Coniferous | dreamnotnap

3. Midday Meal

George had left minutes ago, off to his home, promising a swift return with food for his 'new friend'. Sapnap was asked to keep the fire going.

The hot afternoon sun of mid autumn beat down on Sapnaps still exposed skin. He had deemed the water boiled enough to be safe and took the pot out to let it cool so he could finally get some fluid in him. As per George's request, he added some sticks to the fire and left the cooking rack over it, ready to be used.

He was laying on a blanket he'd spread out on the rock when George returned.

Sapnap only noticed when he heard a dry creak to his right, and opened an eye to see a straw picnic basket being placed down a few feet away. He sat up while George kneeled down, pulling out all the items he brought one by one.

"I brought the bread I promised, wild strawberry jam, and 3 eggs from my chicken. Also a jar of peppermint tea... as well as a pan, plate, two cups, and the necessary cutlery." He rattled off quickly. Sapnap stared at the tea, feeling the tight thirst in the back of his throat. He swallowed.

George seemed to sense his turmoil and pulled the cloth and string lid off the tea, pouring and filling a large, obviously handmade cup all the way up to the rim. The cup was painted white and was covered in bright yellow lines that looked like they were supposed to be vines.

Sapnap cradled the handleless cup in his palms and took a cautious sip. The liquid touched his tongue and the minty cool sensation instantly had him gulping it down until the last drop slipped down his throat and he asked for a refill. George smiled, and filled it again. Sapnap took his time to savour the fresh taste.

"You're still mostly naked," George commented.

Sapnap choked on his tea. "W-well-," he sputtered, "my clothes are still damp."

George flicked his wrist to the side. "No they aren't."

"Did you just dry my clothes for me?"

"Yes."

Sapnap stared at him for a full 5 seconds, then glanced at his perfectly dry clothes on the rock.

"Alright."

That would take a lot of getting used to.

Sapnap took his dried clothes and some new underwear behind a tree to get dressed. He heard a sizzle behind him. When he went back over, George was frying the eggs over the fire. Sapnap sat back down on his blanket, criss crossed. His mouth salivated at the scent.

"God, I'm so hungry." He said.

George nodded absentmindedly. He was crouched down, balancing on the balls of his feet and to Sapnap, it didn't look very comfortable. His violet cloak pooled around him on the rocky ground and his weird glasses had slipped slightly down the bridge of his nose. Sapnap could see thick, dark eyebrows and if he were to look up, Sapnap would've been able to see his eyes. He found himself wondering what the strange outfit was for, because George already mentioned he hadn't seen anyone there before. Who would be seeing it? Or maybe that was the point. No one was there to see what he wore so he could wear whatever he wanted. Sapnap nodded faintly at the conclusion.

"It's ready." George muttered.

Sapnap snapped back to reality and took the plate being held out to him, eggs all there along with a slice of bread covered with the red strawberry jam.

"Do you have salt?" Sapnap asked.

"I ran out a few days ago when I made the bread. I've been meaning to make a trip. Sorry."

"It's fine, salt is a luxury."

Sapnap practically inhaled the meal. Usually after his food ran out, his gatherer instincts kicked in, telling him which plants he could eat and which would kill him. One time, he'd survived a week straight in a grove of wild blackberry bushes until he managed to trap a rabbit.

This time round, he'd been out for at least 2 weeks already. He had definitely planned on making this a longer voyage, but forgot to adjust his food supply accordingly and ran out 3 days prior. He had been pretty okay, had found some raspberries, but they couldn't sustain him long. He probably wouldn't have starved, if George hadn't come along, but the extra meal was perfectly acceptable and welcomed.

He sighed in contentment as he set the plate and fork on the rock. It clinked loudly.

"Thank you, George, for the meal."

"You're welcome." George moved to sit more comfortably, on his bum. He picked up the other cup he brought and poured some of the tea into it. He brought it to his lips and took a small sip. "Your shirt collar is popped."

Sapnap brought a hand to neck, finding that George was right. He quickly fixed it while exclaiming, "how can you be that observant!?"

He got a shrug.

"There's not much else to observe, around here."

Sapnap bit his lip. Dammit, now he felt bad.

"I also noticed how awful you smell. You bathed earlier in the river, right? Do you not have soap?"

Bad feeling gone.

"No, I don't have soap, you crumb."

George smiled and leaned a bit closer, "crumb? Is that an insult?"

Sapnap scoffed. "Sorry, I'm trying to be nice. I could easily cuss you out if I wanted to."

"Do it. I dare you."

Sapnaps eyes narrowed into slits. He remained silent.

George flicked his wrist.

"Fucker." Sapnap blurted. He covered his mouth in shock. "What the fuck was that?"

George laughed loudly, rolling backwards and almost falling over. "Magic~" he wiggled his fingers.

"Oh my god, don't do that. It's creepy."

George fell into a fit of giggles. Sapnap tried to be annoyed, but couldn't hold back his smile for long. Soon, they were both having trouble catching their breaths and rubbing at their sore cheeks.

"I missed having real people around." George sighed, looking out at the grassy meadow beyond the river. The sun had moved a considerable amount since Sapnap found this spot. It seemed to be around 3 in the afternoon.

Sapnap furrowed his brow. "Real people? What does that mean?"

"Oh, you know," he adjusted his glasses, "I talk to... my chicken... and sometimes my garden because it helps the plants grow. It's a witch thing. Some plants need encouragement. For example, my tomatoes from this past spring weren't doing very well, so I cheered them on and sung to them every day, waiting for them to grow better, which they did. However, sometimes I forget to water them but that's more of a me thing than a plant thing. Some water perks them right up. Especially the herbs."

Sapnap politely nodded along. That was quite a ramble he went on just to avoid answering a question.

"You're not obligated to share anything you don't want to, you know. It's not like we're close." Sapnap said softly.

George's cheeks turned pink. "Am I that transparent?"

Sapnap nodded matter-of-factly.

"I really need more people to talk to."