Author's Notes: Necromancer, necro-necromancer, I'm a necromancer, oh, necromancer, oh, I'm a necromancer, baby. Yes, three damn years later, this story rises from the dead. And not easily, either. It took me forever to figure out what to do with this chapter, once I'd started it,, especially since this is still laying the groundwork for future plot developments more than anything else. I was having trouble for a while (not three years, but a while) figuring out how to move the story forward, and how to divide up the focus between our three protagonists, since a lot of what I wanted to write leaned heavily towards Johnny and Fritz, and not as much towards Elise at the moment. But, after consulting with the folks at Fanfiction Writers United on Facebook, they helped me realize that the natural path was the best one, instead of forcing equal balance for its own sake.
(Elise still managed to find herself taking a fairly prominent role in this chapter anyway, though. Also, allusions to PTSD pop up here, so, y'know.)
So, even though it's still a young story, and even though it's been dormant for three years now... I'm trying to keep it alive this time (along with Stumbling Out of the Shadows, which I just started updating again). Hopefully I'll be able to find the way forward (hurr) a little more easily this time. Big thanks to those who have been reading along, reviewing, favoriting/kudosing, bookmarking/following, all that good stuff. I hope you enjoy this chapter and find it worth the egregiously long wait. Feel free to leave a review, if you'd like; hopefully, chapter 6 will take far less time to come along afterwards.
Chapter 5: Here and Now
It was four in the morning, and Johnny wanted to die.
Goddamn... Eda wasn't kidding when she said this was gonna take some getting used to. I'm too fucking young to be feeling like this! He whimpered as he rolled over onto his side, feeling the pain shooting throughout his limbs and his lower back. I had to have stretched wrong or something... or maybe I didn't drink enough water... well, shit, Jesse says I never drink enough water... how the hell's she been doing this for sixty years?!
He'd been under Eda's wing for only two days now, with the third day set to begin in a matter of hours. Mostly, they'd gone over tilling, planting, and watering, eking out several small plots of turnips, beets, potatoes, and radishes on his temporary farm—just the basics as the weather began to warm up, a little variety to work with. Three types of vegetables he'd never even eaten in his life. And the basics were already killing him. He was hoping the weather forecast's promise of rain would come through for him first, so he could have the day to rest and recover. She'd warned him right off the bat that farming was a lot of physical labor that would need some adjusting to, but feeling it was another thing entirely. Apparently, being nineteen didn't grant him the resilience he'd hoped it would.
"Now, you'll want to stretch thoroughly before you start, after you're done, and maybe every so often while you're working," she'd told him while she stretched out her hamstrings, watching with approval as Johnny mimicked her actions with only a little bit of hesitation. Leading him through the full stretching routine, she'd gone on: "You're young yet, but even if you start slow, this is gonna do a number on you till you get used to it. Might want to get yourself a bottle of ibuprofen, or naproxen, or some muscle cream, too. And hot baths!"
"Hot bath," Johnny murmured to himself, letting his bleary eyes find the outline of the old-fashioned Tiffany lamp on his bedside table. "I... could go for that, sure..." He clicked the lamp on, squinting in the dim light and sitting up with a stifled gasp as another bolt of pain lanced through his lower back. You've been through a hell of a lot worse, you pussy. It's not like you and Jess are stuck with Carol anymore. Come on, suck it up! You promised Jess you were gonna see this through. You at least owe him this much, if not more. And there's Eda, too. You're not gonna make her do all this for you for nothing. And... ugh...
His train of thought passed by his aunt, and he sighed. Yes, he'd promised her, too—although, he reasoned to himself, he'd done it more to appease Jesse than out of any sense of duty to her. The two hadn't crossed paths again since he'd arrived in town, though he knew it was probably bound to happen at some point. Still, a promise was a promise, as far as he was concerned. If anything, she owes us, not the other way around, he thought darkly, reaching for the bottle of water he kept by his bed. Could've saved us a whole lot of grief if she'd decided to give a fuck years ago...
Grimacing, he popped two naproxen—hoping it wouldn't have to become a long-term morning ritual—and shot a quick text to Jesse. 'Kill me :(' With his request submitted, he shambled to the bathroom to get himself a nice, hot bath with far too much peppermint Epsom salt dumped in.
As he relaxed in there not too much later, humming in relief and reveling in the wisps of steam caressing his face, he heard a sound that made his smile widen. Thunder.
"Yesssss," he breathed, listening to the rain patter over the crappy little house. He was glad he'd already taken care of the missing shingles before the farming lessons began wreaking havoc on his body. "Thank you, thank you, thank you." Even if the rain stopped later on, Mother Nature had just bought him some time to recover a little more. And I can Google "How to farm without dying by day 3" or something. He wasn't even sure what his next steps were; watering plants seemed fine, but the weeding, tilling, and planting parts would definitely take some getting used to. Maybe the next lesson would be handling animals. Eda had mentioned having several in her barn and coop—he'd met her easygoing cows, unnerving sheep, and eerie goats, as well as her red-roan Clydesdale, Akane. The cows were easily the least intimidating of the bunch. Sheep always gave off the impression, to Johnny, that they'd killed before just for the thrill of it, and would gladly do it again.
At least most of the people I've met seem cool, so far, he mused, arms resting on the edges of the tub and fingertips flicking idly at the surface of the hot water. He slid down to submerge himself further, leaving only his face sticking out. After Fritz, Gunther, Eda, Mistel, Maya, Raeger, Agate, and the obnoxious outlier known as Elise, Johnny had come across several more people in his last outing into town two days ago. Most had seemed pleasant enough, and even Elise had slightly risen in his eyes after he'd spotted the welcome package of expensive wine and cheese on the porch a few days ago, with the card declaring the offering "Courtesy of Marguerite Farm." Maybe it was her way of making a peace offering, and who was Johnny to argue with free alcohol and food? Or maybe she was just rubbing in how rich she is, but fuck it. That cheese was good.
Fritz's assigned mentor, Giorgio, was amusingly dramatic and hammy—though nice enough—and Johnny couldn't help but be impressed that someone so high-maintenance and lithe of build was running such an impressive and successful farm on his own. The man who ran the general store in town, Albert Otmar, seemed to be the "sweet old man" counterpart to Eda's "sweet old lady," and reminded Johnny of a leprechaun. Lillie Sauveterre, whom Johnny had seen giving the weather forecast on TV, was around his age and friendly to a fault, and her father and sister were both boisterous, outgoing forces of nature that had left Johnny feeling a bit frazzled from meeting them. Like being tag-teamed by two Fritzes. I guess there are worse things, though.
Not that he was counting all his chickens before they hatched—as it were—but Johnny had to admit, if nothing else, this was serving as a nice little getaway from Laineston so far, agriculture training aside. Sure, he missed having Jesse around; and sure, he wanted nothing to do with Veronica, and he'd be fine with not running into Elise again anytime soon other than to thank her for the gift. And there's literally nobody nearby on Grindr to mess around with, he mused, grimacing at how dumb he'd felt for checking to see if Raeger might be lurking on there the other day. No such luck. Not that Johnny had any clue what he would've done if he had seen Raeger on there. Or any of the other guys he'd met so far. Still, he reasoned, the people he'd met mostly could have been much worse, and while the farmhouse was old and shitty, it was also oddly peaceful. He was out on the edge of town, higher up, with only Eda as his closest neighbor. He could enjoy a hot bath and listen to nothing but the rainfall and thunder. No thin apartment walls where he'd hear his neighbors on all sides either arguing, partying, or fucking like rabbits.
He splashed some water on his face, and slid back up, plopping his wet head down on the back edge of the tub. With a little smile, he realized he could easily submerge himself completely, if he wanted—the tub wasn't massive, but it was big enough to be comfortable, and being short had some advantages. But the water was starting to lose its soothing heat now, his fingers and toes were pruning up, and he knew he'd need to get out soon before it got too cold and dredged up some bad memories again. He could take a proper shower later. Not sure I could do this long-term, but... maybe Jess was kind of onto something, sending me out here for a little bit, he thought, screwing up his face at that, and at the memory of Elise looking scornful at the idea that he was only there to run the farm for just a little bit. So maybe animals would be out of the question, unless I'd be looking after Eda's or something.
The vegetables Eda had had him plant were all types that would reach maturity within two to three months or so, from what she'd told him. Just enough time for him to get used to farming, and... Then what? Go back to Laineston and figure it out from there, I guess... well, shit, it's not like I have to decide the rest of my life right away, though. But at least I can get laid in Laineston. Sometimes.
Rolling his eyes at his overthinking the whole situation, Johnny pulled the chain on the drain stopper with his toes, listening to the gurgling start up as the water level started to drop. Alright, you just worry about the present for now. Even if Jess might have a point about me needing to think about my future eventually... He shivered as he stood up, feeling the chilly air hit his skin. He quickly grabbed his oversized towel and wrapped himself up in it. His aches and pains hadn't entirely dissipated during the bath, but he found himself feeling much less like he'd just been hit by a bus than he had a little while ago. Maybe I can work with Eda again today, if the weather lets us...
He paused in the middle of toweling his hair dry, realizing that the thought was actually pretty appealing to him. Even if the work was proving to be taxing on his body so far, Eda herself was making the whole ordeal tolerable. She was a good teacher, patient and easygoing. I wonder if I can take her back to Laineston with me when it's time to leave? he thought with a little smirk, spiking up his hair and checking out his reflection. And if I can grow something on this face anytime soon... He rubbed his jawline and his chin, sighing when his fingers only glided over smooth skin—with his blond hair, he'd hoped that maybe any facial hair that was growing would just be a little harder to see in the early stages, instead of completely non-existent. Hopefully I'm just a late bloomer... a goatee would look cool, I bet. Something to make me look a little less... cute. Resigning himself to looking annoyingly fresh-faced a little while longer, Johnny and his reflection stuck their tongues out at each other before he headed into the living area to get dressed and check the weather forecast on his phone.
Jesse hadn't responded yet—Johnny figured he'd probably gone to sleep a few hours ago—but he raised his eyebrows as he saw that he had a text message from someone else. Eda. He'd been a bit surprised when she'd offered to swap numbers with him—"Oh, I wish it'd been this convenient to talk to everyone when I was growing up!" she'd said with a little laugh—but he found he was glad to do it. That way, if she needs serious help or something, I'm right over here. And she'd sent him a few pictures of Mika already. It was definitely worth it.
Thankfully, her message wasn't urgent: 'No farming class today dear,' followed by a rainy umbrella emoji and a crying cat face emoji. Johnny chuckled, though he found himself a bit bummed out by the thought that he wouldn't get to hang out with Eda today. Well, shit, let the woman have a breather, though. The internet connection on his farm was spotty, so spending his day surfing the web on his laptop was more-or-less out of the question, and he could forget about playing some Final Fantasy. At most, he intended to use it to look up farming information for the duration of his stay in Oak Tree, listen to his music, or to drop in on his Sims and make their lives harder when the urge struck. There was always TV. Or socializing, but... also TV. He eyed the ancient tube set across from the couch. He could probably count the number of channels it got on one hand, with a finger or two left over.
Shrugging, he headed to the fridge to grab himself some breakfast, wondering if he could squeeze in a little more sleep now as he texted Eda back. 'Bummer. What was on the agenda today btw?'
He didn't have to wait long for the response—three emojis depicting a woman in a red dress dancing, followed by 'lol'. He grinned and shook his head. If Jesse's word could be trusted, Johnny actually was a pretty good dancer. Popping a banana slice into his mouth, he read the next message as he chewed: 'Well we were probably going to move on to the animals next, but I figured you could use a break from the hard stuff for a minute anyway. Rest your muscles. We can do the chickens tomorrow?' As he expected, a chicken head emoji punctuated the message.
He'd barely finished texting out 'Sure, sounds good to me' and a thumbs-up, when yet another message popped up, startling Johnny. Wondering if Eda was using speech-to-text, or if she just texted faster than any other human being on the planet, Johnny opened the newest text before sending his response, making sure he wasn't about to send an agreement to do something like birth a calf.
'Btw would you like to have lunch together today around noon? I'm having Fritz & Elise over too. I meant to ask you yesterday but my old lady brain forgot lol. Sorry if it's last minute. Think of it as a little welcome party for the three of you. I'm making club sandwiches.'
Johnny stared at the text for a few quiet moments, blinking and grimacing. The proposition had sounded appealing up until "Elise." Maybe birthing a calf wouldn't be so bad. Lunch with Eda sounded fun. Fritz, he could handle. Fritz was hyper at worst, but otherwise harmless.
Well... shit. Maybe Elise will actually be civil if she's around Eda, though, Johnny told himself, worrying at the thumbnail on his free hand. And I can just thank her for the wine and cheese and get that out of the way. Would there be any way to refuse without looking like a dick? Probably. But would free food be worth putting up with Elise for an hour or so? Also probably. Eda had made him lunch the past two days he'd been working with her, and if nothing else, she made one hell of a tuna casserole. She'd really had him at 'club sandwiches,' anyway. Cursing inwardly, he went back to his drafted reply and added: 'Need me to bring anything?'
'Just your appetite lol' was the ninja-speed response.
For the next several hours, Johnny lounged about with nothing to really do other than listen to the rainfall and watch reruns of some old drama called Murder at Black Gull Villa, not really knowing who the killer was, but winding up with a small list of additional characters that he wished they'd killed as well. Jesse finally answered his text—'Lol no, you doin ok?'—and Johnny was tapping out his response as he got up to go to the bathroom and change into whatever he could pass off as "nice clothes." A long-sleeved, olive drab henley and a pair of khaki cargo pants were the best he could scrounge up, but they fit well on him, so he couldn't feel too bad. He pulled a face in the mirror as he looked at how wrinkled they were. Not that he'd normally care, but he could only imagine that Elise would find something to say. Especially since his combat boots were the only non-sandal shoes he owned.
'Farming is a bitch, but Eda's been generating lunch for me, so I'll manage. Day 3 got rained out though.' He'd found himself about to cheer his impending lunch date, but deleted that part before sending the text. He had an image to maintain, after all, and he couldn't have Jesse knowing that he enjoyed Eda's company that much. Yet.
The rain had tapered off, and the sun was peeking out from the clouds and sending out small shafts of light here and there to dapple Oak Tree Town and its outskirts, but Johnny kept his umbrella tapping against his leg nonetheless as he strode over the wet grass towards Sunnyside Farm. Ahead of him, making her way for Eda's porch, he cringed as he saw Elise—clad in a white, floral-print sundress and a pearl-grey cardigan, hair pulled back into a low ponytail, with a light pink umbrella at her side. He had to admit, she had style, and he could only imagine that each article of clothing she wore probably cost more, individually, than the rent on his and Jesse's apartment back in Laineston.
Blowing out a deep sigh and grumbling under his breath, Johnny tried to pull his face into a neutral expression as he hopped up Eda's steps. As Elise was about to rap on the door, she caught him in her peripheral vision and turned her head slowly, as though she were trying not to provoke a wild animal.
"Hey," Johnny muttered, nodding at her and hanging back.
"Johnny," Elise returned curtly, her sharp green eyes flitting up and down. She raised an eyebrow, but said nothing, and cleared her throat.
Trying to push down his agitation, Johnny mimicked the throat-clearing and gave her a brief nod. "You, uhh... you look really nice." Which, he reasoned, she really did. But now, if she had anything derogatory to say about his clothes after that, he figured she would also look like a humongous asshole. "That's a really pretty dress."
She gave him a small, tight smile. "Thank you. That's, ahhh... a nice... shirt." The words sounded pained, but she went on, a little more sincere now: "The colors look good on you."
"Oh! Uhh... thanks." Johnny looked down at his clothing and shrugged. He hadn't been expecting that one, but he wasn't going to complain. Green, camo, olive drab, khaki, and black summed up most of his wardrobe anyway. "Does the job, I guess. Uhh, and thanks for the... y'know, welcoming gift."
"Of course. Ermm..." Elise looked like she wanted to say something else, but waved it off. "Think nothing of it." She turned back and raised her hand to rap politely on the door. "Miss Eda? It's Elise and Johnny."
"Comin'!"
Johnny and Elise exchanged surprised looks at the sound of Fritz's voice answering—clearly, he'd beaten them to the punch and arrived a fair deal earlier, if neither of them had seen him. The door creaked open, and he beamed out at them, ushering them inside, where Billie Holiday was crooning from the radio. Behind him, Mika rubbed against his leg and meowed up at them. "'Sup, y'all?" Fritz bubbled, stepping aside and holding the door open wider. "C'mon in, good to see ya! Dang, Elise, you look like a million bucks!"
Elise giggled, clearly basking in the attention as she set her umbrella on the rack and nodded to Fritz. "Why, thank you! You look quite nice, yourself."
Fritz looked down at his torn blue jeans, faded Dark Side of the Moon t-shirt, and black-and-white Vans, and chuckled sheepishly. He'd combed out his hair, at least, though he'd almost kept it in its usual wild state. "Ahhh... thanks? I feel a little underdressed now, though, tell ya the truth. Y'all come in lookin' all nice, and Miss Eda's lookin' real pretty today, too."
Looking up from where he'd squatted down to pet Mika, Johnny shrugged. Personally, he thought the outfit looked kind of cool. Fritz wore it well. "I like your clothes, Fritz."
"You do?" Elise muttered under her breath, before covering her mouth with a soft gasp and looking around to see if anyone had heard her. Johnny's dirty look and eye roll said it all, and she felt her face grow warm. At least Fritz seemed to have missed it, his smile back at full wattage with Johnny's compliment. Maybe I could shut my mouth some of the time, Elise thought, chuckling nervously.
"Oh, Fritz, you look perfectly fine," Eda told him from the kitchen, where she was chopping vegetables for the sandwiches. She waved the knife, coated with bits of lettuce. "Afternoon, you two! Oh, my, Elise, that really is a lovely outfit. That would turn quite a few heads at our fashion show, you know." She set the knife down and bustled out to hug Johnny and Elise, getting a peck on the cheek from the latter, as well as a compliment on her magenta-and-coral caftan. She missed the suspicious look Johnny shot at Elise when this comment was made. "You're such a sweetheart, Elise," Eda said brightly. "Well, kids, you make yourselves at home. Everything's almost ready. We'll all make our own sandwiches, if that's okay, but I'll be happy to cut them into smaller pieces for you!"
"Did you need help with anything?" Johnny asked, looking around at the counters as he forgot about glowering at Elise for the moment. Everything was set up in a sort of buffet or salad bar style. Cold cuts, cheeses, bacon, tomatoes, pickle chips, cucumbers, onions, spinach, and lettuce sat sliced up and waiting, along with a few different types of bread, and containers of mayonnaise, mustard, oil, and vinegar. He felt like he was in a sandwich shop, and pitchers of iced tea, lemonade, and water sat out as well, along with a jar of pickle spears and a large bag of potato chips. His stomach rumbled. Damn, what is it with elderly people and going all-out when it comes to food? he wondered, not really caring about the answer either way. He was about to eat like a king.
Eda waved him off. "Oh, no, dear, you're fine. Fritz already helped chop most of the vegetables and set the table, and there's really not much else that needs doing."
"Hey, nothin' to it," Fritz told her, blushing and grinning as she patted him on the shoulder. "You're scratchin' our backs by doin' this, only makes sense to scratch yours!"
Feeling a bit of shame gnaw at her for her earlier, quiet snark about his clothing, Elise gave him a friendly smile. "That was quite thoughtful of you, Fritz. Wasn't it?" she added, kneeling down to pet Mika as he rubbed against her legs now. She only hoped she wouldn't get cat hair on her dress, but he was too pretty not to pet. She stood back up, smoothing out her dress, and following Johnny and Fritz into the kitchen so they could wash their hands and start fixing up their plates. "How's Akane been, Miss Eda?"
"Oh, same as ever," Eda responded, finishing her chopping and washing both the knife and her hands. "I let her think she runs the place. Aggie's been taking her out riding every so often, since I can't really do it anymore. You've got horses at Marguerite, right?"
Elise nodded, hands hovering hesitantly over the selection of sliced and chopped vegetables. She'd made herself a small turkey and bacon sandwich with Swiss cheese and mayonnaise on, but she tried to swallow her distaste and select the least offensive vegetables she could find. Lettuce. Lettuce tastes like nothing, she decided, struggling to keep her face neutral. And Miss Eda's our host. I'm certainly not going to be rude to her.
Looking over at her, Fritz snickered. "Picky eater, huh?" he teased, watching Elise's eyes go wide with alarm. He'd loaded his own sandwich up with turkey, roast beef, cheddar, mayonnaise, bacon, a little of each type of vegetable, and was now pouring himself a large glass of lemonade. "Hey, they ain't gonna bite ya!"
"Fritz!" Elise hissed, making a cutting motion across her neck and hoping he'd get the message. She wasn't the only person in the room who needed a filter, but at least she had volume control.
"Oh, sweetheart, it's fine," Eda reassured her from the table, setting her own plate and glass down. "I've got plenty of food; if that doesn't do the trick for you, I'm sure we'll find something that does!"
Cheeks burning now, Elise shook her head and turned to Eda, plastering a bright smile on her face. "Oh, no, it's perfectly fine! This is lovely, Miss Eda, Fritz is just... well, you know. Ahahahahaha!" Her laugh sounded disturbingly fake and nervous to her ears, and she wondered if it wouldn't be considered in poor taste to slap Fritz when they got off Eda's property. "Really, this is fine," she repeated insistently, joining Eda and Johnny at the table and taking a bite of her sandwich, as if to prove herself a perfectly amiable guest. She'd be damned if Eda thought of her as ungrateful. Elise chewed hurriedly, washing her bite down with a deep pull of her sweet iced tea, and sighed. It really wasn't that bad, and despite what Fritz had insinuated, she didn't consider herself that picky. Maybe a little too predisposed to sweets and a little too... averse to vegetables, but not picky, by any means. He's making me sound like some kind of snob.
"Ah, I was just crackin' on ya," Fritz told her, sitting down across from her and shooting her a grin as he tucked into his lunch. Coughing as he swallowed too hastily, he took a few gulps of lemonade and let out a loud woosh of air, before going on: "I mean, like, literally everyone's picky compared to me, anyway. I'll eat almost anything you put in front of me! My folks were always braggin' about it to their friends when I was growin' up," he added with a little laugh, looking over to Eda. "But this is primo stuff right here, Miss Eda! You grow the veggies yourself?"
Wiping her mouth and stifling a small belch with her napkin, Eda sipped at the cup of hot ginger tea she'd brewed for herself and shook her head. "Oh, no. Most of these vegetables typically don't grow around here at this time of year. We usually get them shipped in from elsewhere; other countries, or local farms that use greenhouses. Of course, it certainly tastes much better when it comes from our own soil here in town, if you ask me," she added with a proud smile, "but that's life, hmm? We make do. I did make the bread myself, though."
"Huh..." Fritz stared thoughtfully at his half-eaten sandwich, as if it held all the answers to the most profound questions known to man. "That makes sense. Guess we gotta consider our options if we're eatin' whatever we grow here, huh?"
"Well, that is why we have growing seasons," Elise pointed out, pushing a stray lock of hair back over her shoulder and taking a dainty sip of her tea. She'd finished most of her sandwich by now, feeling proud of herself for proving to Fritz that she wasn't some picky nightmare. Setting her glass down, she rubbed her chin. "Though... greenhouses, hmm? You know, those wouldn't be such a bad addition to Marguerite Farm... we could supply everyone with post-season produce year-round, once we got it up and running..."
Fritz's eyes were shining now, and he stared at Elise with an owlish intensity. "Oooohh. That does sound awesome. Probably super-ass expensive, though."
Elise shrugged. "It's an investment. Just like a farm is, typically."
Johnny frowned, not sure if the "typically" remark was Elise trying to take another jab at his status as a temporary farmer, or if she was just low-key flaunting her own wealth. Either way, it was irritating him, and he crammed the last of his sandwich into his mouth to keep from piping up with a smart-assed remark at her. As he chewed, he saw Fritz looking at him, and raised his eyebrows in silent question.
"Oh! It's just, y'know—speakin' of farms, I was wonderin' how yours was goin'," Fritz told him, going to clap him on the shoulder, but then drawing back. Right, doesn't like being touched... I think? I dunno. He's cool with Eda hugging him, but it's Eda. Probably should just play it safe. "Plus, you're just bein' all quiet over there! You, uhh, you're alright, yeah?"
Johnny swallowed, chasing his food with his own tea, and nodded. "Mmm. I just... guess I don't have a lot to say on the subject yet. I mean, this is everyone else's career, basically... and I'm just kind of doing it for a little while." He gave Elise a brief, but pointed, glance as he said this, and she suppressed the urge to roll her eyes in response. "But it's... okay so far, I guess? Eda's a cool teacher. But you were right," he told her with a wry smile, drumming his fingers on the tabletop. "I hurt like hell this morning."
Eda chuckled and patted his hand, shaking her head. "I warned you, hmm?"
"Dude, right?!" Fritz nodded emphatically at Johnny. "Gio warned me, too, but that shit just hits ya! I went to the doc's to see if he could sort me out. Guess it just takes some gettin' used to, though. Good thing we're young, huh?"
Elise's eyes darted between the three of them, and her expression was unreadable behind steepled fingers. "Mmm. Very fortunate."
"Oh!" Halfway to grabbing a chip off of his plate, Fritz snapped his fingers and pointed at Johnny instead. "By the way, Ronnie told me to give you a message!"
Oh, god, Johnny thought, keeping his face neutral as he gave Fritz an encouraging nod.
"Yeah, she says the doc says you're due for a checkup or somethin'? A physical, whatever they call it." He didn't notice Johnny's face fall at this, and went on, after munching on a mouthful of chips: "At least by next week or so; I was supposed to have mine like a month or so from now, but Marian just took care of it when I dropped by yesterday. Two birds and all that. Gotta take care of ourselves, yeah?"
Johnny fought back the urge to cringe. He knew the doctor operated out of the same building where his aunt lived and worked. And his cousin worked for the doctor. And I'm overdue for a checkup, more than anything, he thought, trying to remember the last time he'd even seen a doctor. He'd had appointments set up a handful of times since leaving home, but he'd inevitably have panic attacks the closer they got, and no amount of persuasion or reassurance from Jesse could force him to go—although, he figured, Jesse was probably going easy on him anyway, after what he'd been through. But... I'll have to deal with it eventually, he reasoned, puffing out his cheeks with a sigh. Fritz was right. He did have his health to look after. Still, he wasn't keen on the thought of dealing with a doctor, and possibly even his aunt, at the same time. "Okay... I guess I'll call and set up an appointment or something."
Eda noticed Johnny's discomfort, and gripped his hand comfortingly. "It's okay, dear. Marian's a fantastic doctor, and Angela's always done a wonderful job doing my exams. You're in good hands, trust me."
Johnny opened his mouth to correct her, to tell her it wasn't that he didn't trust them—but he closed it again and just nodded. He didn't need to go into all of it. Certainly not here and now. He wasn't convinced it wouldn't come out when he visited the doctor's, but maybe it wouldn't have to. And, well... if it does... there's always confidentiality laws...
"And it's just poking and prodding, and some bloodwork," Elise added glibly. "Really, it's nothing, unless you have a phobia of needles. I mean, you have your ear pierced, so that can't be it, right?"
Johnny flinched at this, and felt his heartbeat pick up. His leg started to bounce. Everything seemed a million miles away now, and his body temperature seemed to plummet. A cold voice echoed in his mind, making his heart feel like it was constricting in his chest:
"Lift up your arm, Johnny. I'm not going to tell you twice."
Seeing Johnny's quiet discomfort increase with Elise's words—his face had gone wan, he was chewing at his thumbnail, and he seemed to be staring through the surface of the table—Fritz decided a change of subject was in order: "Soooooo... hey! I was thinkin' on the way over... what do y'all think of the name 'Greenhill Farm' for my place, huh? Sounds snazzy, right, Johnny?"
Pulled back out of his own head by the sound of a friendly voice calling his name in the present, and surprised by Fritz's quick thinking, a small bit of grateful warmth bloomed in Johnny's stomach as he realized what had just happened. His face burned with embarrassment for letting himself get so worked up in front of everyone, but he felt Fritz's foot giving his a reassuring nudge under the table—though Fritz himself kept his attention on the women as they offered their opinions on his farm's name. Well, hey... he's just earned my support, too, Johnny decided, speaking up to pitch in his own approval for Greenhill Farm. He noticed his voice was a bit shaky, his leg was still twitching, and his body still felt cold and tingly. But I'm okay. I'm fine. When Fritz caught his eye, Johnny flashed him a small, hesitant smile, which was returned with a bright grin.
Elise and Eda hadn't missed the obvious deflection, though a glance between them said enough. There was definitely something more going on with Johnny than he was letting on. Leave it, Eda mouthed, and Elise gave a discreet nod. She had a feeling that she and Johnny would probably remain acquaintances at most, anyway, and what he chose to divulge and conceal about himself was his business, until and unless he decided to make it hers as well. Not that I'd intend on saying anything to anyone, of course. I suppose he'll just remain an enigma while he's here, she thought, springing up to help Fritz and Eda gather the dishes and set them in the sink, while Johnny set to work putting the food away, and packing up leftovers per everyone's instructions.
The earlier tension was gone as everyone made idle chit-chat: Elise prattled on about some interesting ingredients and seeds she'd seen at one of the vendors in the plaza recently; Eda showed everyone pictures of her recently-born great-granddaughter; Fritz and Eda got into a brief, light-hearted debate about the upcoming baseball season and which teams they were pulling for; and Johnny hung back and played with Mika, intermittently contributing a remark or two to everyone else's conversations, mainly to avoid receiving another remark on how quiet he was being. He really didn't want to draw the attention to himself like that again. All the talk of seeing the doctor, and Elise's mention of needles, had caused a flurry of unwanted memories to swarm around in his mind and distract him, even with Fritz stepping in to lighten the mood.
But that's all behind you now, he reminded himself, rubbing Mika's belly and trying to keep his mind in the here and now. Jess made sure of that. You're okay now.
He knew it wasn't as easy as just reminding himself.
The festivities began to wind down as two o'clock neared, and Elise checked her phone, shifting the Tupperware container of leftovers under her arm. "Oh! My sister tried calling a couple minutes ago... well, she can at least wait until I get home, but I really need to get going so I can call her back. My apologies, Miss Eda. I was having such a good time, too."
Eda waved off the apology, getting up from the couch to hug Elise and exchange kisses on the cheek with her. "Of course not, dear. That's your family right there! I had a lovely time having you over here, and who says we can't do it again soon? I've got all sorts of tea, and some sweet snacks, if those are more your thing," she added with a little wink that made Elise let out a rueful chuckle.
"I suppose you've found me out, then... but that does sound lovely. It's a date, then. Gentlemen," she added, nodding to Fritz and Johnny. Her gaze lingered on the latter, her expression unreadable. "I'll see you two around, hmm?"
"Catch ya later, El!" Fritz replied, causing Elise to give a start at the nickname—her mother and her sister used it for her, too. Fritz wasn't quite there yet. Far from it, if truth be told.
"Ermm... I'd prefer 'Elise,'" she said, watching his cheeks go a bit pink. His sunny expression remained otherwise unchanged, however, and he nodded enthusiastically.
"Sure, we can do that!"
She and Johnny nodded to each other one more time before she grabbed her umbrella from the stand and headed out into the cool, breezy March afternoon, with Eda bidding her goodbye and reminding her to get home safely.
"No worries, I will!" Elise called over her shoulder as the door swung shut behind her.
"I guess we should probably get headin' out soon, too," Fritz mused, passing Johnny's leftovers to him, and grabbing his own. "Sucks to hafta leave, but I got some stuff I still need to take care of back at my place. Greenhill," he added for emphasis, a goofy grin on his face. "Yeah, that does sound nice..."
Johnny was a bit put off by Fritz deciding that it was time for him to leave, as well, but brushed it off. He really didn't want to impose on Eda, and he needed to be alone to sort out his thoughts a bit now, with everything that had happened during lunch. He accepted Eda's hug, and bent down to scratch Mika under the chin, before standing back up. "Well... alright, then. Thanks again for having us, Eda. Everything was great."
"For real," Fritz agreed, chuckling when Eda pecked him on the cheek. "We gotta do this again soon!"
"I was thinking the same thing," Eda said, waving the two of them goodbye as they made for the door and grabbed their umbrellas, and Fritz his hoodie as well. "Alright, you boys get home safe now, you hear?" They knew she meant it more for Fritz, but Johnny nodded with him all the same. "And Johnny, I think we're good on the weather for tomorrow, so I'll see you in the morning. I'll show you how to take care of the chickens, okay?"
"I'll be here," Johnny agreed, waving over his shoulder at her, and stepping through the door as Fritz held it for him. "Oh, thanks. Later, Eda."
Once the two boys got outside, they walked side-by-side in silence for a few moments, before Fritz spoke up:
"Well... guess I'm headin' back down to the ol' homestead, then..." He rubbed the back of his neck and laughed, looking over at Johnny. "So I'll catch ya later, huh?"
Johnny nodded, and found himself wanting to thank Fritz for helping him out earlier—he just couldn't seem to get the right words to do it without making it feel awkward. "I... yeah. Yeah, I'll see you around," he managed, though he didn't start walking towards his farm just yet. Nor did Fritz make a move to head back downhill, and Johnny wondered which one of them would say something first. He decided to leave that one up to Fritz.
"Oh! By the way!"
There it is. "Yeah?"
Fritz reached into his hoodie pocket and pulled out his phone, tapping here and there on the screen a few times. "So, hey, listen—you don't gotta do this or nothin', but... there we go." He turned the screen towards Johnny, who squinted at it for a second, before realizing what he was seeing. There were text, voicemail, email, and Facebook notifications up at the top, and Johnny realized that the battery life was on the low side. "This's my number," Fritz went on, his tone as cheerful as ever. "Y'know, if you ever wanna hang out, or just... talk or whatever. No pressure or nothin', though."
Sucking on his teeth, Johnny mulled it over, even as he gingerly took the phone from Fritz's hand and went into the contact list. It was a lot shorter than he'd thought it would be—Fritz's parents, grandparents, Eda, Giorgio, and Agate were on there. I would've thought he'd have tons of friends from school or something that he was keeping in touch with, he mused. Maybe Fritz was a lot pickier about his friends than he seemed. Or... nah. He's gotta be picky... Johnny wasn't sure how things would go, with him only planning to be in town for a short time. Still... he seems like an okay guy... ehh, fuck it. Why not? It won't kill you. Don't worry about the future too much right now.
He added himself to Fritz's contact list and handed the phone back to an elated Fritz.
"Sweet! Alright, now lemme do you," Fritz commanded, making the "gimme" gesture as Johnny smirked and dug his own phone out.
"Alright, alright, keep your pants on. Here you go." After Fritz put his number into Johnny's phone, Johnny took it back, and they nodded at each other once more. "Alright, I guess we're all set now, huh?"
"Right on! Alright," Fritz went on, scratching his cheek sheepishly and taking a few tentative steps backwards as he waved. "I really gotta go for real this time, though. Later, dude!"
"See ya, Fritz." Johnny waved back, wincing as Fritz turned and briefly lost his balance—though he regained it quickly enough, with an embarrassed "Whoops, that woulda sucked" before he headed off down the hillside. Johnny sighed and shook his head haplessly, making his way into the farmhouse and plopping down onto his bed. His thoughts were already starting to go back to the places he didn't want them to go, and he dug his phone out of his pants pocket and stared at the screen, kicking his legs up and down idly. Another message from Jesse awaited him, and he went to respond to it, before pausing.
Okay, first things first, though...
He sighed and started a new message for Fritz, pondering what exactly he should say in it. Nothing too long or dramatic or anything, he told himself, tapping the words out. Hopefully he won't ask any questions about it, though. He looked it over, nodded with satisfaction, and sent it. Short and to the point.
'By the way, thanks for earlier.'
The response was fairly swift, and he smiled when he saw it:
'No problem, man. Anytime. Take care!'