Brynn had gone after a little work after some rather stiff words from her grandfather. She pretended to have thick skin, her outward appearance was one of strength and resilience, but she never actually felt that way. She was, forever, doing something wrong in the eyes of Grandfather Morgan, but one day he’d be gone and all that was his would one day be hers. If only he’d go a little sooner, but if he kept replacing his parts with robotics that day would never come.
She found herself ending up at the Morgan library. Though, these days it wasn’t much of one. It belonged to her grandfather and he had someone take care of it and keep people out. She wasn’t sure exactly why he wanted to protect what little was left, but she liked that he did. It was the one place where she felt a little more like herself. Knowing the alarm codes, she let herself in and walked around, wondering where the caretaker, Landon, was. She and Landon were acquaintances, maybe even...friends? Though she didn’t know. She normally kept people at a safe distance from her, but Landon worked for her grandfather and was at least safe enough to know.
When she finally found Landon, she watched him for a moment before finally speaking. “Hello, Landon,” she said and then smiled, sure that she probably startled him.
Landon was in his room, or well, the Librarian’s office that he’d converted a portion of into his room and studio. He was painting, like always, but lost in his own little world. There’d been a lot going on lately and he’d felt like he needed to pour his emotions out on the canvas, show it to the world, even if no one would see it. So the painting in front of him was an abstract thing, a swirl of colors that only really made sense to him.
He glanced up at his name, tattoo on his cheek flashing blue as his heartrate spiked, but it faded when he realized who was there. “Brynn,” he said, smirking a little and wiping at his face with a paint covered hand. “What’s got you down here?”
Brynn laughed lightly as Landon’s tattoo flashed and she entered the room, taking a seat on the edge of his bed and trying to get a good look of what he was painting. “Oh, you know, the usual,” she shrugged. “Mostly I just went out for a walk and I ended here.” Maybe she just needed a friend? “Um, you got a little...here,” she pointed to the side of her nose and across his cheek. “Paint. What are you painting, by the way?”
He nodded at what she said, but didn’t go any farther with it. He wanted to warn her about wandering around when she shouldn’t be, but he knew she didn’t want to hear it. He looked at her when she motioned at her face, then laughed, shaking his head and reaching for a cloth, wiping his hands off then his face. “Sorry. Habit.”
Brynn laughed. “Don’t apologize. I think it’s adorable.” Which is probably something she shouldn’t say, but she didn’t care. She stood and looked at his painting, being nosey. “You’re so talented,” she murmured. “I couldn’t draw a stick figure if I wanted,” she smiled over at him. “How have things been down here?”
Landon made a tiny bit of face at that, but he didn’t say anything. “I can’t really draw stick figures either,” he reminded her. “And you kind of have to feel my paintings more than figure out what they are.” His tagging made more sense, but he didn’t do that anymore. Part of his deal, and it wasn’t like Mr. Morgan didn’t keep him in supplies to keep him from tagging buildings. “Quiet, like always.” If one ignored the talk of a the revolution they were planning. And the whole Jayci thing.
Feel his paintings. Okay. Except she tried to not ever let herself feel anything. It would make her too vulnerable, as said by her grandfather. She smiled and nodded as she looked at the painting and then turned away, unsure what it was she should be feeling. If it were to feel sad, she was already there. “Quiet…” she murmured and nodded. “I suppose that is good.” She knew about the uprising, she paid attention to the going-on’s. Would she apart of it? She didn’t know. What could she offer, anyway? “Grandfather will probably try to come in soon, to check in, but I’ll let him know I was here. Maybe he’ll leave you alone,” she shot him a smile. “Then again, if he’s angry at me then he’ll come anyway,” she sighed. One could never tell about her crazy grandfather. She was going to start dubbing him the Mad Hatter, but even that wasn’t crazy enough, she thought.
“Don’t mind him visiting. It’s his more than mine,” he explained. Plus he always brought things, and the more things seemed normal, the less likely that he figured out about the revolution. “It’s good though, better than everyone else getting worked up and trying to come in.” That didn’t happen as much in the summer, but when it was cold, they did. “Don’t let him be angry at you. Not on my account.”
“Then I won’t say a thing to him,” Brynn nodded. She tried to be as absent as she could around him, but then again she had grown up with him. He had shaped her into the person she was. “I’m glad you haven’t had to work so hard to keep people out,” she smiled. “This place, it’s my favorite place. The most...comforting,” she said, trying to explain. It was where she always ended up when upset, hiding in some corner or trying to see if there was some place she hadn’t discovered yet. “Oh, no, it wouldn’t be your fault if he was angry at me. Believe me. It’s always my doing. I have a gift for it.”
“It’s one of mine too,” Landon admitted. He was going to hate losing it when he did. He wasn’t ready to give it up, but if he had to, he would. “He can’t always be that angry.” Though he was hardly friendly with them, but he couldn’t be all bad. Landon was just his staff after all.
Brynn just gave a tight smile, nodded, and shrugged her shoulders. Grandfather may not be all that bad, or angry, all the time, but Brynn just always felt as if she weren’t… she couldn’t even describe it. “So other than it being quiet down here and painting, what else is up?”
Landon had to wonder, had to wonder if she was asking something specific. He looked at her, then rolled his shoulders. “Not that much,” he promised. “Jayci might come by later. I met her cousin,” he said, half making conversation. “She’s a special one.” He was still surprised that the two were related and if they hadn’t looked alike he never would have believed it.
“Her cousin?” Brynn asked. “I didn’t know she had one. Why is she a special one?” Then again, Brynn didn’t know a whole lot about anyone. Don’t get too involved, she always told herself. It was better that way. “How is Jayci? I haven’t seen her in awhile.”
“Just that she’s the kinda weird that makes me look normal?” Landon suggested, heading towards his fridge to get them each a drink. “She’s good,” he said slowly, thinking about them, how it was different. “She might be around here more than she was before.”
Brynn laughed and shook her head. “I don’t think that you are as weird as you think you are,” she said, her eyes tracking him as he moved. The information about Jayci had her eyebrows going up. “Oh, that might be nice,” she nodded. “Are the two of you…” she left it open ended. “Or is there another reason?”
Landon grabbed a bottle of water for her and one for himself, then handed her hers. “We might be. Still...figuring out the specifics. Plus she’s got some new noisy neighbors and she says it’s easier to think here.” Which wasn’t true, but he also knew that Brynn wouldn’t know Jayci was sick. He was one of the only ones who did. So yes, if he and Jayci were a thing, then she’d be around more, and if she was going to get sicker by giving up the medicine from Morgan, then he’d want her around to take care of her.
“Awww,” Brynn said with maybe the slightest touch of wistfulness. It was nice when people came together as couples, it gave her faith in the world just a little bit. It was also possible that she was slightly romantic. “So there are specifics on whether you might be dating?” She asked curiously. “I like Jayci, and I like you, so if there is anything you need to make this happen…” she shrugged and took the water.
Landon sat back on the stool near his painting and shrugged. “More, waiting to see if anything happens again.” It seemed like it might, like they’d added that side of things to their relationship, but Landon still wasn’t sure if it would stick. He hoped it would.
“Ohhh…” Brynn said, though she wasn’t sure she understood. She couldn’t comment on whether things would happen or not, she didn’t know how Jayci felt, but she thought that it would; hell she even hoped that it would. “I’m sure it will all work out well,” she said and took a drink of her water.
“I like to think it will,” Landon said. Though it was all going to end horribly. He didn’t need to think about that part. “So what has you wandering today?” he asked instead, distracting himself from what he was thinking about.
“Grandfather was angry with me. I did not exceed to his expectation over a matter and words were said,” Brynn admitted. “Nothing out of the ordinary, really, but I needed to get out and clear my head,” she shrugged. “I sometimes think I need to move out and find my own place, do things my own way, but then he says he needs me and I stay. Grandfather and I have a complicated relationship I guess you could say,” and she had no room for anything else than what it was he needed.
“Which expectation?” Landon asked. He wondered if the man pushed his granddaughter too hard. Though he’d heard plenty of stories from Mr. Morgan on how hard his father had treated him and his father before him. “I think we all have a complicated relationship with him,” he added. “Do you want to move out?”
Brynn shook her head, unsure if she even wanted to get into it all. “He just sets these expectations for me, sometimes they are impossible to achieve,” she frowned. “It’s fine, I just...need to push harder I guess.” It was what it was, really. She dealt with it, but there were times where it really got to her. “I think sometimes I do,” she said of moving out. “But…” she shrugged. Her grandfather said she’d never make it alone and she feared he was right.
“I think he wants the best for you,” he said, thinking that he couldn’t fault Mr. Morgan for that. “He just goes about it the wrong way,” he said. “Push as hard as you need to. Don’t kill yourself, but be your best.” He smiled at her. “You could, if you want. I mean, it’s going to be different, but I’m pretty sure you can do anything you put your mind to.”
“Yeah, maybe,” Brynn nodded, though sometimes she thought it was mostly all about him. He used her for things that she really didn’t care to do. But she’d be alright. She’d survive. She was ruthless, right? Right. Landon’s confidence in her had her give a soft smile. “Perhaps. Maybe one day. For now, I’ll go back home and apologize and have a late dinner,” she told him. “Tomorrow is another day, right?”
Landon nodded. He got it, even if she didn’t say it. It was a world they survived in, not as much thrived. It was interesting to see that it was same for people on every level though. He’d been raised thinking that all he had to do was move up. He wondered if some of the people from the higher levels might be drawn to their revolution as well. “That’s what they say,” he said. “Best you can do is just get through it.”
“Yes, that’s what they say, whoever ‘they’ are,” Brynn chuckled. “I’d much rather do more than ‘just get through it’,” she then sighed. She thought she needed more in her life. “Anyway, I’ve probably taken up too much of your time,” she said and stood. “I should probably get on my way, before Grandfather sends his goons to escort me home. Thank you, Landon, for sitting with me.”
Landon nodded. “We all do, but some days, that’s the best you can do. But I have faith in you.” He wasn’t that busy, but he didn’t push her to stay. She was right, someone would come looking for her. “Always, don’t mind the company. Plus, it’s not like I’m hard to find.” He stood with her and reached out to wrap her up in a hug, hopefully more reassuring than his words.
Brynn was always surprised when someone hugged her, mostly because it did not happen very often at all. There was a small squeak from her and then she was hugging him back, thinking it felt nice. After stepping back, she smiled up at him. “I think you and Jayci are going to be just fine,” she said. “Keep me informed,” she grinned. “And I’ll be back to see you soon, I’m sure.” Then she was turning on her heel and walking away, even if what she wanted to do was stay. But she knew that Grandfather would only give her a little bit of time for her ‘tantrum’ and then send someone to escort her back home and she did not want that.