Chapter Text
It was summer. Despite the extreme heat, the flora and fauna were thriving well. A pack of monkeys were spotted in the forest, and birds and bats have been seen flying over the lakes at night. Rivers were filled with many caiman. Only the river near the village was safe to swim in. And in the heat, many residents took sanctuary in the cool water.
Griefer, rather than wanting to join the others in swimming in the river, opted to stay in front of a cheap fan at home, circulating the hot air around the room. He didn't want to see anybody else yet. ‘1 N33D R3ST’ was his excuse. He just didn't want anybody to confront him on what he did.
It was the first week since he’d been released from the hospital. His legs were better, but the doctors recommended not doing anything strenuous. Like sports or running around. Walking isn't a sport right? He just sometimes wandered around the rainforest when the voices in his head got too loud or when the energy in his body demanded an outlet.
Usually he’d take it out by raging at Assassins Creed, but he’d not been that active in games since he got out of the hospital. Nothing really appealed to him anymore. He rolled over on his bed, trying to get some cool air his way. He only received warm air.
It wasn't helping. Not him cooling down, nor his boredom. He’d need to go out. He hadn't visited the crib in a while. Was that monkey even there? He doubted it. At Least it was in the wild and running around.
Maybe he should go out. Maybe he could get some peace outside. He didn't want to move though. It took much mental strength and self berating to peel himself away from the bed and fan, as he put sunscreen on his body, threw the bottle into his bag and dragged himself out the door.
He remembered when he was younger, the caimans were out of control and there were regular attacks if people went near the river. There was only one death, but his dad never spoke about it. He never even knew who died.
During those years, he wasn't allowed out of the house, and he could only go straight home after school. Never go out after sundown. Those were the words whispered through when the town was still developing. Never go out after sundown or the reptiles in the water will drag you down to the murky depths.
He knew his father wanted to keep him safe- but he was always so irritated back then. Still was. Majority of his childhood when he was supposed to be out playing was spent locked up in the house. The other boys were able to play as long as they returned home before it got dark, or as long as they did not go too close to the bank.
~
Griefer looked out the window, watching the other kids kick up dust as they played hide and seek. He wanted to play it too but he remembered his dads words. Was that true though? What was wrong with playing a bit outside? The river was a 5 minutes walk away- they weren't even nearby! And it wasn't sundown! Wouldn't be for a while.
His skin prickled with irritation, weighing down the lump of boredom in his body. He looked back at his desk. He had already finished his homework and didn't have much to do other than play with his toys. They were fun but he wanted to play with other people. Dad would understand, wouldn't he?
Griefer ran out of the house, over to the main square. “H1! H1! WH4T 4R3 Y0U PL4Y1NG?” He asked, slowing down as he reached the group. He didn't recognize any of the kids. Were they from another school? He’d have seen them at least once if they were in the same school.. “Um, we’re playing reverse Hide and Seek!” A kid burst out, before being hit on the head by a bigger kid with glasses, whining a small ‘ow’. “It's called Sardines, Cole! Not reverse Hide and Seek!”
“Okay but it's easier to say it!” “It's not! That's only one word!” “A new word!” Griefer shifted on the spot. He was not best friends with them but he really wanted to play. And they seemed really really nice. “UM.. H0W D0 Y0U PL4Y S4RD1N3S?”
A dark skinned girl grinned. “OK OKAY! So it's like- hide and seek. But it's like, one hider. Only. And then like, everybody else is the uhh.. Um.. finders!” “Seekers.” “Yeah! And then the seekers have to find the um.. Hider! And if you find the hider, you hide with them like sardines!” Her name was Maria, he thought. Or was he wrong? Maybe she wasn't in his class.
“S4RD1N3S? BUT TH3Y’R3 F1SH. TH3Y D0N’T H1D3 T0G3TH3R. TH3Y SW1M.” Griefer blinked, clearly confused. “Well they do in the city! You can buy them in packets and they're stuck together! Anyway, who's the hider? Not it!” She yelled.
Screams of ‘NOT IT!’ spread through the main square, and after much arguing, the kid with glasses (not-reverse-hide-and-seek guy) was the hider.
It was fun. He was out of breath but it was really fun, running around, being crammed with other kids and trying to hide as the kids counted to 20 as fast as they could. He had been able to play during lunch break but maybe because they could be so much more aggressive while playing now made it more fun.
He didn't know how long they played together, playing several games through that timespan but they eventually had to break away and leave when the sun’s rays painted the sky with yellows, oranges, near itself, and blues to the east.
Griefer’s dad was always coming home late now since he and the other politicians were discussing how to get rid of the caiman problem, so Griefer doubted he’d learn of his time outside the house.
~
He walked along the familiar roads and streets, where he ran and screamed when somebody tried catching him in Freeze Tag. The alleys he’d take to avoid crowds when he’d come back home from school. The quickest path to his favorite restaurant. He knew the entire town in and out, and he doubted anybody else didn't. It was a small place after all.
Small, dingy, and under constant dangers of wild animals, sicknesses and floods. But they’d developed. They were better than before, and even tourists sometimes visited! It might not be as big and grand as a city, but it was cozy, familiar, and his place.
The houses became more scattered as the dirt road became covered in shrubbery and tall trees grew in abundance, bushes reaching his shoulders.
He walked and walked and walked. He was sure the sunscreen was melting off his skin from the heat. But it’d only been a few minutes, it couldn't have all gone. And despite how much he didn't want to get a sunburn, he felt too lazy to reapply just now.
He soon found a small river, which would most likely dry up soon due to the rising heat. But it was still here for now, and it was enough to rest in. He put his bag and cap on a dry rock and waded into the water, which was only till his knees at its deepest point. He sat down in the river.
It was nice. He liked venturing into the rainforest. Despite all its danger, the only animal he’d been attacked by were mosquitos, hornets, and a stray dog. A bird call sounded from the tree above him, and the leaves rustled as it flew away. He’d be fine here. The cold water running over his body washed the sweat off his body and provided a sort of heaven from the heat of the day.
It was fine. It would all be fine. As long as the days were hot on summer days and the water kept flowing downwards. Just as the sun and moon rose and fell, similar to the mountains and valleys, it would be alright.
-
“Brad, did you go out today?” Griefer looked up, his dad standing in the doorway of his room. “D4D. 1 H4V3 4 SUNBURN. 1 D0UBT 1 C4N G3T 4 SUNBURN 1N TH3 HOUS3.” He groaned. His back and arms were a bright pink-red, and the skin was beginning to peel off. Not reapplying sunscreen earlier had come to bite him in the ass.
“Did you atleast talk to anybody today?” Mayor Thaniyel asked, sitting on the bed next to him. Right. His dad seemed to know practically everything except understanding Griefer’s explanations. So he was definitely aware of his son’s self isolation.
“1TS F1N3.” He muttered, glancing the other way. He didn't want to look at him. “You didnt answer the question.” He pressed gently, and Griefer groaned, holding his head in his hands. “N0, D4D. 1 D1DNT. 1TS N0T Y0UR BUS1N3SS.”
“Brad, as your father I am concerned-” Mayor Thaniyel put a hand on his shoulder, and Griefer winced from the pressure on his sunburn. He quickly retracted his hand.
“D4D. 1TS F1N3- 1 JUST… N33D S0M3 T1M3 AL0N3. 1M ST1LL R3C0V3R1NG. 1 D0NT TH1NK T4LK1NG T0 3V3RYB0DY 1N TH3 T0WN W1LL H3LP.” Griefer said quickly, seeing the guilty look on his face.
His father nodded, and got up using the cane. “Well, if you ever need to tell me about something, I'm here” He gave a smile to Griefer, and he nodded in return. He then left without closing the door.
It was funny how he was suddenly available but when he was younger, his father prioritized work.
He slathered his back with some Aloe gel, unable to reach certain parts on his back. He wasn't that flexible, despite how athletic he was. Or used to be. The cool fluid helped the sunburn cool down. And it would- he knew that from how often he used to get sunburns as a kid.
He then stared at the floor. Nothing to do. Nothing he wanted to do. Nothing really seemed that fun. He thought back to laying in the river then screaming his lungs out when something moved in the bank, thinking it was a caiman. Only to hide it was a capybara. A literal capybara.
Nature was fun, apparently. But he didn't do anything. He felt useless. He didn't really contribute to anything… Anything positive, that is.
What could he do? He didn't know how to do a lot of things by himself. He wanted to be independent at the same time, but didn't know how to be. He rolled onto his back- immediately regretting it and flopping back on his stomach, no matter how much his neck protested.
Maybe he could do something. Like getting a job. There weren't many opportunities in Turitopulis though… he had a short eureka moment as he recalled a memory from after high school graduation. That gave him an idea
-
“Move to the city?! Brad, I'm not sure if that's a good idea-” Telling his father about this was a bad idea. A very bad idea. He was adamantly against it, which made sense. Despite the spike in tourism and some outsiders moving here- immigrating to cities and bigger places for a chance of a well paying job and comfortable living space was the biggest threat to Turitopulis, if the wildlife and natural disasters were ignored.
“D4D, 1 H4V3 FR13NDS 1N B1ZV1LL3, 1TS 0K4Y. TH3Y C4N H3LP M3. B3S1D3S, 1 R34LLY W4NT TO… 3XPL0R3 PL4C3S 0UTS1D3 TH3 R41NF0R3ST.” Griefer sighed, partially lying. He didn't have anybody in Bizville, but he needed to convince his dad. He never had any particular reason to go other than some weird sense of duty, or responsibility or whatever it was that wanted him to get a job.
“Alright- but I'm concerned. I won't be there!”
“1 C4N H4NDL3 MYS3LF- 1M 4N 4DULT!”
“Yes, well I won't be there!”
“I'm not a child!”
“You're my child!”
Griefer paused, looking up at Mayor Thaniyel. His father. Guilt crept in as he looked away. “D4D, L00K. 1 C4N B3 1ND3P3ND4NT. I W4NT T0 D0 TH1S. TRUST ME3.” He stared at the wall, not wanting to meet his eyes. It felt awkward.
The air was heavy, and tense. He knew his father was trying to get closer to him, make up for lost time, or something.
“Alright, Griefer. I'll… see if I can arrange a plane to Bizville. If it's what makes you happy.” He looked up. “W41T, R34LLY?” He asked. Mayor Thaniyel, sitting down on a chair, resting the cane against the arm rest. “You are a grown up now. I want to keep you close to me but I suppose I need to let you leave the nest.
“TH4NKS, D4D. 1…” He looked at him, before nodding, walking over to hug him gently. “TH4NKS…”