Just Starting Out
1.10 - The Landgraabs
A week later, John was hopping off the bus in Oasis Springs. He’d heard of the resort town, of course, but he’d never imagined it’d be this… dry. And hot. No wonder Malcolm was so bitter. A town like this would make anyone eager to leave.
He looked around the dusty landscape. Malcolm was supposed to meet him here- that’s what they’d agreed on in the long chain of emails they’d sent back and forth to arrange this. Kayla was right. John owed Malcolm at least one journey out to Oasis Springs, and he was happy to be there, visiting Malcolm for once, but so far? Being left at the bus stop wasn’t a great start.
John let out an irritated sigh, and sat down on the bench. He dialed Malcolm’s number, and tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for Malcolm to pick up.
Malcolm picked up just before the answering machine kicked in.
“Hello?”
“It’s John, Malcolm,” John sighed. “You said you’d be here to meet me at four?”
John heard Malcom fumbling around on the other side of the line. “I thought your bus didn’t get in until… shit! I’ll be right there, John, give me, just, uh, 20 minutes!”
There was the muffled sound of Malcolm letting out a longer and more extensive string of expletives before he hung up, probably to get in his car and drive to pick John up.
John sighed, and leaned back. He’d be sitting here, cooking in the heat, for a while. Maybe he should have spent longer convincing Kayla to come too, cause this sure was lonely. And listening to her complain about the heat sure would have made him feel a lot better about his own discomfort. He had tried, but Kayla had adamantly refused.
“I have a book series to write, yoga classes to attend, the inspiration I need to continue having some mild success is here, in Newcrest! Not all the way in Oasis Springs with Malcolm, who, by the way, I do not like,” Kayla had told him.
“Kayla, come on! You deserve a vacation too,” John had whined. “Also, actually spending some time with Malcolm might help you realize he’s not as bad as he seems.”
“Not gonna happen, John. Get excited for you instead! You’ve never been to Oasis Springs before, imagine how much fun it’ll be getting to go to a resort desert town! Live for what you’re getting, John! Some people aren’t fortunate enough to travel to Oasis Springs and stay in the Landgraab Mansion, of all places.”
“You’re right that I’m fortunate, Kayla, but you deserve a break too. But… I can see that there’s no convincing you.”
Kayla has already moved on. ““Live for what you’re getting… get excited for you… oh! I am so using that in my next book! Phrased a lot more eloquently, of course, but yes! This is great!”
Now that he was on a bench alone in Oasis Springs, John could think of so many other ways he could have convinced her. Seeking inspiration somewhere new, for instance. He was sure Kayla could have come up with valuable insights on the lifestyle of the rich and famous. But, no. Kayla was just too good at being convincing.
By the time Malcolm finally pulled up to the bus stop, John felt like he’d been completely sunburned. As someone who’d never been much of a fan of the sun, John wasn't happy. He’d chosen programming as a career for a reason, after all. It kept him indoors.
“Well, you’re certainly right on time,” John said sarcastically, standing up and frowning.
“I am so sorry, John,” Malcolm said apologetically. “I swear to you, I wanted to get here on time I just lost track of time, and-“
“Woah, Malcolm, calm down,” John said, giving Malcolm a weird look. “This whole apologetic thing… it isn’t like you. Normally, you’re so outspoken! You say exactly what you want to say and stand by it. Did arriving 30 minutes late really drive you that far off the deep end?”
“…ignore it, okay? Just get in the car, John.”
“Don’t have to tell me twice,” John shrugged.
He threw his luggage in the back of Malcolm’s car, then hoped into his passenger seat.
Malcolm stepped on the gas, and they zoomed away from the bus station, dust billowing up behind Malcolm’s car as he went well over the speed limit. The two rode in silence for the first five minutes, not even a radio on to drown out the monotonous sound of the car engine on the relatively deserted roads.
After a while, Malcolm cleared his throat. “Um, John…”
John turned to Malcolm. “Yeah, Malcolm?”
“I…” Malcolm started. Then he hesitated. “I, um, just wanted to let you know that my mom can be kind of a bitch? Yeah! She’s been at her absolute worst today. She just lost a very lucrative partnership with the Villareal family for various reasons that are best kept secret, so watch where you step around her for now.”
John got the sense that Malcolm was going to say something else, but he went along with what Malcolm had decided to discuss instead. “Yeah… your mother definitely seems to be pretty intense. Thanks for the warning.”
“You’re not wrong,” Malcolm sighed, shaking his head. “I’ve been walking on eggshells around her my entire life.”
The two fell back into silence.
Malcolm resorted to making conversation by pointing out various landmarks they were passing as he sped down the roads. “That’s the Solar Flare, oh, and if you look down that road… can you see the area with all the grass and buildings? That’s the Mai Luxury Spa and Resort… the owners came to town recently and mom doesn’t like all the money they seem to be bringing in, as she doesn’t control it…”
Before John knew it, they were pulling up to a massive building that had to be the Landgraab mansion. Only a woman like Nancy Landgraab would be self-absorbed enough to live in a house of this size with only two other family members.
John and Malcolm got out of the car, and Malcolm led John up to the front door. Just before Malcolm reached it, Nancy flung the door open and greeted John with one of the fakest smiles John had ever seen.
“John!” she exclaimed. “It’s so great to finally meet Malcolm’s favorite little plaything!”
“Mom!” Malcolm said, horrified.
“Am I wrong, though, Malcolm? I’ve never seen you more dedicated to one of my employees… but pay me no mind! I’m just teasing,” Nancy said, putting on the fakest laugh John has ever heard.
“Where’s dad?” Malcolm asked, trying to get the two of them out of that conversation.
“That is a very good question!” Nancy smiled. “You boys go and make yourself comfortable, I’ll go and fetch him.”
Nancy swung her way up the stairs, while Malcolm led John over to the sitting room.
“That sounds like a totally different Nancy than the one I talked to on the phone,” John said breathlessly. “Like she’s still clearly… well, cruel, but she had this sort of airy voice she put on, and it’s jarring to say the least.
“My mom pulls out all the stops for houseguests,” Malcolm said, shaking his head. “I wouldn’t try to think too much of it, none of this means that she actually likes you.”
“What was that, Malcolm?” Nancy asked, coming downstairs with a man that John assumed was her husband. John and Malcolm quickly stumbled up from the couch.
She looked at the dark room Malcolm and John were sitting in and frowned. “Malcolm. Some hospitality for our guest? Please. The least you can do is turn on the light.”
Nancy smiled, and loudly clapped her hands, which flipped on some lights that momentarily blinded John and Malcolm. Nancy and her husband seemed unfazed.
“Geoffrey,” the man said simply, holding out his hand to John.
“John,” John smiled, holding out his hand to Geoffrey. Geoffrey took John’s hand, and squeezed it in a firm handshake.
“So, John,” Nancy said lightly. “How’d you get to Oasis Springs? A first class airline, I assume? I know that our little Malcolm has enough self respect not to go about befriending anyone that’s well… poor.”
“I, uh… I rode a bus?” John said nervously.
“A bus? Oh my. That must have been quite the ordeal! I would say I’m surprised, but I’m not. Malcolm keeps making the unfortunate decision to drive out of town instead of flying, completely unaware of what exactly that does to our family image, so it’s only fitting he’d befriend someone who’d actually set foot on a bus.”
John wasn’t exactly sure of how to respond.
“Nancy, come on now. Give the poor boy a break,” Geoffrey sighed. “He just got in, there’s no need to subject him to your interrogation just yet.”
“Very well, Geoffrey. So, John. After, well, a bus ride, I can only guess you’d be exhausted. Would you like Malcolm to show you to your room?” Nancy asked. “While he gives you the grand tour, I can have our chef whip you up a meal better than anything else you’ve ever tasted, and we can spend the rest of the evening chatting outside on our gorgeous back patio. We’re going to learn so much about each other!”
“Actually, mom, I was thinking that John and I might go out to the bar tonight-“ Malcolm interjected.
“Oh no,” Nancy laughed. “A bar Malcolm? Please. Have some class. We have more than enough drinks here, at home. It wouldn’t do for a Landgraab to be seen out at some common bar.”
Malcolm deflated, and looked down at the floor.
“Well! Seeing that Malcolm is apparently too incompetent to even show you to your bedroom, looks like I’ll have to do it. Come along, John!”
Nancy grabbed John’s wrist, her perfectly manicured nails digging into John’s skin, and dragged him upstairs. She took him into the first room on the second floor, and pointed towards a chair where he could sit down.
“Let’s chat, John. First, I’ll have you know that sending you to Willow Creek was a test, of sorts,” Nancy said simply.
“You used a family as powerful as the Goths as a test?” John asked, shocked.
“The Goth family aren’t nearly as powerful as us Landgraabs. They don’t have nearly the fortune we do, let alone the international reach we do. Those fools are completely confined to Willow Creek! So, it’s completely apt for us to use them as a test. You passed, by the way. You proved your loyalty to Landgraab Industries, to me, by sucking it up and entering the home of the family you most feared during your childhood. So, well done in that regard.”
“Thank you?”
“But speaking of status John… I’m shocked Malcolm would actually befriend you! Says a lot about his own lack of judgement… first of all, there’s no status behind the Brooks family name, and secondly, you’re an employee! Any sort of relationship there is honestly inappropriate. Yet, he continues to defy me… I mean, heavens, he’s even defended you! So, please, enlighten me. What about you is so appealing to Malcolm?”
Nancy was interrupted by Malcolm who stood in the doorway, glaring daggers at Nancy. “Come on John, let’s go. You don’t need to hear this.”
John was torn. Nancy was intimidating, and Malcolm was his friend. But, after a few moments of hesitation, John scurried over to Malcolm’s side. Malcolm led the way out of the room, and Nancy made no effort to stop them. However, he was sure Malcolm would pay for this later.
Malcolm drove to the bar in a stormy silence, glaring straight ahead at the road in front of him. Not one word was exchanged until they reached the bar 15 minutes later.
Much of the evening was a blur for John. He thew back shot after shot with Malcolm, the two of them gradually getting more and more open with each other.
“Fuck my mom. I am so sick of her,” Malcolm fumed. “I’m an adult, and she still treats me like I’m 10 years old! I do one thing that’s outside of her perfect vision for me, and she’ll lock me in my room and force me to read mind numbingly boring files about the latest thing Landgraab Industries is doing.”
“Why do you even still tolerate her?” John muttered, struggling to string words together.
“She’s still my mom, I guess? And I would like to run Landgraab Industries someday, sure, most of it is boring but it’s what I was groomed to do. So, might as well. It feels like she’s desperately trying to maintain control sometimes… one time, I fucked up so bad in her eyes that she gave all the staff a month off and forced me to do everything they normally do for us. It was sickening. I only still have that car because she bought it for me when I had to buy groceries for the family that month.”
“Jeez… I’m sorry, Malcolm. That sucks.”
“How about you? What’s it like having normal parents?”
“It’s… hard to describe? They, uh, didn’t expect us to do more than chores, and our relationship is good… they like, actually had to kick us out of the house to get us to move.”
“Can’t even imagine that,” Malcolm said, shaking his head. “No matter what I do, I can expect my mom to be there criticizing me. I want so badly to get away from it all, but I can’t. I need to run this company someday, so I need to be here.”
“The company…. what does your mom, like, even do for your company and everything? ‘specially cause you’ll be her… someday,” John slurred.
Malcolm’s response was a shrug. “I honestly don’t know.”
By midnight, John was beyond wasted, and Malcolm was driving them home. He hadn’t has as much as John because he knew he’d be driving, but he was still swerving a little bit. All he could think about as he drove them home was how furious his mom was going to be once he got home.
Luckily, both Nancy and Geoffrey were asleep by the time Malcolm pushed open the front door.
“You can just sleep in my room,” Malcolm whispered to John. “It’s closer.”
“Okaaaay….” John said, past the point of processing information.
Malcolm practically dragged John up the stairs, and pushed open the door to the bedroom closest to the garage, which was his. With quite a bit of effort, Malcolm managed to get John situated on his bed. Malcolm looked over him, laying there fully clothed without a blanket over him. Sighing, Malcolm gave in, and started moving covers around to make sure John was warm.
As he did so, Malcolm was overcome by what he’d been feeling since John first called after him at the Blue Velvet. The thing he’d almost admitted to John in the car earlier in the day. The reason he’d gone all the way to Newcrest for Kayla’s book signing. The thing he couldn’t admit, even to himself, without copious amounts of alcohol.
“John… I think I love you.”