Speaking of his family….
It's been a while since Harker had bonded with his dad and siblings. He had been busy with school, work, and of course, these whole monsters and cultivation shit. He would often go home really tired, or just make brief small talk at dinner.
So he decided that since things were settling down a little, he could arrange a little get-together to make up for Chloe, Sam, Sammy and his father.
They had a picnic in the park that used to be the playground where he met Roland. Despite bad memories with the bullies, this was close to being Harker's favorite childhood spot. He also had fun moments playing with his mother and father here, when they had time and energy after a week of grueling work.
He remembered his Mother would push him on the swing. His Dad would teach him how to swing on the monkey bars, lifting him up and trying to see if he could let go. The moment he does, little Harker would fall on his bum, and he would hear his mother's bright laughter again.
Harker would cry, and his mother would say. "Don't cry, baby. You'll get it next time, just try again. It ain't fun if it's not a challenge, right?"
"I'll buy you ice cream if you make it all the way to the end." His dad would promise him. "You can do it son!"
Harker knew that he was very lucky to have loving parents like this. Not everyone was as fortunate. He loved them very much, that's why….
That's why it was really painful to lose one of them, and see the other be in pain from the loss.
Harker remembered that day at the funeral.
Howard Jones was completely broken, looking at that wooden tombstone he made himself for the woman he loved the most.
His father was a light-hearted guy, but all the energy was zapped from his face. Harker knew that a part of him had died when Josephine Jones died. He was more anxious, and his smile just wasn't the same anymore. Still, he had managed to stay strong for his children and raise them on his own.
He too tried to follow what Josephine always says. To lift his chin up and to smile even when it's hard.
But it's difficult. No one could blame Howard Jones for shedding tears here and there. Not when this man just lost his wife from giving birth to conjoined twins, losing his legs in an accident, and then having his daughter have a fatal illness.
The only thing that kept him together was Harker, who helped him on the way. At the age of 15, Harker became like a second parent to take care of the children alongside his father who was beaten down by fate.
But deep down, Harker knew his Dad had some unresolved grief over his late wife. He never fell for anyone else, and he seems to use his woodworking hobby as a distraction and a coping mechanism. All his designs…..
It was related to her in some way. Harker could tell.
Spider lilies….. The shape of the frills in her chiffon dress…. even the appearance of the women in his wooden sculptures….
They all drew inspiration from her, his Muse.
Even at the picnic, Harker could notice his dad's habit of taking a small piece of wood and chipping it into symbols related to Josephine. This habit would get worse when he was nervous or overthinking.
And right now, he does seem to be.
"I should be the one who organizes these kinds of picnics, heh…." Howard Jones said. "I'm sorry for having to rely on you again, Harker. If only I had legs and some money, I could have even brought you all hiking trips or to the beach."
"Don't worry 'bout it, Dad!" Harker tried to console him. "It's nothing. I just got my paycheck and wanted to check in on you guys, especially after that trip in New Orleans. Was it fun?"
He handed his father a glass of water and some peanut butter and jelly sandwich to calm him down,
"It was…" Howard Jones smiled softly.
Harker could never really fully comfort him. He knows his dad needed some form of closure, something to not make him feel worthless now that his wife wasn't around along with his legs. But Howard doesn't seem to want to talk about it, doesn't want to trouble the people that mattered to him...
And Harker could relate to that. He was also that type of person, and he could understand that fear of being the source of things 'not being normal',
So he let his Dad be over these years, hoping that he would eventually get over it as time goes by. And Harker too also lived in this denial over how much his mother's death and the pressure of his responsibilities were slowly taking a toll on him.
"It was totally awesome!!!! Gran-Papa wasn't able to bring me to the bayou or the military bases, but he showed me his WW2 album and plane miniatures!" Samson exclaimed. "Then he showed me his old M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle. It was so broken that it's almost garbage now, but it's still cool!"
Samuel agreed. "Mamaw's gumbo was delicious, but I did not expect her crawfish boil to be a showstopper as well. Impeccable seasoning, amazing texture, and the crawfish shone like a ruby from the sea…. Ah, divine!"
Chloe elbowed him. "You sound like one of those sophisticated food critics on TV, Sammy."
Harker grinned. "What about you, Chloe? Did you have fun in Louisiana?"
"I did. Picked up some French Creole and Cajun words while observing the people and taking pictures like you asked me to." She took out something from her back-pack. "But I found more interesting stuff compared to hot girls that Harker could date."
"Oh, yeah? What is that?" Harker looked at the small book she bought.
"It's Mom's journal." Chloe answered.
Howard Jones' chipping of wood suddenly increased in speed. His eyes bugged out, and he looked at the journal with much apprehension. He went on until—
He accidentally wounded himself. "Ow!"
His children turned to him, and he hid it quickly. But Harker had seen the blood clearly, even if it was just a small scratch.
"What's wrong, Dad?" Chloe asked, frowning.
Howard shook his head and wore a queasy smile. "Nothing….. Can someone help me out to the bathroom for a moment?"
Samson raised his hand. "I'll help you up, Dad! Sammy, give me a hand!"
Samuel rolled his eyes. "I'm already on it. I'll be the one to bring that to the bathroom too since you're so bad with directions."
The twins led their father to the bathroom, who looked more anxious than usual. He kept glancing worriedly at Harker and Chloe who was left with his wife's diary.
Harker frowned. "Have you read this diary, Chloe?"
"Some of it, yes. I was really interested in the parts where Mom and Dad met and fell in love in highschool, and had a steady relationship all the way to college. I learned from my older friends at the hospital that it's rare for high school sweethearts to last that long."
Harker flipped a random page. The first one he noticed….
Was an entry in the Summer of '74, when his Mom should be 19 years old. One year before she gave birth to Harker.
It had a polaroid picture on it. There were three friends on it in what seemed to be a summer camp trip. It was nighttime, and they were all sitting by a log over a fireplace together.
The photo's caption put the names of these three people from left to right:
[Howard, me and G.G. on Camp!]
The one called G.G. …
Was a man who closely resembles Roland Faust.
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