Chapter Text
Stanford pushed the food around on his plate, hoping to come across as not particularly hungry. If he managed to pull it off, his leftovers would be put in the fridge. If Pa thought he didn’t like Ma’s cooking again, he’d be scolded and sent to bed without it. He nibbled on a pea. His stomach growled, and he prayed Pa didn’t hear it over the gentle clinking of his fork.
After a moment with no indication that Pa had noticed, Ford relaxed again. Too close, he thought, glancing at his older brother. Shermie, who sat directly across from him, clearly had noticed, but thankfully didn’t say anything. He knew what Ford was doing.
“Sweetie, aren’t you hungry?” came Ma’s voice. She sat at her eldest son’s side, next to the head of the table. Her words alerted Pa to Ford’s full plate, and at the suspicious look he gave, Ford was quick to explain himself.
“Not really. It’s really good, it is, but the lunch ladies always give me extra meatloaf since it’s my favorite, so I’m still full. Can I put it in the fridge in case I get hungry later?” Ford used his best puppy-dog eyes, hoping to appeal to his mother instead of his father.
“Well…I don’t want you to go hungry, so I suppose so,” Ma began in her familiar script, “but I don’t want this to become a habit!” With how often she said that, Ford could recite the words with her.
Sure, you don’t want me to go hungry, Ford thought a little bitterly, carefully scooping his peas and pork chops into a Tupperware container.
Once Ford was seated again (just because he wasn’t eating didn’t mean he was excused from the table, after all), Shermie spoke up.
“Pa, you know how you’re always saying Ford is too smart for school?”
Ford froze. Pa didn’t even acknowledge his son had spoken.
Shermie boldly took the lack of response as a cue to continue. “I was thinking…wouldn’t it be nice to get him in the great outdoors? Have ‘im learn a thing or two they don’t teach in that stuffy school?”
Another beat of silence. Ford couldn’t tell how his father would react, and from a glance at Ma, she didn’t either. Her eyes darted from her husband to her son, thinly veiled unease shadowing her face as she continued to chew.
Finally, Pa spoke for the first time that evening. “We can’t afford to send him to camp.” His tone carried an air of finality that normally sent the other members of the house into complete silence, but Shermie plowed on.
“Well, you know how you mentioned Great Aunt Mabel getting on the news the other day?”
Great Aunt Mabel? Ford had apparently missed that conversation. It wouldn't be the first time, what with him spending most of his time on the beach or in his room, but he thought he’d know if he had a great aunt Mabel.
“I am not sending my son across country to stay with that old nutcase,” Pa said. “It would cost more than sending him to camp, and Ford could teach her more than she could teach him.” With that, he returned to his meal, and Ford assumed that would be that.
“Your Pa’s right, Sherman,” Ma piped up, clearing her throat. “I won’t send my little boy all that way by himself.” Her voice lowered considerably so Ford could barely make out her words. “Not tonight,” she warned.
Shermie clearly had other plans.
“I live one state over!” he said, face hardened in determination. “I’m making the drive anyway, and there are valuable life skills to be learned in the woods. No extra cost for you, and your house is clean and quiet for the summer.” What Shermie was up to, Ford had no idea, but he could only picture this going up in flames. Why was he pushing this so hard? What could an old, obscure relative he’d never heard of teach him that was so important to learn?
To Ford’s surprise and relief, his father didn’t get angry. At least, he didn’t show it. In fact, he didn’t show any emotion for a long moment, and the atmosphere got more and more tense -- or maybe that was just Ford. He always did overthink things.
Pa turned to Ford, expression unreadable. Here it comes, he thought, trying not to shrink down in his chair.
But then Pa said, “Be good for your aunt,” and returned to his meal.
…What?
The minute Ma, the only person in the Pines family who could be classified as a ‘slow eater’, had finished her food, Ford was scooping up her dishes along with everyone else’s and setting them in the sink. Luckily, he didn’t have to wash up tonight; even though Shermie was only visiting from his home in California, that didn’t mean he was excused from chores.
Leftovers in hand, Ford raced up the stairs to his room. The container cooled his fingers, and he cursed himself for looking full too early. Then again, if he’d done it later, there’d be less to eat now. Cold food was better than no food.
Which was exactly what Stanley said when he apologized later.
Stanley, sitting on the floor and leaning against their bed frame, messily ate the meal Ford had been given. The pork chops hadn’t appealed to Ford anyway (Ma’s cooking rarely did), but his twin didn’t seem to mind. Mouthfuls of meat and handfuls of peas, Stanley ate like he hadn’t eaten for days.
Which wasn't completely untrue.
“I would have left more for you, but if Pa ever caught on we were doing this --”
“Mmf -- it’sth fine, Ford.”
Ford cringed at the bits of pork that flew out of Stanley’s mouth. “Just because we’re not at the table doesn’t mean you can’t have manners.”
Stanley dismissively waved a hand in the air, but thankfully swallowed before speaking again. “Manners, shmanners. I’m eating with my hands, Sixer.”
That deflated him a bit. He couldn’t even give Stanley the dignity of eating with a fork. “Sorry. I didn’t want Ma to see me.” Ford sat next to him, knocking his knee against his twin’s. Stanley knocked back.
“Ah, I don’t mind. Sorry you had to give up your supper for me again.”
“It’s not your fault.”
By this point, Stanley had finished off the last of the food, so Ford could tell his silence was deliberate.
“It’s not, Lee.”
Stanley sighed. “Yeah, I know.”
Ford wasn’t sure how much he believed him, but decided not to push it. It’d been a rough day already, what with their father keeping Stanley home from school again to help in the shop, on top of sending him to bed with no dinner. At least Pa had seemed in a good enough mood tonight, maybe he could go tomorrow.
As Stanley put the lid back on the Tupperware and set it aside, Ford remembered what had happened at dinner. He opened his mouth to talk, then hesitated. Was Stanley even going? At no point in that conversation had his twin even been mentioned. Surely his parents wouldn’t ship him off for the entire summer alone?
“You’re gonna catch flies like that.”
Ford shut his mouth, shooting his brother a lighthearted glare. “Says the one who sleeps with his mouth open,” he retorted.
Laughing, Stanley gave Ford’s head a push. “Can it, Poindexter. What were you gonna say?”
He deserves to know, even if he isn’t going, Ford reasoned. “Well…” he began, wringing his hands. “Shermie thought I should go stay with Great Aunt Mabel this summer, and he told Pa he’d take me.”
“Great Aunt Mabel?” Stanley parroted, assuring Ford that he wasn’t the only one who had never heard of her before.
“Apparently she lives really far away, like Shermie,” he explained as best as he could. “I thought Pa wasn’t going to agree, but then he told me to be good while I was gone, so I guess I'm going.”
Suddenly, Stanley pushed himself up to sit straight. “Wait, just you?”
Ford’s stomach twisted. “I don’t know,” he admitted quietly. “Shermie didn’t say anything about taking you with us.” Stanley’s crestfallen look made Ford quick to reassure him, even if he didn’t know the words were true. “But, I mean, Shermie loves you more than anything, I’m sure he’ll want you to come!”
The damage had been done. Stanley turned his head away, bringing his knees up to his chest to hug them close. “It’s okay. You should go anyway,” he mumbled into his legs.
“Lee…” Ford whispered, guilt swirling in his gut. If Stanley stayed home while he was off experiencing “the great outdoors”, who knew what would happen to him? With school out and both of his brothers away, he’d be a sitting duck. What if Pa sent him to bed with no supper again? There’d be nobody to sneak him leftovers, nobody to slip jerky under the closet door, nobody to comfort him after dark. He’d be all alone, all summer --
Ford's thoughts were interrupted by the creak of the door opening. Scrambling to stand up, Stanley kicked the empty Tupperware under the bunk bed, successfully hiding it from view. All signs of weakness were dropped, hands hastily scrubbing at his eyes.
Ford held his breath, staring wide-eyed at the door. What could Pa want with them now --
“Shermie!” came his twin’s hushed squeal. The air rushed out of him, resulting in a relieved sigh at the sight of his older brother in the doorway. Shermie gently clicked the door shut behind him, holding one finger to his smiling lips and the other hand behind his back. Both boys immediately went still with anticipation, all thoughts of being separated forgotten and eyes eagerly trained on their brother.
“Hey, you two,” he greeted. “Thought you might like something a little tastier than Ma’s cooking.” With a grand flourish, he revealed his secret: two bags, one with TOFFEE PEANUTS printed in bold, and one with NYUMS JELLY BEANS scrawled along the front. Ford and Stanley alike giddily grinned at each other before rushing over to receive their gifts.
Shermie chuckled at their excitement, letting the twins rip the candy from his hands. He took a seat at Ford’s rickety old desk. With his lanky frame, it was more like a squat.
“Excited for our trip?” he asked after a moment of watching the two dig into their snacks. Ford stilled, glancing at Stanley. The words had taken the wind right out of his sails, a sullen look falling over his face as he chewed. Ford made up his mind.
“I’m not going.”
Two shocked pairs of eyes shot up to stare at him. Shermie appeared mostly confused and a little concerned, while Stanley went from surprised to plain angry.
“Yes, you are, you knucklehead!” he shouted, tossing the half-empty toffee peanuts bag to the floor in favor of gripping Ford’s shoulders. “You can’t just not go!”
Before either of them could say anything else, Ford explained. “I am not going across the entire country for an entire summer without Stanley. That’s not fair. I won’t go.” To drive the point home, he crossed his arms and furrowed his brows.
Stanley looked like he wanted to argue further, but Shermie interrupted. “Well, that won’t be a problem,” he said. It was Shermie’s turn to be stared at in shock. He huffed out half a laugh. “Of course I’m not gonna leave you behind, Lee! What kind of jerk do you take me to be? I’d have to be the worst brother in the world to -- oof!” His words were cut off as Stanley tackled him in a bear hug.
Relief flooded Ford; the idea of being forced to leave Stanley behind felt so wrong. They were Stanley and Stanford, the Pines twins, Kings of New Jersey. Nothing could be so desirable that he’d willingly leave his best friend behind.
Not even a chance to get away from this place.
He watched as Shermie gave his little brother a tight squeeze before letting go. “What made you think I was gonna take Nerdbrain over here all by himself? I thought I’ve made it pretty clear you’re my favorite Stan.” Ford decided he’d ignore the name calling and teasing favoritism for now. Shermie got a pass for not making him go alone, after all.
Looking sheepish, Stanley wrapped his arms loosely around his middle. “Well, Ford told me that it sounded like you were just gonna take him and not me,” he admitted.
“I mean, you just said how good it’d be for me to get in ‘the great outdoors’,” Ford added.
Shermie tsked and shook his head. “Well, that’s just ridiculous. I would never split the two of you, especially not for a whole summer and the roadtrip of a lifetime!”
At the promise of fun and a trip with their big brother, the twins beamed. Stanley went in for another hug, this time with a softer start, and Ford could just make out the “Thanks, Shermie,” mumbled into the older’s shirt. After a moment, he joined the two, coming in on his brother’s other side and whispering his own thank-you.
Shermie wrapped one arm around each of them, simply holding them close for a moment, and something clicked in Ford’s brain. Just as Shermie had known Ford wasn’t really full from a big lunch, Ford knew Shermie wasn’t taking them on this trip so he could learn “life skills”.
He’d never been more grateful for his older brother.