Work Text
SOMETIME IN THE FUTURE BUT NOT TOO FAR.
Your name is JADE HARLEY and you are really fed up with your brother ignoring you. You have decided to take the matters into your own hands and make it impossible for him to ignore now. You can’t believe he is acting like this! What a child. He even ignored you as you tried to call him to wish him a happy birthday! Stepping off the ferry you adjust the strap of your rifle on your shoulder. You haven’t stepped foot on this island since your grandfather passed and you had to help your brother move in. You take a deep breath and decide to walk the rest of the way there. You love the way the ocean smells and it is nice to see the familiar faces of the people working the markets and small storefronts. They all greet you as if you never left. You miss the spending summer breaks here with your grandfather. Walking hand in hand as you got to try all sorts of foods. You make sure to pick up some snacks as you’re heading to the house. You are going to get down to the end of this. You and your brother used to be so close, what could he be hiding from you that he isn’t answering any of your phone calls and texts? Pulling your hair into a messy bun you take off your cardigan and tie it around your waist as you get closer to the house. It’s a light sweater but even then it’s too hot to be wearing it now. You are just passing the fishing docks so you know you should be there within minutes, the answer to your worries is just an arm’s length away. Smiling at the sound of waves crashing you look over at the boats on the docks and something catches your eye. Better yet- someone catches your eye as he pulls himself out of the water onto the dock. The sight of a speckled tail makes your eyes go wide and without thinking you get your rifle out. It’s all muscle memory. This is your job. This is what your grandfather taught you to do. Find monsters and kill them. You get your rifle ready and your finger is on the trigger when you hear a familiar voice call out-
???: you’re home!!
Your eyes go wide as you watch your brother tackle the creature into the water laughing as they come back up for air. You knit your brows together as you watch their faces. You can’t believe your eyes. This...This is what your brother has been hiding from you all this time?! ==> Jade. Keep the rifle ready. You are not letting your brother continue to be in a relationship with a monster like that. You watch as the two climb back onto the dock and through the scope, you watch your brother notice you. You keep it ready. This can’t continue.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
BACK TO THE PRESENT
Your name is JOHN EGBERT and you don’t handle death well. You never have. You have lost two mothers, a grandmother, and now your grandfather is gone too. You don’t handle death well and you are living up to that fact right now. You are sitting in the middle of the viewing room waiting for your father to call for you. He’s in the process of comforting your sister, Jade, because you’re not all that great at it. You hugged her during the funeral but that was all you could really do. Knocking your head back in your seat you stare at the ceiling and think to yourself. You don’t like funerals. Then again, no one does. You really don’t like them. Then make you feel confused and numb inside. You don’t even cry at them anymore. Not since Jade’s mother died. You were only eight and at that time after losing your own mom, losing mothers just seemed like the new normal. You remember being little when your Nanna died and in an attempt to comfort your father and Jade you told them,
J---: don’t worry guys, now we all lost a mom.
Which only made Jade cry even more. You left comforting up to your dad from there on out. You were just grateful the next death wasn’t for a while and your cousin Jake didn’t really need the comforting. And even if he did, he lived in another state so you didn’t really know if he did or not. Besides Jake was already an adult when his Gran had passed. Shaking your thoughts out of your head you sit up and adjust your tie. You dust your suit off and raise to your feet, walking out of the viewing room and into the hallway where you spot Jade sitting on the floor with a two fluffy white dogs beside her as well as your father and your cousin, Jake. She is still crying. She was so much closer to your grandfather than you were. Every summer the house was just you and your father because she would spend the months with him, always coming home with the craziest of stories of beasts they caught. God those two are the reason the term cuckoo bananas exists. As you watch the two comfort your sister, your father looks over at you and nods. That’s the sign. That’s your father notioning you over. It must be time. Taking a deep breath you nod back in response and walk over. You take a hold of Bec’s leash and tug a little bit to give everyone some space to get up. Your father helps Jade onto her feet and you give Bec a pat on the head, watching as Jake pulls Halley away as well.
JAKE: Here jade..
Jake wraps the leash around his wrist and takes a pack of tissues out of his pocket to hand her one. You make eye contact with Jade and look away. You can feel her judging you for not being as upset as she is. It just makes you ever more tense about the whole situation. Instead of watching everyone you just look at Bec. At least Bec has a smile on his face. What a good dog. As Bec brushes up against your leg, leaving a few strands of white fur on your pants, you feel a hand on your shoulder making you look forward. It’s your father. Another quiet nod and you sigh. Turning on your heel you hold onto Bec’s leash tightly as you follow him. Your dad guides the group outside the funeral home and to the cars. You decide to stick with Jake and let Jade take Bec with her. You sit quietly in the passenger seat with Halley breathing heavily in your ear as he stands on the console. Jake just chides at him and scratches the dog’s head. You keep your gaze on the window at your side. Watching as the building pass. Thinking about how much of a better driver Jake is than you. It makes you chuckle. A small bit of light in a very gloomy day. You wouldn’t be surprised if it decided to rain.
JAKE: See something funny john?
JOHN: oh- uh. No..i just thought of something.
Looking over at Jake he cracks a smile at you and ruffles your hair. You begin to wonder if he still sees you as a little kid. You don’t mind it. He is older than you and despite viewing you as a child he always gave you a lot of respect. Maybe that’s why he is your favorite cousin. Then again. He’s your only cousin. You think he would still be your favorite even if you had more. Not that you want more. You like your small little family. There’s less to lose. You flash a smile back at him before resting your chin on your palm as you turn back to the window. The two are following closely behind your dad’s car to the lawyers office. There’s the will reading today. You don’t expect to get much if anything at all. You don’t really care either. At least not from him, you know you have a recipe box waiting for you from your Nanna. You’re not sure if there is anything else waiting for you. As the car comes to a stop you look forward and realize the car is parked. Unbuckling you look over at Halley you is climbing over the console following right after Jake out of the car. You chuckle and watch Jake fumble to grab the leash before Halley can run over to the other car. Stepping out of the car you dust your pants off and look at your reflection in the window. Sighing you run your fingers through your curls and shake your head.
DAD: John..? Are you alright?
You blink and look over at your dad. Nodding your head you pocket your hands and follow everyone inside. Your eyes scan the hall and the photos on the wall as you all make your way to the office. All the photos of families being happy together or nature just make you roll your eyes. It’s funeral and death work. How can people be happy about this? Flinching out of your thoughts you look to the side as Jade takes a hold of you hand, guiding you into the office. The two of you sit side by side. Bec sitting in front of the both of you, his chin on her knee. You squeeze her hand softly before letting down, staring at your lap. A tightening feeling forms in you chest. You choose to blame it on your binder and not on the fact that you may or may not be grieving. As the door shuts you look up as a woman sits at the desk in front of you. Oh. You recognize her. You are pretty sure she is the mother of one of your old elementary school friends.
MS.?: Well I think we should just hop right into it shall we? Mr. Harley left all of you letters so...
She looks into her little folder and takes the stack out handing them off one by one. You find it sort of funny that the man wrote a letter to Bec. Man’s best friend and all. What a weird old man.
MS.?: You don’t need to read them now. Take your time. Leave them for when you’re ready, I know these can be hard.
As she goes on about how everything will go you flip open your letter. What could he have possibly written you? Your eyes skim over the writing before you peek over at Jade. She’s reading her’s already too. Oh great she’s crying again. Taking a deep breath you put your hand on her shoulder and squeeze softly. Hoping it does something to make her feel better.
==> John. Look back to your letter and give it a read.
It’s not a lot but hey, you read it anyway.
Hello john
I am sorry you need to be reading this but there was no avoiding it any longer was there? I know we werent the closest but i hope to have made it up to you. I do have a favor to ask of you young man (although i wont know if you will do it because ive passed. I hope youll do it anyway.) and its that you take care of jade. For her if i could stay living until she was ready i would.
She is going to need you by her side to help her through this. Dont let anything come between you two. Nothing at all. Family is family. Speaking of family your father is sitting in front of me as i write this. I believe he has no idea im writing these. He is going to try to be strong for the two of you like he did for your nannas passing. Be there for him as well.
JADE: well i guess this is perfect timing john! You were just saying you wanted to move out Blinking you look up from your letter and turn to Jade, you zoned out while you were reading. What did you just miss? You fold the letter shut and tuck it back into the envelope. You look over at your dad and he cracks a smile at you as he reaches out and ruffles your hair. Dammit, it was messy enough. Curse these curls.
MS.?: Should I repeat myself?
JOHN: yes please.
MS.?: Well, John, from your grandfather you get the beach house and all the contents inside.
JOHN: oh.
JOHN: wow that’s- that’s a lot..
That must be what your grandfather was talking about in the letter. The, I know we werent the closest but i hope to have made it up to you. You didn’t expect this at all. It must be some sort of mistake on your grandpa’s part. That is one way to make up for your distant relationship with him but that is so much.
JOHN: are you sure? i mean we weren’t even that close.
JADE: i know!
DAD: Jade...
MS.?: Should we move onto what your grandmother left you all?
Looking over at your sister, who is pouting hardcore , you sigh and pocket the letter in the inside pocket of your suit. You don’t blame her for being upset. She has every right to be like this. If it was any other situation you would have told her to grow up and stop acting like you had any choice in the situation. You really can’t believe your grandfather is giving you the house and only giving Jade Bec and a few of his guns. Compared to Jade you were never there. You only spent time there for Thanksgiving and the small winter break there. It was so much warmer than dealing with the winters in Washington. As you thought, your nanna left you her recipe box and her trusty flan caramel making pan. You begged for that pan since you were a little kid. She never burned the caramel with that pan and she taught you how to too. Your father even jokes around about fighting you for that pan as you all head back to the cars.
JOHN: no way i will turn into rapunzel and baseball bat you with it if you try to take it.
DAD: That’s just a risk I am going to have to take.
As you get in the car with Jake your father ruffles your hair again and gives Halley a pat too as he sticks his nose out of the window. Leaning against the door your father looks at the three of you and smiles.
DAD: Well boys, what are we feeling for dinner? We can go out somewhere but we would need to drop the dogs off first.
JAKE: Sounds like a plan tio!
DAD: I’ll go ask Jade what she is in the mood for and we can come to an agreement at the house.
Your father leaves the three of you with another hair ruffle which makes you whine and stick your tongue out at him. Buckling up you take your letter out of your pocket. Staring over it for the drive back to the house. This letter is the longest conversation you’ve ever had with your grandfather if you can even count it as one. It’s right up there with coming out to him. You can’t believe how calm he reacted. You expected him to be upset with you like the stories you read on the internet. But no. All he said to you
GRANDPA: Dear ive heard crazier things than a boy being born as a lady. Hell weve hunted crazier things.
J---: you are not comparing me to your silly stories right now.
Chuckling to yourself you shake your head and put it away as you pull into the driveway, hopping out of the car with practiced ease once Jake does. You track behind everyone, waiting inside the hallway as you watch the dogs head in. You don’t bother taking your shoes off because you know you’re going right back into the car but because of this you can’t really move around in the house. You are not getting scolded for wearing outside shoes in the house. You watch as your dad turns the television on and the dogs move to lay down on the couch together. It makes you chuckle and cross your arms, your attention staying on him and Jade as they work on cooking up something for the dogs.
JOHN: uh dad...if we are going out to eat, why are you turning the tv on?
DAD: Oh...For the boys when we are out.
JOHN: you are so weird..
Shaking your head you smile at your dad. Jade sets down their bowls and you make eye contact. She frowns at you and looks away before whistling, getting the dogs’ attention. They run up to eat and you sigh heading back out to the cars. You look up at the clouds and frown, another rainy day in Washington. Pulling your phone out of your pocket you stare at the screen before tapping away.
-- ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG] --
EB: i bet you wish you were me right now!
EB: :B
TG: didnt your grandpa just die
TG: john are you good dude
EB: we are going to olive garden, dave.
TG: oh shit then yeah
TG: eat a breadstick for me okay
EB: you bet!
TG: so uh
TG: how are you anyway
EB: i’m okay.
EB: jade is pissed at me though.
TG: what
TG: what the hell happened
EB: uh
EB: i kinda got grandpa’s house in hawaii
TG: oh shit
TG: yeah thatll do it
EB: ah crap, time to run.
EB: i’ll talk to you later, dave!
TG: darn
TG: bye john
-- ectoBiologist [EB] ceased pestering turntechGodhead [TG] --
-- turntechGodhead [TG] ceased pestering ectoBiologist [EB] --
Looking up from his phone he smiles and tucks it in his pocket as everyone gets into your father’s car instead. Jade takes the passenger side in the front and you and Jake are stuck in the back row. Watching your father through the rear view mirror you sigh softly. He seems to be taking everything pretty well. Is this what your grandfather was talking about in the letter he wrote you? You have no idea. Your dad makes eye contact with you and he flashes a smile up through the mirror.
DAD: So...What do you plan on doing with the house, Son?
Blinking you look down and stare at your feet for a second. Thinking about it. You were talking about moving out earlier with Jade but you haven’t really spoken about it with your father. Taking a deep breath you look back up at the mirror and nod your head.
JOHN: i think i’m gonna take it.
---
A knocking on your bedroom door makes you look up from taping your box shut. Your dad peeks his head into the room and smiles as he walks in, looking around at how empty it is. You’re almost done packing everything up. Your dad takes a seat on your bed and you can see the gears in his head turning. He’s probably thinking about the past and other sappy shit like that.
DAD: I cleaned up all your sheet music and put your melodica in its case.
JOHN: oh..thanks dad.
DAD: It’s the least I can do, I can’t believe you managed to clean your room out this quickly.
Smiling you pick the box up and put it on the stack of others, labeling it fragile before taking a seat on your bed beside him. He rests his hand on your shoulder and you fidget with your hands.
DAD: Are you going to be taking the piano too? You play it more than I do these days.
JOHN: oh no way dad.
JOHN: for all that money it would take to ship that hunk out i can just get a new one when i get there.
Raising to your feet you look over at all the boxes and sigh. You can’t believe that in just a few hours you’ll be on a plane heading across the ocean and living on your own. Your name is JOHN EGBERT and you feel like your life is finally starting to begin.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
You are sitting on the sofa when you hear a car horn honk. Your face lights up and you put the switch down on the pillow you were leaning against to stand up and check if it is who you think it is. Stepping out onto the front porch you smile at the sight of your father pulling into the driveway. You run down the steps and right up to the car. Excited to see your family. Before you get to the car, Jade swings open the car door letting Bec run out right into your arms. You let out a loud shriek and laugh as you are knocked back on your ass, ambushed by a frenzy of dog kisses. It’s been a week since you moved in and most of your belongings have been shipped out already, you’re just waiting on a few more things. There’s just so much to clean out of your grandfather’s belongings and your family has come to help you out as well as take things back with them that they want. There is so much in the house you have no idea where to start.DAD: Let’s get this show on the road, shall we? Your father extends his hand out to you, helping you right back onto your feet. You dust your hands off against your pants and pat Bec on the head before turning to look at Jade. You flash a smile at her but she just looks away. She...must still be upset over everything. You won’t get upset with her over it. You just hope this bitterness passes soon. Walking side by side with your father he wraps an arm around your shoulder as you step inside the house, Bec slipping right through your legs to get a good sniff of the place. This was his home before it was yours. As you walk in you move some boxes out of the way. You’re still in the process of unpacking and building your things back up. All you have set up so far is your bedroom and the small desk where you gaming computer is set up on. You’ve been using that for TV until you can get a new one. When you were driving around to get a lay out of the area you spotted a small Walmart as well as a Best Buy. Once you get out of this pit of debt you’ll make sure to buy one. Your next cheque is going to be in the bank in two days so you should be good to then. You’ve spent so much money you didn’t really even have to have your Jeep shipped over by ferry so you could still drive it around. It would have been more expensive to buy a new one. Fuck that shit. Bec hops up onto the couch and lays over on his back so you pat his stomach before resting your hands on your hips. JOHN: so where do we start?DAD: I say we each take a room, or at least section ourselves off.DAD: Jade, dear, do you think..do you think you can handle taking care of the basement? You tilt your head to the side and look over at your sister. She scowls and sighs, turning to head to the basement door without bothering to answer your father. What’s that all about? Your dad shoots you a smile and waves you off to go help your sister out. With a quiet nod you head down the hall to go to the basement door. It’s right across the hall from the room you are turning into your bedroom. You peek over Jade’s shoulder as she stands in front of the door. It’s as if she is hesitating to open it. God your family is so weird. Jade slowly opens the door and heads down the steps in the dark. You step into the basement right behind Jade and cough at how dusty it is. You should have at least wiped things down before they got here. You were just a little busy taking photos of the beach and setting up your things to even consider dusting an option. You squint as you look through the dark only to cover your face completely at the sudden light as your sister flicks the switch on the wall. Shit how did she know it was there? You couldn’t see anything in the dark. Your eyes adjust to the light and go wide as you look at the collection of...animal statues? God you knew your grandfather was weird and had some disturbing hobbies but damn. You didn’t think it was this intense. Is this why they seemed so off put? Damn you can’t really blame them. Jade walks past all the mounted heads and the statues, eyeing them up and down as she walks down the hall. She steps up and- wow you didn’t even notice that. Jesus how big is this house? You really can’t believe your grandfather is giving you all this. She steps up and opens a set of cellar doors, letting some natural light in as well as some fresh air. Jade puts her hands on her hips as she looks over at you from over on the other end of the basement.JADE: so what are you planning on doing when them, john?JOHN: uh...i don’t know. maybe get rid of them?JADE: sounds like a plan. we can load up the truck and i will take them to the dump. Jade frowns as she looks up at one of the mounted heads. She steps up and takes it off the wall, moving it to bring outside. You can’t help but stare at them. They’re so creepy. You can’t believe your grandfather made these. You’ve seen the videos of people doing hyper realistic needle-felting but this is on a whole nother level. You watch as Jade comes back and you start helping take them out to the backyard. It doesn’t take much time for the car to be full and Jade is turning the car on to take them away.JOHN: you know i can fill my car up too. we can get it done with it all faster that way.JADE: no its fine, john. this is something i have to do on my own.JADE: you wouldnt know how to get rid of them anywayJADE: its..a process.JOHN: well...okay. if you say so, jade. i’ll work on getting the rest out while i wait for you to get back. You wave her off and watch as she pulls out of the driveway. She still seems off...Is she still upset over the whole you getting the house debacle? Probably. There’s not much you can do about it. You doubt Jade would want this place in the first place. You continue to think about it as you walk back into the basement to continue clearing things out while Jade...disposes of the statues. Maybe that’s what Jade is upset about. Not that you got the house and she didn’t. It’s that she doesn’t want anyone taking over the house and making it their own. This is your grandfather’s house not yours. That makes sense. Walking right through the cellar doors you head back up the steps and find your father in the kitchen cooking something while chatting with- to Bec. You blink and clear your throat to notify them of your existence. Their two heads snap to look at you, making your father chuckle as he rubs the back of his head.DAD: Oh, John, I didn’t notice you there son.DAD: How’s the basement looking?JOHN it’s going okay i guess. jade is taking some of them to the dump i think. she’ll be back for more whenever. You frown when you notice your father frowning at you. No not at you. Past you. He’s frowning at the basement door. You’ll never understand them when it comes to your grandfather’s hobbies.JOHN: gramps had such a weird collection. how did he even make money off of it? Your father turns back to look at you and then frowns down at Bec, petting his head as he kneels to put a bowl of food down for him. DAD: People paid a lot of money for what the family did.JOHN: it was a family thing?DAD: Yes- Sadly. Your grandfather taught me when I was old enough and he did the same for your sister.DAD: But, unlike Jade, I gave it up before you two were born. Nodding your head you walk deeper into the kitchen and take a seat at the table. Why do they feel so weird about this? It’s just needle felting right? Grandpa just took his stories a little too serious. He’s like..a furry or something. Okay maybe not a furry but something pretty close. A twilight fan that took the lore too seriously. You remember the holidays spending time here and your grandfather would come up with stories for you and Jade about the hunts he would go on. The creatures he would take down. At first you thought they were cool but as you got older you got tired of them. Your grandfather continued telling these stories until the day he died. Whatever floats his boat. Floated. Whatever floated his boat. You guess it’s still not sinking in that he’s gone. And you’re moving into his home for crying out lou—
THUNK
==> John: Check out whatever the fuck that noise was. Standing up you follow Bec over to the front door where you find an equally fluffy white dog scratching at the glass door. You look down and find your cousin laying on his back...laughing?JOHN: jake..? He sits up and chuckles rubbing the back of his neck as he tries to stand back up.JAKE: Johnny! JAKE: Goodness you cleaned the glass so well i thought the door was wide open and crashed right into it!JOHN: thanks? i think.. You open the door and sigh softly as Halley trots his way inside, greeting Bec with a happy smile. Good dogs. Best friends.JAKE: I ran into jade- saw her getting rid of the trophies and figured halley and i could lend a helping hand!JAKE: Er..paw in halleys case.JOHN: uh well...JOHN: come in! Stepping out of the way Jake follows you inside. JAKE: Tio ! Youre here as well?DAD: That I am, Jake. Two helpers are better than one. DAD: How are you doing anyway, mijo ? Your father hugs Jake for a moment before Jake gives you the same affectionate gesture before ruffling your hair. Chuckling you push his hand away to journey back to the depths of the basement, leaving the two to converse and catch up. You eye the statues and head busts, taking them up and outside as you try to figure out what they are meant to be. A part of you feels pity for them. Which is weird because the logical part of your brain knows none of them are real critters. They all just look so... Scared. The sound of someone clearing their throat makes you jump out of your skin, almost dropping a mount. Turning around quickly you find Jake walking in, a soft smile on his face. JAKE: Lets get to work shall we?
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
You are all sitting at the kitchen table eating. And by all of you, I really mean it. You are sitting in between the dogs because they are both good boys that do not beg for food unless asked to. Jade is beside your father who is beside Jake, who is on the other side of Bec. Good luck figuring out how that’s seated, artists. They’ve been here with you for a week. There is so much in the house, you are happy they stayed this long to clear things out with you. Tonight is the last night they’ll be staying with you though. Jake will be going with them to the car rental service to drop off the truck and then he’ll be driving them to the airport with you. They figured getting a late night flight back to Washington would keep their sleep schedules in check. You can’t really argue that logic now can you, John? DAD: So… You look up from your plate and across the table at your father. DAD: There are still a lot of things left. The books, the rifles, ect. Are you sure you are going to be okay with us leaving tonight John?DAD: There is still time to change the return date on the ticket.JOHN: i’ll be fine, dad. Reaching over the table to grab more carrots, you even steal the dinner roll Jade was reaching for with a shit-eating grin on your face. That earns you a glare. One point for John Egbert.JOHN: you guys have work and you’ve already taken a week off to help me.JOHN: besides…JOHN: the books can stay and the guns...hm.. You put your fork down and tap your chin. You’ve never been really comfortable with the idea of guns. You don’t need them in your home. Your grandfather’s obsession with them with never stop giving you the chills. Hell, even Jade has some. You don’t like it. So you think. What can you do with the guns?JADE: why not bring them to the armory? Blinking out of your train of thought you look over at your sister and nod your head as she continues.JADE: tax break and a decent cheque.JADE: maybe-JAKE: I can take the guns if youd like. Those were passed down through the family. It would be a shame to see them go out. The two of you look over at Jake as Jade is cut off. Oh. You guess he’s got a point. It’s like the piano back in Washington. You know you deny your father’s advances to give you the piano and have it shipped here, but one day it will be yours. It is extremely old. If your father was telling the truth, which he always does, it once belonged to your Nanna’s grandmother. You’re going to get that piano dammit. It’s not like Jade plays piano. Wait. You’re getting sidetracked again. Dammit, John, Jake was saying something.JAKE:-and i can take care of them and maybe even use them for work. Oh yeah. You forgot that Jake hunts for work. You wonder if he works with the butcher in town. That would be cool. Probably gets a decent discount on cuts of meat. You’ll have to see if you could take advantage of that. If there is anything you can’t say no to, it’s venison. JOHN: are you sure you’d be okay with that? it’s a lot of guns jake...will you have enough room in your jeep?JAKE: Well john i dont NEED to take them all in one trip. Goodness that would look awfully suspicious if i were to get pulled over.JAKE: I only live a little ways away. I can come and get them in trips. Maybe even take some to stay at the range! Nodding your head, you all continue with dinner. Now that everything is officially sorted out, you think you can try to relax. You handle washing the dishes when your father tries to step in and do them. You tell him to chill. He’s got only a few hours before you are all heading to the car rental. When the time comes, you’ve got both dogs chilling with you in Jake’s Jeep as your father is signing a bunch of paperwork in the agency. Jade is reorganizing the suitcases in the trunk before getting in and sitting in the back with the dogs, judging you and Jake hardcore for headbanging to I Can’t Fight This Feeling. It’s a good song dammit. Off to the airport, you go! It’s weird waving goodbye to your father as they leave to board the plane. You know that this isn’t the last time you’ll see them. There are holidays and you know that your dad will call you whenever. Nothing will change. At least nothing too crazy. It’s not like you’ll exactly be alone. Jake’s with you. Literally. He’s dropping you off at your place. Your place. That’s so weird to think about. As I was saying.. He’s dropping you off at your place. He only lives about a ten-minute drive away apparently. So if you are really bored and lonely you could always visit him and Halley. You doubt you’ll need to but you like that the option is there for you.JAKE: Are you sure youll be okay on your own for the night john?JOHN: yeah. i’m not a little kid any more, jake.JAKE: If youre sure.. You step out of the Jeep and carefully shut the door behind you, reaching a hand in to pat Halley’s head as he moves up to the front seat to take over your spot. JAKE: Well goodnight john! Make sure to get enough rest.JOHN: good night, dude.JOHN: text me when you get home so i know you’re safe.JAKE: You have my word. You wave a hand as he pulls out of the driveway and watch as he drives away before stepping inside. You make your way over to the kitchen, checking the dishes in the rack to see if they are dried yet. They are. Most of them at least. So you start putting them away. It’s when you drop a mug that you realize. Wow, it’s quiet without everyone over. You’ve never been alone. Not even before-==> Nope. Must reach LVL 43 of friendship with John to unlock that information.==> Yes I know that’s a bit excessive. Kiss my ass. Bending down you groan and use the counter for support as you pick up the mug, checking it for any cracks or chips. It seems okay, so you put it away in the cabinet. Now that all the dishes are dry and away you stare out into the living room. Maybe you’ll play some video games. You need to hunt through the boxes in the mudroom to find everything. Might as well set up the consoles. They are how you make money, John. Walking over to the back door you swing it open and step into the mudroom, opening up the boxes to check their contents before bringing them out to the living room. You set them by the TV and shuffle back, repeating these steps until the boxes you need are all out. ==> John: Dub the living room the makeshift streaming room. Putting your hands on your hips you nod to yourself and mutter under your breath.JOHN: well it has to go some where...might as well make it here. Atta boy, John. Nice obedience skills you’ve got there. You take the time to get the small computer set up on the old work desk your father cleaned up for you yesterday, and then you work on connecting the consoles to the main television. It drains you of all your energy to actually play the games so you are off to bed. You go into your bedroom, there are just a few boxes left in here for you to go through, so to make the unpacking process a little easier you’ve only been taking the clothes out of the boxes. You’ve got a set of PJs ready so all you need to do is take a quick shower and lay down. It seemed easy enough. So why is sleep giving you such troubles tonight? Sitting up in your bed you frown and stare over at the wall for a moment. You have been tossing and turning for hours now and you can’t stand it. Rubbing at your eyes, you slip out of bed, swinging your feet over the edge and stretching your arms over your head until your shoulders pop. You sigh in relief and hiss when your feet touch the cold floor. You kneel down in front of your bed to try and reach under to grab your slippers. You can’t sleep. Your body still isn’t used to the time difference quite yet. Which quite frankly is bullshit. You’ve been here for a while now. You’ve been forcing yourself to stay up to try and reset your sleep cycle. Walking over to the kitchen you stand in front of your coffee machine and grab the can of Cafe Bustelo out. You stand there for a moment, staring at the can. You know if your life was a story the reader, if they knew what Cafe Bustelo is, would be laughing at you. Of course you can’t sleep, they would think. You’re drinking hardcore espresso, how could you ever think you could sleep when drinking this shit? Well, jokes on the reader, your family is Cuban and you’ve been drinking this for as long as you can remember. If anything, it tends to puts you to sleep. You listen to the coffee machine hiss as it starts to warm up. It gives you time to scoop the grounds up and press them into the funnel. Grabbing a mug you move to the fridge and take the coconut milk out. Splashing some into the bottom of the mug you place it under the spout and press the brew button. Rubbing your hands together you turn and look out the window. You forgot how cold it gets a night here. You would think you’d be used to it from living in Washington all your life but if there is anything your body has gotten used to in your move to the island life, it’s the warmth of the day. You continue looking out at the docks and smile watching the waves of water until the moon’s light. It’s so pretty. The coffee machine is hissing again, which gets your attention and you happily take the mug into your chilled hands. They warm fairly quickly as your gaze moves to the window again. Taking a sip of your coffee you set it back down and move to put your hoodie on. All snug, your eyes fall on your melodica case. Chuckling you grab it by the handle as well as your coffee before heading out to sit at the docks. There’s an empty spot where your grandfather would leave his boat. It’s in the shed in the yard but you have no need for it right now. Sitting down on the end of the wooden dock you take your slippers off so they won’t fall into the water. You take another sip of your coffee and crack into your melodica case. You set your mug down next to your slippers and let your feet dip into the water as you take your melodica out. You hold onto the spit-valve button and blow air through the instrument making sure nothing is blocking the keys.==> John: Play Taking a deep breath you bring the mouthpiece back to your lips and press on the keys. It’s a good tune. You are pretty sure this is one of the first songs you learned how to play on the piano on your own. You remember the look on your father’s face when you played it for him the first time. He was happy you were playing for yourself because you learned to love the instrument and not playing just for orchestra and for your contests. This was you learning who you were. Your eyes look up at the moon as you play and you listen to the waves crashing in the distance. You have a good feeling about this little spot. Something in you tells you that great things are coming. The idea puts you at ease enough to pack up the melodica and go back inside the house. Standing up you hold the case close and as you are bending down to grab your mug and slippers, you notice a conch shell next to where you were sitting. That’s odd. That wasn’t there just a moment ago. With your foot, you nudge the shell into the water before dropping your slippers back onto the dock so you can step into them. Now that you minimize the chances of getting a splinter, you start walking up to the house. The first thing you do when you get inside is kick your slippers off and head to the kitchen. You rinse your mug out and leave it by the coffee machine, you can use it later for when you make a cup in the morning. Later in the morning that is. You set your melodica case on the kitchen table and make your way into your bedroom. This time when you lay down, you sleep. Today is the day you’re walking down into town and going grocery shopping. You want to get a feel of the place and learn where everything is so you don’t get lost. If there is anything you’ve learned from your father it's the skill of instantly knowing how to get to a place after being there once. It’s a skill you believe everyone should have, it’s very useful. You’ll have to do this again with the car. Which is an idea you consider scratching away as you arrive, because town really isn’t that far away and it’s just you here. It’s not like you are going to need to feed any extra mouths anytime soon; there will be no need for giant grocery runs. Hell you can probably get groceries delivered to the house. God, you love technology. You really like how close everything is to the house, maybe this is why your grandfather chose the place. As you are walking down the sidewalk you peek into a little shop. It looks like a cafe of some sort. Cute.????: you alright dear? ????: you look a little bit lost i dont think ive seen your face around here Blinking you look to the side and spot an older woman watering the plants in front of said shop. You get a look at her nametag and smile down at her.JOHN: i’m okay, thank you miss judy.JOHN: i’m just getting a feel of town, i just moved in!JUDY: youre the one that moved into harleys home?JOHN: yes, ma’am.JOHN: he is- was my grandpa. Her eyes widen and she smiles up at you, wrapping you in a hug. It startles you but out of the need to not be rude you hug her back awkwardly. She pats your back twice before stepping back and cupping your cheeks in her palms, turning your face around to get a good look at it.JUDY: i can see that!JUDY: you have the same faceJUDY: at least when he was young That makes you laugh. You don’t have it in you to tell her how funny that is because of the fact that you are adopted and have no genetic relations to your grandfather. All you can do is say:JOHN: thank you.JUDY: no need to thank me sweetie im just telling the truth!JUDY: you must be johnJUDY: youre the only one of the kids ive yet to meet You nod your head and pocket your hands into your jeans.JOHN: did grandpa talk about me?JUDY: of course he didJUDY: that and jade is our most frequent customerJudy looks over her shoulder and points behind her with her thumb.JUDY: do want to come into the shop?JUDY: your old man would buy our mochi for you kids every christmasJOHN: those were yours?JUDY: that they were!JUDY: you allergic to peanuts like jakey jade and your old man?JOHN: sadly.. She chuckles and pats your shoulder, leading you inside. You are brought up to the display glass that she opens and starts placing pieces of mochi into a cute box. You eye up the strawberry ones. You’ve never been a fan of bean paste but these make it okay. As you look up from the glass display you end up making eye contact with Judy and she chuckles, putting three of those in the box. Setting them on the counter she wraps it in cloth and ties a bow with the fabric corners before handing it over to you. Oh.JOHN: oh- miss judy i can’t just take this!JUDY: yes you canJUDY: and you will Pouting you hold the box in your hands and frown before looking back over at her. JUDY: please take it dearJUDY: think of it as a sign of my condolences?JOHN: ...JOHN: thank you ma’am. Taking a deep breath you set it down and wrap your arms around her tightly. You smile as you pull back and you take your wallet out of your pocket. You pull out a ten and put it right into the tip jar before saying your farewells and going on your merry way throughout town. You have a feeling you’ll be showing up here a lot. Not just the mochi shop but the other stores you find along the way. You think it’s funny how curious people are when they see you. It’s even funnier how many of them think you look like your grandfather and how many people have such nice things to say about him. It’s so weird. The stories they tell you you would never expect to hear about the man. As you are walking back with plenty of goodies in your arms you decide that you were right in walking to town. You really won’t need the car and you like that. You just need to get used to how hot it is during the day and you’ll be set. You walk past the docks on your way home and make a note to eat lunch and do some filming there. It’s a nice day and you’ve been slacking when it comes to filming and streaming for work. You’ll probably make a tour around the house video to make up for the lack of content to your viewers. Heading up the front steps you put everything you bought away where they belong before taking some cold cuts out of the fridge. You’re up for a sandwich today. JOHN: gamer achievement: sandwich acquired! You chuckle as you wrap your sandwich in a paper towel and leave it on the table as you move around the house to get your phone stand and your melodica out of your room. You have to have a productive day. Not that unpacking wasn’t productive, it was, but you want to be productive when it comes to working. With everything packed up you leave through the front door and down to the docks. You like that you get the view of them from the house. You’ll have to take advantage of the water only being about twenty feet away from the house one day. Walking down the ramp you head right to that empty walkway with the empty lot of water next to it again. It’s different when the sun is up. You see more boats sailing in the water. It’s a lot louder. Setting up your phone stand you turn the recording feature on as you put your melodica up. You’ll have to do some editing but you don’t mind. Honestly sometimes editing is your favorite part of making videos.==> John: Play Richard Marx’s Right Here Waiting. Wow, what a throwback. You remember listening to this on long car rides with your parents. You smile against the mouthpiece as you think of your sister trying to duet with her mother. Horribly. Then again, you sucked at singing as a child. You continue on down memory lane as you play the song a few times. It’ll make editing it all together a lot easier. Each time you move the camera stand around. You like making cover videos, it’s a nice change of pace for your channel seeing that it’s mostly you and your friends playing video games together. You really can’t wait for everything to be set up so you can play with them again. Shutting the recording feature off, you put your melodica away in its case and reach over for your sandwich. ????: Don’t you know how rude it is to throw a gift into the ocean?JOHN: son of a bit- Startled by the sudden voice, you jump to your feet accidentally knocking your melodica case right off of the dock and right into the ocean before you can catch it.JOHN: no no-JOHN: aye carajo.. Quickly you kneel and scoop it up, water draining out of it slowly. You knit your eyebrows together and apologize to the voice you heard. You look over your shoulder. There is a person leaning against the docks from inside the water, their arms crossed under their chin as well as a conch shell in their hand.JOHN: sorry- you scared the crap out of me!JOHN: my melodica.. God you can’t believe you’ve done this, you are going to have to take the whole thing apart to make sure it dries properly! Without having another thought you leave the case there and run straight for your home. Leaving your sandwich there in the process. Nice going. Once there, you set the melodica right on the kitchen table and run around like a headless chicken looking for a toolbox. All this for a melodica? Fuck off, reader, this isn’t just a cheap pastel colored melodica one can get off of Amazon for people who cosplay Your Lie In April or some shit. This is the first musical instrument you bought with your hard earned money. You helped your dad out with so many bake sales for this thing. You spent three hundred dollars on it. You will cherish this poor thing for as long as you can. When you find the toolbox, you open it up on the table and start taking it apart. You run back out of the room, cursing up a storm as you grab a towel from the bathroom to lay the pieces out in order of how they come off. You are going to have to dry every single piece and rebuild once it is dry. Wiping your cheeks- no you aren’t crying. You’re just frustrated with the whole situation. You blame yourself for it too. That’s what you get for bringing it to the damn ocean. Where were we again? Oh! Wiping at your cheeks, you step away from the table after wiping the pieces down with rubbing alcohol gently. It makes the water dry even faster. Something about that gives it away that you’ve spilled water on it before. Now that that is being left out you decide to go lay on the sofa for a little while. You need to take a breather. Who knew your energy could be depleted like that in just half an hour? Sighing, you lay your head on the arm of the sofa, moving to tuck a pillow under, and you turn the TV on making sure to lower the volume. You just need the background noise, you’ll get used to the quiet eventually. Taking your glasses off, you shut your eyes and lay there for a moment. Wait. Who the fuck was that person in the w—— Before you can continue that thought your body decides to give you the mega fuck you and forces you into napping. Nice going. You wake up when the sun is down and you suddenly have a headache. You stay put on the sofa for a moment, trying to regain yourself, before heading to the kitchen to put the melodica back together. It reminds you of what you were thinking about before you took that nap.==> John: Go investigate the docks. With a flashlight in your hand you make your way over to the docks. There was definitely someone there. Okay no that just sounds crazy. Who in their right mind would be swimming in the ocean that late at night? They said something about a gift? And they were even holding the conch you dropped into the water. Did they put it there that initial night? You are losing your mind, John Egbert. Even if that person from earlier wasn’t a figment of your imagination, even if they really were there, they won’t be there now. It’s dark enough that you need the flashlight to see! No one with any sense of self preservation would be swimming in the ocean this late at night. Heading down to the docks you make your way to the empty lot, you really should figure out what to do with the boat. You have the flashlight pointing at the water, trying to see if you can find the shell. You think you looked for at least ten minutes before calling it quits. So turning on your heel you start for home and——— The shell is on the dock!==> John: Flip your shit.????: Dude why are you so damn loud? ????: Don’t you know people are trying to sleep? Blinking, you notice a face peeking out of the water. It’s the face from earlier. That is a face of someone with no self preservation skills. Putting the flashlight down you kneel over at the edge of the dock and flash a smile as you apologize to the stranger.JOHN: sorry! JOHN: oh it’s you from last night!JOHN: i knew i wasn’t losing my shit!????: What did I just say about being loud? Rolling your eyes, you huff and get a good look at their face. Taking in all their features especially when the clouds move and the light of the moon hits their eyes in just the right spot. Without thinking. You cup their cheeks in your hands and smile again.JOHN: you have really pretty eyes..????: Thanks. Your eyes aren’t too shabby either.????: Can I have my face back?JOHN: ooh sorry- Dropping your hands from their face you chuckle nervously and pocket those hands into your hoodie. Shifting you sit down properly and cross your legs, pretzel style.JOHN: what are you doing in the water any way?JOHN: swimming this late can’t be safe.????: It’s nothing. I do this all the time.????: No need to worry your handsome-self over.????: What you should be focusing on is actually taking home the gift I gave you.????: You’re not going to chuck in the ocean again are you?????: What a way to break a guy’s heart.JOHN: gift..?JOHN: oh the conch!????: Conch. JOHN: huh?????: The shell.????: It’s pronounced KONK. Like, I’m going to conch you on the head with it if you say it stupidly again.JOHN: i didn’t say it stupidly! your face is stupid!????: And to think you had just called it pretty...tsk tsk tsk.JOHN: oh my god..JOHN: well does that pretty face and know it all personality have a name? or am i going to have to call you mysterious swimmer forever.????: Maybe.JOHN: to which??????: Dirk.JOHN: what?????: My name.DIRK: It’s Dirk.JOHN: well dirk you should really get out of the water.DIRK: I’m fine.JOHN: no you’re not. You dip your head under the dock to try and follow him. JOHN: it’s dark and a shark could- Oh. He’s gone. Did you just——— See a tail??==> John: Proceed to be confused as physically possible.
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-- ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering gardenGnostic [GG] --EB: jade, i need to ask you a question.EB: a REALLY serious question.EB: one you can’t try to make fun of me for asking.EB: ooh looky here john is asking something he teased me for years!!EB: let me get pay back on him for it!EB: something like that.GG: john!EB: jade!GG: it is four in the morning here! stop blowing my phone upGG: what is your question?EB: are mermaids real?GG: yes.EB: >:(EB: you’re no help.-- ectoBiologist [EB] ceased pestering gardenGnostic [GG] --GG: you are ridiculous john.-- gardenGnostic [GG] ceased pestering ectoBiologist [EB] -- Tossing your phone to the side you huff and cross your arms over your chest. Of course she would tell you they are real. She has to be doing it all to spite you. You can’t blame her for it, you did tease her and still do tease her for believing in the stories your grandfather would tell. That doesn’t mean you’re okay with her messing with you like this! You need to ask someone else you can trust. Someone who isn’t family. But you don't exactly know anyone who you could talk to like that. Someone will tell you they are real and you'll roll your eyes and tell them they are just fucking with you like Jade is. Hell, they'll tell you they aren't real and some stupid part of your brain will not believe them and make you keep asking until you can learn to trust what your eyes saw. The conch. You look over at the shell as it sits on your nightstand and sit up. You reach out and bring it to your hands, holding it close. You see it, you feel it, it's right in front of you. It really happened. You didn't just imagine Dirk and you are sure you didn't imagine the tail you saw on him. With a heavy sigh you slip out of bed and tuck your phone into your shorts and cradle the shell in your arm as you shuffle out of your room. You can't get these thoughts out of your head, so fuck sleep. Might as well try and be productive. You walk out of your room and take the shell to the kitchen. Setting it down on the counter you peek into the fridge and make yourself a sandwich to eat to get you started. Egg salad. Quality shit right there. The plan is to get some building done so you can start setting up your streaming desks. Your old bedroom was more of a streaming room with a small bed in the corner. Your father had offered to turn the piano room once you began to hit it off online but you turned that down. You liked the piano room. It was the place you could clear your head. So you kept it all in one room. This is different now, you have a whole house to work with. There are so many rooms you could pick to mess with and yet. You'll keep it all in the living room, at least for now you will. You don't want to mess with the rooms too much. They hold a lot of memories and a part of you worries that Jade might kill you if you mess with them. Your dad's childhood bedroom. the guest room with the bunk beds you all would stay in for the holidays. They'll stay that way until you are sure you need to put them somewhere. It's just you here. there is no need for you to change any room other than the one you chose for yourself. You take another bite of your sandwich, it's warm now and you hate that, and you set the wrench down. One desk, a few random items, and a fancy gaming chair down, one more desk and a few storage units to go. Wiping your forehead, you look outside the window and see the sky is beginning to turn orange. Shit. You didn't expect to be awake still. This is what happens when you get too focused, and despite being so focused you are still thinking about Dirk. Damn, if you didn't know better you'd think this was sort of crush. Nope. Nope, we are NOT going there. Shaking your head, you wipe your forehead and finish the last bite of your sandwich. It probably wasn't a good idea to make an egg salad sandwich last this many hours but you'll deal with those consequences when they hit you in the form of having to run to the bathroom at a random hour of the day. That is worse than a lactose intolerance bathroom sprint and no one can convince you otherwise. The fact that you do this often enough to know such a thing is really concerning, John. Laughing to yourself you crumble up the napkin you were using as a plate and stand up to take it to the kitchen to throw it out. Your eyes fall on the conch and you sigh. That question is popping into your head again. There is no need to ask around for assurance; even if there was it’s not like you can go to the docks, hope for Dirk to show up, and then ask him if he is a mermaid. Or can you? You can’t exactly sleep. So screw it. You look over at the conch shell one more time and move to hold it in your hands, reassuring yourself again. This is real. Dirk is real. You..You just need to double check. Taking a deep breath You set the shell down and make your way for the front door. The logical part of you wants to believe that this is all a dream, why would any of this actually be happening? but the other part, the part of you that is itching for something new prays that is isn’t a fairy tale. Even if that means acknowledging that your sister and your grandfather weren’t crazy. That you teased Jade for nothing. Walking down the front steps you cover your eyes, shielding them from the bright rising sun. You cross the street and walk down the ramp to the docks and make your way over to that clear spot. You look down at the water once you're on the edge of the dock and just- Facepalm. It's so early, why on Earth would Dirk be out here for sun-up? You really aren't thinking things through, are you John? Fuck this, you're just going to go home and try to actually get some sleep. So turning on your heels you move to head up the dock and your eyes land right on a shell on the dock. Well, more so a shell on the dock attached to Dirk's hand. You stare and he stares back at you, as if you caught him in trying to be sneaky. It makes you chuckle and shuffle over to him, kneeling down and looking down at him you smile and let your gaze fall on the shell. JOHN: is that for me?DIRK: Possibly. You chuckle and take a hold of it. It's small, nothing like the conch at all. Setting it to the side, you sit down properly and cross your legs like a pretzel. Looking at the water you find your eyes falling onto his tail. His tail. You see it again. He's really- DIRK: Don’t you know it’s rude to stare at someone’s ass like that?JOHN: what- no- i-DIRK: Well? Do you at least like what you see?==> John.exe has stopped working. Your face burns a shade of red you didn't know was possible as you quickly rise to your feet in embarrassment. A wave of thoughts washes over you. Like the years of you teasing Jade for her overactive imagination. You can never let her know that you know. You can just feel the i told you so. You are stuck in your thoughts until you feel Dirk place the shell back in your hands. Squeezing your hand around it you chuckle and rub the back of your neck.DIRK: I'll take that as a yes. And with that he dips back into the water. You drop the shell at your side and quickly reach out, trying to grab him but just like the last time. He's too quick for you.JOHN: god dammit.. Sighing you sit back and stare at the water, just waiting. Hoping that he'll come back. He will. Just not right now. You let out a long yawn and rub at your eyes, looking at the sun one more time before collecting the shell and heading up the dock. Finally, you'll be getting some sleep.
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Everything. Every single thing your grandfather has told you growing up is true? At least about his adventures...You can’t seem to wrap your head around this concept even as you are going through the books on the shelves. This must have been why your father wanted to take care of the books when you were finishing up packing things away. You are the only one who didn’t believe in these fairy tales- holy shit are fairy tales real then too? Are fairies real? You’ll have to keep reading to find out, John. So you do. Study time is in session. You are sitting on the floor in the hall right in front of the book shelves that line the walls, books all around you as you skim through their pages for more knowledge. You need to be sure this is something to freak out about. That your imagination isn’t just taking advantage of you being in an unfamiliar place. That would be cruel. And yet it wouldn't be the most cruel thing your brain has done to you. Maybe it is just taking advantage of you and Dirk is really just a weirdo with a mermaid kink of some sort. Maybe the guy just has a mermaidsona that he is only comfortable bringing out at night when no one can see him? Wait- What if he is a mermaid? For real. A real life mermaid like in H2O. But he isn’t just an ordinary mermaid. He’s a were mermaid. Do those exist? Jesus, John, just keep reading and find out. Grabbing another book you flip through the pages a bit more slowly, not wanting to miss out on information that could be helpful. In doing so you find some sort of encyclopedia full of monsters and animals. The thing that catches your eye when you open the book is a key in the table of contents. Not a key someone would open a secret door to in the house, not that one exists. Forget that was even mentioned. This is like a key to a map; it is made of two pieces. A simple ⬜️ means: To Do, and ⬛️ means: Dead. Something about reading that makes your stomach drop, especially since you noticed those markings in the other books you skimmed through. You start flopping through the pages with wide eyes. Oh my lanta, they really were hunters? Are they still hunters? Did they really kill all these creatures? Jake? Jade? Your father? Slamming the book shut you stand up and start pacing, knocking a tower of books you’ve created down to the ground when you walk past it. No. just no you know your father isn’t one anymore if he ever was, you know how he reacted to your grandfather’s stories and to Jade joining him on those adventures. Hell, you remember when Jade got her first rifle. Your father did not like that one bit. Remembering that makes you calm down. At least enough to grab another book off the shelf and keep reading. Sighing, you sit back down right next to your broken down tower and flip to the table of contents. It’s another one handwritten by your grandfather. You press your finger into the paper as a guide as you skim down to a section called, ”Aquatic”, None of the ones in this section seem to be filled out with even the blank key markers and a part of you sighs in relief from the, the other only worries why that could be. Then you remember Dirk and wonder what kind of mermaid is he? There are so many of them that you begin to lose your mind on it all. You’ll have to see if you can see Dirk again and ask him some more questions. If he is willing to answer them maybe you can learn a thing or two from him. Looking down at all the books that surround you you sigh and take a deep breath, running your hands through your hair right after. You begin picking up the books and grab an eraser off the table in the living room. You open the books up and one at a time you begin erasing the marks, whiting out the ones that were marked with pen. You’d rather not have your grandfather's body count in your bookshelves. A part of you wants to toss them all out but the other keeps at it. One day you might need this information. There are just so many books and you are so focussed. So focussed that the sound of your phone vibrating against the wood of the table makes you flinch, almost jumping out of your skin even.JOHN: just a spam call...JOHN: ugh. Tossing your phone onto the cushion beside you, you take the stack of books back over to the shelves leaving only the ones with sections on aquatic animals out on the table. You pop over to your desk to grab the sticky notes, putting them on the pages that you believe could relate to Dirk. With all the books marked, you slam the last one shut and bring them all back to the shelves making sure to reorganize it so those books you line with post it notes were all on the same row on the book shelf. With that all taken care of you pop into the kitchen to reheat the takeout you got last night. Maybe you can share it with Dirk tonight, you wonder what he heats out there. Oh yeah! You wanted to go down to the dock. You keep getting distracted today...Okay Okay. I’ve got this.==> John. Grab your food, fork, and follow your plan for once.==> WITHOUT getting distracted dammit. You wrap the container with paper towels and tuck the fork into your hoodie pocket for now, making sure to grab your cellphone on the way out. Smiling at the setting sun, you walk down the steps and out to the docks, kicking your shoes off lightly so you can dip your feet into the water as you eat. Simply waiting for Dirk to show up. You wish you had a way to call him. You have so much you want to learn. The moon is in the sky and you are starting to get cold. Maybe he’s busy..? Whatever. You’ll just come back tomorrow. Frowning, you break up the broccoli in your container and feed it to the fish that have gathered close to the top of the water. Fish are fed and it’s time to head back. Maybe you can ask Jade one more time. Just to make sure you aren’t losing your shit. As you are walking up the ramp to the sidewalk you pull out your phone.-- ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering gardenGnostic [GG] --EB: jade are you up?EB: i know i asked already but..GG: im up!EB: are mermaids real?GG: whats this about john?EB: jade just let me finish typing, damn.GG: sorry!GG: whats this about anyway? GG: did you see one??? Shit. You stop in your tracks for a second. You aren't going to tell her what you believe. You don’t exactly know if you could trust her with this information. What if she tried to hurt him? So instead… ==> John. Lie to your sister.EB: nope!EB: i’m just hearing a lot of stories and i started reading grandpa’s books.EB: i don’t know why i’m asking again. sorry if i woke you up!GG: its fine john!GG: im just going to bed nowGG: goodnight john!EB: good night, jade.-- gardenGnostic [GG] ceased pestering ectoBiologist [EB] ---- ectoBiologist [EB] ceased pestering gardenGnostic [GG] -- Crisis averted, nice going John! Taking a deep breath you step inside and linger in the doorway for a moment. This is all going to take a long time for your brain to stop and just accept that this is all real. You don't like that feeling of distrust forming in your stomach. So you look around for distraction. That's what you need right now. Shutting the door and locking it behind you, you walk over to the desk you've built. You set your laptop and monitors up on it already and soon you'll get to streaming again. For now, you'll start editing your videos you still need to upload. You can't be slacking just because you have mythological creatures on the mind. Mythological creatures. Can you really call them that now? They aren't fake. You know that. You've seen one with your own eyes. They're just creatures- just people even. It gets you thinking. If mermaids exist..does everything in those books exist too? Vampires? Wendigos? Holy fucking shit-JOHN: is moth man real too?? You slap your hand over your mouth and bite on your palm nervously. It's not like anyone is around to hear you. But the fact that you considered it a possibility is insane. You don't like this. You wish you never noticed Dirk's tail. You wish you could go back to the way you were. Fuck. You're getting distracted again. Your phone really is on a streak of scaring you because you flinch at the sound of a ping. Taking your phone out and unlocking it, you see that your friends are playing Minecraft and have invited you to play with them. Dave's going to be streaming, what the hell is he doing up so late? Oh. It's early for him isn't it? He must have just woken up. God, you really hate timezones. You might as well join. So standing up from the desk, you move over to the sofa and turn your playstation on. You search around until you find your headset, putting it on the second you find it and sit down. You join the group voice call and are thrown off with how many people are shouting in your ear. You look at the group log and a smile forms on your face. Holy shit. -- turntechGodhead [TG] is online -- -- carcinoGeneticist [CG] is online -- -- apocalypseArisen [AA] is idle -- -- gallowsCalibrator [GC] is online -- -- twinArmageddons [TA] is online -- So you join the log. It's time to excel in the craft of mines. -- ectoBiologist [EB] has joined the group --DAVE: holy shit everyone shut the fuck upSOLLUX: do not tell me what the fuck two do- kk watch out you fuckiing iimbeciile!DAVE: john!JOHN: hiya guys!! You laugh as you login and join the server, looking at the map right away to try and find out what the hell they are doing.JOHN: uh...shouldn’t you guys be- i dunno..JOHN: asleep?TEREZI: 1 DON’T KNOW JOHN SHOULDN’T YOU B3 34T1NG SH1T?JOHN: thanks terezi, sweet as always.TEREZI: 4NYTH1NG FOR YOU.KARKAT: OH MY GOD, FOR ONCE IN YOUR MISERABLE LIVES, WILL YOU TWO STOP FLIRTING?TEREZI: YOU'R3 SUCH 4 BUZZK1LL, K1TT3N.TEREZI: BUT YOU H34RD TH3 M4N, JOHN. NOW TH4NKS TO K4RK4T TH3 W3DD1NG 1S OFF.JOHN: booo!JOHN: i was looking forward to it and everything! Laughing into your mic you take a deep breath and look at the time. Thinking about what time it is for everyone. It's somewhat reasonable for you to be awake, but everyone else? Not so much. You won't question it any further. Right now you're busy playing Hunger Games with your friends over and over again. With each hour the amount of your friends starts to diminish until you're left alone helping Dave build his castle. Sometimes you can hear his uncle talking to him through the mic, telling him to go to sleep and then again when he says he's heading out to work.DAVE: heyDAVE: johnJOHN: huh? oh- yeah, dave?DAVE: you okay dude? you just got your ass handed to you by a creeper twice and didnt make a sound Looking up at your screen, you facepalm at the sight of your character in a creeper pit. You don't want to be that asshole so you take the time to fill it in. JOHN: yeah i'm okay, just a little distracted..DAVE: you know you can talk to me rightJOHN: yeah dave. of course!JOHN: i've just...got a lot on my mind.DAVE: wanna talk about it? Frowning, you set your controller down and look out the window. The cold breeze that slips in makes you shudder. Maybe Dave is the last person you need to ask. When has he ever led you astray?JOHN: i think i'm just going crazy but..JOHN: do you think mermaids are real?DAVE: ...DAVE: you should go to bed man im about to crash soon too Taking a deep breath you nod despite him not being able to see your face. He dodged your question. That was probably him trying to be nice and not call you a nutjob. You don't blame him. DAVE: it was nice playing with you again johnDAVE: hit me up the next time youre streaming againJOHN: totally, good night dave.DAVE: g'night john You watch your TV as you are taken off the server and you set the controller to the side. It's probably afternoon for everyone already. You really should get some sleep. Dave was right. Shutting the TV off you begin cleaning up your things to head off to bed but you stop for a moment to look out the window. You swear you can see someone pulling themselves up onto the empty dock from the water. You don't think. Your body moves on your own with each step guiding you out of the house and down the ramp to chase after what you want to believe is true. Years of teasing your family be damned. Mermaids are real and you don't need anyone to tell you otherwise. It's a shame you are greeted by an empty dock. No Dirk in sight.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
It kind of makes your chest hurt that you haven't seen Dirk in a while. Maybe your brain was creating this story for you to not feel so lonely in this big house alone. It makes you want to go home. This isn't your home. This is just a house you happen to live in. In a different state. You can't even blame your brain for coming up with this person. For coming up with Dirk. You keep telling yourself that it was all just something you dreamt up. But how could you wake up to the two shells on your dresser every morning? You just don’t get it. You can’t get your brain to stick to one story. One moment it was all a dream, the other you’re walking out to the dock to wait for him to show up. You really are pathetic aren’t you, John? Taking your shoes off, you set them to the side and peel your socks off to set them inside so you can dip your feet into the water. The tide is high. You’ve brought your melodica out with you again hoping to get some filming done so you’ll have some editing to do when you’re back inside. Trying to keep yourself busy to distract yourself. And yet anytime you look up towards the ocean you find yourself thinking-JOHN: i wonder if he can hear me.. Oh. You said that out loud. Whoops. Sighing heavily, you set your melodica down on your lap and shut the cameras off. You keep making too many mistakes. You can’t fucking focus and it makes you want to rip your hair out. You don’t remember the last time you felt like this. So out of it. So restless. Much less over a person you aren’t even sure is real! You’ve lost your marbles. Did you ever have marbles to begin with? You really miss your friends. That thought alone makes you laugh and tear up a bit. Out of all your friends you’ve only seen two of them in person. The twins. It was for your birthday. You have no idea how your father managed to get Dave and Rose all the way to Washington, but he did and it made you so happy. You wipe your face as you think about it. You’ve never had a physical connection with your friends but that doesn’t take away the fact that you miss them. Time zones have always been an issue for you, you know that. But with this move it’s added such a larger gap on when you can talk to them. Maybe moving here was too brash, you didn’t think it through well enough. Packing up your melodica you grab the cameras and head back inside, stopping at the top of the ramp to look at the docks one more time. You’ll be out again tonight. You’re not going to give up on Dirk yet. The night is still young. He’ll be back, you know it. You make it a habit, a part of your daily schedule even. You start the day off with taking a warm shower and breakfast. Sometimes it is toast or cereal with a glass of juice on the side. You take it with you to the docks to play some music and watch the sun rise into the clouds. You’ll sit out there for an hour or two before heading inside and getting dressed, whether it is to get some work done around the house or to go grocery shopping. It all depends on what needs to happen that day. Video editing and a short phone call with your father is bound to happen as well. You get some cooking done again and even ask your cousin, Jake, for some gardening tips. Anything to keep you busy and not feeling down about being so lonely. You then make sure to end the night by eating dinner on the dock and playing some music under the moon, hoping for Dirk to show his face. Even if only for a brief moment. You didn’t expect this to go on for nearly a month though. You’re surprised you haven’t given up on him yet. At this rate, you don’t believe you will. You are stubborn. You need to see him again, you don’t think your heart could take it if you didn’t see him. So you begin packing your dinner up for the night and slip your melodica case over your shoulder before heading out the front door. The cacti you are growing on the porch seem to be doing well, so you wave at them as you cross the street to head down the ramp. You take your time walking down to your dock. It’s already becoming muscle memory to you. The act of how you set your food down, taking your melodica out, putting your shoes to the side and dipping your feet into the water. Repetition, that is what’s keeping you sane. Although the stack of dishes in the sink begs to differ. You always play a little before eating, minimizing the risk of getting food in the instrument. Cleaning the inside out is not fun. Tonight you’ll be playing, Like The First Snow by Ailee. A nice song for a night like this. It’s slow and smooth, and it makes you realize you’re playing these songs for him. Playing these songs in hopes that Dirk will hear you out there and come visit. But it’s edging onto two in the morning when you decide to tap out for the night. He’s not showing up tonight. Is he? Packing up your melodica you stand up and slip into your shoes, taking a second to look up at the moon. You sigh and grab your plate, turning on your heel to head home. But you freeze up and drop your things. There is a shell right behind you. Your eyes widen and you walk up and down the dock. He’s here. He has to be, right? Who else would have done this? You stand at the edge of the dock, looking down at your belongings with a frown.JOHN: where is he..?DIRK: Right over here.==> John. Scream. Screaming and dropping the shell you turn around looking at Dirk, his head resting on his arms as he leans against the dock. Again, you scream before jumping into the water without a second thought. You can’t keep dropping his gifts into the ocean. You might actually lose them this time. Surfacing above the water, you gasp loudly and pull yourself up onto the dock. Fuck. You really just jumped into the water with your shoes on? Wiping your face, you look at Dirk and stare before just-==> John. Start beating Dirk up with the shell he got you. -wacking him on the head with the shell repeatedly. Tears start to well up as you begin to raise your voice at him. You were really worried about him and it’s starting to show, full force.JOHN: you can’t just up and disappear like that for a MONTH dirk!! i was so scared something had happened to you! You wipe at your eyes and your attacks become light taps on the head that Dirk doesn’t even shield himself from. Just letting you hit him. JOHN: i was so worried..DIRK: I’m sorry. I didn’t actually realize how long I was gone for. JOHN: that doesn’t make it better. Sighing you look down at the shell in your hands and squeeze your fingers around it.JOHN: what could have been so important that you had to be gone for a whole month? Dirk takes the shell out of your hands and opens it up. He presses his fingers into the flesh of the oyster and one by one four orbs are pushed out. Oh. Your cheeks flush and you hold them close. He pushes himself up onto the dock and you don’t even stare at his tail this time. He just rests his hand on yours. You sit together in silence for a moment before Dirk clears his throat, takes the shell, and eats the creature inside. Gross. He dips the shell inside the water and cleans it out with the help of the ocean. He hands it back to you and cracks a smile. It’s a bit forced but you can tell he means well. That there is guilt in that smile.DIRK: I wanted to step up my gift giving game..so I checked each one until I found the perfect one.DIRK: Even if that meant breaking into a pearl farm. You sputter a little and stare at him. He really did that for you? Sighing you stand up and begin picking your things up. You look down at him and hold a hand out to him.JOHN: come with me. can you stand?JOHN: my house is right there, i can carry you. Dirk stares up at you for a moment before curling in on himself. For a second you swear you see a seal on the dock in front of you and then you blink and Dirk is standing up, ass naked, in front of you with nothing but a pelt tied on his hips. You scramble to take your hoodie off and put it on him to cover him up, your cheeks painfully red. Now that that has been taken care of, you sigh heavily and step back, your hand still out for him to hold. You both smile at each other and head up the dock. You don’t think you’re ready to let him go yet, even as you step inside the house. You take him inside your room and get him some fresh clothes to wear, hanging his coat up after a moment of hesitance from Dirk. After all this, you’re exhausted. Dirk doesn’t seem to need any convincing to lay down either, making you wonder when was the last time he slept inside. He seems too eager to sleep on the sofa of all places. You sit with him, the TV playing softly as he lays in your arms. You find yourself drifting to sleep when you remember the main reason you started waiting for Dirk in the first place. You shoot up, nearly knocking Dirk off the sofa as he stares up at you.JOHN: wait a second!JOHN: dirk what even are you any way?DIRK: Uh..Gay?JOHN: no not-JOHN: what kind of mermaid thingie are you?DIRK: Oh..A selkie.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Waking up with Dirk in your arms had startled you at first, but you relaxed when you remembered what happened last night. He's back and he's safe. You don't need to worry so much. Not about Dirk at least. You do need to worry about your body though because you were a fool who fell asleep with your binder on again. So as quietly as you can you get off the sofa, trying your best to not wake him. You succeed and you mentally pat yourself on the back for it. Nice job. You move into the open kitchen and start washing the dishes, you don't want Dirk to think you're some kind of slob. You get the whole kitchen tidy and even start moving boxes around, you've been here long enough. All this should be out. Each time you put something away, you end up walking past the bookshelves in the hall. You don't want Dirk to think you're a hunter. That's what they're called right? You've read stories before. That sounds about right. So you start packing them up and put them in your dad's old room, locking it once they're all away. Now you've got bookshelves you can fill with your own books and your figures. That's nice. You keep checking on Dirk as he sleeps on the sofa. His hair is dry for the first time you've seen. It's nice, kind of curly. Not nearly as curly as yours but still curly nonetheless. Walking over you adjust the blanket on him and open the window to let the morning breeze in. Keeping it comfortable in here. You stop and run your fingers through his hair. Huh. It's soft. How did he manage that? The ocean is full of salts, it should be gross and dry to the touch. It makes you think of Ariel and how in the movie her hair is still full and soft when she surfaces from the water. Must be mermaid magic. It makes you chuckle. When you look down again you are greeted with bright amber eyes looking up at you. JOHN: morning..did i wake you?DIRK: Yeah..But that's fine. I should probably head out anyway. JOHN: what? do you have someplace to be? Dirk sits up and shakes his head, pulling the blanket close and rolling it up in an attempt to fold it. You frown and step back heading towards the kitchen. You don't want him to leave yet. So much for not having to worry anymore. JOHN: well...at least stay for breakfast. i'm really good at cooking. You listen to the sound of his footsteps and turn around when they stop, he's right at your side. You didn't realize how much shorter he was compared to you. It makes you smile. You're too tall for your own good. You ruffle his hair and get to making breakfast. You still have some pancake mix left. Classic breakfast it is. You want him to feel welcome here, what better way to show you care than giving a large breakfast. Eggs, bacon, the whole shebbang. You walk him out to the docks when he's ready to go. He even drops his coat on the dock as he goes to jump in the water. You grab it and hold it close before handing it to him. You think you catch him blush but shake it off. You were just returning his coat. There's no need to blush about something like that. Right?xxxx You keep up the process of going to the docks everyday, you enjoy getting to look for whatever Dirk has left you. It's like an Easter egg hunt you get to partake in daily. You have always liked Easter egg hunts. Your dad took them very seriously. He would spend a whole week just planning it out and maybe another just setting it up. It was a competition between you and your sister to who would find the most. He would hide the craziest things in them. From cookies, candies, shaving cream, and money. Sometimes you wonder who had more fun, you and Jade or your father. Either way, it was a good holiday and this brings you comfort in the fact that you probably won't be home to do the hunt this year. Which is silly now that you think of it. Your dad would find a way to keep you involved, even if that meant flying out here and setting up the house. That or you can just go back. You plan on doing so for the other holidays, why not Easter? You're getting ready to head out to the docks right now. You have started leaving him things as well. Things he can take into the ocean with him but also food and snacks to eat. You wonder what he eats out there and then you remember the incident with the oyster. The thought alone makes you gag as you wrap the container up. You're going to sit out there and wait a little to see if he'll show up. He's gotten better about his times. It's been helping you with your worries. Soon you think you'll both have a set schedule down. That would be nice. With the food ready, you head out the front door leaving it unlocked behind you as you jog across the street and down the ramp. You skid to a stop so you don't launch yourself over the dock into the water out of excitement when you spot a shell on the dock. That's his. He's here. You set the container down and kneel on the wood, leaning over the side and dipping your head into the water and opening your eyes. The salt burns, but you find yourself getting used it to. There he is, chilling on his stomach taunting some crab. It makes you garble out a laugh, filling your mouth with nasty salt water. He looks up and smiles, pushing himself off the sand to swim up to you. You pull away and shake your head to try and get the water out. It drips onto your shoulder and you wipe your face with your sleeves. Sitting back, you watch as Dirk surfaces keeping his shoulders int the water. His hair sticks to his face and you smile reaching for the continer of food you've prepped. JOHN: have you eaten yet today?DIRK: Nah, I've been waiting on you. Who needs to chase shrimp when the boy next door is always packing me meals? You chuckle and roll your eyes as you open it up, steam hitting your glasses as it rises through the air. You take the spoon and scoop up some of the chili you made, making sure to grab some cornbread as well. You lean down and bring it to his face.JOHN: is that all i am to you? your personal chef?DIRK: Maybe. You scoff and jam the spoon past his lips, forcing him to eat. He only chuckles and holds onto the dock for support as you feed him. Looking down at the container you take a deep breath before looking forward at Dirk, his squinting up at you. Huh. JOHN: is something wrong with your eyes? do you need glasses?DIRK: No- my eyes are just sensitive and you're just in a shitty spot. Watch it. Move to your left a little. You move over and he follows suit, his eyes opening properly after he rubs them a little. The sun must have been hurting him. Stupid sun. It makes you think of Dave. His eyes were always so sensitive and then you bought him his shades. Maybe you can do the same thing for Dirk. In fact. You will do this for Dirk, you make a mental note to start looking for shades for Dirk. That'll be one of your next gifts you leave him. The two of you sit together and chat until you realize what time it is and you have to head out. You have to go grocery shopping and buy some totes to store things in the house away. It was so funny, you remember thinking you could leave the house the way it was because you didn't plan on having people stay over or anything. But now the concept of having Dirk have a place in your home sounds nice. It makes your chest feel warm.JOHN: i'll be back tonight okay? DIRK: I'll be waiting. See ya later, hotshot. You wave at him as you walk down the dock, the empty container in hand. You run into the kitchen to quickly wash it before grabbing your tote bags and heading out into town. It's grocery time. It's a beautiful day outside so you don't bother driving, although if you did you could totally take the top down and just go for a drive. Maybe later. You decide walking into town in the best idea for today, especially because you're not doing a huge grocery run. You're just going to grab what you need and head on home. Maybe you'll go up to Miss. Judy and pick up a box of mochi on your way back. You really worry about how much you've been eating those. Well, if anything it's a problem for future you. Present you can enjoy your snacks. As you're walking towards the farmers' market, you spot Jake looking over the honey jar booth as he talks to Halley who is getting plenty of pets from the stall keep. Smiling you walk up to them, nonchalantly and pick up a jar of honey, inspecting it. You swear you've seen this shade of amber before. It's beautiful but you can't quite put your finger on what it reminds you of. With your luck, you'll think of it at three in the morning or some absurd hour right before falling asleep only to forget it in the morning when you wake. Your brain is weird like that.JAKE: By the cosmos! Johnny! You don't get a real warning before Jake swings and slaps your arm. You yelp and turn to face him putting the jar down as Halley jumps up at you, barking and begging for attention. You rub at your arm, jeez there so is going to be a bruise there later. Why is everyone in your family so terrifyingly strong? JAKE: You scared the daylights out of me! How long have you been standing there?! You can't help but pout at the pain as you kneel down to give Halley scritches, plenty of them. He's such a good dog he deserves them and more.JOHN: barely even three minutes. JAKE: Why didnt you just say hello instead of standing there all quietly and making me feel looney for not noticing you?JOHN: not gonna lie, i was going to sneak attack you but i got..distracted. Standing up, you ruffle Halley's fur and look back at the stall. You look at the sign for the prices and smile. You didn't think you'd be buying honey but there's just something about it that is warming your heart. You take your wallet out and pull out a twenty. You buy three jars, you'll find something to use it for. Honey doesn't really go bad anyway so you can take your time figuring it all out. JAKE: Must have been real important if it stopped you from pulling a prank on me! He laughs loudly and slaps your back playfully, you wish he would just realize how strong he is. You might be exagerating but you're pretty sure that there is going to be a bruise there. JAKE: Anyhoo- What are you doing out and about? Getting some shopping done too? JOHN: uh yeah, i have to pick up groceries. i didn't realize how much food goes into feeding two people. His eyes go wide and he leans in, cupping over his mouth as he leans in to your ear. Whispering.JAKE: Johnny- are you... And it takes you a couple moments to realize what he was trying to insinuate. Your cheeks flare up red and you step back a few paces, flustered to kingdom come. You shake your head and hold your hands out towards him, looking away as if that would hide your embarrassment. JOHN: no- no no no no no! just NO. JOHN: my god, jake! even if i was that is not how i would drop the news! JAKE: Well last time i checked you were living on your own and when people talk about two mouths to feed they are referencing a baby! Groaning you shake your head again and hold the bag close. Nope. You can't believe this is the conversation you two are happening. In front of this innocent bee keeper nonetheless. Who would you even have one with? Dirk? Yeah right. Taking a deep breath you huff and scowl. JAKE: Im sorry, chap. How about i help you out with your shopping to make up for the..um..confusion? JOHN: hm.. sure. The two of you both relax visibly with a sigh and you can't bring yourself to tell the cart keep goodbye. You're way too embarrassed for that shit. So in silence the two of you slink away from the bee keeper, not saying a single word to each other until you're a decent distance away. Sighing heavily you look over at Jake and think about what just happened. You can't help but laugh now that the embarrassment has faded. He stares at you and an awkward smile grows on his face before he too joins in on your laughter. JAKE: Oh come on! Can you really blame me for thinking such a thing!?JOHN: that's exactly why i'm laughing, jake! He slaps you on the arm and Halley jumps up for attention, barking loudly at you both. Smiling you shake your head and gently nudge him with your foot, encouraging the dog to keep walking forward. JAKE: We are absolutely horrible.JOHN: we? no no no you started it. Rolling his eyes he huffs, but he's still smiling so you know you're in the clear. The three of you walk deeper into town and you gently tug on his shirt to guide him to your first destination. Your happy you ran into Jake and that he offered to help you out with groceries because boy did you end up buying a lot. It makes you wonder when the next time you'll need to go grocery shopping it. It was on the walk home that you went through the farmers' market again and you nearly walked right past a booth but you stopped suddenly, making Halley walk right into the back of your legs as you look over.
JOHN: is something wrong with your eyes? do you need glasses?
DIRK: No- my eyes are just sensitive and you're just in a shitty spot. Watch it. Move to your left a little.
You look over at the one booth and focus on the sunglasses they are selling. You remember getting Dave a pair of shades for his birthday. Maybe you could get Dirk a pair too. He did say his eyes were sensitive to the light. Smiling you jog over, not even giving Jake a warning and smile down at the booth keeper as you look over the products. Your eyes land on a pair of aviators, reminding you even more of Dave. Dirk tends to do that a lot for some reason. Chuckling you shake your head and struggle a little to pull your wallet out. JOHN: how much for these? It isn't long before you're back at Jake's side and you're both carrying the groceries to the house. Good thing you didn't need to get milk or anything, that would have been horrible. Using your elbow to open the front door once you're both at the house, you step inside and toe your way out of your shoes, and waddle over to the kitchen to put everything on the floor with a loud groan. Jake laughs at you as you sit beside the fridge, taking things out of their bags. He stands beside you, reaching to take things from your hands to put away. Teamwork gets things set.JAKE: You really did buy a lot- do you have a roommate or something I should know about, john?JOHN: i guess you could call him that. JAKE: So you do? Thats nice, i was getting worried about you since youre out here on your own. But youve got a friend which takes a massive weight off of my shoulders. He looks down at you and smiles, ruffling your hair. JAKE: You know youre always welcome over if you want to hang out. JOHN: i know. thanks, jake. You exchange a smile and the two of you get everything put away before you are walking Jake out the front door and down the steps. Your eyes look over the docks and you smile a bit, wondering when he is going to come home. You hug goodbye and watch him walk away until he's out of view. Now that everything is put away and Jake has left, you can start getting food ready for Dirk. You're surprised he isn't home yet but then again he didn't exactly tell you what time he would be coming back at. All you can do is pack everything up and head down to the docks and wait for him. ==> John. Go sit on the docks. Sitting down on the wood, you take your shoes and socks off to dip your feet in the water as you wait. You smile at the water, watching the fish sprint around in the water. You reach into your bag and take the food containers out, keeping your gaze on the water through the corner of your eye. Where could he be? You can't help but worry as you wait, what if he's gone for a month again? You don't think you could handle that. What if he's hurt and you can't help him? You stand up and pace back and forth but it only gets darker out as you do. Taking a deep breath you run your hands through your hair and collect your things, you put them back in the bag and head to the house. You have an idea. So you walk back up the dock and up the ramp, looking both ways before jogging across the street to head inside. You go right to your room to grab a space bag, one of the ones you used to pack up your clothes. You take one of the smaller ones and put a hoodie, some shorts, and towel inside before shoving it in your bag with the food and you toss your spare key in as well as the shades you got him just for a good measure. You're heading back across the street and down the ramp to walk to the edge of the dock. Looking across the water you take a deep breath and hang the bag off the edge of the dock, leaving it there for whenever Dirk returns. If he doesn't come back by the morning, you'll go out and replace the food. You stand there with your hands in your pockets, waiting just a little longer. It's all you can really do. But then you remember, you have one last trick up your sleeve.==> Go fetch your melodica. You're standing back at the edge of the dock with your case in your arms. This is the final shot. You kneel down on the wood and take the instrument out before sitting down properly, your feet back in the water. You don't bother using the tube piece. You decide playing it like a trumpet is the best way to go tonight. You love playing it like this, it's the reason you asked your dad to get it for your birthday years ago. You called it a piano trumpet and sometimes you still do. Anywho. Taking a deep breath, you take the mouthpiece past your lips and hold on the spit valve to make sure everything is clear before thinking of what song to play. You think of the first night you played out here. When you noticed the conch shell. You think back to that night and you play that lovely melody.==> John. Play: Merry Go Round of Life. It's such a relaxing melody. You can't help but sway side to side and kick your feet slowly through the water as you play. You loop around the song a good three times before you are putting it down on your lap with a sigh. He's not coming back tonight. What is he up to? Putting it away, you grab your shoes and the case before heading back inside. It's late and you should probably eat something yourself before going to bed. Frowning you walk up the dock, occasionally looking over yourself in hope that maybe, just maybe, he'll be behind you. You head up the ramp and across the street, heading right into the house where you put your melodica down by the front door. JOHN: i hope he's okay.. You mutter to yourself as you walk into the kitchen. You grab yourself a cup of water and take it to your room. There you get out of your clothes and scratch at your chest. You feel gross and sweaty. Okay, sleepy time has to be postponed, you are in serious need of a shower. Even as you bathe, you worry about him, it's late. What if he's hurt? You'll have no idea until you see him again. How are you supposed to fall asleep tonight with you worrying so hard about him. How are you supposed to fall asleep? Fall asleep... Fall. Asleep.==> John. Go to sleep already. When you wake you groan and sit up because damn it's too early for you to be up. You go to make coffee to wake yourself up but you are are caught off guard by the sight of Dirk sitting at your desk, playing Minecraft. You smile at the sight of him drowning in your clothes, and your smile only grows at the sight of him wearing the shades you got him. You walk up behind him and wrap your arms around him tightly, pressing your face into his hair.
JAKE: You really did buy a lot- do you have a roommate or something I should know about, john?
JOHN: i guess you could call him that.
You realize maybe calling him a stray cat seems more appropriate. Dirk is a stray cat that you feed that is terrifyingly good at Overwatch.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
You're sitting at your desk in the living room when the front door swings open so quickly it hits the wall, making you nearly jump out of your skin. You quickly look over, rising to your feet. The fact that you are used to seeing Dirk in his naked glory is a frightening thing to think about because well. There he is, standing in the doorway with nothing on but his pelt around his shoulders and a large tuna dead in his arms.DIRK: We eatin' good.JOHN: letting you use my ipad for tiktok was a mistake. You pinch the bridge of your nose and slowly begin to sit down only to shoot back up because- Holy FUCK that is a huge fish.JOHN: wait a second- where did you even get that?!DIRK: I wrestled it. How can he say that so calmly? You swear Dirk is going to be the cause of every single grey hair you will get in your life. You watch as Dirk carries it over to the kitchen and sets it down on the counter. Yep. You are going to have to disenfect the entire kitchen after this. Sighing heavily you sit back down and type away on your laptop. You're in the middle of organizing a stream. You want to play with your friends again, like you used to. You guys used to be on a schedule and then you. Then you moved and you feel like you ruined everything. Sure you could play online with people you don't know but you miss your friends. You miss the bickering and the screaming so loud your dad would come online and tell your friends to watch their mouths. As you are working, the smell gets to your nose and you have to stand up and walk over to the kitchen. You watch as Dirk processes the fish, putting it away with each section. You scrunch your nose up and step away.JOHN: you better take a shower after that. every thing smells like fish.DIRK: You say that like it's a bad thing.JOHN: ... just take a shower okay? He sticks his tongue out at you and grins, wiping the knife off only to start carving into the fish again. You pinch your nose and huff, moving to sit back down at your desk. You look at your chat logs and smile at the words you read. Dave and the others are down to play. You are so happy. With a smile you look over at Dirk and watch as he washes his hands and heads down the hall. It takes just a few moments before you hear the water running. You've gotten used to him being over so often that you know the dude loves to take long showers. You on the other hand are a quick in and out sort of guy. You listen to the water run and move to turn your camera's on as well as your mics. You ramble to yourself a little to get the mics running but with a smirk, you're ready. Putting your headset on you sit back in your chair and let the games begin. Starting with you logging into the group chat of course. You always record your intros after you play with the others, you like to treat it like a summary to a good story and build up the suspense. You're just a really big dork. -- turntechGodhead [TG] is online! --TG: yall need to hurry your asses up i send the invite like twenty minutes agoTG: chop chopTG: omfg guys -- carcinoGeneticist [GG] is online! --TG: atta boyCG: WHAT IF I JUST BLOCKED YOU? HOW FUNNY WOULD THAT BE.TG: kitten pleaseTG: no -- twinArmageddons [TA] is online! --TA: kiitten? and you yell at john and tz for fliirtiing..CG: SHUT YOUR TRAP SOLLUX. TA: make me kiitten.TG: hah new rule is being proposedTG: everyone has to call karkat kitten from here on outTG: all in favor say aye -- adiosToreador [AT] is online! -- -- gallowsCalibrator [GC] is online! -- -- apocalypseArisen [AA] is online! -- -- ectoBiologist [EB] is online! --EB: aye!!GC: 4Y3! >:]TA: ii 2econd thii2 motiionGC: YOU'R3 SUPPOS3D TO S4Y 4Y3, SOLLUX!TA: fiine, aye.AT: aYE,AA: aye!CG: I HATE ALL OF YOU. You can’t help but laugh at the wall of text before your eyes. You all switch over to the voice channel and shortly after all you can hear is your own laughter and screams from your friends. You really miss playing with them all, editing this is going to be so much fun. As you are playing, you feel water drip onto your hair and you look up as you feel arms wrap around your shoulder. You smile and pat Dirk’s arms gently.DIRK: (Playing with the squad again?)JOHN: (yep- i’m kicking ass.)DIRK: (I’ll start cooking today’s catch then.) He presses a soft kiss to your hair and you chuckle. You’ve gotten used to it all, how affectionate you both are with each other. It’s nice. Makes you feel warm and safe. You look at the screen and notice that you have a chat coming your way. It’s Dave?-- turntechGodhead [TG] began pestering ectoBiologist [EB] --TG: dude do you have someone overTG: if you do you know you didnt have to join the gameTG: i dont want you to be rude to your guests or some shitTG: i know being a gentleman is big in your famTG: if your dad finds out i am making you slack hes gonna kick my assEB: dave, relax!TG: oh thank fuckTG: i thought you were gonna make me go on a dave strider™ ramble in the middle of a streaming seshEB: hell no, man. EB: it’s just my room mate.TG: oh shit when the fuck did you get one of those? You pull your gaze away from the chatlog and instantly scream as you try to run away from Karkat who is chasing you with an enchanted sword. You are killed nearly as quickly as you ran. You can hear him laughing as you wait for the respawn timer to go off and set you back in your base.TG: you move away and so much changes manTG: i feel like i know nothing about what youve up toTG: maybe i should fly out to you one of these daysTG: ill talk to you about it later when karkat isnt after me too-- turntechGodhead [TG] is an idle chum!---- ectoBiologist [EB] ceased pestering turntechGodhead [TG] -- You sigh softly and look over your shoulder at Dirk as he messes around in the kitchen. You smile and look at your camera set up and flash a grin and a peace sign. This video won’t be up for months due to your others having to be posted and some edited still. You have a decent queue set up so you are able to take some good breaks in between streams, not that you ever do. But you could if you wanted to! You listen to the sound of food sizzling in the kitchen and it isn't long before Dirk is placing a plate down in front of you. You smile up at him and reach your arm out to graze his as he walks away. A quiet bit of affection between the two of you. He sits down on the sofa as you shout away at your friends as you all destroy each other. You eat the meal Dirk prepared for you as you play and you have to admit, not out loud of course, that it's really good. It's really fresh. Now you don't mind the smell of the ocean in your kitchen. Maybe Dirk can get in fights with marine life more often. Anything to save money on grocery runs. You get a couple of hours of game play in then say your goodbyes and log out before taking your empty plate and standing up. You look over at Dirk who is playing away on your iPad and walk over to take care of his plate. He looks up from the screen and looks up at you from over his shades. He reminds you of someone. You just shake the thought away and smile at him as you carry the dishes over to the sink. You take care of them, as well as the ones on the stove, humming idly to yourself when you feel arms around your waist. You slump back into the touch and sway side to side. JOHN: do you want to watch a movie tonight? You smile at the feeling of Dirk nodding his head against your back and his grip tightens around you. You wipe your hands through your hair to dry them and take an extra moment to fix your curls with the help of the window. Once your hair is a little more well kept, you turn around and wrap your arms around him to keep him close, your smile only growing as you think to yourself. You can't get over how much shorter he is than you. You have to lean down a good length to rest your cheek against your hair, but it's worth the strain in your neck so you do it anyway.JOHN: sweet- bed or couch? He turns his head to look up at you, knocking your foreheads together gently, making you chuckle at the sound of both of your glasses clacking together.DIRK: Bed, you barely fit when we lay on the couch together.JOHN: i barely fit when i lay on the couch alone, dirk. He chuckles and rolls his eyes before finding your hands and tugging on them. You let him guide you to the bedroom and purposefully lean back to watch him try to drag you away. He notices and puffs his cheeks out in a soft pout. He's adorable, pouting at you like that while drowning in your clothes. It makes you think.JOHN: we should go shopping together tomorrow.DIRK: Do we have to go on a grocery run?JOHN: nah- i just think we should get you some clothes that, i dunno, actually fit? The two of you make your way to your bed and flop down on the mattress. You shift to lay down against your pillow and reach into your nightstand to grab your Playstation controller. You get a soft movie streaming, something easy to fall asleep to and take your glasses off, not really planning on paying attention to it. Just good background noise. You feel Dirk move to lay beside you and he wraps an arm around your middle as he cuddles up against you. You smile and the last thing you hear before falling asleep is Dirk kiss your cheek and whisper something against your skin.DIRK: Goodnight, John...