At 8 AM, before the morning rush, Lucy did something she'd never done before. She locked the bakery doors, turned on the lights, and put a sign in the window:
CLOSED FOR IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT. REOPENING AT 10 AM.
Then she called everyone she could think of. Uncle Walter. Rei. The president of the Chamber of Commerce. Even Mrs. Henderson, though that call went straight to voicemail.
By 9 AM, word had spread. People were gathering outside the bakery—some curious, some angry, some just there for the gossip.
Lucy stood behind the counter and looked at Mae. "Am I really doing this?"
"You're really doing this. And you're going to be amazing."
At 9:30, Lucy unlocked the doors.
About thirty people filed in—more than the bakery could comfortably hold. The Knitting Circle was there, looking skeptical. Mr. Peterson was there. Tom and Jerry. Uncle Walter and Rei standing in the back as moral support. Even Giuseppe from the restaurant, looking curious.
Lucy took a deep breath and spoke before she could lose her nerve.
"Thank you all for coming. I know the past few days have been confusing and difficult. I know many of you are disappointed in my decision to sell the bakery."
Murmurs of agreement rippled through the crowd.
"I want to explain why I'm doing this. Not to justify it or ask for permission—but because you deserve to understand."
Lucy looked around the room—at faces she'd known her entire life, people she'd fed for years.
"My grandmother opened this bakery forty-three years ago with almost nothing. She was an immigrant, she barely spoke English, and she poured everything she had into this place. She built something incredible. Something that meant—means—everything to this community."
More murmurs, these ones softer.
"When she died five years ago, I took over because I thought that's what she wanted. I thought honoring her legacy meant keeping everything exactly as she left it. I worked sixteen-hour days, six days a week. I barely left this building. I convinced myself that if I changed anything, if I let anything slip, I'd be betraying her memory."
Lucy felt tears start but didn't try to stop them.
"But I was wrong. Honoring her legacy doesn't mean freezing everything in place. It means letting it grow. Letting her recipes reach more people. Letting her vision expand beyond what one person can do alone."
"So you're selling to developers?" Mrs. Henderson's voice was sharp.
"I'm selling to a company that specializes in preserving and expanding local businesses. They're going to keep the name The Bread Basket. They're going to keep seventy-five percent of my grandmother's original recipes. They're going to open two more locations so more people can experience what she built." Lucy met Mrs. Henderson's eyes. "And I'm going to stay involved as a consultant. This isn't me abandoning my grandmother's legacy. It's me helping it grow."
"But you won't be here," Mr. Peterson said quietly. "You're leaving."
"I'm traveling. Going to culinary school. Learning and growing so that when I come back, I can open my own place—something that honors my grandmother but is also mine." Lucy's voice cracked. "She came to this country so her family could have opportunities. She built this bakery so I could have choices. And I'm finally brave enough to choose."
"Choose what?" Tom asked, not unkindly.
"To live my own life instead of just maintaining hers. To be more than my grandmother's granddaughter. To figure out who Lucy Chen is when she's not hiding behind flour and recipes and sixteen-hour workdays."
The bakery was silent.
Then Uncle Walter started clapping. Slowly at first, then louder. Rei joined him. Mae. A few others.
Mrs. Henderson didn't clap, but she didn't leave either.
"I understand if you're disappointed," Lucy said. "I understand if you don't support this decision. But I'm asking you to trust me. Trust that I'm doing this for the right reasons. Trust that mygrandmother would be proud of me for being brave enough to choose my own path."
"When?" Mrs. Patterson asked. "When are you selling?"
"The paperwork will be finalized this week. Barrett Development will take over January first. I'll stay on through December to help with the transition and train the new staff."
