Chapter 25 : Harvest Festival
Gideon and Mr Leapers both arrive early at the fair to start to put up the stand. Despite the early hour, most mammals seem quite chipper. The tod himself is in a good mood, even though he'd rather be under his blanket.
While the old buck sets the counter, the tod make trips with the boxes and food items. He doesn't complain about his role of mover, as he wasn't expecting anything else when his boss told him they'd participate in the event.
He feels a bit crossed against Catherine, as she managed to avoid setting up the stand by saying she had her own family to help. He wouldn't be as much, if he hadn't actually seen her on her phone, leaning against their truck while they did most of the heavy lifting.
"Boy, I'm gonna go fetch our shopkeeper. In the meantime, finish putting things up in the back."
"Okay, boss. Ya want me to turn on the generator?"
"Yeah. And the oven too."
- 1 -
After having finished setting up everything, both young mammals have started working, and the harvest festival slowly fills with visitors.
Gideon is preparing more dough and ingredients to use later, instructed by Mr Leapers so that he won't make too much. His boss, on his end, has gone to chat with some of his friends on the adjacent stalls, though he keeps an eye on his own business, making sure to be ready to spring into action in case they need another set of paws. He knows the largest part of the sells happens in the afternoon, so it should be mostly fine for now.
"Hello Cathy." Gideon hears a female voice greet. "How are you doing?"
"I'm good, Mrs Jumpsky. How can I serve you?"
"I'd like a strawberry pie please, and- Who is that working over there?" She reacts, noticing the fox.
His back turned, Gideon freezes for a couple of seconds, his fur standing on end. Should he turn around and wave? Or should he just keep working? Trying to be polite, he chooses the former, and give a little smile and wave to the doe. The gaze he gets in return shows surprise, but no outright hostility.
"That's Gideon Grey. Mr Leapers hired him more out of charity than anything else."
The tod had never pictured himself wringing a neck while kneading dough, but suddenly realises it's quite a relaxing exercise.
"Well, it's generous of him. Mammals willing to work should be given a chance." There's something in her tone that ruffles the fox the wrong way. It has a name and he knows it… Yeah, patronizing. She's being patronizing.
Then, the client pays and moves away.
For the following couple of hour, variations of that scene plays, only stopping when Mr Leapers is behind the counter with Catherine to help pick up the pace.
A little before noon, the crowd starts thinning a bit, which leaves them some breathing time. Well, it should, but Mr Leapers seems to think it'll get worst again soon and instructs the tod to keep working until the rush, and that he'll have to help at the counter when it starts.
"Hello there." He hears a familiar male voice utter. Gideon is elbow deep in his baking, though, so he doesn't take the time to turn around.
"Hello, Mr. How can I help you?"
"Well, I'd like to know which of those have been made by that fellow over there."
Gideon bristles. Since Mr Leapers is in ear range, Catherine hasn't dared to pull the same move she does at the store when he is running errands (which actually doesn't happen that often), but since the client asked…
"Mostly the small viennoiseries over here, today."
"Then, give me two croissants and four raisin breads, please."
The tod feels a bit shocked. He thought the client was asking specifically to avoid them. Giving a glance over his shoulder, he's surprised to recognise principal Woolinsky.
"Hello sir." He greets. "Sorry, I was workin'."
"It's okay, Mr Grey, I perfectly understand." Paying, he takes one of the raisin breads from the paper bag and bites into it. "Mmmmh! I can't have those often because of my diabetes, but I don't think I'll regret this. I'm glad you found your way, young fox. That being said, I'll expect you perform at least as good in your new school as you did last year in mine."
"I will." Gideon grins.
As Mr Woolinsky leaves, he sees the infuriated look the doe launches his way. He can't help his smile from turning to smug as he returns to his own work.
At around noon, the pace starts to pick up again, and both Gideon and Catherine realise they won't be able to have a break until evening, which sours her mood, and doesn't really make a difference to him. Their boss did tell her they could help themselves to the bakeries during work, and Gideon doesn't need to be told a second time.
"Excuse me?" Comes the voice of a client. "I've been told some of your pastries were being made by a fox?"
"Do you have a problem with that?" Reacts Mr Leapers.
"Actually, I was curious to try them."
If Mr Leapers' stall needed more advertisement (it didn't), that is enough to make it one of the most popular ones of the whole festival. He has to make at least a couple more trips to his shop to bring back more ingredients for them to keep producing more goods.
- 2 -
When Judy shows up at the end of the day, believing it won't be long before they close shop, she finds herself at the back of a long line.
Sometimes, having so many siblings is a nightmare. Today, it's a boon. They can perfectly take care of the Hopps stall without her. Taking out a used mp3 she bought for cheap with her meager allowance (downside of having so many siblings), she puts on her ear plugs.
It takes about fifteen minutes for her to reach the counter, and when she does, there isn't much left, and certainly not any slice of the carrot cake she was eager to try.
"Hey." She greets.
"Hello. What can I serve you?"
"Whatever Gideon made."
The doe behind the counter rolls her eyes, as Gideon snorts. Judy shoots him an interrogative look and he shrugs dismissively. "How ya doin', Jude?"
"I'm great. I wanted to hang out for a bit, but I see you're quite busy."
The owner nods. "Yup. And the boy has been of great help. You were right to insist on me hiring him. I'm sorry to say that I'm going to need him here for a bit longer. He did tell me to keep this in the back for you though."
From behind the counter, the buck produce a wrapped up bakery. Looking inside he wrapped paper, she can see a slice of carrot cake.
"How much-"
"It's on the house."
"But-"
"Please don't make me have the same argument twice." The older buck sighs, rolling his eyes and giving the tod a glance, which he answers with a contrite smile.
"Thank you then. Both of you."
"You're welcome. Boy, stop smiling like an idiot and get back to work."
"Y-yes boss." The tod stammers, returning to his baking.
- 3 -
The sun has begun to set when the tod finally gets out of work. His body feels numb and he's exhausted, but it feels good. It feels right.
"Hey." Gideon turns around to see Judy leaning against the wall. "You're getting out of work pretty late."
"Yeah. Seems lotsa people wanted to try my stuff. A fox baker's kinda an oddity 'round these parts."
"Or maybe your baking is just that good." She smiles.
Embarrassed at the compliment, the fox scratches the back of his neck.
"I really wanted to visit the festival with you."
"Sorry."
"No, no, I didn't mean it like that. I just wanted you to myself for a bit… So… Do you have a bit of time?"
"Shure. Just gotta fire a text to Ma'. I told her I'd ride home right aways." The tod answers with a look of mild annoyance.
"If you're too tired, or you're not up for it, it's fine."
"Nah… S'just Ma'… Since Da' got, erh… Arrested. She's always worried."
"Why? Did something happen? I mean, apart from… You dad getting arrested."
Gideon gives a look around, and though the street is empty, he feels weirdly exposed. "Can we go to the… To the reservoir? To talk."
"Sure."
- 4 -
Judy feels a bit worried when they arrive. The grave look on the tod's face is unusual. Is he going to drop a bomb on her? Is he going to break up?
The larger mammal hops onto the shed roof and offers a paw. She grabs it, and expects him to pull her into a hug, but he just lets her sit instead.
His shoulder are hunched and he's nervously playing with the concrete moss. Talking about all of this… He doesn't really want to. It was a bit of a spur of the moment, and he backed himself into a corner.
"I… I ain't good wid' feelings. I know I like you, it ain't about that…" The tod exhales and closes his eyes. "When… Remember when I flipped out and didn't come to school for a week when we started the tutorin'?"
"Yes?"
"I… Only mom and Travis know, but… I tried to… hang myself."
"Wha- Oh my gosh- Gid-"
"I felt like such a fuck up, wid' school, and work and everythin'… I just wanted it to… Stop. I was afraid I'd end up like Da'. But since then, Ma's been a bit all over me. She smiles even when she isn't even really happy. She always wants to know where I am, and to be sure I'm wid' someone… I understand how she feels, but it still feels like a lot, sometimes."
Judy tries to find something to say. There's a cold stone in her stomach that she just can't get rid of. "Do you… You're not going to try again, are you?"
"No. I ain't, I swear. I ain't tellin' ya because of that. My shrink… She said if I can talk 'bout it to people I trust, it means I'm healin'." He chuckles. "I ain't sure I am, but Tha's what she said, so..."
Looking into the distance, the fox gives little sigh.
"Today was… It was amazin'. School, you know, it doesn't count. I have good grades, but it doesn't really mean shit. Not that I didn't appreciate the tutoring, but I ain't gonna need most of it, you know?" Despite herself, Judy can't help agreeing. There are a lot of things he's learning he'll probably never get to use. "But that… The bakin', and people likin' it… It means I got sumthin'. I can do sumthin'. And I'm… Shit, it feels weird sayin' it out loud, but I'm proud, ya know?"
"I'm proud of you too." She smiles.
"Thanks… I'm sorry, it's just pourin' out, and I got so much shit to say… You helped me so much, and everythin', and sometimes, I'm like…"
The tod trails off, trying to find his words, his eyes lost in the distance. His paw moves to his eyes, in a motion that she's starting to recognise. To a casual observe, it could look like his simply scratching them, but he's really wiping discreet tears. Reaching, she tugs on his sleeve and pulls him. He doesn't really understand what she's trying to do until his head is resting on her thighs. He rolls on his back, one of his paw going to her back, tracing awkward circles there while the other rests on his belly.
Her paws a stroking his hair and neck in soothing patterns. After a minute of that, he feels ready to talk again.
"I don't feel like I really deserved it, ya know? It bums me out that there are some mammals better than me that just don't get help 'cause they don't have mammals like ya in their life. And sometimes I just get bummed out like 'dat. Fer no reason. And I got so much now, I'm so lucky, 'cause I got a good job, and I got Ma', and Hailey, and Travis, and I got ya, and I still feel a bit bummed. 'That make sense?"
"But you get better right?"
"Yeah. It's just bad days, an' good days." He shrugs. "Sorry, I ain't makin' much sense. S'just that I'm glad I can talk to ya like 'dat. Like, ya listen to my bullshit, and you ain't makin' me feel like crap about it. I love Travis like a brother, but he ain't the best at listening. And… Sorry. Maybe I shouldn't unload my crap on you either."
"Gideon, I want to be here for you. I'm not that good at listening either, you know? I'm learning to be patient too. It's just easier with you. You mean what you say, and when you don't say it, it's mostly because you don't know how."
"Yeah, I'm a bit dumb like 'dat." He chuckles, knocking on his head.
"That's not what I meant. Feelings are hard, even for us bunnies. And for the record, I'm glad that you're alive." She smiles, grabbing the paw that is resting on his belly. "Was that what you wanted to talk about?"
"Kinda, yeah. I just wanted to know how much of a difference ya were makin' fer me, 'cause I really realised it today. I'm kinda sad yer goin' to end up leavin' for zootopia and be a cop there, but it's selfish. Ya deserve better than a selfish boyfriend."
Leaning forward, she smiles as she kisses him. "Maybe I'm okay with you being bit selfish."
"Yeah, but what if someone better comes 'round?"
"Well too bad from them, 'cause it's you I'm in love with."
The tod suddenly feels like his breath got stolen.
"You're in love with me?" He asks.
"I am."
"I'm in love wid' ya too." He answers.
Leaning toward him, she kisses him again. And again. Shifting position, she finds herself straddling him. Their paws turn exploratory, and their breath ragged. The doe's brain short circuits as he plays with the seam of her shirt, the edge of her pants, and strays further down. Then the tod realises he grabbed one of her ass-cheeks and his paw flies back. "It's gettin' late." He mutters in embarrassment.
"Y-yeah." The doe agrees, mostly disappointed that he wouldn't go any further. Is he not into her? Or is he even more intimidated by the prospect of intimacy than she is? Despite her fear, she feels ready… She thought all guys were the same in that respect.
Well… Maybe losing her virginity on top of a shitty concrete shack in the middle of nowhere wouldn't be the best idea. Even if it's so darn tempting at the moment.