(Continuation of Big Shoe, Small Shoe/Brik-a-Brak)
1945
"Honey, I can never finish a whole bagel. They're just too big for me. You want the rest of this."
"But you're pregnant. You should be eating up everything in sight! Don't you want the baby to be big and handsome like me?"
Aurora laughed. "But then everyone would know, it's not yours." They both laughed. Aurora sighed. "I know, I know...I'm just not feeling good right now."
Kenneth Bonn looked at his petite wife and smiled. Her belly was just beginning to show. Aurora pushed her plate towards him.
Aurora smiled at him while he ate the bagel sandwich. "You know what they should do? Make mini bagels and make sandwiches out of those."
"I think they do have mini bagels, dear." They both started laughing. It was a calm, peaceful Sunday afternoon and the two were having lunch after church. They had never been to Charla's Diner before but always noticed a long line winding out the door. It wasn't too bad, except for the large bagels.
Kenneth coughed.
"Hon, are you ok?"
He coughed some more. Lettuce and cheese spilled out of his mouth and his face flushed red.
"Kenneth! Somebody help! My husband is choking!"
A crowd gathered and a burly man tried giving him the Heimlich maneuver. A worker rushed to call an ambulance.
But the man's thrusts were not helping the situation. It just made Kenneth cough more and now his eyes were bulging out of their sockets. All of a sudden, Kenneth, went limp.
"Oh my god...Ken...someone...Please help him..."
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"I'm sorry, Ms. Bonn. You don't have a case here. It was an accident and no fault lies with Charla's Diner. I don't know what to do for you. I'm sorry for your loss."
Aurora pursed her lips and closed her eyes because she didn't want to cry like she did in front of the five other lawyers she had talked to prior to this appointment. She slowly stood up and left.
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The funeral was small. Kenneth's family only consisted of his father and his step-sister. Aurora's family was all in Maine and they couldn't make it down. Some of the local townspeople were there to give their condolences. Charla Moore, the owner of the diner, was there too.
"Honey, I'm so sorry. I can't believe this happened. I...I...don't know what to say..." The tears rolled down her cheeks.
Aurora felt nothing. She looked at the woman with apathy and walked away.
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At night, she would lie awake missing Kenneth so much she thought she had been hit by a train. Sometimes, she'd go to the restaurant where her husband had choked to death and just look at the glass windows, the wooden door, the green striped awning and weep. She hated them. Them? But who? It wasn't the employees fault, was it? The owners? Charla Moore? No. The managers? Aurora had a burning feeling inside of her....she needed to blame someone. One night she noticed the lot across the street was vacant and it was for sale.
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After six months of saving, planning, and bank loans Aurora had enough to buy the lot across from Charla's Diner. She built Bonn's Bagel Factory and made her specialty mini bagels which was a big hit with the town. Charla's Diner was run out of business within two months.
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Aurora had a healthy, 8-lb baby. She named him Kenneth Jr. Kenneth would grow up not knowing a father. But he was still successful in his pursuits. He married a gorgeous interior designer and they had a daughter. They named her Lara.
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