Forging New Paths

  • So many newbies lately! Here is a very important PSA about one of our most vital content policies! Read it even if you are an ancient member!
Luca followed after Garrett's lead, tugging Evelyn gently along beside him and listening carefully when he echoed her thoughts out loud. There was a little frown on his face, thinking of how easily he broke things, and he thought they were telling him not to buy anything right now, so he wasn't going to take any of these home. It would be bad if he broke it and someone got hurt on the pieces.

"You can look at these as examples of what you might like, though," Evelyn added on, letting go of his hand after a little squeeze so he could explore freely. "The ones we'll find later on will just be a little heavier, and probably move more easily." She would find him something high quality from somewhere, later on.

Luca spent a while exploring, after finally mustering the effort of touching one of the spinners first. The cubes and 'wacky tracks' were interesting, but the clicking wasn't really what he liked. Anything silicone or similarly textured was interesting, but only briefly. There was one that appeared to be a marble inside a little mesh tube, which held his attention but after a while made his skin feel funny - Evelyn made a mental note to look for something similar with better fabric. To her, it seemed like something more quiet would be better for him, and anything that was made of metal was automatically out purely because the sound of it scraping together made her skin crawl.

"Now that we have a better idea of what you like," She said as they started to make their way towards the register, looping her arm gently through his to guide him with her in case the increased stimulus of the store and the many fidget toys had made him feel overwhelmed at all, "we'll know what to look for later on. I have a few ideas for things to try."

"Okay," He said softly, eyes wandering again and just walking where she pulled, quiet but not quite bothered by the store yet. "There's so many. . ." He didn't know there were so many things made for just holding in your hands and fiddling.
 
"There sure are a lot of different kinds," Garrett agreed. "But don't worry, there's no rush to pick one. There's plenty of time to decide. You could even get more than one, if you'd like!"

He glanced around the store and started drifting towards the bakery. "Say. What would you both think about getting some cookies or cupcakes for the picnic? I've already got the other food ready in a cooler in the car."

He was thrilled Luca still seemed calm. It was especially fortunate things were going smoothly; the better the memories Luca made in various public spaces, the easier it would be to help him feel more comfortable out in public.
 
It was strange, thinking of getting to have whatever he wanted. Luca was sure he couldn't have everything, but he at least had everything he needed, and lots of things he wanted. It felt indulgent - like it was all too much and he wasn't supposed to have any of it - but Evelyn and Garrett were taking care of him and giving him things and he would do anything to keep them. Just the idea of being without them again made the buzzing in his bones twitch, like it wanted to come out, and he was quiet and distracted for a while as he thought.

"Maybe one or the other," Evelyn suggested, just turning to follow patiently after him towards the baked goods with Luca in tow, though she did glance back to check on him when he didn't follow as readily. His attention was drifting, but he didn't seem particularly distressed so for now she just let his mind wander. "If Luca eats too much sugar, it hurts his stomach."

He had gone a long time without eating sweets or desserts except on rare occasions, so he didn't have much tolerance for it. Even Garrett's nights with hot chocolate and ice cream were sometimes almost too much.
 
The detective nodded solemnly. "I suppose we'll have to build his tolerance up over time, eh? Just as well, though. He's prone to eat healthier than I do, which is good for him." As the group reached the bakery, Detective Shiver made his way over to a display that contained cookies, cupcakes, and several other shareable treats. "All right, Luca. I know there are quite a few treats on here, so we've all got to work together to pick just one. Are there any that immediately catch your eye?"

There were about ten different desserts in total. It was quite a few more choices than Luca was usually asked to pick from, but Garret was hopefully that giving him a slight challenge would help slowly expand his capacity for making decisions.
 
"Or perhaps he should just not eat so many sweets," Evelyn countered with an amused little smile. Garrett and his sweet tooth were very convinced that everyone else had one, too. It went very well along with his desire to give presents to anyone in his vicinity that had his sympathy, or that he cared about.

Luca was looking at the case of desserts already, eyes following the bright colors though his mind was elsewhere, and he only blinked slowly a few times and pulled his attention back to Garrett when he realized he was being spoken to now, not just about. He frowned just a little in a way that Evelyn had come to see as his Thinking Face, eyes returning to the things in front of them as he tried to decide. What did other people like? He barely knew what he liked.

"Let's narrow it down just a little," Evelyn offered, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. "We're going to be outside with no knife or serving utensils, so no regular cakes. We should look for cookies, brownies, cupcakes, or anything else that you could eat with just your hands if you wanted to."

He nodded a little to show he'd heard, trying to push away the brightly colored cakes in his mind, and after a moment pointed to a tray of brownies with some sort of chocolate icing on top. "These ones?" He liked brownies, he thought, if that's what they actually were. Of course, it had been so long since he'd eaten them, he wasn't sure if he would like them anymore.
 
Last edited:
Garrett burst out laughing. "I suppose," he admitted at last. "I keep forgetting not everyone likes sugar as much as I do." He walked along with Luca calmly, grateful that Evelyn was there to help guide him into making a choice without too much stress.

Luca quickly settled on a box of brownies, and Garrett smiled and nodded. "Ooh, brownies! Classic choice. Nothing like a good brownie."

Once the group had checked out of the store, Garrett led the way back to the car, and then drove back towards the office. "So, Luca! What did you think of the store?" he asked happily. From his perspective, the trip had gone very well. They'd found the nightlights, observed a variety of fidget toys, and even picked out a dessert from the picnic. Garrett didn't think the trip could have gone any better.
 
Evelyn only smiled contentedly when Garrett laughed, glad that he was amused, and relaxed because Luca didnt seem bothered by anything yet. Everything was going well, and they were able to check out and leave with little trouble. Luca had yet to become tense or want to leave, so Evelyn counted it as a win.

"The store . . ." He murmured thoughtfully when they were back in the car, eyes a bit unfocused out the window while they passed the world by. ". . . It's smaller than I remember." The last time he had been inside of a store, he had still had to look up at things. Even though the store itself was big, and there were lots of colors and lots of people, everything felt smaller.

He didn't elaborate, and though Evelyn looked back at him to be sure he was okay she didn't ask him to. If they were home and she could sit with him and hold his hand and ask questions gently, she may have. But for now she thought it was best to just let him say what he felt like saying.
 
"Hm," Garrett said softly. He wasn't sure if that meant Luca had been to the store before and was remembering things or not. But he thought it would be best not to push. ". . . I see. Well, I'm very glad you came with us, Luca," he said at last.

Once the car reached the public office, it didn't take long to collect Anthony. Luckily, Watson was sleeping again and was peacefully left where he lay on Anthony's bed.

Anthony was excited for the picnic, and was glad the group was spread out throughout the car. His eyes sparkled with excitement. "So where are we going to picnic at? There are so many good spots!"
 
"You did very well staying calm," Evelyn added gently, and was quietly pleased with the way Luca had seemed happy with Garrett's reassurance. Any praise was new to him, she was sure, but she thought that it was especially meaningful when it came from Garrett.

She moved seats when they stopped to pick up Anthony, letting him sit up front while she joined Luca in the back. It was easier to keep an eye on him that way, in case having Anthony around bothered him for any reason. She didn't think it did, so far, but she couldnt help worrying.

"Wherever you'd like." She said with a little shrug, looking at Garrett through the rear view mirror. "Did you have somewhere in mind? We usually go to Grand Bell, since it's closer to home, but anywhere is all right."
 
"No, Grand Bell sounds fine. I'd like to try it," Anthony said at once. He made sure not to glance in the mirrors in case he accidentally made eye contact and made someone angry.

"Grand Bell it is, then!" Garrett announced, turning the car in that direction.

Once they'd parked, Garrett got out the picnic blanket and started setting things up.

Anthony had an excited smile on his face, but he made sure to stick close to either Garrett or Luca, keeping at least one of them between himself and Evelyn. Only once the whole group had sat down to eat did he finally pick a spot right next to the detective. "So, uh . . . how was the store?" he asked at last, reaching cautiously for a sandwich and taking a bite.
 
Evelyn did not need her Insight to tell her Anthony was avoiding her. She couldn't blame him, really, but it struck her as a bit darkly humorous that between the talented detective determined to take his family apart piece by piece, and the living weapon, she was the one that struck him as the most dangerous.

When they got out of the car she urged Luca gently to help Garrett carry something and popped her parasol open where no one would get smacked with it, perching it against her shoulder as she followed after into the grass. She didn't press Anthony by pointing out how he avoided her, nor did she force him to speak with her. If he didn't relax eventually, it was just as well. She couldn't keep adding to the list of people she had to take care of.

"Confusing. . ." Luca murmured when they were settled in, coming back from wherever he'd drifted off to while they were in the car. He sat near Evelyn, just far enough away that her parasol wouldn't bop him in the head if he moved wrong - he'd learned that lesson a few times already.

Evelyn smiled just a little and shook her head, quietly placing food in front of him to urge him to eat. "We were looking at fidget toys. There are . . . a lot."
 
Evelyn seemed slightly - very slightly - more relaxed than the last time he'd seen her. And Anthony figured either Luca or Garrett would step in if he needed someone to protect him. So he cautiously lowered his guard a little and reached for a juice box to drink. She was talking directly to him again, and he blinked and glanced over between her and Luca. "Oh, yeah? Yeah. Fidget toys are pretty neat," he agreed.

Garrett rubbed his chin a little. Even he could tell Anthony was avoiding Evelyn. But he felt it would be easier if everyone if Anthony felt more relaxed; he worried the boy's nervous energy might affect Luca. "Say, Evelyn," he began slowly, "Would you go grab that surprise we picked out for Anthony?"

As far as he was concerned, the faster Anthony felt at ease around Evelyn, the safer the group as a whole would feel.
 
It wasn't hard to tell what Garrett was trying to do, and Evelyn gave him an almost exasperated sort of look before she got back to her feet. "You couldn't have thought of that when we were still next to the car?" She prodded good-naturedly, and just held her hand out for his keys. "You're lucky I'm not wearing heels. I'll be right back."

Luca looked after her but didn't protest since she wasn't going anywhere out of sight. He took a bite of his sandwich, quiet and content for now, and just kept an eye out for her return to be sure nothing bad happened while she was gone. It wasn't a long walk, just to the car and back, and despite being frequently zoned out he was perfectly capable of putting a straw into his own juice box without making a mess.

Evelyn brought the nightlight back in the shopping bag both so Anthony could 'unwrap' it a bit, and so they could use the bag for trash afterwards. When she got back to him she crouched down at an angle that had her parasol between him and the sun, so he could actually see her face rather than just being blinded by the light behind her, and held out the bag to him.

"We thought you could use something to brighten up the office a bit." She said, going along with Garrett's 'we' if only to pacify him, and once Anthony had taken the bag she stood up once more and settled primly next to Luca so the boy would feel less tense about her being close by.
 
Garrett smiled in relief at her, nodding. "Thanks, Evelyn. I appreciate it," he said earnestly.

Anthony looked on curiously while Evelyn went off to collect a surprise for him. He shrank back slightly and swallowed when she returned. But when he looked up at her, she had a relaxed expression. He blinked and reached out to take the bag before carefully opening it and lifting out the Ferris Wheel nightlight.

Then he gasped and held the light up. "You didn't! You guys found me a Ferris Wheel nightlight?! That's so cool! Thanks!" he burst out.

The smile stayed on his face even after Evelyn went to sit back down again. And for the rest of the picnic, Anthony seemed more relaxed than normal. He even took food and settled back to eat a bit more easily.

Garrett smiled at Evelyn and sent her a text. <Thank you. I know you don't trust Anthony yet, but I think if he's more relaxed, we won't have to worry about his nervous energy affecting Luca.>
 
"Garrett said you might like it," Evelyn said simply, giving a little shrug and letting him enjoy his gift in piece as she finally took a small bite of her own sandwich. She would let Anthony infer on his own how much or how little she had been involved, but for now he was no threat to her.

Luca looked at it curiously, as if he hadn't seen it in the store not long ago. ". . . Does it spin?" He thought it would be interesting if it did, even though he had no idea how it would work.

It's not the first time someone's disliked me. She sent back, rather than explain how she felt about earning trust, or Anthony's presence affecting Luca's mood. It's sweet of you to try, but you don't have to make him. Things would even out in time, when he learned in his own that she wasn't going to hit him now that she knew he wasn't an immediate threat. If he disliked being near her until then, that was his right. In the meantime, though it was surely something to watch out for, she wasn't sure yet if Anthony had any indirect effect on Luca at all.
 
Last edited:
<I appreciate the feedback. But Anthony's a friendly soul. I imagine he'll come around quite quickly,> Garrett texted back.

Anthony, meanwhile, was already warming up to Luca. He grinned and opened the Ferris Wheel box. "Let's find out. It says it comes with batteries." He pulled the nightlight out, carefully added the batteries, and turned the nightlight on. "Ooh! It's got different switches!" Anthony burst out.

One switch just turned the lights on. The second switch made the wheel spin slowly with the lights blinking different colors, and the third switch added music.

"Wow," Anthony murmured, enraptured by the lights and sounds. He finally glanced around the group and beamed. "Thank you all for this. It's perfect." He turned and held the night light out to Luca. "You wanna try the switches?" he offered.
 
Evelyn let Garrett have his point without any other argument, but couldn't help thinking with some amusement that she hadn't asked to adopt two children. It wasn't the first time she had thought that she and Garrett were accidentally playing Mom and Dad to two grown up children.

Luca watched with as much interest as Evelyn could possibly expected for him on a sleepy day, listening for the switches Anthony touched without being able to see them. He made a soft little 'ooh' at the way it started to spin, and for a moment only blinked at Anthony when the younger man unexpectedly tried to share. He was allowed to touch someone else's present?

Luca took the nightlight very delicately, as if it were something precious, and carefully switched the lights off and on, as well as the music. When he'd played with it a little, holding it up closer to his ear to hear the faint whir of the tiny motor, he left it spinning with the quiet music on and set it very gently on the blanket between them so they could both see it spin. He'd never seen a nightlight that moved before.

Evelyn shared a look with Garrett during the exchange, a faint but amused little smile on her face even as she took another bite of her sandwich. The 'kids' were getting along.
 
Garrett, of course, didn't quite see Anthony as a kid - at least not quite the way he saw Luca. While Anthony had his moments of needing extra comfort and support, he was around eighteen, and more or less self sufficient. Garrett's hope was that Anthony would be able to help draw Luca out a bit more, when they were all able to spend time together.

And it already seemed to be working. Luca and Anthony both watched the Ferris Wheel nightlight in quiet awe. Anthony gave a deep, soft sigh of contentment and nodded. ". . . Yeah. This oughta do the trick for getting rid of nightmares," he decided at last. He glanced at Luca and smiled. "Did you get a night light, too?"
 
"Nightmares. . ." Luca murmured softly to himself, watching the Ferris wheel spin as he thought of what that meant. They were scary dreams, he knew, but it had been so long since he'd had the liberty of choosing not to sleep that thinking of avoiding them was almost foreign to him. Like anything else that had happened to him, nightmares came and went beyond his control.

He nodded and gave an affirmative little hum when he realized what Anthony had asked, glancing back at the car as if thinking of where they'd left it. "Stars."

"It's a projection light." Evelyn offered quietly, knowing Luca was not prone to elaborating on things. "Puts stars on the ceiling."

Luca only looked back at her and nodded again, unbothered by what others might think of as intruding on their conversation. "I like stars. . . Even if it's not the same." He thought he would like the lights on the ceiling, anyway. He knew Garrett and Evelyn wanted him to rest, so it would give him something to look at while he couldn't sleep, without getting out of bed.
 
"Yeah," Anthony murmured, rubbing the back of his neck. "I've been getting them a lot lately. Before I met you and Evelyn, I mean. I'm hoping I'll have less of 'em now that I'm somewhere safe."

He smiled warmly and nodded when Luca described his nightlight as simply "stars." He understood. It was probably star shaped or something similar. Then he blinked and glanced over at Evelyn when she filled in the details. "Oh, that's neat! Yeah. Real stars are nice, too." He looked between the pair briefly and smiled. "Hey, do you all like fairs at all? There's one near the docks! It's super fun, and there's a Ferris Wheel to go on that looks kinda like my night light, actually."

"Very kind of you to offer, Anthony," Garrett said with a smile. "I'd love to go with sometime." He wasn't sure about Evelyn and Luca. Evelyn might go, but he didn't think she'd leave Luca home alone. He wouldn't, either.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Back