Chapter 2
Home at Last
"How was the sea on the way over?" Ray asked as the four sat down around an old-looking, wooden table filled to the brim with main and dishes as well as three kinds of soups and two kinds of salads. The entire thing looked more like a buffet in a hotel rather than a dinner for four.
“Mostly calm,” Ethan replied, immediately digging in. “There was a mild storm a quarter into the journey, but nothing major.”
“Aah, lucky,” Eliza said. “Winds have been blowing like crazy here for the past week! Just last night, actually, they destroyed old Sarah’s fence! You remember Sarah?”
“The old widow?” Ethan quizzed.
“Yes-- ah, we forgot to tell you, she got remarried!”
“Wait, really?!”
“Yeah! Five-six months ago, actually.”
“Damn,” Ethan exclaimed. “Who married that old, angry hag?”
“Hush!”
“Oh, don’t defend her,” Flora grunted. “E’ is right. She used to yell at me if I got within half a mile of her stupid-ass property. I bet those winds are a God’s way of saying ‘it’s karma, bitch; deal with it’.”
“Flora!!” both Ray and Eliza exclaimed at the same time while Ethan laughed.
“Stop laughing, Ethan!” Eliza chided. “Don’t encourage her! She’s already too loose-tongued... did you know that half the boys are scared of her and the other half are terrified? If she keeps going, she’ll never get married!”
“It’s fine, mom,” Ethan said. “Worst comes to a pass, her big bro will take her in as a herder or something.”
“You---ah, you two,” Eliza sighed, shaking her head. “Ray, say something!”
“What can I say?” the old man shrugged, digging deeper into chicken broth. “They’re their own people, El’.”
“That’s right, dad!” Ethan exclaimed, raising a bottle of beer toward the old man who readily raised one back. “Anyway, you never said who married her.”
“Crazy J’.” Flora quickly said before their parents could get a word in.
“... you mean--”
“Yes.”
“--no way.”
“I’m serious,” Flora nodded.
“Isn’t... isn’t he like... six years old?”
“Turned nineteen a day after their wedding,” Flora said.
“Damn,” Ethan sucked in a cold breath. “At least the dude lived up to his name.”
“Oh, shush. They seem happy,” Eliza said. “At least Sarah no longer yells at everyone during town’s meetings.”
"Well, a good--" Flora paused herself, her cheeks reddening slightly. Though free she may be, Ethan realized, there were still certain boundaries she wasn't comfortable crossing.
“A good what?” Eliza quizzed innocently.
"Khm, Flo must've meant good company," Ethan said. "You know, a good company keeps the demons away and all that."
“Oh, yes, that is true,” Eliza nodded while Flora shot a grateful glance at him. “Speaking of good company, Hannah is still single.”
“...”
“...” strange silence suddenly descended upon the table. Ray and Flora stopped eating, hanging their heads low while stealthily glancing at Ethan.
At the drop of the name, he felt something shoot up to his throat and get stuck there. Hannah. He had begun thinking about her again ever since he decided he would return back home.
“While I appreciate the good intentions, ma’,” Ethan said, chuckling bitterly. “I don’t think that’s in the cards.”
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
"..." the conversation died right after as everyone finished their meals in silence. Right after, Ethan walked out onto the porch and sat down in one of the two rocking chairs, staring out onto the paved street. A few moments later, his father joined him, carrying two bottles with him and handing one over while he sat on the other rocking chair.
“Thanks,” Ethan said, taking the bottle. “You really made it in time, eh?”
“Ah, I cheated a bit,” Ray replied, smiling lightly. “I had Dick help me.”
“Still, impressive. Coming from two old relics, I mean.”
“You like it?”
“Yeah, it’s comfy,” Ethan nodded.
“Your mom didn’t mean anything by it, Ethan,” the old man said suddenly.
“I know,” Ethan nodded. “Ma’s just being ma’. Would be strange if she didn’t bring it up immediately.”
“...”
“How is Hannah?” Ethan quizzed, taking a sip.
"Aah, fine?" Ray replied. "She took a job as a teacher right after getting her license. She doesn't come around as much."
“... I’m sorry, dad.” Ethan suddenly said, seemingly surprising the old man.
“For what?”
“Everything?” he chuckled bitterly, taking a sip. “I mean, I blew half your savings, got you two stressed to all heavens, and pissed off god-knows how many people... all selfishly. And, I’ve literally got nothing to show for it.”
“Nonsense,” Ray said. “You’ve grown, Ethan. The man that left this island... would have never apologized this bluntly.”
“Pfft, ha ha, yeah, I guess that’s true.”
“See?” Ray grinned. “Besides, our savings were there for you two crazy kids to blow through them. And even if you, as you put it, didn’t accomplish anything... so what? You can just say you went on a self-searching adventure or something.”
“Aah, sheesh, you are still spoiling me,” Ethan chuckled bitterly, shaking his head. “I’ll pay you back, I promise. I’ll look for a job immediately and--”
“Stop it, Ethan,” the old man interrupted with a serious tone, causing Ethan to look to the side as their eyes met. He’d inherited his father’s eyes-- emerald-green, wide and slightly slanted. Yet, his never quite measured up to his father’s, at least not with what lay within them. “You owe us nothing. You’re our son, for Christ’s sake. Take your time. Rather, take your sweet time. Old ma’ really missed you, you know? And hell, so did I. I will need your help with some plowing, though, so you better fatten up quickly.”
“... ha ha, fine, fine,” Ethan relented, sighing. “Plowing will have to wait, though. I can barely bend halfway through without my back giving out. Turns out, sitting on your ass all day long for years on end screws things up.”
“Hey, we warned you!” Ray said. “Don’t you remember? We told you about uncle--”
"Uncle Danny, yes, yes, I remember. He used to be a great worker who could plow the fields all day every day until he broke his leg, got lazy, sat on his ass for two years, and then had a heart attack that nearly killed him when he tried plowing again."
"Yes, and he's now living off of government benefits, that lazy schmuck," Ray grumbled.
"Dad! The dude had bypass surgery! He'd literally die if he tried physical work again!”
“Fine, fine, fine, I won’t rile on him any longer.”
“...”
“You should go and see Hannah, though,” the old man added.
“Seriously?”
“What?”
“You actually know just how bad of the terms we left it on,” Ethan said. “I literally haven’t spoken to her since I left.”
“As I recall,” Ray said. ”It was mostly your fault.”
“...”
“So, you can go over and apologize.”
“Eh, I suppose I’m up for a cup of hot coffee being tossed at me.”
“Ha ha ha...” the two men laughed as they emptied the bottles, setting them down next to the rocking chairs.
“Is Flo okay?” Ethan asked.
“Why do you ask?”
“She used to always talk about coming to the city and living with me,” Ethan said. “And now she tells me she only wants to find a nice bloke here and settle. I may be far from the brightest bulb, but even I can pick up on the fact that I messed up, dad.”
“Do you want her to go to the city?” Ray asked instead.
“... honestly? No,” Ethan shook his head. “But it’s not on me to decide.”
“You’re her hero, Ethan,” the old man said. “Always have been. And Flo... she’s brilliant. Beyond brilliant. While your ma and I were always certain you were our kid--”
“--oi!”
“--with Flo... we were always confused.”
“...”
“She watched her hero wane over the course of six years, Ethan,” the old man continued. “And she realized... if the city killed you, it would kill her too. She was the one who most looked forward to your return.”
“She was?”
“Yeah. All three of us saw it, E’... we saw the changes in you. You... you was like unmaintained iron left in the constant rain. Eroding, day after day. And the only thing we wanted was our boy back. Just like Flo wanted her big brother back.”
“...”
“If Flora ever decides she wants to go to the city,” Ray added. “Just like with you, old ma’ and I will support her fully. And just like with you... we’ll hope for her success. And if she fails... just like with you... we’ll welcome her back, arms wide open.”
“... yeah.”
Two men fell to silence as a gentle wind blew by, swaying the grass in front of them. As per usual, Dorothy barked immediately, prompting Ethan to laugh. The damned dog’s bark was a seal, like a final validation that he was finally back home.
For one, he couldn't believe the dog was still alive. He was at least twenty years old, which, in his terms, likely meant he was kind of a prophet to all the other dogs. What's worse, or better, really, was that he was only partially deaf, but wasn't blind. Though he was lazy, he was always lazy; he would just roll about his small courtyard, nibble at the bones, and bark at the most random things-- the wind, the leaves that fell the wrong way, or if he got scared of the grass for some reason, or whatever was in the grass.
“I’ll go and unpack,” Ethan said, standing up.
“Need help?”
“I’m fairly certain I can manage.”
“Mom made your room as it was,” Ray said. “We was planning on doing something with it, but we could never quite settle on what. I wanted a brewery, she wanted one of those, what do you call it? Plastic gardens?”
“H-huh?”
“You know... where, where they grow plants with the fake sun or whatever.”
“A greenhouse?”
“Yes, yes, a greenhouse! Fancy lass, that woman.”
“... yes. Sure. You’re both remarkably fancy, thinking one room, barely fit for a bed, could have become either a brewery or a greenhouse. Anyway, I’m off. Will probably crash and just fall asleep till morning.”
“Sleep well then.”
“You too, dad. You too.”