Real Man's Wine
The doorbell rings a half hour before opening.
"Sorry we're not open—oh."
Muffy blinks at the boy standing unsurely at the entrance. She had seen him in town a few times, but like a roadrunner, he never stayed in one spot long enough for her to blurt out more than a hello. Even now his feet shuffle restlessly. This is her first chance to get a good look at him. On his cheek is a band-aid, no doubt from falling during one of his jogs, and his head doesn't even reach the top of the counter. He can't be more than seven or eight.
Muffy smiles. "We're not open yet, but I can make you a smoothie or milkshake if you'd like." He looks like he could use one. Baby fat still softens his face, but the plumpness ends there; his limbs seem to defy physics and are little wider than sticks. It's a wonder he can run on them, never mind dart about as he does.
"No, thank you…" the boy mumbles so low that Muffy has to lean down to hear him. His eyes flit around the bar, landing everywhere but on her.
"Can I…um…"
"G'morning, Hugh. Where's your father today?" Griffin asks, the door to his room closing behind him. Muffy would be lying if she says she isn't a bit envious at how the boy perks up at his approach.
"Dad's out on his morning jog, sir."
"Don't you usually go with him?"
"Yeah, I do, but…um…" The toe of his sneaker scrapes against the floorboards, but he glances up at them. Muffy can see him weighing whether or not to confide in the grown-ups.
Finally he looks around as if someone may be spying before beckoning quickly with his hand. Muffy and Griffin lean in. With a hand cupped around his mouth, he whispers, "I want. A drink. Please."
"Of course. We have soda, milk, hot cocoa—"
Hugh shakes his head. He glances around again to check that the walls don't have ears before whispering loudly, "I mean a grown-up drink."
Muffy straightens, unsure whether to be amused or concerned. "I'm sorry, but we can't serve alcohol to you. You'll have to wait a little longer."
"But I can't!" His face crumples, and his dimples accent his youth even more. "Katie dared me to drink one! She says that it's what real men do!"
Muffy is just about to say that Katie should act like a real lady herself before ordering others around, but before she can, Griffin says, "But Katie doesn't know the truth."
Hugh blinks at the impossibility of Katie not knowing something.
"What truth?"
A pair of ruby eyes peek from the front door left ajar, their curiosity as piqued as Hugh's. Muffy wonders how long they have had another guest.
"The truth about real men." Griffin kneels down so he and the boy are closer in height; calm brown eyes level with bright blue ones, a face etched in fine lines and another as smooth as silk. "What Kate doesn't realize is that alcohol doesn't make you a man, or mature, or even smart. I've watched more fools get redfaced and loud just because, but when they glance around, not a one looks back with respect. Now someone who knows that a clear head and a healthy body wins over any drink, now that's someone I respect. Take your old man, for instance. You don't see him comin' home the worse for wear, do you?"
"No, never. He says that drinks slows him down." Hugh says, but then his chin jerks up. "But what about Mom? She comes here sometimes."
"Your mama's a smart woman. She knows when enough is enough."
If good parents are worth the world, Hugh knows it, and grins as if Griffin had given it to him. Then his face falls and he kicks at the floorboards again. "But I still need a drink. Katie will say I'm a baby if I don't get one."
"Katie can't make you anything you're not," Muffy says, her tone stern as she eyes the snoop at the door. A squeak comes from the entrance and the door thuds shut.
"If you're really set on a drink, I'll give you one," Griffin says. "Just this once."
Hugh's jaw drops the second that Muffy gasps. She may be named after a cat, but she ruffles up like a bird, and her glare is as severe as one zeroing in on its prey. The prey being Griffin, that is. She opens her mouth to snap something fierce, but he meets her glare.
His droopy brown eyes reflect none of her aggression or rebukes, only calmness, and mitigate her enough to keep her wrath in check. For now…
Eyes still like a hawk's, she watches him as he shuffles behind the counter and takes out a wine glass. He holds it out of view from behind the counter. They hear the sound of the bottle being unscrewed, followed by the tinkle of liquid on crystal. Muffy holds her stance with arms akimbo, her mouth screwed up like she had bitten into a lime, as he comes over with glass in hand. It sloshes with only a few inches of a dark purple liquid.
Hugh shuffles back, but takes it when Griffin hands it to him. He squints at the dark liquid and sniffs. "It smells icky."
"That's the alcohol," Griffin says.
Hugh scrunches his nose, but throws his head back and gulps it down. He hands back the glass; a purple stain rims his mouth. His tongue lolls out and he scrapes at it with his finger. "Ugth…that'th worze than raw fizh." He wipes his mouth on his sleeve; Muffy can just imagine the fit Chris will have when she sees the stain. "Thanks, sir, but I'd rather be a boy a little longer if I don't hafta drink that. Can I have a milkshake next time?"
"If you'd prefer," Griffin says.
"Sweet. See ya'll later, and thanks!" Hugh waves at them before racing out the door. As soon as it closes Muffy jabs a finger at Griffin's chest. "Shame on you, to let a child even sip alcohol! What would Chris say? Or Ruby?"
Griffin says nothing as he walks to the bar, rummaging for something under the counter.
"Don't you dare turn your back on me, mister! Have you no sha—"
Griffin lifts up a bottle filled with the same dark liquid he had poured for Hugh. The label reads: 100% Grape Juice. Muffy blinks, the fiery words cooling.
"It was pretend?"
Griffin nods.
"It's just…juice?"
Griffin nods again. "Hugh hates grapes. I reckon he wouldn't care for the real taste of wine, anyhow."
Muffy lets her arms fall to her sides. She breaths out, and just like that, all the air and anger deflates. For a moment: nothing. Silence. Then laughter, until she bends over from the force of them. Hair falls into her face, but she can't push it back because she's clutching her sides and tears fill her eyes. "Has anyone ever told you that you'd make a great father?"
The words are blurted in between laughs, before she could filter them out, but as soon as they're said she knows they're as true as Gustafa is green.
Griffin's eyes widen, wider than Muffy had ever seen. "No, ma'am, I can't say they have." His face reddens as he scratches his nose, but Muffy's face is reddening from an inability to breathe through the laughs than from embarrassment. Laughs at Hugh and Kate, laughs at Griffin, and laughs especially at how long it has taken her to realize the obvious.
It has only taken a slumber party and a bottle of grape juice.
I'm sorry this chapter is a few weeks late. I forgot to write in the last one that I'd be taking a short break for the holidays, but updates are back to normal now. Happy Holidays!
Strawberry Grass:
Thank you! I think everyone laughs at Lumina and Rock, but writing the slumber party was a lot of fun! Nothing brings out more epiphanies than girl-talks.
Accidentally The Whole Fanfic:
It looks like I have a new minion for my Griffin/Muffy fandom. One step closer to Harvest Moon domination! Mwahaha! On a slightly less crazy note, thank you for all of your thoughtful reviews! I always try to reply to as many reviews as I can, so this may take a while, ha!
Ch. 1: THAT is exactly what I was aiming for, for both the mood and Griffin's POV. I originally planned about every three chapters for a perspective switch between him and Muffy…whether or not I followed that is up for debate.
Ch. 2: Nice eye! I was wondering how many people would notice the ring imprint. Thank you for the corrections, and please keep them coming if you find any more! I cleaned them up earlier, so hopefully the chapter reads better.
Ch. 3: I'll admit, I probably had too much fun with that "worldly possessions" ex. I'm glad you liked the symbolism! The Moonbow scene is one of my favorite parts so far!
Ch. 4: I've no idea whether Muffy or Griffin can cook or not, but I thought it made sense; the former having lived a rather sheltered life and the latter being the "old bachelor." As for how far back this story goes…eh, I imagined this happening before the farmer comes, but I'm kinda playing witht the timelines and games here.
Ch. 5: I imagined that Griffin and Ruby have known each other for a long time with Ruby being a little younger, not much. But seeing as how Griffin is, again, "the old bachelor" while Ruby already has a husband and son to care for, I thought it would be realistic that she would baby Griffin, too. Thanks again for the typo spotting!
Ch. 6: This is also one of my favorite chapters! Gustafa and Rock were so much fun to play with, and I'm glad the town and relationships are really coming to life for you! It lets me know that I'm reaching my goals as a writer, so thank you for letting me know!
Ch. 7: I tried to make Muffy a more mature version of Popuri, but I never realized the comparisons Muffy and Karen. Good thinking, and it is so cool to me that this chapter really pulled you in!
Ch. 8: The keepsakes were a lot of fun to write, and it's great to know that my "show, don't tell" technique is working so far. Also, I don't think that Griffin is called forgetful in canon, but from what I've noticed, most men who are good in business like him are methodical IN their business but messy OUT of it.
Ch. 9: I'll admit, the real reason I picked the song is because I couldn't think of anything else that sounded "opera-like"…that, and it's French, and I thought it would show just how traveled Muffy is from her childhood. I'm just glad it came off as well as it did; thank you! I never had much interest in Gustafa, but this story is making me love him and his bromance with Griffin, too! And please keep asking questions about Muffy's past! It's great to know your curiosity is piqued!
Ch. 10: Another fun chapter, and I probably had too much fun making Flora nigh uncivilized. Ha! I also loved that part in Harry Potter, in both the movie and the book.
Ch. 11: Actually, I was meaning to take out that part with Celia for the sake of succinctness, but forgot last minute…Um…Oops? And yeah, it was totally Muffy's fault.
Ch. 12: Dr. Hardy's eyelids was one of those ideas that just pop into your head, and I'm glad it did. I can't un-think that either! Remember what I said about businessmen being really methodical? Well, apparently that doesn't apply to Griffin and socks.
Ch. 13: I was tempted to shake Lumina, too, but I wanted to stay as true to canon as possible (but darn it, why couldn't Skye be her rival?!) Also, if you're worried about Muffy's epiphany, you can rest assured that things pick up really quickly now…kind of. Mwahaha! Also, Marlin sleepwalking was another trait I made-up because it seemed so…him. Thank you for reading and I'm glad you gave this collection a chance, and that it paid off!