Just Starting Out
1.7 - The Girl in the Garden
“I really need someone all the way there in Newcrest to drive up to Willow Creek for the weekend! It’d be so sweet of someone to meet up with the Goth family for me… they owe me money, you see, and I just can’t simply be bothered to waste time getting there myself!” Nancy Landgraab said, talking to John, Lillian, and her other Newcrest employees down through the company call.
There was a long silence, filled only with Nancy’s expression dropping from the sweet smile she’d had to one of rage.
“Alright, you peasants. You’ll be payed overtime,” Nancy said with an eye roll.
“I’ll do it!” John said quickly.
“Oh wow, someone’s greedy,” Nancy sighed. “Don’t any of you go forgetting who your boss is. I won’t hesitate to fire any of you.”
Everyone else in the call went silent again.
“Everyone else? Leave the call, I’m going to speak to this brave individual alone,” Nancy frowned.
Everyone on the call muttered their goodbyes and hung up with resounding clicks, leaving just Nancy and John on the line.
“You, boy, you’re John Brooks, aren't you?” Nancy inquired.
“Y-Yes, m’am!” John stammered.
Nancy narrowed her eyes. “Hm. I expected better of Malcolm’s favorite, the ‘kindest, most honest man I’ve ever met and his sister’… Don’t think Malcolm’s stupidly high opinion of you will protect you for a moment, John, I still have many more years to take the opportunity to drop you from the company in such disgrace that you’re never hired by anyone ever again.”
John’s personal phone started to vibrate on his desk. He checked quickly. It was Lillian.
“Oh! Yes, of course, I- er, wouldn’t expect otherwise-“ John said quickly, stumbling over his words.
“I’m only speaking to you right now because I’m well aware Malcolm was dumb enough to break company protocol and reveal who you were working for even before he met you in person,” Nancy went on. She then let out a big sigh. “He was punished and reprimanded properly, of course. He won’t be making such a mistake again.”
John didn’t even have a response to that statement.
“Have a lovely time in Willow Creek anyway, John,” Nancy drawled. “Try not to waste too much time visiting your parents for me, okay?”
John nodded, then remembering he was on the phone, managed to squeak out an “Of course!”
Nancy hung up.
John let out a huge breath of air and picked up Lillian’s call just before it ended.
“Hey Lillian!” John said, faking cheerfulness.
“Jeez, that only took forever,” Lillian groaned. “Anyway, only called cause I got the feeling that whoever boss lady is just totally gutted you. You okay?”
“Yeah,” John said, letting out a breath of air he wasn’t aware he’d been holding.
“Her and her whole ‘don’t forget who your boss is’, none of us know who she is! We just know she’s generally an awful person, and clearly has a lot of money and superiority complex,” Lillian droned on.
“Oh yeah, for sure,” John said, completely distracted. “I’m really sorry, Lillian, but I’m going to head out to Willow Creek like now.”
“You want me to come with? I wouldn’t mind seeing Willow Creek with you…”
“Ah, no, it’s fine Lillian, you’ve got things to do,” John went on as he looked around the room surrounding him for whatever he was going to pack.
“Oh. Okay then,” Lillian said, hanging up.
John stopped for a moment, pausing to think about wether or not Lillian had been offended by his not wanting her in Willow Creek with him. The two had really starting talking lately, and were pretty close to dating- the two of them seemed to just be waiting for one of them to step up and make it official. But was she actually offended? John shook his head. He was sure Lillian would understand that he was going to be busy, this sounded far from a leisure trip.
A couple hours later, John climbed off the bus he’d taken and put his head in his hands. He was so exhausted. Sure, Nancy had wanted this done as soon as possible but he really wasn’t feeling up to yelling at some poor family for unpaid bills.
John dragged himself to the hotel he’d be staying at, checked his luggage, then decided to wander through commercial Willow Creek. Walking through that area always reminded him of his childhood, and seeing that he didn’t want to test Nancy by visiting his parents, this was the most he was going to do.
John briefly considered going into the bar, then after a moment’s hesitation, changed his mind. If he really wanted to revisit his childhood, he has to visit the museum. His parents had left him and Kayla there to spend the day when they both got caught up in work, and later, in his teenage years, both him and Kayla had studied with various friends from school there. John has even taken the one girl he’d dated there for a date later in their relationship.
He pushed open the doors, and enjoyed general vibe a museum gives off. John was on his way to his favorite section when he spotted a girl sitting outside in the little courtyard the museum had, quietly reading a book.
John frowned. He didn’t know why, exactly, but he felt like he just had to talk to her. Something deep inside of him told him that no one should ever sit around, lonely.
He walked out into the courtyard, shutting the door gently behind him. “Hey…” he said quietly.
The girl looked up quickly, clearly surprised that someone had come out to talk to her. She slipped a black bookmark into the book, which John now saw was called Famous Politicians and their Policies, and closed it.
“Who are you?” the girl asked.
“You can call me John,” John shrugged. “I know you’re caught up in a book and all, but you just looked so lonely, and I couldn’t just let you sit there alone…”
The girl smiled. “I’m Cassandra. Cassandra Goth?”
John’s mouth dropped. As a Willow Creek native, of course he’d heard of the Goth family! Rumor had it that at some point in time, they’d practically founded the town. “Oh! C-Cassandra!” John stammered. “I-I had no idea…”
Cassandra shrugged. “No, please, just because I’m a Goth doesn’t mean you need to be terrified of me.”
“I-I’m sorry!”
Cassandra sighed, and put the book down on the ground. “You can’t judge someone based on who their parents are, John. Don’t get me wrong, I love my parents, but the rumors don’t define who I am, or the way people need to view me…”
John nodded slowly.
Cassandra sighed again. “I-I’m sorry, John. Didn’t mean to drop all that on you. I… I have a lot on my mind, and, because of my family, no one to really talk to about it. When I get the opportunity to finally talk, I’ve got to take it.”
John frowned, thought for a moment, then decided to do something bold. “Do you have a pen?”
Cassandra, clearly surprised by the change in the conversation, nodded slowly and handed him one. John took it, and scribbled his email address onto the front page of Cassandra’s book.
Cassandra gave him a curious look. “You’re sure lucky that isn’t a library book there, John.”
John shrugged. “I know… Just, if you need someone to talk to, don’t be afraid to approach me, alright? And… this is honestly really ironic, but the company I work for needs me to visit your parents.”
“And what company would that be?” Cassandra asked.
“Just their power company,” John shrugged.
“Oh, Landgraab Systems…” Cassandra sighed.
“Y-yeah…” John stammered. After Cassandra’s immediate recognition of the company, John was surprised Nancy had even considered demanding one of her employees travel out to visit the Goths. None of them were supposed to be aware of who exactly they were working for.
“Can’t say I love the company, but you’ve definitely made a good first impression on me, John. Meet me here tomorrow, okay? I’ll walk you in with me, and maybe there’s a chance my parents will be a little less harsh on you.”
John nodded quickly. “Thanks! Thank you so much!”
“Of course,” Cassandra smiled, picking up her book. “Now, if you don’t mind, I really must be going. I’d wasted too much time in this little courtyard here even before you showed up, my boss has to be pissed. Be seeing you, John.”
John waved as Cassandra walked out of the courtyard. If there was anything John had to say about her, it was that she was definitely quite the character.