petty_dabbler

He was trying to not be a pest, but John found himself coming round more and more frequently. With Fin off busy with Willy all the time, it gave John time to spendwith Fawn.

He didn't even need to pause, the door opened for him as if he lived there.

"You home?" he called as he stepped in.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

fawnthefae

"I'll feel it in my gut," Fawn shrugged.

From:

petty_dabbler

"If you could read, you wouldn't have to use your gut. You could use your brain," he suggested temptingly.

From:

fawnthefae

"I use my brain now!" Fawn insisted. "Rude."

From:

petty_dabbler

"Not as much as you could if you did your work," he taunted.

From:

fawnthefae

Fawn looked hurt and pulled away.

From:

petty_dabbler

"Fine. Whatever," he said. "Stay illiterate. I'm going to eat."

He wandered to the replicator and began reading the screen to see what he'd like- Making a show of doing it.

From:

fawnthefae

The small being looked wounded, hurt and upset in a way he rarely did.

"You should leave," he said quietly, not sure what to make of the way his chest suddenly ached or the way his eyes stung. "I do not feel good, and you should go." he said, quieter still.

From:

petty_dabbler

John looked back at him, brow arched.

"What?" he asked. "Do you need medical?"

He could see by Fawn's face that it wasn't that sort of issue. He turned to face him completely.

From:

fawnthefae

Fawn wrapped his arms around himself defensively.

"I want you to go," he said. "You are- You're being unkind. I am doing my best, but it's hard. Maybe I am simply not meant to learn these things. Just because Fin can, doesn't mean I must."

From:

petty_dabbler

"I'm not being mean. You're being stubborn," he said. "You won't even try."

From:

fawnthefae

"I have been trying!" Fawn argued, going to get his workbooks and dumping them on the table.

Fawn had been trying. There were pages of crooked ABC's, childish looking handwriting of copied over sentences. It was rough and awkward, but the effort was there- Fawn just felt as though he was getting nowhere.

From:

petty_dabbler

John looked over the work with careful consideration.

"Say...this isn't bad," he smiled, puffed with pride at Fawn's effort.

"These ones are really good. You're better at this than Fin made it sound. A little more practice and I'll be able to message you."

He handed the book back.

From:

fawnthefae

"But it's just... Copying. I don't- I don't know all the words," Fawn confessed.

From:

petty_dabbler

"I can help you with that," he said as he moved in and slipped his hand against Fawn's waist.

"And I'd enjoy doing it. If you want."

From:

fawnthefae

Fawn leaned into the touch, purring just a little.

"Okay," he said softly. "But after we will have fun, yes?"

From:

petty_dabbler

"If you try, then we can do anything you like," he promised and leaned in to kiss his forehead.

From:

fawnthefae

Fawn considered that, then nodded.

His homework didn't actually take long, maybe half an hour, but by the time they finished Fawn looked miserable.

He hated feeling so lost.

From:

petty_dabbler

John was no teacher, but he was patient and kind, generous with praise when Fawn did well.

"Alright, enough of that," he said when they reached the end of the lesson. "We'll keep working on it and you'll be a pro in no time. What would you like to do now? Something fun."

From:

fawnthefae

"I don't know," Fawn sighed. "Anything that doesn't show how dumb I am."

From:

petty_dabbler

That stopped him short and he couldn't hide his shock.

"Love, you're not dumb," he said. "You have lived your life successfully. So what if you don't know this? You never needed it. And learning new things is hard. Worth it, but hard. Trust me. I know," he said gently.