Chapter Text
The farmer, who's not quite a farmer yet, opens her eyes and wads groggily through coffee cups, beer cans and takeout boxes before finding her laptop and getting straight to work. She hadn’t planned on passing out last night and now she was behind on her deadline once again.
‘I just need to get through this project’ she thinks as she pulls up their sales pitch and starts working on it again.
She tries her best not to register the mess in her apartment as she types away.
She tries not to think about the fact that she doesn’t remember the last time she had actually gone to bed and not just passed out.
If she acknowledges the background, the messy room, how tired she is, how she hasn’t shaved, how dry her eyes are, the dirty dishes she’ll have a mental breakdown. Better to ignore it and focus on her work. Once this project was over she could focus on all that stuff.
Three people had quit their team in the past month and since she was the most experienced the management had handed her their workloads with a promise that it was only temporary.
But that was never the case.
Whenever they said it was just temporary it may as well mean that her workload permanently increased. She finally finishes designing their presentation and stretches. She’ll have to ask for a week off after this, she thinks she’s done enough work in the past three years to get at least that.
She can’t actually afford to go anywhere, but maybe she’ll just fill up her tank and drive out to the woods and go camping like she used to with her grandpa all those years ago. A week without any screens or people would do her some good.
Renewed with motivation at the hopes of a vacation she grabs an unopened can of Monster, chugs it and gets back to work.
***
“Good work with the sales pitch, it went great!” her manager pats her back and hands her one of the free doughnuts management had given them for their work.
“Thank you, it was a team effort” she wipes her palms on her skirt “Actually I was wondering”
Someone calls her manager over “Oh hang on, I’ll be right back” she says as she runs over to whoever was calling her.
Faye sighs, she doesn’t know when she’ll be able to get her manager alone. She nibbles on her lip and decides to go back to her cubicle, her manager will have to come by to assign her the next project and she’ll just ask for her time off then.
She sits down at her desk and tries to ignore the pit of dread that’s started to form in her stomach. When her manager does finally come by, she starts to bounce her leg nervously.
“Oh you didn’t eat your doughnut” she points out, dropping a stack of files on her desk.
“I wasn’t hungry”
“Oh well anyways, here’s the next project, we need this all done by the end of the month”
She looks at the stack of files and ignores the tight feeling in her throat. “Actually I was wondering if I could get next week off”
Her manager blinks at her, before sighing “I’m afraid that won’t be possible, the higher-ups just ordered some layoffs and we’re really tight on time”
“I see”
“I’m really sorry” her manager pats her back “I promise this time it’s just temporary” She walks away, heels clicking on the cold tiled floor.
She turns back to her screen, mind buzzing. Her vision is blurry and she can’t bring it into focus, it feels like she’s floating outside her body. She looks at the clock, only thirty minutes until she can clock out, she doesn’t care that she’ll get weird looks for clocking out “early”. She can’t seem to focus her vision on her computer, let alone get any work done.
She’s not sure how she manages to make it to the end of the day, and she’s not quite sure how she ends up back in her apartment.
She remembers crying until her head pounded, drinking a six-pack she kept in case of emergencies to attempt to lift the weight on her chest. To try and relax a little before she had to go back.
How did her life end up like this? Three years ago she had been well on her way to law school and now she could barely afford her rent and her savings had dwindled to a critical low. Her debts piled up on her, pulling her back into the poverty she had desperately tried to escape.
It was hopeless. The past three years had seen her dream crumbling around her. She’d never be a lawyer, she’d never pull out of the cycle of poverty, she’d never amount to anything worthwhile.
Maybe it would be better if she just went to sleep, hopefully she would stay that way.
The next time she wakes up she’s surrounded by beer cans and her head is aching like it's trying to kill her.
She retches and then ends up throwing up in one of the spare take-out bags near her bed.
She starts to cry and curls up on her bed, she doesn’t think she’s suicidal but sometimes she wishes that she’d go to sleep and stay asleep.
A broken sob escapes from behind her fingers. She just wants to go to sleep.
She just wants to sleep and stay asleep.
She can’t do this anymore.
She’s worked here for three years and she can’t even afford to go on vacation.
She’s never been promoted or gotten a raise. But her workload has increased tenfold.
She can’t remember the last time she didn’t have to do overtime.
She can’t remember the last time she went outside and it wasn’t for work.
She just wanted a week off, that’s all she wanted.
She swipes at her eyes in frustration and starts to feel rage bubbling within her. She screams into her pillow, feeling nausea again and grabs another plastic bag to throw up in.
She has no friends to talk to. She hasn’t spoken to anyone from the diner in years. Not after Leo’s death. She can’t tell her parents, too scared that it’ll be true. That she’s a disappointment and that’s why they don’t care about her.
They’d tell her they always knew she couldn’t do it. That it would be better if she just came home and got married. Being a homemaker would be more satisfying, it was the natural thing for a woman to do after all.
Loneliness has crept into her, filling up every corner of her life. Three years ago she had friends, she had found a family.
Three years ago Leo died and her world fell apart. Unable to cope with it all she ran away like she always did. She always had been a coward, always running when things got hard.
Too scared to be known, too scared to be loved. Not worth the love her found family had given her. Not worth the effort to keep in contact.
She cries until she doesn’t have any more tears and then passes out again.
While she’s asleep she dreams of her grandpa. She dreams of his farm and the summers that she spent there. She dreams of taking care of him when he was sick and how she had worked herself to the bone that summer to take care of everything when he had passed.
“If there ever comes a time when you grow tired of modern life and want to live a quiet life with a purpose and connections with people, open my letter”
She snaps awake from her comatose state, Dada’s words ringing in her head. She shakes the blankets off herself and frantically begins to search through her drawers for the letter.
“Where did I put it, where did I put it?” she mutters under her breath as she combs through drawer after drawer. Finally finding it hidden in a box in her closet. With shaking hands, she breaks the seal and pulls the letter out.
“ Dearest Faye,
As I’m writing this I can see you outside feeding the chickens. You’ve worked so hard this summer and I can not thank you enough. You’ve given me a great deal of peace, knowing that everything will be taken care of when I pass.
If you're reading this, you must be in dire need of a change. The same thing happened to me, long ago. I'd lost sight of what mattered most in life... real connections with other people and nature. So I dropped everything and moved to the place I truly belonged. I’ve left you the deed to that place, my most prized possession, my farm.
This was the most precious gift I could give, and it's all yours. I know you’ll do brilliantly my dear.
Love,
Dada
Ps. If Lewis is still alive, say hello to the old man for me.”
She’s crying when she finishes reading the letter and puts it aside so she doesn’t stain it with her tears.
She curls up in a ball sobbing. How did she get this lucky?
Her chest feels tight and she suddenly misses Dada more than anything in the world. He knew her so well. He had taught her how to run a farm and all of the skills she would need to eventually take over, but he had never forced it on her.
He knew how fragile she had been that last summer. That if he had let her know he left the farm to her she would have dropped everything. She would have dropped out of school and let go of her dream to keep his alive.
She continues to gasp for breath as a sudden clarity strikes her.
What she’s doing now isn’t working. At this rate, she’d never make it to law school.
But the farm? She knew what she was doing there, she knew how to make money. If she worked hard enough, it would take maybe two or three years at most to come up with enough money to afford law school. She could always supplement the rest of the tuition by working through school and the internships she would get.
A strange calm fills her as she makes up her mind. She was going to quit. No putting in a two-week notice, or having an exit interview. The thought of even walking into the Joja office right now made her want to throw up again.
She knew if she put in a two-week notice they would only overload her with even more work and then guilt trip her into staying. So she was going to quit plain and simple, if this worked out for her she wouldn't need the references from this job ever again.
She doesn’t know how long she sits there, wiping snot off her face and thinking about her new life in the valley.
Finally, she decides to get up, heading to the bathroom to wash her face off.
For the first time in years, she takes a good look at herself in the mirror. She notes the dark circles, her sickly complexion making her skin look more grey than brown, and expressionless grey eyes.
She doesn’t recognize herself, she wonders where that happy little girl went.
***
Lewis runs out of his house like his hair is on fire when he receives the letter, leaving poor Marnie confused and a little concerned. She hears him muttering under his breath, clearly panicking as he runs off towards Robin’s home.
“There’s so much to do and so little time” he mutters, fiddling with his suspenders “The old farm needs to be cleared out a little, so we can walk through it” he groans “That old man didn’t even keep any proper furniture, I can’t possibly let a young lady live like that” he nibbles on his lip, brain in overdrive as he rushes into Robin’s shop and explains the situation to her.
Robin’s eyes light up at the prospect of seeing the farmer’s granddaughter again, and also at the fact that she gets to make more furniture now. Lewis cashes in a few favours and guilt trips her into making some simple furniture for free, leaving her with the promise that Miss. Reed will probably want to upgrade the cottage, seeing as she’s a city girl and all.
He ignores Maru peeking around the corner, not even trying to hide the fact that she’s been eavesdropping this entire time.
When Lewis leaves she rushes out from the hall “Is it true Mom? Is there really someone from the city coming to live here?”
Maru hears Sebastian come upstairs and scoff “Why on earth would someone from the city come and live in this dump”
Maru glares at him “The valley is a great place to live”
“Whatever” he rolls his eyes and leaves, probably headed to Sam’s house.
Robin sighs “Why are you even asking” She ruffles Maru’s hair and Maru whines, trying to fix it back into place “You overheard everything already”
“I know, I know” she finally succeeds in patting her hair down “I just couldn’t believe my ears! This is so exciting” she screams before also leaving, running to tell Penny the news.
Robin sighs, hoping the expectations of the town don’t crush Faye like they had ten years ago. She smiles as she doodles, excited to see her again now that she’s all grown up. She finishes up some simple sketches and makes a list of the materials she’ll need before heading over to the farm. No doubt Lewis is over there panicking about how run down it is.
***
“I thought you hated how everyone here gossiped so much,” Sam points out while taping his skateboard.
Sebastian rolls his eyes “You would’ve found out eventually, Maru is probably going to tell Penny and she sucks at keeping secrets”
“That’s true,” he shrugs. “I wonder what they’ll be like?”
“They’re probably crazy, no sane person would voluntarily come here”
Sam hums and finally finishes and starts to attempt a kickflip before the boys hear the town clock chime 9 o clock. “Ah shit, I forgot I had work today, here” he shoves the skateboard and tape into Sebastian’s arms “Can you put this in my room for me, I gotta go!” he runs off without even hearing Sebastian’s answer.
Sebastian lets out a groan before heading into the house, hoping to dodge Jodi.
***
After work Maru sits on the bench, swinging her legs and waiting for Penny, waving when she finally sees her.
“Guess what?” she shakes, unable to contain her excitement, she’d been dying to tell Penny all day. It was torture getting through her shift, she hadn’t said anything to Dr. Harvey because it seemed inappropriate and she didn’t want him to think that she liked to gossip. She had only started at the clinic a few months ago, and she really wanted to make a good impression.
Not that this was gossip, the whole town would probably find out at the next town hall meeting.
Penny chuckles seeing her friend’s excitement “What?” she asks amused.
“There’s going to be a new farmer! She’s moving into the old abandoned farm near the bus stop”
“Oh” Penny’s eyebrows lifted, “I thought the farmer who lived there before was really old? Did she buy the farm?”
“Nope” Maru lets out with a pop “Her grandpa was the old farmer, he left her the farm ages ago”
“Hmm,” Penny nibbles her lip “Hopefully she’s nice, I’ve heard some weird things about her”
“I’m sure she’ll be, I hope we become friends! She’s from the city and she probably knows all about the latest tech”
Penny laughs, hearing that “Do you even know for sure that she’s into that kind of stuff? She is moving here after all” she gestures around at the rural town that just barely has public wifi. And even that was only in the clinic and library.
Maru looks down “I dunno, I just have a feeling”
Penny ruffles her hair “Don’t mind me, I’m sure she’ll want to be friends either way” Penny looks around, making sure no one is nearby “Though I do know something for sure, Dr Harvey definitely has a crush on you”
“Oh my gosh” Maru laughs “Pen you can’t be serious, he’s so old!”
“I am sure! He’s always looking out for you and he’s always spending time with you, even at festivals”
Maru waves her hand in the air “He’s just shy, and we work together, it makes sense we end up hanging out after work as well” She dismisses the idea.
Penny pouts, upset at not being taken seriously “Sam and Shane are co-workers, but they hardly talk, even at work”
Maru gives Penny the stink eye “That’s because Shane is Shane”
***
Harvey doesn’t move, out of shock or horror at the conversation he just overheard, he doesn’t know. The idea that people thought he liked Maru romantically because he was just looking out for her made him want to throw up.
That explains the looks Demetrius would send him sometimes.
At least Maru didn’t seem to pay much mind to the idea…
He groans, rubbing his head, he should probably make more friends in the valley so people back off. It is difficult though, he struggles to turn off doctor mode in social situations. He can’t seem to compartmentalize his life as Harvey and as Dr. Wright. At this point, he’s not sure if there even is a difference anymore.
Besides that, not many people want to be friends with their doctor, especially some of the more difficult patients he has.
Except Elliot that is.
The writer had wrangled together what he called the newcomer’s group, consisting of himself, Elliot and Leah. Though Harvey would argue that Elliot and Leah were the actual newcomers. He had been here for five years himself and had spent almost every day working or spending time in his apartment until Elliot showed up and started dragging him to the saloon.
Even with Elliot and Leah though, he struggles to stop being their doctor at times.
His spirits are slightly lifted at the thought of a new patient, he hopes she won’t be difficult. Younger people tend to be pretty reasonable. They are less set in their ways, and far more open to criticism. He grimaces, thinking of the fight that George had put up when he suggested doing stretches to keep his legs from going stiff.
***
Shane cannot seem to escape the news of the new farmer, no matter how hard he tries to stay away from people and just focus on work until he can get into the saloon. It starts with Sam, who is a little too happy for someone who walked into work 5 minutes late.
“Heya Shane” he leans against the shelf, hands in his pockets.
Shane immediately wants to strangle him. He’s hungover, the bright ass lights in this stupid store are not helping and now Sam, who isn’t quiet on normal days, seems to be excited about something which has taken his volume up 5 notches.
“There’s a new person coming to town”
Shane closed his eyes, trying to compose himself, so that he doesn’t get fired for cursing at his co-worker “Why would I give a shit about that”
“Dunno, thought you’d like to know” Sam takes his hands out of his pockets, puts on those shitty earbuds that blare out whatever music he’s listening to and walks away.
Shane tries to not throw up as a wave of nausea hits him, he eyes the watch on his wrist, only 8 more hours until he doesn’t have to feel anything again.
Except, even his safe space, the saloon, has been taken over by the news of a new farmer. It’s Friday night, so it's already more packed than normal and now everyone and their mother is giving their opinion on the new farmer.
It ranges from excitement for having another young person in town to concern about an outsider coming into the valley.
As he stumbles home with Marnie he finally breaks his silence “Everyone in this town is a bunch of fucking busybodies who can’t keep themselves out of other people’s business”
Marnie chuckles “You can’t blame them, this is probably the biggest change since Robin got married again”
“I don’t envy her” he tsks “I’d probably have a mental breakdown if I had to move into this shit hole after hearing what they have to say about her”
“Language, I don’t want to hear you cursing in front of Jas” she scolds as they approach the ranch.
Shane rolls his eyes “Whatever, I’m going to sleep”
***
“Alright, alright quieten down everybody”
Harvey’s sitting in a chair that is too small, he has to bend his leg at a weird angle to make sure he doesn’t accidentally kick Jodi in front of him. Elliot and Leah are next to him, paying no attention to the mayor and continuing to whisper, wondering what this meeting is about.
“QUIET!” Lewis roars and finally everyone shuts up.
Lewis starts droning about imports and exports and Harvey goes back to dissociating. He’s almost 90% certain this meeting is going to be about the new farmer. News had spread like wildfire, he expected rumors as well but there had been none.
Very strangely.
He thinks back to the last time he went to Pierre’s. Robin mentioned the new farmer to Marnie and Jodi had butt in, demanding to know everything they knew.
He was busy shopping, but they were so loud he couldn’t help but overhear.
“She’s a really sweet kid,” Marnie assures Jodi “A little quiet, had an odd habit of climbing into trees” Marnie looks at Robin to back her up.
Robin nods “Her and Sebby were good friends”
“What about the other kids?” Jodi demanded and both Robin and Marnie looked at each other awkwardly.
“Henry didn’t bring her into town much”
He’s also almost 100% confident that this is the same farmer’s granddaughter who helped Sebastian’s nonverbal streak break. Robin had told him the story when he first took over the clinic. He didn’t really need to know but she seemed eager to share anything and everything he could possibly need to know about her children. She mentioned that the granddaughter was also non-verbal, which lined up with the quiet kid comment that Marnie made.
He wonders what she’ll be like, hopefully, an easy patient. He already had his hands full with George, Pam and Willy.
Jodi raises her hand when Lewis brings up the new farmer, foot tapping the floor impatiently. Next to her Willy coughs and slinks lower into his chair.
“Yes, Jodi” Lewis finally notices her “A question?”
“Thank you,” Jodi stands up “How exactly do we know if it’s safe to let an outsider come here, especially since she’ll be living so far out from the rest of the community,”
Harvey glances at Robin, who’s being held in her chair by Demetrius, next to him Maru tenses and Willy sits back straight in his chair.
“Ah well” Lewis fumbles “Now I don’t think-”
“She ain’t no outsider” Robin yells across the room “She’s lived here longer than you have anyways”
“I don’t think coming here during summer vacation counts as living here” Jodi counters “I just want to make sure the children don’t have any bad influences”
Maru groans next to him “Yoba she’s so stuck up” she whispers to Penny and behind him he hears Abigail snort, trying to hold back a laugh.
Robin and Jodi start arguing, Marnie’s attempting to act as a mediary and his attention turns to what Abigail is saying behind him.
“Did you ever meet her Abby?” Sam asks “I wonder if she’s into rock”
“Nah, I never saw her much, though” There’s a laugh in her voice as she recounts “The first time I met her, she was dropping crops off at Dad’s and I bumped into her” She chuckles “In hindsight, she was probably just trying to help me get up but like she had this old newsboy cap covering her face and when she leaned over me I thought she was going to kill me or something” Sebastian lets out a huff “I ran off crying,” she says, unable to stop her laughter this time “You were close with her right Seb?”
Sebastian hums “She’s chill” is all he offers. Harvey thinks that is probably the highest compliment that one can receive from Sebastian.
“Now, now these are all valid concerns” Lewis’ voice raises over the women’s, next to him Elliot leans into his ear.
“I didn’t realize we would find such entertainment tonight, I would have brought a pint or two”
Harvey has to school his face back to neutral as Evelyn stands up, tapping her cane severely against her chair. The whole room falls quiet.
“That is enough” She turns to Jodi “That girl and her family were a part of this community long before you got here” She narrows her eyes at the rest of the room “Shame on you all, she has done nothing but hardworking and kind, working herself to the bone to make sure you all” she points her cane at Caroline and Pierre “Had enough stock and time to negotiate a deal with Joja, I don’t want to hear anything else on this matter” she sits back down and Lewis takes back control of the meeting.
He wonders briefly how a teenager ended up playing such a big role in the community. From what Pierre had told him, when Henry Reed died it had taken them quite some time to negotiate a deal with Joja. Much to the chagrin of all the local businesses.
“Do you think we should get her into the newcomers club?” Leah leans forward to whisper to Elliot and Harvey.
“From what it sounds like, she’s not exactly a newcomer” Harvey counters, wondering if he should tell them that Jodi made the same fuss at the meeting that they had when Leah and Elliot moved to the valley. He’s sure she would have as well at the meeting for his arrival if he had not moved here the same year as her.
“It’s the principle that matters” Elliot whispers back “She will need our support against the gossip brigade” he states simply, ending the mini-debate.
Lewis discusses possible business opportunities the farm will create for the town and it leaves an odd sick feeling in his stomach. He’s not even talking about the farmer as a person, just the opportunities she could bring. He talks about how tourists will be attracted to the farm and how she could make more opportunities for the youth in town. To him, it just sounds like he’s trying to pawn off the responsibility of this failing town to her. He tries not to show his displeasure as Maru bounces excitedly in her seat.
He looks at her fondly, she really has been excited to become friends with the farmer. He thinks it’ll be good for her to have more friends her age. She didn’t really have anyone other than Penny and he knew all too well the effects of loneliness.
To the relief of his legs, the meeting is finally adjourned and he stretches out of his seat, knowing that his back is going to kill him later.
***
He’s weary and bone-tired by the time Winter Star comes around. Exhausted in a way he only gets in this season, dealing with the uptick in illness and paperwork. Hiring Maru has made things easier this year, but the nearest clinic to them in Clearhollow had closed down and left him with an influx of new patients.
He’s eternally grateful for the pact that he and Dr Miller have. It allows the both of them to have every other year off for Winter Star. She usually spends the time locking herself up in her apartment and he makes the drive up to Faybrook to spend the holiday with his extended family.
His family is huge, his cousins having more than made up for the fact that he didn’t have any siblings of his own. His mother was the second youngest of eight children. And those eight children had plenty of children of their own. His cousins in turn had started their own families.
It resulted in a ruckus of aunts, uncles, cousins, their spouses and their children. His cousins had named him the honorary uncle of their kids/ So when he walks into the familiar mansion he’s not surprised to hear a cheer of “Uncle Harvey!” and “Uncle you’re finally here!”
He lets his nieces and nephews tackle him in a group hug, tolerating their jabs at his age. Gemma tells him he looks greyer than normal and he smacks her upside the head. Unfortunately, Grandma spots him doing that and he has to stand there, shamefaced as she lectures him while the kids giggle behind him. He shoots them a glare and sees a few of them flip him off playfully as Grandma drags him to the rest of the adults.
Once he’s there it's the same as it always is. The comments about his age, the questions of if he’s seeing anyone. When is he going to settle down? There must be eligible ladies in the valley, no?
None of them seem to consider that even if there was anyone in the Valley he liked, he couldn’t actually date them. They’d be his patient and he refuses to break that moral code. He’s worked too hard, spent too many sleepless nights panicking over exams and evaluations, to let it all go to waste.
His cousins tease him as well. About how he moved to the Valley to find a wife and hasn’t had any success yet. Andrew and Carol used to joke about that as well. But that’s not the reason he moved. He moved so he could avoid seeing Victoria every day at work. He moved because he couldn’t handle the stress of a big city hospital anymore.
How every patient eventually just became a number. How he didn’t even see their faces anymore, just saw them as a problem that needed to be fixed. Dr Grey had pulled him aside one day, noticing that someone who was supposed to be the brightest of his cohort was spiralling.
And he was spiralling. The break-up had made him doubt everything he thought he knew about himself. Was he actually an awful, selfish person? Was he actually a liar? Was he everything she said he was?
Dr. Grey had been the one to hand him the offer in the Valley. His friend was officially retiring after having moved to the Valley for a soft retirement. He wondered what that said about him at the time. Thinking that Dr. Grey was essentially telling him that he should retire a year after he officially became a doctor.
But moving to the Valley was just the thing he needed at the time. He’s grateful Dr. Grey got to him before he completely burnt out and did something he would regret. There’s plenty of things he does regret though. Every single patient he couldn’t save still weighs on him, the fact that he could hardly deliver the news to one of the families without breaking down, the fact that he’d held a little girl’s hand as she died and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
No patient had quite gotten to that level in his time in the Valley. But that’s not to say there weren’t challenges being a doctor in a rural environment. He wasn’t just treating patients in the Valley, he was treating his neighbours and friends.
It terrified him to no end. The thought that one day he’d have to sign some of these people’s death certificates. So he shut down instead, against Dr. Sheppard’s warnings. He had shut down, not allowing anyone to get too close to him. To keep up a professional image in front of the townsfolk, so that he could hopefully one day earn their respect.
(Their respect he did earn. But not because of his professional image. He earned it by saving Jas’ life when she got influenza, by giving Abigail a safe space after she argued with her parents, and by helping Sam match with the right meds for his ADHD. He earned his place by just being himself, though if you ask him he’ll say that he’s just doing his job)
Elliot was the first person to truly pull him out of his shell. For the first time since he left the city he knew what it felt like to have a best friend again. But even with Elliot, there were things he wasn’t quite ready to open up about just yet.
By the time dinner is over his social battery is completely drained. But he still has Winter Star Day to contend with.
His parents tell him to ignore it. That they’re only asking out of concern, only teasing because they love him. But it doesn’t sit right with him. The fact that he’s going to turn thirty-five soon and has nothing to show for it but a run-down clinic stabs at him. A sense of inadequacy fills him as he tries not to compare himself to his cousins.
At this age, he should have been married already. Should have had a few children. But instead, he has a cold, empty apartment waiting for him when he gets home. He can’t help but feel like a failure. His parents must be so ashamed of him. The only stable relationship he had ended in disaster and he’s been too much of a coward to attempt to date since then.
He downs another glass of wine, looking for an opportunity to escape to the basement where his nieces and nephews will attempt to show him how to play Mario Kart for the hundredth time. That seems like a more bearable way to spend the evening than watching everyone look at him with pity upstairs.
***
Lewis greets her with a small nod when she gets off the bus. “Welcome home Miss Reed” he gestures towards the path and they begin their trudge up to the farm.
Yes, welcome home. And what a welcome it is, the failure has come back home after burning out. She is bitter as she pulls her suitcase along, not up to conversation. Lewis senses her mood and doesn’t press, instead choosing to ramble about all the changes to the town.
“We got a new doctor a few years back, Dr. Weber retired a little while after your grandfather passed” he presses his lips together, almost as if he wasn’t supposed to bring up Dada. She hates that he’s walking on eggshells around her. Like she’s a bomb that will go off at the mention of the wrong thing. “Anyhow, Alex lives with his grandparents now, uh” he looks awkward again.
She knows why. Khala Clara passed away a few weeks after Dada died. The adults had tried to hide it from her at the time, but Faye had guessed she was sick. She had guessed right it seemed.
“But forget that, Pam and Penny live near them, mother and daughter” he switches the subject awkwardly. “Things have been tough on them ever since the bus broke down” he scratches at his neck “Got a new librarian as well, we had a museum curator but the less about him the better, Willy’s not alone on the beach anymore, we had a writer move in”
He notes her look of scepticism “Well I dunno if he’s actually published anything, you know how younger people are” She resists the urge to roll her eyes. A writer could be interesting, especially if he’s new. Maybe when she felt up to it she’d go pick his brain “Speaking of artists! We actually had one move into the old cabin by Marnie’s, oh and Marnie’s nephew moved in with his goddaughter a few years back, awful what happened to him” he mutters. “Robin got married again” he adds, almost like it's an afterthought.
She almost reels backwards into the snow in her shock. She wonders how Seb feels about having another Dad. He had only put up with moving to the valley for Aunty Robin’s sake. But she could see him putting his own feelings aside for her sake again. She frowns, she’ll have to check up on him. She owes him an apology anyway, considering how she just disappeared without a word.
“Yeah he had a younger daughter as well, she works at the clinic actually! Replacing Joanna’s old position aye” he nudges her and she resists the urge to flinch. So Seb’s new sister was a nurse like Dado huh? She wonders what the new Doctor is like, Dada always used to say Dado hated having Weber as a boss.
“Ah, we’re here!”
The sight that greets her makes her want to cry. The farm is completely covered in debris, wildlife having fully taken over. Gone are the neat plots of farmland that she had painstakingly hoed and tended to ten years ago. The greenhouse had completely collapsed into a pile of broken glass and wooden beams. The barns and coops are completely destroyed, having been reclaimed by nature and then some. It looks like a few earthquakes had probably run through the valley.
She couldn’t think of anything else that could have caused damage like this.
Luckily the old cabin stands tall, looking over at the mess she’s allowed to happen. How had she let it come to this? She should have at least tried to see who had the will to the farm. Instead of just assuming her parents had sold the place.
She looks around at the land, trying hard not to let the devastation show on her face. She must not do a good job of it, Lewis puts a hand on her shoulder gently “The land is still good, just needs a little love, that’s all” he says comfortingly, slotting the key into the cabin and pushing the door open.
The sight that greets her is alien. Almost everything in the room is brand new. A small wooden bed, a tiny table with only one chair. The only thing she recognizes is the TV, still Dada’s rusty old TV.
The kitchen is the same as well, there’s one counter and a new mini fridge. She knows there’s a camping stove hidden away in the shed somewhere. Hopefully.
She sets down her suitcase as Lewis puts the box she had handed to him on the table. She notes the small packet on the floor and nudges it with her foot, raising her eyebrows at Lewis.
He flushes slightly, rubbing at the back of his neck bashfully “Thought I’d give you a head start on planting”
She smiles slightly “Thanks” She looks around at the cabin again “How much do I owe for all this?”
“Nothing” he takes his cap off, wiping his face with a rag “Henry had a fund set up in case you ever wanted to come back, to help you get set up and all”
She hums softly. She must have made quite a bit of money her last summer here for it to have covered all of this.
He hands her some more keys “I’ll leave you to unpack, don’t worry I haven’t told anyone but Robin that you came, everyone expects to see you come spring, however” he says sternly, almost as if he’s telling her not to even think about hiding away on the farm.
She wasn’t planning on it. If she’s stuck here trying to make money for a year or two she may as well have some friends. Maybe figure out who to pass the farm on to once she goes, so that it doesn’t come to its current state ever again.
She can’t help her curiosity, once Lewis is off the property she promptly makes her way over to the shed next to the cabin.
She had been the one to shut down the farm. Everything from the crops to the jams, pickles and wines and the animals. She had planned the final harvests. Planted, fertilized, harvested and sold all of the produce. Made jams, pickles and wines out of the things she couldn’t sell.
The artisan goods had been her idea. Dada was always a stickler for tradition. That a farm should focus on making the best quality food possible. It had been her idea to use Dado’s recipes to turn a profit on the produce that couldn’t turn a profit.
She still remembers the presentation she’d put on for Dada. At the end of it, he cracked and agreed to let her do it, as long as she could be responsible for it. She had happily agreed, and from then on he let her run wild during the summers, cooking and fermenting to her heart's content.
So yes, she had supervised the fields, she had seen over the sale of all the animals, she had shut down the barns and coops. She had cleared out the fields for the final time and sold all the extra feed to Aunty Marnie.
But the cabin?
That had been her parents, and maybe her brother. She had never cared to ask.
So she had no idea what they had kept, or if they had thrown everything out. Or, if the worst had come to pass and they had sold everything.
To her shock, all of her childhood things are still there, alongside the photo albums and all of Dada’s camping gear. It’s been packed away with care, more care than she’d expected from her parents.
She runs her hands over the camping gear. Only one other person knew how Dada liked to pack this up. Had Micheal really been sober enough to do this? Or was she just imagining things, inventing explanations for something that couldn’t be true.
She remembers how sullen Bhai had been all summer, even if her family only showed up for the last few weeks of Dada’s life. She shakes her head, not wanting to relive those memories just yet. Instead, she pulls out a few boxes to take back to the cabin, resolving to clean out this shed in the coming days.
It could be her first project.
Meanwhile, she spends the rest of the evening looking through old picture albums and reliving childhood memories. She looks through all her childhood books and toys and even some clothes that were left behind.
It’s jarring. Looking back on the child she used to be compared to who she is now. She wonders what the younger version of herself would think if she could see her now. Would she be disappointed?
Probably. She was twenty-five and hadn’t even made steps to get into law school. Twenty-five had seemed like such a big age back then, but right now she still feels too young. Too lost and aimless to know what to do with herself. Maybe it would have been easier to just di-
She shakes her head. No. She can’t allow herself to get back into that mindset. Not when she’s been given a safety net.
Her only goal should be getting herself back into the mindset to start up this farm again. This was her last chance to make something of herself. The last path she could possibly take, that would lead her to law school.
Almost as if the universe is affirming her choice, the next box she opens is full of Dada and Dado’s journals. She sets aside Dado’s, knowing that it probably only contains recipes and herbal remedies.
Dada’s journals are much more valuable to her right now. She scans through them, noting how they are filled up with tips to fix tools, planting configurations, troubleshooting in case of failed crops, and what crops to grow in what season.
She stays up until late, trying to absorb all the information she can. She can’t believe these journals are still here. It was almost like whoever packed them away knew that someone would be back.
She doesn’t think too hard about what that fact indicates about the mental state of her brother.
***
She was right about needing some time without screens or people.
The longer she spends in the valley the better she starts to feel. The crisp winter air, the rusticness of living off of the land. With every winter root and snow yam she pulls up it feels like she’s pulling vines off of herself. Letting her body climb out of the hole she’d found herself in ever since her grandpa died.
She never really let herself grieve, she realizes. She spent quite a few days crying after she found the small shrine Nani Evelyn and Nana George must have set up.
She thought it would be too painful to spend so much time in a house that her grandpa had lived in for so long. But the memories provided an odd sense of comfort, she falls asleep with a smile on her face most days as she remembers a funny story. It feels like her younger self and Dada are there with her. Eating breakfast with her, making s’mores at the small fireplace, playing cards, fighting over ludo.
She spent a whole day playing in the snow, leaving herself half-frozen and soggy. Then she went and made her Dada’s special hot chocolate and watched Spirit.
She was an odd kid, she thinks, as she watches the familiar horse movie. How did she not get bored of this? She must have watched it a hundred times, tied with Barbie Princess Charm School. She’d watched them both so often that she could recite the entire script at one point.
Slowly, slowly, she comes back to life. She’s happy that Lewis had agreed not to let anyone know about her arrival.
She knew Aunty Robin knew about her being back. She had been the one to make the new furniture she was using after all. And if Aunty Robin knew, then Seb definitely also knew. He hadn’t come down the mountain to find her though, which she was grateful for.
When she feels ready she sneaks down to Uncle Willy’s shop. The trees are as reliable as always, hiding her away from prying eyes. She notes a few new people in town. A woman with brown hair and a purple coat holds the hand of a small boy with a brown hat covering his light brown hair. A kid with a green beanie and brown coat who’s hanging out with Abigail in the graveyard.
She’s curious, but decides not to test her luck, if Seb comes into town he’ll be able to spot her instantly. He was the only person, other than Dada, who could find her when she was hiding in the trees.
Getting everything off her chest with Uncle Willy is nice. His shop smells awful, just like it always did. He offers her a cigarette which she smokes down to the filter as they talk. He, swinging his flask back, and her dangling her legs off the small dock facing his broken down boat.
It’s therapeutic like a weight has been lifted off of her shoulders. He lets her talk, never interrupting or asking questions. Once she’s down he hands her one of his old fishing rods.
“Fishin’s a good way ta keep yer mind off ‘er these things”
She slips the fishing rod into her coat, resting against her back as she heads out. Narrowly dodging a man with flamboyant red hair. She blinks at him a few times, wondering what on earth someone is doing living on a beach in the middle of winter before realizing this is the writer Lewis mentioned. The icy wind whips at her as she climbs up into the trees and makes her way back home.
When she wakes the next day, she finally feels ready to start facing more people. Of course the second she realizes that Emily shows up outside her door. Her hair is blue now, instead of the hot pink it used to be. But she’s still the same old reliable Emily.
“Hey there hun” she grins, holding up a small basket, “thought I’d save you, sure you're gettin’ tired of eating snow yams all the time”
Her mouth waters at the smell of bacon and eggs. She manages a small smile “Thanks”
“No problem hun! Let me help you set the table”
Emily doesn’t say much else until they’re about halfway through the breakfast. She dabs at her mouth with a napkin before looking up at Faye. “I thought I’d warn ya’, one kindred spirit to another,” she gives her a meaningful look and Faye wonders what she’s talking about “I have a girlfriend,” she says meaningfully like that’s supposed to explain her point “But some people in town ain’t gonna like that” she adds on and Faye realizes what she’s trying to say.
She snorts, does the bisexual really just radiate off of her? “I wasn’t exactly plannin’ on advertising it” she mutters “But thank you anyways for the warnin’”
Emily nods happily, seemingly satisfied “The crocuses spoke to me this mornin’, told me to pay ya a visit” she says softly.
To anyone else, it would seem like Emily was off her rocker. But Faye knew that there was magic in the valley. She’d spent enough time chasing the junimos around as a child, enough time watching the junimos work their magic and springing up flowers in places flowers didn’t normally grow. She watched Dada talk to the animals like he could understand them, and they could understand him back.
She had seen Bhai use spells when he thought no one was watching…
So instead of laughing at Emily, she smiles back “I’m not quite at that level yet, but I’ve seen the junimos around”
Emily lights up instantly “I knew ya could” she grins “I always wanted to ask ya when ya were younger, but ya never really came into town” She looks down, guilty “I owe ya an apology,” she picks at her nail beds “I never imagined that Hailey would repeat my mother’s words to you, I know this town thinks it's just harmless gossip but” she sighs irritated “It’s not, I’m sorry my parents couldn’t control themselves long enough to consider how their words would affect you” Faye tries to interrupt but Emily stops her “I know that’s why you stopped coming into town, why you disappeared, I heard your Grandpa talking to Marlon”
Emily isn’t wrong. The first summer she spent here alone was when she was five. Nobody batted an eye at that. Even though they noted the absence of her brother. The both of them had been visiting the valley on and off since they were born.
It was when she spent Winter Star in the valley that winter that the whispers started. She still doesn’t know how they found out that her brother was in rehab. Maybe her parents had let it slip.
But that didn’t matter. The second they saw that she was here alone with her grandpa, speculation started. They wondered why she was here instead of with her parents. Did they not want her around? What had happened to her brother?
She had been blissfully unaware the entire day. Until she spotted a junimo hiding behind the clinic and chased after it. It was there she overheard Emily’s mother talking to Caroline.
“I wonder what happened at home” Caroline had wondered aloud and Emily’s mother snorted before she replied.
“Sarah told me that kid was a mistake, maybe they finally snapped”
Caroline had smacked her friend’s shoulder “That’s mean!” she admonished “Mind you don’t let the old farmer hear that, he’ll have our heads”
“It’s true! I mean Micheal was twelve years old when she was born and it’s not like they were getting any younger”
The two women had chatted for a little longer before heading back to the feast. Unaware of the little girl whose day they had ruined.
She remembered asking her grandpa if they could go home, voice breaking. He had taken one look at her and whisked her home immediately. They had hot chocolate as she cried silent tears, hiding under a blanket.
Eventually, he coaxed the truth out of her, face hardening as he realized that taking her into town was an awful idea.
“That’s not true, you know it isn't, don't you chick?”
She sniffled “Mikey said that as well, that mom and dad don’t want me” she sobbed “You said it as well, you said you wanted Mikey here instead of me”
His face had fallen at her words. Silently pulling her into a hug and trying to quell her doubts. In hindsight, she knew that’s not what her grandpa had meant when he said that. He meant that it would have been better to send her brother out to the farm to fix him up, not send the child who hadn’t done anything wrong away. But at the time she truly had felt so unloved. Everything was her fault. Her brother got sick because of her, did bad things because of her. She had to be sent away for him to get better.
She blinks her eyes, pulling herself out of her memories “It’s ok Em, it happened a long time ago”
Emily lets out a frustrated noise “It’s not ok”
“It is” she coaxes “I’m over it”
Emily sends her a reproachful look “Are you really?”
She doesn’t answer.
***
Robin’s mouth almost drops open when Faye walks into her store. She chose a good time, Robin does have to give her that. There’s nobody home, Demetrius has gone off to a scientific conference, Maru was at Penny’s house and Sebby had run off somewhere with his friends.
She’s much older, there’s no longer a haunted look in her eyes but she still looks like she’s ready to run. Almost like a ghost looking in on the living.
Her hair is still as dark as it used to be, tied in a long braid instead of the short like before. Her clothes look off, almost like they aren’t her own. The coat is too big and the skirt too old-fashioned.
“Hello Aunty”
She didn’t know what she was expecting but Faye’s voice was much softer than she thought it would be.
“Hey kid” she replies “What brings you here”
Faye pauses for a long time, almost like she wasn’t expecting the conversation to turn this way “I thought we could catch up, needed quotas for gettin’ the farm buildings up again”
Robin bites back a smile at the request.
It’s a little surreal, Robin’s spent all these years with a certain picture of the farmer’s granddaughter in her head. But now that she’s actually getting to know her the image falls away. It reminds her of the shock she felt when she realized that Sebby wasn’t a little kid anymore, that he was an adult with his own hopes and feelings.
She unconsciously starts to compare the grown-up Faye with her son while they talk. Robin catches her up on everything that’s happened in the town over the past ten years and Faye offers the bare bones of her life in return.
It’s almost like Sebby and Faye have switched personalities over the past ten years. Sebby used to be the talkative one, even though there was a time when he wasn’t. The loss of his father had hit him hard and it probably wasn’t easy to watch her grieve on top of that.
They had moved to the valley for a new start, she thought it would be better for them to come out somewhere that wouldn’t remind her of her husband. Sebby hadn’t protested, even though she knew it wasn’t easy for him to leave their home and all his friends.
She had grown more and more concerned after they moved. He just withdrew into himself, didn’t talk to her and spent all his days outside just sitting there. He would come to life a little whenever it rained and he could chase frogs around, but other than that it was like she was living with a little ghost.
Until one day, a few weeks after the farmer’s granddaughter came to visit him, he started talking again. She hadn’t asked then, too scared that he would retreat again, years later she would learn that the granddaughter had goaded him into talking by annoying him.
She had, at the time, thought Sebby was talking to the trees. Until one day she got a glimpse of a girl sitting up in the tree. Robin had felt chills crawl up her spine when she saw her. The kid had deep eyebags and she was pale, despite the slight tan on her face. The girl had shifted and caught Robin staring at her before she disappeared into the trees again. Robin froze. Her eyes… she had never seen a child’s eyes look so empty.
She hadn’t really paid the old farm much mind. The first month or so they were here she had been so busy unpacking and getting the business up and running. It was only after everything was settled that she headed into town and involved herself in the community. Caroline and Marnie were her first friends and they were the greatest support she could have asked for.
One day as she had been shopping, Caroline came up to her after she was done stacking boxes.
“I honestly don’t know how that girl does it,” Caroline said, leaning against the freezer box.
Robin hummed quizzically “What did Abigail do this time?”
Caroline waved her hand in the air “Oh I’m not talking about Abigail, though getting her to eat her vegetables is still quite the struggle, I’m talking about the farmer’s granddaughter, she’s been running that farm ever since June”
Robin had stopped her browsing then “What does she look like?”
“Faye? Nowadays she’s always wearing her grandpa’s leather jacket with a cap, she’s kind of pale I guess? You probably haven’t seen her, the kids say she has a habit of hiding away in trees”
“Oh,” Robin didn’t really know how to react. She thought it would be better if she didn’t tell Caroline that she knew exactly who she was talking about.
“Yeah poor kid, her parents started sending her down here when she was about 5? Apparently” Caroline’s voice drops to a whisper “Her brother has some issues, they didn’t want her to see all that, if you know what I mean” She’s back at her normal speaking volume now “I do wonder how she does it though, that old farm is huge, and she’s been managing it all” she points at the corn sitting in Robin’s basket “That’s from the farm, actually most of the seasonal produce is from there, the jams and wines as well”
Robin didn’t say anything. She silently finished her shopping while Caroline went back to work. She remained deep in thought until she was washing up the vegetables to cook dinner and Sebby came back in.
“Did you know” she starts, still looking at the corn in her hands “That all this food is being grown by your friend”
Sebby had startled as he sat down “Yeah…” he said hesitantly “She showed me the farm. There’s animals there as well!”
“I see” she dries her hands on the towel “Does someone come to help take care of her grandpa?”
“Nope,” he said, popping the p sound “She takes care of everything herself”
‘ That poor child ’ Robin thought. Where on earth were her parents? Were they not here because of her brother? Caroline had said he had issues, but she never specified what those issues were.
“Why are you asking?” Sebby muttered, running his nail against the grain of the table “She likes working on the farm”
“Even if she likes it” Robin says, running her hands through her hair “Doesn’t mean that it’s not hard for her, did she say who does the cooking?”
“No… she doesn’t actually talk”
Robin shut her eyes tightly and then opened them again. So she was also non-verbal. She glances at Sebby, who is preoccupied with playing with some rocks. She knew what grief did to a child, she had a prime example sitting behind her. If every responsibility had fallen onto that child’s shoulders there was a high chance that the time she spent with Sebby was the only time she got to feel like a kid again.
Robin’s resolve hardened, she would do everything she could to help her out. Even if it was something small.
She started to let Sebby eat lunch outside, handing him an extra plate and telling him to make sure his friend ate. She would package leftovers and leave them on the tree that she saw her sitting on often.
The next time she saw her was at Pierre’s. Sebby was at the doctor’s office, he had insisted on going in alone, saying he was big enough now. Since the appointment was so early, she had waited until Pierre’s was open and headed in to get her shopping out of the way.
Caroline had greeted her when she came in “Oh I thought you were her”
Robin didn’t even need to ask, she already knew who she was talking about “Does she usually come by early”
Caroline hummed “Yep, usually she leaves the produce out front” she said as the faint sound of hooves on pavement came from outside. A few minutes later said girl walked into the store. She was carrying a crate filled with blueberry baskets. She headed in and set the crate on the counter.
Robin and Caroline watched as she pointed at the seeds she needed and gestured with her fingers how many. Pierre handed her the seed packets while asking how her grandpa was doing. When she didn’t answer that question, he switched to talking about the farm and she nodded or shook her head in response. She paid, pulled the cap lower down on her head and then left.
“She’s an odd one isn’t she” Caroline piped up, once she was out of earshot.
Robin hummed along softly, finishing with her shopping and paying at the counter. “Was she always this quiet?”
“Ah no” Pierre responded “She used to talk a mile a minute wherever she came in here with her grandpa, though the two of them didn’t come into town much” he had looked a little guilty as he spoke, though Robin didn’t know why.
“Poor kid” Caroline tutted “I heard Dr Weber has stopped heading by the farm, seems like it will be any day now…” she trailed off, not that she needed to say it. They all knew what she was talking about.
“She’s a good kid,” Pierre said, looking down at his counter “She’s been growing extra food this season so that Lewis and I have some time to figure out how to get a proper food supply” he sighed “We’ve depended on the farm for so long that I don’t even have any contacts to get produce out here” he grimaced “Seems like Lewis will have to take Joja up on their offer”
“You're not supposed to know this, so…” Caroline put a finger to her lips and Robin chuckled.
“Don’t worry, my lips are sealed” she said as she headed out. She was slightly surprised to see a horse and its cart patiently waiting outside the store and even more surprised to see Sebby sitting with the granddaughter. She got up when she saw Robin and nodded at her, before hitching herself up on the cart and galloping off.
She looked at Sebby, whose eyes were red, and immediately she grew concerned “What happened?”
“Nothing!” he scrubbed at his eyes furiously. She pulled him into a hug and he sniffled against her “I hate getting shots”
She ran a hand through his hair gently “I can come in with you next time” she held up her bag “I’m making chicken pot pie tonight” she said in a sing-song voice and Sebby perked up immediately.
She didn’t see the granddaughter around much after that. Her family had finally shown up in August. Robin kept on giving her lunch, but she stopped leaving leftovers. The next time she heard of her was when Sebby brought her a small wind chime with glass-blown frogs in rainbow colours.
“Can we hang this up in my room?” he asked, bouncing on his heels in excitement.
She chuckled “Sure, where’d you get it from?” she didn’t know of anyone who sold stuff like this in the valley, maybe he had bought it before they left their old home.
“My friend! I told her that thing I told you, you know that I want to marry a boy like you, and I found this on my window still”
Ah right, she looks down at her son. She remembered that day. To be fair she had suspected far before he had asked her that. Mostly because he would always ask his dad to change the princesses to princes in the bedtime stories he would come up with. One day though she was tucking him into bed when he grabbed onto her and asked if he could marry a boy like she did.
She smiled, kissed his head and told him that he could do whatever he wanted.
She was happy to see that he had someone else he could trust with this. Truthfully she was a bit worried, this was a small town and most people were not as open-minded. Luckily the granddaughter was, she held the windchime in her hands, and it was a beautiful gift.
She was at Pierre’s again, trying to brainstorm ways to thank the granddaughter for the wind chime when she bumped into a man accidentally.
“Watch where you’re going,” he said roughly, jerking away from her.
“Oh I’m so sor-” she started, but before she could finish he had turned around and left. She had never seen him around. Her eyes followed him as he paid and left the shop, he vaguely looked like the granddaughter, could that be her dad?
It wasn’t until weeks later, at the funeral that she realized that man was her brother. She tapped her glass of water at the wake. So this was who they had prioritized over their daughter? He was a grown man! Surely it would have made more sense to send the son out here instead of their daughter, who was still very much a child, even if she was mature for her age. She looked around, trying hard not to glare at the parents, to see where Sebby was. She saw him running off towards the mountains and as she didn’t see the granddaughter either she guessed he was probably chasing after her to cheer her up.
She went home that night to find Sebby asleep next to the tree and the granddaughter leaning down to pick him up.
“It’s ok I’ve got him” Robin called out and watched as the granddaughter startled and tried to run away. Robin didn’t let her escape, pulling her into a hug. She had tensed up slightly, before she relaxed into the hug and started crying silent tears.
Robin ran her hands through her hair gently, and hugged her until she stopped crying. “It’s ok” she whispered as the granddaughter looked at Robin’s now wet shirt guiltily “You’ve done so much for him” she gestured towards a still sleeping Sebby “I can’t even think of how to repay you”
The granddaughter shook her head and wiped her nose on her sleeve. Robin patted her shoulder “Wait here” She picked Sebby up and after she set him in his bed, she quickly packed up some leftovers. She hurried out, scared that the granddaughter had run off. She slowed down a little when she saw her still standing by the trees “Make sure you eat something today” she said, forcing her to take the food.
The granddaughter looked down at the bag before she hugged Robin again. Then almost like she was embarrassed by her sudden show of gratitude, she ran off down the mountain path.
She only saw the farmer one more time before she left. When she came to sell off all the extra materials her grandpa had kept along with the sprinkler system. She had paid her in full for all the materials and while she would put the wood and stone to good use. The sprinkler system, however, she put in her storage shed. She had a feeling that it would come in handy again someday.
***
Seb taps against his phone frantically to attempt to silence the blaring. His eyes crack open and he groans as his head starts to ache.
Once this project was over he really needed to spend more time outside. He was starting to get to the point where if he wasn’t working he was sleeping. Life has started to feel dull, days slipping by in a haze.
But he can’t rest just yet. First things first, he needs to get a cup of coffee. Then maybe he can run through the code again and sort out the interface bugs he kept on finding.
Pretty standard stuff for a winter morning. What’s not standard is the stranger standing in front of Mom’s counter. His eyes widen and he almost chokes on his coffee when he realizes who it is.
Faye doesn’t waste a second, rushing up to him to pull him into a tight hug. He’s not a hugger and he knows that she isn’t either. But right now he returns the hug, almost like he can’t believe she’s actually real.
“I’m sorry,” she says, voice thick.
There’s probably a thousand things he could say right now. Anger at how she just fell off the map, upset at how she abandoned him. He could try to comfort her, tell her he never blamed her for what happened, that he’s just glad she’s still alive.
But instead, he says the first thing that comes to mind.
“You don’t sound like I thought you would”
Faye, to her credit, takes the absurd comment pretty well. She laughs softly, stepping back “Thought it’d be raspier huh? It actually was, when I y’know” First started talking, he fills in mentally.
He hears Maru coming out of her room, the sound of the coffee machine as she turns it back on. Faye startles slightly, looking behind him as he feels a flash of irritation run through him. Maru couldn’t sleep in on the weekend just this once? He groans internally, not wanting Faye to leave.
“Walk with me outside” he gestures to the door with his head, grabbing his coat.
She looks him up and down and he flushes, realizing that he’s wearing his Pokemon pyjama pants.
“Shut up” he mutters as she giggles.
They don’t talk much as they walk. At least they don’t talk about anything important. Faye fills the silence by catching him up on what she’s been up to in the past month or so she’s been in the valley.
He just watches her, still not believing that she’s real. The fact that she’s here and chatting animatedly clashes with the last image he has of her in his head.
He remembered that night all too well.
A day before the last day of summer he’d been woken up to a popping sound late at night. He had gotten up groggily to see what his friend wanted, knowing that she was the only one who actually came up the mountain path.
As he was about to open the window to see he stopped in his tracks. It finally registered that the popping sounds he’d heard were gunshots. He was frozen in place as he saw his friend’s brother, illuminated in the moonlight. His eyes were wide and he looked insane as he continued to shoot wildly into the trees.
His heart felt like it was being ripped out of his chest. He didn’t even need to see her to know that she was hiding there. Terror gripped him as he imagined finding her cold body the next morning.
Her brother was yelling now. Yelling about how she was a mistake and no one wanted her. Yelling about how everyone started paying attention to her, the perfect child and left him to rot. Telling her that she ruined his life, that she took everything from him.
He screamed at her some more, shooting out a few more rounds into the trees before he collapsed. He saw her hop out of the trees and felt a wave of relief wash over him. He watched as she picked up the gun before she looked up, staring him down before she turned around and left.
He didn’t see her again, even at the moonlight jelly festival which she had been really excited for. When he got back home he found a summer shell and a piece of candy sitting on his windowsill. Her way of saying thank you and sorry.
This had always been the way they communicated, little gifts offered through the window. He remembered when they moved here. He hadn’t complained, even though he didn’t want to leave his friends. He didn’t want to leave their home, it felt like they were leaving his dad behind, as well as all the memories their home held.
He hated the valley, hated how quiet it was, hated the people who looked at him with pity, hated his mom’s new friends. He hated the kids here, who already knew each other and treated him like a pest.
Most of all he hated that freak who was always sitting in the trees and watching him.
Every time he went out, she was there. Sitting perfectly still and silent. She was annoying, and it was pissing him off.
He finally snapped at her, about three weeks into their staring game. Yelling at her about how she was a freak and he hated her. He hated how his mom was replacing her friends with new ones. He hated how his friends hadn’t messaged him back. He hated Caroline and her stupid green tea and her stupid daughter. And most of all he hated how his dad had died and left him all alone.
His voice had broken on that last confession and he had run back into the house, too ashamed to let her see his tears.
The next morning he found a black notebook sitting on his windowsill. A small note attached telling him that it was ‘ for your big feelings’ . He had flipped through the book and noticed the cover was made out of cardboard that had been covered with black fabric. He wondered if she had made it herself.
Their friendship grew after that and the gifts also kept coming. She didn’t talk, the only way they communicated was through her gifts or when she would occasionally hop down from the trees and write her replies in the dirt with a stick.
She showed him the best spots for blackberries, the wildflower patch behind the railroad, and the entrance to the mines, although they didn’t actually go in. She taught him how to fish and after a month or so brought him to the farm. She showed him the crop fields and the sheds full of kegs and preserve jars. One glorious day they spent hours in the various coops and barns, playing with the animals. There was one building that she never took him into, the old cabin that sat at the front of the farm. He saw an old man peeking out of the window and he didn’t realize who that was until Caroline came over for tea.
She chatted with her mom and they sat and gossiped while drinking their tea. Caroline mentioned the old farmer, and how they weren’t sure if he was going to make it through this summer. It took him a while to connect the dots, but when he did he felt really bad for his friend.
He imagined how he would feel if it was him and he had to look after his dad and the house while watching his dad get weaker and weaker until he died.
He got up the next morning, earlier than he would ever get up normally, to look for the fattest worms he could find. When his friend came by, he handed her the jar and she accepted it, ruffling his hair with a smile.
These moments flash through his mind as he and Faye part after their walk.
He thinks about how much has changed in the past ten years, wondering how their younger selves would feel if they could see them now. Then he smiles, Faye’s arrival is sure to shake things up a little. Life is already feeling a little brighter.