Frogs in the Rain (Stardew Valley // Sebastian)

Losing Yourself in the Fog of Yesterday

It was mid-fall when Nix awoke to a phone reverberating throughout the little farmhouse. She stood up with a jolt, stumbling across the room until her hands slapped against the top of a small nightstand. She nearly knocked over the phone in her rush, but she was able to catch it in one arm and haul it back onto the table before picking up the receiver and pressing it to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Hi! Is this Nix Weekly?"

Her lips trembled. "Yes."

"I'm Carol from Zuzu City Hospital. I regret to inform you that your mother died this morning." The woman's voice sounded sincere and light, but it did nothing to cushion the blow that grappled Nix's heart. Her mother had been in the hospital? Why hadn't she been informed?

"I-I see." She held back a sob. Behind her, Navi whimpered. "T-Thank you for calling."

Nix's legs wobbled as the woman continued to give her condolences. By the time the phone call was over, Nix had fallen to her knees, with only her forearm holding her up over the table. Her chest heaved, pushing against the wood as she struggled to stand. However, the effort was futile, and she soon collapsed back onto the floor, the phone slipping out of her hand and clunking against the wood before dangling from its spiral cord. Navi padded up to her, pushing her furry body beneath the cover of the trembling farmer until Nix's sobs deepened. She wanted to fade away, to return her mother's ill favor and forget every recollection of the woman– even if it was only for a moment, for a millisecond. She struggled to rise, hobbling into her brand new kitchen, still riddled with tools and specks of saw dust from a recent home renovation. Then, throwing open the fridge, she took out a bottle of raspberry gin and held the neck to her lips.

Before the end of the morning, the bottle would be empty.

...

When he arrived at Capricorn Grove, Sebastian could see nothing had been done for the day. The sun hung directly overhead, signifying the arrival of high noon. In the fog-drawn fields, all of the crops seem to be untouched, their leaves rattling in the wind as ears of corn sat and grapes still clung to their vines. The barn and chicken coop were vacant, leading him to believe that the animals have never been let out that morning. By the fence near the back of the house, Navi sat by an empty water bowl. Something wasn't right.

"Is she still asleep?" He wondered aloud, approaching the front door with heavy footsteps. Behind him, Abigail and Sam trotted steadily. Emily didn't tag along with them that day, her schedule drowning in the (paid) tailoring projects she took on for her sister, Haley.

"She always wakes up at 6 though," Sam pointed out, his arms crossed as he shivered in the cold breeze. He meant to arrive at the farm earlier, but he had gotten distracted by a little game of cards with Vincent. That day, the boy really wanted to play old maiden, trapping Sam in a competitive, playful brawl of minds until he realized what time it was. In his rush, he had forgotten to grab his jacket, leaving him in a rather thin, yellow shirt. To make matters worse, it was so foggy that he had almost gotten lost twice.

Abigail looked around the unfinished chores scattered about the fields. "Maybe she just doesn't feel well."

Sebastian walked up the steps leading to the old farmhouse, which looked considerably bigger since the remodeling his mom, the town carpenter, had done to the place. He held up his fist and knocked on the door. "Doesn't hurt to check."

There was silence. Then, a series of creaks and low shuffles greeted his ears from beyond the thick wood. The doorknob turned and the barrier inched open, sending a rush of warm air barreling out of the house. When he finally met Nix's eyes, they weren't the wide golden ones he had come to take comfort in. Instead, they welled with tears, her eyelids hanging low as though she were a machine powering down.