The next day, in Smallville.
Outside Kent Farm.
John straightened his collar, temporarily shedding the downtrodden air he had acquired from years of struggling in the city.
Then he and Teddy walked into the farm.
Kent Farm was not as spacious as his own farm. In fact, it looked a bit cluttered.
Various farm machines were parked everywhere.
This was the biggest difference between actively managing and letting things rot.
"Honestly, can the two of us really handle a farm?" Teddy walked beside John with a hint of exasperation. "One of us is a mechanic, and the other is a street bum. No matter how you look at it, we don't seem suited for the job."
"What else can we do? We can't go back to places like Washington or New York." John shrugged. "You're even unluckier. If the FBI finds you, they'll arrest you and throw you in jail."
"So what if I go to jail? I've been to jail more times since I was a kid than you've wet the bed!"
"…And then, officially sent to jail, but actually transported by the American Government to some research Base." John suddenly lowered his voice. "Then they'll slice and study you, or slice and taste you to see if you're salty or bland. When they discover you're just a Teddy Bear made of cotton, they'll get angry and throw you into the waste shredder…"
Teddy's look of doubt slowly turned into a stare that said, "You're f*cking crazy."
"You watched a few B-movies about scientific anomalies and now you're trying to scare me with that trashy plot."
"Tsk, why aren't you easy to fool anymore?"
"Because before, I was just humoring you, you big baby." Teddy rolled his eyes. "My maturity is beyond your imagination."
"Beyond imagination, like needing to sleep with me whenever there's thunder, and needing me to sing?"
"I suggest you find some shame," Teddy said, utterly contemptuous of John's casual denial. "You're clearly just as afraid of thunder and need songs to bolster your courage."
"Stop. If this conversation continues, it will be impolite."
John's mouth twitched, cutting off Teddy's impending barrage of curses and complaints.
It wasn't that he was scared.
But Jonathan Kent, his nominal neighbor and de facto adoptive father, had just walked out of a warehouse on Kent Farm.
"John? You're here?" Jonathan walked up and patted his shoulders twice. "That's great, much stronger than the skinny little guy you were as a child."
"No matter what, I'm a mechanic about to hit middle age now. I can't still be as scrawny as a high school kid, can I?"
"Hm? You're a mechanic now?" Jonathan's interest was piqued immediately. "Come on, our small tractor just broke down. I just spent a lot of effort getting it back into the warehouse."
John was taken aback, then nodded.
Compared to the detachment and formality of the big city, he preferred his adoptive father's straightforward familiarity.
"Okay, Teddy and I will take a look now." John grabbed Teddy, who was trying to sneak away. "Is the tractor still in the usual spot?"
"That's right, still in the westernmost warehouse, and all the repair tools are in the storage cabinet there."
"I'll say this first, I'm not doing this for free. I want two helpings of Martha's honey-glazed roasted potatoes tonight."
"Hahaha, no problem. I'll make ten portions for you and Teddy if you want."
"Damn it, Jonathan, why did you just assume I'm going with John to fix the tractor?" Teddy slapped John's hand away. "What am I, a Teddy Bear who knows nothing, going to do? Cheer John on? He's not going on a date with a Jewish girl and bringing glory to the country."
"Then do you want to go to the kitchen and help Martha?"
Jonathan looked at Teddy with a half-smile.
Teddy opened his mouth but did not dare continue.
Oh, right. How could he forget Martha's specialty, blowing up the kitchen with anything she cooks, except for honey-glazed roasted potatoes.
"Ahem. I misspoke a page ago. Let me rephrase." Teddy cleared his throat, enunciating carefully. "Ah, Jonathan, I truly love fixing tractors. Thank you for saving my life."
Jonathan looked at the mischievous Teddy and gave a wry smile.
In his family concept, he had three sons.
One was an extraterrestrial, omnipotent, with righteousness that bordered on the extreme.
One was a timid mechanic, but with unshakable inner principles.
And the last son was special.
A Teddy Bear a bit lacking in integrity and bottom line, full of curses and vices, but with a heart that stayed kind.
As parents, generally speaking, they favored the youngest child the most.
"Alright, Teddy, if you don't want to go, then let John work alone." Jonathan shrugged. "I need you to help get Martha out of the kitchen and keep her from going back. Otherwise, aside from the honey-glazed roasted potatoes, we won't be able to eat anything tonight."
Teddy's mouth twitched. "Uh, can I refuse?"
Jonathan didn't argue. He deftly grabbed Teddy by the scruff, like picking up a kitten.
"Alright, John, get to work. I need to go help with dinner."
With that, he headed toward the house.
John held back a laugh and waved at Teddy, then saw Teddy's small, fingerless paw make a gesture at him.
Others might not know what it meant.
But John knew. It was the same as the internationally recognized polite gesture among humans.
Flipping the bird.
After laughing, John didn't stop and headed straight for the western warehouse.
Reaching the door, he paused in a brief reverie.
This used to be his, Teddy's, and Clark's secret Base.
It was also where John and Teddy first discovered Clark's differences.
To be precise, they were the first two people in the entire World to discover the Kryptonian physique.
At that time, Teddy, that troublemaker, used a wooden stick with two pedals to drive the tractor, but he slipped and it flipped.
It came crashing straight toward John.
In that instant, John even forgot to run.
Instead, one thought crossed his mind.
If Teddy, that troublemaker, survived, he would hang him on the barn door to sunbathe for 180 days.
But the expected pain never arrived.
Clark, protecting John, instinctively stepped forward.
A child, not even four feet tall, caught a 1.5-ton tractor.
To this day, John cannot forget that afternoon.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)