The Hermit's Retreat

Chapter 7

Mumbo stretched as he got out of the car.

"Why did I have to sit in the back?" He muttered to himself.

"Because," Joe said, "you're not the one who has to see where we're going."

Mumbo pretended not to hear. The foursome walked into the grocery store.

"Okay," said Joe, "if we split up we can get done faster.'"

He ripped the list in half and gave a piece of paper to Mumbo.

"You can have this, because for some reason, I don't trust you with a shopping cart. You and Iskall get what's on your list, and if you see or think of anything else, just pick it up."

Something clicked in Mumbo's brain. Joe and Cleo were leaving him alone... With Iskall.

By the time the thought registered, they had already gone off, seemingly aware of his predicament. He didn't even notice that he had been standing there like a spoon until Iskall grabbed his forearm to pull him along.

Mumbo finally managed to tell his feet to move, and numbly followed Iskall. He zoned out once again and was brought back to earth by Iskall asking him a question.

"What's the first item on the list?"

Mumbo blushed. "Water."

As they went down the list, Mumbo managed not to space out again, or embarrass himself. He did make Iskall laugh when he picked up five boxes of tea bags, and the sound made him feel... Full.

As time passed, he felt less and less awkward, and started to relax a bit. He thought maybe this 'confessing' business wouldn't be so bad, if he could work up to it. He sure as anything wasn't going to do it in a grocery store, though. For now, they got everything on the list, plus anything else they thought of, and met back up with Cleo and Joe at the checkout line.

On the drive back, they chatted quietly while Joe and Cleo talked about practical things. To test the waters, every time they would turn a corner, Mumbo would exaggeratedly lean and shoulder-check Iskall.

Yeah, okay, maybe not the best way to test the waters. But it must have been fine, because it turned into a sort of game between the two of them, and awkward or no, it still made him dizzy. Every time their bodies would press up against each other, it made Mumbo want to vomit butterflies. His only consolation was that that was impossible, because he hadn't eaten any butterflies. He hadn't eaten anything, actually, because there was no food in the cabinets at the house, which was why they had to go out in the first place. If one could call that consolation.

When they got back to the house, Mumbo had never been simultaneously so happy and so sad to get out of a car. His shoulder and arm were tingling for an hour afterwards, and he resolved that, yeah, he would definitely have to do something about this whole thing. And the sooner the better.