Chapter 11: The Invitation

As soon as I arrived in my new home, I regretted moving to the city. There were sirens and horrible music blasting from the streets at random intervals between the noisy cars and the clamor of passing crowds. People shouted at their friends and kids through my paper-thin walls as though my apartment was invisible to space-time, and I could hear every step and creak that came from the room above mine. The apartment itself was a tiny excuse for a broom closet with a single room, an alcove with a kitchen area, and a bathroom with only a shower and a toilet in a tall building that spanned several stories – mine was on the third floor. The plumbing was decrepit at best, and I usually paid a quarter of what I was paying in rent on utilities due to the frequent flooding it caused. I didn't venture outside much, for fear of being mugged or worse, and thus I started to get out of shape. The only positive aspect of living in that apartment was that worrying about my ability to thrive kept my mind off of Sebastian. Yet, on rainy nights when I was offered a moment of peace, I would lie in bed and imagine him near me.

Not surprisingly, I was able to get my old job back at Joja Corporation. I don't even know if the hiring staff cared to know that I had worked there before; they merely stamped an approval on my resume and shuffled me along with the rest of the new recruits. Each of my coworkers was more insufferable than the last. There was a low-level guy who constantly complained that the boss didn't let him pick and choose which hours he wanted to work, two custodians who spent full-time hours standing in front of the water cooler and talking about their estranged family members, and a woman twice my age who didn't understand why we had to use the most current software instead of her floppy disks. I tried to ignore them as much as possible without being called out by Human Resources for "anti-social behavior."

On my days off, I entertained myself with books, music, comics, and video games that my friends in Pelican Town had introduced me to. I missed them and everything else about Stardew Valley.

I'm sorry, Grandpa. I failed everyone…especially you.

Winter was difficult in the city. Not only did I find out the hard way that the gas heater that came with the apartment didn't work, but the cold somehow made me feel even more alone out there. Sebastian's birthday was the 10th, and I wondered what he was up to on that day. He's a pretty reclusive guy, so he's probably not going to have a big party. Maybe he'll just hang out with Sam. I wondered if he was back on good terms with Abigail. I wondered what Abigail herself was up to. I hadn't told either of them I was leaving, a decision I had convinced myself was the best for all parties involved.

I was checking the mail one summer day and was shocked to see a letter from Abigail in my mail box. Only Marnie had my new address, and we only corresponded on matters pertaining to my farm. A warm sense of nostalgia tickled my brain as I opened the envelope and read the letter inside:

Hey, it's been a while!

I've done a lot of soul-searching since the last time we spoke. I started researching obscure magick online and found a group with the same interests as me! One person in the group has become very close to me, and I'm going to invite her to the birthday party I'm having in two weeks…I would love it if you could come meet her!

Please write back soon!

Abby

For the first time in months, I felt an honest smile creep across my face. I'm glad that she could move forward with her life…Abigail deserves to be happy. Then a melancholy cloud settled over my head: I wonder if Sebastian has moved on and forgotten me.

I didn't know why I was still thinking about him. I had other opportunities to date people, but zero interest in pursuing them. It would have been nice to have a companion again, someone to help me find a reason to wake up and go to work in that God-forsaken city, but no one was worth my time. Everyone at work was too self-absorbed and unaware of how their presence affected other people, and that was certainly not what I was looking for in a partner. I wasn't interested in nightclubs or spending large amounts of money on entertainment, which further limited my dating pool. I shook my head and tried to put the subject out of my mind.

I gently refolded the letter and put it back in the envelope. It might be nice to visit the valley again, I thought.