“Yeah .. like when I say ‘handle,’ I mean … it could make sense? I don’t know. Obviously there’s aliens out there somewhere, but it’s just … “ Ibrahim sighed and shook his head. He really had no idea how to put any of his thoughts together at this point. “Mutated? I have no idea. There’s gotta be something different with them if they’re able to mostly survive outside of the ocean.”
Oh boy, were they really breaching the alien talk all of a sudden? Simon couldn’t quite say where his own stand on the subject landed, as it wasn’t quite the type of topic he has allowed himself to dwell on during his childhood -- but reality seemed another in this little town with its many mysteries. “You sound about as confused as the next one on the matter and I seriously cannot blame you”, he replied with an exhale of air. “Maybe they aren’t even sharks but something that looks like them... like how would we even know that? Like holy shit, this town should take some precautions or come up with a better safety system if more of these... occurrences keep happening. Thus far people seem to be running around trying to keep things together on their own.”
“Oh, I’m sure she will. I have noticed that she does not like peas.” Addison as he thought back to the night before when he’d tried feeding her some mushy peas, and he’d gotten it back into his face. It was why he was avoiding peas at the moment.
“What? Not on purpose. But she died, and I basically became a dad over night, without even knowing about it beforehand. So… Don’t have much time to think about it, and I need to make sure that Beatrice is good. Thankfully Charlie is helpful.” He said as he checked on the food, and decided that it was good enough, and he’d try it with Beatrice. “Yeah, there’s a difference. But I’m sure it’ll still help. Especially if you have tips for me.”
Simon let out a small chuckle at the mention, nodding with approval. “They kind of have a weird texture to them unless you’re eating them with fish, have to agree with the little one this time.” How many plates of food didn’t you end up cleaning up through the years of dismissed attempts at serving something tasty? Too many, was the answer. “I would recommend carrots if nothing else. They’re easier to mush and go well with almost anything you blend it with. That and chicken, the broth especially makes it easy to consume.”
Addison was quick to brush off the topic and Simon, not being one to linger, decided it was best to leave it brief. “I can only imagine! Kids do kind of change your life overnight and there’s not much to do about it besides adapt. However, if you ever need to talk or anything you know where to find me.” At least he seemed to have some outside help, which was a good thing. “Oh yeah, I can probably give you some tips if you need them. If you have questions, just shoot!” By the end of the day, it meant talking about his own daughter and he would happily dig into that topic among most. “Want me to taste test your new dish? I can tell you if the cosistence is right or if you need to blend it more, for starters.”
“I’ve been to some crazy places in my life, but I think this is a first for me. In less than twenty-four hours I’ve heard, aliens, worms, and sharks in tornados spoken in the same sentence. I don’t know what the people of Perfection Valley put in their water, but, yeah…I like to think I’m a pretty open-minded guy but even that’s a little much for me.”
“I sort of feel like this is my fault for trusting you with my location, but then again you sort of showed up on your own demand so there’s not much I can do to help you”, Simon joked, wondering how to properly explain the events that seemed to happen in this town he had decided to settle down in. “It leaves you with this weird paradox-like pull, right? Can’t quite figure out if the things you hear about is legit or if it’s just part of someone’s imagination.” However, the town was also a hard thing to track, with its low number of inhabitants and close-knit community -- making it one step above going out on the road again. The benefits outnumbered the weird, in this case. “We should focus on keeping each other sane, huh.”
She’d thought the storm had passed. An entire night stuck in her cement cellar, panic stricken and worried out of her mind for the apartments above the saloon (and the saloon itself) had put Audrey in quite a sour mood, but when the tornado vanished and the sun peeked out from behind the clouds, she couldn’t even describe her relief. To celebrate, she’d decided to close the saloon down for a day and make sure her employees are alright – namely, Simon. The two had developed such a tight bond and she couldn’t imagine how horrified Hayley must have been, so she invited them to the saloon so they could set up blankets on the floor and play board games; anything to lighten the mood.
That is, until the sirens sounded off once more and, much too soon for Audrey’s liking, the three shuffled their way into the cellar again. Now, the three sit in the middle of the large room, Audrey once again in quite a sour mood.
“This is annoying. How many tornadoes are we going to have in a day? Thr–” Cut off by a loud THUMP, Audrey nearly jumps out of her skin. “What was that?
When Audrey had suggested he and Hayley seek shelter with her to wait out the storm, he had barely thought past the morning (and a quick breakfast) before he had geared up with some activities for the three to get into, along with clothes and other necessary means. Hayley, although scared by the sirens, had her interest set on this ‘sleepover’ they were about to have and no better place than the Saloon -- having been there a couple of times before and after Simon’s shifts whenever the babysitter wasn’t able to cover. Her mind had quickly wandered away from the horrors outside to the attention she gained from both adults by her side, happily moving her piece around the board game whilst making up ridiculous backstories for the game itself. Simon’s character had turned into a whimsy elf, Audrey was a fairy and she, herself, was nothing less but a mermaid cursed to be stuck on land. Oh, the agony!
Their cozy game night was sadly interrupted by another warning and Hayley was the first to sigh out loud, shouting at the direction of the sound to “Cut it out, they’re playing!” before joining Audrey with an equal sour mood. There was not much to be done, besides seek shelter once more, with Simon trying to keep the situation light-hearted. He was just about to reply to Audrey’s comment when the thump sent both him and Hayley halfway up from the floor, Simon grabbing for Hayley by pure automatic movements and pulling her closer to them. “Holy f -- “, he managed to cut himself off in time, biting his tongue. “I don’t know but it sounded heavy.” It better not have crashed anything, he thought, not wanting to cause any further worry. “Where did it come from?”
“Yeah…” He trailed off and went over to the spice rack. He picked down some pepper, and garlic powder. He wanted it to taste a little, at least. He looked up at Simon, and nodded. “I suppose. But, I still want it to taste decently.” He mused, still not remembering to actually share the information about his daughter. At least until he heard the question.
“She’s ten months old. Yeah, I just got her like two weeks ago… her mother died. She’s named Beatrice.” Addison said and smiled a little, as he thought of how cute she was. “Oh yeah, you have a kid, right?”
Simon watched in silence as Addison started to fumble around with some spices, wondering if it would make a difference yet. His mind tried to recollect the many articles he had read through upon Hayley’s arrival, but some of the information had already mixed together at this point -- especially in regards to what age each development happened. “I’m sure the kid will show you whether it is appreciated or not, they know what they want and what they like from an early stage.”
Then, not much later, his eyebrows rose high. “Excuse me, but did you just brush over the fact you had someone die?” He wasn’t certain what parts to focus on first, staring straight at his co-worker. “Jesus, Addison... you can’t just go to work and keep that shit to yourself! Are you alright?” Because surely you didn’t dump off your child with a stranger, right? “I mean... yeah, I have a daughter too. Hayley. She’s four thought, so a bit of a difference there.”
“You know … I could kind of handle the whole graboid thing with the giant worms and the aliens were alright, but sharks … in a tornado?” Ibrahim shook his head. “I don’t know. How are they even alive in there?”
“I don’t see how anyone should be able to handle any of these things, it’s nuts!” Simon shook his head, near second-guessing his reason for settling down in this town of all places. “You think they could be... mutated or something? I doubt sharks are generally this vicious or at least I have heard otherwise.” He felt close to silly suggesting the sharks could be mutated of all things, but what other guesses where there? They lived in a desert for god’s sake.
Are you afraid of bad weather? What do you consider bad weather?
Uh, I wouldn’t say that I am? I mean, I find myself more bothered by it than anything since it sometimes gets in the way of plans and other ideas of mine. So yeah, bad weather is generally when you have to cancel plans and hide inside.
Would you move away from Perfection Valley if you had the option?
Well, I sort of just moved and I don’t know? Like, these conditions aren’t generally the best in terms of raising a child at the moment but I also kind of dig this small-town vibe we got going! It seems I have a stable job at that and a lovely boss who is more than patient with my overall screw-ups. My option would be to stay, but when I have ever been allowed a say on such matters.
Is this the craziest weather you’ve ever seen? If not, why not?
Canada is famous for its harsh winters, but Montréal tends to be on the calmer side of things -- sort of this middle ground -- so yeah. Definitely.
Are you afraid of sharks?
No, I’m not. Never really worried about ever seeing a shark at that.
Do you have plans to hunker down somewhere?
Currently bunking with Audrey and Hayley at the Saloon! Better to stick together than to take chances apart. She has more experience with rough weather conditions, even if no one can prepare for... well... yeah.
What are your top three choices of weapons against the Sharks and why?
I have... never used anything that could probably be useful against aggressive sharks. Like what would you use? A chainsaw? A gun? An Axe? Jesus! ... would he count as a weapon?
What would your catchphrase be?
“You are grounded!”
How many times are you out in public and have people come up and complain about or ask you questions about the weather?
People generally don’t walk up to me just to complain, however, I have met a few during work who think it’s fine to waste my time ranting about the weather before they give me their order. Always the awful tippers at that! I’m a waiter, not your bloody therapist mate.
Would you go out and go storm chasing?
Oh! If you had asked me this question before I got Hayley, I would probably have answered yes because it seems quite amazing? However, younger me was reckless and inconsiderate of his surroundings and I would not have survived... so current answer is no.
Do you think the situation could get worse somehow?
“Hmm? Oh, uh, probably. But it’s easier to cook here.” Addison said and looked up and over at Simon. He knew that it was probably odd that he was still there, since the kitchen was the first thing to close in the evenings. When the second question came, he chuckled and shook his head. “No. I’m trying to make baby food. Well, kind of. Not completely mushy but mostly mushy.” He said in way of explanation of what he was doing. Though, he just forgot to mention why he was making baby food, and for who he was making it.
“It’s just, so bland. I can’t get it to taste good. The meat tastes good, as do the potato and carrot mush, but together, it gets bland and gross at the same time. It makes no sense.” He said and scrounged up his face a fair bit.
Simon raised his eyebrows, having not expected the type of answer that came from Addison’s direction. “Baby food? Why?” He didn’t know a lot about his co-worker, considering they spent most of their time in different areas, but last time Simon checked he definitely didn’t have a reason to be making baby food after hours at work. “Oh... Well, if it comes as a comfort I can safely tell you that most baby food taste sort of... weird. It’s usually just a bunch of vegetables, fruit or easy to chew meat involved. They will either be picky or eat whatever is in front of them.” Simon’s shoulders sloped, his head thinking back to that one week in which he fed Hayley apple sauce basically every day due to being sick and Naomi insisting she didn’t have time to shop. Thankful Hayley was the latter in that case. “How old is the baby? I could maybe help you out as I do have some experience in the field of children -- or at least I hope I do.” He winked at his co-worker by the last bit, making it clear it was a joke, before stepping closer to the stove to have a look.
Val waved back, walking forward. They could have sworn they felt the wind pick up, but the news might have had them on edge. Walking closer, they noticed they parked in front of a restaurant.
“Yeah. I don’t know if you’ve had the radio on, but they’ve been talking about a tornado coming around here. Is there anywhere I can lay low till it blows over, so to speak?” She wasn’t about to laugh at her own joke in front of a stranger.
“It’s been on pretty much all day, in case of an update. Weather conditions get pretty rough when you live in the middle of a desert area, it seems.” Simon shrugged, dwelling back on the information given to him by Audrey in case of an emergency. “And of course! Now, I’m not the owner of this place -- that’d be Audrey -- but she’s kind of down in the basement having a nap. I doubt she’d kick someone out though, considering you shouldn’t be out driving once the winds start to hit. You’d need a racer to get away from that.”
Simon closed to space between them with a short laugh and exchanged a hand, wanting the stranger to feel welcomed in this time of need. “I’m Simon and you’ve landed yourself outside the Saloon.” He quickly gestured towards the building behind him. “Wanna continue the conversation inside?” If not to get away from the ever-moving dust, it would be to make sure his daughter hadn’t snuck away from Audrey and the safety from down below. Children were sneaky and she sure came with a curious mind.
I’m starting to realise that maybe I can’t always be your everything. but I finally found that girl we saw nine months ago. now, I don’t know what’s gonna happen but if I do it right, there’s a chance that you might finally have a full-time mom. what do you think?
Audrey reaches beneath the bar to retrieve her sales ledger from the day. She’s grateful for how busy it had been that night; it was the sole factor that pushed them over their goal for the week, meaning Audrey finally made a profit. Business has been rather slow lately, most people being too scared to even leave their own houses. Perfection Valley does that to a person – it makes you weak, susceptible to all of the craziness and strange creatures that either want to kill, eat, or hurt you in some way. Audrey tells herself constantly that, some day, she’ll have made enough money from the saloon that she’ll be able to return to Las Vegas where she truly belongs, but she knows that likely isn’t the case. No, more than likely, she will die here, in Perfection Valley, having nothing to call her own but this damn Saloon.
“Well, we beat our budget by a couple hundred dollars, but we’ve gotta work real hard next week to try to have successful nights every night. So far Friday and Saturday are the only profitable nights we’ve had.” She says, brows furrowing as she looks over the numbers from the evening. It almost doesn’t register that Simon had even said anything past his inquiry about the success of the week, but once it does, she looks at him with a sheepish grin. “Sorry. Sometimes it just gets so stressful, y’know? I mean, I don’t think I’ve had a day off in weeks. But you’re right, I shouldn’t be overworking myself. What did you have in mind?”
Money. It was a struggle for some people, a means of simply living for others and life goal for someone else. Could he say he truly understood the struggles of living on a tight economy with his own upbringing? Only partly. It had never been the money as much as Naomi’s reckless spending habits and his own inability to work fast and adapt to his tasks. He knew where to cut corners to stay afloat, but he also only had himself and his child to worry about it whereas Audrey was responsible for a whole establishment, a set of employees as well as herself. It wasn’t a type of responsibility he would ever want to be part of; unless you were like his parents and could easily hire people to do your job for you. “Gotta say, you kind of run yourself into a corner by starting a business in a desert town in case you hoped for riches”, Simon joked, wanting to lighten Audrey’s mood. “Not a lot of customers to pick from, besides the locals.”
He casually waved off her apology, removing himself from his seat and moving towards the edge of the bar. “You want a drink? It’s on the house. I’m no bartender but I reckon I still remember some cool tricks from my time at uni.” If it was one thing he had in common with his mom, it had to be entertaining people. Simon had happily been the person to throw parties both at home and inside his dorm, cooking up anything between games to drinks to hype up the evening. That section was certainly past him at this stage in his life, but he couldn’t deny he sometimes missed the rush of it all. Nothing else to worry about but tomorrow’s hangover and your upcoming exams. Simon casually shrugged at the last question, hunching behind the dish to grab two glasses. He would keep it light, not wanting to come home drunk with a child around. Standing up, he replied: “Maybe we could take Hayley to the lake? She’s been bugging me about that some time now but I’ve been too busy. Grill some hot dogs, play some games. Doesn’t cost much.”
The car, initially going 70, slows to a stop as they hear the news play over the radio, interrupting their music. A storm, and a bad one. Val pulls into the parking lot of the nearest building, looking for people.
“Hello? Anyone here?”
Although the town was twice the slow on the ordinary, and showed little to no signs of customers nearby, Simon had decided to help out Audrey at the Saloon in case someone happened to stop by. It was a sturdy building, after all, with plenty of space if a disaster were to struck. He had been standing near the parking lot, catching a glimpse of air when he had caught sight of a car rolling up and coming to a stop. “Certainly is”, Simon spoke up with a wave in the other person’s direction as he watched them approach. “Can I help you with something?” Maybe he could lure them in for a drink or a light meal, even if Addison wasn’t around to prepare it. He could manage.
