Description
A Greater Society - Chapter 58: Walk With Me by Ratte
Story
The week proceeded normally, my trying to pay little mind to the irritated daystaff. Heather's presence was reassuring, the other member not interested in approaching when others were around. Though it was clear the staff was not fond of us, it seemed they weren't willing to make a scene in front of their own. I couldn't help but find that a little strange, but went along with the passive security.
Morissey and I didn't exchange many words as the days passed leading up to Friday. After a decent breakfast I walked out to the desk to start my final shift for the week, waiting to get the verdict that had been held over my head the past few days. Finally the door opened and he walked in, carrying the last day's folder as his feet took him to my desk.
"Reverend," he said as he reached the desk, slightly turning to look back to the table.
"Yes?" I responded.
"I appreciate your hard work, so I'm...willing to lower the pay cut for you in this case," he said with a tone of defeat.
I was actually surprised, especially after the one episode just a couple years ago. In fairness, he hadn't done anything like that since, though I was a lot more wary around him because of it. He was a hard man to read and that honestly terrified me at this point. It really made me wonder how he could both say how he liked my work and wanted to keep me around as his employee, but would go to that extent to scare me into submission. Surely no basic secretary like myself was worth such trouble.
"...Really?" I replied in disbelief.
"Yes, really," he affirmed. "You have done a great job since your enrollment. Your...motivation gives me pause, but your efficiency and precision are noteworthy. I don't like making compromises, but I'll humor such a thing for your case."
"...I don't really know what to say. Th-Thank you."
"...And I apologize for...that event."
I just blinked, at a loss for words and dumbstruck by the apology. I didn't think it really mattered to him, but there was a note of pain in his expression I hadn't often seen. Something told me there was a lot on his mind, perhaps my seeing myself in him to some extent.
"Morissey, is...everything alright?" I asked, bracing for the worst.
"Pardon?" he answered, tilting his head.
"You just seem bothered by something, but I can't quite place it," I observed. "I'm sorry if it's strange to ask, or unprofessional to offer in some way, but you can talk to me about it if you feel the need."
His ears slunk back as he looked at me, at his own loss for words. His gaze gradually lowered to the folder in his hand, finally placing the folder on the rim of my desk.
"...I would...like that, if you are truly willing," he quietly said. "If you have time this evening, I could come by."
"I'd not mind if it's after dinner so I can get my children fed first," I said. "Say, six?"
"...Six would be fine," he confirmed, taking out our weekly pay.
In my hand he placed the weekly sum, my deducting Daniel's pay and setting it aside on the inner shelf as Morissey took the finished projects and turned away. Curious, I counted through what remained for my pay to see just how much would be deducted from here, but the sum I held was the same as it was the previous weeks.
"M-Morissey," I called from my desk as he walked away. "I think you made--"
He looked back with a strange, severe expression on his face and just shook his head, effectively shutting me up. I guess this wasn't a mistake after all, though I hadn't a clue what led to this calculation. Regardless, I opened my wallet and placed the bills inside as he left, Daniel standing up to retrieve his pay as well.
"What was that about?" he asked.
"I'm not sure," I replied. "I thought he gave me too much by mistake, but he shook his head and seemed aware of it."
"Odd, but ya might as well take it," he shrugged. "Ya work hard and could use the break."
"...I suppose so," I sighed. "...Would you be willing to do me a favor today? Maybe after lunch?"
"Hm?"
I opened my wallet back up to take out a handful of bills, hoping it would be enough, and handed it to the larger man.
"Would you please get Su...Sienna some more clothes and...maybe a stuffed animal if there's enough? She's such a sweet girl and I'd like her to have some company at night just like Riv if it's possible."
Sura's ears perked from the table, hearing her name. She looked back over to us, her head cocked a bit to the side and her warm cinnamon eyes wide in curiosity. I looked back to her with a little smile and wave from behind my desk and her only response was to bring one of her hands up to her mouth. Such a shy little thing.
"That's no problem," Daniel said, putting the money in his wallet. "I'll see 'bout grabbin' some stuff from the grocery shop too while I'm out, see if there's anything interesting."
"Oh, um, w-would you mind..." I trailed off, awkward over my impending request.
He leaned forward to rub his snout atop my head with a little laugh.
"I already know where this is headin' and no, I don't mind," he said with a smile, patting my messy hair. "I'm sure he'll have some just waitin' for ya when I get there."
I fidgeted with my pen and smiled a bit, both looking forward to later today and not knowing what to think. A strange situation I've made for myself, but maybe if I got to know a little about this enigmatic employer of mine I could make more sense of this situation, of him as a person, and other things. With so many things in mind it took a lot to turn my focus to work, but I did my best to ensure my work would be done on time.
---
After lunch Daniel took a brief leave from the home to head into town, my watching over the two children in his absence. Sura was catching up quickly with reading and writing, no longer needing help or guides for smaller words and working on some of the more complex ones. She'd also begun touching upon math, starting with simple addition and subtraction as one of us helped show and explain how those principles worked. Like Riv, she was hesitant to start something, but once she did and grasped the concepts she proved quite apt in little time. I sat behind my desk and observed her from my chair, so very proud of her progress in just a week.
Riv sat next to her and would help her pick apart and learn some larger words or numbers if needed, not wanting to bother me too much while I did my own work. He'd watch over her closely, surprisingly protective of this new charge. It tickled me, really, seeing them get along how they did. Normally children might fight or argue but that much just didn't happen with these two. I certainly couldn't complain.
Daniel arrived back home, bag in hand. He set the bag on the small table and removed a couple seashell pastries for each child to take, Riv happily accepting his and Sura hesitantly taking hers. He pat both of them on the head as he picked the bag back up.
"When you're finished, Sura, we got ya some more clothes to try on," he said, putting his big arm around her and nuzzling her head. "We hope you like them."
She looked up at him and blinked, but didn't say anything. Even then, her silence said plenty. While she ate he retreated to the kitchen to put away a few groceries, though I hadn't any idea what all he might have found. When he came back to the lobby he was carrying a small plate with a slice of sweet cornbread, setting it on my desk. It was split and slathered with butter and honey, just how I liked it. With a smile he left my desk and sat back down at the little table to wait for our youngest.
Once she was finished with her pastry both of them took a moment to head upstairs to try on what remained in the shopping bag. Riv worked on some art at his table in the lobby, the scratching of pencils bringing a little life to the otherwise quiet room.
"Father?" Riv softly called from his table.
"Yes, honey?" I answered.
"...Is...Sura your favorite?" he asked.
I raised my gaze and looked over to him, his round ears fallen to the side and his face awash with worry. He'd even stopped drawing, lost in thought and waiting for my response.
"What?" I said, incredulous. "Of course not, honey. I don't have a favorite; I love you both just as you are, no more or less than the other. We just want to get her the same things you have, like clothes and things for hobbies. We didn't mean to make you feel left out."
He just continued staring blankly at the papers in front of him, so I stood up from my desk to walk over to my growing boy. I wrapped my scrawny arms around his front and gently rubbed my snout in his hair.
"Riv, we love you very much and I hope we do enough to make that much known," I whispered. "We love Sura, too, just as much as we love you. We want to provide for her the same things we do for you, to help you both grow and develop into good people. Her being here doesn't mean we love you less."
"...Do you promise?"
"Of course I promise. Her parents...where she came from was not a nice place, and so I'm sure she appreciates your kindness very much. Daniel and I are very happy with how generous and helpful you've been."
He reached up and wrapped his hands around my arms from below, rubbing his snout against the fur along the sides. I did expect something like this to come up at some point, though he seemed reassured well enough so far. Such things are quite normal, after all.
"I love you, Father," he mumbled into my arms.
"I love you, too," I replied into his hair.
As the sound of distant footsteps echoed through the hallway I parted from my son, heading back over to my desk to resume my work. The other two arrived after a few seconds, Sura's hand in Daniel's as they came back to the small table.
"Everything fit well and she liked what ya got, so now she's got a much fuller wardrobe and another set of sleepwear," the larger man said, scooting Sura's chair forward and patting Riv's head.
With this much I was reassured and set on to continue my work, occasionally looking over to the children at the table. Riv seemed much more at ease already, relieving much of my lingering worries.
---
Evening was soon upon us, and with my work finished for the week we all went to the lounge to prepare dinner. Daniel had purchased some salmon, rice, and green beans from Ulimi's shop this afternoon, and with enough time and plenty of butter he and I put together a nice fish dinner with a side of buttered green beans and seasoned brown rice. It had been a while since we had fish and I was very much looking forward to it. Fortunately both children seemed to enjoy dinner, too. With pleasant idle conversation we peacefully ate our dinner, passing time until we were satisfied. Dishes were soon recovered and cleaned shortly before the clock would strike six.
"Daniel, are you alright watching the children for a bit tonight?" I asked as I handed Riv a plate to put away. "There's something I need to do before too long and I'm not sure how long it'll be."
"Oh?" he said, putting away a pan. "What's the occasion, if I can ask?"
"Uh, M...Morissey would like to see me for a bit," I replied, biting my lip.
"...Are you sure about that?" he replied, his face one of worry.
"I was the one to offer, actually," I admitted, rubbing my arm. "I'm a little nervous about it, but...that event was also two years ago. I can't let it hold me back forever."
"Will ya be okay?"
"...I'll certainly try to be, so please don't worry."
His ears sunk low as I said that, the corner of his mouth stressed to the side in apprehension. Of course, you tell someone not to worry about something and that's the first thing they'll do. I took a step forward and wrapped my arms around him in a hug, laying my face against his chest in some attempt to reassure him. His arms crept up to reciprocate, the end of his snout rubbing gently through my hair.
I began walking out of the lounge, but turned back once to face my two children.
"You two, I'll be gone for a little while tonight on an errand," I said, hugging each child with one arm. "I'm not sure how long I'll be out, but please be good, okay? Daniel will still be here."
Both of them nodded, so I took my leave to head to the lobby. It was already fairly dark and the glare from the lobby light against the window made it difficult to see outside. Grabbing one of the chairs I sat in wait, and the clock striking six would usher a knock against the front door.
I promptly stood up, grabbed the handle, and opened the heavy wooden door. A few feet from it was Morissey, one foot on the cement-slab porch. He stood with his head down and hands behind his back, the most nervous I think I'd ever seen him...and I didn't think he could look nervous to begin with.
"Ah, you're here," I said through an anxious smile as I held the door.
He just awkwardly turned his head to the side, not looking at me. I couldn't help but feel a little bad for him.
"Did you...want to come inside, or..." I quietly trailed off.
"...I was hoping we could go for a walk," he responded.
I looked back to the lobby and I thought I caught just a glimpse of that one staffmember beyond the hallway corridor. Looking back one last time he was gone. I stepped onto the porch and closed the door behind me, hoping it was just my seeing things.
---
Please support my work so I can keep a roof over my head. 2020 was bad and 2021 doesn’t appear to be getting any better. Supporters get early access to chapters/illustrations as well as exclusive access to WIPs.
https://www.patreon.com/ratte
https://ko-fi.com/ratte
https://paypal.me/silasagnostos
Discord server
Tarov
MemberI literally just started reading but HOLY SHIT I did NOT expect that.
|
|
|
Ahh yes, the corn bread. Reverend's vice
|
|
Ok now I'm done. I KNEW Riv would have a moment like this sooner or later (I never mentioned it in a comment but just take my word on it lol) especially considering the amount of attention that has to be directed at a new entrant. Glad it first started at his current age rather than when he was like, a teen or something. It went better than I could have expected.
I wonder what Morissey is nervous about.
Login to respond »