Sitting down on the edge of his bed he opened the drawer of the his nightstand. He had two books to choose from. One was a school book, the other had been sent to him by his pen pal. He hadn’t been sure about it when she first told him about it and then sent it over. It seemed to be a book for girls. But she swore line after line that it was just a really good book. Not for girls, or for boys, just for anyone who had feelings and more for anyone who had trouble dealing with them. Chuck picked it up and held it under his nose. It smelled like a regular book, but with something else. He imagined it was what his pen pal smelled like. It wasn’t sweet, but it smelled good. Almost as good as when his mama baked her special desserts for his pop. There was something almost nutty about the smell. Whatever it was blended in so well with the book smell he couldn’t be certain, but it thought it could be cinnamon. Maybe nutmeg. He’d have to ask his mama what type of things she used in her baking to know for sure. Chuck liked to think it was because his pen pal also baked. His pop always said there was nothing better in this world than a woman who could bake.
