Hey, sorry for the long update time – lots of things are going on, so don't expect updates very often. Sorry!
This chapter is a little more light-hearted than the last one. I'm going to try to balance humour and life – so, please; if I start leaning in one direction too much, tell me and I'll lean back!
--
Jack's eyes blinked open. What was that noise? He wondered, sitting up and reaching for his hair string. Even though no tears had fallen as he walked home the night before, or while he had done his night time routine, they managed to work their way out when he finally crawled into his bed, and they still felt puffy.
He stood abruptly when he heard the thunking noise again – and was that someone's hushed voice? Tying his hair back, he unlocked his bedroom door, being as silent as possible. Opening the door a crack, he peered out and saw his front door wide open, and the thick morning fog was making its way into his kitchen. Two recognizable hands and arms were working on the door, and Jack clenched his teeth in outrage.
"What the hell are you doing here?!" he demanded, stepping out of his room and making his way towards Zack. When Zack didn't reply – or even look at him – Jack balled his hand into a fist and punched Zack on the side of the face.
Zack dropped everything he was holding – a screwdriver, some screws, and a doorknob – and rubbed where Jack had hit him, fiercely swearing and cursing under his breath. "I'm fixing your door!" he shouted back in reply, without lifting his eyes as his attention returned to the door.
"You could have told me that when I asked you the first time," Jack grumbled, walking away. As he walked by the table, he noticed the candle he had taken to the hot springs was sitting on the far end, away from Zack. Jack bit his lip as he picked the candle up, trying to fight Jacquelyn away.
"Sorry," Zack mumbled, just loud enough for Jack to hear.
Jack sighed, letting her female side through. "For what?" she asked, trying to sound angry.
"You know for what," Zack spat in obvious self-hatred as he searched for another screw in his toolbox.
Jack set down the candle, and stared at the shipper, scanning him up and down. He had changed clothes from last night, from the spandex to a track suit, and around his eyes was dark, as if to imply …
"Zack, how long have you been here?" Jack asked softly as she slowly made her way back to him.
"About half an hour," he mumbled as she crouched next to him. "I went out looking for a doorknob and a screen door after … last night."
Jack continued to stare at him, concern filling her heart. "How long did you sleep?" she asked.
"Sleep?" Zack scoffed, smiling grimly. "Didn't – I needed to find these things."
Jack sighed as she frowned. "Come on," she started, reaching around his arm awkwardly and tugging slightly, "you need to sleep – go to bed."
"No!" Zack snapped, sharply pulling his arm out of her grasp. "I need to finish this!" Realizing that he had yelled at her, Zack looked at Jack apologetically. "I'm sorry … I just … want to make it up to you …" he whispered, feeling even guiltier when he saw the fear and shock in her eyes, "… and this is the only way I know how to start."
Jack bit her lip as she noticed his eyes were puffy and red. Had he been crying? She wondered, and thought for a moment. "Will you let me make you something? Coffee – or breakfast?" she offered.
"Coffee would be nice," Zack mumbled, trying to stifle a yawn.
Jack nodded and stood, smiling at the Harvest Sprites as they marched in. She was glad Zack couldn't see them – she enjoyed having him think she had a farmhand.
She set on a pot of water to boil and dug out the instant coffee, then hurried into her room to put on her work clothes and transform back into a guy. When Jack re-emerged, he glanced at Zack to see he was sleepily fumbling with the screws, trying to make one fit into the hole. Jack sighed as he prepared the coffee and took it over. "Zack, can you promise me something?" he asked as he handed over the mug. Zack took the hot mug and looked at Jack curiously. "Can you please take a short nap after you're done this?"
"… maybe. I'll consider it," he said, yawning again and taking a sip of the hot liquid. He glanced over as Jack grabbed the basket, alarmed. "You're not going back into the mine, are you?"
Jack shook his head. "No, I need to rest my wrist, and working with tools won't help me at all. I'm just going to collect the easy things today."
Zack nodded, still looking a little anxious. "Good – take it easy."
Jack felt a flash of annoyance, but also something small underneath that – thankfulness? No, it was warmer than that. Shrugging it off, he went over to inspect the turnips the Sprites had taken the liberty of planting (after stealing it out of his toolbox). Some of them had fully grown, so he picked those and tossed them into the basket, then he stood once more and headed towards the chicken coop, where the Sprites were busying themselves. As Chef trotted by with one of three golden eggs, Jack stopped him.
"Any chance I could take that from you?" he asked.
"What?! Do you have any clue how much your chickens defend their eggs – especially the golden ones?!" Chef demanded.
"It's an offering for the Goddess …" the farmer offered, hoping the Sprite would give in. Much to Jack's appreciation, he did.
"Oh, in that case – certainly, take as many eggs as you want!" Chef said happily as he lifted the egg as high as his little arms could reach.
"Thanks," Jack said smiling and plucking the egg away. Just as he turned to leave, Chef spoke again.
"Hey, Jack?"
"Yeah?"
"You've been smiling more – like, real smiling, not sad smiling. Are you happy the shipper-man knows your secret?"
Jack hesitated and looked around him at the small, curious faces. He bit his lip before answering. "Maybe, I don't know," he replied smiling slightly as he wiped dirt off of the shimmering egg. "I think I do, but it feels weird having someone know."
He looked up, and the Sprites were all smiling knowingly to each other. "What?" he asked.
"Nothing!" came Chef's reply. "Go and pay thanks to the Harvest Goddess – I'm sure she wants to talk to you!"
They shooed him out of the coop before he could ask any more questions, and he heard the deadlock latch as soon as the door was closed, as well as excited murmuring. He shrugged once more and looked at the house, seeing Zack was still working on (and getting increasingly frustrated at) the doorknob. He smiled to himself and continued on to the mountains.
Before he went to gather items for shipping, he bounded up the steps to the waterfall. Glad to see Ann and Popuri weren't there yet, he set down his basket and kneeled by the waterfall. Dropping the egg into the water, he said a small prayer and waited. Soon, the water lit up and began to raise and shift into the form of the Goddess. Colour filled the water, and soon the Harvest Goddess herself was smiling down at the farmer.
Her voice was angelic as she spoke. "I thank you very much for your offering – oh, Jack, it's you!" she said, smiling and breaking out of her holy act. She smirked and put her finger to her chin. "So I heard some things …" she started, raising her eyebrows.
Jack sat down on the grass, leaning back on his good hand and stretching his fingers on the other nonchalantly. "Like what …?" he asked, trying not to let the blush run across his face.
The Goddess floated down to sit beside Jack. "Well, I heard a certain someone knows about the real you," she looked at the farmer, concerned, "You know I won't be able to stop his emotions now."
Jack looked up, confused. "What do you mean?" he asked, feeling a little frantic.
"When you first came here, you had asked me that, until your secret was found out, nobody would fall in love with you. Zachary has found out your secret, so, if he develops feelings, I can't stop them," she smiled apologetically as Jack stared at her with gaping features.
"W-what?" he stammered. "Can't you put a stopper on his love, or something?!" he asked, panicking – though he couldn't figure out why.
The Harvest Goddess shook her head. "Of course not! I can't affect someone's heart strings like that – and even if I could, you wouldn't be the only one who'd have his love taken from." When Jack looked at the goddess, expecting an answer, she continued. "Lillia, sweetheart – she may be married, but Zack still loves her."
Jack bit his lip, thinking. "No, I don't think I want that," he murmured.
The Goddess smiled. "Bless you for being so selfless," she said, placing a graceful hand on the farmer's shoulder. "However, I must return to my home now," she excused herself and scooted into the water. Before she left, she offered one last piece of advice. "Oh, and Jack? Do try to avoid biting your lip around Zachary – I'm sure it must drive him crazy." With that, she winked and disappeared into the depths of the water, leaving Jack blushing and thinking of all the times he had bit his lip in front of Zack.
Finally, he muttered out, "B-but the girls … they fell in love with me!"
Water splashed up into his ear, and as it trickled down, he could hear the Goddess' irritated-yet-amused voice. "That certainly wasn't love, Jack."
--
Jack returned to the ranch at around eleven. Seeing that Zack had finished putting on the new knob, Jack emptied the basket into the shipping box and headed inside the house to the sound of … snoring. Well, he's not really snoring, Jack thought as he followed the sound to the couch, where Zack was sleeping with his track suit jacket over his head to keep the sunlight out. It's more like heavy breathing.
Jack leaned on the back of the couch, watching as the jacket heaved up and down with the rhythmic breaths. Finally, letting her female side through, Jack bit her finger and grinned while gently pulling back the jacket in curiosity. Zack's face was serene, and his lips twitched in a smile in time with the movements of his eyes. Must be having a good dream, Jack thought as she placed the jacket back.
She walked to the kitchen, dropping her hat onto the table as she walked by and untying her hair. She snatched the candle off the table and, as she walked towards the cupboards, smelled it. Strawberries and vanilla, she thought with a happy sigh – it was two of her three favourite smells. Tucking the candle away, she opened the fridge door and peered inside, trying to decide what to make for lunch. Glancing at Zack, she decided stew and noodles would reinvigorate him, and took out the necessary ingredients.
Jack winced as she dropped the pot and it clanged loudly against the floor. Spinning around, she was stupefied to see Zack had barely moved a muscle, and his breathing hadn't missed a beat. She blinked and shrugged, whistling as she continued to cook.
--
Jack was setting the table when he heard the excited, female voices outside. Grabbing the string and tying his hair back as fast as he could, he thought he heard what sounded like Karen hushing the other voices, followed by a loud knock.
Glancing at Zack (whom was still sleeping peacefully) Jack walked briskly to the door and opened it – to see the five bachelorettes of Mineral Town.
"Say it's not true!" they said in unison, making Jack think it was planned.
"Is this about that rumour?" He asked, leaning against the doorframe, making all but Karen blush. "About me being a woman?" The question was answered by four nods, and Karen crossing her arms and staring right into Jack's eyes.
"Don't worry – it's not true," Jack said, raising his eyebrows and meeting Karen's stare. She seemed satisfied and smirked.
"Alright," Karen dismissed, "that's all we came for. Let's go-"
"Is someone snoring in there?" Popuri asked curiously. She walked by Jack, followed by the other murmuring girls. She leaned over the couch and the others followed.
"Don't wake him up – he was here early, fixing my doorknob," Jack said, feeling nervous and a little jealous.
"Mary, pull off his jacket – you have the steadiest hands," Ann ordered, ignoring Jack's comment.
Mary did as she was told, and the murmuring became more excited.
"I didn't know this guy slept!" Ann gasped.
"I wonder what he's dreaming – could it be made into a story?" Mary asked.
"Look, he's so into his R.E.M. sleep that his mouth is twitching into a smile," Elli pointed out.
"Probably dreaming of my mom," Popuri grinned knowingly.
"He's kind of cute!" Karen commented.
All heads whipped towards her, then made their way down to the sleeping figure again. Agreements soon followed as each of them nodded, ashamed to admit that such an older man was attractive. "Too bad he's old," Popuri muttered, voicing the girls' thoughts.
"Are you done?" Jack asked, more than a little annoyed. "I have to somehow wake him up, and I'm sure seeing a bunch of young girls around him, watching him sleep, would freak him out."
"You have a point," Karen said. "Okay, girls – we've done what we came for, now let's head back."
Karen marched out the door, followed by the others, and as each girl passed Jack, they kissed him on the cheek. "Bye, Jack!" Ann called as she closed the door.
Zack sat upright and looked around. It was difficult for Jack not to laugh at the shipper's expression. "Whuzzat? Whozzer?" he mumbled, still whipping his head around. "Someone say my name?"
Jack laughed and leaned against the back of the couch. "No, Ann just left – she said 'bye, Jack'." He smirked as Zack chuckled.
"Calling my name is the only way to wake me up – Mom always said she'd bless the woman who could find that out," Zack grinned at Jack.
Jack returned with a smile for a brief second before standing. "Come on – lunch is ready," he said, making his way to the kitchen and waving Zack over. Jack spun around with two bowls of stew, surprised to see Zack was still standing beside the couch, glancing around nervously. "What's wrong?" He asked, placing the bowls on the table.
"Maybe I should go home to eat?" The shipper offered. "Because I … because of last night …?"
Jack stood upright as he furrowed his eyebrows together. "Don't you dare!" He shouted, taking Zack by surprise. "I made enough food for both of us, and will you please stop feeling sorry for yourself?!"
Zack stared wide-eyed at Jack, his mouth opening and closing but no sound escaped. The farmer continued, softening his voice slightly. "Listen – it's obvious you feel guilty for what you did, but you were drunk and you didn't actually do anything!" Jack sat down. "I've had worse happen to me," he muttered.
Zack hesitated before he slowly made his way towards the table. "Sorry," he muttered. He took his bowl and scooted it down one spot, so there was a chair between the two.
Jack stared at Zack suspiciously. "What are you doing?" he asked as Zack pulled out the chair in his new place.
"Keeping my distance," came the reply.
Jack's jaw dropped. "You've got to be kidding me!" he cried out in disbelief as he stood. "After everything I just said …" The farmer scooted his bowl down a spot, too, right beside Zack's.
The shipper retaliated by scooting down one more spot, to the end of the table, and when Jack did the same, he scooted once more.
"Ugh!" Jack grunted, making the motion of strangling as he glared at Zack. "Fine, you win!" He pulled the chair out at his new spot as Zack did the same, and the both sat down. Jack grinned when he realized Zack was now sitting in front of him, and burst out laughing when that realization had hit the other man.
Zack soon started to chuckle, which accumulated to a hearty laugh. The laughter subsided, and the two were left giggling slightly and wiping away their tears. Zack took the first spoonful of stew and raised his eyebrows, obviously impressed.
"Not that good, huh?" Jack teased.
Not catching the joke, Zack's head whipped up in surprise. "No! It's great!" he praised. "You're a really good chef, Jack," he continued, smiling.
Jack smiled back. "Thanks – that means a lot."
The two ate in silence, but the farmer could sense a question bubbling up inside the other man. As Zack finished his stew and set the bowl aside, while simultaneously reaching for the bowl of noodles, the question popped out. "So … you mentioned that … what happened last night, it wasn't the worst that happened to you?"
Jack shook his head as he took another spoonful of stew. "No, it wasn't; the worst that happened to me was that I actually was raped."
Zack's fork clattered to the ground. "O-oh, I'll g-get it …" he mumbled, flustered. He ran the utensil to the sink and grabbed a replacement, then hurried back to the table. After a short, awkward silence of Zack making an attempt at regaining his composure, he spoke again, "So, uh, so … who …?"
Jack glanced up. "Who do you think?" he asked.
"L-Lance …?" Zack replied, answering the rhetorical question.
The farmer nodded, acting like it's nobody's business. "I don't know if you remember, but you asked how I had sprained my wrist before." Jack paused, and Zack nodded to indicate he did remember. "Well, that was why I punched him. Broke his nose, too – it's still crooked."
"I didn't get a good look," Zack grunted. "Why don't you tell anyone?"
Jack scoffed. "Oh, I did tell someone – I told everyone. It was the biggest mistake I had ever made; my mom convinced everyone that I was a whore, and that's when she engaged us, to save her face."
"But the police …"
"The police? Zack, I don't know how much time you've spent in the city, but if you get a fourteen-year-old girl claiming that the son of the richest man in the state raped her, you can guess who's going to win." He took another gulp of the stew, smiling at the taste of the potatoes.
"Are you smiling?!"
Jack looked up, his turn to be surprised. Zack's brow was furrowed so close together it looked as though he had a unibrow, and his mouth was open only slightly, as if he was shocked to see Jack push it off his shoulders so easily. "Its … its really good potatoes …" Jack mumbled, pointing into the bowl with his spoon.
"You just finished telling me you were raped and you're impressed with your potatoes?!" Zack demanded, standing up and knocking the chair over.
"It happened when I was fourteen – nine years ago!" Jack shouted back. "Sit back down!"
"No!" The shipper yelled, his voice cracking. "I'm going to tell Harris – he'll get that shit-head out of town as soon as he knows!" Zack started towards the door.
"No, don't!" Jack cried out. He raced towards the other man and grabbed his arm. "If you tell Harris, then you'll also have to tell him my secret!"
Zack halted and hesitated before looking at the farmer. "But, Jack …"
"But nothing! It happened so long ago that I can't even remember the details," Jack confessed.
Zack sighed and rubbed his forehead. He chuckled slightly and looked down at the farmer. "It's stressful dealing with you now," he teased.
Jack smiled and shoved his friend towards the table. "Yeah, but I reward you with good food – now go eat your noodles."
--
"Our daughters inspected Jack for themselves," Anna stated.
"I don't know if you've met Karen or not, but if she tells you something, you know it's true," Sasha added, folding her arms.
"Popuri looks at men all day long – she'd be able to tell if he was male or female just from a glance," Lillia inputted.
"Ladies, ladies … enough of this bickering," Lance said coolly. "You have to keep in mind that your daughters are madly in love with …" he hesitated and rose his fingers into quotations, "'Jack'. They're going to believe any B.S. Jacquelyn throws at them."
"Listen, Lance and I have a plan to uncover Jacquelyn," Manna offered, glancing sideways at the young man, who smirked at her. "But we'll need your help."
As Manna described the plan in fullest detail, the other women listened intently, glancing at each other nervously every once in awhile.
"And you're certain this is legal?" Lillia asked.
"Probably not – but neither is lying on legal documents," Lance grinned as the women murmured amongst themselves and questioned him. "She must have had to fill out some kind of legal document here, and there was most likely a question on gender. She'd have to put male in order to keep her secret."
The murmuring continued, and finally Sasha spoke up. "Very well – we'll go along with this plan. So, tomorrow morning at seven o'clock?" She inquired. She was greeted by two nods. "Alright, then this meeting is dismissed."
Sasha, Anna, and Lillia all took off in their different directions. As soon as they all disappeared, Manna spoke up. "I have some free time if you do," she hinted.
"Darling, its broad daylight – I don't want to be seen with you," Lance muttered, staring in the direction Sasha had gone. He glanced over at Manna, who was scowling at him. "That's not what I meant, and you know it. We can't get caught."
Manna sighed. "Alright, I see what you mean. Will you meet me at the Inn tonight, then?" she asked hopefully.
Lance smirked. "Of course I will," he lied.
Manna smiled up at him before taking off towards Yodel Ranch. As soon as she was out of sight, Lance turned on his heels and chased after Sasha. He found her inspecting the flowers in front of the Inn. She looked up and stared at him, and he grinned and ran his fingers through his hair. "Hello, Lance," she greeted.
Lance walked over to her, standing just an inch away. "Good afternoon, Sasha," he said, smiling as he noticed she glanced over at him. Reaching in front of her, his face was only centimetres away. "Lovely flowers aren't they?" he noted, plucking one of the Moondrops.
"Too yellow if you ask me," Sasha replied, taking a step away from Lance.
"They're not yellow, my dear – their golden," Lance stepped towards her and placed the flower behind her ear. "Like your hair." Before she could react, Sasha's hair was let out of its bun. She stared, shocked, at Lance, who was smiling and holding her hair band and pin. Her hair fell in golden waves over her shoulders and down to her waist.
"How dare you …" she whispered, still shocked.
"How dare I what, Darling?" he asked. Placing his hands onto her hips, he pulled her close and looked into her eyes. "Tell me something, Sasha – are you happy with your husband?"
Sasha took a sharp intake of breath as her expression changed to sorrow, then anger. "Who do you think you are?" She whispered harshly, pushing herself as far away from the man as he'd let her.
Lance pulled her close again and placed his forehead on hers, leaning his face close. "I want to make you happy, Sasha," he whispered softly, gently pushing a strand of loose hair from her eyes.
Sasha's lips trembled as she let her guard down for a brief moment – and in that moment of weakness, Lance scooped her tender lips into his.
--
Zack rubbed his eyes and yawned, followed by a sigh.
"Feeling tired yet?" Jack teased as the movie on the television spewed out another cheap laugh.
"Huh? Why do you ask?" Zack managed to mumble out as he looked at his friend.
"Besides the fact that that's about the twelfth time you've yawned in the last five minutes?" Jack shrugged. "Just a hunch."
Zack groaned as he rubbed his face. "Yeah, I am – to answer your question." The shipper looked at the clock. "I should probably do my rounds soon, too." He stood slowly and stretched, cracking every joint in his body.
"Do you want me to help you out?" Jack asked, standing. "It could be dangerous to overwork yourself on only five hours sleep …"
Zack grinned. "No, I'll be fine, thanks." He headed towards the door and as he opened his, turned to talk to his friend again. "By the way – thanks for the food, and … thanks for talking to me, and telling me your story," he muttered.
Jack smiled. "Someone had to know the truth, and I'm glad it was you."
Zack returned the smile and headed out the door. Jack looked out the window at him as he began counting the produce in the shipping bin, and placed a hand to her mouth to keep herself from giggling as he yawned once again.
Jack walked away from the window reluctantly as Zack finished counting and disappeared from view, and she made her way to the kitchen, throwing off her hat and untying her hair. She scooped up the bowls and dropped them into the sink, and as the water ran, undid her bandana from around her neck.
"Ugh," she groaned as she ran her hand around her neck, checking for a rash. I really hate this thing – I wish I didn't have such a girly neck; then I wouldn't have to wear it, she thought to herself, tossing it who-knows-where.
As the farmer picked up a fork, she giggled at the memory of Zack's reaction when she told him the news. Yes, it was horribly traumatizing at the time, but she got over it – besides, she did damage to that hideous face of Lance's.
Jack finished the dishes and looked around. There was nothing left to do, so she decided to flop down on the couch to watch the rest of the movie. She managed to see about ten minutes of it before the weariness from a restless night kicked in, and she was asleep.
--
Lance wandered the cobblestone roads of Mineral Town. It was night, and only streetlights led his way. As he turned the corner, he saw Duke and Manna leave their house and he ducked out of sight, hiding beside a building with two doors, as they passed by. He had promised to see her tonight, but he was done with the wretched woman. She was nothing special – nothing new.
"Lance, what are you doing here?"
He spun around to see Anna scanning him suspiciously. He smiled as she stepped closer. "Are you hiding from Manna?" She looked up at him, her eyes flashing. "Get tired of screwing her already?"
Lance jumped slightly – it was strange hearing such a tasteless word coming from such a classy woman. "What else did she …?" Lance started, barely over a mutter.
"She didn't tell me anything – I'm just very perceptive," she reached up and took a leaf from his hair. "Acer crataegifolium – Hawthorn maple. Who's romp was this from?" she asked, smirking.
Lance returned the smirk and took her hand that held the leaf, leaning close. "I don't kiss and tell." His hand slipped upwards and he took the small bit of greenery. After inspecting it for a brief moment, he tossed it aside.
"What a coincidence," Anna said, leaning against the cold brick of the building, "because neither do I." She smirked again as Lance's head whipped around to her, obviously intrigued.
"Curious – I would have thought you'd be happy with such an intelligent man for a husband," Lance stated, walking towards her. With the dim glow of the distant streetlight framing one side of her face, he found her mysterious smirk playing on her perfectly red lips exciting.
Anna crossed her arms and tilted her head back, letting the light touch her neck. "Oh, please, Sweetheart – Basil and I haven't had sex more than three times in the last five years."
Lance's eyebrows raised and his grin widened as he stepped closer. "You must be feeling desperate, then?"
Anna put a hand to her chest as she chuckled. "I said Basil and I – that doesn't mean I haven't had plenty in the past five years." She let her hand slack and traced the neckline on her dress seductively. "That being said – my husband is out getting drunk, and my daughter is at a friend's place for the night. Would you like to come inside for some coffee or wine?"
Lance perked up – in more than one way. He grinned as he looked down at the woman. "I'd love to," he replied. She led him into the house, and as the door closed, he couldn't help but think, Two in one day.
--
Oh my gawd … I hate Lance so much. Why the hell did I make such a dick of a character? I have to admit, though – even I was impressed when I decided that Jack bent his nose when she punched him.
Anyway, I'm in the middle of moving for college, so you may have to be a little more patient for a new chapter. But please wait for me!!
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