A/N: Hi, everyone! Sorry for the wait. Please enjoy this new chapter and stay safe out there! I'm trying to update a couple of fics so some new stuff is coming up.
Thanks again for taking the time to read!
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THIRTY-NINE
Epimetheus
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Lana gripped the handle of the pram tightly as she forced her way down the street. The neighborhood was calm and the breeze was gentle. Lana stayed alert and kept her eyes ahead. Once in a while she would look over at the house they were passing. It sat peacefully, sounds emanating from the family inside. Lana gazed down at Johnny who was sucking on his fist in between baby squeals and gibberish. He seemed to be making more noises other than just cries or angry grunts.
"Got a lot to say, don't you?" Lana asked him as her eyes gazed upward. They were about to reach the corner of the street and she had yet to see any sort of danger. Lana relaxed herself. How did she expect to learn to drive if she was still nervous about taking her boy out on a simple walk?
Oliver reminded her that trauma wasn't swept under the rug so easily. That her scars from Briarcliff wouldn't fade overnight and even though Lana felt a little more human with each passing day, she knew she wasn't quite where she needed to be, where she used to be.
Typing out her experiences had helped and so did the little evening walks. Her therapy sessions with Oliver had lessened over time. Oliver hadn't felt as comfortable when it came to being his wife's therapist. Alas, he wanted to support Lana and hear out her feelings. It was just difficult for him to remain unbiased and moved by emotion.
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The phone rang a couple of times before Oliver reached it. "Hello?" He answered the phone without another moment of hesitation but there was no immediate answer. Just silence. "Hello? Thedson residence." He waited for a response but the silence only continued. Oliver frowned lightly, "Hello?" He repeated again but nothing.
The front door opened and Lana entered with the pram and baby Johnny fast asleep inside of it. Her eyes went to Oliver who was holding the phone to his ear. She opened her mouth to ask who was calling but was distracted when she dropped Johnny's stuffed rabbit and knelt down to pick it up.
Oliver waited a couple of seconds more before he shrugged and hung up the phone. Someone must have dialed by mistake or were having problems with their landlines. Oliver didn't know but he didn't put much thought or importance to it.
"What was that all about?" Lana finally asked, setting the rabbit on the coffee table.
"Wrong number probably." Oliver answered with a gentle smile and a casual tone. It happened from time to time, no big deal. "How was your walk?" He gave Lana all of his attention.
"Uneventful but I suppose that's a good thing." Lana gently scooped the baby from the pram with just a little bit of struggle since she didn't want to wake him. Little Johnny squirmed in her arms but didn't wake from his heavy slumber. He seemed to be getting heavier by the day and the rolls on his thighs filled with the right amount of chunk. His baby hair was growing fuller and darker. He was taking after his father.
Oliver walked over to Lana and lowered his head to kiss her temple. "You should go rest. I'll get dinner started."
Lana nodded and retreated to their bedroom with the boy. She gently laid him upon the middle of the bed where one of his blankets was sprawled. Lana liked having him near, his mere presence settled down her worries and she liked to make sure he was breathing. Sometimes Johnny appeared too still for her comfort.
"You're a heavy sleeper, aren't you?" She asked as she prompted herself on one elbow and reached over with her free hand to brush his soft hair to the side. His little nose scrunched like a rabbit.
Lana smiled softly at the little sleeping face. There were moments when he still felt like a dream. "Heavy, heavy." She said as her hand traveled down to his chubby thigh and softly squeezed it, "Chunky Chicken." She whispered to him, "...Little Chicken."
Lana laid down next to him, resting her head on her hands. She watched Johnny's sleeping profile and took note of his long lashes. He seemed to get just a little bit bigger every day and with every passing day, his features left those of a scrunchy newborn. Time seemed to be moving too fast all of a sudden.
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Wendy gently hung up the phone; her body went rigid upon hearing the doctor's voice. She didn't know why she had frozen in complete fear when he answered. Perhaps she was afraid that he would confirm Sister Jude's words on Lana's death. Wendy wasn't ready to hear that confirmed by someone she would trust more than the nun herself.
She let a long, heavy sigh escape her body, feeling like a failure and a coward. Her eyes prickled with tears and her hands clutched into tight fists at the mere frustration. If Dr. Thredson had confirmed Lana's well being and if he told her where she was, what was she really going to do? The answer was so clear yet covered in fear and doubt.
Wendy let her eyes fall upon the card on the coffee table, taking notice of the doctor's home address.
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There was something peaceful about the night. A cricket chirped in the near distance and the busyness of the neighborhood was coming to a slow. Children had left their bikes on the porches of their homes and had gone inside after their mothers called them in for dinner. People had begun to close their blinds and shut off the lights to prepare themselves for a night's rest.
Lana sat on the rocking chair Oliver had placed on the back porch for her to relax with the baby. She gently rocked back and forth, eyes set on nothing in particular. Johnny lay against her chest, his blue eyes slowly fighting sleep. His nap from earlier that day had dragged on a little longer than usual and now Lana was having trouble putting him to sleep. Lana gently rubbed his back as she rocked them back and forth with ease.
Oliver sat at the top step of the porch fiddling with his watch underneath the porch light. He had noticed that the hands had stopped running. He let out a heavy sigh, "I'm going to have to take this to get fixed, it looks like."
"Do you believe in monsters?" Lana asked, her voice breaking Oliver away from his concentration.
"What?" He looked up with those chestnut eyes and fixed his glasses, "Monsters? Like from under the bed?" He tried not to chuckle at Lana's questions, no matter how silly they might seem to him. She had come a long way since she had first arrived in his home with limited speech and no understanding of her anatomy. Still, she often had questions that a precocious child would ask.
"Well, any kind." Lana answered, her expression was serious.
Oliver looked back down to his watch. Bloody Face crossed his mind, "I believe I do. A monster can be anything...anyone."
"What about the ones you see in the movies?" She asked next. "The ones that eat people."
This time, Oliver chuckled, "Now, what brings up that question?"
Lana became tense and her ears felt hot. She had started to remember things from her early days in Briarcliff. Or perhaps they were dreams. She couldn't tell because they seemed so farfetched. Johnny fussed a little but Lana continued to rub his back and he settled down. Lana smiled sheepishly at her own imagination, "Movies, I guess."
Oliver took his watch off, "What kind of movies have you been watching?" His attention went back to his minor dilemma. But then he asked, "Have you been having strange dreams again, Lana?" He looked at her with a serious expression, worried that she was remembering things that were best kept forgotten.
Lana met his gaze and felt uneasy inside. She was having a hard time telling what was real or what was simply a nightmare conjured by her mind's darkest corners. Alas, she smiled at her husband, no longer wanting to think about the past. "Oliver?"
"Yes?"
Lana felt her heart skip a beat. She loved the way he answered when she called his name. It was such a simple tone but one filled with his full attention.
"Can you tell me another myth?"
This brought a wide smile to Oliver's face. "A myth? Well, it's been a little while since I shared one with you, hasn't it?"
Lana tightened her hold on Johnny just a little. He had finally fallen fast asleep. She nodded, "Mhmm."
"Very well," Oliver leaned back against the railing post. "Let's seeā¦" He searched his memories, "Did I ever tell you about Pandora's Box?"
Lana's eyes widened a little with big interest. Just like they always did just before a story. "No."
He exhaled a short breath he had been holding, "Well, Pandora was the first woman created by Hephaestus by Zeus' orders. Zeus was furious and wanted revenge after Prometheus gave fire to humans so he planned to give Pandora as a gift to Prometheus' brother, Epimetheus."
Lana gave her full attention on Oliver, all of anxieties forgotten for that moment.
"Each single God gave her a gift, Athena gave her the gift of wisdom and Aphrodite gave her the gift of beauty and so on. Zeus then gave Pandora a jar and ordered her not to open it under any circumstances."
"Did she open it?" Lana interrupted, unable to contain herself.
Oliver chuckled. "She did. After Epimetheus took her in, Pandora couldn't resist the temptation and opened the jar."
"What was in it?"
"All kinds of evil: Death, sickness, hatred...all of these evils escaped the jar and unleashed themselves upon the world. Pandora attempted to close the jar, trapping one thing inside."
Lana frowned when Oliver paused, "What was left?"
Oliver shrugged, "Some people say hope was left inside the jar. But that's often left open for interpretation. Myths have many variations and people give them different meanings."
Lana leaned back on the rocking chair, her expression troubled and frustrated. "What's the meaning of this one?"
Oliver laughed at her flustered tone of voice. "I guess the lesson of opening Pandora's Box is more of a warning. By doing a certain something, you might be opening yourself up to many problems. In other words, your actions may lead to troublesome consequences."
"Hmph." Lana took the information in, "I suppose I opened Pandora's Box when I went to Briarcliff on my own...didn't I?"
Oliver chuckled and stood from the porch step and made his way over to her. He looked down at Lana with that loving, patient and understanding gaze of his. Lana looked up at him with an innocent and lost look in her own eyes. She looked so lost in so many ways. Oliver lifted his hand and ran his thumb along her cheek bone. The worst thing to have happened to her ended up being the best thing to have happened to him. Oliver hated himself for realizing that truth but Briarcliff Manor had brought them into each other's lives. There were just some things that were hard to regret. For Oliver, very much like Epimetheus, couldn't resist a gift from Zeus.
