Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The first summer Buck had spent with his Grandpa was when he was 6.  His parents had decided that taking care of both a 6 and 14 year old was too much, so they sent Buck to live with his Grandpa.

"If you want to act like a boy, Evelyn, then you can go work like one." Margaret said while packing clothes for her daughter. Buck hated that word already, even if he didn't why. "You're Grandpa has agreed to take care of you for the summer, but don't think you're getting off easy. You will have to help him with all the farm work, and we'll be calling regularly to make sure you're actually doing it too. My god, I could have excused wanting to wear boys shirts cause they had 'cooler designs' or whatever, but this is just too far now. Telling your teacher you wanted to be on the boys team at school? What was that all about? You're always playing with the boy next door too, and that's just not right, Evelyn. You're a little girl, you need friends that are little girls too! I can't keep doing this! I just want my daughter to be normal. Is that too much to ask for?"

To be honest, buck had zoned out halfway through that rant. He was already used to his mom going off about one thing or another, this was no different. He knew that being sent to Grandpa's was supposed to be a punishment, so he was acting like it was, but, at the same time, he knew it couldn't be worse than this.

*****

The car ride was long and boring. It took almost a whole day to get from the city out to the valley, and they still had another 2 hours before reaching Pelican Town. Buck and Maddie were in the backseat, Maddie asleep and Buck counting the birds that flew by for some kind of entertainment. Or maybe a distraction. The car could not be more tense. Margaret and Phillip refused to talk to each other now. They "don't want to fight in front of the kids". They refused to acknowledge that they were yelling at each other the last 3 nights loud enough that the neighbors could probably hear.

-

"I don't see why we're sending him to your dads when we both know he has no backbone when it comes to the girls. Give it a week before Evelyn starts complaining that she's tired and Fredrick is just letting her stay inside watching TV all day."

"Would you rather send her to live with your parents where she'd have no option but to watch TV all day? You're parents live in an apartment, what kind of work could they make her do? Sweep? She already does that Margaret!"

-

As Buck counts bird number... 30? Look he isn't great with numbers yet, give him a break. Anyway, as Buck counts another bird, the car starts to slow down, pulling into the closest thing this village has to a parking space. The sun has already set and you could hardly tell anyone lived nearby with how dark it was. The only light they could see was that of a dim flashlight held by an old man on a nearby bench. The man looked almost asleep, startled by the sound of the car approaching. The light approached the car, the man carrying barely visible against the night sky.

"I was beginning to think you weren't coming."

The man, Grandpa, had already started trying to take bags from Phillip, insisting he farms for a living, of course he could handle a few bags. Grandpa and Phillip carried the bags down the path until they finally reached Grandpa's cabin, Margaret, Maddie, and Buck following close behind. The cabin was small, but they would make do. Maddie and their parents were only staying for a night before driving back anyway. Setting the bags down by the door, Grandpa showed Phillip and Margaret to the pull-out couch he had already set up for them and Maddie and showed Buck to the small bed he had bought from the local carpenter just a few days before.

Laying in what would be his bed for the next few weeks, it finally dawned on Buck that this was real. His parents actually were kicking him out for the summer. He really did get to get away from them for a few weeks. He could have a little taste of freedom for once in his life. This was real and it was possibly the best thing to ever happen to him.

Chapter Text

It didn't take long for Buck to fall into Grandpa's routine. Wake up at 6a.m., be outside watering crops by 7:30, feed animals, milk cows and collect eggs, check the cave for mushrooms, and by then it's time to start preparing for lunch. Mornings were always the same. Buck thought it would be boring, but he grew to find comfort in the routine. His favorite part of the day still had to be the afternoons when he could go play with the kid who lived just south of the farm.

Not long after Buck's parents and sister had left, Grandpa had taken him down to the shop on the edge of the woods. He said he needed to get some more hay while he waited for the grass to regrow since it had been an oddly dry spring. Buck didn't completely understand what that meant but he acted like he did. They walked into the shop and were greeted by a woman who seemed to radiate kindness. "Morning Fredrick! Is this the little miss Evelyn you've been talking so much about?" Buck wanted to hide when he heard her say little miss, but he already knew not to let adults see that, they never seemed to have a good reaction. Grandpa and the lady talked for a minute before they both turned back to Buck.

"Hey sweetie, how would you like to meet my nephew? He's around your age, I think you two would really get along."

Buck stayed close to his grandpa, not quite hiding behind his leg but not being all that brave either. He nodded at the lady and she smiled brightly.

"Great!" She disappeared around the corner and Buck could hear movement in the other room. When the lady returned a little boy followed shortly behind her. "This is my nephew Eddie." She patted the boy's shoulder, "Now, why don't you boys go help Mr. Fredrick carry this hay back to the farm."

*****

After the boys had helped Grandpa put the last of the hay in the silo, he sent them off to play with a shoulder pat and a "be back before dinner". Grandpa went inside the house and left the kids sitting on the porch. Buck was finally able to get a good look at Eddie. He had dark hair and eyes, and he was a little taller than Buck, probably older too, but only by a year or two if he had to guess. He also noticed that the boys arms were covered in scratches, he assumed it was from playing in the woods by his house. Buck was startled out of his study when Eddie spoke up,

"So what do you do for fun around here?"

"I usually go catch the frogs hiding over there." Buck shrugged and pointed to the corner of the farm that had become overgrown with trees and debris.

And that's where the pair had spent the rest of the afternoon. They had caught a few frogs and some particularly large bugs too. Soon they found themselves falling into an easy conversation, talking about their interests and hobbies, about the places they lived, about their families, each one just wanting to learn more about the other. Buck even told Eddie about how he didn't like his name or being called a girl, unsure of why he trusted Eddie so much, but trusting him nonetheless. Buck was right to trust him though, as Eddie didn't find his feelings weird or gross like most other people did, simply asking, "Well, what about Ev?" It made Buck happy that he had someone who didn't judge him and was even trying to make him more comfortable, he knew then that he and Eddie would be friends.

The boys continued wandering through the forest-like corner of the farm until they came across a fallen log. To these two, the log looked a lot like a fire truck. So that's what it was. They found four rounded stones nearby to act as wheels and even a oddly bendy tree branch to be their hose. They pretended to put out fires, save cats from trees, and, after Eddie told Buck about the firefighters he saw do this back in Texas once, they pretended to save a boy from a well. They played through the different stories they'd heard about firefighters until the sun started to set and they had to go in for dinner. 

As the two walked up to the house, the mood seemed to drop, as they knew dinner meant that Eddie would have to go home soon. The air felt as if it got heavier the closer they got to the door of the cabin. Opening the door to the cabin, they heard Grandpa talking to someone over the phone, a rare occurrence considering Grandpa always preferred talking face-to-face. They took off their shoes at the door, sat down at the table, and waited for Grandpa to finish his phone call.

"That was your aunt, Eddie. How would you feel about spending the night here?"

Grandpa barely got the last few words out before Eddie was smiling and eagerly nodding his head. Eddie and Buck both cheered up immediately, hurrying through their dinner so they could go watch TV.

Grandpa gathered all the spare blankets and pillows in the house so the kids could pile them up into mattresses in front of the TV and spend the night watching cartoons. He sat behind them in his chair for a few episodes before he could barely keep his eyes open. He patted their shoulders, told them to wake him if they needed anything, and left towards his bedroom.

*****

This is how the rest of the summer was spent. Every afternoon Eddie and Buck would hang out in the overgrown corner of the farm or in Cindersap Forest by Eddie's house, and every Friday they would have a sleepover, alternating who's house they slept at each weekend.

Eddie continued to call Buck "Ev" too, and, after awhile, so did everyone else in town. Everyone except Grandpa, at least. But Buck didn't mind, because Grandpa had his own nickname for him.

It started when Grandpa had been teaching Buck how to forage. He was teaching him about whats in season during the Summer, whats safe to eat, what will sell for more, and, if he was being honest, Buck thought he was a natural. He had gone to go look behind some bushes when he saw some weird marks on the ground. He pointed them out to Grandpa, who then explained that they were deer tracks. Grandpa said they didn't get many deer around here so that was a pretty rare find. When they went out to forage again, Buck thought he had seen a spiceberry, but it was actually an antler. What finally earned Buck a new nickname from Grandpa was the time that buck had found a baby deer hidden by some trees. Grandpa explained that a baby deer is called a fawn, and after telling Buck almost everything he knew about deer, he pinched his cheek and called him "Little Fawn".

Buck finally felt at home. He had never been given a nickname by anyone back in Hershey, and now he had two. He and Grandpa had started heading back to the farm, and Buck was almost in tears, not because he was sad, but because this was the happiest he had ever been. He had a friend and a family who loved him.

*****

Summer after Summer Buck came back to Pelican Town. Every year he made sure that if his parents seemed too indifferent towards him, he'd do something to ensure they sent him back anyway. He would convince a friend from school to call him a guy in front of his parents "as a prank", or he would cut his hair a little too short and stop wearing makeup for a few weeks, anything he could think of to make his parents think he was acting out.

The Summer after he had turned 13, Buck's parents seemed to catch on. He seemed a little too unreluctant to go work on the farm, and a little too sad after coming home. They started to think that Grandpa was putting thoughts in his head, or that the people in Pelican Town were, but either way something in that valley was "corrupting their little girl". They told him that he couldn't go back, that he would never return to Pelican Town again. They tried to make it seem like a good thing, "You can get a job babysitting now, you don't have to work on that farm anymore." He was devastated. He didn't even have a chance to say goodbye. He couldn't say goodbye to anyone in town, but most of all to Grandpa or to Eddie. It felt like the world was crashing down around him and all he could do was pretend it wasn't. He still had to hold out hope that he could manage to go back there someday. That he could do something to get himself sent back there.

He held out hope until he was 16. That was when the letter came. It was addressed to "Ev Buckley", from the mayor of Pelican Town, Lewis. He snuck it out of the pile of "junk mail" his parents had set aside and brought it up to his room to read.

Dear Ev,

Your parents will be notified soon but I thought it would be best for you to hear it from us first. Last night your grandfather passed on from this world. He had been sick for awhile, so it came as no surprise, but we made sure he was comfortable and he passed in his sleep. The whole town is currently setting up for his funeral. Your grandpa was a great man and was a big influence on everyone here. Even after you had stopped spending the Summer here, he continued to brag about you to everyone. He made sure we all knew that you didn't want to leave. He was proud of you. We all are. I hope that you have been well at home, but I want you to know that you always have a place here.

Before your grandpa passed, he wrote you this letter, he told me to send it to you only after he was gone, and to tell you not to open it yet. He wanted to tell you

"There will come a day when you feel crushed by the burden of modern life and your bright spirit will fade before a growing emptiness. When that happens, Little Fawn, you will be ready for this gift."

Buck held the letter in disbelief. He hadn't realized that he had been crying until he saw the tears stain the paper in his hands. Nothing felt real for weeks afterwards. Lewis was right about his parents finding out later, he just had to act surprised when they told him. He found Grandpa's letter that Lewis had wrote about and tucked it away in a box in the top of his closet for safekeeping.

If Buck thought being told by his parents he couldn't go back to the farm was the rock bottom, then he was in hell.

Chapter Text

"You just don't know what you're getting yourself into, Evelyn!"

Margaret's words rang through Buck's ears as he packed his stuff into an old backpack and the two random cardboard boxes he could get his hands on.

*****

Not long after Buck had turned 18, he knew he had to leave. He got a job at the local Joja-Corp, doing mindless deskwork that he absolutely hated, but it payed    enough. He moved in with this guy he was dating, Adam, who was    nice. Look, Buck was young and didn't have much experience with relationships, at least not real relationships anyway, so, to him, Adam seemed great.

Buck will be the first to admit that his highschool years weren't his proudest moments. Life sucked. He had shit parents, felt dysphoric all the time, and generally hated himself. His way to remedy this? For lack of a better term, he slept around. It wasn't the best way to deal with his issues, but it made him feel like he at least had control over something in his life.

And, hey, at least he wasn't cutting himself.

Most of the time.

Sometimes.

Look it wasn't great, but he was doing better. A lot better actually.             Okay, maybe not "a lot", but still better.

Now he had Adam. Adam and their little, tiny, one-room apartment. Two, if you count the bathroom. Okay, maybe he was grasping at straws with that one, but it was what they could afford, and it was definitely better than living at home.

Adam himself was great. He really was. At first. He always paid attention to Buck, and Buck soaked it up. After years of having to fight to get his parents to even notice him, Adam just offering up his attention so freely was the best thing Buck could ask for from a partner.

Adam noticed everything too. He noticed when Buck was gaining or losing too much weight, when he forgot to do the dishes, when he was home from work a little later than usual, when he was spending too much time with one person- everything Buck did, Adam noticed.

Not only did Adam notice all of this, but he always voiced his opinions too. Buck always knew where he stood with Adam.

Life was great. For a while. Adam had just turned 21. And he had started drinking.

When Adam was drunk, he could get physical. Sometimes that meant he was physically aggressive, even violent, and sometimes that meant he would force himself onto Buck. Whichever it was, Buck always just grit his teeth and dealt with it. Adam was a good guy, he was just drunk. He didn't mean to hurt Buck.

Buck always found himself making these excuses for Adam. He didn't want to believe Adam could do anything wrong.

But, most of all, he didn't want his parents to be right.

So, he covered the bruises, hid the pain, and continued with life like normal. No one would know. No one should know. No one needed to know.

Until Maddie and Doug moved back home.

The first time Buck met up with Maddie, he could tell something was off. She seemed   scared? or maybe   hurt? Buck guessed it was probably nothing. He was probably just overthinking things. Probably just nerves from moving. But he was still going to keep an eye on her.

The next time they met up confirmed to Buck that he was, in fact, not overthinking.

They had gone out for coffee, but Maddie had been more jumpy than usual. That had already put Buck on alert. What had really confirmed his suspicions was the bruising on Maddie's wrist. The pattern of a hand that Buck recognized all too well.

"Maddie, did Doug do this?"

"No, I just,    fell."

"That's a handprint. You don't get a bruise like that from falling."

"Ev, would you please just leave it alone."

"No, the whole time you've been back you've been acting off. Even just today you've jumped at every random noise. You were never like that before. I swear to God Maddie, if that man did something to you I'll kick his ass."

Now, Buck had been taking T for a while, and he had already beefed up a bit, but not nearly enough to really kick Doug's ass. He would sure try though.

"So are we just ignoring how you've been walking around like a kicked puppy? Evan, I really don't think you have room to talk."

"That's different."

"Why? Because you're a man?"

"Well when you say it like that it sounds stupid. But I still can't let you keep living like this."

"Then why can you? You can't just tell me that I have to leave Doug while you go home to Adam."

Buck paused for a minute, thinking.

"We'll both leave. You and me. We'll go far, far away. Away from Doug. Away from Adam. Away from Mom and Dad. Go where they can never find us. Together."

"Ev, -"

"We don't have to leave now. We'll find a time, say that we're going to grab lunch or something. Then, we'll just leave. Start a new life."

Maddie smiled and exhaled a small laugh.

"Okay."

*****

It was settled. That's how Buck ended up here, packing his belongings while Adam was still asleep.

He would leave a note, telling Adam he was going out for breakfast with Maddie, and hope that Adam didn't notice that all of Buck's things were missing until they were already long gone.

Buck was on his way to the diner they had planned to meet up at when he got a text from Maddie:

I can't go with you. I'm sorry. Go. Be free. For both of us.

What.

The.

Fuck.

Buck stopped the car, reading and rereading the message over and over again. He felt hurt, betrayed, abandoned- this was a big step, for both of them, how could she just back out like that?

Buck didn't know what else to do. He started driving again. He drove until he couldn't drive anymore. Drove until he couldn't keep his eyes open.

He grabbed the blanket from his bag and crawled into the backseat of the Jeep. He tossed and turned, but eventually got to sleep.

Buck woke to the sound of his phone ringing. After the text from Maddie yesterday, he hadn't checked his phone at all. He opened it to find a lot of missed calls and texts from Adam. He couldn't respond to him, so he did the only other logical thing and blocked him. It was hard, but it had to be done.

Eventually, Buck got hungry. He pulled over and started digging through his belongings because he knew he had packed a box of granola bars somewhere in there. Finally, his hand hit a small box and he pulled it out.

It wasn't a box of granola bars, but a box of mementos. Pictures of him and Maddie as kids, a small stuffed dinosaur he could never find it in himself to part with, some other, random stuff from his childhood, and, a sealed envelope.

Buck pulled the envelope out of the box and saw the faded, but still familiar handwriting, spelling out "Little Fawn".

"Hi, Grandpa." Buck whispered into the empty car as he carefully tore open the seal, finding two papers inside.

The first paper was a letter. In the same handwriting used on the envelope it read,

Little Fawn,

If you're reading this, you must be in dire need of a change.

The same thing happened to me, long ago. I'd lost sight of what mattered most in life... real connections with other people and nature. So I dropped everything and moved to the place I truly belong.

I've enclosed the deed to that place... my pride and joy: Pelican Farm. It's located in Stardew Valley, on the southern coast. It's the perfect place for you to start your new life.

This was my most precious gift of all, and now it's yours. I know you'll honor the family name, Little Fawn. Good Luck.

Love, Grandpa

P.S. If  Lewis is still alive say hi to old guy for me, would ya?

The second paper, as Grandpa said, was the deed to the farm.

With that, Buck knew what he had to do. He pulled up the GPS on his phone and headed to Pelican Town.

He was going home.

Chapter Text

It was early in the morning when Buck reached Pelican Town. Like, grass still wet, early. He parked his car on the side of the road for now, and stepped out to find two people looking at a broken down bus.

“And who might you be, young man?”

An old man in a bright green shirt and suspenders was now staring at him.

Little Fawn

Grandpa's to pass his ears, as if whispered by the wind. But he wasn't a Fawn anymore. He had grown. Changed.

“You can just call me Buck.”

The words had left Buck's mouth before he even realized he had talked.

“Well, Buck, I'm Lewis, mayor of Pelican Town. What can I do for ya?”

Buck remembered this town having a sort of “Southern hospitality” but this guy was really chipper.

“I, uh, just, came into possession, of Pelican Farm.” Why was he so hesitant to say inherited?

Lewis seemed to think for a minute, studying Buck's face, before finally coming to a conclusion.

At this point, the lady who had been standing next to Lewis emerged from under the bus. When had she gotten there?

“Doesn't look like there's much I can do here, Lewis. As I told you before, I'm not a mechanic.” She started dusting herself off before looking back to Buck. “And who's this?”

“Athena, this is Buck. He's moving into the old farm. Buck, this is Athena, our local carpenter.”

“Not mechanic.” She said with a half-joking-half-serious tone.

“Anyway, Athena, I was just about to show Buck here to the farm, if you'd care to join us?”

Buck quickly gathered his few belongings from the car and filled the two to the farm. His farm.

Lewis told him about the “shipping bin” and Athena offered to fix-up the cabin, after making fun of it a little.

Athena had already left, and Lewis was about to do the same, but, first, he turned to Buck. He put a hand on Buck's shoulder and gave him a soft smile.

“Welcome home, kid. Your grandfather would be very proud.”

And Buck just about started crying on the spot.

This was where he was meant to be.

*****

The sun was setting as Buck unlocked the door to the cabin. His cabin.

The first thing he noticed was the dust. It looked like no one had stepped foot in the house since Grandpa died. There was a thick layer of dust covering everything. He had some serious cleaning to do. Tomorrow.

For now, Buck made his way around the cabin. Everything he remembered from his childhood was still there. The TV that should probably be replaced, the little bed Grandpa had bought for him that he definitely outgrew, even the now empty pots in the window that Grandpa always took careful care of, telling Buck how important it was to surround yourself with life.

It was like a shrine to his childhood.

Buck eventually turned the corner into Grandpa's bedroom. It was the only other room in the cabin, but it still felt so much farther than the main room. Maybe it was because it was closer to Grandpa, or maybe Buck just didn't have as many memories in there.

Buck carefully folded the top blanket from Grandpa's bed, placing it carefully on the floor, and flipped over the pillows, trying to avoid inhaling as much dust as possible. He took his own, significantly less dusty, blanket from his bag and laid in Grandpa's bed. His bed.

*****

Buck was woken up by sunlight flooding into the bedroom. He was reminded Grandpa didn't believe in curtains.

“The sun does so much for us, it's as much a part of this family as you and me. Why would I ever shut it out?” Buck could hear him even now.

As much as Buck loved sleeping in and afternoon naps, it would just feel wrong to put curtains in this cabin.

Buck dug through his bag for some remotely clean clothes. He had to figure out the whole breakfast situation before he started cleaning. He vaguely remembered the general store having a few “quick meal” options. He mostly remembers Grandpa keeping a few around but never actually using them because he always insisted on “good home-cooked food”, which Buck never minded.

While Buck was looking for his wallet, there was a knock at the door.

Buck ran over and opened it to find a man who looked about twice his own age. He was holding two cups of coffee and a bag of food that already smelt delicious.

“I'm Bobby, I own the local saloon. Lewis told me someone had moved to the old farm and I figured you probably didn't have much food yet, so I thought I'd bring you a little breakfast and introduce myself.”

Buck introduced himself to Bobby and they settled on the porch to eat. 

The food was even better than it smelled. The taste brought Buck right back to when he was a kid, going to the saloon with Grandpa. He would always rush through his food so he could go play the arcade games in the back while Grandpa socialized. Sometimes the young barhand would go on break and would help Buck with a particularly hard level of Prairie King. One time, the barhand and the carpenter's daughter taught Buck and his friend how to play pool. He remembers feeling so cool, getting to hang out with the adults.

While they ate, Bobby told Buck more about the town. He filled him in on who owned what and everyone's schedules. He warned him that there were a few people in town who might seem rude at first, but that no one in this town was truly bad. He even told him about who to sit near at the saloon if he wants to hear the best gossip.

After they had finished eating, Bobby left to prepare the saloon for opening in a few hours, but before he left he told Buck he was always welcome, whether he needed a hot meal or just someone to talk to.

*****

It was already around 4pm when Buck had finished just dusting everything in the cabin. With the rest of the day, he was able to unpack his belongings, check most of the appliances and make a list of what needed replacing, and track down Grandpa's old tools.

That night, when Buck was laying down to sleep, he got the best rest of his life. He felt a sense of accomplishment, and like he finally knew what he was meant to be doing.

In the morning, Buck finished off the leftovers Bobby had left him with, and he went outside to start clearing some of the farmland. Grandpa had always left a little corner of the farm kind of overrun, saying it was important to give back some space to nature, but he had kept the rest of the farm fairly clean and organized. Buck would strive to do the same.

Buck was walking around, picking up scattered sticks and branches, when he heard a loud snap from between the trees next to him. He slowly, carefully, turned his head to see the source of the noise. Standing there, looking at him, watching him, was a deer.    A large buck.    

There was something off about it. Something in the eyes that seemed a little too… human. It was a little creepy, but there was something comforting there as well. Familiar.

“Hey there, bud.”

Buck spoke softly, and it didn't seem to spook the deer, so he slowly reached his hand out towards the deer, stopping about halfway between them. In return, the deer reached his head out far enough that Buck could feel his breath he sniffed his hand.

The deer pulled his head back with a sort of snorting noise and ran off deeper into the farm.

Follow it.

Buck didn't know who or what was telling him to follow the deer, but he listened.

Buck followed the deer all the way to the corner of the farm. The deer ran into a small clearing in the trees, but once Buck had bought up, the deer seemed to have disappeared into thin air.

The only thing left in the clearing with Buck was a stone structure that seemed to be built into the “wall” of the farm. It had some carvings on it, and there were four small platforms surrounding it.

Then, Buck noticed the paper.

“Wait for my return at the dawn of your third year.”

Grandpa's handwriting.

Bucks initial reaction was that someone was pranking him, but he didn't know anyone who would do something like this. So, he tucked the note away in his pocket and headed back to the cabin.

Chapter Text

Within about a week of moving to the valley, Buck was settling into the farm schedule. He had the farm cleared, had repaired or replaced everything in the house that needed it, and had even introduced himself to everyone in town.

Mostly.

There were still a few people that, at this point, Buck was pretty sure we're avoiding him.

"Diaz, we're gonna need you to start picking up a few more hours."

Eddie heard the same thing every time someone quit or transferred. They were down to three employees now. And Morris. But he doesn't actually do anything.

If it weren't for Chris, Eddie wouldn't put up with this. But he already had to move in with Pepa after Shannon left, he can't afford to raise this kid alone and he sure as hell wasn't going to move back in with his parents. They were well-meaning, but very suffocating.

Eddie was conflicted, having more hours did mean more money, and all of Chris's medical bills weren't cheap, but it also meant less time with Chris. He had been meaning to try and encourage Chris to be more social. Now he could set up more playdates after his tutoring. 

"Yes, sir."

It wasn't like Eddie has much of a choice anyway. If he tried to refuse, Morris would just schedule him to work late anyway.

Buck was heading to visit a wizard after receiving an invitation in the mail. He had been seeing weird things since moving to the valley, from the deer that Buck keeps seeing glimpses of to those little ... apples? that he saw in the community center, and hopefully this wizard could explain some of it.

It was still pretty early when Buck had left, so he didn't expect to see anyone out yet, especially not at the ranch.

But there he was. A man was leaving Pea's in what Buck recognized as a Joja uniform.

"Morning!" Buck called out to him.

The man turned, still looking half asleep, and stared at Buck for a minute.

"Who are you?"

"Buck, I just moved into the farm."

The man's face seemed to drop.

"This town's farm?"

"Yeah?"

The man whispered a small fuck under his breath.

"I gotta get to work."

The man was already walking away before Buck could respond.

"See you around!" Buck tried calling out to him again, just getting a wave in response this time.

Who the fuck did he think he was taking Fredericks farm?

Some of Eddie's best childhood memories were on that farm so forgive him for being more than a little upset. Even now, he sometimes would bring Chris up there to look for bugs and frogs, just like he used to with Ev.

Ev.

God how Eddie wishes he had a way to contact her, tell her someone bought the farm.  Would she care? Eddie like to think she would, liked to think she would come and fight for ownership. Her grandfather is buried there for fucks sake.

But Eddie hasn't seen her since he was 14? 15? God it's been too long.

During the summers after Ev had stopped coming, Eddie would still go over and help Frederick whenever he could. Usually just the jobs Frederick was having more trouble with in his old age, repairing fences, shearing sheep, whatever he needed done.

Eddie always felt a connection to that farm, but always chalked it up to spending so much time there. Deep down, however, he knew it was something more. Maybe that's why he didn't think twice about moving in with Tia Pepa when it came to it.

Before Eddie even realized, he was already at the JojaMart.

Every time he walks through this sliding glass doors, it's like he willingly walks through the gates of hell.

Not willingly. As much as he hates this job, he loves his son more, and the ranch just doesn't bring in enough money.

So, now, Eddie spent his days stocking shelves. Can after can after can after...

Eddie heard the sliding doors open, and stay open long enough to be multiple people. He guessed 3 or 4.

Who comes to JojaMart in a group?

Eddie knew that everyone who shopped at JojaMart was ashamed of it. They all would wait until there was no one in the store, always shop as quickly as possible, and would always keep their head down. It's not their fault Joja's cheaper. Quantity over quality or whatever.

Eddie tried to mind his own business and keep stocking, but the footsteps started heading towards him, and, as they approached, he recognized the four-beat rhythm of crutches. He turned towards them, smiling.

"Hey, Bud! What are you doing here?"

Chris didn't answer him, just hobbled into his arms smiling and giggling. The kid always seemed to be happy. Despite everything, he was always smiling.

"We were walking along the the river when it started raining, and I think someone wanted the excuse to come see you."

Karen had walked in behind Chris, Denny following behind her.

When Hen and Karen moved into town, Karen began working online and tutoring the local kids in her free time. It just so happened that most of her free time overlapped with Eddie's schedule, meaning he didn't have to worry about finding a babysitter too.

After his shift, when Chris was already home with Pepa, Eddie walked to the saloon. This has been his ritual since he started at JojaMart. Work, have a beer or two, but not enough to get him really drunk because Chris didn't need to see him like that, then go home and pass out for a few hours and repeat.

Eddie walked in and went to his usual corner, where Emily almost immediately handed him a drink.

"You had me worried there for a bit, Diaz. Morris give you more hours or something?"

"Yep."

"Is that even legal at this point?"

"Not like I can just quit."

Emily shrugged and went back to work, leaving Eddie alone with his beer and his thoughts.

Eddie got home around 11pm, found the leftovers Pepa and Chris packed up for him, and started his other, mini ritual. Reheating leftovers as quietly as possible. He stops the microwave a second before the alarm would go off, makes sure not to let the fork scrape against the plate, and very, very gently sets the dishes in the sink, still cringing when they clink against the other dishes.

As Eddie mad this way back to his room, he started thinking about the farm again. God, he was still pissed.

And he stayed pissed until he fell asleep. And even in his dreams Eddie stayed pissed. He had a dream that Ev had come back and had just moved in with Buck.

Why did that part bother him?