Hello, Sunnyville.

Tess inhaled deeply and let the fresh scent of the spring flowers rush through her lungs as she got off the train. Rolling her suitcase, she strolled through the station and stopped out front to admire the view before her.

Sunnyville was especially beautiful during the spring, with the cherry blossoms lining the streets and other flowers blooming after a long winter's sleep.

Six years, that was how long she had been away, and looking at the sight ahead of her she realised how much she had missed the place. A cab driver approached her and she nodded to indicate her interest. He took her suitcase from her and rolled it till they got to his cab where he placed it in his trunk.

"First time here, miss?" He asked as the car eased into the road.

She shook her head.

"So you're not a tourist then."

"I grew up here," she replied. "Do you get a lot of tourists?" She asked.

"Ever since mayor Atkins commissioned the resort, we have had a steady flow of tourists," the driver replied proudly.

Tess vaguely remembered her grandfather telling her about the newly built resort in their town. For a long time, business in the town had considerably slowed as more and more people were leaving to the city. The locals were barely managing to get by when the newly elected mayor struck a deal with a hotel chain to build a resort in town. That had led to an influx of tourists and businesses were beginning to pick up.

"You don't look like a local," the driver said to her.

How do locals look? She wondered. For the first two years in the city, she had been considered too local, and now she was back in town but apparently she didn't look local anymore.

It was a fifteen minute drive from the station to her grandfather's place, and after paying the cab fare, she got off.

The restaurant in front was closed, with the hanging sign reading 'Joe's Bistro' almost falling off. She walked around the restaurant till she got to the back and pushed the small gate leading to the house open.

"Hello? Grandpa?"

There was no response and she walked to the porch. Looking over her shoulder to be sure no one else was around, she bent beside the flower pot on the porch and retrieved a key underneath.

Old habits sure die hard, she thought to herself as she inserted the key into the lock and turned it. A song from her grandfather's favourite band filtered through the radio into her ears as she entered the house.

"Grandpa?" She approached the kitchen to meet her grandfather trying to wiggle his hips and sing along to the song as he fried some sausages.

Tess put off the radio and stared crossly at her grandfather who turned back to see her standing there.

"Look who it is! My beautiful grandbaby is back." He smiled happily.

"For goodness sake, grandpa, you just had a hip replacement surgery. Should you be dancing around? And sausages? Isn't that too much fat? Do you want to go under again for a heart replacement?"

"I'm happy to see you too," he said, spreading his arms with a grin and Tess sighed.

"This is cheating, grandpa, you know I can't stay mad when you smile like that," she replied but she went into his arms anyway.

"I missed you, baby."

"I missed you too gramps."

She took over from him and made a late breakfast for both of them. Over their meal, they talked about everything from her time in the city and her job to his health, and his concerns over his restaurant.

"The restaurant should be the least of your worries right now," she said to him.

"My customers miss my food. I have a calling to ensure my people are well fed."

"No, you have a calling to ensure you recover properly after your surgery. The restaurant is closed until further notice."

Her grandfather pouted, "This is not fair."

"What's not fair is you putting a strain on your health. You're all the family I have left, gramps, I don't want to lose you."

"Look at me, do I look like I'm going away any time soon? My darling Lucy would kick me out of heaven if I dare went without spending at least the next ten years with you here on earth."

Tess laughed at the image of her grandmother kicking him out of heaven for dying early.

"Don't worry, gramps, I'll keep you company as you recover."

"Why should you keep an old man like me company all day? We'd both be sick of each other."

"Don't worry, I plan to explore the town in my free time. There's a lot of exciting things going on in our small town, I can't believe this is Sunnyville!"

"Yes, this is our new reality and I'm not complaining..... except new businesses are springing up each day and I'm about to lose my customers to another restaurant."

Tess sighed. "Are we back to this again? You can't run a restaurant with your health right now."

"But you can."

"Gramps?"

Her grandfather smiled brightly as the idea took form in his mind. "Yes, that's right. The restaurant can't run itself, I can't run it because of my health but you can. Joe's Bistro is all yours!"