Chapter 09: Seeking Advice
Jazz seeks out his aunt's advice about his predicament.
Maybe I'll just walk to the pond. Jazz thought, shrugging as he adjusted his hat, walking down the hill and heading east.
When he walked up the hill, he breathed a sigh of relief to find that nobody else was at the pond. He knelt, grabbing a coin from his pocket and tossing it into the clear water, watching it sink and dissolve as the goddess sprang from the water, sitting down in front of him.
"Well now, this is the second time this season." She joked, smiling. "What's on your mind, Jazzebel?"
He paused, trying to find the words. "Ah... well..."
"Is this about your new friend?"
His face flushed. "M-Maybe. I'm not sure if this is just a phase, or... or what. I'm already pretty sure he's... well, with that girl he's been spending all his time with. I don't know for sure."
"What does your heart say?"
"My heart is screaming at me for not trying to ask him out already. My brain, the sensible one of the two, is screaming at me to keep this feeling on lockdown until I know for sure. I don't wanna get hurt again; I've only been here for a couple months, I don't need to be helplessly jumping face-first into a relationship I don't even have a foundation for."
"Tell me about him, Jazzebel. Maybe I can help steer your brain and heart to be on the same page."
He took a deep breath, shuffling to sit on his rear end. "He's a professor at the university I used to go to - though, I never knew him from there. Big campus, not one of my classes, y'know - and we talked a bit, after I gave you that flower. He's been doing research on that cave by the waterfall."
She nodded, motioning for Jazz to continue as he assembled the words in his mind.
"And, well, the day after that, I gave him a gift for humoring me on his walk back to the dig site, and we sat there and talked... For the first time in, well, ever, I could actually listen to someone fully. No distractions, no forgetting anything... He told me that he thinks the people that lived in that area were... more keen on wearing dresses and thinner, breathable fabrics. That they lived by the water, and because of that they put turquoise beads in their jewelry."
"Fascinating..." The goddess raised an eyebrow, a tiny smile fleeting across her face.
"And then I mentioned mom's old necklace, and she gave it to me. I'd meant to show it to Carter, but I haven't--"
"So that's his name."
Jazz sputtered. "A-Ah.... yeah. His name's Carter." He mumbled, gripping at his arm and blushing brighter. "He's... I don't know."
"It sounds like you hold him in high regard... maybe you see something in him that you see in yourself? Or, perhaps, it's the thought of having someone who can communicate on 'your terms', so to speak. I've seen how you get when speaking about video games, or how you spoke to Lajos about your crops. Once your mind's set on a topic, you never seem to stop!" She laughed, putting a hand over her mouth. "And from the sound of it, he talked your ear off about his favorite thing and... maybe you savored the feeling of listening to him; allowing it to rebound as if it were someone listening to you."
"Anything else you wanna spell out for me, auntie?" Jazz rolled his eyes, half-pouting through a smile.
"You... adore him. Although, I agree that maybe this is something you should allow to age, to see if these feelings are simply puppy love." She stood up, "If you need help speaking to him more... come see me or your mother. You know the two of us - as much as we bicker - both want what'll make you happy."
"I appreciate that." He stood up, looking at her and smiling.
"By the way, Jazzebel..."
"What is it?"
"You've been doing wonderful with the crops, you and Lajos both. Keep it up."
He looked down at the ground. "Th-thanks, Auntie. We'll do our best."
And just like that, like the time before, she sank into the water and disappeared. Jazz sighed, kneeling back down and watching his reflection ripple in the tiniest breeze. She was right, and he was mad about it. He quickly got back up, dusting his knees off as he turned around.
He walked away from the pond, hands in his pockets as he walked down the hill, accidentally bumping into one of the other residents.
"Oh, sorry..." Jazz mumbled, looking up.
"Don't worry about it!" he replied. He had blonde hair, bangs hanging down from his face as the rest of it was carefully slicked back. He didn't look like the others; he wore a white vest, with a blue shirt and pants. On his neck was a necklace with a small silver medallion. "Although... you do look a little bummed. You hungry? I can take you to the inn for some food, come on!" He quickly grabbed Jazz's wrist, practically dragging him from the hill to the inn.
Ruby turned around, raising an eyebrow curiously as the man dropped Jazz's wrist. "What's this about, Rock?"
"Brought you a customer!" he chirped, grinning. Jazz snickered as Ruby sighed, putting a hand on her hip and smiling. "I know, kind of unorthodox to drag them into the inn kicking and screaming, but what the hey, he was pretty bummed and I thought.... maybe some good food would help him out?"
"Did he want to come here??" She asked, looking at Jazz.
"I mean, he's lookin' out for me; I can appreciate that... especially since he doesn't know me at all."
"Rock. You didn't introduce yourself?"
"I thought Takakura would've introduced me already..."
"No, you--" She sighed. "Jazz, this is my son Rock. He's a bit... well, he's a bit of a...I mean, he means well in the end."
Jazz laughed, "I appreciate that, at least." He turned to Rock, holding out his hand. "Jazz."
The two shook hands, sitting at the counter. Ruby handed Jazz a small paper menu, packing tape substituting lamination. It was charming, he thought to himself before pointing to what he wanted; a small bowl of stew.
"Oh, that one's Rock's favorite." Ruby smiled, taking the menu and heading into the kitchen. The front door opened, and in walked Flora, talking to a smaller, mousy-looking girl.
"Your skincare routine costs how much?" Flora asked incredulously.
"About 200,000 gold altogether." She giggled, "My grandmother showed it to me, and I've been doing it ever since."
"Definitely beats how I usually take care of my skin..." Flora mumbled, touching her cheek. "You think I could use the waterfall to make a mud mask?"
"I'd use the goddess pond's water, personally - if you're going for a 'home remedy' sort of routine, you'd probably want something a little more holy."
Flora giggled. "Yeah, I guess that's fair." The two kept talking, sitting by one of the windows as Flora pulled out a dented, dirt-caked tablet, tapping away on it as the other girl kept talking, smiling and nodding.
Ruby came back a bit later with two steaming bowls, placing them on the counter and handing Rock and Jazz each a spoon.
"Thanks, mom..." He mumbled, smiling before grimacing as she kissed her forehead.
"Oh, I don't get one?" Jazz joked, snickering as Rock covered his face with his arms while Ruby giggled. "This smells great, Ruby..."
He gently dropped the spoon into the bowl, taking a bite; closing his eyes as he felt his worries seemingly melting away. There was an untold comfort in the broth, the taste of the meat and vegetables nearly bringing Jazz to tears. He wasn't sure why; something about home cooked meals always got him emotional, but this felt like something else entirely.
"All of my food is made with the same love I give to my family." Ruby said, bringing Jazz back to reality. "It's all in the love you put into it."
He ate slowly, savoring each bite - it really did feel like he was at home, wherever that really was. It didn't matter; everything was going to be okay.
He finished faster than he'd expected, staring at the empty bowl in bewilderment as Rock and Ruby gave him strange looks.
"You okay, bro? You're crying all of a sudden." Rock looked genuinely concerned... Jazz touched his cheek; it was damp, soaked with tears.
"Jazz...?"
"I-I'm fine." He choked, looking at his wet fingertips. "Just... that soup was.... it packed a punch."
"I can give you the recipe if you'd like--"
"No! It... I wouldn't be able to replicate it." He laughed nervously. "It's fine, Ruby. Really. I... I loved it."
She gave him a knowing smile after a moment, Rock looking at her in confusion before shrugging.
"Well, you're always welcome to come back to the inn if you want more. She'll make a warm bowl of soup for anyone; she's the town mom like that." Rock grinned, "She loves everyone a lot, but especially the newcomers; showing off her new recipes and all that."
"Well, I can't deny I enjoy showing off from time to time." she laughed, "But all of my cooking comes from love, truly."
Jazz got to his feet, smiling at Ruby as he wiped his face with the back of his hand. "Th-thank you for the stew, Ruby. Do I owe you anything?"
"Not for the first bowl, nah." She grinned, "Seemed like you needed it."
Jazz nodded, walking towards the door before Ruby quickly called out.
"Remember, you're always welcome to visit! Everybody loves hanging out in the lobby during the day..." she giggled, "Especially before the bar's open."
"I'll keep it in mind, Ruby." He gave her a smile, real and genuine despite the tears on his face, and walked out the door.
When he got home, he was surprised to see Lajos and Marlin sitting by the potato patch, Baba in Lajos' lap as the two chattered excitedly - Jazz didn't pay attention to whatever they were saying as he scampered inside the house.