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The Wu’s liked to think they were good parents.
Admittedly, neither of them had particularly wanted a child, but there were expectations they had to meet. Time had passed, and eventually, after numerous hours of research and calculations, they determined that they were financially stable enough to pay for a child even with some of the complications that could arise. With a solid financial buffer, they decided that they were ready for a child. Fortunately, the pregnancy went by without too many complications, and Mrs. Wu could return to work fairly quickly once the child was born.
They hadn’t deluded themselves into thinking that having a child would be easy. For the first few years especially, children were completely dependent and needy and loud. Fortunately they had budgeted enough money to hire someone to look after the child while they were at work.
The Wu’s liked to think they were good parents. They might have not been the most attentive, or loving parents, but they made sure the child’s needs were met. They provided food, shelter, and clothing.
Fortunately, Marcy seemed to grow up relatively quickly. Barely half a decade went by and Marcy seemed self-sufficient enough. She could keep herself out of serious danger, could feed herself, and, most importantly, knew how to use a phone to call for help in an emergency. Thus, they didn’t need the relatively expensive service of a caretaker anymore.
Marcy’s caretaker didn’t seem to mind being unceremoniously let go, but they did seem to have a couple concerns about Marcy’s behavior. Nothing serious that would prevent development or anything, just little things. Tiny quirks like being easily distracted, only sleeping on one side of the bed, or absently chewing on things. They thanked Marcy’s caretaker for the information out of politeness, then put it out of their minds. It wasn’t something that was important, so they simply didn’t think about it.
The Wu’s liked to think they were good parents. They wouldn’t punish Marcy for not fitting the mold of the “perfect” child. They knew that such a thing didn’t exist. Children would inevitably disappoint at times. In their opinion, acknowledging that already made them better than their own parents. Mr. Wu’s mother in particular could be quite overbearing and controlling at times. They didn’t delude themselves into thinking they were the best parents possible, but they were better than the last generation. And for them, that was enough.
Unfortunately, without a caretaker watching her, Marcy made her complaints about her arrangement known. She was bored apparently. Understimulated.
Video games were relatively cheap for the amount of time they could keep Marcy distracted. And, fortuitously, she seemed to enjoy them. She would have something to do, then, until she was old enough for school. Then, she would have easy access to the school library.
The fateful day came when Marcy was dropped off for her first day of school. Since they were fortunate enough to live relatively close to the local school buildings, Marcy would be walking to and from school. For the first day though, the Wu’s thought they would be a bit generous. They walked a somewhat nervous Marcy into the building and wished her luck in her studies before unceremoniously walking out and driving to work.
It was both the first and last time the Wu’s would ever visit Marcy’s school.
With Marcy old enough to make breakfast and walk to school by herself, the days of needing to even think about their child in the mornings were over. They checked in sometimes, after school, making sure Marcy had everything she needed and wasn’t struggling too much in school, but fortunately Marcy didn’t seem to be having any problems.
Other parents might have been happy for their child. Or sad that the kid was growing up too fast. The Wu’s just felt relieved. The most demanding and needy part of Marcy’s childhood was finally over, and they could at last get back to their previous work schedule.
Things were finally going back to normal.
Sasha didn’t like to think about it much, but as a child she was quite lonely.
Sasha’s parents had so many friends and she didn’t even get one. It was unfair! If her parents got to have friends, then shouldn't Sasha get to have one too? That logic made sense to her at least. So one day after school, instead of waiting at school for the hour it took for her mom to pick her up, she ran off to the park next to the school.
She scanned the old worn-down playground for other kids she could make her friend. Unfortunately, she seemed to have picked a bad time. School was out, and most kids were probably headed home. But this was the only time she could find friends! Her classmates were all boring and she could never talk to anyone her age at home.
Fortunately, there seemed to be at least one target. Her eyes were drawn to another girl about her age swinging by herself. And, consequently, to the two scary looking teenagers approaching the girl.
Right before Sasha’s eyes, the teenagers unceremoniously pushed the girl out of her swing and onto the ground.
Sasha envied those teenagers. She couldn’t wait until she was big and strong like those teenagers were. Then she would have the power to get what she wanted whenever she wanted. To have some sort of control of her surroundings. But for now, she would be content with getting her first friend.
Making sure to make herself look as heroic and brave as possible, she jumped in to defend the girl, confidently chasing off the bullies. Following her perfect and flawless victory, Sasha turned around and introduced herself.
The girl’s eyes shone in admiration as she introduced herself. It turned out the girl’s name was Marcy, and she was enraptured by Sasha’s show of strength.
In classic best friend fashion, Sasha asked what she was doing at the park all alone.
“Don’t worry, I wasn’t alone,” was Marcy’s cryptic reply.
In retrospect, that should have been the first clue that something was… different about Marcy.
Instead, that had happened at their first sleepover.
It had been a fine afternoon. A great one, actually. She got to spend the whole night with a friend of her very own. Sasha, inspired by the sleepovers her Mom went to with her gross Mom friends, decided to have a best friend sleepover of her own. Sasha’s parents had been fine letting Marcy stay the night, and Marcy had informed her that her own parents were okay with it.
She had excitedly shown a wide eyed Marcy around her house. They had played hide and seek, even though Sasha kept winning because she already knew the best hiding spots around the house. They eventually stopped, though, because Marcy got lost wandering the many rooms and hallways.
Eventually Sasha’s Dad came in and told them it was time for bed. He had already brought a bunch of sleeping equipment to Sasha’s room for Marcy to use. Marcy did the thing where she used way too many words to just say thank you, before the two of them ran off to Sasha’s bedroom.
As Sasha was putting on her night clothes, she watched out of the corner of her eye as Marcy set up a bunch of blankets on the ground. It quickly became apparent that Marcy was setting up two spots to sleep instead of one.
“Hey, Marcy, you know I’m just sleeping in my own bed, right? You don’t need to make a spot for me.”
“I know, this spot isn’t for you.”
“Then who’s it for?”
Marcy looked away, a bit embarrassed. “It’s for Anne.”
It seemed a bit weird. A lot weird, actually, since Sasha hadn’t even heard of an Anne before, but Sasha decided not to pry. The rest of the sleepover went well, though. They stayed up playing silly games like people were supposed to at sleepovers, before falling asleep much too late.
It was a couple days later when Sasha finally cracked.
She had waited to ask, for real! But her childish curiosity was not easily suppressed. And, truth be told, Sasha didn’t like not knowing what was going on.
“Hey Marcy. Who’s Anne?” Let it be known that at that age Sasha wasn’t quite the master of subtlety she was when she was older.
“...She’s my best friend.”
“...I thought I was your best friend?” Sasha was a little bit hurt. And more than a little bit jealous. Marcy seemed to sense Sasha’s growing unease with the situation, rushing to placate her.
“You are! You and Anne are my best friends in the whole world and I like you guys so much more than anyone else!” Marcy’s words made Sasha’s chest feel a bit funny, but in a good way, somehow. But she was still confused, so she ignored the feeling and kept pushing.
“Then where is she?” Sasha asked.
“...” This was the most hesitant Sasha had ever seen her. Most of the time she couldn’t get Marcy to stop talking, so this was odd.
“Well?”
Wordlessly, Marcy pointed at her forehead.
Sasha didn’t care that Marcy still had imaginary friends. She was a good friend, and good friends didn’t care about stuff like that. Just like Marcy was a good friend for doing the things Sasha didn't want to do.
As Marcy got more comfortable around her, she ended up hearing more about Anne. And from what she was hearing, Anne sounded like a great person to hang out with. She was nice and friendly and would do anything for her friends.
The problem, of course, was that Anne wasn't real.
Oddly enough, as they got older, Anne didn't go away. And she began to seem less like an imaginary friend and more like something else. She liked Marcy though. She was the only person who stayed. So Sasha didn’t care what might be different about Marcy, because she was Hers, and Sasha would always take care of her own.
Above all, Marcy was fascinating. As they grew up, Sasha took notice of how depressingly one-dimensional most people turned out to be. But with Marcy, there were clear moments of extreme kindness and empathy that Marcy wasn't normally capable of. Anne might not have been “real,” but her influence could be easily felt if one knew where to look.
It was a bit funny actually. Sasha already spent much of her time protecting Marcy from the dangers of the world, but some things inevitably slipped through. There were times where Marcy felt dulled and it was Sasha who had to pick up the pieces and take care of her until things went back to normal. It figured that Anne, who was so pure-hearted, could only exist if the world couldn’t see her to bear down upon her.
If Anne was real, Sasha would probably have too much on her hands. Marcy alone was difficult to protect, and Sasha probably couldn't keep another friend, especially one as pure-hearted as Anne, out of trouble.
And boy did Marcy need protecting. Nobody besides Sasha knew about Anne, but that wasn't enough to stop people from noticing that something was… off about Marcy.
Some classmates silently distanced themselves from Marcy because of how uncomfortable she made them. Others were more vocal. They might have gotten physical if Sasha wasn't there.
The worst, though, were those who wanted to poke and prod and find out exactly what was wrong with Marcy. And those people weren't limited to classmates, either. Sometimes, when Marcy’s quirks got a little too visible, teachers and other adults looked at Marcy in ways that made Sasha’s skin crawl, like they were trying to dissect her with their eyes. If Sasha wasn’t there to placate them…
Marcy might have been a little weird, and sometimes a bit too needy for her tastes, but Sasha didn’t care. Marcy was Hers, and nothing could change that.
Marcy knew, of course, that Anne wasn’t the same as she was. Or like Sasha was. Or her parents or any of the other people she saw on the streets or at school.
Anne couldn’t touch things, she knew, and other people couldn’t hear her soft voice. Other people couldn’t see Anne’s fluffy hair and her shining eyes, always flitting around the corner of her vision. They couldn’t feel Anne’s soft touch reassuring her when she was feeling overwhelmed.
In her opinion, though, that didn’t make Anne any less real.
Truth be told, she didn't know exactly when Anne had first… shown up, so to speak. She was the kind of childhood friend you were friends with before you could even form long term memories.
As for what exactly Anne was, Marcy didn't like to think too hard about it. She was a friend, the best kind of friend a person could have. Plus there were so many other interesting things to think about! There was no reason to question the existence of the one person who had always been there for her.
Anne had been her only friend for much of her childhood, before Sasha had unceremoniously inserted herself into her life. Anne had been more of a comforting presence back then. Someone to spend the many hours stuck at home with. Someone to talk to, when nobody else would listen to her.
She always kept a spot next to her in bed for Anne. She of course knew that Anne didn't really need it, but she always felt comforted knowing that Anne was there next to her while she slept.
She could almost feel Anne's arms around her during the most painfully quiet nights. Blocking out the oppressive cold and silence of the empty house. Surrounding her with warmth and comfort and good feelings as she slowly drifted away.
It helped. It helped a lot.
She had feared that Anne would disappear somehow when Sasha became her friend. Maybe she could only have one friend at a time. She wasn't quite yet sure how friendship worked. Sasha hadn't been around to tell her yet, after all.
But Anne had stuck around. And thus Marcy kept a place in her heart for her.
Sasha didn't quite understand at first. Even Marcy didn't really know how to explain. She was worried, of course, that Sasha would think that it was weird. But when Marcy had opened up about Anne, Sasha had said that she didn’t care how weird Marcy was. She wouldn’t leave as long as Marcy stayed. Sasha was the only one who stuck around for her, so she let Sasha in.
Marcy liked to think the three of them were all best friends, even though Sasha had let her know early on that she couldn’t see or hear Anne like Marcy could. Sasha could imagine, with startling accuracy as the months and years of their friendship ticked by, the things Anne would say. She knew what Anne would say just like she knew what Marcy would say, but she couldn’t hear Anne’s voice like Marcy did.
She tried serving as a translator sometimes. When they were bored and had nothing to do. She said the things Anne said and Sasha would talk back and the arrangement worked startlingly well, actually, all things considered. Sometimes Marcy herself joined in the conversation, and somehow, Sasha was able to keep up, recognizing whether Anne or Marcy was speaking and keeping up with the conversation.
Marcy was really grateful for Sasha.
So much so, that she didn’t even mind when Sasha got a bit too pushy, or controlling. It didn’t matter how flawed Sasha was, because she was good enough to stay with her, and it would take a lot for the bad to counteract the good.
Of course, it didn’t take long for things to fall apart. Marcy’s parents had come out of nowhere saying they would be moving. Some sort of job thing Marcy wasn’t old enough to understand. Not that she tried, anyway. She immediately ran to tell Sasha, ignoring the stern words of her parents she was leaving behind.
Sasha looked fairly stoic, though Marcy knew her well enough to know that she was hurt, bad. Sasha was more of a social butterfly than Marcy could ever be, but Sasha didn’t have anyone else close to her like Marcy was.
“It’ll be fine, Marcy. You… you’ve got Anne.” The “I don’t” went unspoken, but was clear nonetheless.
“Look. I’ve… got a plan.”
Sasha didn’t respond, clearly holding back tears.
“There’s this box I read about. It should be able to help.” Marcy held out her phone with the picture of the odd frog box.
Sasha looked over, feigning disinterest, but her eyes widened as she looked at the picture.
“I’ve… seen that before.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, it was in some sort of thrift store. I remember because we were dissecting frogs that day and the box had frogs on it and did you really say it would help?” Sasha was clearly starting to get a bit frantic, equally desperate to find a way to stay together.
“...I hope so.”
The next hour felt like a blur. The two of them running around trying to find the thrift shop Sasha could only vaguely remember. The ecstasy that overcame both (the three?) of them as they found the shop with the box in the window. The distant sense of guilt as Sasha stole the box from the store that was quickly brushed away by the excitement that came from a potential fix to their problem. And finally, the giddy walk to the old park they met at, emotions churning through both of their brains.
Marcy eventually found herself sitting on the bench with the box in her hands.
“So, what’s this thing supposed to do, anyway,” Sasha asked.
“I… it’s supposed to… take us to other worlds.” Saying it out loud made it seem a bit silly.
“And you believed that? Sounds fake.” Sasha’s harsh words were slightly undercut by the clear sense of disappointment. Sasha clearly wanted to make this work as much as Marcy did.
“I guess. But… I just wanted a way to stay with you.”
They sat in silence a bit longer.
“Say it works, and we get transported to another world. Wouldn’t you miss your family?”
“Not really. Not if I had you there with me. With us. What about you though? Would you leave your Dad behind?"
“...Just open the box.”
“You sure?”
“End. Of. Discussion.”
Marcy thought for a bit. Sasha and Marcy both didn’t really have the best home life. And Anne didn’t have any family to leave behind. They didn’t have any friends other than each other either. If this box worked, if they went to another world, there wouldn’t be anything that could tear the three of them apart. Determined, she pulled the box closer to her.
For a moment, she hesitated. But Sasha's slightly too-tight grip on one shoulder combined with Anne's ethereal soothing touch on the other steeled her resolve.
The box clicked open.