AUTHOR’S NOTE: Thank you so much for the support☺️
Enjoy!
*
Something metal clonked Artham in the head as he exited the cottage.
The sheer force nearly toppled him over, and he staggered a bit while recovering from the intense pain vibrating in his skull. He was very sure he heard something crack. Leeli gasped with her hand to her mouth while Nugget whimpered in concern.
“Uncle Artham, are you all right?” Leeli hobbled to him, gingerly touching his arm as he clutched the sides of his head and moaned.
Tink peered over the edge of the roof, making a pained expression. “Sorry, Uncle Artham…”
“It’s fine,” he whispered as he blinked back tears. “Did Podo make you fix the roof again?”
“Yes,” Tink replied, and paused for a few moments. “Do you mind… throwing the hammer back up?”
“I’ll do it,” Leeli volunteered, plucking up the hammer and tossing it back up. It landed on the roof shingles with a satisfying clink, thankfully not on anyone’s head again.
“Thank you, Leeli,” Artham said with a weak smile. He did not approve of Tink fixing the loose shingles on the roof, and not just because of falling hammers. The poor boy was petrified of heights, and Artham didn’t want to imagine having to deal with what would happen if Tink actually fell off of the roof.
Nugget began barking again, and Artham remembered the thwaps.
He shook his head and lurched forward with his head throbbing. Something was definitely rustling in the totato plants nearby. He wobbled over to their enclosed garden, his eyes sweeping over whatever nefarious thwaps were gobbling their precious produce.
But Artham saw something entirely different.
Before he could stop the little dog, Nugget leapt through the fence, ferociously barking at the rustling in the garden. Leeli approached, softly humming with the pail of ashes thumping against her crutch.
“Leeli,” Artham turned to face her, his pain dissipating. “Would you go get your brothers? Breakfast should be ready.”
“What about the thwaps?” she asked with a brow raised.
“I can handle them,” he assured her. “You three need to eat so we can go to the festival.”
Leeli smiled at the thought of the sea dragons. “All right.”
When he was sure his niece was out of earshot, Artham slowly opened the rickety gate into the garden. The rustling had stopped as Nugget prowled through the totato vines, growling.
Artham looked back to the cottage to be sure his nephews and niece were heading inside for breakfast. When the door shut, he inhaled deeply to prepare himself, and bent into a crouching position.
“Esben?”
A plume of silvery hair appeared before a man’s smudged face, his blue eyes wide with shame, like a child caught in disobedience. He was hiding behind a fence post, trying to shoo a barking Nugget away. As always, long knitted socks adorned his hands and arms, and shrieked when the little dog began to chew and pull on them.
“Nugget, come here,” Artham ordered, and the dog obediently came.
Esben hastily pulled the socks back up to his elbows, his breathing ragged.
Artham made Nugget sit and patted his silky head while he watched Esben in sorrowful silence. Many conflicting emotions swirled in his heart, the prominent one being an overwhelming, crushing guilt and shame. For a while, the two stared at each other without a single word, drinking in one another’s presence.
Esben spoke softly, slowly crawling forward on all fours. “Ar-Artham…?”
“What is it?” he asked, remaining still. Artham knew at this point it was best to let him approach instead.
Esben hesitated when he saw Nugget, but found the courage to sit cross-legged a few feet from him, resting his socked hands in his lap. He looked somewhat happy, and the smallest smile brightened his face.
These visits were rare, but Esben had been growing more bold lately. Artham had tried several times before to invite him into the cottage, but Podo would never allow it. A few years ago, Artham made the mistake of bringing Esben into the house without the old man’s permission.
Esben had been thrown out by force.
From then on, Artham tried to visit Esben in the forest outside Glipwood, bringing food, socks, blankets, or anything else he asked for. It was best for Esben’s safety to keep him away from Podo and the children, even if it was… wrong. Ever since that incident with Podo, Esben had kept his distance. But these last few weeks had been different.
“How are you?” Artham asked gently, sitting cross-legged as well. Nugget seemed content to curl up beside him.
Esben only nodded.
“Are you hungry?”
Esben paused for a few moments as though contemplating. He then shook his head.
“What do you need?” Artham asked, still wondering why Esben was here.
Esben only looked over Artham’s shoulder, sorrow crossing his features. Artham turned to see that the cottage window facing them was open, and the children’s chatter and laughter drifted from it like a refreshing breeze.
Artham felt his heart tear open.
“No,” he shook his head. “Not yet.”
Esben’s brows furrowed and he stood to his feet. It was clear he wasn’t taking no for an answer.
Artham scrambled to his feet, waking Nugget from his nap. “You cannot go in there.”
Tears gathered in Esben’s eyes and he huffed, brushing past him. Artham grasped his socked forearm, and Esben jerked it away with surprising strength. He growled, pulling his arms closer to himself.
Artham was a bit gentler, slowly lifting his hands. “You will get hurt if you go there, Esben. Go home.”
Esben recoiled at the sound of his name, covering his ears. He whimpered and shook his head. He tramped toward the cottage, about to break into a run.
“Esben, I said NO!”
Artham wasn’t sure what else to do besides pull Esben back and push him away. Esben was so shocked that he tumbled to the ground, his wide blue eyes brimming with tears. Hurt and confusion flashed over his face, and Artham immediately knew he had gone too far. He hadn’t wanted him to fall, but he hadn’t listened to him the first time. What else was he supposed to do?
“I cannot protect you in there,” he explained with a shaky sigh.
Esben sobbed, drying his tears with his socks. He then promptly stood and shuffled away. Artham watched him disappear into the shadows of Glipwood Forest, struggling to restrain his own cries.
ESBEN NOOOOO