I'm going to apologize in advance if any of this information is incorrect. I tried to get it as accurate as possible, but I may have made a few mistakes here and there. See you at the end of the chapter!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Brenda or Percy. everyone else is an OC.
...
Six years ago, in St. Petersburg, Florida…
"Bye mom! I'll be back later!" I called, pausing in the doorway and waiting for a response.
"Okay sweetie! Call me when you get there, and if you're going to stay for dinner," my mother's voice floated out from the kitchen.
"I will," I promised her, stepping outside and shutting the door behind me. I walked quickly down the sidewalk to Erin's house, my bag swinging from my shoulder and bouncing against my hip.
This was a weekly occurrence for me. On Saturday, I would go to one of my friend's houses for three weeks, and then we would go to mine. Today was Erin's weekend. Erin lived within walking distance of me, while Alyssa and Lucy lived across town in different directions. I took the bus to get there.
I arrived to Erin's house and after dropping a quick text to my mom, climbed up her steps and knocked on the door.
It opened after a few seconds, and Erin's mother smiled at me warmly.
"Hi Brenda. Come on in- Erin is in the kitchen. You know where it is."
"Thanks Mrs. Carter." I walked inside, smiling at her gratefully before making my way to the kitchen. I could hear laughter, and I smiled to myself as I came to the door. The three of looked up at me and beamed.
"Brenda!" Alyssa said. "Join us- we were just talking about how Jasper totally has a crush on Lucy."
"He does not!" Lucy said, turning pink. I smiled as I sat down. I personally wasn't interested in boys and how cute they were. I was too busy with my education. And besides- I knew most of the boys in school, and they weren't really my type. But I had no problem discussing crushes with my friends.
"Why wouldn't he?" I asked. "You're awesome! He would be lucky to score with you!"
"You really think he might like me?" Lucy asked hopefully.
"Obviously," Erin said. She started to say something else, but perked up, her eyes brightening. "It's on!" she squealed, jumping to her feet.
We all exchanged glances before blinking at her.
"Uh… what is?" Lucy ventured.
"Creatures, With Percy Patterson!"
"Creatures? You mean like animals?" Alyssa asked. "Why do you want to watch that show?"
I was wondering the same thing. None of us were really animal people, especially Erin. I had a cat, and whenever the girls came over, Alyssa and Lucy would fuss over her and cuddle with her. Erin would smile tensely and awkwardly pat her on the head before moving off to my room. Out of all of us, she liked animals the least. This was strange. There had to be some other reason.
"Because the host is totally adorable!"
There it is, I thought to myself, smiling inwardly.
"His name is Percy Patterson. He gets so excited when he talks about those 'creatures'," she said, with air quotes around creatures. "And it is so cute! I saw him while my little brother was watching it, and I just join him for every episode. He's so excited to spend time with me that he doesn't question it. Not that I don't love spending time with him too." she grinned at us. "The host is just a completely unrelated bonus."
"Let's go see then!" Alyssa said, sounding excited. "I want to see if he's as cute as you say he is." she rushed for the living room, Lucy and Erin on her heels. I followed more slowly behind. They could gush over this "cute tv host" all they wanted. I'd just get on my cell and scroll through some of my favorite sites.
"Here we see a pair of lionesses hunting an antelope," a voice coming from the tv said. Alyssa launched herself over the couch and plopped into the seat. Erin sat on the other side of her, next to her brother, and Lucy sat down on the floor. I leaned against the back, reaching into my bag for my cell phone. While I waited for it to load, I glanced at the tv.
Percy was still talking about the female lions hunting. What had he called them? Lionesses? I didn't know there was a different word for female lions than male lions…
"Watch them as the stalk the gazelle," Percy said, his voice soft and low. "They creep along the ground until they are both within thirty feet, and then… they charge!" I locked my eyes on them as they ran. They looked so elegant, the way they were running. It was beautiful.
"Unfortunately, they miss the antelope this time," Percy's voice continued. "Lionesses are only successful roughly thirty percent of the time."
"When do we get to see him?" Lucy asked. "Is the whole show just his voice and a bunch of animals?"
"He'll show up eventually," Erin said, her voice confident. Just as she said this, a boy with orange-red hair appeared on the screen.
"Behind me, you can see a few lion cubs playing with each other. There at a farther distance then what the cameras make it look. We don't want to upset the other lions by getting to close, after all," he said. "We always need to respect the personal space of creatures." the camera cut to the lion cubs as they rolled around on the ground.
"Isn't he cute?!" Erin squealed.
"Sure is," I said distractedly, watching the cubs play. I heard gasps around me, and looked at my friends in confusion. "What?"
"You just said you think he's cute," Erin said, staring at me as a smile spread across her face.
"I thought you weren't into boys yet?" Lucy asked me. "You said-"
"Don't question her!" Erin said. "You'll ruin it! Brenda, this is fantastic!"
"Oh, uh…" I felt my cheeks grow warm. How would I explain to them I had been referring to the cubs, not Percy?
"Look, she's blushing!" Alyssa squealed. "She really does think he's cute!"
"I guess so," I said vaguely. I didn't want to disappoint them, after all. "But don't get any ideas. He's one guy, and there is no way I'll meet him. Everyone is allowed to have one unrealistic star crush, right?"
"True," Erin admitted. "All right, we'll leave you alone about it. It's still a momentous occasion, though! I am so marking this on my calendar." I rolled my eyes, laughing.
"Yeah, yeah. Let's just finish the show, all right?"
"Okay," Erin agreed. We continued watching the show, and the subject was dropped. When it was over, we went to Erin's room to chat. Homework, classes, boys; we ranged through several different topics.
At about six Alyssa and Lucy had to leave to catch the bus, and I decided to leave too. I said goodbye to Erin and headed for home. I caught myself returning to the moment in the living room, watching the lionesses run. I couldn't get the show out of my head.
It had taught me things about lions that I never even knew, and they were actually pretty cool. I was wondering… what other animals did they cover on that show?
I got my phone out and looked up Patterson Animals, and after a few links for veterinarians…
"Bingo," I whispered, clicking on a link that said "list of Creatures! With Percy Patterson episodes". There were episodes on bears, bobcats, and coyotes, but also animals I hadn't ever heard of, like kangaroo rats and javelina.
Then there were episodes that had animals like kangaroos or lemurs. Kangaroos only lived in Australia, I knew that. But what about lemurs? Did they live in Australia too?
I glanced up, realizing I had almost passed my house. I walked up our sidewalk in inside.
"I'm home, mom!" I called before heading for our living room. My older sister was seated on the couch, watching Big Bang Theory. "Hey Charlie," I said as a joined her. "Can I borrow the tv for a sec? I just want to look something up."
"Okay," she agreed as the show switched to a commercial. "But make it quick. I don't want to miss anything."
"This won't take long," I promised. I went to the menu and clicked search, then typed in CREATU. The show popped up, just under creature comforts. I clicked it and set all the episodes to record. I wanted to watch everything.
"Why are you recording that show?" Charlie asked me as hit the exit button and turned it back to the tv. "I didn't think you cared much for animals."
"I don't. Or, I didn't," I admitted. "I saw the show over at Erin's house, and it's really educational. I learned some much about lions that I never knew before. Did you know that usually the lionesses are the ones hunting, and they hunt in pairs or groups?"
Charlie looked interested. "I didn't. That's actually pretty cool. Maybe I'll join you when you watch."
"That would be great," I said, smiling at her. "Erin watches it with her brother, but she mainly watches it for the 'cute tv host,'" I said with an eye roll.
"Ooh, that's pretty bad," Charlie said, cringing. "Well, I swear I'm going to watch so I can spend time with you and learn about animals, not for some cute guy halfway across the world." she smiled at me, and I laughed.
"Thanks," I said gratefully. "I think the first episode records later tonight. We can watch together then."
From that moment on, Charlie and I watched every episode we could together. we followed Percy on instagram, so we'd get updates about the show or just pictures of animals.
My friends were happy to discover I had a bunch of the episodes on our DVR, and wanted to watch at least one whenever they came over. I made Charlie promise not to tell them why I wanted to watch. It really wasn't a big deal and they probably wouldn't mind, but I didn't want to take the chance.
While they gushed about how cute Percy was, Charlie and I paid attention and learned about whatever the center of the episode was. I had learned more about animals in the year than I had in years past.
My seventeenth birthday came, and while my parents and friends got me clothes and jewelry, Charlie took me aside privately to give me an endangered animals book and a book titled rainforest with pictures a man named Thomas had taken. They were my favorites.
One morning a few weeks after, while I was getting ready for school, I found a gecko sitting on my backpack. I crouched next to them carefully, trying not to disturb them. It looked like a male, with its bright color and how big it was. It was still pretty young, since they were fourteen inches as adults and this one was only six.
I flashed back to last week when we'd seen the episode about geckos. They had the ability to climb up walls. When I first heard of a gecko and what they did, I'd assumed they had sticky feet and that was why they could climb. But it turned out they had microscopic hairs called setae on their toe pads, and they had an electric charge that attracted to the electric charge in whatever surface they were touching. This was what allowed them to climb walls.
The episode had also said that a tokay- that's what this species of gecko was- was one of the more aggressive species of gecko. They tended to bite, and though they weren't poisonous, I could get an infection if it bit me. I carefully moved passed it and grabbed a pair of gloves from the closet. I hardly used them, but my mom wanted us each to have some in case the temperature got abnormally low.
I put them on and returned to the gecko. I sat next to him again. "I'm sorry little guy," I whispered apologetically. "But you can't stay here. My mom would freak, or my cat might go after you. And I'd hate for someone step on you by accident, if you managed to avoid them." I very, very carefully reached out and grabbed him, holding him gently but firmly in the center of my hands. He thrashed and struggled immediately- I wouldn't be able to hold him long. I rushed out of my room.
"Where are you going in such a hurry?" Charlie asked me as I swerved around her.
"Can't talk!" I called over my shoulder. "Gecko emergency!"
"Gecko?" Charlie's footsteps followed behind me as i ran for the door. I looked down at the tokay, who was still angrily struggling in my hands.
"Almost there, little guy," I whispered. Charlie rushed ahead and got the door for me, and i sprinted outside and crouched on the sidewalk. I opened my hands, and the tokay jumped off and landed a couple feet away.
Charlie came to sit by me, looking at the gecko in wonder.
"Wow," she said quietly. "I've never seen one this close before."
"Me neither," I said quietly. I shook my head and stood up. "We have to get to school," I said to her, heading back inside. I went to my room and opened my backpack, checking to make sure everything was there. Textbooks, notebooks, Rainforest, folders, binder… yes, that was everything. I zipped it and put it on, grabbing my pencil from the floor and going out to the kitchen to wait for Charlie before we walked to school. She came out a few minutes later.
"Mom! Brenda and I are going to school now!" she called out.
"Okay! See you after it's over!" she called back. We walked outside.
"So," Charlie said casually. I glanced over at her to find her watching me intently. "When are you going to tell your friends how much you love animals?"
"I'm not," I told her. "They don't need to know."
"But they still think you're watching Creatures! Because of the host, don't they?"
"Yeah, and I'm going to let them believe that." I walked faster. "Hurry up, I don't want to be late." she caught up with me, but didn't bring up the subject again. I bit my lip. "Sorry," I said to her. "It's just… they're my best friends. I don't think they could ever love animals as much as we do, and I don't want to make them feel like they have to."
"I get it," Charlie said. "I really do. How about this? You don't have to tell them outright that you love animals, but you should at least stop hiding it. If they're your real friends, they will understand."
"All right," I agreed as I stopped walking. "My rainforest book is in my backpack. Can you get it for me? I'll carry it around in my arms instead."
"Sure!" Charlie said, sounding happy. She got it out for me and handed it over. I hugged it to my chest as she zipped my backpack.
"Come on," I said when she was done. "We have to hurry before we're late." we rushed off to school, walking in the door roughly three minutes before the bell. Charlie threw her arm around my shoulders and squeezed.
"See you after school, sis," she said before rushing off to her first class. She liked to arrive early. I waved before going to the table where I usually met my friends before we all went our different ways.
"Hey guys," I said as I joined them.
"Brenda! Are you prepared for the end of the term?" Erin asked me.
"Yeah," I said. "I'm passing all my classes, so today should be pretty easy for me."
"Do we have any classes together?" Lucy asked, pulling her schedule out. "I think I have algebra with Erin…" we all pulled are schedules out and quickly compared them. I had chemistry with Alyssa and composition with Erin, and Lucy and I had the same lunch.
The bell rang and I grabbed my backpack. Holding my book and schedule in my arms, I rushed off to my first class. I sat through algebra and geography- they both went fast, because we spent most of the period taking notes or working on homework. It wasn't finished, but what I couldn't do in class I could finish at lunch or during free time in other classes.
I walked in the door to teen leadership and sat at my desk, immediately opening my book to where I'd left off. I smiled down at the green whip snake on the page, then read what Thomas had to say about it. The room slowly grew louder as other students entered, but I paid no attention to them. I heard the bell ring and marked my page, closing the book and looking up at Mrs. Anderson. She beamed at us.
"Good morning, class."
"Good morning," I said, along with a few others.
"Today we're going to write a letter to someone we admire. You'll mail it yourself, unless the person is unreachable or no longer with us. You can work on it at home if you want, if you have work you need to do for other classes. But tell me who you plan on writing, so I can get an address for you."
The moment she stopped talking, the class erupted in soft whispers and murmurs. I pulled a piece of paper from my notebook and carefully tore the frilly edges from it. When they were completely off, I twirled my pencil in my fingers as I thought.
The minute I heard our assignment, I knew I wanted to write to Percy. Now it was just a matter of how to start.
Dear Percy, I wrote. I stared at it for a few moments, then erased his name. Too formal, I thought. He wasn't my friend- I couldn't just call him Percy like I'd known him for years. Instead, I wrote Mr. Patterson. That was better. Next I wrote hi, I'm Brenda. Then I erased that too. Instead I tried my name is Brenda.
Thinking for a second, I wrote my teacher wants us to write to somebody we admire. And for me, that's you. I've watched your show for about a year now. I love it- it's taught me so much about animals that I never knew before. You inspired me to love the earth and all the creatures in it. You've changed my life. I stared down at it, frowning. This wasn't good enough. I started to erase, careful to make sure I didn't rip it.
When the whole paragraph was gone, I erased the little bits that I had missed. They were still slightly visible, but I supposed I could just use this as a rough copy and then write the final draft on a different piece. I started the letter over several times- nothing I wrote seemed like it would work.
Finally, I decided to write down key points I wanted to mention.
-the assignment- it's important to be honest
-how he inspired me
-when i started watching his show
-how much i love animals because of him
-how much it taught me
I looked at my list, then took another page from my notebook and removed the frilly bit. Breathing in deeply, I began to write.
When I was done, I folded it and stuck it in an envelope on the corner of my desk that Mrs. Anderson must have put there without me noticing. I sealed it, then flipped it over and printed Percy's name neatly in the middle. I wrote my own information up in the left corner.
Brenda Williams
2499 3rd Ave N
St. Petersburg, FL 33713
I brought it up to Mrs. Anderson's desk and told her where it was meant to go, then returned to my seat. No going back now…
Six days later, in Coyote, New Mexico…
"Percy!" Mom's voice called. "I've got something for you!" I turned away from my desk to see her leaning against my frame, holding something long and white in her hands. I rolled my eyes.
"Another fan letter? Seriously?"
"Oh come on Percy," she coaxed. "Your fans love you! You could at least read them."
"I told you before mom; I don't mind reading the ones that actually like the show."
"How do you know she doesn't? Come on, give her a chance." and by that, she meant she wanted me to think about getting into a relationship with her. Also known as, finally get a girlfriend. She'd been begging me to start looking for a while now. Every time a new letter from a female came, she tried to get me to contact the girl and ask to meet her.
I shook my head. "I'm busy- the editor is sick, so I have to edit this week's episode myself. 'She', you said? I don't have time to read another fangirl's letter."
"Please? It will just take five minutes. And you need a break- you've been in your room all day. It's already two and you haven't eaten. I have a sandwich for you in the kitchen!"
"Alright!" I snapped, shoving my chair back from the desk and getting to my feet. "I'll read it, if it gets you to let me edit in peace. It's a lot harder than it looks."
"Deal," my mom agreed, beaming at me as she held out the letter. I took it from her and put my finger under the flap, tearing it open. I pulled out a neatly folded paper and unfolded it, holding the envelope behind it.
Dear Mr. Patterson, it started. I was slightly surprised- most of the fangirl letters started with "Hey Percy!" and then had something along the lines of "your so cute when you talk about those creatures!" "Its awesome how much you love animals!" or the worst one of all: "My brother and sister just want to say how much they love your show. P.S: You are super cute! Here's my number- hit me up!"
I quickly pushed down my surprise. Just because this one started out slightly more respectful didn't mean she wouldn't be just like the others. I continued to read.
Our teacher gave us an assignment to write a letter to somebody we admire. I instantly thought of you- ever since I saw your show at a friends house about a year ago, the one about lions, I've watched you ever since. I never really cared for animals before I saw your show, but you inspired me. I've learned so much about animals since then. Things i never even knew. Animals I used to be afraid of, like spiders, don't scare me anymore. All thanks to you. So, I want to say thank you. Thank you for being such a big role model. You changed my life.
-Brenda
"She seems nice," My mom's voice spoke in my ear. I jumped, stepping away from her with a hand on my chest.
"Wha- when did you get here?!"
"A few moments ago," she said casually. "That Brenda girl seems nice."
"She does, doesn't she?" I said, looking down at the letter. "I might just have to write her back."
"Really?" my mom said, sounding excited. "You think you might want to settle down with her?"
"No, mom, not to ask her to be my girlfriend. I was thinking more along the lines of… a partner."
To Be Continued….
…
just to clarify, Brenda's address is not a real one (as far as I know). I made it up for this story.