Black Sea (Steinbeck X Lovecraft)

Chapter One

It was a quiet twilight and I was tending to my flowers, plucking the dead ones so new ones could grow. I was humming quietly to myself when I heard a slow, hesitant knock at the door.

I thought to myself, wondering who could be looking for me this late into the day. I stood up and made my way to the door, looking through the peephole, I saw Lovecraft.

'Huh?' I thought to myself. Lovecraft was never awake unless it was something important, so something must be wrong. I quickly opened the door and was met with the vacant gaze of the mystery man himself.

"Hey, Lovecraft, what'r yah doin' here this late?" I asked him as I learned against the doorframe.

"John..." Lovecraft cocked his head to the side. "Can I... Hide here?" He asked.

"What?" I questioned. "Why the hell do you needa hide?" I went on, wondering what horrible thing could send Lovecraft into hiding.

Lovecraft groaned under his breath, considering what to say, before settling on a simple answer. "My family is in town..." He explained bluntly. I was stunned for a second, and stared at my partner for any trace of sarcasm, but like always his face was void of any emotion. I stirred back to my senses and chuckled quietly.

"Uh, sure? Yeah." I muttered. "Come in." I stepped aside, and Lovecraft slowly sauntered inside. He stopped in the middle of the livingroom and looked around.

"You have... A lot of plants..." He said.

"Yeah, I wanted to get some Japanese plants to bring home. Plus, it keeps me sane." I crossed my arms over my chest. "You ever kept a plant?" I asked him.

"I have a kelp forest I like to visit... It has nice moss... Good to sleep on." He told me, looking down at the carpet. "But I've never... cared for a plant." He added. He turned and walked up to the couch before sitting down.

"It's nice, you should try it." I told him before making my way to the kitchen. I turned on the kettle and started making tea for me and Lovecraft. I went back to humming as I filled the sink with water and placed the dishes inside to soak as I waited for the water to boil.

Tea was my favorite drink, it reminded me of my mother, who would dry and keep teabags as bookmarks, making all the books in the house smell good. I didn't know if Lovecraft liked tea, but he seemed to tolerate anything offered to him, so I didn't worry much about it.

"I hope you don't mind the pink cup, it was the only other clean one and this one has my name on it." I snickered as I walked back to the livingroom. "I was exited to find my name in kanji. Can't imagine 'John' being a common name in Japan." I continued, but when I looked up, the weirdo had disappeared.

"Lovecraft?" I looked around for him, but he was nowhere in sight. I assumed he'd left while I was making tea, so I sat down and took a sip. It was far too hot, so I let it sit for a second as I turned on the TV. I had grown fond of some Japanese shows, and leaned back against the couch, closing my tired eyes.

Knock Knock Knock

The sound brought me back down to Earth, and I assumed Lovecraft had forgotten something, but the knock was too swift to be his, to rapid.

"Steinbeck, it's Francis, I need to talk to you about something." My boss called out from behind the door, and I rushed to let him inside. Lord Francis was not a man to keep waiting. I reached for the door knob, but I was stopped.

A slimy, scaly green tentacle tightened around my wrist and slowly slither around it. I turned around, and saw Lovecraft staring with his eyes wide and spherical. His long navy blue hair hung over his face and his posture was even worse then usual.

"Don't..." He muttered unblinking.

"It's the boss, Lovecraft." I told him, shocked that he was still here.

"John, I'm waiting..." Francis called out again.

"Lovecraft...?" I furrowed my brows and cringed at him in confusion.

"That's... Not him." He whispered, and my stomach sank. My eyes widened and I turned back to the door.

"JoHnnnn... Joooohhnn..." The voice distorted, as if it knew that I knew. It chuckled, a high pitch, little girl chuckle, and the air grew thick and blue toned as the dust in the light turned into stars. I turned back around, and Lovecraft was gone. I was alone.

"Let me inside... John Steinbeck..." The voice was that of millions, men, women, children, they were all talking to me.

I was frozen in place, staring at the peephole. Before I knew it I was reaching for the knob, but I pulled away. The world was now bathed in blue light, and tiny stars filled the room. It was beautiful, but I was terrified.

"I-I... What the hell?" I stumbled back away from the door.

"I won't hurt you... Human, just let me inside." The voice had merged into something more comprehensive; a quiet, playful women's voice with a faded African accent.

Out of fear, I ran. I slammed my bedroom door and stood still in the center of the room. The knocking started again, rapid knocking as the voice called my name. Then it stopped. I waited, staring at the door, as if whatever was outside was gonna walk right in.

"I'm sorry... John." I jumped out of my skin and turned to see the rough outline of my lanky friend in the corner. "I didn't know where else to hide..." He muttered.

"I-It's... I-I..." I stammered, my eyes wide and my whole body trembling. "It's... Um.." I cleared my dry throught. "It's ok..." I smiled weakily.

"I... Would suggest you go to bed..." Lovecraft slowly stepped closer. "She doesn't care for things that cannot admire her." He told me. I looked at him confused, but I've learned to trust my partner.

"Is that... A family member of yours?" I asked him.

"My older sibling. One of many." He told me. "I am... The baby of the family." He crosses his arms over his chest. I couldn't help but chuckle.

"You? The baby?" I smiled. "That's really something." I walked over to my dresser. "I'll, um, go to bed now, like you said." I explained.

"She might try something while you are asleep, but I won't allow that." Lovecraft muttered as he walked out the door. I sighed heavily and wipped my hand down my face. I didn't even consider there being others like Lovecraft, I think most of the Guild thinks he just appeared one day, but he has a family, a life, he's one of many.

I layed down in bed and stared at the ceiling. It was hard to sleep after that, but eventually, I rolled onto my stomach and fell into unconsciousness.

But right before I fell asleep, I glanced at my bedroom door, and saw the shadow of two feet standing guard outside. Lovecraft was never awake unless it was something important... Good to know he cares about me too.