#sdv frog

btw, ur art is so cool!! it rly reminds me of my best friend's artstyle :"3

He is so comfy cozy

The second installment of a series of scenes I’m writing about my farmer, Eden, and Sebastian. For context, Chev and Theo are Eden’s brothers (my friends and I have a co op farm together).

The spring sun was getting warmer by the minute, and I longed to jump into the water at the lake by the mines. However, I was meant to be fishing, and that might scare the fish away. As I stared at the water, thoughts of my high school days came back to me (though it’s not as if they were too far away). I remembered the reflections of waves under the fluorescent school lights, and the lines that wiggled underneath them. I remembered the echoes of my coach and teammates voices in the pool area, and the way I laughed with my teammates in the changerooms after. Looking back at those days, I realized that I felt happier with my friends on the swim team than with the friends I spent time with on weekends. 

“Eden, right?” 

I turned around and locked eyes with Sebastian. He stood behind me a little ways, his hands in his pockets. 

“Sorry, am I in your way?” I stood up, gathering my fishing rod.

“Nah, you’re alright. As long as I’m not in your way.”

I shook my head, and he stood beside me, pulling a lighter out of his pocket. 

“So, of all places, why’d you come here?”

I cast my line again before replying. “I didn’t have too much of a choice. This was the land we were given, and I guess moving here was a decision based on Theo’s peer pressure and my hatred for the life I had.”

I watched him as he exhaled and a gray cloud swirled out of his mouth. “What was wrong with the life you had?”

“I hated university and I hated the thought of having to work for some billionaire who doesn’t know my name once I graduated. I felt stuck. So… I kind of just left without telling anyone.”

He nodded. “I get that. Fuck billionaire CEO’s.”

As I felt a pull on my line, I let a breath of amusement out from my nose. “That’s why I like it here. No billionaire CEO’s.”

“Yeah, except Morris.”

“Man, fuck Morris. Does anyone even talk to that guy?”

“Doubt it,” Sebastian grinned, “I don’t even think he has a house. He probably lives in Jojamart.”

I laughed. “Man, I kinda feel bad.” 

Sebastian looked at me with an amused smirk, and I added: “kinda.”

The spring air was warming up, and I could hear gentle crickets which were probably in the bush that surrounded the small lake. The entrance to the mine was across the water, and it was awfully dark. It was inviting, too. 

“Have you ever been in there?” I gestured to the mine entrance. 

“Yesterday,” he said, “it was blocked for the longest time, so when it opened I was curious. I got a nasty cut from a rock crab, though.”

“How far down did you get?”

He thought for a moment. “I think I just went down three levels. Have you gone in there?”

“Chev and I have gone down a lot. We fixed the elevator, I think we’re at level 45.”

He looked at me skeptically. “45? That’s insane. How are you not dead?”

“Chev came with me,” I laughed, “It’s not that bad when you have a sword.”

“Did you see any frozen tears?” he asked, scratching the back of his neck.

“I don’t think so. What are those?”

I watched another swirl of smoke escape Sebastian’s lips. His voice lowered, as if he was reciting a scary story. He would have done well with a flashlight under his chin. “Legend says they’re the frozen tears of yeti’s. They’re apparently found on the lower floors of the mines.”

“Hm,” I tried to envision them in my head. I was never very interested in cryptids or mysteries, so I had no idea what a yeti even looked like, never mind its tears. 

“I better go in,” Sebastian said, tapping on his cigarette to put it out.

“Goodnight,” I said, “see you later?” It almost sounded like a question. 

“Yeah, sure.” 

I found myself analyzing his tone to try to see if he was serious. Even as I went to sleep that night, I picked apart our conversation in my head to figure out if he really was enjoying my presence. I was never sure.

~~~~

“I'm leaving, bye!” I shouted at my brothers across the farm as they finished watering their crops. I was not interested in growing 200 cauliflowers like Chev was, so I didn’t have to water them all. 

I reached into my bag to make sure it was still there. Sure enough, still freezing from the night before, it was. 

Chev had told me not to go into the mines by myself. He was protective like that, I think he thinks he’s the “man” of the farm just because he's the oldest. I’m nineteen years old, I can go in the caves on my own. I’m not stupid. 

Carefully, I opened the door to the shop and was greeted by Robin. 

“Good morning Eden,” she smiled with her charm that seemed unbreakable, “how are things on the farm?”

“They’re good,” I replied, “We’ve got lots of veggies, and even a few chickens.”

“That’s great! And how’s your cabin holding up?”

“It’s really nice. The fireplace is warm, too. Though I probably won’t need it once summer rolls around.”

Robin nodded. “Summers are hot in the valley. But you get used to it. My son hates summer because he’s always too hot. I’ve tried telling him to wear something other than black, then maybe he wouldn’t absorb all the heat, but he’s stubborn.” She stopped, as if regretting going on a tangent, though I didn’t mind. “Have you met Sebastian?” she asked me. 

“Yeah,” I suddenly became very nervous, as I scratched my neck. “I actually came here to see him.”

“Oh?” Robin raised her eyebrows leaning forwards in her chair. “What for?”

“I just found something in the mines I thought he might like. Don’t worry, I won’t be long.”

“I don’t mind if you’re here all day,” Robin smiled, “he’s just downstairs. He might be working, though. Don’t take it personally if he’s a little grumpy.”

I proceeded with caution. As soon as I knocked on his door, I felt a wave of regret come over me. He’s going to think I’m obsessed with him. I can’t be too clingy. He’ll just tell me to leave him alone, and--

“Who is it?” He called back. 

“It’s Eden,” I said, a little quieter than I meant. 

He was quiet for just a blink, and then said: “come in.”

I opened his door and looked around. He had quite a big space, with a table and couch, and another large desk which he sat behind. He had two computers, and I couldn’t ignore the scent of smoke. 

“Just let me finish up what I’m doing…” he clicked a few keys quite quickly, and then turned to me. 

“What are you working on?” I asked, walking over to him. 

“I do freelance programming,” he replied. 

“Ooh, that sounds difficult.”

He scratched the back of his neck. “Maybe when I started. Now it’s kind of therapeutic.”

At that moment, a little ‘ding’ sounded on his computer. He looked over at it, and sighed. 

“What?”

“Sam asked if I wanted to hang out. I don’t really feel like going out today.”

I was confused. “What’s so wrong with going out?”

“I don’t know. I like having friends, but there has to be a balance. I need a lot of alone time to make up for being social. Sam’s the opposite. He goes crazy if he isn’t with someone all the time.”

“Hm,” I looked down. “I guess I’m more like Sam. You sound like my brother, though. Theo.”

“I don’t think I’ve met him.”

I laughed. “Exactly.”

I looked around at all the posters in his room. It was cluttered, but not a mess. He had a lot of comic books by his bed, which was covered with a black sheet. 

“So, what did you come here for?” he asked, breaking our silence. 

“Oh,” I opened my bag, “I found this last night.”

I pulled out the shiny, cold gemstone. It was bright compared to everything in Sebastian’s room. A frozen tear. 

“Woah,” he stood up, and his gray-blue eyes widened. “Can I touch it?”

I smiled at the childlike shift in his attitude. “You can have it, if you want.”

He looked at me like I was crazy. “Are you sure?” 

“Yeah,” I grinned, “I don’t have much use for it anyway.”

“Thank you,” he breathed, taking it delicately in his hands. Once again, I took note of his long, narrow fingers. 

“I better go,” I said, “farming stuff…”

He nodded. “Yeah. Programming stuff, too…”

“See you later?” I asked. 

“Yeah,” he said, with a small smile.