Greetings. I suppose I am expected to introduce myself, yes? My name is Gill, and if you haven't assumed already I am the mayor's son. That is all that should matter. Now, please, allow me to do my work in peace and quiet. ((Part of ;););) ))
Tori nodded attentively. That really did sound interesting to her. Mythology, huh? Well, Tori did enjoy reading those kinds of things. “Well, if you like them.. so much.. T-then I’m sure… I will as well.. Um… w-where can I… find the books?” Tori asked, turning to scan the shelves to see if she couldn’t answer her own question.
“Hm,” Gill shifted his looks from right to left to jog his memory of the exact spot, “they should be around here.”
Leading the way, Gill kept his eyes on the target location, easing his focus once he reached the shelves.
“Here they are.” He lowered his shoulders, pulling out a picture book with illustrations of the Harvest Goddess on the cover to use as an example. “I’m afraid we do lack books on the mythology of other locations, however.”
Tori nodded attentively. That really did sound interesting to her. Mythology, huh? Well, Tori did enjoy reading those kinds of things. “Well, if you like them.. so much.. T-then I’m sure… I will as well.. Um… w-where can I… find the books?” Tori asked, turning to scan the shelves to see if she couldn’t answer her own question.
“Hm,” Gill shifted his looks from right to left to jog his memory of the exact spot, “they should be around here.”
Leading the way, Gill kept his eyes on the target location, easing his focus once he reached the shelves.
“Here they are.” He lowered his shoulders, pulling out a picture book with illustrations of the Harvest Goddess on the cover to use as an example. “I’m afraid we do lack books on the mythology of other locations, however.”
“O-oh.. um…” Tori looked around the room. As Gill said, it wasn’t exactly lively. Libraries rarely were, but Tori knew firsthand the feeling of a truly empty library. It made her want to help out. Besides, it couldn’t hurt to bring some new books with her.
“I.. Y-yes… I’ll do that…” Tori said. “There’s a number of books here.. that I haven’t read… Let me see… ah…” Tori scanned the shelf for books that looked interesting. “…D-do you have any.. recommendations…? Educational or entertainment… either is fine with me…” she said.
“Well, aside from Harrison Bergerson,” Gill rubbed his chin, “I highly recommend books on Castanet’s history and mythology.” He gestured towards the shelf across from them. “There’s an entire section for them. I truly enjoy reading them, even after I’ve learned all they’ve got to offer.”
“An event huh?” It did sound like a promising topic, but whether it was anything of great importance or interest to viewers is what she looked for the most. A story to capture all eyes and ears was her dream.
Pen and notepad in hand, she looked up to the male. “May I know more about it? I’m willing to get anything I can take right now~” To gather information was her job so anything would do, whether it had to do with general events or certain happenings of a place she could always do with more content than needed.
“Yes an…” Gill hesitated to even call it that, letting out a heavy sigh. “An event. It was some attempt at a relaxation activity.” He dug through his pocket for the flyer advertising the event, handing it over to the young woman for her to see. “It was suggested to me as a way to decrease work-related stress. Unfortunately, a quiet area giving me the opportunity to think about all I will need to catch up on that I could have been working on while I was there doing their painful exercises and eerily timed breathing routines is not what I’d call stress-reducing in the slightest.”
[Mumbles something under her breath, then sighs loudly.]
[Her voice comes out with an alarmed squeak.] Gill!! [Hops off his desk and holds her hands at her waist.] Look, I’m no medical expert or anything, but I’m pretty sure anything lasting longer than two weeks is a problem.
Or at least.. [Eyebrows pull together with worry.] Well, I don’t know, two weeks is usually all we get before my grandmother sends us off to the clinic.
*Tempted to roll his eyes, but she was right and there was no doubting it. But wouldn’t it be selfish to step away from attending to important matters? He wonders* I know... *He sighs in shame, staring at the top of his desk*
But I’ve got too much to do and I can’t just leave here. That could lead to a disaster!
*Raises an eyebrow* What makes you think I’m not serious?
*It takes him a moment to think. As he adds things up in his head, his eyes widen. Something was wrong, and the thought of that makes his blood run cold. He regains his composure to avoid raising alarm* The fatigue has been around for... a few months, I’d say.
[Immediately lifts her hands away, rubbing her fingertips against the pad of her thumb.] Whoopsies– sorry about that. I guess I kinda forget that they can be cold sometimes.
[Sighs, shaking her head.] I understand that, really I do. But just because you say you don’t have time for it doesn’t mean it’s gonna listen to you and wait until you got free time to deal with it.
*Frowns. She’s right, but he isn’t going to let that stop him from getting valuable work done. There had to be something clever to say to at least let him get away with it.* Well, I don’t have to listen to it either. *He coughs, jotting down some notes in a planner* And would you look at that. My schedule is completely full with no room for unplanned obstacles, including illness.
*Blinks* I don’t personally like it either, but I highly doubt it’s anything to worry about. Someone dedicated like yourself should agree with that, correct?
[Rolls her eyes.] Might be your age? Gill, we're the same age!! [Reaches out and presses her hand against his forehead with a visible frown.] You don't look flushed, but you sure you don't have a fever or something?
Well, there are likely other factors involved in the aging process and-- *winces at how cold Luna’s hands are.* Ah! If there’s one thing I’m certain of, it’s that your hands are awfully cold.
I haven’t got any time to have a fever. There’s simply too much to be done.
“An event huh?” It did sound like a promising topic, but whether it was anything of great importance or interest to viewers is what she looked for the most. A story to capture all eyes and ears was her dream.
Pen and notepad in hand, she looked up to the male. “May I know more about it? I’m willing to get anything I can take right now~” To gather information was her job so anything would do, whether it had to do with general events or certain happenings of a place she could always do with more content than needed.
“Yes an...” Gill hesitated to even call it that, letting out a heavy sigh. “An event. It was some attempt at a relaxation activity.” He dug through his pocket for the flyer advertising the event, handing it over to the young woman for her to see. “It was suggested to me as a way to decrease work-related stress. Unfortunately, a quiet area giving me the opportunity to think about all I will need to catch up on that I could have been working on while I was there doing their painful exercises and eerily timed breathing routines is not what I’d call stress-reducing in the slightest.”
“W-well… Really.. I don’t think you should feel bad…” Ironic though his criticisms may have been, he really was only a child at the time- at least, that’s what it looked like from the handwriting. It wouldn’t be very fair to bring up things from the far past.
“It seems.. no one’s taken it out of the library… So it hasn’t caused.. any major problems… I-If you do really feel bad… p-perhaps you could buy a new copy?”
“I suppose you’re right.” Gill let out a light sigh, taking out a pen from his pocket to write down an order reminder on a post-it kept on the shelves just for that very purpose. He turned back to face the young woman.
“Speaking of ordering, are you considering requesting a book for order? I might as well get the most done while I can. Hopefully, if residents of other towns know there are books they like here, then maybe we can get some actual tourists and such efforts would not be such a waste.” He shook his head. “Forgive me. It’s just seeing this room so empty is bothersome, to say the least.”
A bright smile on her face, she was glad that they responded. “I just wanted to know if there was anything interesting? Or rather something that would make a great noticeable article.” She wasn’t as frantic as she usually was about it since she had quite a bit of time but when it came to information gathering anything was appreciated.
Hands gripping onto the notepad and pen hard, she stood firm before hesitating a little. “Ah! But that’s only if you have the time for it!”
She knew people don’t always have the time for things like an interview but if they weren’t too bothered by her suddenly springing it upon them, she would push forward as much as she could for any news.
“Hmm...” Gill thought for a moment. What could be something worth sharing? He certainly didn’t want to waste the young woman’s time, with him loathing having his own time wasted, after all. There was one subject that came to mind...
“Well, I recently attended a very... interesting event in town, actually.” He lowered his voice to a mutter. “Though more ridiculous than interesting.”
Her feet running about the cold snow, she needed something to write an article and fast. But not just any normal article oh no, she wanted to get something special, something that would catch the eye of all those who read the papers which she wrote in. Her deadline wasn’t anytime soon so she wanted to find the best story she could get.
Despite the fact that she had alternatives if nothing eye catching came up, she still wanted to find the best gossip, or even any rumour would do so that she could become a more well known reporter. Her feet stepping about the village which she ended up in, she calmly wandered over to whoever was the closest at that point in time.
“Hi! Do you think you could spare a minute for some questions?”
That was the last time Gill would ever attend an event dedicated to “relaxation.” There were so many instructions and nearly impossible poses, that and the realization he had just missed out on an hour’s worth of work had only increased the stress. The stress he was supposed to monitor. What a joke.
Gill was not in the mood to do much of anything but set out on his way home; that is, until he was approached by someone presumably requesting an interview. He had done a few jobs in the reporting field for the town from time to time, so he understood the value of interviews and other such sources.
*Gill approaches the dining table, spotting an envelope addressed to him, written in a familiar handwriting. He opens it up neatly and begins to read the contents:*
Happy birthday!
20 already? I wish I could see how big you’ve grown! If I were here, I don’t think you’d be reading this right now. If you’re not 20 yet, put this away! Your father hasn’t been hiding this well enough then. Or if he has, give him a hug!
I don’t have much advice to give you. I’ve only been 20 for a while now. You probably (hopefully) don’t have a sweet little 2-year-old running around the house quite yet, either. Gosh, you’re so cute. Please tell me you’ve still got the biggest smile Castanet has seen. I’m so, so happy that I’m at least around to see my wonderful son happy at the time I’m reading this.
But I have to tell you something.
I’m not well, Gill. I haven’t been well in a long time. I was a few years older than you when I lost my own mother, and I don’t know how long I’ve been gone when you’re reading this, but I hope we got to spend more time together.
Your grandma and aunt Maddie would have loved to see you. I don’t think I’d be writing this if they were still here, though. The day I lost them... what happened is why I got so sick. I don’t think your father has told you about this yet. It’s hard even for me to write this down. Thinking about it makes my heart hurt. At first, the hurt was hard to handle... really hard. But writing this letter, knowing that you’ll read this, and hopefully with fond memories of our family together... it keeps me going, my sweet, silly Gilly.
I ask of you to please take care of yourself. In the worst case, you will still be able to live a much longer life than I could ever dream of. Maybe you have your father’s luck, which is what I pray for from the Goddess every night. I would not dare wish what has gone over the past two years on anyone (the exception being having such a sweet little one greet me every morning. That’s something everyone deserves!).
I don’t mean to make you upset on your birthday. You might not remember this but... ever since I had to start bottle feeding you (which you hated), I’ve been a real ‘Debbie Downer.’ Things have gotten better, and I really hope we continued to happy.
I’ve made a checklist of things we’ve done and things I hope you can remember and keep track of, even when I’m gone.
Eat Ice Cream - [x]
Say Hello to Puppies - [x]
Finish a Coloring Book - [x]
Take Christmas Pictures - [x]
Snuggle Everyday - [x]
Master The Alphabet Song - [x] (Hopefully now you know ‘elemoomoopee’ isn’t a letter.)
--- The rest is for you to fill out! ---
Learn to ride a bike - [ ] Year:
Learn an instrument - [ ] Year:
Learn the birds and the bees - [ ] Year:
First Kiss - [ ] Year:
First Final Exam - [ ] Year: (Are they as hard as your father said they were? I was homeschooled.)
First Date - [ ] Year:
First Job - [ ] Year:
Married? - [ ] Year:
---
That should keep you occupied, right? Don’t eat too much cake, now. Grownups get tummyaches too!
Love,
Mom :)
*Gill wipes a tear from his face once he finishes reading the note.
“Take care of yourself.” Was this supposed to mean--*
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