Too Sweet. | Haley x F. Farmer

i. void

Athena's POV

"Sweetie, I'm glad you're home," I was greeted by my father's weak voice once I closed the door behind me. I set my rugged shoes aside and looked over to where my father was. I walked over to the living room and slouched onto the sofa. I shut my eyes and breathed out, my gaze falling to the dining table where my father was sitting.

"Hey, Captain," I said exhaustingly. He smiled weakly as he rummaged through his scattered tools on the rustic table.

"Have you had dinner?" I asked. He shook his head and returned to what he was doing. "I'm afraid I don't have the appetite for dinner, but did you?" he asked me in return.

"Honestly, not yet. I'm too tired to even bother eating," I answered. It's true; the company has been overworking all the employees, including me. They've been putting us on graveyard shifts lately and giving out vast amounts of paperwork, which is very exhausting.

"Hm, that's city life for you," he replied. "Oh! I just remembered, there's leftover food in the fridge. You can heat that up; I'll eat tomorrow so don't mind me," he added, pointing at the fridge with his wrench.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What are you doing at this hour?" I asked curiously as I went to open the fridge.

"Eh, the fan's started acting out again. I have to fix it as soon as possible so I can sell it to my buddy," he said, now twisting the back of the fan with his wrench.

I grabbed the leftover food he mentioned-hm, roasted fish, not that appetizing, but my body is in desperate need of food, or else I won't make it through this week. This career life is honestly annoying, like I'm stuck in a loop and can't escape. City life isn't that ideal.

"Athena?" My father called out, and I hummed in response.

"When will you open your grandpa's letter?" he asked, his voice filled with sincerity. I gulped down the last of my food before glancing over at the drawer where I had stashed the letter my grandpa gave me on his deathbed.

"Er, I'm not sure yet," I replied, forcing a slight smile. I miss Grandpa.

"I think it's time for you to read his letter, don't you think? It might bring you some closure," he added, smiling as he wiped the sweat from his forehead with his arm.

I sighed. My father was right. It wouldn't hurt to open the letter. Well, okay, it might hurt emotionally, but there's nothing wrong with reading it.

"Yeah, you're right. I'll head to bed. Good night, Cap," I said, reaching for the dusty letter in the drawer. "I'll clean the kitchen tomorrow morning," I added before retreating to my room.

Inside the room.

"If you're reading this, you must be in dire need of a change. The same thing happened to me, long ago. I'd lost sight of what mattered most in life... real connections with other people and nature. So I dropped everything and moved to the place I truly belong." - Grandpa's Letter

I chuckled softly as I finished reading the letter; Grandpa had really prepared this for me. "I miss you so much, Grandpa," I murmured, feeling a wave of nostalgia wash over me. I placed the letter gently onto my desk and flopped onto my bed.

As I lay there, a sense of longing filled me. I was indeed in desperate need of change. I didn't want to spend the rest of my life working tirelessly just to make ends meet. I wanted a brighter future, not just for myself but for my father too. I wanted him to be happy. I wanted change...

"Pelican town, huh."