Despite his best efforts to NOT go out this Halloween, Calista seems to have wormed her way into forcing him out onto the scene. Costume? Check. Swarms of kids and teenagers roaming around in search of candy? Check. Reuben being unhappy with his situation? ...Maybe? Regardless, Halloween is in full swing and for better or worse Reuben is a part of it this year. His hometown seems to be taking this year above and beyond with every street and public space being filled to the brim with holiday-appropriate fare and fairs. How does Reuben handle it all? Does the fact he's a soon-to-be Guardian change anything about his feelings in regards to Halloween? Does he end up having any fun?!? "Are you ready yet?" a voice rang out from the living room. It was piercing to the ears and filled to the brim with an undertone of utter annoyance. The woman was clad in witchy attire from head to toe. A large witch's hat adorned her head with dark lips and makeup, as well as a dark short dress with a broom. Your stereotypical witch costume. "Almost," he stated with a roll of his eyes. A sigh escaped the new guardian's piercing red lips as he flipped the cape over his shoulders and tied it around his neck to keep it in place. His face was decked out with pale cream makeup and darkened eye shadow with a small drip of fake blood flowing down the sides of his mouth. He wore two fangs and bright red prescription contacts. He was a vampire for the evening, that much was obvious. He actually recycled an old vest and suit pants for the occasion and wore a white collared shirt underneath with a red necklace medallion that Calista had let him borrow. This was her favorite holiday, and one that was only mediocre in his opinion. Reuben normally enjoyed a quiet evening at home on Halloween. If any children dared venture out past Barton Town to his cottage, he was armed with some candy to pass out. But tonight he'd have to turn out the porch light, because Calista forced his hand this year. They were apparently supposed to go to the Halloween bash in Durem, his home town. Calista, also being from Durem, always loved the people and the scene. Reuben, on the other hand, always avoided the place at all costs. Somehow, even unbeknownst to Calista herself, Reuben agreed to attend the festivities. Giving himself one last glance over in the mirror, he licked his teeth and went out into the living room to see Calista standing there on her phone scrolling through tumblr, no doubt. "Okay, lets go," he said, standing at the hallway's entrance. "Finally," Calista stated, looking up to see the entire costume put together. "Wow, Reu, you really clean up well. I'm impressed." "What is this? A compliment? Coming from you? It really must be an odd day of the year," he jested. "Oh shut it. Lets go," Calista stated with a cracking smile, taking Reuben by the hand and leading him out the front door to her truck. Crowds of people lined the streets of the halloween fair. The night was definitely upon the world and people from all over came to Durem for their annual Fairytale Fair. Orange jack-o-lanterns lined the streets with dim lights strung up from telephone pole to pole. Even the buildings were decorated with cobwebs and some terrifying cheer. Everyone was in a good mood...except Reuben. He rather regretted the decision to come out to Durem. The last thing he wanted to do was be seen by anyone he used to know growing up.
Calista, on the other hand, was drawn to the night and loved the festivities. She acted as though she was a child running from booth to booth, playing the little games and such and gathering candies for herself. Reuben sat on the sidelines at almost every station. Oh, how he had wished he stayed home and lit some candles, meditated, and read some tarot cards instead. Out of the corner of his eye, a couple walked past. They were both dressed in "Dia de los Muertos" attire. Half face skull painted on the man's face whilst hers was done up more intricately and entirely. The couple walked by them and the man glanced at Reuben as he sat on the bench and smirked with a quick nod. Reuben's heart skipped a beat a second. It wasn't that type of smirk you'd give a stranger. It was a "checking you out" sort of smirk and nod. Reuben shook it off, yet began to blush behind the makeup. He decided to distract himself and check out his phone instead. Finding that Tumblr was far more entertaining than just sitting there. Suddenly, a presence joined him on the bench. Out of the corner of his eye, it was just a large figure. Reuben quickly glanced up to see the same man from a few moments earlier sitting there, looking straight on at one of the games. Reuben quickly looked back at his phone and only acted busy to keep from becoming too awkward. "This is a little lame, isn't it?" the stranger asked, still looking forward. Reuben was caught off guard at the man's voice. "Y-yeah, a tad bit, heh. I'm waiting for my friend over there to finish her game," he said, looking over at Calista who was unashamedly bobbing for apples. "Same here," the man said, turning to look at Reuben straight on. "I'm Evan, by the way. I'm really diggin' your costume," he said with a smile, eyeing Reuben up and down. "Ah, yeah? Thanks, I appreciate it," Reuben began, a smile growing on his face. "I really like you and your girlfriend's costumes as well. They look really nice. And I'm Reuben; though you can call me Reu." The two shook hands quickly and Evan spoke up, "Thanks, it took her a few hours to paint them. Very nice to meet you, Reu. So, what brings you to the fair? Your girlfriend over there?" Reuben chuckled a bit. "Yeah, she's been hounding me to go out for a while now. I don't know why I agreed to come out; but I did." "Yeah, same here, man. Ah, looks like she's done. It was nice meeting you. Have a wonderful evening," he said with a smirk and a wink, patting Reuben on the back. As he stood, he looked over at his girlfriend who ran up to him with a stuffed jack-o-lantern she had won. The two hugged. Before leaving, however, Evan turned, winked once more and waved at Reuben as they walked into the crowd. Reuben smiled as the man patted his back and just nodded when he was told to have a good evening. Did that really just happen? Was he being slightly hit on by a random stranger...with a girlfriend no less? Stranger things could have happened. Reuben couldn't stop smiling a moment before he got up, waltzing over to an unhappy, soaked Calista who just couldn't seem to get an apple. "Goddamn these games. I can't stand this," she stated, looking at the obviously goofy smile on Reuben's face. "What's got you in such a good mood?" she asked. Reuben looked off in the direction Evan walked and shook his head with that same smile. "Nothing, just enjoying my time here," he said. The two spent the rest of the evening at the Durem Fairytale Fair laughing, playing the games and visiting the booths. All in all, coming out this halloween was a very good idea, Reuben decided. A very good idea indeed. Valentine's Day. A holiday, according to Reuben, used to promote fake, over dramatic ideals of love, relationships, and a day to make the chocolate and floral businesses flourish for a time. At least until today... Reuben was out with Calista running some errands on a lunch break before returning to the shop. All he could see for a mile was people bustling to get their gifts for their loved ones. Pinks, reds, and whites lined every street. Items shaped as hearts, boxes of candy, balloons, and fluffy stuffed animals were in everyone's hands. The tarotist knew to keep his attention on his work, not rifle with affairs of love or affection. He had a business to run. Sure, he'd find people cute here or there, and even have a fun time with someone on rare occasion; but there was nothing worse for a career than establishing a "lifelong" or even long term bond with someone else. "You really need to download Tinder. I'm telling you, you could get a lot of dates if you just tried. You're an okay looking guy," Calista jested as she kept her eyes glued to her cell. "Swipe left, swipe left, swipe right. It's truly very simple," she concluded, sipping her coffee and following the motions she spoke as a new fellow's photograph popped up in place of the prior. "Cali, you know I have no time or patience for an actual relationship," Reuben stated coldly, pushing forward. "Not anymore at least." "Who said anything about a relationship?" she chuckled. Shaking her head, eyes still on her phone, she continued, "All I'm saying is that you should go out and have some fun. You've really delved into your work ever since you supposedly 'fucked up' the soul capture for Lab 305." "I'd really rather not talk about that," he replied, rolling his eyes as they continued their walk down the street. "Fine, we don't have to. But you really do need to do something else to get your mind off of your stresses. Shit, go get yourself a fuck buddy if nothing else." Another long sip, this time, with sound. Reuben sighed. "If it'll get you to shut up, I'll go download the app." Calista grinned, finally locking her phone screen and placing it in her pocket. "Good. But you have to know I'll never shut up." The evening came quickly and before Calista left back to Durem, she forced Reuben to download the popular dating app and quickly showed him how to use it.
It didn't take long for Reuben to get the hang of it, swiping left and right on people became second nature. It wasn't like him to judge someone so superficially to think someone was a "good match" for him, but this was like a game. Those whom he swiped left on would never know. He spent a good portion of the evening going through the local men that popped up, one after another, on his screen. As the night progressed, Reuben took a break, only to come back to a few matches and a couple messages. He dove into the messages quickly, probably too quickly and began to get a bit too personal early on and never received responses. Finally, a message popped up from a guy named Evan, 28.
Reuben couldn't help but snoop a bit. Something about this man felt familiar. He had remembered swiping right, but only because he was in a swiping fit and hadn't really taken a deeper look into their photos or about me's. Now that he got a message, he decided to look a bit deeper. The about me was very weak, in Reuben's opinion. A small blurb about him liking the outdoors, the fact that he's a bartender in Aekea, likes to dye his hair a multitude of colors constantly, and the fact that he owns a German Shepherd who he named Axel. His photos, however, proved a bit of insight into the man's life. A couple selfies, quite cute; one with bright green, acid-esque hair, shirtless (abs for days), and the other with a cute little outfit and titanium-gray hair. Another was a photo of him and Axel lying on a bed together. And finally, his fourth and fifth picture were of him and this woman. One of them was a cutesy couple-esque photo of them hugging and acting "adorable" to the camera, something he could see a multitude of his gay friends doing with their girlfriends. The other was a shoddy photo of, what seemed to be them at Halloween last year. Reuben's heart picked up pace as he glanced at that final photo. Both of their faces were done in Dia de los Muertos paint. The man's heart skipped a beat as he wished the photo was slightly less overexposed and a bit less dark overall to make it easier to make out. Obviously the photo was taken at night, and by the background lighting, it looked as though it was at the Durem Fairytale Fair. His heart sank into the pit of his stomach. Nerves overtook him and all he was doing was looking at his phone screen. This couldn't be the same man that sat with him on the bench that night, could it? Reuben couldn't remember what the man told him his name was, but this was promising. Finally, after about twenty minutes of figuring out what to write back, Reuben decided it was time to respond. He knew he didn't want to overshare like he had been doing all night, but keeping it kind and to the point.
It didn't take long before Evan responded.
Reuben's heart dropped, this time in sadness and disappointment. 'My girlfriend'. What kind of shit was this? Tinder was a place for dating, right? Not for someone to go to make friends. With a heavy, saddened heart, Reuben couldn't help but continue the conversation, even if it wasn't going anywhere.
The responses slowed down, and it took Evan a good hour to respond. It was getting late, but Reuben was determined to stay up and continue to text this guy.
Reuben laid in his bed, light cascading down onto his face from the phone screen alone. A saddened facial expression was all he could muster. With a sigh, he clicked the lock button and laid it beside him, staring up at the ceiling in the pitch black room. A good few minutes of thinking later, he couldn't help but respond. Strangely enough, however, the topic of the Fairytale Fair hadn't come up yet. Maybe that was something he should ask about in person. Coffee was innocent, right? With little friends in his own personal life, he decided to just go with it.
Even with a saddened heart, Evan's number was placed into his phone and a date officially set for February eighteenth in the morning. This would be a nice little distraction from Lab 305 and work, even though they were to be just friends. Reuben placed his phone to charge on his bedside table and rolled over, ready to sleep. The morning of the coffee date had finally arrived. Reuben awoke early to prep himself mentally and physically for such an occasion. He and Evan had been texting for the past few days just getting to know each other more and more. That little blurb of an "about me" on Tinder was nothing in comparison to learning about a person through messaging and talking on the phone.
Even though there was no reason for it, Reuben still had butterflies in his stomach. He had no idea why, but deep down, he had begun to like the man he was getting to know. If only he was single...and gay. That thought would come and go during the days following their initial meeting on Tinder, but Reuben suppressed those feelings deep within, never to see the light of day. One thing Reuben knew he wanted to bring up on this little excursion was Halloween night. He needed to know if this was the man that sat with him on the bench. It haunted him not knowing, but he did want to get to know Evan on a deeper level. Finally, the time had come to leave the house. Reuben was ready and looking rather cute, even in his own personal opinion. He got into his Prius and drove to the local Starbucks. As Reuben arrived at the Starbucks, he got out of his car and leisurely made his way inside, only to see the titanium haired hottie that was seated in one of their leather seats in the corner wearing a gray tank top that accentuated his biceps and faded, slightly ripped blue jeans. He was on his phone, not paying much attention to his surroundings. Reuben walked up to him and waved a hand between his phone and his face only to receive a surprised Evan in response. "Oh, hey! So glad you could make it," Evan stated as he stood up with open arms. "Bring it in." Reuben chuckled and nodded, going in for the hug. The smell of this man's cologne was to die for. So masculine. As the hug ended, Reuben finally spoke, "I'm glad I could too. Did you order already?" "Nah, not yet. I was waiting for you," Evan stated, walking around Reuben towards the cashier. "What do you normally order here?" "Well aren't you sweet," Reuben stated with a chuckle as he followed. "I generally go for the passion tea or the passion tea lemonade." A fairly simple drink, yet so tasty. "Sweetened?" "Definitely." As the barista called out Evan's name, he scurried over to pick up both drinks and returned to the small table the two were seated at. "Thank you so much," Reuben said with a bright smile as he took the drink. "Of course, so tell me, what's it like to be a business owner?" "Rough, to say the least. But very rewarding. I'm just so lucky to have been able to use my expertise and craft a business from it. I love my work, I do, but I do agree with my friend, Calista, when she says that's all I think about." "That's awesome, man. I wish I could own my own business, but shit's expensive." "Yeah, it takes a bit to start up, that's for sure. But save up little by little and you'll be able to do it in no time," he said, taking a sip of his tea. "Can I ask you a random question?" "Shoot," Evan stated with a curious smirk after sipping his own drink. "When you messaged me, you looked awfully familiar. Were you, by chance, at the Durem Fairytale Fair for Halloween last year?" A look of shock overtook Evan's face. "Actually, yeah, I was. I assume we've met?" Reuben laughed. "I doubt you will remember, but I was a vampire and I think you sat with me on a park bench while our friends were off doing their own thing." Evan looked as though he was trying to reminisce. He vaguely remembered a vampire, though that night had been one of his drunkest in a while. "Yeah, I do kinda remember talking to a vampire that night. That's hilarious. Is that why you swiped right on me? You remembered me from that night? What makes this more funny is that one of my Tinder photos is my girl and I from that night." Reuben nodded with a smile, taking another sip of his tea. "Actually, if I'm being completely honest, I swiped right because you're cute. It was only after I was matched with you that I noticed the photo and remembered who you were. Though I wasn't one hundred percent sure, but I'm fairly positive you were the one chatting with me for a few minutes there. It was so brief, but it was definitely the highlight of my night." Evan just chuckled. "Well, I'm glad I was able to be the beacon of light in your otherwise dim evening." Reuben smiled and shook his head. He was quite enjoying himself on this mini coffee date. He hadn't done something like this in quite some time, but this was really something he enjoyed. As the two continued to converse, they seemed to really hit it off. Reuben became comfortable quite quickly and the conversation just flowed as though the two had known each other for years. Soon enough, day turned into night, and the two realized they had been in a Starbucks with empty drinks for a few hours now. "Oh, dude! It's already seven! My girlfriend is gonna be pissed! I'm sorry, I have to go." "Ah, it's not a problem. I didn't even realize how late it was getting. I'm sorry to have kept you." "Nah, man, not your fault at all. I've really enjoyed our chatting. I think we'll be good friends. Definitely gonna keep in touch!" Reuben smiled. Evan stood up and stretched, baring a glimpse of abs that Reuben couldn't help but get caught up in. The tarotist quickly cleared his throat and stood up as well, trying to avoid the fact that his cheeks began to blush. Evan grinned and held out his arms for a hug. As the two embraced, Reuben couldn't help but take a deep breath of his cologne, which still smelled very good. The two left the Starbucks together and as they split ways, Evan waved and gave a soft smile, a hand making it's way through his titanium hair before turning around and walking off. Reuben just watched, as Evan made his way towards his car, with a huge smile on his face. He had really enjoyed himself and was sad to see his newfound friend go. With the "date" completed, Reuben returned home. Turning on the lights in his house and sitting on the couch, he couldn't help but bring out his phone and clicking on the Tinder app, going to Evan's profile to stare into those beautiful blue eyes some more. He knew nothing would ever come of this "schoolboy crush", but it was nice that he was able to find a friend in this stranger from the fair. It was an afternoon unlike any other, Calista had come to pick up Ryder for the day and take him out to the bookstore. Normally Reuben would do it, but he had a full day of scheduled readings ahead and Ryder was getting rather antsy at home without any new books to read. Luckily for him, Calista had weekends off and was able to step in. The drive to Isle de Gambino was a quiet one. The two hadn't really spoken since their last meeting almost a month prior. Ryder stared out the window and watched as Calista weaved through traffic on the freeway. The drive was tense to say the least. As the two pulled into a parking space, Calista noticed someone familiar. "Is that.." she began, narrowing in on a couple walking into the same bookstore that Ryder and her were visiting. Ryder looked in the same direction, but didn't notice anyone or anything in particular. Calista quickly hopped out of the truck and began to waltz into the bookstore as if she was angered. Ryder's eyes widened as the scene unfolded in front of him. What on earth was she doing!? He quickly followed suit and rushed in after her. She wasn't about to embarrass him in his temple, was she!? As the frei entered the small bookstore, all he could hear was the voice of his aunt. "Excuse me!" she called ominously. Ryder's eyes widened as he heard her. He saw a couple spin around as they were being yelled at. The woman looked offended and the man just shook his head and shrugged. "Can we help you?" he asked, a brow raised. Calista instantly felt offended. Her face scrunched up, and all Ryder could do was shudder and hope for the best. He wasn't about to interfere with the wrath of Calista, even though as soon as the man spun around, he knew why she had called him. But before any more words could be shared, Ryder was spotted by the man. "Oh, wow, hey! You're Ryder, right!? What a coincidence!" the man called, walking straight past Calista and over to Ryder, grabbing his hand to shake it. "Reuben has told me so much about you! I've seen pictures, that's why I know who you are." The man kept a smile on his face the entire time. Ryder, first of all, was shocked that he had grabbed his hand without permission, didn't humans typically offer the hand and the frei could decline? Secondly, Reuben had been talking about him to his friend? Thirdly, why hadn't Ryder heard of this man before, aside from the one date they had and the snooping Calista had done. "Y-yes, I'm Ryder. And you are?" Ryder tried his best to throw off the trail that Calista had been so rude to create. Looking over, Calista was obviously fuming, and the girl, Valerie, seemed just happy as ever. Calista shook her head. "How do you know Reuben?" she inquired bluntly, with such a tone only Calista could muster. The attitude was quite apparent. Evan chuckled, and chuckled, and chuckled some more. "That's a funny question! It's Reuben. Everyone knows Reuben!" Ryder's eyes widened and his cheeks went blush. His poison. He looked down at his hands, they seemed swollen, uncontrollably, they were more potent (probably due to his stress level at Calista). Those few seconds of touching Ryder's hand had given Evan a fit. It was then that Reuben began to manifest. It was obvious that it wasn't Reuben, some details were very off, but it was based in Evan's mind; where Ryder could see the hallucination occurring. Calista's eyes narrowed. "What's that supposed to mean?" Valerie walked over to Evan (right through holo-Reuben), rather concerned. "Are you okay, babe?" she questioned. Evan laughed, eyes puffy and cheeks flushed. "Yeah, babe! Everyone's okay. Reuben, man! How ya been!?" the man chuckled, swatting at holo-Reuben and laughing. "Who's Reuben, sweetie?" Valerie asked, both out of concern and curiosity. "Reuben is my best friend. My gay best friend," Calista said walking over. "Someone your little boy-toy here needs to leave the fuck alone," she finished, walking up to Evan and shoulder checking him slightly. Evan just chuckled as he spun around. Valerie grabbed Evan's arms and became angry. "Hey! What the hell is wrong with you, lady!? What are you talking about?" Evan just plopped down to the ground, only to look up and see Reuben smiling back down at him. "Hey good-lookin'!" he said with a smile. Valerie spun around to see Evan staring up at the ceiling. "What did you do to him!?" Valerie stated, turning to Calista. Ryder couldn't sit by and watch. Everything that Calista said to Valerie in that moment went by in a blur. He floated over to Evan and hovered down to Evan's level while the two women went at it. The frei looked up at the Reuben hallucination Evan was having and then turned back to the man. "It's alright. Reuben isn't here. He's at home." Evan chuckled and looked right up at Reuben, smiling. He then made kissy lips to him before turning to Ryder and smirking more. The hallucination bent down and when Evan turned back the two 'kissed'. Ryder shook his head. Calista had been right. Obviously Evan had some sort of feelings for Reuben, this concreted it in his mind. "Evan, Reuben isn't actually there. I'm sorry this is happening to you, but you'll be fine in a little bit." When Valerie noticed Ryder was crouched down to Evan's level, she came over and pushed the toadstool away, causing Ryder to fall to the ground. "Get away from him, you monster! You're probably the one who caused whatever is happening to him!" she shouted, trying to pick Evan up off the ground. "I-I didn't mean-" "Now you've gone and done it," Calista said, waltzing up to Valerie and throwing a right hook right into the poor girl's face, instantly breaking her glasses in half and causing her to fall into Evan and the two of them ended up right back onto the floor. "HEY! WHAT IS GOING ON OVER HERE!?" a disgruntled manager screamed as he ran over from the back. "GET OUT! ALL OF YOU! AND NEVER COME BACK! YOU ARE BANNED FROM TODAY'S BOOKS!" the man said, phone in hand. "I'm calling the police!" "No need, we were just leaving," Calista stated loudly, narrowing her eyes at Valerie and motioning for Ryder to follow as she began to leave. That, however, didn't stop the man from walking back over towards the registers on the phone angrily. Ryder's heart sank as deep in his chest as it could. Never come back? Was the manager serious? Was he really banned from the bookstore!? This wasn't something that Ryder could just take. He hadn't even gotten a new book yet! He quickly glanced at all the books around him and truly felt sad for the first time. In fact, he was sad enough to actually feel tears well up in his eyes as he floated quickly to catch up to Calista. Before he got too far, he turned back around to see Valerie trying to compose herself and pick up Evan once more. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "What the hell do you mean, banned!?"
Ryder could hear his guardian yelling at Calista from his bedroom. He'd never heard Reuben truly yell before, at least not like this. Ryder just wanted a new book and Calista had to go and be a hot-head. Even the frei was so mad at Calista for starting up everything. Why did she have to stir the pot? The two hadn't even done anything to her. In fact, Evan was being a nice guy! But now, because of what she had done, the frei was never allowed back into that bookstore again. He rolled over in his bed, tears falling from his face onto the pillow sheet. More yelling could be heard up until the front door slammed, shaking the whole house. It only took a few moments before Ryder heard a knocking at his bedroom door, only to ignore it. The door creaked open. "Want to tell me your side of the story now?" Ryder winced and sniffled a bit before rolling over to see Reuben standing there, arms crossed, angrily huffing. His tone wasn't mean or angry, but his entire body seemed to be stiff and just so. "Not really." Reuben's eyes narrowed a bit behind his glasses, and Ryder instinctually knew that he wasn't going to leave until he talked. "Calista fought Evan's girlfriend." Reuben shook his head in shock. "Evan who!?" "Your friend." "What? How do you even know Evan? How did she know Evan?" The frei sniffled, knowing the secret that was kept was about to run out of his mouth without another thought. He tried to keep it back, but his anger with Calista over the days events just made him want Reuben to be mad with her. "The night you went on your date, Cal-" "My date!? What the hell do you mean?" Reuben sliced Ryder's words in half. Ryder heaved a big breath before letting it out with a few more tears, trying to push the words from his mouth in between sobs, "Calista said you were on a date. So we followed you to Dur-" "You what!?" Reuben cut into the raevan's sentence again. Angry, and getting angrier and angrier by the second, Reuben couldn't help but storm out of the room, closing the door behind him softly as to not alarm the frei, but knowing it was best for his own sanity to calm down before discussing anything further. Ryder's thought process continued, only circling back around to the fact that he was never allowed into the bookstore again. He rolled over on his bed to face away from the door. He held onto the pillow tightly for comfort, sobbing and thinking into the night. Just over a week had passed since the bookstore fiasco. Reuben still hadn't spoken more to Ryder about what happened, and his birthday was just a couple days away. The two hadn't spoken much at all, actually. The Rothmore home was quiet, eerily so. The tension was high and anyone who visited could tell. Calista hadn't come back since their blowup and Ryder hadn't noticed any calls or texts between the two. Reuben stayed out in the shop most of the days just keeping to himself. Ryder stayed in the house doing the same. It was very unhealthy to say the least, neither party talking it out. It was before dawn and the guardian had been stressed out all morning, Evan had been getting shorter and shorter with him over the course of the week, and these two talked each and every day all day long. It was like they were best friends, but Reuben's heart sank each and every time a text message would come back with a short reply or no text would come back at all. With a heavy sigh, Reuben put down the bottle he was working on and just laid his head in his hands. He couldn't even express how he felt. Angry. Disappointed. Hurt. A whirlwind of emotions at every person involved. Angry at Calista for doing everything she did and lying to him. Ryder for telling Calista in the first place about Evan and then keeping what they did from him. Evan for being so back and forth, but mostly hurt that he'd started distancing himself. Reuben just couldn't sort out all of these emotions. He needed to get away. The guardian attempted to call his hiking buddy, Sam, to no avail. She was going to be too busy at the zoo today. He contemplated contacting another person from the lab. But a quick run down of all the names didn't really offer anyone particularly enticing at this very moment. Plus, it was rather early to be calling people. Setting the guardian's list back in his desk, he got up and paced around the workroom just thinking, fuming, and still not being able to get over what had happened. His reading in the morning even knew he was tense. Obviously, Reuben knew what he needed to do; and that was just go have a conversation about it with Ryder. But all the tarotist wanted to do was call Evan and profusely apologize like he had the day of the incident, find some sort of glimmer that the two could continue to flesh out what they had started, even if it was only friendship. Reuben ran back into the house and into his bedroom. He packed up a bag and left a note on the frei's door that said, "I'm going out. I'll be back later." Ryder awoke around ten that morning to the note on the door. Had Reuben really left him all alone? The whole reason Calista had to come watch him that first day was "in case something happened" or if he needed someone for anything. But now, Reuben was just off doing his own thing and the frei was left to fend for himself.
If the raevan were being honest with his feelings, he'd say that having the house to himself without fear of Reuben looming was actually rather nice, especially since the past week had been so tense for the poor frei. Since he was home alone, he decided to take this opportunity to write Reuben a birthday card. One thing he read from his storybooks that was during a birthday, typically humans would get each other gifts and cards. Some, however, were just a heartwarming gesture. Ryder didn't have anything he could really give him, so he decided that he'd create a nice card for the tarotist. Heading out to Reuben's workshop, he pulled out some paper from the desk and checked it to be sure it wasn't anything important. He then took a quick trip into the shop to make sure that Reuben wasn't around. He closed up shop for the day, obviously, and posted his typical "sorry for the inconvenience" sign before heading out. At least that was a bonus for Ryder, giving him more time to craft a beautiful card! This card was done to kill two birds with one stone. First it was to apologize, offering that olive branch to his guardian was much needed to lighten the mood around the house, and the second was to wish him a happy birthday like the characters in some of the books he had read did. At least Ryder realized that the intention behind the card was that it was heartfelt and not just a random card. Ryder picked up a pen and scribbled on the paper "Happy Birthday". It looked like a five year old had written it, but it was honestly the best he could do. He tried to imitate the letters he would read every day, but his hand just wasn't working with him the way he had expected it to. He tried holding it a different way, and swapping hands, and just began to get frustrated with the fact that he knew what he wanted to write, how to spell it, everything; but he just couldn't get it to look like he wanted. After almost twenty minutes, the frei set the pen down and looked at the card. It looked like utter shit; even he knew it. But, it was mostly legible, and it was worth a shot to try and get his guardian to ease up on the anger. Ryder folded it in half and floated it into the house, setting it on the little desk Reuben had in the living room so that the guardian would see it the moment he walked in the door. Ryder, still slightly miffed by his lack of knowledge on how to use a pen, decided that if Reuben was going out, so would he! The toadstool got dressed, grabbed his spell book, and headed out the front door towards the forest behind the house. Reuben sat on the couch in the living room with strong brewed tea in hand. He stared down at the invitation he received from Adrian about the opening of a new tech cafe, The Silver Fox. It was happening on halloween this year, and of course, Reuben wasn't as fond of going out to the festivals like Calista was. He had been asked to go out with her again this year like last, but declined, for he was going to support a friend at the grand opening of their shop.
The tarotist knew he wanted to go with Ryder, but in the back of his mind, he knew that he wanted to reconnect with Evan. The two hadn't spoken for a few months, ever since the fiasco between Ryder, Calista, Evan, and his girlfriend, Valerie. Reuben knew it was worth a shot, after all, it was halloween the year prior that they had first met. Maybe this was the shot he needed to take in order to rekindle that friendship with him. Reuben didn't like to admit that he had stronger feelings for Evan than just friendship, but Evan wasn't gay, or, at least he wasn't single. Reuben never pried into the details of Evan's relationship with Valerie, especially because he had never met her personally. The falling out a few months ago was rough on the guardian. He didn't know what to do when Evan had stopped returning his texts altogether. The pain aside, Reuben took a deep breath as he sat the invitation on the coffee table and stood up, waltzing into the kitchen, stopping at the bar and leaning upon it. Did he dare text Evan? He probably already had plans with Valerie, so he'd likely decline the offer anyway. But, was it worth a shot? The man stared out the window as he watched a woman jog by down the street, and an elderly couple slowly walking along on the farther end toward town. A small smile grew on his face as he turned around, taking another sip of tea and setting it down before walking back out to the living room. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and quickly swiped through it until he saw Evan's name come across the screen. His heart began to race a bit, but it was definitely worth a shot. What's the worse he could say? No? Definitely worth it. Clicking the text message icon, he quickly began to type:
With that, he clicked the lock button on his phone, setting it on the coffee table next to the invitation and laid down on the couch, staring up at the ceiling. It only took a few minutes before his phone lit up, a response from Evan.
That was all Reuben needed. A smile grew upon his face as he laid the phone upon his chest. ◈ WHO: Cordelia, Adrian, Reuben, Ryder, & Evan (Ebony Shade & Skyeforge)
◈ WHEN: Evening on October 31, 2017 ◈ WHERE: The Silver Fox Tech Café & Lounge - Isle de Gambino ◈ WEATHER: Chilly. Another day, another dollar. Reuben had been working all morning. His shop was full of customers. From the curious passerby to the few loyal patrons. He looked out of his shop window and noticed a few families walking along the sidewalk. A crooked smile appeared on his face. He wished to have that kind of reality one day. Evan, Ryder, and himself all walking (or floating) down the street together. A sight he’d love to be apart of. Sadly, his shop was too bustling for him to take much time off; especially these days.
When he first opened the shop he was able to close a few days here or there and no one cared. Now that business was booming, he seemed to never have a day off. One client wanted a potent potion while another was seeking a specific crystal and yet another wanted to look into buying a tarot deck. Another whole sect of customers wished to buy fresh herbs or specialty glass bottles for their own potions which Reuben would order from one of his importers. Reuben’s business had grown tremendously over the years and more and more people seemed curious as to what the Mystic Herb was all about. Nowadays, however, the tarotist wasn’t as interested in the monotony of work. Yes, this was his passion, but ever since his fight with Erryd, the things the shadow had said to him, although hurtful, were true. He threw himself into his work day in and day out. He knew he needed to make a change. Now that everything with Ryder had seemed to settle, Reuben knew that his focus should shift. He hadn’t been there for Ryder nearly as much as he should have been. His heart ached for what Ryder must have gone through. Especially that he had gone through it all alone. And what kind of guardian was he to not even realize that his charge wasn’t really his charge? It was all an illusion. Erryd. Ryder. It was all a large confusing mess, but something he couldn’t ignore. Erryd was right, and Reuben knew it. That night, after Reuben closed up the shop, he made his way back into the house. The place was dark and everyone had no doubt gone to bed. Reuben sat in the darkness of his living room with a cup of tea, dwelling on the days events. After what seemed to be an hour of sitting there sipping tea, he had an idea. An apprentice. He would hire an apprentice to help care for his shop! He could then have more time to spend with Ryder and Evan, and shift his focus from work to his family. A smile grew upon his face as he had the idea. He took his, now empty, cup to the kitchen and placed it ever-so-delicately down in the stainless steel sink. Reuben retired to the bedroom, only to find Evan playing a video game on the television. “Oh, you’re still awake,” he said, taking off his shirt and tossing it into the hamper. “Yeah,” Evan said, not taking his eyes off the screen, mashing buttons on his controller. “How was work, babe?” Reuben slipped under the covers and wrapped one arm around Evan’s stomach, laying his head on the pillow beside him. “It was...work,” he said plainly. “I was actually going to ask your opinion on something,” he concluded, rolling around and sitting up next to Evan. Evan paused his game and set down the controller. “What’s up?” he questioned, looking at Reuben with concern. “I want to hire an apprentice,” he began, looking off into the distance for the right words. “I want someone who has just as much passion for this craft as I do and, in turn, can help run the shop.” He smiled as the thought progressed in his mind. “I want to be able to spend more time at home with you and Ryder especially.” “That sounds good, babe. You should definitely do what your heart is tellin’ you to do,” Evan stated, wrapping one arm around Reuben’s neck. Reuben pulled himself closer to Evan’s side. “Yeah, I think this will be really good for all of us,” he said with a deep breath and a smile. |