Just Starting Out
1.9 - Emails From Her
Kayla was waiting outside the house when John rolled up in a taxi, newly home from Willow Creek.
John had ended up spending what was basically the rest of the day at the Goth’s house. Bella loved doting on him and was sad to see him go at the end of the day. As he walked out the door, she made him swear to come back and visit her someday. John got the feeling that neither Cassandra or Alexander brought friends home that often. He hadn't planned on spending another night at the hotel, but after the events of the day, he wasn't irritated.
John pulled his luggage out of the trunk of the taxi, payed the driver, then watched as it zoomed off before turning to Kayla and the house.
“Welcome home, John,” Kayla smiled, holding out her arms for a hug.
John walked up the walkway and embraced her. The two stood there for a good 10 seconds, neither wanting to end the moment. John and Kayla hadn’t ever been separated as children, so John spending even two days away was hugely straining on the both of them.
“Well, the book thing was… more or less a success,” Kayla said as they walked indoors.
“More or less? What happened?”
“It was Melody, Malcolm, and some random lady who flew out from Windenburg,” Kayla sighed, sitting down in the kitchen. “That foreign lady blew me away, like, she was beyond dedicated to every last word I’ve ever written, but other than that? The whole thing just really wasn’t really what I’d hoped it’d be. Sure, I felt successful, and I was happy that some people showed up, but just three?”
John sat down next to her. “Even Lillian didn’t come out for you? Well, I’ll let her know that you’re feeling pretty let down. And, hey! We’ve got to start somewhere, right?”
Kayla nodded and shrugged. “Can’t deny that. Anyway, how’d the whole visiting the Goths thing go? That family always rubbed me the wrong way, living in their creepy, weird looking house, and acting so high and mighty that we rarely ever saw any of them in public…”
“Honestly, they’re not all that bad,” John shrugged.” Like, I feel that I’m on good terms with the Goths now, after even one visit, and honestly? I could almost call Cassandra a friend.”
Kayla’s mouth dropped. “Good terms… with the Goth family? Are you fucking kidding me? That’s huge John! Don’t know how you managed to pull that off, but wow, congratulations!”
“We’ve been shooting each emails back and forth for, well, practically my entire bus ride home.”
Kayla patted John on the back. “Well done, John! First, you bond with a Landgraab. Now, you’re hitting up Cassandra Goth? Maybe mom and dad were right, we really did need to move to Newcrest to start moving up in life.”
“I’m not- Cassandra and I are just emailing. Professionally! She knows all about how I’m sort of talking with Lillian, don’t get any weird ideas, Kayla.”
“Ah yes, Lillian- your devoted almost-girlfriend who was so enthusiastic about me and my work that she didn’t even bother to show up to my book signing. Lillian, who I am sure you spent way less time communicating with on that bus ride home than you did with Cassandra. Think you should spend a little more time talking to her?
“You’re blowing this way out of proportion, Kayla. But fine, I’ll let her know that I’m home.”
Kayla snorted. “Holy shit, John, you hadn’t even told her that you were home yet? Please, get it together! This is even worse than I thought!"
Their conversation dwindled as John went to the computer to email Lillian- as well as check for more emails from Cassandra- and as Kayla tried to figure out what to cook John for a welcome-home lunch.
Once John finished emailing Lillian, he was pleased to find an email from Cassandra.
Hey again John!
Loved hanging out with you over the past two days! Mom hasn’t shut up about you since, and I’m starting to become convinced that Dad is disappointed you weren’t going to hang around any longer. Almost feels like they wanted to set the two of us up- they both really want me to start settling down and continuing their domination of Willow Creek, I guess.
But anyway! We’ve totally got to meet up again, wether it’s in Willow Creek or in Newcrest. You’re so lucky you caught me on one of my few weekends where I have nothing going on but visiting the library and museum for research. On a typical day, I’m all over town trying to figure out my perfect plan for when I someday run for President and win. So, whenever you do decide to organize something for us to hang out again, make sure to let me know in advance so I can work it into my schedule.
Hope to talk to you soon!
- Cassandra
John sat down and typed out a quick reply, saying that he’d love to hang out again and that he’d let her know when he was free.
As Kayla served up lunch, she talked about how she was brainstorming ideas for her next book. Even if her first lifestyle book wasn’t as successful as she’d originally envisioned, it’d been significantly better than anything she’d tried to publish before moving to Newcrest. So, she was going to start on her next work- another novel containing even more lifestyle tips. This time, she was even considering featuring some of her favorite recipes. Kayla was going to turn all of this into an elaborate series that she hoped would net her a lot of success.
As conversation about Kayla’s writing, as well as their food, began to wind down, Kayla spoke up.
“So, John. We need to talk.”
“Is this going to be another lecture about Lillian?” John sighed. “Because if it is, you can save it. We’re going out on a date tomorrow, so there is nothing to worry about.”
“No, stupid. I’ve said my piece on Lillian, and clearly, you went over to the computer early to fix it. I want to talk about Malcolm,” Kayla said seriously.
“Malcolm? Oh, please don’t tell me that he said something cruel at your book signing, cause if he did I’m about to give him a piece of my mind-"
Kayla cut him off before he could go any further. “No, John. Look. I’m not entirely sure what his game is right now, but he went as far as to spend hours getting himself to my book signing because he thought you’d be there. That’s weird.”
“Well, yeah, that makes sense. Malcolm and I are better friends than you and he are, but I’m sure he wanted to see you too! Come on now Kayla, he did show up to your book signing, after all,” John frowned.
“No, it isn’t that, John. Listen, you’re not the one who had to talk to him and see his reaction to the news that you were all the way down in Willow Creek. I seriously doubt the only reason he drove all the way to Willow Creek was for my book signing. The only other reason he gave was that he wanted to escape his parents, but I’m not sure I totally buy that.”
“Escape his parents… Kayla, did Malcolm… look okay? When Nancy called me, she went on about Malcolm had broken company protocol or whatever, said he’d been punished, and I’m afraid to picture what exactly that meant.”
“What exactly are you implying here, John?” Kayla said. “Cause, no. Malcolm looked as pretentious as ever. That was probably just Nancy being dramatic to scare you into submission. Malcolm’s her little prodigal son, the son that she’s designed as the heir of both her company and her fortune. She isn’t going to pass all that down to just anyone.”
“I… I guess you do have a point there,” John said. “But, still…”
“John, if you’re so worried, why don’t you just go to Oasis Springs and see for yourself? When I chatted with Malcolm at the book signing, he heavily implied that he’s sick of always being the one who has to travel to see you, so how about you plan a trip to see him for a change?” Kayla suggested.
“Kayla, come on! I just got home! Let us just relax, hang out a little bit. I can spend time with Lillian, we can catch up…”
“But I thought you were worried about Malcolm, John! Oh, poor precious Malcolm, locked inside a gorgeous mansion with his wealthily abusive parents, you have to run to his rescue!”
“Shut up, Kayla,” John sighed.
“Just do it, John. I won’t be lonely, I have Melody. And Lillian is an adult who made the choice to live by herself, she will be just fine. You go off to Oasis Springs and see if Malcolm’s okay, or, even better, if Nancy will be impressed enough with you as a person to stop bullying you! Maybe, Malcolm could even convince her to grant you a promotion.”
“Fine. Fine! I’ll email Malcolm. Not because of any of those reasons you said, but because the two of us are friends. And if he wants me to initiate the conversation and go and see him for once? Why not? I’m sure Oasis Springs is lovely.”
John got up from the table and headed over to the computer.
“You’d better be reaching out to Malcolm and not spending more time emailing Cassandra!” Kayla called out after him.
As she grabbed the dishes that were left on the table, she looked back over to John. She was worried about him. John acted so confident about his career and relationships in front of her, but she could tell that he was completely oblivious about so much more. She was so easily able to tell how much Nancy terrified him, and she doubted that going to Oasis Springs and potentially spending her time in her home was a decision he took lightly.
But, above all else, she couldn’t believe how oblivious John was about Malcolm. That boy was clearly absolutely infatuated with John, and had been since that day in the park. Kayla was positive that John was straight, so, she knew that he’d have to let Malcolm down eventually, especially seeing that he was still clinging on to his weird relationship with Lillian. Yet, she knew that bringing that fact up to John wasn’t something he’d handle well, especially seeing that it was coming from his little sister. It was something he’d have to discover for himself, and Kayla hoped that this trip she was sending him on would help John figure out the true extent of Malcolm’s feelings.