BLORP: I've started actually dreaming of this story. I think that's a good sign...?
Chapter 15
Howard felt bereft.
The last of the summer holiday had slipped through his fingers much too quickly. The entire two weeks had been pure bliss in the poor man's otherwise bleak life. Howard had been wrong to assume the little child of the past was gone, and that the Vince now was merely his shell. No, Vince was no shell. He was a light; a cool breeze to Howard's monotonous schedule. His usual routine of zoo chores and minding the animals was brightened considerably by the constant flow of conversation. He didn't even have to contribute. Vince just kept rabbiting on about nothing and everything, making the hours fly by so fast that Howard hardly felt his usual exhaustion when it was time to return to the Lodge.
And the kid even kept his hands to himself, miraculously. He never once moved from his spot on the sleeping bag or sofa, and Howard could rest peacefully. Hell, he might even admit to sleeping better, what with having someone else there to keep him from getting creeped out by midnight animal sounds and the like. And when he'd realised it was time to leave for home, Vince had begun rambling about wanting to stay on, claiming that he didn't need to return to school just yet.
"The first few weeks are just rubbish, anyway!" He'd said, looking so distressed that Howard had very nearly given in.
Now the man damn near mourned the loss of the boy's presence, and would lay in the hut at night, feeling very much like he was eighteen again, when he'd entertained mad notions of bringing the child with him. No, no; that was mad. He couldn't take care of a kid! It was the same as before, the boy was better off in a home that could provide for him. But soon these reasonings gave way to sleep-deprived musings of why couldn't he? Why couldn't he care for a child? He had a home, he had food, he had a decent job to live off of. Circumstances had changed vastly. The kid was no longer a dependent little boy, he was a teenager, who'd be sixteen in a few more months.
And besides, the kid did seem to want to stay at the Zooniverse forever. No harm could come from Howard voicing his invitation. If the kid refused, then...well, Howard would just have to get used to seeing him only on the holidays. He could do that too.
The boy only phoned twice over the countless days, from his friend's phone late at night, waking Howard both times. Howard himself had spent many an evening hovering over his own phone. But he'd yet to call the number that lay beside it. For one thing, it wasn't even Vince's phone number, it was his friend's, and the man really didn't want the awkward moment of calling only to be told Vince wasn't there, and didn't even live at that residence. And secondly...well, the second reason was all muddled and lost en route somewhere between Howard's brain and his hand, which kept making motions for the phone, but never quite reached it.
One sleepless night of many, in which Howard felt he was honestly going insane, the phone rang. Howard bashed the holy hell out of his shin on one of the table's legs as he made a go for the phone. This caused him to stoop over and wheeze for a few moments before gathering himself enough to answer the call without squeaking or gasping. It was Vince; of course it was Vince, and Howard felt warmth travel up his arms at the kid's voice. Was it really possible to miss someone that much? When had this attachment crept back up on him? Howard pushed these questions to the side for the moment; Vince was saying something about coming over for the weekend, and Howard told himself it was now or never.
"Vince, uh, would y- I mean, I have a question."
"...Alright, what is it?"
"Well, seeing as how you love it here so much...and all you did before was whinge about leaving, and since you tell me constantly how boring school is-"
"Howard, are you askin' me if I wanna shack up with you?"
"Well, 'shacking up' isn't the term I'd use, but yes."
"Really? You really want me to come an' live with you? Like, could I work there an' all as well?"
"Look, if you don't want to that's fi-"
"Bloody hell, Howard, of course I wanna come work at the zoo! That's what I was goin' on about to Leroy just last week!"
Howard smiled into the phone, but was interrupted by Vince's voice once more.
"But what about my GCSEs? I-"
"GCSEs aren't important, Vince, everybody knows that."
Okay now he was lying. Howard felt terribly greedy and wrong for pulling Vince from his education just so he wouldn't have to miss the child. This wasn't right; Howard could just see the boy every few months and deal with it. He breathed in to say these things aloud, but sudden sounds in the background caused Vince to hastily tell Howard goodbye and that he'd be packing his things immediately, and then he hung up. Howard stood there listening to the dial tone for a few solid minutes. Well, here it was. Couldn't very well take it back now; not without feeling even more like a bad person. The boy was actually, literally going to be staying at the Zooniverse with him, and not just that, but he also needed to be a member of staff in order to live there.
Getting his wits together, Howard began planning his visit to the Chief Manager's office in the morning. He had to give Fossil the news of their soon-to-be added member. Luckily, Howard was a senior keeper, which gave him the right to hire apprentices. And if Vince did well enough, in a few years time he could go from apprentice to proper keeper. Howard felt much like a parent sending their kid off to their first job as he lay down across the sofa cushions, and knew that he'd be feeling that way for a long time to come.
Feeling overwhelmed, Howard stared up silently at the ceiling overhead. He took a few moments to marvel at what he had just done, and the straight road before him split down its stitched middle, becoming crossroads once more; only this time both appeared shadowed and unsure.
'Best take a few deep breaths now, Moon, cause you're in the ocean.'
Howard stood waiting outside the zoo gates. He wished he'd had the foresight to ask Vince if he would be arriving by bus or if Leroy would be dropping him off.
Suddenly, a small green car pulled up in front of him. Leroy, then. The teen was almost as tall as Howard, towering high over his smaller friend as the two got out and moved to the boot of the car, getting out several suitcases and bags.
Howard stood there in a trance, not really believing that this was reality. He quickly snapped himself out of it, though, and went to help the two with Vince's luggage. Heading toward the gates, Howard flashed his pass at Graham, who'd put up a hand to stop them, even though Howard had been standing near him for almost two hours. The three of them moved through the zoo and made their way into the Lodge.
Everything felt surreal, like a dream, and looking over at Vince, Howard guessed that he was feeling much the same. Vince looked about him as if it were his first time in the hut. He seemed unsure of where to put his things, and followed Howard to a corner of the room, where they sat his bags for the time being. They stood around awkwardly until Leroy gave his goodbyes and instructed Vince to call him soon. Vince seemed even more out of his depth at the loss of his friend, and Howard hurriedly suggested that he start unpacking, lest the boy begin having second thoughts. The bizarre mental image of a kid frantically stabbing holes into a jar lid containing a butterfly fluttered on the edge of his mind.
The rest of the night consisted of Vince redecorating the hut with his belongings. Howard wasn't too happy about this, but for the sake of Vince's comfort, he let the kid have at it. That is, until he began tacking paper plates onto the walls. Paper plates with paintings done on the back of them. One of which sent a chill down Howard's spine.
It was the old Hitcher painting, the one Howard had left behind in his bedroom. He'd wanted to take it with him, for sentimental reasons, but to be honest it creeped him out, even today. He had to wonder how Vince had gotten hold of it again.
Biting his tongue, Howard moved to sit down on the couch, and watched the boy in silence. Vince no longer appeared anxious or awkward, to Howard's relief. Now he practically buzzed with excitement as he piled various items next to Howard's gramophone. Before Howard knew it, his sepia haven was transformed into a neon nightmare. Hairbrushes, eyeliner and nailpaint littered every possible surface. Luckily Vince didn't seem to have that many clothes of his own, and filled only the remaining two drawers in Howard's dresser. Still, the man made a mental note to buy the kid his own.
The morning sun made itself known just as Howard and Vince were on their fifth cups of tea. They had ended up staying awake the entire night, talking about utter nonsense and Howard explaining a bit about the zoo. Howard knew he'd be regretting this come midday, but for now he and Vince shared a content silence, once again falling into wavelength together, just like so long ago. Just like they had over the summer. Howard felt happier than he had in four years. Happier, maybe, even before that.
"It's nearly six. I should get you to the office so you can meet Fossil."
Vince nodded, and the two reluctantly left the serenity of the Lodge and stepped into the outside world, Howard leading the way to the Chief Manager's office.
Howard needn't have worried about Fossil hating Vince. Quite the opposite, really. Fossil seemed to take to Vince practically on sight, and it was obviously for rather skeevy reasons. Vince picked up on these vibes as well, and by the time introductions and instructions were out of the way, he was practically behind Howard, hand on his arm. Howard felt a surge of fresh hatred rage through him right at Bob Fossil. The two had a massive stare down, and Howard felt quite like a towering mother bear, eyeing a wolf as it stalked in the shadows.
The two might have gone to blows if it weren't for Vince clearing his throat and tugging on Howard's sleeve. Giving Fossil a victorious look and dismissive nod, Howard let himself be pulled out the building. Vince heaved a heavy breath once they were outdoors.
"Shit, he was well creepy. Do I have to go an' see him often?"
"Unfortunately. But don't worry, any time he calls you over, just come and get me and we'll go together, if you feel that uncomfortable around him. He's a bit insane, to be honest. Apparently he was a soldier in the Vietnam war."
"Must've royally fucked 'im up."
"Language."
Vince grinned up at Howard, fear now forgotten, and began to carry on giddily about his first position in the zoo, assigned to him by Fossil. He was to man the frogs and newts, a relatively simple job taken up by every starting member. Howard fondly recalled the days when he looked after the little critters.
When Howard showed Vince each creature under his care, the boy paid rapt attention to every instruction, and Howard practically bathed in the air of superiority. Some things just never change.
When Howard made to leave Vince and head to the aviary, he paused at the physical change that came over Vince. He seemed once again utterly lost and at odds when he remembered he'd be handling this task alone. Before Howard could offer any words of comfort, however, Vince visibly shoved this countenance aside for a more cheeky one, and grinned up at the older man.
"Serez-vous...à proximité?"
Howard smiled and ruffled the boy's dark hair, causing an annoyed look to break out over Vince's face. He swatted at Howard's hand, but smiled along with him as the man began walking backward toward his own station.
"Bien entendu, Petit Homme."
With that, he swiveled mid-step and marched on to the aviary, feeling the connection between himself and Vince stretch and strain as the distance between them grew. But never snapping; no, holding taught, and pulsing with Vince's nervousness and trust and Howard's assurances. Howard finally had something other than the animals to keep him in this zoo. And maybe now it wouldn't be so bleak.
(I realise Howard's quite swift to take in Vince. To pull him from his home and education. Note he didn't even think about the guardians this time. I battled with writing this forever! But in the end, this is so like Howard to just yank the kid back into his life. Howard doesn't realise it, but he's actually driven by emotion more so than the kid. He likes to paint himself as calculating and aloof, but he's a fickle, emotional person with a soft underbelly and a fuzzy brain that just can't make good decisions! :3
God this French is confusing me X_X I grew up speaking quite a bit of French, but it's all leaked out of my brain as I aged :( and I hope I'm remembering things correctly...)