When the laundry was folded, Annerieke suggested putting it in the cupboard and then get started on making the knitting pattern in the kitchen. Margreet nodded; she found it scary, but she just had to get through it. "I feel like I'm learning more here in these few days than what I've learned in the last nineteen years."

"Hahaha, of course that's not possible, but I understand your feeling yes, so much has happened already. You can be proud of yourself, you'll get through this just fine!"

A little later they sat at the dining table with a mug of tea. Margreet put the different sketches next to each other and gave the paper on which she had written the measurements of the test piece to Annerieke. She had also brought a notepad, to write down calculations, to try out descriptions. She told what idea she had gotten last night about a border on the bottom of the vest. Annerieke nodded enthusiastically, "What a cool idea, I've never seen anything like it, but that border could function just like a lead line in curtains. That lead line at the bottom keeps the curtain hanging nicely. I can just picture it Margreet, how you walk through the garden wearing that cardigan. Almost stately, and when you start running, it swings behind you!"

Annerieke picked up the papers. She looked at the measurements of the back piece and the details of the test piece. "First, calculate how many stitches you need to start with the back part. Oh wait, we can't do that yet, we don't have a width for the bottom..." She picked up the tape measure. "Up to a little above your ankles we had measured it yesterday, so at that height we have to estimate how wide it should be. Margreet had already stood up, and Annerieke crouched behind her. She held the measuring tape at the right height, and tried to estimate how wide the vest should be. She held the tape between her thumbs and forefingers and stood in front of Margreet with it. "That wide approximately? What do you think?"

"That wide? Isn't that too wide?" hesitated Margreet.

Annerieke held the piece of tape measure at the front just above her ankles. "Just imagine that this is your backside.... wait a minute," she interrupted herself, placing the measuring tape on the ground in a curve.

"Oh yes, now I see!" Margreet discovered. "So in a curve, yes. Then the vest won't be too narrow, so I'll have all the room I need to walk and run and to let the vest sway. Yes, do that width. How many centimeters is that?"

She wrote the number Annerieke showed her with her thumb on the measuring tape, on the sketch of the back part.

"And then divide by two...then I'll immediately have the width of half a front part...right?" Holding the pencil to her lip, she looked thoughtfully at Annerieke. "What would it be like if I made the front part a little narrower at the bottom? Can you see that for yourself?"

"Yes," Annerieke said grinning, "I could already see that when you started about dividing by two... I think it will look nice, if you make the front part a little narrower, not too much, otherwise the side seams will pull forward, so just a little bit, say about six centimeters total, so three centimeters per half front part. What do you think?"

"I think it could be something like that yes, I hadn't immediately thought of those side seams, but you're right, it doesn't have to be much difference."

Margreet wrote the correct numbers at the front part. She looked at the various sketches. "I believe I have all the numbers now, all the measurements... so now is the big moment to start calculating how many stitches to put on, and how many stitches to finish with and bind off at the shoulder seam. Shall we just do the back today? I'm afraid, otherwise, it will be a bit too much."

"That seems like a good plan, just build everything up bit by bit. By the way, do you already have an idea what kind of closure you want on the front?"

"Buttons, I just don't know what kind yet, but I'll look for that one day."

"At the thrift store!" they said at the same time and burst into laughter.

Margreet sat back down at the table and started calculating. Annerieke put her cell phone down by her side, with a calculator app open.

"Oh, that makes a difference, thank you!" Margreet shouted happily. A few taps on the app, and she could write down the starting and ending numbers for the back part in no time. She sighed deeply, "And now the reducing..."

She took a deep breath and slowly let it escape again between almost pinched lips. From that, and from the gesture she made with her hand to her head, Annerieke sensed that the tension was beginning to mount again. She deliberately kept quiet, knowing that Margreet would need this unpleasant, ever-increasing tension for her healing. But at the meantime it was hurting her, to see her like that, to know what she had to go through....

At that moment the door opened and Huib entered. Annerieke looked at him urgently and put her finger on her lips. That way she could just prevent him from talking. She nodded in the direction of Margreet.

Huib was startled by the intensity of Margreets tension. Without even thinking about the signal his mother had given him, he walked up to Margreet, put his hands on her shoulders and pushed his nose into her hair just above her right ear. "Damn girl, is it that intense? You're doing fine though, you'll get through it, just breathe in and out calmly, and it's going to subside soon.... Yes so, so it’s good..."

He had whispered. Margreet heard his voice very softly in her ear, soothing. The tension still remained the same, but she felt herself becoming calmer under it.

"I just got so scared," she whispered, "so scared of that terrible tension. Yesterday too... and now again... but my fear is subsiding now. The tension is still there, but I'm not afraid anymore. I will be all right... yes, I will be all right..."

A moment later, the tears came, flowing quietly at first, then sobbing, until her whole body shook a bit. Huib didn't let that embarrass him. He remained standing as he was, hands on her shoulders, his mouth at her ear.

"So good, let it flow, that's what you got tear ducts for, very handy." He was still speaking in a whisper.

Margreet chuckled right through her crying, "Yes, very helpful!"

His presence supported her, made her feel safe enough to let go. It didn’t take long before the shaking subsided and she began frantically wiping her sleeves along her eyes.

"Oh dear girl, have you forgotten that for your tears I always carry a handkerchief?" Huib joked. He pulled his handkerchief from his pocket and reached out to her. "Still completely clean, so you won't get any green snot bubbles on your face!"

"Huib, you idiot!" Annerieke burst out laughing.

Margreet laughed along, still catching her breath a little shakily. "Imagine he’s just your son, Annerieke, you're pretty done with that!"

"Tell me about it... Shall we leave it at that by now? You've had your fill for today. Shall we continue with the pattern description tomorrow?"

Margreet nodded and put her papers together on a pile.

Then she looked at Huib. "Thank you for being there for me, I felt safe enough, to let that crying go. I didn't particularly like it, but afterwards I feel that it was good!"

Huib gave her a wink, patted her on both upper arms and turned to his mother, "I have the music list for tonight ready Mommy, one song I'm going to sing myself, but the rest will all come via YouTube. The list and my guitar are on my desk in the office already. Well, let's get those guests rushed through their meal, then we can get the dance floor ready!"

Margreet laughed shockingly, laughing as if she had heard the best joke of the century. Maybe in turn as a reaction to the tension just now, she had no idea, but she enjoyed being able to laugh so freely for a moment.

Annerieke clearly enjoyed her reaction, but said to Huib, quasi-sternly, "No one is being rushed here, those people have holiday, young man!"

"Yes, I know, but if they'd hurry up with eating, we'll have a longer dance night later! That’s nice right?"

Margreet looked from one to the other and yowled of laughing at their faces!

"Oh, even that! Poor child, she's all upset," Huib did compassionately.

"Stop it, Huib, stop it! Soon I'll be peeing in my pants from laughing!"

"That doesn't matter, as long as you clean it up yourself!" Huib left the kitchen laughing.

To chapter 23. Huib teaching Margreet to dance

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