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“Did you ever think…”
A dream—
A grin spread across Maru’s face as she pointed up, naming one of the many stars to the person sitting next to her, her voice soft so as not to interrupt any of the other individuals at the planetarium.
—to which.
“…maybe not all times…”
Maru heard them speak, telling her something she didn’t yet know about the stars above her, eating up everything, and she turned towards the person.
“…all times with him were bad.”
…
Maru woke.
She woke feeling something off from—
Shaking her head, she got up and looked at the calendar and clock before getting up and heading out the back door of the family home to get some fresh air.
Only—
Maru stared.
Her mouth twisted into a frown.
Letting out a sigh, Maru headed into the house, frowning as she did so, and heading to the kitchen. “Have you seen my telescope?”
Only—
Her mother and father gave her a strange look, as if—
She stared.
“You know. My telescope? That’s set up in the yard?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” her father said, who was one of the last people one could expect ever to joke about anything.
Yet—
“Very funny,” Maru said. “Sebastian in on this?” She heard her mother drop a plate in the kitchen sink. “I mean, did he…”
“Where did you hear that name?” Robin said, her voice straining.
Maru stared. “You know. Sebastian. My half-brother.”
Demetrius stared at her, then cleared his voice.
Robin turned and—
Maru frowned, confused. “Wait? Is she mad at me?”
“So, I don’t know what is going on here,” Demetrius said, “But could you not upset your mother?”
“What did I say that is wrong?” Maru asked, confused.
“Nothing,” Robin said, letting out a sigh. “And everything.” She then turned. “You talk about jokes, but really, Maru? This is a cruel joke.”
“What…” Maru frowned. “What joke?”
Only—
It really started to feel like the joke was on her as both her parents looked at her, as if she’d missed something important.
Namely—
“Wait. Mom wants to know how I knew Sebastian’s name? Why would she…”
…
“Wakuu?”
He—
“Wakuu? Are you alright?”
He certainly wasn’t alright, because—
He’d somehow woken up in his childhood bedroom, or more of—
His childhood bedroom at his father’s place, his father who—
Anxiety washed over him.
Everything felt—
He closed his eyes and sat at the head of his bed, having woken to the sight of stars hanging from the ceiling and the star carpet on the bedroom floor.
And of course, Wataru is very much present and—
“Son?”
Mere touch from the father who drowned at sea while he was visiting his mother—
He passed out.
…
“Are you here to see Maru?”
Sam looked right at Robin, the feeling in the pit of his stomach getting worse, remembering how his mother looked at him in confusion when he brought up Sebastian, as well as the look on his younger brother’s face.
It failed.
It failed to register even when he woke up to a picture of him, Penny, and some chick he didn’t recognize without their purple hair, but—
And it failed when his mother and brother looked at him, but when Abby showed up—
Abby, not Abigail—
Looking at a strawberry blond, trying to get his attention—
Sam remembered the dream.
A dream of being out near the witch’s hut with Maru and Sebastian, of things getting between the two siblings—
“I wish you were never in my life!”
To which—
That’s when he woke up.
“Yeah. I’m here to see her,” Sam smiled.
To which Maru pulled him down the stairs, confirming—
It was as if Sebastian never lived in the basement of the family home.
“Tell me this is some kind of nightmare,” Maru said.
“Well, if the look on my face is any indicator,” Sam said, looking around the room. “It’s not. It’s…” His hands were tucked into his pockets.
“When did you notice?”
“Well,” Sam said.
“I didn’t right away,” Maru said. “I want to ask mom and dad about why my telescope…”
“Sebastian’s,” Sam corrected.
“What?”
“Sebastian’s telescope that you glommed onto,” Sam corrected. “Do you remember? The wish you made?”
Maru paused, staring. “The wish?”
“About Sebastian never being in your life?” Sam said.
Maru looked at the ground. “Well, it isn’t as if…”
“Can you honestly tell me that everything was bad between you?”
Maru looked at the ground.
“Maru?”
“Dad was confused,” Maru said. “Pointing out I’d never held an interest in the planetarium, so he never took me.”
“Maybe because it was originally Sebastian’s interest?” Sam said.
“Maybe,” Maru muttered.
“Where is he?” Sam asked.
“How should I know?” Maru asked.
“Maru.”
“No. Seriously,” Maru said. “Mom’s upset I even brought him up, and…”
“Well, fuck,” Sam muttered. “Deep fuck.”
Because there was no way to find Sebastian or determine his whereabouts, let alone contact someone who had never been in contact with him.
But—
Sam looked down.
“Maybe,” Sam said. He took a deep breath.”
“What?”
“Let’s hope Sebastian is able to remember our e-mails.”
“Why can’t we just use his?”
“Because,” Sam said. “He’d be using a different one, no? I mean, different life and all.”
“Right,” Maru frowned. “That…”
“Sucks, I know,” Sam said. “But that kind of wish…”
That kind of wish had consequences.
“Though I’m glad I remember him,” Sam said, as nobody else seemed to.