Work Text:
The storm was harsh, but it was convenient. John used it as an opportunity to come back to Hurricane. He didn’t mind the labour work.
It was a big shock to him to see Michael working with the community. He was helping clean up, making some effort to make a good name for himself. Since he pulled through with Dave-Afton-whatever’s will in court it’d been made obvious Michael was his eldest son.
John did see the public scorn Michael received because of this. Because he looked like his father. Because Michael had little habits, barely noticeable ticks, small tendencies that just seemed out of place.
In the workplace, people seemed more to let him help, but John could see why. They gave Michael the jobs they didn’t want, and he did so without much complaint.
Now, John didn’t like Michael, but that doesn’t mean he deserved to be treated like that. It was nice to see he had some friends.
A man who looked like he needed to sleep for a week straight, dark blue eyes, a scar on his face and generally seemed on the lazier side.
Another one, who seemed a bit closer to John’s own age, with brown hair messed and unkept and brown eyes. There was a strange familiarity about him that John couldn’t place. He didn’t seem to actually be helping clean up though, just providing proper food and water to them (and some others).
Michael noticed John too but left their relationship at the ‘nod to acknowledge their existence if eye contact is made and then move on’. John didn’t mind that.
John didn’t want to be the guy that told him about Charlie. But he’d left work abruptly, and that started a stir amongst the other workers, so Michael was at least suspicious of something. He didn’t even know how to start that conversation.
“What’s up?” Michael had instead stated it. It was one of his ticks. Like he had eyes on the back of his head, he could seem to sense John was lingering behind him.
“Uh, hey.” John greeted, moving to step up and help Michael with whatever he was doing. “Have you heard from Charlie?” That was a terrible lead.
Michael raised an eyebrow. “I get letters from her sometimes?” he answered. “Why? She ignoring you?”
“Did you know she was in Hurricane?” John asked, avoiding Michael’s question.
“Yeah, studying at St. Georges with Jessica,” Michael responded. “She asked me for help with some of her projects.” Michael stopped what he was doing, so John stopped too, and turned to look at him. “What’s going on? I know you wouldn’t talk to me unless it was important. We’ve been playing a weird game of cat and mouse for the past few months.”
John gave him a nervous look, then looked around to see if anyone was listening. Michael’s two friends were hovering but scampered off when John looked at them. “Something happened.”
Michael sighed through his nose and dragged John a bit further back from earshot. (As if the jackhammers and other construction noises didn’t already drown them out.)
“Go on, then.”
“There was a body found.” He decided to do from the start. “She had open scars, and Charlie confirmed they were springlock scars.”
“I heard about that.” Michael shrugged. “Clay spoke to me about it.”
Because Michael knows how springlocks work too.
“Yeah, well, we figured out that they were these strange creatures looking for Charlie. They looked like weird, twisted versions of the originals. And there was the additional wolf.”
“Right,” Michael said, giving John some strange assurance. Like he wasn’t going to get called a liar for it.
“So, Charlie decided to play sacrifice and let herself get captured. We got the originals to help us – Clay was keeping them in his house for some reason.”
“Yeah, I know. He wouldn’t let me keep them.”
“Makes sense.” Michael gave him a semi-offended look. “Anyway! We followed them to this weird underground facility, and we saw your Dad.”
“My Father?” Michael actually looked surprised now.
“He – yeah – I don’t know. But we mostly escaped, I don’t know about him, but fuck- Charlie she didn’t- she-”
“Calm down.” Michael took his shoulders and squeezed just hard enough to ground John. He hadn’t realised he’d been spiralling in his emotions. “What happened?”
“She got caught in one of the creatures- the springlocks went off. Fuck, Michael – there was so much blood.”
“Stop talking.” Michael suddenly snapped. John froze. It was scary, just how much of his father Michael embodied. Michael let go of John’s shoulders through, and (to John) it seemed like he was suddenly in very deep thought.
“What else was there? Anything notable?”
“A lady with dark hair?” John muttered, going off his memory. “She looked sort of like she was in her thirties or forties?”
“Jen?” Michael asked.
“Fuck, Jen! Her aunt was there!”
Michael shakes his head but doesn’t deny it. “Why would Jen be there?”
“A-and there were these small fuckin’- like disk things-”
“Sound Illusion Disks,” Michael says, autonomously. “Yeah, I’ve had my run it with those.”
“But the lights were like that too.”
“The lights.” Michael echoed. “Huh.”
John calmed himself, conscious of the tears threatening to fall from his eyes- like the reality was finally hitting him. He felt embarrassed to be like this in front of Michael of all people, but the older man wasn’t even looking at him.
“So, what’s happening now?” Michael asked.
“W-we’re going to meet up at a diner,” John replied. “With Marla.”
The drive there, when the time came, was strange since Michael insisted on going with him. John wasn’t sure why.
“How’ve you been?” Michael asked to fill the silence.
“Fine,” John answered drearily. “You?”
“Same,” Michael said. “Samantha and Drew moved out. They’re doing their own things. Sam is studying in Florida – wants to be a scientist.”
“Florida- that’s a long way.”
“Yeah. And Drew’s up in Washington. He wants to be a teacher.”
John hums. An acknowledgment he was half-listening. He hadn’t really met either of them, but it was nice to hear they were doing something regardless of what happened with Afton.
“They both get to visit the beach.” He comments.
Michael chuckles good-naturedly. “We’d have to go through Arizona.”
Michael walked in with him and slipped into the booth so that John was between him and Jessica. And the strange guy Jessica dragged with her, Arty.
They made small talk. And whilst Michael had been informed in on what happened; Arty had not. So, there was talking around the subject.
Jessica screamed when she saw Marla and hugged her.
And then Charlie appeared.
“That’s not Charlie,” John said.
"She doesn't have the scars," Michael added, pulling up his sleeve just enough to show what he meant.
John couldn’t describe the feeling he got when Michael agreed with him.