Will(Will,Nelly)
Will couldn’t believe that only a few weeks had passed since he had seen Alex off on the private fishing boat heading for Antipode Island; he felt like months had gone by since he last saw the green eyed, auburn haired girl. Some mornings he would lie in bed trying to find motivation to get up, but since her departure he couldn’t think of any reason to rise. There were moments in the day when he felt as though he were suffocating from the girl’s absence. When and how she had become such a major part of his life he didn’t know, but what he did know is that he had to have her back in it.
He had managed to avoid going to Nelly’s Bed ‘n’ Breakfast but this morning he could find no way around it. Loading the van as usual, he made a mental note to go there last. As his work day drew to a close, he began to regret his decision to go to the B&B last for it had foreshadowed his entire day causing him to sulk more than usual. He parked the delivery van out front and slowly walked the path to the familiar kitchen door. Nelly greeted him in her customary cheery way, one look at the boy and she knew that he was in need of a cup of tea and a story.
“Please, Miss Nelly, I just want to go home.” He forced the words out around the lump in his throat. Of course Nelly couldn’t let the young man leave in such a distraught state and in the end she got her way. Taking a seat at the little kitchen table Will released an audible sigh and rested his head in his hands. The concerned older woman brought over two cups of steaming tea and took a seat across the table from her heart-broken guest.
“Will, before Alex left she asked me to answer your questions and to fill you in on some things that she neglected to tell you.” Taking a sip of tea she studied the boy’s reaction and as she had expected anger clouded his face.
“How could she leave us like that? Why now? Doesn’t she care at all what happens to us?” Rising from the chair he began to pace the room while venting his frustrations that had been locked up for so long. “My father was right – never get mixed up with a human. Why didn’t I listen to him?” Nelly sat quietly allowing the young man to fume. Finally exhausting himself, he sank back down into his chair. “Why did she leave me, Nelly?”
Nelly fought the tears that stung at her eyes, how well she knew the agony of loosing somebody you care about. Taking another sip of tea to steal her nerves she began her story, “A long time ago there was a little girl named Alexandra Fields…” She told the story from beginning to end only pausing from time to time to take a sip of tea or water to wet her mouth. When she finally finished the two of them sat in silence, Nelly for having talked so long and Will to ponder what he had been told.
“Why didn’t she tell me all of this?” asked Will standing up to stretch his legs.
“Fear, embarrassment, shame, - who knows? The point is you know now, so what are you going to do about it?” Nelly began removing items from the refrigerator for dinner.
“What can I do? I can’t go with her, I’ve got Mum to care for. Besides, father would never approve of me running after some human like a love sick puppy.” He munched on a carrot that he had absentmindedly picked up from the chopping block.
“Good idea, Will.” Nelly was smiling like a fool at the baffled young man.
“What’s a good idea?”
“To go and see your father, of course.”
“I can’t do that, he doesn’t like to be bothered with human affairs. Who will look after Mum?”
“He’s your father, Will, he’ll know what to do. And besides, you’re not all together human, now are you?” Ignoring the boy’s discomfort she continued on. “ We can move your mother in here. I would be able to tend to her just fine and the company would be wonderful. I’ve been so lonesome now that everybody’s gone back to their homes.”
Will looked in awe of the short woman. "How does she do it?" He wondered. She always seemed to know what people needed to hear, you just had to sift through all the other stuff she said.
“Fine, you win, Nelly.” She smiled triumphantly at the boy. “I’ll start moving Mum in tomorrow. Once she’s settled I’ll pay a visit to Nordel to see father.”
Nelly gave the boy a bear hug before he left the house. “What a grand adventure you’re about to embark on,” muttered Nelly to herself as she closed and locked the door before returning to her dinner preparations.
He had managed to avoid going to Nelly’s Bed ‘n’ Breakfast but this morning he could find no way around it. Loading the van as usual, he made a mental note to go there last. As his work day drew to a close, he began to regret his decision to go to the B&B last for it had foreshadowed his entire day causing him to sulk more than usual. He parked the delivery van out front and slowly walked the path to the familiar kitchen door. Nelly greeted him in her customary cheery way, one look at the boy and she knew that he was in need of a cup of tea and a story.
“Please, Miss Nelly, I just want to go home.” He forced the words out around the lump in his throat. Of course Nelly couldn’t let the young man leave in such a distraught state and in the end she got her way. Taking a seat at the little kitchen table Will released an audible sigh and rested his head in his hands. The concerned older woman brought over two cups of steaming tea and took a seat across the table from her heart-broken guest.
“Will, before Alex left she asked me to answer your questions and to fill you in on some things that she neglected to tell you.” Taking a sip of tea she studied the boy’s reaction and as she had expected anger clouded his face.
“How could she leave us like that? Why now? Doesn’t she care at all what happens to us?” Rising from the chair he began to pace the room while venting his frustrations that had been locked up for so long. “My father was right – never get mixed up with a human. Why didn’t I listen to him?” Nelly sat quietly allowing the young man to fume. Finally exhausting himself, he sank back down into his chair. “Why did she leave me, Nelly?”
Nelly fought the tears that stung at her eyes, how well she knew the agony of loosing somebody you care about. Taking another sip of tea to steal her nerves she began her story, “A long time ago there was a little girl named Alexandra Fields…” She told the story from beginning to end only pausing from time to time to take a sip of tea or water to wet her mouth. When she finally finished the two of them sat in silence, Nelly for having talked so long and Will to ponder what he had been told.
“Why didn’t she tell me all of this?” asked Will standing up to stretch his legs.
“Fear, embarrassment, shame, - who knows? The point is you know now, so what are you going to do about it?” Nelly began removing items from the refrigerator for dinner.
“What can I do? I can’t go with her, I’ve got Mum to care for. Besides, father would never approve of me running after some human like a love sick puppy.” He munched on a carrot that he had absentmindedly picked up from the chopping block.
“Good idea, Will.” Nelly was smiling like a fool at the baffled young man.
“What’s a good idea?”
“To go and see your father, of course.”
“I can’t do that, he doesn’t like to be bothered with human affairs. Who will look after Mum?”
“He’s your father, Will, he’ll know what to do. And besides, you’re not all together human, now are you?” Ignoring the boy’s discomfort she continued on. “ We can move your mother in here. I would be able to tend to her just fine and the company would be wonderful. I’ve been so lonesome now that everybody’s gone back to their homes.”
Will looked in awe of the short woman. "How does she do it?" He wondered. She always seemed to know what people needed to hear, you just had to sift through all the other stuff she said.
“Fine, you win, Nelly.” She smiled triumphantly at the boy. “I’ll start moving Mum in tomorrow. Once she’s settled I’ll pay a visit to Nordel to see father.”
Nelly gave the boy a bear hug before he left the house. “What a grand adventure you’re about to embark on,” muttered Nelly to herself as she closed and locked the door before returning to her dinner preparations.
posted by duster | 22:41
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