The letter finally arrived. It was short and sweet: 500 pieces of gold, and a backhanded compliment to her farm. Signed, Dad.
Rei crumbled it up and took the gold to buy herself more glass jars. She was now pickling and jamming, as well as packaging honey from the bee houses. On her way out of Pierre's she came across Alex and Haley.
"Hey Farmer Girl, you're doing something right." Alex whistled, earning a glare from Haley.
Rei paid them no mind. They first bothered her so many months ago, as walking stereotypes, but they couldn't help themselves. Hayley was probably used to receiving more attention and Alex had a wall of false confidence. She knew, because Evelyn (his own grandmother!) just as much told her so one night, while Rei was learning how to jar items from her.
She gave them a slight wave and set back towards her farm. She was amazed at how much it felt like home. Not too long ago, she was wondering how anyone could live like this, but as she scraped honey from a comb into glass jars that night, she wouldn't give it up. Still, her father's note threatened her. He knew where she was all along. And waving money in her face told her that he still thought he could control her. He might as well still, seeing as she spent his money.
Suddenly feeling rotten, she slumped in her kitchen chair, teeth gnawing on her bottom lip. She just couldn't get away could she? She needed her freedom; she couldn't be a part of that world anymore. She wouldn't.
Knocks on the door shook her out of her brooding, and Sam's voice could be heard through the walls. They're here AGAIN? She thought bewildered, but she couldn't complain that she welcomed the distraction from her thoughts.
It was Sam and Sebastian.
"Where's your third?" She asked, the absence of Abigail prominent.
"Grounded." Was Sebastian's reply.
"Isn't she a little too old to be grounded?"
"Yeah, well sometimes Caroline lays down the law, ya know what I'm saying?" She did, all too well.
Sam shrugged as if it was normal then held out a box of pizza. "Wanna play some video games? I heard Seb over here hooked you up, and now you're finally part of the real world!"
I am part of the real world now, she thought, but her mind was on her farm, her crops, and the valley.
Sebastian noticed that faraway look and was ready to tell Sam they should leave her be, when she opened the door wider to let them in.
"You know, other than Leah and Marnie, you guys are always here."
"Are we bothering you?" Sebastian asked quietly.
"No, I welcome the company. Miso needs more people to play with." They both turned to stare at Sam who somehow worked his way immediately on the floor with the cat, and was already cooing at her.
The boys had brought over a gaming console and set up something called Journey of the Prairie King.
"It's a classic arcade game, there's one at the Saloon. But it's so hard to beat!" Sam exclaimed as he managed to shove pizza in his mouth and hold the controller. Sebastian, she noticed, was examining her table of honeycomb and jars.
"Sorry it's a mess," she said, "I was just preparing a package for tomorrow."
"Who are you sending this to?" he asked.
Rei thought for a moment, grimaced, then replied. "My father."
Sebastian stared at her for a little longer, somehow trying to read her mind. Rei felt a little uncomfortable. No one in town had tried to ask her about her family. She knew they hated her father, and she briefly wondered if Sebastian knew who he was. Who she was. From what Robin had mentioned in the spring, it felt as if everyone knew.
"Does he like honey?"
"He doesn't like anything sweet. Let alone, what I give him." She felt the need to be honest, on the off chance that Sebastian actually did know. However, the knot in his eyebrows suggested that he actually had no clue who her father was. Before he could answer, Sam was hollering at them to come play some games and drink beer with him.
They spent the rest of the night playing videogames, well, in Rei's case, learning how to play video games. But she couldn't escape the looks that Sebastian kept throwing her when he thought she wasn't paying attention.