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Her roof was leaking again. It was the same shit, but a different day. It’s what she got for living in the attic of her home, but this was certainly an occasion where she didn’t really have a choice.
Aubrey was above all else resourceful. She needed to be, when her mom was asleep at the wheel of life. Any money she could scrounge up, any food she could find or get, stealing new clothes when she could, sewing up her old ones when she couldn’t, she had gone to growing carrots for bun bun as she got more and more desperate. There was only so much she could do, at 16. Hence, her leaky roof.
It had been a particularly wet summer, which didn’t help things. Her bed was completely soaked, and Bun Bun was stressed out. Kim, being a good friend, took in her pet temporarily, until her roof got fixed, or the rain stopped. Aubrey wagered it’d be the latter.
As for herself, she sat herself in Sunny’s treehouse, which somehow had a better roof than her own home. It still leaked, but not nearly as much. It was at least somewhat dry. She had long since snuck a sleeping bag in for nights like this. Or when her mom was cognizant enough to yell at her. Mr. Plantegg, an old stuffed animal gifted to her by Sunny years prior, sat in the corner. He was pretty dirty, but in one piece thankfully, and he made for a good companion on sleepless nights.
The one downside was the sound. Storms in Faraway were common, but usually fairly quiet. This particular night however was the loudest storm Aubrey had seen in a while. Thunder cracked like a kick to the head, and rain pounded on the thin two by four walls of the Suzuki treehouse. God had a particular sense of schadenfreude, it seemed.
So there Aubrey sat, sleeplessly playing solitaire by herself. She didn’t know the rules all that well, but who was gonna judge her for fudging a draw or two.
"You’re not allowed to draw that card," Except Sunny, apparently. Aubrey screamed.
"Sunny! Jesus Christ you scared the shit out of me!" She led, hand on her chest. Her heart was pounding from shock. With thunder you at least got the warning of a flash of light. Sunny, on the other hand, was a sneaky bugger.
Sunny stared at her blankly. "Sorry," he said, as he climbed into the treehouse fully.
Aubrey couldn’t stay mad, he was far too genuine. She patted a spot next to her, which Sunny slid his way into. "What are you doing up?"
"Storm woke me up, figured you might be here," Sunny’s eyes looked down at the solitaire game in front of him. His lips formed a thin line.
"What?"
"You’re playing this wrong."
"Sue me, it’s been a while since I played this."
Sunny picked up a card. "This is from Magic the Gathering."
"The three of clubs is missing!" Aubrey laughed, giving Sunny a playful shove. The two fell into a fit of giggles for a moment. "All right smartass, show me how to play Solitaire then."
"Not like that," he said, like the bastard he was.
"You dick," Aubrey bemoaned, lovingly. "Where do I start, then?"
"So there's these things that humans play with called cards," Sunny began, Aubrey could only groan. "They are made of a solid paper called cardstock."
"Oh my God," Aubrey smiled and put her head in her hand.
"On each card-"
"Enough!" The pair fell to their laughter once more. Sunny put his head on Aubrey's shoulder. His warmth made its way to Aubrey's heart as he closed the distance. A comfortable silence fell over the teens.
"Do you wanna come inside?" Sunny innocently asked. Aubrey felt herself blush.
"What about your parents?" She turned away and scratched her nose, nervously.
"They're on vacation in Japan, to visit the place they got married," Sunny explained. "And Mari's in her dorm room."
Aubrey only took a moment to decide. "It's better than sleeping out here. Lead the way, oh historian!"
Sunny laughed and made his way out of the treehouse. As she descended the ladder Sunny handed her an umbrella. She gave him a look. "I came prepared."
"No kidding, did you know I was gonna be here?" She asked, incredulously.
"I was cleaning the treehouse after Kel and I spent some time here. I happened to find your sleeping bag under the tv." He explained. He cracked open his own umbrella. "I figured you'd been spending time here."
"But how did you know it was mine?" Aubrey was shocked he could tell. But then Sunny started blushing, madly.
"It- it smelled… li-like you," the noirette froze, unable to make eye contact. Oh how cute.
Aubrey stroked his hair a little bit. "Oh did it now?" Sunny bolted towards his house. Oh she took it too far didn't she? She began to chase after the boy.
Thankfully his house wasn't far. Sunny panted by the back glass door of his home, umbrella still protecting his body from the cold hard rain. Aubrey approached, a little more slowly. "Sunny…?" As she got closer, she noticed he was smiling.
"Sorry, I got kinda ticklish," he giggled a bit. He lifted his head back up toward the pink haired Aubrey. He had an open mouth smile as he laughed.
Oh god he's so cute. Aubrey thought as she closed the gap to the house. "C'mon, let's get inside."
Sunny obliged, and opened the glass door. Aubrey still got a little wet but it was okay, because now she was warm. She released a breath she didn't realize she was holding, now that she was out of the elements. Sunny didn't have an extravagant home, but it was very cozy.
"Wait here, let me grab you a towel," Sunny requested. "Do you want to borrow some of Mari's clothes?"
"Yes, please." Sunny nodded and scampered off. She could hear small footsteps echo through the house. A starch contrast to the harsh rumble of thunder.
Aubrey stared at the Suzuki living room. It was pretty basic. Couch, tv, an old family portrait for some reason, a vase with two orchids. She pondered what her own house would look like with this much care. No more stench of beer, tobacco, trash. What a life.
Sunny soon returned with a few towels. Mewo followed closely behind, interested in the intruder. "One for your clothes, the other for you, the last for the ground." Sunny explained.
"You'd better not peek," Aubrey warned. Sunny mumbled something and looked away, blushing slightly. She quickly disrobed, placing her wet clothing on one towel. She kept on her underwear, as it was mercifully somewhat dry. She wrapped the second towel around her. "Okay I'm gonna head up to Mari's room."
Sunny hummed, and kept his eyes away from the girl. He placed the third towel on the ground where her clothes dripped on the wood floor. She kept moving to get some clothes back on. Can't waste time, this is embarrassing enough. She thought.
She ascended the stairs to Mari's room. Sunny had long since moved out to the former playroom. He needed his own space as he grew older. Though she was sure he missed the window.
"Do you want anything to eat?" Sunny called to Aubrey.
"Anything's fine," when you were hungry, it didn't help to be picky. She made her way into the elder sibling's room. The closet was mostly dresses or skirts. A long t-shirt would have to do. It was dry, and clean. That was all that mattered.
As she left Mari's bedroom, dry, she could hear Sunny fiddling with something in the kitchen. It smelled like pizza to her. Hunger hit her like a bus. She entered the kitchen.
"I made Hawaiian, I know it's your favorite," Sunny, being far too kind, fiddled with a timer.
"You didn't have to, Sunny."
"For you I did."
Aubrey was silent. She smiled and made her way to the corner table. "I hope you don't mind me sitting in Basil's spot."
"That's fine," Sunny said, cracking open the fridge. "Lemonade?"
"Please," She sat perpendicular to the table, staring the black haired teen down. "Did you buy Hawaiian just for me?"
"Yes," Sunny was very serious.
"Oh," Aubrey wasn't sure how to respond to that. "Why?"
"I don't like you going hungry," Sunny explained. Sunny broke eye contact. "I know you don't like relying on other people, but it's not a burden to me."
"Thank you, Sunny," Aubrey all but whispered. He nodded, and sipped his own drink.
The timer eventually went off after several minutes of teenage awkwardness. Sunny didn't normally follow instructions, he had a strange level of instinct when it came to frozen dinners.
The two shared the pizza, sharing one another's presence. The thunder had subsided but the rain pounded on, underscoring their contentment. A comfortable silence coated the room. Aubrey knew that she didn't need to say anything, because she already heard everything she had needed to hear that night. And Sunny knew he didn't need to say anything, because he already said what needed to be said.
Food and a dry bed, what more could a girl want?
Self actualization? That could wait. Her pangs finally subsided.
By the time she had realized what she was doing, she had eaten most of the pizza. Six out of eight slices were greedily stored in her stomach.
"Do you want me to make another?" Sunny asked, innocently, nursing his second slice.
"No, thank you. I feel fat enough from this, ahahaha," Aubrey scratched the back of her head.
"It's no bother."
"Maybe tomorrow." Placating Sunny was never easy. For how soft-spoken he was he was also quite stubborn. For now her noncommittal answer seemed to be good enough.
"Where do you want to sleep?" He asked, taking both their plates to the sink. It was pretty late.
"Your room?" Sunny dropped the plates while they were in the sink. Mercifully they were in one piece after that. Aubrey laughed, loudly. It was dark, sure, but the red on Sunny’s neck was unmistakable. He aggressively scrubbed the plates with a sponge, trying to stop blushing. Aubrey, feeling especially petty, snuck up behind him, and wrapped her arms around his torso. “Thank you, again.”
Sunny froze at the contact. Aubrey’s strong arms were warm and soft around his chest. “You’re welcome,” he whispered out. He stopped the water, and shifted so he could face the taller girl. His slim arms made their way around Aubrey’s body. He was a frail boy, but he could hug like a monster.
The two eventually made their way to Sunny's bedroom. It was a simple room, really. Bed in the back left corner, dresser opposite that, desk in the right corner, an open laptop laid open on said desk. A word document was open.
Sunny seemingly noticed this, and sprinted to slam closed his laptop as quickly as he could. Aubrey was surprised the boy could move so fast.
"So uh. What was that, Sunny?" She couldn't help but laugh at the spectacle. Sunny was like a racoon, absconding with a piece of cake.
“It’s uh-uh…” His back was still to Aubrey. “I can’t tell you.” Well now she was interested.
“Oh really huh? Why can’t you tell me?”
“B-because,” Sunny stuttered. He turned around and tried to make eye contact. He failed. Aubrey portrayed a level of sinister she wasn’t sure she was capable of, especially while smiling. She approached.
“That’s not a very good reason, Sunny.”
“It’s a surprise.”
“For..?”
“Your birthday.”
Aubrey had been so caught up in managing her household, she had forgotten how close her birthday was… Her eyes trailed over to a digital clock on Sunny’s dresser. Today, her birthday was today.
“Well it seems like it’s my birthday right now.”
Sunny looked towards the same clock Aubrey had her eyes on. “So it is.”
“...”
“...”
“So you gonna show me or…?”
Sunny blushed, and shuffled uncomfortably. “Okay.” He turned around, and reopened his small laptop. “It’s a poem I wrote for you.”
Aubrey’s mouth popped open. “Thank you, Sunny. I know you don’t like sharing your writing.” Sunny nodded, and stepped out of the way of his computer.
In the Dark
I'm from where the magic is
I give you what I cannot take away with m
Have my sunlit day and moon
I want to have a silent kiss
I want to make you mine, I´m thinking, how
Can´t leave me now
Stay with me somehow
You come from where the fire is
You give me what you could not burn the last time
One sunless day and moon
I want to be so close to you
to see whatever scars you carry
within your broken heart,
Mine´s your missing part
Come with me where the magic is
There's more than time we can share
We could join the sun and moon
If you want to
Aubrey was a bit stunned. She had only ever read Sunny’s poetry once, and it was definitely a different vibe than what this was. Aubrey felt overwhelmed with elation. If it weren’t for how wet her walls were, she’d frame the poem and hang it on her wall to read every morning.
Sunny on the other hand was very embarrassed. His head was pointed towards the floor. He shuffled back and forth unable to even look at Aubrey period, let alone look her in the eyes. Her hand graced his cheek.
“Thank you, Sunny. Thank you so much,” Aubrey almost whispered, but smiled deeply at him.
“Happy birthday,” he replied, softly.
She kissed him on his thin lips. The rain seemed so distant, now.