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From the moment he saw him, Basil felt that there wa ssometnhing different.
Was it... normal for him?
Most boys got shy near girls. He saw that with Aubrey and Sunny... it was always adorable how his ears would turn red.
Sunny almost never got emotional, but that was always an easy tick.
Time went on.
Aubrey and Kel were always feuding, Mari and Hero busy with their own relationship.
Sunny was always quiet, and he didn't seem to mind.
But the question still burned in Basil's heart.
He didn't have a girl that he felt something more with, but Sunny...?
All those conversations, all that venting... he always felt safe, that he could trust him.
And Sunny always proved it true.
The years passed.
His burning heart turned to a ready burst, Was this supposed to happen?
He didn't just want Sunny as a friend, but...
Basil sighed as he watered a gentle white tulip.
Sunny didn't look at him the same way.
He didn't look with that same sort of devotion.
Honestly, it seemed like he could maybe even grow up and just... forget about him.
Thinking of that, the burn turned to a strain, as though his heart sought to render itself asunder.
But... maybe he was wrong.
Sunny was nervous near Aubrey, but he and Basil were much more open with their feelings, weren't they?
Maybe he too felt safer near Basil.
It sounded impossible to him, but the least he could do was try.
Recital night. The rest were busy, but Basil had nothing else to plan.
It was just him, Sunny, and Mari.
Basil looked downa t his marigold.
The golden locks were swaying in the wind as he carried it into the house.
Then, he heard yelling, and he paused.
He hurried to the stairs, flowerpot in hand.
At his feet was Sunny's sister. She wasn't breathing
Neither was Sunny. He seemed paralyzed.
The flower pot slipped out of his hands, and the loamy soil spread across the floor, with only the marigold still swaying proud.
...
The ambulance arrived quickly.
At the time, there was this flash of... something in Basil's mind.
Something about tying nooses, but seeing Sunny slumped over on the stairs...
He could've woken him up, told him of that plan, but Basil didn't feel like that'd be right, that it'd just make things worse.
He didn't want that.
He just hoped that Sunny wouldn't blame himself.
But he wasn't the same after it all
He didn't respond to anyone.
Or anything.
Everyone assumed it was an accident, that Mari must've just tripped down the stairs
Any brother would be traumatized finding his sister's body.
But Sunny especially...
But Basil remembered his grandmother talking of someone sort of like him, of a man who'd come back from a war.
When he stopped feeling reality, a strong aroma always got him to come back.
So Basil, started growing a lemon tree in his front yard, and some peppermints alongisde his flowers.
But he needed to save Sunny as soon as possible, that much he knew.
He opened the door to his house.
It'd been weeks since anyone else ever went there, and it showed in the dead silence.
It reminded him of that dark night.
He could see himself and his marigold, hear the yells...
Something held him back.
His breathing stopped.
His heart skipped a beat, his legs froze.
He licked his lips, bit his tongue, rolled the vial of peppermint in his hand.
He had to do it.
For Sunny.
No matter how much Something tried to stop him, he wasn't going to let it conquer him.
Soon enough, he was at the stairs.
The lights were still off, the blinds closed.
The house was as dark as that night, and he could feel a mass of hair at his feet.
He kicked away at it.
Nothing
He exhaled as he walked up the stairs, into Sunny's room.
Sunny?
Silence.
He tried to open the door, but it's locked.
... least Aubrey knew how to lockpick.
It didn't take long to open the door.
He stepped towards his best friend, his beloved.
He was silent, lost in soem sort of dream.
Deep in sleep...
He'd come back later.
A few arrangements later, and hewas alllowed to sleep over.
JUst as htey used to.
Just before taking a nap, Basil kneeled next to the bed.
He wanted... but that'd be a cruel way to wake him up. He couldn't do that.
Sunny didn't want that; Basil couldn't do that.
But if something worse were to happen, right then and there...
Basil could've died in peace, staring at his beloved.
After all this time—always.
(B-Project — "After All This Time")
Eventually, Basil woke up.
Sunny was staring at him.
Staring right through him.
Oh, Sunny, I was so worried that I—
He goes right past him.
Basil grabs his arm.
He turns around, his eyes blank, lost in a reverie.
Basil uncorks the peppermint.
Life floods back into Sunny's eyes.
Then, misery.
Basil can see him trying to go back into some dream world, but he tugs on his arm again.
Why am I still here...
What's Basil supposed to say to that?
He stops and stares at him.
His fist clenches and unclenches.
Sunny, listen to me...
He fades away and slips out of Basil's hand.
Sunny!
He dives forward, and they tumble down the stairs together...
They land apart.
Basil runs over to Sunny.
Not again, not again...
Not in the same house...
Basil presses right up to him.
He's still breathing.
Sunny—
He won't wake up.
He's asleep.
Sunny, don't leave me...
I don't want to be alone...
His mother comes out of her room.
Basil gestures for her to come down, and they look him over.
He's alive at least.
Unhurt...
He tries again the next day.
Sunny wakes up, and Basil does too.
This time, he uncorks it again.
After everything you've done for me, Sunny, I want to pay you back, just this once...
The other stares at him.
Mari's still ali—
She's not, Sunny, she's not.
But that doesn't mean you can't keep dreaming that she is.
She wouldn't want that.
But if she's not here—
She's still here, in you.
Please, you're practically the last part of he—
He stops himself.
... he wanted to say the right thing.
He wanted to tell him that he still meant something.
He wanted him to know that Mari was still there— that even if Sunny thought he was a lost sinner, that even if he condemned himself, there was still some sort of salvation...
But... the entire thing must've started because fo that violin, hadn't it?
Sunny stares at his friend.
He takes a moment to even realize what he said.
A dark scowl appears over his face.
Not like I can do anything good for her.
That's not what I mea—
Then what did you mean?
I meant that... that...
What did he mean?
After all those years, was Sunny just going to throw away everything she had done for him?
After all that time together, practicing, playing, he just... didn't want to be?
He just wanted to shut himself off and pretend like none of it mattered.
But the words wouldn't fall out of his mouth.
He wanted to say it, but he didn't want to hurt Sunny.
He wasn't brave enough.
All he could do was watch as Sunny stumbled off.
Dead.
His fists clenched.
He was so scared...
The hours trudged by, painted by Basil's inability.
He wanted to save him, but Something held him back.
All he could do was watch his beloved fade away...
Every morning, every evening was the same.
Basil would say the wrong thing, Sunny would go back.
He didn't want to face reality.
There was nothing left worth living for, but Sunny still had to live if he wanted to dream.
It seemed that he could dream alone— but what sort of fate was that?
But Basil knew that he'd have to do it some day
At school, he could see Aubrey and Kel and Hero...
They were changing, too.
He could feel them drifting apart, and there he and Sunny were... doing nothing.
Aubrey tried to talk to him, too, but he just didn't know what to say, what to do.
She was talking about how hard it was at home, but Basil just kept thinking about Sunny.
Some friend he was.
But hearing Aubrey talk about it... he knew that he had to stop waiting.
The only person who could save Sunny would be Basil himself.
One night, he woke up.
Sunny was there, especially sluggish to get out today.
Seemed all he wanted to do was dream...
Sunny—
He doens't even turn this time.
He marched on autopilot.
Sunny.
He uncorks the pepprmint.
I know it feels nice, but please, you have to come back.
There's so much we can still do. We can still play, or take care of my flowers, or hang out with the others— we all miss you.
Why? I never gave a thing to any of you.
All I did was take. And now look at me. I took away Mari.
Why do you still care about me? Why did the rest of them? You bought me that violin too, and in the end...
Why?
Because you're our friend— because I love you!
A stunned beat.
Sunny turns away.
Basil grabs his arm.
Sunny shakes it off, turns around, stares, his eyes nothing more than the void of his soul.
He's not even sad or guilty anymore.
He's just... gone.
It was now or never wasn't it?
Basil grabs Sunny's hands.
He leans in...
And Sunny headbutts him instinctively (haha no gay kiss for us).
And Basil falls down the stairs.
Thankfully he doesn't die, but he lies there for a bit in shock.
He was triyng to save him, but he couldn't...
Now what?
...
Sunny's birthday was coming up.
It'd been months since he shut himself in.
Months of trying. Months of failing.
But birthadys were alway shappy, weren't they?
So, he figured he's plan it with the others.
Kel was pretty easy.
He was knokcing on the door pretty much daily since Basil moved in and had been helping take care of the houose.
Hero was busy, but for Sunny, he'd be willing.
Aubrey was starting to get into her own gang, but when she heard it was Sunny, it didn't take much convincing.
The plan was to bring him everything he loved.
A cake from Hero.
(completely forgets what things I can write about here)
Turns out, Fix-It had a pretty big cardboard box they were willing to sell.
And, well, that seemed good enough.
Hopefully it'd work.
...
He was barely there at the party.
He didn't want to be there.
It took all of Basil's begging and a good bit of peppermint oil to pull it off, but he was at least physically there.
But when it came to gifts—
He barely reacted to the box, or the flowers, or the cake.
Kel tried his best to be the life of the party, but even this was out of his expertise.
Suddenly, a bit of life reentered his eyes.
Furious life.
He left.
Basil followed him into his room.
Sunny, can't we talk?
This time, nothing.
Sunny didn't want to come back.
Sunny, I know you're in there.
It wasn't your fault.
He could see the storm in his beloved's head.
The guilt, the blame.
The shame.
If only...
A knock.
Sunny, if you need to talk, we're here for you.
SIlence.
He was trying to sleep, it seemed.
Sunny, I don't want to lose you.
You're... you're the best person I've ever met.
I don't want to have that only be a memory— I know you're still there.
Please... wake up.
Nothing.
Basil sighs.
He wants to cry.
After all this time, all these failures,, he still wasn't enough.
He couldn't wake him up.
Basil watched as Sunny drifted off to sleep.
Are you two...?
Give me a moment.
It was now or never.
...
Sunny woke up, flushed as Basil pulls away.
B-Basil?
You're finally awake.
Y-you're not mad, are you?
Not really... you always made it obvious.
Basil turns away, humiliated.
He... definitely was not expecting this amount of lucidity.
It had practiaclly been a fairy tale, hadn't it?
Basil runs up and hugs him.
It's been so long...
Suddenly, Sunny starts crying.
It'll be a bit, you guys.
Sunny's begging for forgiveness, talking about how guilty he is, how he had ruined them.
The same everything that he had already said, now spilling all out, all together.
I don't deserve any of you. Why do you guys stay? Why are you still here?
Because you're still our friend.
But I killed her. She fell because of me. I pushed her because I was a failure, Basil.
But you're still mine.
I... not as a lover. I know you aren't that way, but... I'll always be here for you, Sunny.
...
Their friends heard everything.
It took a bit.
It always would.
Sunny still tried to retreat into his dream world every now and then, but at least now he'd have the others in reality, too.
They'd visit Mari's grave later that day.
Basil was first to go to his side when he started crying.
He knew he'd never have him, but that didn't matter.
If they could ever have met that way, the chance was gone.
...
Sunny wanted to learn violin again. It was the least he could do.
This time, his mother didn't push him any.
This time, the rest of them were there if the pain in his fingers ever grew too much.
But there was still a piano left...
Aubrey, maybe you should play piano. I think it'd be nice.
That was all the idea she needed.
In the winter night, a duet for Mari.
Aubrey and Sunny, that bygone song...
And in the audience, Basil watched.
Basil smiled.
Sunny wasn't like him.
Sunny was one of the most amazing people he had ever met.
And Basil wanted him to be even better, to be the best he could be.
Even if that was alone, he was willing to be there for him, all the way to the end.
But that was the role of a gardener wasn't it?
To tend to flowers, to let them bloom, to display them...
When it ended, Basil cried.
For Mari. For Sunny. For the time lost.
For the memories now shining on stage.
He wanted Sunny, that he couldn't deny, but he had to seal those thoughts away. For him.
(amazarashi — "Ending Theme")