Lucas holds the wooden carving "Oh thanks Mr. Brando, I'll keep this in mind. May I ask why exactly am I holding this?" Lucas wonders as he looks at it more closely. He notices it's made from a specific type of wood that is only found in one place "Is this from that one forest?".
"Yes Lucas it is, I promise you that this is the place you must visit." Brandon says as he shakes Lucas hand "You will see how much this will help you a lot."
Lucas wants to tell them more about their situation and why Mr. Norman asked for Mr. Brandon but he can't. He knows that they will definitely ask him to go to the SDA, but there's one problem they don't know. The SDA is currently at its weakest state, there is not enough members and they aren't as popular as they used to be. He knows that if he says anything about that, they will be worried. "Thank you a lot, I will never forget your kindness at all. I hope that by staying here a bit I can clear up my mind. I'm glad I'm getting help from all of you."
"Well Lucas, its a shame that you didn't arrive earlier, I would of introduce you to my son." Erica asked "He is around your age and I would have want him to see the kid we mentioned every time."
"I would have also wanted to meet him." Lucas says smiling, he turns to the house where Ashly is. He knows she won't mind at all and he looks back at Erica "I feel so happy that you all are talking about me after all these years." Lucas blushes a bit. He can't help but let out a huge smile as he is going to spend as much time with them before they leave.
"Lucas, I want to ask you about Diego's money, you did get them right?" Asked Brandon, Norman is a bit intrigued by that question "I want to know if Diego left it all to you and it wasn't just lost. I'm asking because he did spend a lot of his time making it."
"Yeah I do have it, he gave it to me before he died. I held onto it for years and I'm grateful. The amount of money I made over the years isn't near half of what he had left me with." Lucas says as he rubs his eyes "I know that if it wasn't for his money I wouldn't have left. I might have spend more years saving so I could be in this position."
"I'm glad that you're using it to find your parents, Diego would definitely have used it to help find your parents. I always heard that he wanted to do that when you were old enough, it's fitting that you are now doing that." Erica says "It's a shame that he isn't here to witness you finding them." Erica frowns a bit, but she looks at Lucas and smiles again.
"Yes that's true, I'm glad that his money isn't being misused." Brandon says "I hope you make the most with it as his last gift to you." Brandon holds Lucas hand and gives it a quickly squeeze "I hope you find them, I want you to be safe."
It's the next morning, the sky is cloudy and it's a bit darker. The weather is much cooler but there isn't as much wind either. Ashly is outside and she is walking around checking the area. She makes notice on how some people are living a decent life "Oh you must be Ashly." Ashly turns to see Erica who is holding a basket "You're a very pretty looking girl, why don't you comb your hair at all. It's a bit messy and doesn't seem to fit you." Ashly is a bit confused and realizes that she might be one of the people Lucas knows. He might have talked about her when he was with them.
"Well I don't get why I should, it'll getting dirty anyways. Why waste my time when there won't be any change if I do so." Ashly says as she touches her hair, its dry and greasy, she hasn't really thought about why she should keep herself so maintained. She always end up very dirty after every job she does, or she doesn't have to money to stay clean.
"Well I think you should try to keep your body clean and healthy. I heard a bit from you and I think you should start with taking care of yourself." Erica says as she approaches Ashly, she can smell how Ashly definitely hasn't taken a bath "If you need anything you can ask me, I have a few things I can spare."
Ashly looks at her and thinks for a bit "Yeah… sure thing, I would appreciate it." Ashly forces a smile and she leaves. Ashly is back at the house and she smells herself, she doesn't notice how she smells. "I guess since I won't be working my ass of, I don't see why I shouldn't clean up a bit."
Lucas then enters feeling a bit exhausted from his talk "Oh Ashly, I spotted you outside. I thought you said you wanted to stay inside, what caused you to change?" Lucas asked as he sits next to her.
"Do you think I smell bad?" Ashly asked, she stares him in the eye and he says a bit "Well, why didn't you mention that before? We have been together for a while." She waits for his respond.
"Well I guess I got used to it, I heard some people just automatically don't get bothered." Lucas says but Ashly doesn't buy it and he notices her expression "Alright well you do smell a bit, I just didn't think it would polite to tell you that. Well I do belive that since you don't have to work really hard, then you should prioritize taking a bath."
"Alright I will, I'll jutake my time on it." Ashly says and she walks away. Ashly walks to her room and sits on the bed, she is trying to remember when was the last time she took a bath. "Well it can't be that hard, it's just water and something."
Time has passed and outside Lucas is back with Norman "Lucas I do feel a bit sad that you are leaving soon, it's not enough time. I wish you could of stayed a week longer, we all do." Norman says.
"I know Mr. Norman, I do want to stay as well, but I have other things to do besides staying here." Lucas says as they are sitting near the stable. The sound of horses eating can be heard "I just need to do this now, I don't want to waste anymore time."
"Well you're right, we aren't going to distract you anymore. It's just that we let our emotions get the best of us." Brandon says as he pats Lucas "Focus on your goal right now, you are young so you have all the time to visit us again."
"Thank you Mr. Norman, that means a lot to me. I appreciate how much you all want to help me, I know that you have been trying to pay for my stay but I can't accept that. It feels like I'm taking advantage of your kindness. I don't want to do that so what ever I owe you, I'll pay it all back." Lucas says as he begins to remember everything they were give "Well… the ones that I can remember at least."
"Well I wish you the best of luck. " Erica says "I hope that you will visit once my son returns from his trading."
Lucas leaves and says how it feels like they barely stayed. Lucas enters the house and sees Ashly who is eating again "Ashly I know that we were here for only a few days, but we are leaving soon. I know that it looks like I'm rushing but I just need to do this Ashly, it's also for your safety. Whose to say that they aren't near us."
"Well I guess so, it's not like I wanted to stay here. The people are to interested in me when I don't know them at all. They feel a bit pushy just because I'm your friend." Ashly says as she looks at her clothes "Well I still am using the same old clothes for months, I don't have any other so taking that bath was pointless."
"Well I could help you wash them, I learned to wash clothes when I was with Diego. He taught me a lot in case." Lucas says as he enters the kitchen "He also taught me how to make a few simple meals, I could make you some if you asked. You don't need to eat raw vegetables all the time, I'm happy to help you out."
"Well fine, before we leave make me something, also I don't have any other clothes so how will that work." Ashly asked
"Well you could borrow some of mines, I could buy you some. It's not like we are to different in size and body shape." Lucas says as he begins to cut a potato "I can tell you took a bath since you don't smell at all, not that you smelled much to me."
Ashly and Lucas then spend the rest of the day discussing a few things. Lucas has bought her some new clothes which look plain. She puts them on and mentions how much it doesn't itch or feels rough. Afterwards they return and Ashly gives him her dirty clothes. He notices how low quality it was, it's mostly dirt and has a few holes on them. He begins to clean them "Ashly watch as I clean them for you, I think that after we go to another place we have to let this go. It's too old and worn out."
"Well you know exactly why I couldn't buy more clothes." Ashly says as she watches him "I guess these new clothes are much better, don't expect me to know all these things. You said you want me to change right? Then you must teach me how."
"Yeah, I know what your saying, I will don't worry. It's only been two days since you left, I won't pressure you. I just feel exited with what's happening with my life at the moment, well except for that one thing". Lucas says as he keeps on washing Ashly's old clothes. He thinks that he might have been exaggerating it, so far nothing that requires killing has happened. There is a place where they can avoid any form of confrontation, Lucas is happy that he was just being stupid.
"We are leaving tomorrowAshly, and I'll make you something to eat. I talked with Mr. Norman and I'm buying a different horse. You were right that the other horse was too old and slow, it needs to spend its time somewhere." Lucas says as he continues to wash the clothes, the water feels a bit cold "I will be leaving it at Mr. Norman's stable, he will take care of her. I found a horse that you might like and bought him."
"Well then, that seem fine with me." Ashly says "This might have been a great place for you, but it's too weird for me. I just want to stay away from Gael and his men, I would accept a hole in the ground if I don't have to work for them anymore. Lucas I know you don't want to hear this, but I have nothing so I'm glad to take anything I'm given. I don't care if I'm called selfish, but I need it even if I have to put on a fake smile."
"I can understand what your saying which is why I am here to help you. You don't have to keep this mindset, I'm here and you are going to grow." Lucas says "You can also help me as well, just in case some bad things happen." he says.
"Well unless I can see that myself I won't care, I don't want to stay half asleep so I won't get hurt. I don't want to work like a dog to get barely anything back, I don't want any of that, and you don't understand. I am only doing what I know, I didn't have what you did." she says as he continues to clean.
The next morning Ashly has woken up feeling tired, she was awake late at night. "I guess this is what it feels to be bored, I never did anything." her body was full of energy and usually she is always tired before sleeping. She leaves the room and goes to the kitchen to see Lucas making something to eat. "What are you making?" she asked.
"Oh just some beef, it's nothing much. It's something that I don't usually eat, but I know that you will like it." Lucas says.
"Well I hope so, I haven't eaten meat in weeks let alone cooked meat." Ashly says as she sits down, "I didn't get much sleep yesterday, I wasn't tired at all and it felt off. I guess my body just isn't catching up either."
Lucas gives her a plate that has cooked beef and a few cooked potatoes. They eat silently as Lucas doesn't know what to tell her. Ashly doesn't want to speak and enjoys the silence. They eat and for the first time in a long while, Ashly feels full and a bit safe.