The Good Old Days: An Animal Crossing Fan Fiction

Chapter 17 - Seven Years Later

Lyle stepped out of the insurance building he had been working at. He momentarily set his briefcase down to adjust his little boater hat, and then picked it back up and went on his way. He had an important client he was meeting that day.

Stepping into a cafe, he sat next to an old friend.

"Hey Nook! Long time no see!" He said as he ordered a coffee from the barista.

"Snazzy place. Smells nice. Aromatic. Real nice." He said as he received his cup of coffee.

"Yes, yes quite nice, indeed. I don't come here too often, just when I need to think of big life decisions it seems! Ho ho!" They both sipped on their coffees. Lyle looked at Tom's tired, jaded eyes. 

"So how's life been? Good I hope!"

"Life's been as it's always been, I suppose... By the by, you haven't heard from..."

"Nah. He's still under the radar. I've been on the straight and narrow ever since then! Yes sir! Have a pretty good setup at the insurance company. Great opportunities."

"I see... Well that's excellent to hear!"

"Right. Yep. Glad you're keeping well. You're good. I'm good. We're all good... To be honest, I was a little surprised when I saw you called my office. Excited! But surprised.

"Well it's time for change, Lyle, and the market place is getting crowded. Rather crowded, indeed. I needed to find a new spot to sell my wares." Tom said as he turned to order another cup of joe.

"That's great! Glad to hear it. I know of a couple spots opening up. One by a new hair salon. Or maybe next to that big fancy designer boutique!"

"Designer boutique?" Tom hadn't been up to date with the city's main attractions.

"Yeah. Right in the city square. What was it called... Gracie Grace! Yeah! That's it. She opened it up shortly after... you know, the whole big fiasco." He took a swig of his coffee, "I helped her out. Gave her a hand. Poor girl. I had to help. After things went south with her pops' company. She wanted to make a name for herself. Start fresh all on her own. Good for her, I say. She's gone and gotten herself an assistant,  last I checked. Bright young hedgehog. Met her myself!"

"That all sounds very good. I'm happy for her, but I don't think I'll be setting up something in the city actually. I have the perfect spot in mind, somewhere quite far from here. It won't be much at first, but with the right resources and with time, it'll grow into something grand, yes yes."

"That sounds swell, pal! And I assume you took out a loan for this spot you had in mind?"

"Ho ho! No I'll be paying for it all upfront. I'm not a big fan of loans, you know. It'll be just as I dreamt all those years ago. And who knows I may even get my two nephews to help around from time to time."

"Family business, eh? Sounds like a plan. Good for you, Tom!"

"Yes it'll be nice to have family around. And it'll be nice to see some old friendly faces too. I'm eager to make the move. Soon, yes yes, very soon."

Lyle made a toast to Tom's endeavours.

They chuckled and enjoyed each others company, sipping on their coffees and enjoying the acoustic melodies from the guitarist playing live in the cafe.

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Back in Animal Village Mabel had just arrived home from her visit at the post office. She laid the mail out on the kitchen table and called into the house for her sister, "Sable! There's a couple of letters here for you!"

Sable entered through the backdoor, she'd been pruning her garden. It was autumn and some of the plants needed her attention. There was a lush garden behind her with plenty of vegetables, tulips, roses and even some Jacob's ladder.

"Wow, more mail? Alright thanks sis, I'll open them in a bit."

"Yeah theres a letter with a package attached, also for you. Not sure who the sender is. Oh well. Must be a birthday gift!" Mabel said winking and kissing her sister's forehead and running up to the second floor. Sable completely forgot it was her birthday today, she'd always been so busy and rarely ever took the time to remember her own birthday. She took a gander at the envelopes on the table. She shuffled through them slowly, reading the sender's name of each one. The package caught her eye. She hadn't received any packages in a while.

She opened it up to find a small rectangular box. It was a pair of burnt-orange scissors. They were of the highest quality. She examined them in awe and pulled out a letter that was attached  to it. The letter accompanying it was short and succinct:

Dear Sable,

It's been far too long and no words can ever repair the damage I've caused with my absence. Despite everything I put you through, I hope you can accept this very small token of gratitude for all the support you've been in my life. I truly couldn't have survived this city without you.

T.N.

She lowered the letter and looked out the window. The wind rustled some of the autumn leaves through the air. The breeze carried them up and around and then out of view. She held the letter close to her heart. A single tear gently rolled down her cheek as her mind was filled with beautiful memories of the good old days.

----- Author's Note -----

Congrats! You've reached the end! Thank you so much for reading The Good Old Days!  I hope you enjoyed it. Make sure to follow me to receive updates on more stories in the near future, and as always: 

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