 AM and a beautiful morning, and Jonna stopped walking and set her bag down by the side of the road.

She half-realized as she did it that it was rather foolish. She stood very straight and rotated at her waist, watching Milli and her three children passing like a parade: the pram (with the baby's feet kicking up into view sometimes) was leading , followed by Milli in a long brown sweater and sensible shoes. Kerkko, in yellow rubber boots, was holding the hem of Milli's sweater, and Aleski was trailing behind, waving and poking a long stick around.

Aleski was Jonna's favorite, although she pretended to be as fond of Kerkko and the baby who was named after her. (It was funny to think of the baby being named after her so soon before the fight with Milli. Jonna wondered how often Milli wished she had chosen another name.) Aleski had a streak of mischief that drove Milli half-mad, and Jonna was his firm ally in this-- before the fight she had spent almost every afternoon at Milli's, and she and Aleski built things out of couch cushions and Duplo blocks and yelled and Milli always laughed at Jonna, and Kerkko watched cautiously and tried to make up his mind, and--

Jonna very suddenly picked up her bag again and started after Milli. Aleski noticed her first; he turned and offered her a companionable grin.
"Hello, Aleski," she said. She should have been more contrite, considering the way she had talked to Milli and the way Milli looked now, turning around, but she could not be contrite when faced with Aleski's grin.
"What's in the bag?" said Aleski, peering coolly in amongst the groceries. Jonna did not answer. "Something for me, Aunty Jonna?" he persisted, just as if there hadn't been a seven-month silence since their last meeting.
"I'm sorry," said Jonna, half to Milli, who was watching her steadily, and half to Aleski, who was getting impatient. Milli looked down and away for a moment and then nodded.

Jonna was grinning in good earnest as she rummaged through the bag for the box of munkki she shouldn't have bought. Milli was, for the first time in seven months, beginning to be reconciled to her daughter's name. And Aleski, he was hungry.