Here's another chapter! Sorry I've been so slow (semester's almost over though).
This time we get a little bit of Jim's POV and hopefully I can incorporate more as the plot progresses.
Initial completion: November 24, 2021
"Doctor, enough fiddling with that apparatus."
"I only want some memories to look back on when they're grown!"
Jim overheard the bickering parents and was able to get a peek of them through the small yet considerable crowd.
The quadruplets were having their birthday party here at the Benbow Inn at the insistence of the Doc, what with him and Sarah being old friends. The festivities had started well enough with food and cake but Delbert was currently fretting over his failing attempts to take some decent pictures of his increasingly distracted children. Jim could also catch a glimpse of B.E.N. as he tried to get them to smile with the help of Morph, who kept imitating various toys and noisemakers.
There were also various faculty and staff from the RIA and Navy, some locals, and even Kate had accompanied him. So pretty much everybody he was close to was here.
Well, almost.
"Sometimes the best pictures are the imperfect ones, Delbert," Jim heard Sarah chime in as she brought some slices of birthday cake to Amelia.
She sighed as she took the plate from Sarah, "At the very least he's troubled over a camera as opposed to work. You wouldn't believe what an uproar it was to clear my own agenda for tonight."
"Arranging reschedules, canceling meetings, and other such frivolous things," Jim heard the Captain continue. "I wouldn't mark it short of a nightmare."
"I can imagine," Sarah answered with a huffed chuckle. "It can be pretty hard to make time off of work. But I'm glad to see your family here and enjoying themselves."
Amelia shortly nodded. "We could find no finer establishment for such an occasion," she said with a smirk. "The children do love their Auntie Sarah so much, after all."
Sarah laughed, genuinely laughed, and Jim found himself realizing how little he heard such a sound.
And it seemed he wasn't the only one who noticed. "Well, I must say, Sarah," the Doctor added as he began putting away the camera equipment, "... I haven't seen you in such good spirits in eons."
Sarah only shrugged. "I'm just happy for you and Amelia. And, of course, the adorable birthday babies," she answered as she smiled warmly, watching the children as they played with Morph.
"What's going on with you, Hawkins?"
Kate's voice brought Jim's attention back to his own table where she sat by his side.
"Nothing, I just…" he began. "I couldn't help but overhear the Doc and-"
"Gossip?" she interrupted, simulating shock. "I knew you were a scoundrel, but to think…"
"You're one to talk," Jim scoffed with a smirk, earning a short laugh from Kate. But his expression then turned rather serious as he scooted in closer. "My mom says she's in a good mood just because of the party," he began, "... but I know it's not just that."
Kate also scooted her chair in. "Do tell."
Jim began arranging the various thoughts that ran through his mind before finally explaining his observations. "Over the last couple of weeks, I've noticed some kind of change. I mean, I know I only see her on the weekends but during these recent visits I actually saw her."
To Jim, Sarah seemed like a different person. She was still Sarah, but less tired and busy.
"I see," Kate remarked.
Jim continued enthusiastically, "Usually, I would come by and start helping with her work right away until I had to leave again. We don't get to chat too much during that time, that's why we write. But I've finally been able to talk to her," he whispered excitedly. "And she talks back!"
Kate suppressed her laughter at his sentiment. He felt he should have been offended by it, but he couldn't help the smile that came upon him.
"She doesn't work so much anymore and when I come over I rarely have to help," he added, to which Kate subtly shrugged.
"Well, that is likely because of the hired help."
Said addition of the elusive John was the only thing Jim knew had truly changed around the Benbow Inn. He had allowed Sarah more free time even where Jim and Kate could have a pleasant dinner with her a few weeks ago. Jim was ever curious as to who this person was. And more importantly, how this John was changing Sarah for the better.
His eyes wandered over to the closed doors that led to the kitchen. "Yeah…" he said absentmindedly.
"It should happen eventually," Kate added before taking a sip from her beverage. "You meeting him, I mean."
Jim turned his body back to the table, but his stare was fastened to those double doors, his mind buried in thought. "I wonder if he wants to meet me, too."
Not too much time passed before Sarah was saying goodbye to Delbert and Amelia, what with their occupations maintaining little free time and the children's unique sleeping patterns. Once the birthday babies had gone, various other guests were compelled to leave as well. Soon enough Jim took off along with Kate, and some RIA staff and several other individuals shuffled out, too.
After some cleaning Sarah thought now was a good time to check in on her hidden helper. "How are you doing, John?" she asked as she stepped into the much quieter kitchen.
He turned to briefly smile at her before continuing with the dishes. "Jus' dandy, nothin' much goin' on in 'ere. Sounds like ye had a blast out there, though."
Sarah lightly rested against the closed doors, the sounds of the remaining guests slightly muffled by them. "It sure was, but mostly everyone has left by now."
"Aye," he said, "... don't suppose those pups can stand bein' awake fer too long. 'Tis a wee bit early fer th' rest of us to turn in, but it seems inevitable."
He wasn't wrong, the sun had yet to set for the evening. It was even too early for some of the older folks to go to bed. But it seemed just right for the current situation. "Would you mind coming over here, John?" she asked while stepping back out into the hall. "It's just us and some residents, I promise."
A mischievous smirk grazed his face. "Ye promised."
He wiped his hands on his apron and was certainly anticipating to clean. But when he stepped into the dining hall he found various residents still eating and conversing, some noticing his presence and welcoming him.
"I thought it was unfair for you to have to miss out on the fun," Sarah explained, "... so we're keeping the party going, just for a little bit." It was relatively understandable that he needed to keep hidden from just about everyone. But as time went on Sarah kept feeling like he was just being crammed up in the kitchen all the time. She had debated the idea and was unsure if it was too much, but the look on his face told her she made the right call.
It held a mixture of shock and wonder with an awestruck gaze fixed on his features. "I ..." he tried before briefly clearing his throat. "I don't know what to say."
"How about 'I'm hungry'?"
He soon saw Deb seated at a table and Sarah promptly ushered him towards it. "I'll get you a plate, John," she said and motioned to an empty seat. "You make yourself comfortable."
Deb patted the seat of the chair. "You should have a taste of the food here, it's amazing," she teased. "And the cook is pretty handsome, too."
He chuckled as he took a seat and Sarah couldn't help the smile on her face. And with that, she disappeared into the kitchen.
The chatter, eating, and dancing continued as though the party had never stopped. Sarah was pleased to see John seemingly having a merry time as well.
It was quite a different picture to see the usually lone cyborg laughing and dining with the handful of residents he had gotten to meet. He never failed to entertain and befriend those around him, even though he had been influenced himself into a dance by the ever-strong-headed Deb. And even then, his reluctance seemed to have evaporated into hearty chuckles as he danced along and had a good time.
"Sorry I have to leave you for Arthur here, Johnny," Deb then said. Sarah looked up from her plate and saw the cyborg starting to walk to her table.
"'Tis no trouble," he answered between tired chuckles, "... you lads have fun!" As he pulled out a chair he met Sarah's gaze with such a warm and cheerful mood. "Ah, seems like an eternity since I've had such a grand time!"
Sarah found his joy contagious and smiled as well. "I can't even remember when was the last time I had any fun at all," she confessed and looked back at her plate.
But his deep voice brought her attention back to his curious expression, "It'd certainly do ya plenty good to take a pause every now an' again."
Sarah continued looking at her food as her fork poked at it. "I don't think I've had a break since…" she scrunched her face in thought, "... probably since we had to rebuild this place maybe a year ago or so." A frown came upon her face as she continued. "Some pirates came looking for a treasure map and burned the inn down."
"I see," he murmured.
She continued, "I was technically forced to take a "vacation" until construction was finished. But even before that, I was always busy working."
He quickly cleared his throat before suggesting, "Well, ya don't need to take a full vacation to enjoy yerself. Ya could read a good book, take a pleasant walk, or spend some time wit' yer son." His arm motioned to the room still flocked with party guests. "Even attendin' a birt'day party like this one every now an' then should suffice."
Sarah only had to think on it for a little before shrugging. "I guess I don't give myself a lot of time for… myself."
"Ye oughtta," he quickly interjected. "A hard-working lass like yerself surely deserves it."
She then lifted her head and gave him an inquisitive look. "Well, what do you do to relax?"
He didn't even need to think. "I like to take a wee boat and sail t'rough th' sky. If I got more time, I go past it." His fingers moved through the air, like a ship sailing freely, and a soft smile landed on his countenance. "There be nothin' like th' quiet peace and marvelous sights o' the Etherium," he uttered.
"So I've heard."
He jerked as he awoke from his daze. "Heard?" he asked incredulously. "Now, don't go tellin' me ye've never been up there, lass."
Sarah only inspected the morsel on her fork. "I've just been here on Montressor for as long as I can remember. I had Jim when I was pretty young, so raising a kid and running the inn became my life," she confided. "It was no problem because Leland was still supporting us. But after a while life got a little harder... and…" Her stare became lost in her dish, now as empty as her voice.
"... I guess sailing in the unknown sounded better than raising a family."
They fell silent, the commotion of the party somehow miles away. These were not issues Sarah liked to dwell on. She was not one to mope; she was a strong person who could take care of herself.
Maybe John was right and she just needed something new to focus on. Perhaps even something to help her properly confront these old problems.
Remembering the person across from her she shook herself a bit and cleared her throat. "Anyway, yes… I just often find myself too busy to have much fun." It seemed she never did make time for anything that wasn't work, except if it had something to do with Jim. She supposed it did weigh her down a tad, all work and no play. Her gaze then lifted to follow John who had stood up from his seat, a suddenly bold look on his face.
"Well, I say we oughtta take advantage of this opportunity and make th' most fun of it," he said in an awfully darling manner. Yet, as he charmingly bowed as he extended his left hand, his voice somehow became even sweeter. "Milady, may I have this dance?"
Sarah unexpectedly could not remember whether or not this was a dream.
What she could remember was that it had been far too long since she danced with someone who wasn't her son. She exhaled tiredly, feeling that she was preparing to decline the offer. But as she looked into Silver's playfully genuine eyes and at his seemingly strong hand, she felt a spark inside her as a smile spread onto her lips.
"I guess one dance couldn't hurt."
Look, endnotes!
Yes, it's something of a cliffhanger. I'm so mean, mwaha.
But they will dance, I promise! And it might affect a certain cyborg more than a certain innkeeper. But we'll get to that eventually.
In the meantime, thanks for your reviews! They really brighten my day and encourage me to keep writing this self-indulgent fanfic.