//------------------------------// // Chapter 47: Family Rift // Story: The Bug In The Basement // by Skijarama //------------------------------// About an hour later, Beebee stood by Eventide’s ankles with his tongue lolling out of his mouth. It was taking a lot of effort to keep himself from breathing heavily, and if one looked carefully, the strain he was under would be clearly visible. Having to maintain a form for so long was taking its toll, and despite wishing for more time to get to know his grandparents, he knew it would have to wait until another time. The two of them were situated in the doorway of their home, watching as Evening Light and Earnest Vow got back into their car to drive away. All the while, Eventide waved at them in farewell, a small smile on his face. Beebee glanced up at his father, suppressing a disappointed whine. He wanted so badly to just lift his paw and wave as well, but his instructions were clear. He couldn’t show himself as being anything more than a dog right now, and dogs didn’t usually wave. Eventually, the car pulled out of the driveway and vanished behind the dense wall of trees and shrubbery that sheltered the front of the house from the road beyond. As soon as it was out of view, Eventide let his arm fall limply to his side with a tired exhale, and Beebee snapped back into his true form with a sigh of relief. Only when he was back to normal did it dawn on him just how tired he was, and he slumped lazily against Eventide’s leg as he tried to catch his breath. “You okay?” Eventide asked in concern. He knelt down and looked Beebee over while using his hands to make sure he stayed standing. Beebee nodded his head before sucking in another lungful of air. “Y-yeah… I’m okay. I’m just… whew… just tired,” he puffed out before falling to his haunches and focusing on breathing. Eventide nodded solemnly in understanding before scooping Beebee up into his arms and gingerly carrying him back inside. He closed the door behind them and set Beebee down on the couch, where he curled up and buried his muzzle into the cushions. A silence fell over them, then, one he took advantage of to think back on the day they had just had. The visitation with his grandparents had gone pretty well once they had all sat down to watch TV. It had been quiet for a while, save for the show on the screen, and the occasional, hushed commentary passed around. There was still tension in the air, of course. It had put a very clear strain on everything, and Beebee had forced himself to endure it as well as he could. Thankfully, trying to make amends outweighed the tension. They had all done their very best to look past whatever had happened to them in the past and just be a family again. Beebee’s relaxed expression twisted into a grim frown as the thought crossed his mind. What had happened between them? He still had no clue what had gone down between them, other than somehow, Eventide’s mother had done something wrong. But really, he’d known that since before they ever even moved to this house. He shifted on the cushions and lifted his eyes to look at Eventide, who had taken a seat on the couch next to him. His eyes were closed, and his head was tilted back. He took deep breaths through his nose and let them out through his mouth in a steady, slow rhythm. It was time for answers. Beebee lifted his head a little more and brushed his muzzle against Eventide’s side. “Dad…? Can you tell me what happened, now?” he asked in a low, quiet whisper. Eventide looked down at Beebee upon hearing his voice, his expression wilting with weariness and hesitation. Those same colors began to fill his aura. “Beebee, I…” he stopped mid-protest to just look into his son’s eyes and see the depth of the question. Finally, after a brief staring contest, Eventide let his head fall back in the seat, his entire body sagging limply against the couch. “Alright… okay, fine,” he finally relented, his voice quiet. He looked over at Beebee again. “Just gimme a minute, okay?” Beebee nodded slowly, opting not to say anything. He’d waited for a few years to hear this story. What was another minute? It felt like an eternity that the two of them just sat there. Beebee held true to his word, patiently waiting for his father to finally open up about a subject that had caused him stress and grief for as long as they had known each other. Finally, Eventide sucked in a breath, nodded to himself, and began to retell his story. “You see, Bee… a long time ago, back when I was just a kid, my mother was happy as could be,” he started, a wistful sparkle in his eyes. Beebee leaned in, his ears pointing forwards and listening intently. “She was… bright, and cheerful, and optimistic about everything. She was kind, compassionate, gentle, caring, and she could see the silver lining in any situation… Dad was a huge dork and liked to embarrass me, but hey, that’s what dads do.” “You don’t,” Beebee pointed out with a small frown. Eventide looked at Beebee from the corner of his eye, a sly grin splitting his face. “Well, no, I haven’t… but you have friends now,” he rebutted without hesitation. “Give it time. It’ll happen.” Beebee pouted indignantly. Eventide chuckled weakly at that face before his eyes returned to that spot on the floor that they found so, so interesting. “Well… we were a happy family, us three. My mom worked as a gardener in a park in town, watering plants and flowers, you know? And… I would go with her all the time… she also had projects at home. We had this greenhouse in the backyard, a place where she could work on plants and flowers in her own time...” Eventide’s distant expression lit up with just a tiny smile as he recalled something, and Beebee noticed a gentle golden shimmer sliding into his aura. “That greenhouse… I think that’s where my love for the outdoors came from. In a way, I think that greenhouse inspired me to get my job at Everfree… I even remember the day it happened.” Many years ago… “Woah…” a young, bright-eyed and baby-cheeked Eventide breathed when he walked into the greenhouse along with his mother. He spun in a slow circle, or would have if his hand wasn’t being held in hers. Golden rays of sunlight were filtering through the translucent walls and ceiling, bathing his mother’s most recent passion project in a heavenly glow. Not like her work needed a heavenly glow to be divine in its own right, the boy thought. Eventide’s jaw dropped and his eyes shined with amazement at the impeccable arrangements on display. The flowers and plants that lined the shelves and filled out the center of the building were made up of all the colors of the rainbow. They were perfectly accompanied by a rich and vibrant green that made him feel like he was in a mystical jungle. Evening Light smiled down at him and giggled in amusement when she saw just how smitten the little kid was. “You like it? I’ve been working on this for months,” she asked in a chirpy voice, unable to keep an edge of smugness from creeping into her words. Not like Eventide minded. She had the right to brag as far as he was concerned. Unable to hold still any longer, he pulled his hand out of his mother’s and began to run all over the room, gawking at the various plants and flowers, pointing them out and letting off exclamations of awe and delight. “It’s so pretty!” he would yell before moving on to the next. “And this one’s red! I love it!” “I’m glad you like them. I worked really hard on all of them,” Evening said as she came up to his side, her eyes traveling over her creation. She looked down at Eventide before ruffling his hair, drawing an annoyed pout from him. She just laughed at the look before kneeling down to be at his eye level while pointing out another flower. “See this one? It’s called a Forget-Me-Not.” Eventide looked at the flower. It was gorgeous, it’s intensely bright blue petals reflecting in his eyes. “Yeah… it’s really pretty…” he murmured, lifting a finger and gently tracing the edges of the nearest petal. It trembled just a little under his touch, and he took a moment to take in the smell. “It is,” Evening agreed before draping her arm over Eventide’s shoulders and pulling him closer against her side. “And do you know why I grew this one here?” she then asked, her eyes briefly flicking at the flowers above and below it. Eventide took a moment to try and deduce it himself before he gave up. “Why?” he asked curiously, looking up into his mother’s eyes. She poked him on the tip of the nose. “Because it matches your eyes,” she explained with a twinkle in her eye and a smirk on her lips. She then stood up and pointed at the row of flowers above the forget-me-nots. “And these ones up here match your hair.” “Oooooh,” Eventide looked around, the pattern becoming clear. He looked around at some of the other arrangements and displays, and his smile grew. “Wow! All of these shelves are supposed to be us?” “Mm-hmm!” Evening chirped before moving onto the next one, a bounce in her step. She pointed out each shelf as she went. “This one here is supposed to be your dad, see? Oh, and this one over here is me.” “It’s smaller than mine and dads,” Eventide noted with a small frown. That didn’t make any sense to him. His mom made all of this herself, why was her section so small? He looked up at his mother and asked her that very question. She knelt down again, looking into Eventide’s eyes. “Because, Eventide, it just wouldn’t do if you and your father got anything less than the very best,” she explained in a whisper. Eventide looked at the arrangement again before throwing himself against his mother in a tight hug, burying his face into her shoulder. “That’s so nice of you, Mom…” he whispered, not complaining even a little bit as she lifted him up in her arms. When he pulled back, he giggled at her happy smile. “Only the best for the best people in my life,” Evening replied without missing a beat, kissing Eventide on the cheek. “I love you, Eventide. You know that, right?” Eventide nodded, his eyes shining. “Yeah! I love you, too, Mom!” Evening looked into Eventide’s eyes for a moment before walking a few paces down to the next arrangement, carrying her son all the way. “Ah! Now, this one,” she came to a stop and eyed this specific one with a giant smile and a proud look in her eyes. “This one’s for my mom. Your grandma…” Beebee’s eyes widened in surprise, and he took the brief lull in Eventide’s story to give it some thought. It made sense, he supposed. After all, Beebee had a grandma, so why wouldn’t Eventide? Still, he had to ask. “You have a grandma?” Eventide was silent for several seconds when he heard that question. A few subtle waves of blue drifted off of him before he gave a slow nod of his head, a quiet breath sliding past his lips. “I… did…” he answered in a voice that was barely even there. Beebee felt his heart twist in his chest at the implication. “You… Did…?” Eventide sat more upright, his expression going distant. “...She died. Years ago.” Beebee’s ears fell flat against his head, his jaw falling open. “Oh… I…” Eventide continued before the bug could say anything else. “She was a wonderful woman. The spitting image of the perfect grandma. She came by almost every day, bringing treats, and snacks, and cookies, and…” he trailed off, a nostalgic smile on his face. “She had these big, goofy glasses that we liked to poke fun at her for. She was kind and patient, and she always listened to me if I needed to vent about something. School, bullies at school, computer problems…” The smile fled his face, and he looked down at the floor again. “It happened so suddenly... There wasn’t any warning, there wasn’t any build up. One day, everything was fine. Then we got a phone call and… she was gone. She got hit by a car. Driver wasn’t looking where he was going…” his words were short and clipped. He shook his head. “...We all grieved, of course. It was awful... But… Mom… she loved grandma so, so much. I don’t think she loved anything or anyone more than that woman… and when she died…” Eventide’s voice trailed off, and he closed his eyes. Beebee sat there, staring at his father and bearing the silence for as long as he could. After a few seconds, though, his patience was running out. He gave off a weak chitter of curiosity before lightly prodding Eventide's elbow with his hoof. That seemed to be what the man needed because he opened his eyes and kept going. “...It changed her, Beebee. She’d never lost anyone before then. I mean, yeah, she’d had fights with people she thought were her friends, and she drifted away from people she’d known when she was younger. But she’d never actually lost someone by death, and… she had no idea how to cope with it. “She fell into a deep depression. When she had no more tears to shed over it, she started shedding everything else. Her passion, her energy, her enthusiasm… her love,” he frowned and let off a breath. “...She shut us out… she retreated into her own little world and barely even acknowledged us. Her career suffered so much that she lost her job… she didn’t talk to dad and I very much... her greenhouse died... and Dad and I were left with no idea what to do…” Beebee looked down, doing his best to ignore the rancid taste of grief and sorrow that was prodding at his lips. He shook his head and looked up at Eventide again. “...What happened next?” he asked gingerly, reaching a hoof out and letting it rest on Eventide’s leg in an effort to comfort the man. Eventide sighed and continued his story. “I did the only thing I could… I tried to make her feel better. Whatever had made her smile before, I tried it. I worked as hard as I could to get perfect grades in school, trying to impress her. I joined nature clubs and took gardening electives because I’d felt so inspired by her greenhouse. I brought her gifts, I drew things for her, I…” He stopped and closed his eyes, his face twitching a little. “...I think I wound up hurting myself. I was so stressed every day, just trying to give her something to smile and laugh about. But... every single time I brought something to her, something that made dad excited or happy, something I had worked so hard on…” he opened his eyes again, and Beebee stifled a gasp when he saw them shimmering with a fresh wave of tears. “...Mom would just say ‘that’s nice, dear,’ and look away…” Beebee wilted when Eventide suddenly stood up and walked a few paces away from the couch. His hands were curling into fists at his sides, and his shoulders were hunching up. Red was starting to seep into his aura, and when Beebee saw his face, it was contorted with long hidden frustration and resentment. “I felt so useless! It was as if no matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried, everything I did was just not good enough!” he snapped, his voice growing with volume. Beebee shrank back into the cushions on the couch somewhat, his ears flattening back against his head. He shouldn’t have asked his dad to tell this story, he thought. He could have dealt with not knowing, couldn’t he? Still, it was too late now, and he found the courage to speak. “But… she was sad, wasn’t she?” Eventide stood rigid for a few more seconds before letting his shoulders slump. He turned around, revealing his expression had gone from angry to dejected and resigned. “Yeah… she was. She was very sad… but she could have pulled herself out of it a lot sooner. I know she could have… she just didn’t.” “How do you know?” Beebee asked tentatively, ready to retract the question at a moments notice. Eventide looked down and took a deep breath. “...She told me before I moved out. It was almost like she was wanted to be depressed. I mean…” he turned and looked at Beebee again. “She started to get better here and there, but every time, she’d eventually go falling right back down and get worse again. And it was by her own choice. She chose to let herself fall back down like that. It was like…” he lifted his hands and fidgeted with them over his chest, his brow furrowed. “It was like she was addicted to shutting us out and being miserable…” Beebee swallowed heavily but nodded. “Okay… I think I understand… what happened next?” Eventide stood still for a few minutes before shoving his hands in his pockets. “...Eventually, it all came to a head… and I said some things I never should have said…” Many Years Ago… A sixteen-year-old Eventide Oath led his quiet mother by the hand out the back door of their two-story home and for the greenhouse at the other side of the yard, a hopeful look on his face. Evening Light, on the other hand, just looked distant and confused. “Eventide… where are we going?” she asked, her voice low and monotonous. Eventide tried to ignore the spike of pain stabbed into his heart by her tone and looked back at her to give her a big grin. “It’s a surprise! Just follow me, okay?” he insisted, trying his best to sound cheerful and optimistic like he remembered her being when he was a little boy. He’d been working on this in secret for months. It had to be absolutely perfect; and for it to be perfect, it had to be a complete surprise. How many nights of sleep had he lost setting all of this up? How many times had he had to borrow painkillers for his back? Too many times, he knew that much… His eyes briefly wandered up to the sky, and an irritated grimace marred his features. Of course it had to be cloudy today, didn’t it? The sun was completely obscured by a thick layer of gray that tried to suck all the joy and color out of the world. He shrugged it off, though, and kept moving. His free hand soon found the handle of the long underused greenhouse and pulled it open before leading his mother inside. Despite the clearly aged and poorly kept structure, Eventide was able to find some semblance of hope at the sight of his hard work. He turned around to watch his mother’s face as she stepped inside. The spark of hope in his chest swelled into a candle fire when he saw her eyes widen in awe and her jaw hang open. He gestured widely behind him to show off his hard work, the biggest gift he could have possibly made for her. “Ta-da! Whaddya think, Mom?” The inside of the greenhouse, which had been a dusty and abandoned wreck about six months ago, was now filled with an assortment of beautiful plants and flowers, all of which had been carefully arranged to match his mother’s colors. The dust that had coated this place had largely been cleared away, though there were still spots of it besmirching numerous spots, usually in the corners. There were countless signs that the work done in this greenhouse was done by an amateur, of course. But to anyone with an eye to look and think, there was no denying the passion and heart that had gone into making it look as beautiful as possible. Evening looked around, taking a few steps into the greenhouse, seemingly at a loss for words. “...This is…” “It’s for you, Mom,” Eventide said in a quieter voice, clasping his hands behind his back. “I remembered how much you used to love coming here, and I remembered the day you showed me all those flowers you made for dad and I. I remembered you saying that we deserved only the best...” he gestured at the flowers again. “I know I’m not really good at this, but… it’s the best I could do… and I did all of this for you. So… what do you think?” Evening’s eyes found Eventide’s, and the two stared at each other for a good long time. Eve swallowed heavily before looking around again, taking it all in one more time. She did a slow spin in place, her eyes roaming over the shelves and colors of it all. For just a moment, for just the tiniest fraction of a second, Eventide thought it had worked when a tiny smile graced his mother’s lips. “It’s nice…” Evening whispered before lowering her gaze down to the floor. “You did a good job…” Eventide waited with bated breath for several seconds, his fingers flexing on instinct as he waited for her to come and hug him, or say thank you, or something positive. The candle of hope in his chest began to waver and sputter as if in a cold wind when Evening’s smile vanished from her lips... And it was snuffed out entirely when she turned around to leave. Eventide’s smile shattered, replaced with a wide-eyed look of stunned shock. His heart felt as if it had broken into a trillion pieces, and he watched helplessly as Evening stepped out of the greenhouse and into the backyard. For a second, he just stood there, trying to process what had just happened. The last, dying ember of his hope faded away entirely. His hands started to shake, as did his lower lip. “Wha… why…” he choked out, his hands falling to hang limply at his sides. He stood there for what felt like all of time, but was in fact only a few seconds, processing what had just happened. Somewhere deep inside of him, something snapped. The faded ember suddenly exploded into a red-hot fire that filled his veins. His hands curled tightly into shaking fists, and his lips peeled back into a vicious snarl. “Are you…” he whispered under his breath. With an angry growl, he stomped out through the door. He caught sight of his mother about halfway back to the house and shouted after her. “Mom! What the hell?!” Evening paused at his voice and turned to look at him. She was clearly taken off guard by his tone, but Eventide couldn’t find it in himself to care at that moment. “...What?” Eventide stomped up until he was in front of her, his teeth bared in a vicious scowl. “What do you mean ’what?!’ That’s it?! That’s all you have to say to me?! Mom, this was all FOR YOU! AND I DON’T EVEN GET A THANK YOU?!” Evening took a step back, her hand flying up to hover over her heart. Her eyes had grown wide, and she visibly cowered under her son’s raised voice. “Eventide, I… I just…” she tried to say something, but her words faltered and tapered off into a shame-filled silence. “You just what?!” Eventide snapped when she didn’t speak up, marching forward until he was right in her face. “You just don’t care?! You’re not interested?! You don’t want flowers?! Is that it?! IS IT?!” he shouted before his hands flew forward and shoved her back. She stumbled before falling onto her rear with a gasp of pain. She looked up at him and went to scold him, but the words caught in her throat. Eventide wasn’t sure why, though, but he was so blinded by rage and tears that he couldn’t have cared less. “Do you have ANY idea how hard it’s been?! How long I’ve been working on this?! How many times I had to skip out on time with my friends, or with dad, JUST so I could get this done?! WELL?!” “I…” Evening didn’t say anything else, driving Eventide to even further heights of anger and indignation. “I worked myself half to death for you, Mom! Is it not enough?! What do you want me to do?! WHAT CAN I DO?!” he screamed at the top of his lungs before spinning around and storming back into the greenhouse. He only just heard Evening gasp in shock when he reached out and pulled the first arrangement of flowers he saw to the ground with a deafening clatter. He felt a small twinge of guilt at the sight of his hard work being scattered and destroyed, but he just couldn’t stop himself. His mother, the person it was meant for, clearly didn’t care. He’d wasted his time. He’d wasted his energy. He’d just been a waste. He could hear his mother calling out to him. “Wha- Eventide, what are you doing?!” Eventide ignored her. With tears pouring freely down his cheeks, he moved on to the next shelf and tore it down, too. He reached for the third, and was about to throw it down when he felt hands firmly gripping his shoulders from behind, trying to pull him back. Angered, he tore himself out of their hold and spun around to glare at Evening. “DON'T TOUCH ME!” “Eventide, please!” she begged, her own eyes shimmering with tears as they took in the sight of destroyed plants and flowers. Of wasted hard work. “Stop!” “WHY SHOULD I!?” Eventide shot back before tugging one more shelf down to the ground, watching the soil scatter and the petals go flying into the air. “YOU CLEARLY DON’T CARE ABOUT ANY OF THIS! I WAS JUST WASTING MY TIME!” “Eventide-” “Shut up! Just shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!” Eventide bellowed at her, and the two of them fell into a deathly silence. With his chest heaving with every trembling gasp he took, Eventide trudged forwards and forcefully shoved past his mother. “...I hate you,” he seethed right into her ear before stepping out of the greenhouse and heading back for his home. He could see his father staring at him with disappointment from the doorway. How fitting… That’s all he was capable of, wasn't it? Being a disappointment… Beebee’s hooves were clasped tightly over his muzzle as Eventide finished recounting the incident, tears in his own eyes. Eventide didn’t look at him, instead looking into the floor while his hands clenched and relaxed over and over again at his sides. “...I’d never felt more useless in my life… I worked so hard… I did so much… and it was never enough. I was a failure…” he concluded before dragging himself back over to the couch and slumping down next to Beebee. The two were quiet for several seconds as Beebee tried to wrap his little brain around everything he had just been told. Eventually, he swallowed the thick lump that had formed in his throat and scooted a little closer to his father. “...You said you hated her?” he asked in barely even a whisper, barely even able to force the horrible words past his lips. Eventide nodded, shame and guilt radiating off of him in droves. “...Yes. It was the worst thing I could have said at that point, I  think… but I didn’t know what else I could do. I was angry, I was upset, and I felt like I’d spent months of my life breaking my back for her only to learn it wasn’t enough… that I wasn’t enough.” Beebee nodded along slowly. “...What happened next?” Eventide closed his eyes and let off an exhausted sigh. “There isn’t much more to tell. I got a part-time job at the Ginger Mart a few weeks later, and I used that as an excuse to get away from home. Mom started to open up again, gradually… dad thinks hearing me say I hated her helped her find the will to climb out of her depression, but I dunno…” he lifted a hand and placed it over his face. “I dropped out of my clubs, my grades suffered… as soon as I turned eighteen and graduated, I took my saved up money from work, moved out of my parents home, and never looked back… and that’s the end of it.” Beebee looked down and away, a sad chitter emanating from deep in his throat. If he had thought he shouldn’t have asked before, he was positive that he should have never even given it a thought, now. Seeing Eventide this sad and upset over something was something he had never seen before, and it disturbed him on a deeply fundamental level. But what could he do about it? After a few seconds, he looked at Eventide again, and saw the blue waves coming off of him, saw the sorrow in the air, and the look of guilt on his face. He saw all of this, and he decided… he would do all he could. Moving slowly, Beebee climbed up into Eventide’s lap and rested his head against the man’s chest. Surprised, Eventide looked down and met Beebee’s gaze. “Wha… Bee?” Beebee smiled at him, his wings buzzing briefly on his back. “Dad… it’s okay. It’s over, now… and she’s sorry. Things can get better, now.” Eventide was stunned by that statement. He just sat there for several seconds, mouthing like a fish and trying to figure out what to say. Then, with a quiet sob, he reached down and pulled Beebee tightly against his chest in a warm, borderline desperate embrace. Beebee returned the hug as much as he could, and though he knew Eventide couldn’t see or eat emotions like he could, he still did his best to think happy thoughts and remind himself of how much he loved his dad. No matter what mistakes he had made. “...Beebee?” Eventide choked out, running his hand gingerly over the back of Beebee’s head. “...Do you think I’m a good dad?” Beebee hugged Eventide tighter and nodded his head. “You’re my dad… and I love you...” He could practically feel it when Eventide smiled. “Right… thank you, Beebee… I’m so glad I found you…” he whispered before putting a light kiss on the top of Beebee’s head. “I love you, too…” Beebee just closed his eyes and focused on relaxing. He could hear Eventide’s heart thumping heavily in his ear. It was a soothing noise, one that slowly began to relax and soothe his weary mind. He fell asleep like that, held in his father’s grasp while the clouds parted outside, allowing the evening light to stream in through the window.