Zeb woke up the next morning feeling warm and content and incredibly comfortable. Kanan was still sound asleep on top of him, and sometime during the night he'd pressed his face into the side of Zeb's neck, fully cuddled up against him. Zeb must have been moving in his sleep too because he found that he had his arms wrapped around Kanan. It was all very sweet and cozy, it was almost like he and Kanan had…
No, he couldn't think like that! He shakes his head and then starts the painstaking process of disentangling himself from Kanan without waking him up. As much as he would have liked to have stayed there, it put too many dangerous thoughts in his head. Finally he manages to get himself free and heads to his bathroom to take a shower-an ice cold one.
About twenty minutes later Zeb was back downstairs, freshly showered and in clean clothes, feeling much more level headed, as if the shower had washed away any troubling thoughts as well as washing the dirt and sweat off of his body. Kanan was still passed out on the couch so Zeb decided to start making breakfast for the two of them. He knew that Kanan would probably be fine with cereal so he didn't have to do anything fancy, but it was his first time having a guest over in… Well, longer than he could remember, maybe since high school. So he wanted to do this right. He fussed about for a bit trying to figure out what to make, finally deciding on french toast made with the thick, rich cinnamon raisin bread that was made fresh at the bakery in his favorite grocery store (the bread was one of the reasons that he went there so often, truth be told), with bacon and eggs on the side. He was pretty sure Kanan drank coffee (they'd both drunk plenty of caf on the Ghost) so he started a full pot for them to share.
He got so caught up in his cooking that he almost forgot that he wasn't the only one in the house, and he was a bit startled when he heard Kanan's voice saying, "Something smells good in here."
"Thanks!" Zeb smiles at him. "Just finishing up breakfast-hope you're hungry, I made a lot."
"Good, because I'm starving for some reason this morning," Kanan chuckles before gesturing to the coffee pot. "Any chance I can have some caf?"
"Help yourself," Zeb answers, noticing that Kanan, like him, had slipped up and called the coffee "caf"-old habits apparently died hard.
"Wow, that's good," Kanan says once he's poured himself a mug and tasted it.
"Glad you like it." Zeb let out a small chuckle. "A lot better than the pisspoor stuff the Rebellion served, right?"
"Oh, so much better," Kanan agrees. "Was I the only one who thought they mixed dirt in with the caf grounds just to stretch the supply?"
"Absolutely not-I remember you and I would sometimes smuggle caf from a new shipment back to the Ghost just so we could make our own that wasn't watered down or had dirt mixed in."
"We did do that, didn't we?" Kanan gives him a small smile. "Is it weird to say that I miss that?"
"Only if it's weird that I miss it too," Zeb sighs. "Not the shitty caf or the smuggling parts, but just being there with you and the rest of our family, doing things as a family."
"Exactly!" Kanan agrees before hanging his head. "God, I miss them so much…"
"Me too." Zeb lays a comforting hand on his shoulder for a moment before starting to dish up the food-somehow he found if he kept moving it was harder to get bogged down in his many, many fears. "But at least we've got some hope from the facility now, so that's something right? All we can really do at this point is wait to see what happens."
"I know you're right, but it's really hard to be patient…"
"Yeah, it is," Zeb agrees. "But we've got each other now, which is a lot better than how we were both doing yesterday."
"True. Very true." Kanan smiles slightly as Zeb puts up a plate down in front of him.
"Of course it's true. Now eat your food while it's still warm, I know you get fussy about cold eggs."
"Wow, thanks a lot, 'Mom'," Kanan teases.
"Hey, Hera's not here to keep you in line so someone's got to do it," Zeb teases back.
Kanan playfully sticks his tongue out at him before starting to eat. "Oh, wow. You are an awesome cook, Zeb, I never would have guessed that!"
"Thanks." Zeb sheepishly rubs the back of his neck. "I learned from my grandparents-my gran was great with doing the main meals and afternoon tea, that sort of thing, and my grandad always covered breakfast and baked goods and the smoking and grilling of any meats."
"Wow, makes me wish I'd grown up with you." Kanan shakes his head. "Between my mom being busy with the army, and then the foster homes after I lost her, I've eaten more tv dinners in my life than I'd care to count. Once I was out on my own I started going online to learn how to cook, even took a couple classes at the community rec center to learn the basics. I'm not great, but I get by."
"Well, maybe I can teach you sometime, if you'd like," Zeb offers.
"You'd do that?"
"Sure-can't let you go on eating substandard food if I can prevent it, can I?"
"Hey, are you calling my cooking substandard?"
"You pretty much just called it that yourself!"
"Yes, but you're supposed to be nice and tell me it's really not as bad as I think it is, not tear it apart!"
Zeb rolls his eyes playfully at him. "Eat your eggs, Kanan."
Kanan pretended to still grumble for a bit, but if he was truly upset it didn't at all affect his willingness to eat Zeb's cooking.
"So, what's on the agenda for today?" Kanan asks once they're both finished eating and are clearing the table.
"Not sure-hadn't really thought this far ahead," Zeb admits. "I was thinking about going fishing, catch us some fresh fish for dinner, if you'd like to join me for that."
"...Would I have to handle the fish?"
"Not if you didn't want to."
"And you wouldn't make me cut off the heads or pull out the bones and guts afterwards?"
"No! ...Why does it sound like you've done this before?"
"One time one of my coworkers invited a lot of us out on a camping trip and the group's idea of 'fun' was making me do a bunch of things I didn't know how to and was uncomfortable with doing."
"...You're a real city boy, aren't you?"
"Zeb!" Kanan gives him a betrayed glare.
"I'm just trying to figure out who you are out here!" Zeb quickly defends himself. "But seriously, Kanan, it's fine, and I'm not that kind of person. If you don't want to do something that's not a life or death situation I won't try to force you to do it."
"Thanks, Zeb." Kanan gives him a grateful smile. "And, if that's the case, I wouldn't mind going with you to fish, although I'll probably just sit and read, if you don't mind-not sure I want to hold a pole myself."
"That's perfectly alright," Zeb reassures him. "I'll just be glad of the company. Why don't you go get ready for the day and I'll get my fishing supplies and pack us a cooler with some drinks and snacks? We'll be near enough to the house to walk back up for lunch, but it's a bit too much of a walk just to get a snack."
"Do you really think we'll get hungry between now and lunch?"
"Tell me the truth, have you ever stopped being at least a bit hungry all the time since you got back after living off of ration bars for months on end?"
"...Fair point. Alright, guess I'll get showered and changed and meet you back down here?"
"Works for me!"
"Great, see you in a bit!"
Kanan heads upstairs to get ready for the day, and Zeb heads out to the garage where he kept his fishing gear. Most of it he left out for people renting the house to use, although they did have to sign a waiver that he wasn't responsible if they injured themselves messing around with it. But there was one fishing pole that he kept carefully sealed in a case unless he was actively using it. It was this one that he pulled out now, checking it over to make sure that everything was still perfectly in order, his fingers gently tracing over the smooth, glossy wooden handle. His grandad had made this fishing pole completely from scratch, and Zeb had never known a nicer one. Even though his grandad had taught him how to make them himself, none of the ones he'd ever made compared to this one. He was sometimes tempted to stop using it and just put it on display because he was afraid of damaging it, but his grandad had a firm belief that things-even beautiful, meaningful things-were meant to be used and enjoyed, not just to collect dust on a shelf, so out of respect for that Zeb used this pole as often as he could, just making sure to take very good care of it before, during, and after use.
The pole now in hand, Zeb grabs his tackle box and then heads back into the main house. Kanan wasn't back yet, so Zeb busies himself with packing refreshments for them. As he does, he looks out the window. It was still cloudy out-he was pretty sure that it hadn't actually rained last night, even after he'd fallen asleep. The good news was the clouds meant shade and a nice, cool temperature outside. The bad news was that he and Kana would have to keep an eye on the weather so they didn't get rained on.
"Hey!" Kanan greets him, walking into the kitchen a couple minutes later. "You ready to go?
"Yeah, I think so," Zeb agrees, trying not to stare-Kanan looked good in those skinny jeans and that Green Day t-shirt that clung slightly to his still-damp-from-the-shower abs. There was also a book under his arm, and Zeb was curious to see what he was reading but couldn't really tell from his angle.
"Anything I can help with?" Kanan asks.
"Hm… If you wouldn't mind grabbing those folding chairs that would be great," Zeb answers, motioning with his head to where two collapsed fabric chairs were waiting by the back door-the weight wouldn't have been a problem, but between the fishing gear and the cooler he had his hands and arms rather full.
"Can do," Kanan agrees. "Sure you've got the rest of that?"
"Yep, no problem."
"Damn-you must be as strong out here as you were in the game!"
"Something like that," Zeb says with a weak chuckle. Even though he'd worked out and was pretty strong before the game, sometimes, like now, he had the uncanny feeling that he'd brought back some of his Lasat avatar's strength-but that was impossible, wasn't it?
"So, do we have everything we need?" Kanan asks, startling Zeb out of his thoughts.
"Yeah," Zeb quickly answers, shaking his head to clear away the strange ideas in his head. "Let's go."
It was only about a five minute walk from the back of the house down to the lake. There weren't really fences or boundaries between neighboring properties, aside from a few people who absolutely did not want unexpected visitors. Most of the people who lived around this lake were either tourists renting or else came from families like Zeb's who had lived here for generations. Zeb was at least familiar with most of them-some of them he'd even grown up with, running freely from backyard to backyard, with the oldest kids looking out for the younger ones and the adults content to let them expend their boundless energy outside so long as they came back home in time for meals and were in at night by curfew. It had been a great way to grow up-it still felt like a small town where everyone looked out for each other, even though the main town was getting bigger and more modernized by the year to try to attract tourists. Zeb appreciated the business the tourists brought in, but he hoped that things here on the lake would never change.
When they reach the wooden dock at the edge of the lake, Zeb takes a few minutes, as he always did, to check the dock for loose or broken or rotting boards, but everything looked fine so he and Kanan set up the chairs and get comfortable-Zeb gets his rod ready to use while Kanan settles down with his book. Once Zeb had his line in the water he sits down next to Kanan, curiously glancing over to try to see what book he was reading. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof--the title sounded familiar, but he was pretty sure he'd never read it.
"So, reading that for fun or for work?" Zeb asks after a few minutes of silence-he didn't want to disrupt Kanan's reading, but he also didn't want him to think that he was ignoring him.
"A bit of both," Kanan answers, looking up from the book. "It's a play we're going to be covering in class, I've read it before but I like to try to refresh my memory before I teach it."
"Smart idea." Zeb nods in understanding. "Can I ask what it's about?"
"It's a bit confusing since there's a lot of symbolism and social commentary from the time it was written in," Kanan answers, "but the story mostly revolves around this big, rich family celebrating the birthday of the patriarch, who is dying of cancer even though the family is trying to keep it from him. The arguably main character is his daughter-in-law, who is trying to secure the family fortune by getting pregnant and producing an heir, but her husband is completely spaced out and an alcoholic, mostly because his best friend committed suicide after he rejected him for confessing that he was in love with him."
"Oh shit." Zeb's eyes go wide. "Talk about your dysfunctional family."
"Right?" Kanan laughs. "Tennessee Williams-the author-is a trip. Brilliant writer and it's actually pretty much confirmed that he was gay, or at least had romantic relationships with other men. But if you read his plays… Wow, it sounds like the world was pretty fucked up back then."
"No kidding!" Zeb agrees. "Jeez. Give me some good old fashioned Tolkien any day."
"I hear you. But even though theater can be a little out there it's still interesting. Maybe I can take you to see one of my students' shows or something sometime-they're putting on A Streetcar Named Desire in a few weeks as their end-of-semester production if you might like to go?"
"...Is that more Tennesee Williams?"
"Yes, actually!"
"Then thanks, but no thanks."
"Aw, Zeb…" Kanan pouts at him.
"Sorry, but it sounds like his stuff is a little over my head."
"Fair. But there's got to be some sort of theater that you like! What about musicals? Most people at least have a couple musicals that they like!"
"...I think my gran tried to show me The Sound of Music once but I fell asleep halfway through," Zeb sheepishly admits.
"Zeb!" Kanan cries, looking playfully scandalized. "You don't even like the Disney Broadway musicals?"
"The what?"
"You didn't know that Disney has musicals on Broadway?"
"I barely know Disney from the movies that I had on VHS as a kid!"
"...Okay, it is clearly now my duty to educate you on both theater and Disney!"
"Do you have to?" Zeb had mostly grown up on old fashioned westerns and adventure movies like Indiana Jones, and he hadn't really stayed current on anything except for the Star Wars movies.
"Yes, we have to," Kanan answers with a playful glint in his eyes.
"Fine," Zeb sighs, giving in. He knew better than to fight Kanan when he got like this, and besides, if Kanan wanted to show him a bunch of movies that meant more time for them to hang out, something Zeb was not going to complain about.
They settled back into a cozy silence after that, Kanan reading his book and Zeb watching for a bite on his line. On and off he noticed a far away figure further up the lakeshore-it didn't look like anyone he knew from the neighborhood, maybe someone was renting out one of the houses? It was the off season for tourists, spring break was over and summer vacation wasn't for a little over another month, but tourists right now weren't unheard of. The person had a pair of binoculars with them, and appeared to be watching the wildlife on and around the lake. It seemed innocent enough, although Zeb couldn't help but get an uncomfortable feeling that the person was spending quite a lot of time looking in their direction-the person could have easily been looking at the family of ducks splashing around in the water a bit to the left of the dock, but still…
Zeb was about to ask Kanan if he thought it was unusual when Kanan, without any prompting, suddenly looks up at the sky, snaps his book shut, and stands up, saying, "We should head inside."
"What?" Wait, had Kanan noticed the stranger staring at them too?
"I'm pretty sure it's going to start raining any second now."
"...You sure?" Zeb looks up at the sky-it was still cloudy, but no different than it had been all morning.
"Zeb, please, just trust me on this one. We need to get inside."
There was something in the urgency in Kanan's voice that made Zeb know not to argue, so he just pulls his line out of the water and helps Kanan pack up as quickly as they could. He was a bit disappointed that he hadn't caught any fish, but he supposed there was enough food in the house that they'd be fine.
They were about a minute's walk from the house when the first raindrops started to patter down around them.
"Karabast, you were right," Zeb says. "Good thing you had us leave or we'd have been walking all the way in this!"
"Don't be too relieved yet," Kanan answers, his eyes darting up to the sky. "We should have left sooner, things could get a lot worse…"
"Pretty in tune with the weather, are yeh?" Zeb asks, glancing curiously over at Kanan.
"Something like that," Kanan answers, picking up his pace, and Zeb does the same.
They were in sight of the back porch when the sky decided to open up, torrents of rain washing over them.
"Kriff!" Zeb curses, wincing at the cold, biting pellets.
"Should have had us leave sooner," he hears Kanan mutter to himself, which was a bit odd-it wasn't like Kanan could have known about when the rain was going to start, could he?
They enter the kitchen, both drenched as sewer rats, and, after setting down everything that he was carrying on the kitchen table, Zeb goes to adjust the thermostat-even he had to agree that warmth would be needed right now to keep them both from getting sick. He came back to the kitchen to find that Kanan had taken off his soaked t-shirt and pulled his sopping hair out of its ponytail. Even though he was drenched, a shirtless, loose-haired Kann was certainly not a sight to miss. Zeb had reason to be glad that his own soaked pants were so cold.
"Well, that was an adventure," Kanan says with a wry smile that seemed to reach right into Zeb's chest and squeeze it until he was holding back a need-filled whine. Was this just him missing Alex, or was this something else entirely?
"Guess I'd better get out of those wet clothes," Kanan continues. "You need me to help you put anything away?"
"No, I'm good, but thanks," Zeb answers in a somewhat strained voice, glad that Kanan didn't push the matter and just headed upstairs to change. First Zeb would dry off the fishing rod to make sure it didn't warp or rust. But then he would probably need to stop in the restroom to address a problem that didn't seem to be going away on its own.