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“Oh, delicious,” Serena remarked, the scent of home-made pizzas wafting around the kitchen.

Hazel smiled. “This one has feta, mozzarella and camembert, and the other is zucchini, cherry tomatoes and goat’s cheese.”

The doorbell sounded again.

Josie stood at the front door, dressed in black jeans and a dark long sleeved top. Her hair was pulled back in a loose braid.

“Josie, hi!” Hazel’s lips curled into a smile.

“Hello,” Josie said softly. She pulled a bunch of pink snapdragons from her large tote bag and handed them to Hazel.

“These are gorgeous, thank you!” Hazel led Josie inside to where Serena sat at the dining table. Hazel grabbed a vase for the snapdragons.

“Hi! I’m Serena.” Serena raised her hand to Josie as she picked up her glass of wine.

Josie put her tote bag by the lounge and walked over to the dining table.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Josie,” she said shyly.

Hazel, vase in hand, placed the snapdragons next to the daisies.

“What a beautiful colour,” Serena declared as she gently stroked the delicate petals.

“I thought so too. I just had to buy them for Hazel.” Josie smiled nervously as she picked at her manicured nails.

Hazel gestured to the pizza and the wine glass on the table. “Help yourself! I wasn’t sure if you wanted wine. I can get you something else to drink if you’d prefer?”

“It’s fine, great, I mean,” Josie corrected herself. “Thank you so much.”

They sat down and began to tuck in.

“So, Hazel tells me you just moved here?” Serena took a bite of pizza.

“Yeah, a few months ago. From Melbourne,” she added.

“Bit of a sea change!” Serena chuckled. “What do you do for work?”

“I’m a freelance graphic designer.” Josie took a huge gulp of wine.

“Ooh, that sounds fun. Are you working on anything at the moment?” Hazel asked.

Josie seemed to relax a little, but she still spoke in a quiet voice. “I’m working on a logo concept for a new activewear brand. I’m thinking either yellow or blue for the base colour. It’s a brand from Bondi, so I wanted to go with the colour palette of the beach.”

“Do you get to pick all the colours for the logo?” Serena took a sip of her wine.

“Well, I work with a few companies who use me to come up with logos and other designs that the companies they are representing need. I also work directly with some brands. In this case, I’m dealing directly with the brand. I’ll usually speak with the brand first. They either bring forward an idea or a concept they have, that could include colours, fonts or images. Sometimes they have no idea where to begin. They might give me some key words of what they’re looking for, like fresh or bold. I ask them some prompting questions, gauge the brand ideas, morals, mission statement, and I go from there. If I’m working with one of the companies who refer me work, they do all of that first and pass that information on to me. I usually do three really different concepts if they have no clue what they want, then narrow down the best ideas and rework the ones they’ve picked until they find a logo they like.” Josie finished talking. She seemed almost shocked that she had said that many words in a row. She sank back a little in her chair.

Hazel noticed, but she didn’t say anything.

“That’s so interesting! I’m just a primary school teacher,” Serena said with a small laugh. She seemed oblivious to Josie’s shyness. “I’m sure you’re both familiar with my job description. You know what kids are like.” Switching gears, Serena turned to Hazel. “Have you decided what you want to do yet?”

Hazel gave a tight smile. “Not yet. I’ll most likely continue with my marketing career. I think I’ll start seriously applying for jobs in the next month or two. I might make some jewellery on the side as well. Just for fun.”

“I think you’d be great at it. I can help you with a logo if you decide to start selling,” Josie offered.

“Yes, the earrings from the picture you sent me yesterday were so cute! Mari and I would help you if you sold them at the markets.”

“Thanks.” Hazel blushed a little as she sipped on her pineapple juice.