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Sunny was never one for talking. He had the ability to do so, and his voice was rather nice back when it got proper use. Nowadays, if he did speak it was only for dire circumstances that body language simply could not convey the message needed. Things like medical emergencies, responding to teachers online during school hours (he still hadn't worked up the courage to return in person until recently, but his mother was always supportive nonetheless). He was still frail in form, but his eyes had lost their typical bags that haunted him for the past 5 years. Even as he approached the relative end of his childhood, Sunny still seemed to be the same quiet kid he always was. And frankly, that bothered him.
After what happened last year, Sunny had hoped he would grow into a person of his own: Less quiet, more hobbies, maybe even some friends. But life had been static since that day, like a channel that suddenly lost its broadcast and waited patiently for it to return. He hated it, hated that feeling of knowing he was squandering the one chance he had to be someone normal. It was almost funny, in a way- the one thing that was meant to set him free had left him rotting in the same cell, simply with a different coat of paint.
His dreams, if you could even call them that anymore, were much less vibrant than they used to be. Gone was the unimpeded glow of pastel worlds to explore with figments of the past sprinkled in. With the discovery and subsequent release of black and red space, everything melded together into a strange amalgam of terror and joy. It was as if someone had trapped the feeling of pure nausea that he had felt approaching Basil’s hospital door, ready to confess to his unknowing friends, and glazed his every sleeping moment in it. There were still pleasant things to find and enjoy, but they were all hidden beneath a sea of reality that he forced himself to upkeep, lest he fall back into the cycle.
He knew this was all for the best, and that he had to let himself be in this limbo of reality and dreams if he was to stay alive at all, but his heart still longed for the past. His friends, his hometown, all of it. He longed so desperately for it, willing to do anything if it meant he could see them again. He had told himself that thousands of times over, and it was the truth, but he knew there was no return. He knew that the people he knew were different now, that his home there was no longer his, and yet he still hoped. That fragmented view of his past, of his life up to the current day, was one of the only things keeping Sunny sane. Naturally, as it seemed to always do, life found a way to make him break once again, to make him suffer, beg for an escape, and yet make him the one to chase that pain. As he sat on a train, mulling over his decision as he looked out the window at the midnight Sunday sky (well, it was Monday now, he supposed), Sunny hoped this would work out fine, letting himself drift to sleep as the train rumbled on. He needed to rest up for school in the morning, after all.
Sunny awoke to a sudden jolt, the train lurching on the tracks as it ground against the tracks to slow itself down. He assumed the worst of the situation, reasoning that his train had somehow been hijacked by terrorists and he would be taken as a prisoner. Looking out at the aisle of the train car he sat in, that seemed to not be the case. Rather, the orderly disorder of a bustling mass preparing to exit the vehicle told him exactly what he knew was reality: He had arrived at his destination. He checked his watch- nothing special about it, really- and saw it was 6am. The sun hadn’t peeked over the horizon yet, so Sunny had no doubt that his watch was at least close to accurate, despite the numerous checks his mother had put it through before sending him off already leaving him confident in the chronograph’s precision. Seeing as how he had nowhere else to go, Sunny stood and grabbed his baggage. A schoolbag, his suitcase, and a smaller personal bag to keep loose ends in, most notable of which was a sketchbook.
With a sigh, Sunny stepped off the train to Faraway, ready to start the school year.
His “friends”, if they still even remembered him, had no idea he was returning. In fact, nobody had been told of his return other than the teachers and school staff, and even then, they were only given the essentials to ensure he was mentally safe on campus. Some dark part of his conscious secretly hoped nobody would recognize him, but most of him knew that his past here was the entire reason he was here in the first place. He needed to return to school face-to-face, but he was unwilling to make new friends in his new city back home. It was a large place, and Sunny knew he would never have the same kind of connection he did while in this small town. So, his therapist (blessed be, she was a wonderful woman) suggested that he try and return to school at Faraway. Most wouldn’t get this opportunity, but Sunny’s past was enough for the school to make an exception.
The streets were dark, lit only by the faint glow of his personal music player. It was unbranded, small, and had horrible audio quality. Sunny didn’t mind, as he usually listened to music that reduced to intense and rapid sounds. Something called “Black Midi” that he had discovered during his four years of self-isolation. He didn’t really enjoy it all that much now, but the few songs he used to listen to repeatedly were nice to listen to every once and a while, a reminder that he had grown and improved since then. Walking down the all-too-familiar roads, however, Sunny began to hear another rapidly paced beat- the beating of his heart, practically out of his chest. It was one thing to have considered going here, but being on this asphalt again allowed the gravity of the situation to fully set in. Even without anyone around, Sunny softly spoke into the shadowed road, needing to cleanse his emotions before he had the chance to bottle them up again.
“I’m back.”
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Sunny’s watch read ‘6:15 AM’ when he looked at it next. As he looked back upwards, the view was almost enough to send him running into the woods, never to return. It was a small, cottage-like home, something plucked from a fantasy world that didn’t quite belong yet felt more homely than anywhere else Sunny could think of. The front lawn was littered with plants of all shapes and sizes, a buffet of flowers for his eyes. Even in the dismal dawn’s darkness, Sunny could make out some color in them. Even from his place across the street, Sunny had no doubts that he was at the right place, the only residence in this town willing to lend him a bed, and the place Sunny learned just how much his right eye was used.
As if the cue of Sunny’s memories had set off a string of events, a short and slim figure found its way out of the front door and into the small garden plot. Sunny watched on, his earbuds now stored snugly in his pocket with the dingy little mp3 player they were attached to, the churning and roaring of his odd music taste falling into a distant memory as Sunny focused on the lad in the garden. The doubt in Sunny’s mind wanted to tell him that this wasn’t the kid he thought it was, that this was some new person living in the old house, who just so happened to look and act like Basil. Once again, Sunny pushed past his doubt, knowing the truth: This was Basil, well and true. The same one he had fought with a year ago. The same childhood friend he always knew. The same boy that always leaned into his shoulder and sobbed his fears away when nobody else had the time to be there for him, the same Basil that, while he did fancy Aubrey a fair bit, Sunny always found warmth in. This was Basil, and Sunny would have to stop staring across the street sooner or later and reveal himself.
Never the best at introductions, Sunny simply started across the road, too nervous and excited (nercited? Excurvous?) to check both ways. Sunny knew not to just run at the boy; Basil scared easily, so it would have to be slow and steady. Reaching the all-too-familiar driveway, Sunny’s black tennis shoes began to make a small tapping noise as he walked, the roads having been soaked wet from the night’s rain, dampening the noise.
At the sound of unknown footsteps, Basil instinctively looked upwards. The boy had expected a lost animal, maybe the neighbor taking a walk and just wanting to check in on the strange gardener boy next door. When Basil failed to recognize the shoes, nor the long black jeans that rose from them, he began to worry; Was this a kidnapping? Who was this? Why would you wear jeans in the middle of August? Basil’s mind raced at a million miles per minute, unable to comprehend much as it slowly rose to meet the gaze of this stranger. Upon a glimpse of the facial features that adorned this mysterious figure, Basil realized- This was no stranger.
Basil laughed to himself- It had been quite some time since he had seen the vision of Sunny, especially one so vivid. Usually, a good swipe with his hands and Basil could dispel whatever compelled his mind to believe there really was another boy there. And so, Basil nervously stuck his hand towards the vision (It was a vision, he was sure of it!) and prepared to deal with the ensuing rush of emotions. What Basil had not prepared for was for his hand to stop, as if the Sunny here was solid, real, of flesh and bone. But that couldn’t be, right? Sunny had moved away from Faraway, why would he be back? Again Basil let out a small chuckle to himself, more out of nervousness than anything.
Sunny, usually the top standard of stone-faced stoicism, decided now was an appropriate time to smile and formally introduce himself. Except when he tried to, the first part seemed to fail, leaving just an outstretched hand for Basil to accept if he so chose to. He truly did feel joy at seeing Basil again after so long, but it was muddled by a fresh coat of worry and a heaping helping of anxiety building in his stomach. Suddenly, Basil reached a hand up from his crouched position by the flowers, tugging on Sunny, still unable to comprehend his return. Sunny may not have the best social life, but he could still take a hint, and so he crouched down next to the boy, meeting him eye to eye.
Basil, simply put, was astonished. What was Sunny doing here? How did he get here? It was a school night, shouldn’t he be asleep, or at least still in his own home? Was this real? Had he finally broken mentally, unable to cope with reality in the absence of Sunny? Basil’s face trembled like an earthquake had struck it, his hands still clutching desperately to keep Sunny here. For some reason, Basil feared to let go, as if losing contact would send the boy next to him away again.
“S- Sunny? Are you....?”
Sunny simply nodded his head. It was enough to convince Basil, at least for now, that this was reality. Back after Basil and Sunny did, well, *the* thing years ago, and Sunny isolated himself from the rest of the world, Basil frequently had vivid visions of the boy at his door or his window, but something was always off. It always felt fake somehow, as if there was a superficial sense of joy to his presence. The biggest sign of this falsified Sunny, however, was his willingness to speak, never responding with the silent and simple motions that the real Sunny so frequently exhibited.
Content now with his discovery, Basil leaned into Sunny’s shoulder and cried, quickly turning into a sobbing mess. All Sunny could do was let Basil lean into him, supporting them both as the emotions flowed.
“I- I- Sunny, you left, again, and I couldn’t- no, I couldn’t handle it- I cant, I'm not strong enough, why do you keep d- doin- doing this to me? Why are you here? How man- many times will we part ways? D- Did you move back? Why ar- why are you here? Why me? God, why ME?”
After what felt like forever, the two broke their embrace, Basil having eyes redder than the sunset and a tear-stained face that left him a mess. Still confused, Basil at least felt some release for having asked his questions outright. Sunny had a lot of explaining to do, and he frankly didn’t feel like he could manage a lot right now, especially not after that display of pure emotion from Basil. This was more than he had expected for some odd reason. Sunny had just expected to walk back into the lives of his friends, a quick introduction and then back to their usual shenanigans. But Basil sent a clear message- Sunny meant a lot to his friends, and it would be much more draining than first expected to just end up back in town after so long. At least wanting to give some answers, Sunny spoke in a hushed tone, practically whispering to Basil.
“I'm here for school, therapist thinks I should finish out in person and this is the only place I could imagine doing that. Hope you don’t mind, but there are already arrangements for me to stay here while I'm down. Which means we have a lot of time to get this figured out.”
What would just be a simple, if not short explanation, was enough to be a little much on Sunny’s half-baked vocal cords. He knew that much more speaking today would be bad for them, so he decided to just save the rest of his words for school, when he needed them most. But he didn’t mind that, and neither did Basil. They were contempt to just sit there, and probably would have done so for much longer had a voice not called out from down the street. It was loud, obnoxious, everything you would expect from its owner. It was, undoubtedly, the voice of Kel.
“HeeeeeeeeeeeEEEEEEY! Basil! We gotta get going! It took me a while to get dressed today so if we don’t leave now, we’re gonna be late for schoo-”
Kel rounded the corner around a small garden of bushes, shocked to find two people there rather than one. He was used to a huddled over, even sometimes tearful Basil, but he had not expected another. On closer inspection, the other boy there was somewhat familiar, but Kel simply couldn’t place his pinky on it. At least not until the dots connected in his brain, the collective two brain cells he proudly rubbed together whenever he needed to think finally figuring out that it was Sunny.
In a direct opposite of Basil’s reaction, Kel was quick to accept his old friend’s presence. This was, after all, the same Kel that spent years trying to contact a completely cut-off Sunny, and kept going without any true knowledge that his efforts made any impact. So, naturally, he opened up as if Sunny had never left.
“Hey, Sunny! You’re.... back? I mean, I'm not complaining, but I just..... wow! Are you moving back here?”
Sunny simply shrugged, as if to indicate ‘it's more complicated than that, Kel’. Ever the easy-going person, Kel was fine to not push any farther than that. Rather, he focused more on the topic at hand- School. Kel wasn’t truly worried about missing any lessons for knowledge's sake, but more so that his mother wouldn’t think he was skipping class.
“Anyways, Basil! We gotta get to school! And, uh, is Sunny going, or....?”
Basil was also pretty out of it at the moment, still swimming in confusion concerning what the ever-loving Daffodils and Green Carnations had happened in the short span of time. Just 10 minutes ago, Basil had planned to tend to his plants for a short moment before heading off to school, like any other Monday would go. Now, he was here, leaning into someone who shouldn’t be here, face sticky with drying tears as if it had been covered in sap. However, Kel’s question dragged Basil back to reality, the flowery teen suddenly jumping to his feet and adjusting his hair clip.
Sunny was sad to feel the warmth of the other boy disappear, but knew it was for the best as he followed in rising to his feet. Of course, Sunny rose with less energy than Basil, but still with some haste in his step. The collective of teen boys was still covered in a haze of strange feelings and confusion, but the overwhelming pressure of not being late for the first day of school was enough to push them down the street and towards the school. As they walked off to begin the day, Kel let out a hearty laugh, leaving only one possible outcome: A horrible, half-baked joke, courtesy of Kel himself.
“So uh, Sunny! Or, should I call you Dawn-y this early in the morning? Anyways, glad to have you! It's only been a year, but it's felt like FOREVER since I last saw you!”
Sunny and Basil chuckled, as they always did when Kel made a joke. He may not be the brightest, but he certainly knew how to make his friends laugh. Sunny’s laugh wasn’t very audible, but a trained ear could hear the low chuckle trapped in his throat. Luckily for Kel, he had all but mastered the ancient art of knowing exactly what to listen and look for in Sunny’s body language. The little signs were all it took to make Kel truly happy. His smile was always there, and his mood was always bright, but it was always a boost to see the usually inexpressive Sunny let out even the smallest sign of joy. In a way, the two were polar opposites, but even Kel knew that opposites attract. No wonder they made such good friends!
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