Chapter Text
Gerard made the long walk to his neighbor's property. He had finally gotten permission to take pictures on the mostly abandoned farm which was exciting to him. He had looked at the farm down the hill from his own home every day for the past year, but never had the chance to walk around it and take in all of it's old glory. Nobody had lived in the three story farm house in years and the most upkeep the property got was the yard mowed. The two barns were damaged, one practically on the ground already, and the house had some damage to the porch.
After crossing the two corn fields and creek that separated his house from the old farm, Gerard finally stepped on to the property for the first time. There was a weird sense of accomplishment, finally getting to explore the farm with complete freedom. He even had permission to go inside both barns, something he hadn't expected Chris to agree to.
He lifted his camera that hung around his neck and began taking a few pictures of whatever caught his attention. Even though they mowed the yard, it wasn't in the best condition. Mole hills wrecked the yard and there were briars and brush engulfing the wooden fence lining the field. Gerard decided to start on one end of the property and work his way through, taking the time to see everything.
He decided to wait to go inside the barn, spending more time taking pictures of the outside and then moving to the other one. He peeked inside the oldest barn and found the roof sinking in. It had already fallen down on one side. Since he was the only person there and nobody else knew he was on the property today, he decided to be safe and not chance it. Not this time anyway. He turned back to the tall, two story barn and pulled open one of the large doors. Chills ran through his body as he glanced around, finally daring to step inside.
There were rumors surrounding the old farm of the barn being haunted. All of which Gerard had heard from the old men who gathered every morning to have coffee at the diner he worked at. They told him about the old couple who had lived here. The woman died of natural causes in one of the upstairs bedrooms, leaving her husband at the secluded farm alone. The story is that he was found hanging from the rafters in the barn presumably a week after he had died. Nobody knew he had killed himself because the couple kept to themselves. They had no family in the area and hardly talked to people in town. His self seclusion got worse after losing his wife, so not seeing him for a week wasn't seen as odd. Then some teens looking for work went to offer him a hand on the farm. They found the barn door open and assumed he was inside. They were correct.
Gerard felt like he was being watched, causing his heart to speed up. He tried to brush it off, telling himself that it was just the story getting to him. He tried to push the story to the back of his mind, but his head kept snapping up with every little creak. He had to admit, capturing a picture of a ghost would be awesome. He froze when he heard what sounded like someone walking above him. Maybe it was an animal of some kind?
He was compelled to make his way up the wooden ladder in the corner of the room after hearing the footsteps again. Putting the strap of the camera around his neck, he began climbing the ladder. He stopped to poke his head through the hole at the top to glance around. There were no animals he could see and the noise had stopped. There were walls dividing the top room, some with latch doors on them. He climbed the rest of the way on to the floor and got up.
He began snapping pictures, walking around the barn and opening some of the doors. Most were empty and some had farming equipment in them. He looked around again, still feeling like he was being watched. He opened another of the latches and pulled the door open. Something darted out of the small room, making Gerard's heart stop.
"Jesus Christ! Fucking cat!" He yelled, glancing over at the orange cat sitting on the other side of the barn from him. He stepped into the room, pulling his eyebrows together at what was inside. There were two plastic bowls sitting on the floor. One had food scraps in it and the other had water. Who would be feeding that cat up here? He glanced back at the cat who was cleaning itself.
"I suppose the ghost is feeding you?" Gerard smirked, the cat paying him no attention. It suddenly sat up and looked toward the hay bales in the back of the room. The cat strutted over and behind the hay bales. Gerard went back to what he was doing. At least the cat gave him some company. He ignored any other noises, knowing it was just the cat. He continued through the barn, taking pictures of whatever looked cool.
When he got to the back of the barn he noticed another room hidden behind the hay bales. That must have been where the cat went. He walked towards it, hoping to maybe snap a few pictures of the barn cat. He pushed the door open the rest of the way, peering inside. He didn't see the cat but there was a lot of junk stuck in the room it could hide behind. He made his way through the junk, having to climb over some stuff to get to the back. After climbing over a stack of wood planks and jumping down, he let out a curse when he saw someone curled up in the corner.
"Fuck! What the hell?" He yelled, realizing it was a real human and not some apparition.
"I'm sorry," the person whimpered. He had his face turned toward the wall and the cat securely in his arms.
"What the hell are you doing up here? I thought this place was abandoned?"
"I-I take care of O'Malley," he replied quietly, sounding like he might cry.
"O'Malley? Like O'Malley The Alley Cat?" Gerard smirked. The guy finally dared to look at Gerard, the boy was cute but definitely young. Gerard noticed the boy had a large scar across his left cheek.
"I-I'll leave. I was just feeding him," the boy said with fearful eyes. Gerard shook his head.
"You were here first." Gerard pointed out. "I'll be heading out here soon anyway. I live up the hill," he pointed in the direction of his house. The boy only nodded. They both stayed silent for an awkward few minutes before Gerard spoke up again.
"Okay, well, I'll leave you two alone." He then left the room, heading back to the ladder. He walked around the lower half of the barn some more, snapping a few more pictures before leaving. He took some more of the outside and the house before making the long walk back to his own house. He glanced back at the barn several times. There was something about that kid. It looked like he hadn't bathed in weeks, his eyes were puffy and red like he hadn't slept in a while, and he looked terrified. It was like he expected Gerard to hurt him.
Once Gerard got back to his house, he went straight to his art room and opened his laptop. He plugged his camera into it and started transferring the pictures. He kept thinking of that kid while editing the pictures.
No, Gerard, forget the kid. He's just a freak taking care of a barn cat. He thought to himself, returning to his work. It wasn't doing much to take his mind off of the boy though. He couldn't wrap his mind around why the boy would be out in the middle of nowhere to take care of a cat. It had been a year now that Gerard lived in the area and he had never seen the dark haired boy before. It wasn't a big area, so he figured he was bound to have seen him in passing.
Gerard gave up on the editing, he could always finish it later. He got up from the desk chair and went to the black leather couch against the wall. He grabbed his sketch book and a charcoal pencil. He stared at the comic he had been working on before deciding to start a new picture. He flipped to a new page and began drawing. He ended up drawing the boy in the barn. He didn't remember all the details of his face, so he drew him cowering in the corner, hiding his face from the world.
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"Gerard, you're up," Ray called over the wall that separated the kitchen from the dining area. Gerard finished filling the coffee cups of customers before hurrying back to the kitchen. He placed the coffee pot back where it belonged before grabbing the three plates, balancing one on his forearm. He went out to the table and placed the food in front of the customers.
"Can I get you anything else?" He asked kindly. They all said no and thanked him before he walked away. He looked over when the door bell rang. "Hey Chris," he greeted. He grabbed a glass of sweet tea and a menu before heading to Chris's table. He was sure Chris would order the same thing he always did, but he still liked to look over the menu.
"Did you get down there to the farm?"
"Yeah, I did, thanks again," Gerard smiled. "Hey, um, do other people go down there often?"
"They're not supposed to be. Why? Did you see someone?" Chris asked. "I want what I usually get." He told Gerard, closing the menu.
"Okay," Gerard answered, writing down the deluxe burger and fries that Chris always got. "No, I didn't see anyone, I just... heard something in the barn." Gerard lied, not wanting to get the kid in trouble. Chris began laughing.
"It was probably that ghost that hangs around down there." Gerard laughed a little, too.
"Yeah, probably," he replied with a small laugh. Gerard made his way into the kitchen to pin up Chris's order so Ray could start cooking it. "Ray, do you know of any dark haired teens in the area?" Ray gave him a weird look.
"Um, a couple, why?" He was staring at Gerard suspiciously.
"You can't tell anyone, but-" Ray cut him off.
"Please tell me you're not some pedophile who keeps dark haired teens locked in their basement." Ray sounded serious rather than joking. Gerard chuckled a little.
"That's not why I was asking. But I'm being serious, what I'm about to tell you, you can't tell anyone else. Okay?" Ray nodded his head, intrigued by what his friend had to tell him. "I went down to that farm over the hill from me and there was a teen upstairs in the barn. He looked like he hadn't showered or eaten in a while. He claimed he was just feeding a cat up there, but I don't know."
"Think he's a run away? Some times they live in abandoned buildings." Ray pointed out.
"Could be," Gerard said. "Should I report it? I mean, what do you do with a run away? Obviously run aways have a reason to run away." Gerard pointed out, watching Ray move around the kitchen.
"You can report it, but if he had a real reason to run away, he'll just do it again. Maybe you should try talking to him? If he's still at the barn, I mean." Ray said as he began making out the plate.
"And say what? That I think it's odd that he's taking care of a stray in a barn? Ask why he ran away from home? Offer to call the police so he can go home to whatever he's running from?" Ray sighed and shook his head.
"No, I don't know," it was quiet between the two as Ray finished up Chris's order. "Maybe it's best if you just forget you ever saw him."
"Yeah, maybe," Gerard replied before taking the plate out to Chris. Maybe he should just forget the kid.