A Sword In My Heart

by Willoworm

Summary:

You can only control so much in your life, but not everything. Sometimes you win things, sometimes you lose things. Sometimes its hard to live with those losses, but one of the great things about life is that you don't have to live with those losses alone.

Notes:

The title is a reference to how gladiolus flowers are sometimes called "sword lilies"

Chapter 1: A Sword In My Door

Mari is gone. She's been gone for 4 long and agonizing years. If only I had done something. If I had been a better brother. More attentive. More diligent. Just... More. Instead here I am. An only child too broken to leave my own home. I failed Mari and I've failed everyone else too. I should just...

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

...who-

 

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
"I KNOW YOU'RE FUCKING IN THERE SUNNY! OPEN THE DOOR BEFORE I BREAK IT DOWN MYSELF."

A both familiar and unfamiliar female voice sounded from the other side of the door. She sounded... angry... and dangerous. Sunny wasn't sure how to react. On one hand he didn't want to answer the door as he was afraid of whoever was on the opposing end of it. On the other hand though was the distinct possibility that she would make good on her threat to break the door down and he didn't want to have a broken front door, nor explain to his mother why the front door was broken... Whenever she decided to come back... So he steeled himself and approached the door. Slowly but steadily he reached forward and unlocked the door, his hands shaking. As soon as the door lock clicked the knocking stopped and he began to open the door.

As daylight peered through the crack that he'd opened to see outside, a figure came into focus. A girl with bubblegum pink hair and teal eyes stood at his door carrying a baseball bat, tip covered in nails. She looked familiar which only caused his confusion to intensify as he had never met anyone that looked like this before, but above all else he was still scared. She looked at his eye peeking out of the crack in the doorframe with a surprised look which slowly faded away as time dragged on. They both stood there staring through that rift between worlds. Two very different, but also not too dissimilar worlds. Eventually the silence was broken though.

 

"So... You gonna open the door so I can come in or are you gonna keep staring at me like I'm an alien." She seemed to joke, but there was a distinct edge to her voice that told him that he shouldn't let his guard down just yet.

He still didn't know who this girl was... Asking her could be dangerous, but letting an aggressive stranger into his home is even more so... He couldn't keep her waiting forever and he couldn't let her in without knowing, so he leapt from into the deep end and broached the topic.

 

"Who..." Her eyebrow raised. "W-Who are you...?" Sunny asked the question meekly. Her expression morphed into many emotions. Disbelief for a moment, anger in the very next, sorrow in the next, until it finally landed on one he couldn't quite read.

 

Her gaze shifted to the side. "It's... Aubrey. You... You still remember me right?"

 

Au... Aubrey? This girl... She... She couldn't be Aubrey... Right?

"A-Aubrey...?" Sunny asked tentatively.

 

"Yeah. Aubrey. You know... from..." Her eyes downcast, but there was a certain flame in her eyes when she said the next statement. "From four years ago? We used to be friends?"

 

Ah. Right. Used to be. He figured everyone didn't consider him a friend anymore after everything happened. After he... failed them.

He nodded from behind the door. "I... I remember..."

 

"Good... Now can you let me in? I'm getting tired of standing here." Aubrey at some point had begun leaning on her nail-bat while he was recollecting.

 

"O-Oh... Yeah... Come in..." Sunny slowly opened the door, but stayed behind the door out of the sunlight. Shortly after Aubrey walked in and looked around, not sparing Sunny a glance.

 

"Really nothing has changed in here huh..." Aubrey idly asked herself as she explored. "Why are all the lights out and the curtains shut? You that scared... of..." She slowly stopped her jab and finally noticed Sunny attempting to make himself as small as he can under her gaze. That wasn't the problem though. The problem was that in the past four years he had both changed drastically for the worst and not changed at all at the same time. He wore the same clothes, his height had barely changed, he was pale as a ghost, and he obviously has not been taking care of himself. "What... What happened to you...?"

 

She stared at him as he refused to even glance back. "What do you mean?"

 

"Don't you fucking 'what do you mean?' me!" She stomped towards him and grabbed him by his arms before he could step away, her nail-bat clattering to the ground. "You're basically skin and bones! You've barely grown and-" She came to an abrupt stop when she noticed there was something off about his arms. She immediately grabbed his wrists, he attempted to struggle out of her grasp in response. "STOP." She demanded as she looked angrily into his lightless eyes. He stopped struggling on the spot and his shoulders slumped in defeat.

She began to examine his arms only to find countless scars on them. Her expression was complicated and so were her emotions. She looked at him with hurt and anger in her eyes. "What the fuck is this, Sunny?" Sunny's lifeless eyes refused to look back. "SUNNY! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!"

 

Sunny didn't look back at her but a tinge of anger seemed to flare in his eyes. "...What does it look like..."

 

Aubrey dropped his arms as he held them close to his body. She stared at him in disbelief. She didn't want to believe that this is what has become of Sunny. Sunny wasn't this. He was living in his own little bubble free of care for the rest of the world. He didn't come out because he didn't care about his friends or what Mari did to herself. Sunny wasn't this. He didn't come out to save her because he didn't care about her. He could care less about the people he used to know. Sunny wasn't this. Sunny wasn't this. This wasn't Sunny. It can't be. She refused to believe this. Sunny didn't. Sunny couldn't. Sunny wouldn't...

 

...

 

Sunny wouldn't leave them like Mari did... right?

She could feel a pit in her stomach but she strode forth despite this. She looked at Sunny as he continued refusing to look at her and suddenly he was enveloped in warmth. At first he didn't understand what was happening, but quickly realized that Aubrey was... hugging him. He... didn't know how to feel about it. He felt like he didn't deserve this warmth. This feeling of comfort. He only deserved to suffer for what he's done... but he also couldn't get enough of this... he loved the warmth of this embrace. He wanted to stay like this. He wanted to hug her back... and so he did despite what his other half wanted.

He hugged her back and as tears welled in his eyes he choked out a single question. "Why...?"

 

"Why? Sunny... if I had known this is what happened to you... if I had known that Mari's... decision... would affect you this much... I would have threatened to break down your door years ago." She held him tighter as she too began to tear up.

 

"It was all my fault..." He began, but almost immediately regretted it as Aubrey broke from their embrace and looked into his tear-filled eyes in disbelief. He so desperately wanted to be held more, but his other half was beginning to win over.

 

"Don't. Say that. It wasn't your fault. It was her decision. You can't control whether or not she decided to abandon us." She still held his arms firmly as she said this.

 

"You can't say that..." He croaked out "I was with her all the time... I was with her more than I was away from her... I saw all the signs. I saw her become more and more unhappy. How it became harder and harder for her to smile. I heard her cry at night sometimes and found the bloodstains she missed in the bathroom. I didn't understand, but I should of tried! I should have asked... I could have done SOMETHING, but NO. Instead I was left all alone with only myself to blame... I know you all hate me... that's why you came here right? To tell me how much of a useless coward I am..." Aubrey seemed about to refute his claim, but slowly shut her mouth as she realized that that is exactly why she had come here initially. "I didn't realize it at first because of how confused I was, but I can tell now from how you acted when you came in." His tone had subtly shifted to a mocking one until it became an accepting one. "I deserve it anyways. Every insult. Every angry look. Every punch, kick, and violation. I deserve every single one, because I failed Mari... and I failed all of you too." He finished unable to look at Aubrey.

They both stood in uncomfortable silence. Both of them soaking in everything that had and hadn't been said. But once again the silence was eventually broken, but by Sunny this time.

"Anyways... You should leave... It's... probably best if both of us forgot today happened... I'm sorry for not being there for you." Sunny walked back towards the door. Aubrey silently followed him. Sunny opened the door to let Aubrey ou-

SLAM

 

The door was quickly shoved back close as Aubrey's arms both pressed against the front door on either side of him, trapping him. "You really think that I'm just... just gonna walk away after all of that?" He couldn't read her expression as her hair was hiding her face. Her head hung low in front of him. Aubrey had a deadly tone in her voice. It wasn't quite anger, but something deeper. Before he could even attempt to get a grasp on it she continued. "If I had left just now... What would you have done?"

 

He was confused. "What do you mean?"

 

"DON'T PLAY DUMB WITH ME! WE KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO MARI WHEN WE ALL LOOKED AWAY. WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE IF I LOOKED AWAY?" Aubrey had lifted her face now and there was unfiltered rage in her teal eyes. "WOULD YOU HAVE LEFT US JUST LIKE MARI DID?"

 

Sunny was at a loss for words. "I..."

 

The fire seemed to slowly die in her eyes as sorrow overwhelmed rage. "It was never you that abandoned me was it...?" She cupped his cheek in her hand as she examined his face with a pained expression.

 

Sunny blushed lightly at this contact. "A-Aubrey..." Sunny said quietly as his gaze averted.

 

"Huh?" She seemed to have almost broken out of a trance as she realized what she was doing. "O-Oh. Crap... I umm..." She took a step away from him as she covered the bottom half of her face with her hand. "S-Sorry..." She had also gained a blush, but it was only visible from her ears at the moment.

Crap... What am I doing? I'm supposed to be comforting him, not... Ughh... What's going on with me... I haven't felt like this since... Realization suddenly dawned on her. Shit. I... I'm still in love with him aren't I? Fuck I thought not feeling this way for anyone was a sign that I didn't have any love interests anymore. What do they call it? Aromantic? But this... She looked back up at Sunny seeing how he was still avoiding looking at her, a blush clearly visible on his face. It's the same way I felt about him four years ago... God damnit... There's nothing I want more Other than cuddling the shit out of him and kis- SHUT. There's nothing I want more than to tell him I'll come back tomorrow and leave right now, but I can't leave him alone right now... I don't trust him to be alone right now... Ok... Ok Aubergine you can do this.

"A-Anyways. Do you mind if I stay the night here? I don't really want to go back... home... right now. I'm... sure you remember why I don't want to go back there when I get the opportunity to right?"

 

Sunny seemed to break out of his deep thoughts and uncomfortably nod his head. "Yeah... I remember."

 

"Good... That's... That's good." Aubrey nodded. "So, can I?"

 

"Yeah... That's ok... It... It get's lonely around here anyways so I could use some company." Sunny finished with a tinge of sadness in his voice.

 

GOD IF YOU KEEP BEING SAD I'M GOING TO SMOTHER YOU IN KI- "Wait... Sunny where's your parents? Shouldn't one of them be home by now?"

 

Silence seemed to choke the air around them. "I..." Sunny began apprehensively. "I don't know..." he finished, his eyes downcast. "Mom usually only comes by every couple weeks, but hasn't been home in the past couple months and Dad... Dad left years ago and never came back..." That lifeless look in his eyes creeped back in as he continued to stare at the floor.

 

Aubrey stared at Sunny, her mouth hanging open. She couldn't believe what had just come out of Sunny's mouth. "What...?"

 

Sunny looked at Aubrey with those empty black eyes. "I always knew they loved Mari more, but..." He looked back down. "I guess it hurts more when it's so obvious now..."

 

Aubrey couldn't hold herself back anymore and lunged forth, embracing Sunny tightly. "Who cares what the fuck they think. If they want to abandon their only son then they can fuck off straight to hell where they belong." She ignored her blush as she held Sunny tightly in her arms as if she let him go right now he'd simply vanish. Sunny looked at Aubrey, unable to see her face past the curtain of bubblegum blocking his vision, and laughed softly.

 

"You curse a lot now, Aubrey." He slowly hugged her back and habitually rubbed circles into her back like Mari used to do for him.

 

"Yeah, yeah I know. Got a problem with it?" She asked defensively but never loosened her embrace.

 

"No. It's kind of cute." He said thoughtlessly.

 

Aubrey's blush flared till it covered her entire face. "Wh-Wh-Wha- E-Explain! What do you mean by that??"

 

"Hmm...? Mean by what?" Sunny asked blissfully unaware of what Aubrey was asking.

 

"Mmm..." She grumbled to herself. "Nothing... nerd..." She pushed her head deeper into the crook of his neck. If he was gonna be oblivious then she was going to take advantage of this hug as much as she could. They stood there by the doorway for what felt like hours, both equally unwilling to break the embrace that they both relished.

Chapter 2: A Sword In My House

Summary:

Aubrey and Sunny make plans and reawaken old feelings.

Notes:

A bit of exposition and story progression.

Mm... I forgot what this felt like... She's so warm... I don't want to let go... I probably should... but when was the last time I did anything I should be doing... Sunny thought as they continued to hold each other. They'd been like this for the past hour and his legs were starting to get tired from standing so long. He wasn't used to standing for very long and his lack of eating isn't making it any easier. Since his mother made a habit of disappearing for weeks on end he doesn't eat very much. He only eats when it starts to hurt. After his mom didn't come back after a couple weeks like she normally did, he had to start going even longer without food. His mom didn't really bring back much. It started off alright, sometimes he even got steak back then... not for the past few years though.

Now she only brought back canned foods, cereal, and other things that had a long shelf life. He didn't know if she really even loved him anymore and if she doesn't he doesn't know why. Was it too stressful trying to raise a son like him alone? Was it too much having lost one child? Is it because they blame him for her death just as much as he does? He didn't know. All he knew is that his Mom probably wasn't coming back at this point. She left all the left over canned foods as well as a larger batch than when she last showed up. Not enough for a meal a day, but enough for him to survive with his eating habits. Which wasn't much all things considered.

He was starting to run out of food though. The only things left being a couple packs of ramen, a large can of beef stew, and half a jar of peanut butter. He wasn't sure what he was going to do once the food ran out. Starve to death? He doubts that Aubrey would let him do that at this point though. Maybe he needs to get a part time job or something to buy food... He doesn't know if he can get a job very easily and his body might not be able to keep up with the work load in his current state. He'll have to bare it though. He doesn't want to worry Aubrey more than she probably already is. Speaking of, he looks at her.

She seems to have tilted her head enough for her hair to no longer be blocking her face. She's simply hugging him with her eyes closed. She has a very calm expression on her face, almost like one someone would have while having a very peaceful sleep. It reminds him of... He shakes that thought out of his head. He thinks about his sister enough as it is. Him shaking his head seems to have stirred Aubrey from her serenity as her eyes flutter open and she makes eye contact with him. It was then that Sunny realized her face was way too close to his and he'd been staring at her.

Aubrey's expression doesn't seem to change though as they stared into each other's eyes. What was going on behind those sky blue irises? What could she be thinking? Was she thinking the same as him? Wondering what was going on in his mind as much as he wondered what was going on in hers? He felt an uncomfortable warmth in his chest. He wasn't sure but he thinks he felt this feeling a long time ago. Basil and Mari called it a crush. Was that what this was? A crush? Did he love Aubrey like he did back then? His dreams seemed to think so, so maybe his subconscious was trying to give him a clue.

Neither of them made a move as they stared at each other, piercing blue against depthless dark. They leaned closer to each other, breathing becoming heavier but also quieter. Closer and closer they inched, feeling like an eternity was passing before their very eyes. Their lips were a mere inch apart-

 

BAM BAM BAM BAM The loudest knocking you've ever heard in your life sounded from the door. They jolt out of their embrace in shock with Sunny's shock lasting longer than Aubrey's, meanwhile hers was short lived, being quickly replaced by unfiltered rage. She stomps to the door with overwhelming menace as she flings it open.

 

"WHO THE FUCK-" She cuts herself off as she spots an orange garbed giant at the door. "Kel..." If looks could kill then Kel would be dead one billion times over in that split moment. "What. Do. You. Want." Sunny could feel the venom dripping from every word from where he was at just a few feet away.

 

Kel stood there starstruck and oblivious as out of everything in the known universe he did not expect to see Aubrey at the door. "Au-Aubrey? What?? Who?? When? HOW???" His eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Why...?" He rubbed his chin in a comical way. "And finally most importantly... Where..." Aubrey seemed to only get more pissed off at each syllable vomiting out of Kel's mouth.

 

"I don't have the patience for your idiocy right now Kel."

 

Kel did not seem to be able to read the situation as he elaborated. "I meant like... where's Sunny? Is he ok? You didn't hurt him did you?" Kel furrowed his eyebrows accusatorily.

 

"No, Kel. I didn't hurt Sunny. Now go. Away." Aubrey made a shooing motion with her hand.

 

"Hey! That's no fair. I have just as much a right to see Sunny as you do!" He crossed his arms and puffed his cheek in disapproval.

 

Aubrey groaned and face palmed. "Fine, how about this. You can see him. Tomorrow. Now go away."

 

Kel seemed slightly dissatisfied at this but conceded. "Promise?"

 

"Yeah, yeah sure. Now get lost." She shut the door without a single moment of delay and locked it. "Ughh... that motherfucker... just when we were about to..." Aubrey's words after that become unintelligible as she began to grumble to herself.

 

"Aubrey?" Sunny called out to her.

 

"Yes?" She immediately broke out of her grumbling at Sunny's call.

 

"It's getting a little late. Are you hungry? I... I don't have much, but I can at least offer dinner." Sunny looked away a bit ashamed that he couldn't offer a better meal.

 

Aubrey seemed to short-circuit for a moment. Dinner? With Sunny? JUST Sunny? Isn't this something couples do?? Is this like one of those romantic homemade dinner dates?!" Aubrey snaps her self out of it. She really wants to accept but Sunny needs the food more than she does right now. She hasn't eaten today, but she doesn't know the last time Sunny has eaten. "I... I'm ok... I'm not that-" She gets cut off by her stomach rumbling, quite loudly at that. She blushes as her cool moment is cut short. WHAT THE HELL? WHAT AM I IN? AN ANIME?? WHAT WAS THAT TIMING?!

 

Sunny chuckled quietly, partially covering his mouth. He looks really cute when he laughs... Aubrey idly thought as she stared at him. "I'll go make us some food. Beef stew is ok, right?" Sunny said as he passed her by, into the kitchen.

 

"Y-Yeah. That's fine..." She followed behind him a little embarrassed. Good lord... She wasn't used to feeling like this. It made her feel vulnerable. She didn't like feeling vulnerable. But she thinks she likes the feeling of being vulnerable with him... She felt safe with him, despite not having seen him for the past four years. It's like those years faded away in the small time they spent together today. Like he never left. She felt like that little love-struck Aubrey again. The same one who received Mr. Plantegg all those years ago. Who vented to him all those times on the swings. Who was found on the sidewalk missing her shoe. Who's still missing something. She followed after where she saw Sunny enter the kitchen.

Sunny was opening up a large can of beef stew when she walked in. He spared her a glance as he turned the can opener giving a small smile before returning to his task. After some can opening, pouring it into a pot, and turning on the stove he left saying that he had to use the bathroom. She acknowledged this and he left, leaving Aubrey to examine her surroundings.

The kitchen was also very much the same as when she'd last seen it... minus basically every food item that used to fill the shelves. She looked over the counter. Vacant. She checked the fridge. Empty. Freezer? Desolate. Cupboards? Mostly barren. The only things of note being a couple ramen noodle packages, a half jar of peanut butter, and a single thing of canned meat. What... What the fuck. His mother really hasn't been here. My home life isn't the best sure, but at least there's food if I'm desperate enough to get past mother... I also have other people to rely on like the Hooligans, as much as I don't like to. Just because I'm in a bad situation doesn't mean I don't feel bad about imposing on others.

She sighed and took a seat at the counter. What was she going to do? She couldn't leave Sunny like this. He's already proven to be capable of hurting himself and she can't risk him being alone for so many hours in the day. At least not until she's sure he's in a safe place mentally. She sat there contemplating her options.

...

...

...

...

What...

What if she lived with Sunny?

...

...

...

...

WHAT! WHAT WAS SHE THINKING!! A BOY AND A GIRL LIVING UNDER THE SAME ROOF? JUST THE TWO OF THEM?! They'd be like... like a-

"^...Couple?!" She whispered to herself.

 

"Did you say something Aubrey?"

 

"HUH?" Aubrey shot out of her seat and looked at where the voice came from, eye landing on a startled Sunny.

 

"You... You ok, Aubrey?"

 

"Y-Yeah... I'm fine." She took her seat again and Sunny then began to relax and went back to cooking. Get a hold of yourself Aubrey... Just because you live together doesn't mean you'd be a couple... yet Just... bring it up. Casually. "S-So uhh... Sunny."

 

"Mhm?" Sunny turned his head a little to indicate he was listening, but did not look away from the pot.

 

She gulped. "W-What would you think of... ^us... _{living together...}"

 

"Sorry, Aubrey. Could you repeat that? I couldn't hear you over the stew boiling." Sunny turned off the stove and moved the pot before stirring the stew with a ladle.

 

She groaned. "I said what... would you think of us living together..." She looked away blushing intensely. She heard a clattering and peaked towards Sunny who was staring at Aubrey in pure bafflement.

 

"Live... Together??" Sunny raised his voice a little which was a rarity that left Aubrey a little scared that he will react badly.

 

"J-Just..." She bounced her leg nervously. "I want to make sure you're ok... I... don't feel comfortable leaving you alone right now..." Sunny looked at her, surprise fading, as he approached her. Aubrey trembled slightly as she braced for the worst. Her trembling stopped as a pair of arms wrapped around her.

 

"There's... not really enough food left even if we want to-"

 

"I'll- I'll get a part time job!" Aubrey hastily replied. "We just need enough for food as your mom seems to still be paying for everything else..." Sunny looked her in the eyes and sighed softly.

 

"Ok, but I'll also be looking for a part time job in the meantime. I need to do something at some point and if it gets you out of that house then that's just another reason for me to do something about it."

 

"Th-Thanks... Sunny." Aubrey blushed and smiled slightly.

 

"It's no problem... Now lets eat before it gets cold." He smiled a gentle smile and went to get them a couple of bowls and spoons to eat the beef stew. After what they considered a hearty meal they both washed the dishes, Sunny washing and Aubrey drying, before putting them away.

 

"The sun isn't quite gone yet. I'm... going to go grab my thing from my room back at my house. If- If that's alright with you that is." Aubrey hastily added.

 

"Of course. I'll go get the air mattress ready while you're gone. I should also probably take a shower."

 

"Cool. Cool..." Aubrey suddenly remembered something. "Oh crap... Uhh, Sunny?"

 

"Yeah? Is everything ok?" Sunny turned back around with slight concern on his features.

 

"Are you ok with me bringing my rabbit, Bun Bun? I... I can't leave him there." Aubrey didn't know if Sunny would be ok with having Bun Bun in his room. She remembers he had his cat Mewo before, but wasn't sure if he'd be ok with a rabbit.

 

Sunny's expression relaxed as he replied. "Oh. Yeah that's fine." Without another word he continued towards the stairs.

 

Aubrey let out a sigh of relief and exited the house. She stood there for a brief moment soaking everything in before pumping both of her fists and hopping around in excitement. "Yes! Yes! Yes!!!" She began running home with a big smile on her face. That couldn't of gone any better! This is the best day of my life! I can't wait! Literally nothing could ruin this day for me now- She cuts herself off as she arrives home quicker than expected and the place that is both her home and the den of her worst enemy existed. Decrepit with paint chipping off the walls and tiles missing from the roof. Anxiety clenched around her heart as freedom was just moments away, yet so far. She had to power through though. It wasn't just for her, it was for Sunny. And so with bravery coursing through her veins she opened the door and stepped into the lair of the beast.

Notes:

What you didn't think I was gonna have a kiss scene so soon did you? -w-

Hope you all enjoyed! Having a bit of writers block for my other fic and had inspiration for this one. Please leave a comment if you have any comments, questions, or suggestions! I love receiving them so do not hesitate!

Chapter 3: A Sword In My Room

Summary:

Aubrey goes to get her possessions but can she escape from the orchestrator of her misery?

Notes:

Trigger warning if you have a history with abuse.

A rank stench assailed her nostrils as she stepped inside. In the dark interior there is only a singular light source, that being the tv to the right. In front of it sat a wretched creature, bottles and cans strewn about like the hoard of a dragon. The majority of the stench emanated from that part of the house. Aubrey didn't say anything when she passed by and nor did the creature on the couch. Aubrey exhaled a sigh of relief and quickly, but quietly, made her way up the ladder at the end of the hall into her room and started packing her things.

She grabbed her spare clothes, her Captain Spaceboy poster, the picture of her and Kim, her blanket, pillow, and various nick-nacks. Finally she grabbed the money she'd been saving for whenever she needed food and couldn't face her mother. It was just under two thousand dollars. She guesses three years of occasionally doing errands for her friend's parents paid off in the end. Her bag was a bit over stuffed and a little heavy, but she didn't want to make multiple trips so she'd just have to make do. She got up, grabbed Bun Bun's cage and carefully went down the ladder.

She peeked out into the living room looking at her mother. As per usual she blankly stared at the tv, eyes as lifeless as ever. Aubrey made an effort to try and be nonchalant about passing by to leave the house, but alas it wasn't meant to be.

 

"Where are you going this late..." A voice croaked from the couch. It wasn't a menacing voice out of context, but Aubrey knew that could change as quickly as the flip of a coin.

 

"I'm just going to stay at a friend's house." Aubrey said with faux confidence.

 

"With all of that crap?" Aubrey's mother stood up from the couch wobblily. "You must really think your Mom is stupid, huh?" She turned towards Aubrey, the vacant stare gone as if it was never there replaced with one someone might give to an annoying pest or rodent. "So? I'll change my question. What do you think you're doing."

 

Aubrey quietly gulped. "I-I'm just going to a friends house..." Her confidence was quickly crumbling.

 

"Still sticking to that story, huh?" She chuckled bitterly and approached slowly, she grabbed a bottle on her way. "I'm going to ask one more time, Aubrey." She said in a sweet tone. "What. Do you think. You. Are. Doing." Aubrey was frozen in fear. Her eye darted between the bottle and her mother, she dare not look away in fear that she'll be punished for not paying attention. She briefly contemplated making a run for it, she was already halfway to the door but fear seemed to glue her feet to the floor.

 

"I... I... I..." Aubrey could feel the tears of panic starting to build up. She held them back as best she could. "I'm just-" In a blur a hand made contact with her face and she was suddenly looking off to the side.

 

"I told you I was going to ask one. More. Time. I will not ask again. Next time it won't be my hand." Her grip tightened on the bottle as the hand that hit her lowered to her mother's side.

 

"I'm..." Aubrey hesitated, the stinging on her face distracting her. "..." Her eyes shot between the bottle in her mother's hand and the distance to the door. Without a second thought she ran, but a hand grabbed her backpack and yanked her back, making her fall to the floor. Bun Bun's cage fell out of her hand as he curled up in fear.

 

"Aubrey... You should know better than to turn away from your mother when she's talking to you." Her mother's tone had barely changed the entire time. "You insignificant..." But that changed as quickly as the flip of a coin. "Worthless RAT!" The bottle swung towards Aubrey's face but she moved her head out of the way just in time to avoid it, the sound of glass shattering violently against the floor filled the room. She felt pieces of glass fly in her direction as it either bounced off of her or scratched her. Aubrey's fight or flight instincts went into overdrive as she wrestled out of her mother's grasp and grabbed Bun Bun's cage before sprinting out the door.

"WHERE ARE YOU GOING YOU WORTHLESS WHORE. GET THE FUCK BACK HERE!" She could hear her mother screaming behind her as she ran, until she felt something sharp hit her leg. She fell over in pain, looking behind her she saw a broken bottle rolling along the ground close by with blood on the broken tips. Her leg hurt and was bleeding, but she couldn't stop now. She got up and continued to run. She ran until her wound became numb and then kept on running. She could no longer hear her mother's screaming but kept running regardless, adrenaline being the only thing keeping her going at this point. Finally Sunny's house came into view, she limped to the door before knocking.

 

The door opened quickly revealing a concerned Sunny. "Hey, I was starting to become worri..." He looked at the exhausted and wounded Aubrey in abject horror, wet blood still dripping down from behind the torn part at the bottom of her skirt. "Wha... A-Aubrey... you're hurt..." He shakily reached towards her.

 

Aubrey smiled weakly. "Yeah... No shit sherlock... Now help me inside." Sunny got his arm under her shoulder without hesitation and helped her sit down.

 

"I'll be back soon! Just... stay here, ok?" Sunny ran off without a second's delay. Aubrey smiled fondly.

 

I've never seen him so concerned for someone before... So cute... Aubrey looked to the side to Bun Bun's cage and pulled it closer. She opened it and pulled Bun Bun out before setting him on her lap, petting him gently. "Almost as cute as you Bun Bun." Aubrey said weakly in a teasing voice. Soon Sunny returned with a first aid kit and a few towels in hand.

 

"Aubrey, I'm going to need you to lay on your stomach so I can clean up your injury." Sunny said with urgency in his voice. Aubrey nodded and gave Bun Bun a couple more pets before putting him back in his cage. "Ok, lets get you to the couch." Sunny helped her up and helped her lay down on the couch, he placed a towel underneath her wounded leg. "I- Um... I'm going to have to lift your skirt a bit to..." Sunny went quiet from embarrassment. Aubrey was also quiet at that.

 

She turned her face away. "Just... be quick..." He couldn't see her face but noticed that her ears were bright red.

 

"O-Ok..." Sunny was glad she wasn't looking his way as he could feel his face burning up. He quickly got to work with wiping the wound clean. "Does it hurt...?" Aubrey shook her head.

 

"It's still a little numb..." She said still facing away.

 

"I see..." He continued to clean it. "What caused this...?"

 

"A broken glass bottle."

 

"I'll have to make sure there aren't any broken pieces of glass then..." He'd tried hurting himself with glass once. It was a very unpleasant clean up and patch up process... At least it was coming in handy now though. He leaned closely with tweezers and began checking for shards of glass.

 

Aubrey hid her face more. "Sunny... your breath tickles..."

 

"Ah. Sorry, I'm almost done." He says oblivious to the fact that he is inches away from her rear and even closer to her thigh, merely focusing on the task at hand.

 

"_ok." Aubrey says quietly. Sunny had found a couple stray shards of glass, but otherwise found nothing else as he applied gauze and a bandage to her leg.

 

"There. All done." Sunny said as he packed up the med kit. "Try not to push yourself or put too much weight on that leg until it heals, ok?"

 

Aubrey sat up and winced a bit. "Yeah... that's gonna be sore in the morning..." She then gave Sunny a dubious look. "Sure spent a lot of time up close and personal didn't you, Sunny? Enjoyed the view?" She deadpanned.

 

Sunny blushed intensely. "Wh-What? I didn't look at anything! I was too focused on making sure you were ok..."

 

"O-Oh... I see." Aubrey played with her hair as she blushed in turn. "I..." She started "I... don't mind... if you looked..."

 

Sunny was stunned into silence. Was... Was she implying what he thinks she's implying...? Sunny gulped. "I-I um.. I... umm..." Aubrey was blushing intensely. Sunny cleared his throat. "W-We should uh... Go to bed. I set up the air mattress so I'll..." He looked down and remembered Aubrey was injured. How was she supposed to get up stairs? Sunny steeled himself and crouched down with his back turned in front of Aubrey.

 

"Sunny... What are you doing?" Aubrey raised an eyebrow.

 

"...Get on."

 

"Sunny, I don't think-"

 

"I can do it. Trust me." Sunny said with zero hesitation in his voice.

 

Aubrey blushed lightly and nodded. "_Ok." Aubrey leaned forward wrapping her arms and legs around Sunny. He wrapped his arms underneath her legs and, with some struggle, stood up beginning the arduous trek up the stairs towards his bedroom. Sunny couldn't see it but the skin contact was making Aubrey redder than a tomato.

 

"Ok... Ok... I can do this." Sunny struggled with each step, feeling like he was going to collapse at every moment. Eventually, with no small effort, he made it to the top step, his legs shaking and his lungs heaving for breath.

 

"Sunny... I can walk the rest of the way ok? Can you get my stuff and Bun Bun? I'll be ok."

 

"Ok... I'll... Be right... back..." He said between heaving breaths. He gently knelt and set Aubrey down before shakily heading back down the stairs to get Aubrey's things. Aubrey smiled as she watched him for a moment before walking to Sunny's room and looking around. It looked the exact same as it did before minus one key detail. Mari's bed was gone. Sunny had slotted in the air mattress in the vacancy.

It was another reminder that Mari was really gone and was never coming back... and Sunny had to live with that reminder every single day. She frowned and took a seat on the air mattress. Soon the sound of footsteps could be heard outside the door as Sunny stepped through the door, not heaving as much, but still clearly exhausted. He set Bun Bun's cage next to the air mattress and her bag at the foot of it. He then wordlessly flops into his bed.

"Just turn the light off whenever you want. I don't think I can move." Sunny's muffled voice emanates from his pillow.

 

Aubrey snickered from her mattress. "Gotcha.." She laid there for a while before limping over to the light switch and turning it off before turning around. She looked at her bed, then at Sunny's, then back at hers. She struggled internally for a long arduous moment before finally inhaling deeply. "Next time..." She limped back to her bed and laid down as exhaustion began to finally take hold. "Good night, Sunny..."

 

"Good night Aubs." He said with exhaustion clear in his voice.

 

"A-Aubs...? Did I just hear you right, Sunny?" Silence. "Sunny?" More Silence. He must of passed out... Damn it... I'll... get you... back... for... that... And sleep soon took her into it's warm embrace as well.

Notes:

Hope you appreciated more mushy gushy awkward sunburn time! See you next time!

Chapter 4: A Sword In My Morning

Summary:

Aubrey and Sunny wake up to a new day.

Notes:

Sorry for the wait. Hit a bit of burnout, but finally got some motivation!

The sun peaked through the windows, shining thin streams of light through the blinds. Within the room someone stirs, re-entering the waking world. Aubrey opens her eyes slowly to a ceiling both familiar and unfamiliar. Once upon a time she stayed many different nights waking up to this ceiling in the morning, back when she was a little girl. She still remembers those days like they had just happened yesterday. A girl hiding from home with her crush and her older sister figure. Only her crush had any idea of what her home life was like though. Maybe if she had told Mari she'd have felt more compelled to stay.

She shook her head, no need to fill her head with dead end lines of thinking like that. She was strong and she had to be strong. For hers and Sunny's sake. She sat up and was reminded via aching pain in her leg that she was still injured. She gently touched the bandages reminiscing about how careful Sunny had been patching her up. She should thank him later... She doesn't know how she'd do that, but she'd think of something. Speaking of Sunny she turned towards his bed. There he was sleeping as silently as he did back then.

...

She crawled over to get a closer look. Her leg ached getting over there but she'd been through worse and gritted through the pain. She looked down at Sunny's sleeping face, as peaceful as could be. She examined the rest of the bed and noticed that Sunny must not move much if at all during his sleep, after all his sheets and blanket haven't moved an inch. She has no idea how someone could sleep like that. That'd make him really easy to cuddle with wouldn't it... Aubrey shook that thought out of her head. Get a hold of yourself Aubs. She looked back at his sleeping face to examine it some more.

He really hasn't changed much has he? She absent mindedly reached forward and touched his face gently. "Hmm.." She hummed idly as she traced his features. Sunny twitched lightly at the continued contact but otherwise showed no sign of waking up. How can someone's skin stay so smooth after not taking care of their self for so long? "Not fair..." Aubrey grumbled. She pinched his cheek in frustration.

 

"Mmmh... Aubrey..." Sunny mumbled as his brow furrowed a bit.

 

Aubrey blushed and quickly withdrew her hand. "S-Sunny?" She whispered questioningly. Sunny didn't show any further sign of being awake though and Aubrey let out a sigh of relief. She decided that was enough of... whatever she was doing just now. She glanced at Sunny's face. ...Or was it...? She leaned over Sunny and looked at him unwaveringly. She reached forward and gently caressed his lips... They were quite soft. She then touched her own, they were a little chapped.

"Mmmmm... Not fair..." She grumbled once more. She wanted to pinch his cheeks more to let off her frustration, but knew doing so would likely wake him up and she did not want to explain what she was doing as she didn't even know what she was doing. She sat there and contemplated what to do...

...

Wait, why did he say my name when he was sleeping? Aubrey narrowed her eyes at Sunny with a slight blush on her face. She leaned forward, resting her chin on her arms as she rested on the edge of Sunny's bed. Mmm... Sunny's bed is really soft... She continued to watch Sunny sleep as she began drifting back off to sleep. She struggled to keep her eyes open but eventually she succumbed to her drowsiness.

...

...

...

Bells were ringing as she walked down the aisle. Her dress was beautiful and the white contrasted nicely with her vibrant pink hair. At the end of the aisle stood a man with black hair... he looked at her so lovingly it made her blush. She steadily walked forward until she arrived next to the man.

 

"Do you, Aubrey, take this man to be your husband, to live together in holy matrimony, to love him, to honor him, to comfort him, and to keep him in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?" The notary says.

 

"I do." She says with no hesitation.

 

The notary turns to the man and continues. "And do you, Sunny, take this woman to be your wife, to live together in holy matrimony, to love her, to honor her, to comfort her, and to keep her in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?"

 

"I do." He says, staring lovingly into her eyes.

 

"Then," The notary clears his throat. "You may now exchange your vows." Everything seems to blur for a moment and then come back into focus.

""Then by virtue of the authority vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife." He turns to Sunny. "You may now kiss the bride."

 

Sunny lifts the veil over her face and cups her chin lovingly before he began leaning in. She closed her eyes and happily awaited that loving contact.

 

"...brey..." She heard a muffled voice. Ughh... go away... I'm waiting for my kiss...

"...ubrey...!" The voice got louder. I said go AWAY.

"Aubrey...!" She was being shaken now too. She was just about ready to boil over as her eyes shot open.

 

"WHAAAT?!?!" She sat up rage reaching it's peak as she remembered where she was, only now noticing the cowering Sunny in front of her. She sat there with a dumbstruck look on her face, staring at Sunny. Sunny slowly regained his own composure as he awkwardly stared back at Aubrey.

 

"Umm... Aubrey? You alright?" Sunny tilted his head in confusion.

 

"Huh? Oh uhh... Yeah, doing great." Aubrey seemed to break out of her stupor. Then she remembered what she had just been dreaming about and a blush rapidly spread to the rest of her face. God, what is she dreaming about?! A m-m-marriage?!? Between Sunny a-and-

 

"Aubrey...? Are you sure you're ok? Your face is all red." Sunny pressed the back of his hand to her forehead. "And your forehead is really warm... You didn't get a fever did you? You did exert yourself a lot yesterday with your injury... I hope I treated it alright and that it didn't get infected."

 

Aubrey recoiled slightly. "Y-Y-Yeah! I'm doing perfectly fine! Just uhhh... It's just warm in here is all! The uhh... Sun! It's umm... making all that hot air lower to the floor... Yeah! Just uhh, that!" Aubrey rushed out as quickly as she could.

 

"...Aubrey I don't think that's how that works at all. Hot air rises, but heat kind of just goes wherever it wants-"

 

"I gotta use the bathroom!" Aubrey exclaimed and crawled as quickly as she could out of the room and to the bathroom. She slammed the door shut behind her and tried to calm down her hyperventilation. After she calmed down she realized she actually did need to use the bathroom. After doing her business and washing her hands she looked at herself in the mirror. She forgot she had taken out her contacts before passing out last night. She stared into her natural brown irises.

I wonder if he likes them better this way... Maybe she should ask him later... She was startled by a sudden knock on the door.

 

"Aubrey...? You ok in there?" Sunny's muffled voice came through the door.

 

"...Yeah! I'm alright. Just doing lady business. Now shoo, shoo!"

 

"A-Ah. O-Ok! I'll umm... Be downstairs ok?" Sunny responded a little bit of embarrassment evident in his voice.

 

"Alright!" She called back, his footsteps slowly receding from the door and down the stairs. She let out another sigh of relief as she realized all of her supplies were still in her backpack. She quickly went back to grab her bag and then back to the bathroom to tidy up. She finished up and just before putting in her contacts, looked into her eyes once more. She stared into those deep brown irises before finally deciding to put her contacts back in their container and heading downstairs.

Notes:

The long awaited chapter 4! Sorry it took so long. I got preoccupied and also hit a bit of burnout. I hope you understand and enjoyed this chapter! It's a bit shorter but I hope you enjoyed it regardless.

Chapter 5: A Sword In My Afternoon

Notes:

Happy birthday Hero! Not a Hero based chapter but just figured I'd say it since it's January 1st as of this being posted :)

Aubrey walked with a slight limp as she stepped out of the bathroom. It still struck her how nothing has changed in this house which she used to consider a second home, and a primary home now. She inspected her surroundings diligently, looking for anything that stuck out to her. But really nothing had changed. Same pictures, same clock, same everything. The only change now was that the plants were all starting to wilt... She made a note to water them later, maybe she could ask Basil about how to take care of flowers...

She shook her head. Maybe not... She still needed to apologize to him. She continued limping along to what is currently their shared bedroom.

"Hey, Sunny I..." She looked around realizing he wasn't here. It then dawned on her that she forgotten that he said he'd be downstairs. She was about to lament her own forgetfulness but it dawned on her that he wasn't here right now so maybe she could... snoop a bit. I probably shouldn't invade his privacy but... I'm so curious. I also gotta make sure he doesn't have anything dangerous stowed away. It was then that her stomach grumbled. I should also ask if he wants to grab some Gino's later... She reached into her bag and withdrew some money from her money stash before beginning her search.

So she began looking around, in his drawers, under his bed, under his sheets, under his pi- It was then that she found what she'd been looking for. A long and rather menacing steak knife hidden underneath Sunny's pillow. She took a deep breath as she reached to grab it, picking it up and limping out of the room. She struggled to get down the stairs but she made it down safely. She found Sunny in the living room staring at his hands and twiddling his thumbs thoughtfully. His eyes seemed to refocus as he noticed her in his peripherals.

 

"Oh, Aubrey. Did you finish up your..." His gaze shifted slowly to the knife she held in her hand. "How..."

 

"This doesn't stay in the bedroom anymore. Are we clear?" Aubrey said sternly.

 

"..." Sunny's otherwise stone-faced demeanor had shifted to a clearly heavily conflicted one as he stared at the knife.

 

"Are. We. Clear." Aubrey repeated emphatically.

 

"... Y-Yeah... Sorry Aubs..." Sunny looked down dejectedly.

 

Ughh... I can't stay mad at that face... Aubrey thought to herself as she approached Sunny, setting the knife on the bookshelf temporarily.

"It's alright Sun, I just don't want you to get hurt..." Aubrey kneeled down and hugged Sunny warmly. Sunny quickly returning the embrace.

 

"I'm sorry Aubs..."

 

"It's ok you big nerd... Now lets go get something to eat. I'm starving." Aubrey reluctantly broke their embrace to stretch. Sunny tilted his head inquisitively.

 

"... Go get something to eat...? But there's no money." Sunny said with a tinge of shame in his voice.

 

"Don't worry about it. It's on me, ok?" Aubrey smiled her confident smile. "I've been saving a lot of money and it should keep us comfortable until we can find some work to keep us fed."

 

Sunny's eyes widened. "B-But that's your money! You earned it and-" Aubrey put her finger on his lips.

 

"It's our money now. Now shush up and lets go get some Gino's. You remember Gino's right?" Aubrey smiled warmly at him as she took her finger off his mouth. Sunny nodded with a slight blush on his face.

"Good, now lets go." Aubrey began to walk towards the front door with a slight limp. Sunny noticed this and quickly made his way to her side, putting Aubrey's arm over his shoulder. Aubrey jolts a bit in surprise and quickly looks Sunny's way.

"S-Sunny?" She looked at him a little wide eyed.

 

"I... wanted to help you walk..." Sunny said avoiding eye contact as his blush deepened slightly.

 

"A-Ah. O... Ok..." Aubrey began blushing too at this. "A-Anyways... Let's get going shall we?" Aubrey said, a cheery tone returning to her voice.

 

BAM BAM BAM BAM and as if on cue a thunderous knocking emanated from the door right in front of them, they both jolted and winced in response to the thunderous noise. Aubrey's surprise quickly replaced by a knowing look of quiet fury.

 

"Damn it..." Aubrey mumbled to herself. She sighed heavily. "Let's just get this over with..." They both made the last few steps to the front door and Aubrey opened it. Sunlight suddenly flooded into the entryway, an orange garbed giant looming in it's wake. He had his classic smile which quickly changed into one of shock as he noticed many different things.

 

"Aubrey and Sunny?!?! Why is Aubrey hurt?! Are you ok?! What happened! Also Sunny! It's great to see you man, but holy moly what happened to you too! You look like a ghost just woke up from the grave! What is going on here!?!?!" Kel rapid fired his statements and questions like he was the fastest draw in the west. Aubrey simply stood there leaning on Sunny with her eyes closed as Kel continued. "Also why are you still here?? Was there a sleep over and I, the great and mighty Kel, was not invited?! I'm hurt Sunny! My best bro!" Kel closed his eyes in hurt as a single manly tear flowed down from his left eye.

 

"You done yet?" Aubrey said not opening her eyes.

 

"Huh? What?" Kel's single manly tear seemed to simply evaporate upon being broken from his moment. "Yeah, I think so. Anyways what happened, really?" Kel's expression morphed into one not commonly seen on his face, one of concern.

 

"Just... got into a scuffle and Sunny helped patch me up. We're about to go get something to eat." Aubrey said still not having opened her eyes while resting her head against Sunny. Kel seemed to pay it no mind though as he lit up at the word "eat."

 

"Ooo! Ooo! Can I come? I'm starving right now!" Kel's signature grin returned to his face in a flash.

 

"Kel..." Aubrey rumbled menacingly.

 

"Hey! You said I could hang out with Sunny today! A deals a deal!" Kel said crossing his arms with a slight pout. Aubrey's expression morphed into several forms of irritation until it finally landed on exhasperation.

 

Aubrey sighed heavily. "Fine... But you're buying your own pizza. I don't got the money to spot you."

 

Kel pumped his fist. "Alright! It's ok! I got some allowance recently so it won't be a problem!"

 

They all began walking down to Gino's at a relatively slow pace due to Aubrey's injury. Kel yapped away to them both as they walked talking about this and that and this and that. Kel's topic of conversation seemed to jump from one topic to another as he got reminded of certain events or miscellaneous nonsense he simply just wished to talk about. He seemed to be an endless fountain of words that seemed to flow on and on endlessly as neither Sunny or Aubrey said a word and simply let him ramble. Aubrey still leaned her head absentmindedly on Sunny's shoulder as they walked, Sunny listening to Kel talk.

Eventually they made their way to Gino's and walked inside. Sunny looked around and it was exactly the same as he remembered it. White and red checkerboard patterned tablecloths, brown wooden floors, and the titular Gino standing behind the counter. There didn't seem to be any customers around this early in the day as the pizzeria was vacant.

 

"Hey, Gino. One pepperoni pizza." Aubrey called out as they made their way to a nearby table.

 

The aforementioned Gino looked up to see the trio, noticing Aubrey's leg injury. "Coming right up, Aubrey. You doin alright? I don't need to call the cops or anything right?"

 

"Nah... It's alright Gino. Thanks though." Aubrey called out before finally taking a seat with a large groan. "Fucking hell... That's better." She looked at Sunny. "Thanks Sun." She smiled warmly. Sunny nodded with a slight blush and took a seat next to Aubrey.

 

"I'll have a pepperoni pizza too! Thanks Gino!" Kel called out loudly. Gino simply nodded at this and typed it up at the cash register.

 

"Alright, that'll be thirty bucks." He called out. Aubrey handed Kel fifteen dollars and he excitedly jogged up to the front counter to pay the rest. Sunny and Aubrey enjoyed a moment of relative quietude in Kel's absence. Sunny glanced down at Aubrey's hand and felt a twinge in his heart. Maybe... I could... Sunny reached for Aubrey's hand cautiously and hesitated briefly before grabbing a hold of it. His heart raced as he heard Aubrey inhale in surprise. He dare not look in her direction out of embarrassment. He was about to let go until he felt her grip on his hand tighten comfortably into his own. They both held hands under the table as they awaited the arrival of their pizza and Kel.

The latter returned soon after and he took a seat opposite to them. He grinned his usual smile and continued to ramble like he had earlier, meanwhile Sunny and Aubrey continued to hold hands under the table a warmth in their hearts. Eventually the pizza was ready and Kel went to retrieve them both before they all began to dig in. Even as they ate Sunny and Aubrey seemed to refuse to leave each other's grasp, choosing to grab and eat the pizza one handed rather than let go.

They all continued to eat their pizza like this. Kel ravenously devouring his pizza continuing to ramble regardless of whether his mouth was full or not. Aubrey enjoyed the pizza that she ate regularly but this time it felt much more special as she held Sunny's hand. Sunny was in a state of pure bliss as one hand held a slice of pizza, the warm nostalgic flavor spreading across his tastebuds, and the other hand held one person that he held near and dear to his heart. Everything was absolutely perfect.

The bell to the front door rang as someone walked inside. Their steps were both quiet and nervous like that of a mouse, but just loud enough to be heard. Kel looked up from his pizza and smiled.

 

Kel called out to the individual. "Oh! Hey Basil!"

Notes:

Hey! longtime no see! Sorry for the long delay. I hit a big burnout period but I finally got some inspiration. Hope you enjoyed and hope to see you all next time!

Chapter 6: A Sword In My Pizza

Notes:

Hello, it's me. Sorry I've been on hiatus for so long. I've had my hands full taking care of my grandparents. I recently had to move into my grandparent's house to start helping them with their day to day. It hasn't been sunshine and rainbows so I hope those of you who have been waiting for this chapter enjoy it.

"Oh, Hey Basil!" Kel called out startling the timid boy.

 

The boy jumped in response to the always loud Kel. "O-Oh! Jeez... C'mon Kel y-you know that I... scare.. easil...y..." Basil's words slowly died in his mouth as he noticed the two people sitting across from Kel. One a punk pinkette who he dreaded seeing at any time of day and the other... his best friend... outside... finally outside... he was stuck between thinking it was another hallucination and actually believing it. He dare not speak in fear that he was hallucinating and everyone thinking he's going crazy.

 

"Oh! Yeah, sorry 'bout that Basil." Kel chuckled bashfully. "I'm just glad to see you! Come over here and take a seat! We just ordered some pizza!"

 

Basil glanced over the pizza and frowned slightly. "A-Ah... I'll just order m-myself a slice of cheese pizza. Y-You know how I feel about eating m-meat..." Basil explained with a tinge of shame in his voice.

 

"Oh! Don't worry! I gotchu! Just go ahead and take a seat!" Kel quickly stood up and rushed to the counter without a second of delay.

 

"K-Kel! Wai-!" Basil futilely called after him but knew once Kel set his mind on something there was no stopping him... and so he slowly and carefully made his way to the chair opposite to... Sunny, who he was still unsure was actually there. In the meantime Aubrey and Sunny have had their eyes glued onto Basil the entire time. Aubrey because she had been meaning to apologize to him and Sunny because he was stuck feeling ashamed that he had abandoned his best friend all these years to fend for himself.

After having taken his seat Basil simply sat there unsure what to say. His palms were sweating profusely and he could feel his nervous sweat beginning to trickle down his forehead too. As time seemed to drag on he couldn't take it any longer and spoke up.

"S-So Aubre-"
"Basil I-"

Basil and Aubrey spoke at the same time once again filling the table with awkward silence. This time it was Aubrey who spoke up.

 

"G-Go ahead, Basil. I didn't mean to... interrupt." Aubrey said ashamedly.

 

"N-No! I-It was me who interruted..." Basil said reaching across his stomach and grabbing his other arm nervously.

 

"B-Basil... I..." Aubrey seemed to lose her confidence as she spoke. The table was once again filled with awkward silence, but this time it was Sunny who spoke up.

 

"H-Hey... Basil. It's... been awhile hasn't it...?" Sunny asked awkwardly. Basil on the other hand seemed to become visibly more uncomfortable at hearing Sunny speak, not responding. "Basil...?" Sunny tried getting Basil's attention once more unsuccessfully. "Hello...?" Basil only seemed to sweat more the more Sunny spoke, his eyes beginning to quiver as his body followed suit. Aubrey on the other hand seemed to grow mildly irritated at his unresponsiveness.

 

"Basil. You gonna answer?" Aubrey asked with slightly furrowed brows.

 

"H-Huh? D-Did you a-ask m-me s-s-something?" Basil was visibly shaking at this point.

 

"No... Sunny did... You... did hear him right?" Aubrey asked, her brows now curved in confusion rather than anger.

 

Basil's shaking suddenly calmed down. "S-Sunny... did...?" Basil slowly turned towards Sunny, finally looking him in the eyes. "Sunny..." He was still in slight disbelief but if Aubrey saw him too then... he must really be here. It was then that Basil realized he must of seemed really rude up until now. "S-SUNNY! OH G-GOD I'M REALLY S-SORRY!! I umm... ummm... w-what d-did you ask again? heheh... I'm really sorry." Basil rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

 

Sunny chuckled nervously. "I umm... I just said it's... been a while hasn't it?"

 

Basil's expression shifted to one of surprise as he responded. "Oh! Y-Yeah... It has, hasn't it?"

Silence once again.

"A-Anyways... I- umm... I'm glad to... see you again." Basil smiled.

 

"Yeah. Yeah... I'm... glad to see you again too... Basil." Sunny spoke softly.

 

More silence, only this time to be broken by soft sobbing as Basil could no longer hold his composure.

 

"B-Basil?! W-What's wrong?" Sunny reached across the table to hold Basil's hand which was clenched tightly upon the table as he sobbed.

 

"I-I hic I just... gasp I missed you so hic much..." Basil struggled to get out as he hesitantly grasped Sunny's hand too.

 

Aubrey hesitantly reached across the table and put her hand over Basil's empty hand. "Basil... what I wanted to say earlier... I wanted to say... I'm sorry... I'm sorry for everything I've put you through. You didn't deserve it and I never listened to you until yesterday... I should of listened to you instead of running away all those years ago... I know you won't and shouldn't forgive me for the hell me and the Hooligans put you through, but... I needed to tell you how sorry I am..." She finished with a shameful look in her downcast eyes.

 

Another silence but filled with sniffles this time. "Aubrey... I..." Basil thought for a long moment glancing at Sunny before looking back at Aubrey. "I don't know if I can forgive you yet but... I think I can at least start." Aubrey looked up into Basil's blue eyes trickling with tears, but beyond that was that gentle smile that reminded her of the old Basil. Of when they all used to be friends.

 

"Basil I-"

 

"Woooo, man! I'm sorry I was gone so long guys! I had to pee like suuuuuper bad! Like when I went it was like I opened a fire hose and it was like PPFFFSSHHHHHHHHHHH! Like oh man you guys shoulda seen it! Except not really cause that'd be really weird to watch me pee like what? Anyways, Basil I ordered you a slice of cheese pizza and- wait uhhh... what happened while I was gone? Why is everyone crying?" Kel's expression shifted from his usual grin to concern as he noticed everyone's faces. Aubrey's face on the other hand was bright red with embarrassment and rage as she shook quietly in anger with her eyes shut. Basil instinctively attempted to make himself as small as possible outside of her line of sight. Sunny was attempting to continue eating his slice of pizza quietly.

 

"Kelll..." Aubrey rumbled as Kel simply wore a dumbfounded look on his face.

 

"Yeah? What's up?" Kel asked innocently

 

The wind just seemed to blow out of Aubrey's sails at that as she seemed to visibly deflate. "Ugh... whatever just sit down and eat you moron..." Aubrey picked her slice of pizza back up and continued to eat.

 

"Don't mind if I do!" Kel sat back down and immediately began stuffing his face full of pizza. "Oh yah! Bashil your pizzsha shoulb be reaby by mow" Kel said with his mouth full of half chewed pizza.

 

"Kel, fuckin swallow your food before you speak you pig." Aubrey said in disgust.

 

"Shorrey" Kel said with his mouth still full of pizza.

 

"Ughh...." Aubrey groaned.

 

"Th-Thanks, Kel. I'll g-go get that." Basil stood up and began walking away.

 

"Oh!" Kel swallowed. "Don't worry about paying! I gotchu!" Kel gave a finger gun and a wink at Basil.

 

"O-Oh, th-thanks Kel. You shouldn't have." Basil said bashfully.

 

"Don't worry about it! Now go grab your slice and dig in with us!" Kel went back to devouring his prey.

 

"Y-Yeah." Basil left to grab his slice.

 

The table was silent except for the voracious sounds of a ravenous orange giant ravaging a poor hapless pizza. While Kel the Dread was tearing his prey to shreds, Sunny and Aubrey were still holding hands on the other side of the table. Both quietly enjoying their pizza ignoring the sounds of savagery across the table. After a moment Basil returned with his slice of cheese pizza and quietly enjoyed it alongside them. They would occasionally speak of unimportant things such as day to day activities and such until all of Kel's pizza was devoured and half of Aubrey and Sunny's pizza was gone too.

After that they continued talking and hanging out for a little longer until about afternoon. Basil excused himself because he needed to check on his garden and Kel said he needed to get back home to do a bunch of things that his mom asked him to do before he came home. So it was once again just Sunny and Aubrey.

 

"So... what now?" Sunny asked.

 

"Hmm... I guess we should get the rest of this pizza home first. After that I need to let the Hooligans know that I won't be out and about for a little while, while I wait for this leg to heal up." Aubrey responded gentle rubbing her injured leg.

 

"Oh I meant to ask about that... Who are the Hooligans anyways?" Sunny tilted his head inquisitively.

 

"Oh! Oh shit yeah I forgot to mention. They're a group of friends I started hanging out with after... after everyone... yeah." Aubrey finished awkwardly.

 

"A-Ah.. I see. Sorry." Sunny said, his grip on her hand loosening slightly.

 

Aubrey's hand only tightened in response. "It's not your fault, Sunny. Don't worry about it." Aubrey gently rubbed his hand with her thumb which seemed to entice Sunny to hold on tighter again. "That reminds me! I should introduce you to them. They're a little rough around the edges but once you get past that then they're all ride or dies. I'm sure you'll get used to 'em." Aubrey finished with confidence.

 

Sunny seemed slightly skeptical but if Aubrey says they're alright then... surely they can't be that bad, right? Sunny nodded his head.

 

"Great! Lets go get this pizza back home and head to the park. That's usually where we hang out." Aubrey reluctantly let go of Sunny's hand to pick up the pizza and put her arm around Sunny's shoulder again. "Alright, lead the way!" Aubrey smiled at him. Sunny nodded his head and began guiding them back home in the afternoon sun. Sunny took the time to look around occasionally on their way back to see if anything has changed. Not too much has. It's still the neighborhood he remembered growing up in. If he looked long enough he could almost see six kids walking down the sidewalk, happy as could be...

...

It didn't take too long to get back home and drop off the pizza. After taking a small break for Aubrey's leg they set off once again, this time to go to the park. Sunny had attempted to ask more about these "Hooligans" but Aubrey said she wanted it to be a surprise and that it'd be better to meet them in person. Sunny accepted his fate and chose to simply enjoy his walk with Aubrey on their way to the park.

A few moments later they arrived and the park was just how he remembered it. Maybe a little worse for wear but still just the same as when he last saw it, from the cat to the slide was just how he remembered it. His eyes eventually fell on the swings where he and Aubrey used to sit. Where he'd listen to Aubrey vent about her home life or just listen to her talk about whatever she wanted to talk about. He looked at Aubrey and noticed she too was looking at the swings before she looked at him too.

 

She smiled softly. "Later." She whispered, before guiding him towards a vaguely familiar girl in a blue hoodie, jeans, and brown boots with brown hair shaved on one side and the rest being swept to the side. She also seemed to be sporting black earings upon closer inspection as well as a pair of red square glasses. She seemed to be speaking to a larger bearded gentleman wearing a red flannel, black t-shirt, and blue jeans with a lollipop sticking out of his mouth. The brown haired girl seemed to spot them first as she turned her head to speak.

 

"Heya Aubs! I was wonderin wher- HOLY SHIT ARE YOU OK?!?!" She said as she rushed over with the larger boy following close behind.

 

"Hey Kim. Yeah I'm ok, thanks to my friend here." Aubrey ruffled Sunny's hair slightly much to Sunny's slight dismay, a slight blush dusting his cheeks.

 

"Are you sure, Aubrey? Last we saw you didn't have a bandage wrapped around your leg and didn't need someone to help you walk around." The larger boy spoke up.

 

"Yeah, I'm sure Vance. Now can we go sit somewhere? I may be fine but it's uncomfortable to stand on." Aubrey said with mild exasperation.

 

"Ok... if you say so Aubs." The girl now known as Kim said. With no further delay they all found a place to sit.

 

"Ahh... fuck that's better." Aubrey let out a sigh of relief. There was a moment of silence.

 

"So... you gonna tell us what happened?" Kim asked with concern in her voice.

 

"Yeah... about that." Aubrey began. "It's a bit of a long story..." Aubrey then began to retell the story of what happened after she stormed off from Basil's house yesterday and after some time finished her recount of what happened, obviously omitting the... special moments she had with Sunny.

"Aaaand... yeah, I'll be staying at Sunny's place from now on." Aubrey finished matter of factly.

There was a long silence.

 

"Huh?" Kim said.
"What?" Vance said.

Notes:

Once again I'm really sorry I left without notice. I really hope any of you still reading enjoy this! And to any new readers I hope you enjoyed this too! I'll try to stay with somewhat regular updates but I can make no promises.

Chapter 7: A Sword In My Park

Summary:

Aubrey does a bit of explaining and Sunny is put in the spotlight.

"Huh?" Kim said.
"What?" Vance said.

 

"I'm gonna be staying at-" Aubrey started

 

"Ye-Yeah we heard you..." Kim said pushing her glasses up to rub the bridge to her nose. "... But like... We don't even know this guy." She gestured towards Sunny.

 

"Oh, yeah I was gonna get to that. This is my old friend Sunny. We used to be friends way back when we were little." Aubrey said giving Sunny a pat on the back.

 

"Uh huh... but like... didn't you say your friends back then like... dropped out and ghosted you after... what happened?" Kim asked while raising her eyebrow at Sunny. Sunny seemed to shrink under her scrutiny and her question.

 

"Yeah... I did." Aubrey said solemnly. "But that was before I realized that... I wasn't the only one who needed help." Aubrey wrapped an arm around Sunny and brought him close. "After all she may have been my older sister figure but... she was his actual older sister." Sunny's expression seemed to darken greatly at the mention of Mari despite his actual expression not changing by much. Even Aubrey's direct contact didn't seem to help his mood much.

"A-Anyways... Sunny is good. He's a bit like Charlene in that he's a quiet person but he's a great listener." Aubrey smiled gently at Sunny which seemed to lighten up his expression a little bit.

 

"I see..." Kim said contemplatively. "Alright." Kim cleared her throat and leaned forward to scrutinize Sunny closely. "Hmm..." Sunny began to sweat ever so slightly under the short girl's watchful gaze. "Eh, good enough for me." Kim shrugged and gave Sunny one pat on the shoulder before returning her attention to Aubrey.

"So you're gonna be staying at his place? What about his parents?" Kim questioned.

 

"That won't be a problem for the foreseeable future. I'd rather not get into the details. It's not really my place to do so." Aubrey stated with eyes closed.

 

"I see... Alright well anything is better than that hag's house so I'm glad you'll be..." Kim looked Sunny up and down. "Somewhere safer."

 

"Thanks Kim. I appreciate it. Besides..." Aubrey ruffled Sunny's hair once again which caused him to pout slightly. "If anything happens I'll have Sunny there to back me up!" Sunny might be a little miffed it weren't for Aubrey's smile radiating next to him... He couldn't be mad at that smile.

"Anyways where's everyone else? Figured I woulda seen at least one of em by now." Aubrey said looking around.

 

"Angel is stuck doin housework, Charlene said something about going to Fix-it I think." Vance stated.

 

"And Mav said something about 'wooing the fair maidens of the world' whatever the hell that means." Kim finished with a roll of her eyes.

 

"Hmm... I see. Well I was hoping to introduce everyone to Sunny at once but this is probably better anyways. Don't wanna overwhelm Sunny with everyone all at once." Aubrey said with a nod. "By the way I'm sure you already picked it up by this point Sunny, but this is Kim. She's the person who I originally met when I made friends with the hooligans." Aubrey gestured to the girl with the red glasses.

 

"Yo." Kim said as she raised her hand in greeting.

 

"And this is her older brother Vance. When push comes to shove you can always expect Vance to have your back." Aubrey stated with confidence. Vance gave a greeting nod in response.

 

"If you're cool with Aubrey then you're cool with me." Vance nodded.

 

"Yeah, if you're looking to avoid overwhelming him then you'd better save Mav for later. I'm sure he'll ask a bunch of dumbass questions." Kim sighed.

 

"Probably. Anyways I just wanted to let you all know that I probably won't be out and about for a little while cause of this leg." Aubrey said patting her injured leg.

 

"That's probably for the best." Kim started. "We'll probably come visit you then if..." Kim glanced at Sunny. "If that's alright, that is."

 

Aubrey looked over at Sunny. "Yeah, I don't mind." Sunny stated. "Just as long as they don't wander around or touch anything..." Sunny rubbed the side of his arm. Aubrey gave Sunny a gentle smile before turning back to Kim and Vance.

 

"Welp, you heard him. All good as long as you behave." Aubrey chuckled.

 

"Don't worry, if we bring Mav or Angel we'll be sure to keep 'em in line." Kim cracked her knuckles.

 

"... Ok." Sunny deadpanned. There was a small silence.

 

"Damn, tough crowd." Kim stated awkwardly.

 

"You get used to it!" Aubrey laughed. She looked up at the sky and noticed the sky was beginning to turn orange. "Anyways we should be getting back home soon."

 

"Yeah, all good Aubs. Me and Vance wanted to stop by and... procure some candy before the store closed anyways." Kim smirked alongside her brother.

 

"Go ahead, you know I ain't gonna try and stop you." Aubrey smirked and waved her hand dismissively.

Kim smiled and started making her leave with Vance. "Aight later Aubs! And you!" She called out looking at Sunny. "You better take good care of her Mister Daylight or that's just what I'm gonna have to beat outta ya!" She said with a big smile on her face. Without another word she got on her scooter and rode it out of the park. Vance gave a wave before hopping on his own scooter and catching up with his sister.

 

Aubrey snickered at that and looked over at Sunny who had a classic almost indiscernible Sunny smile on his face. She stared at him a little longer before nudging him with her elbow to get his attention. Sunny turned his attention back to Aubrey which had the unfortunate side effect of returning his expression back to his normal stone-faced demeanor. I wish I could of seen it a little more...

"It doesn't seem like we're gonna be seeing any of the other Hooligans today so..." She scooted a bit closer. "How about those swings?" She said with a gentle smile. Sunny nodded in response and helped her stand up before bringing her to the swings. On the way to the swings he saw two boys around their age whispering to each other near the edge of the park... He could of sworn he saw one of them point in their direction...

...

He helped her sit down on her swing before taking his own seat. They didn't actually use the swings for their intended purpose because of Aubrey's leg injury but it was still nice nonetheless. Sunny had noticed that the boys that were whispering were no longer there and didn't seem to be anywhere else in the park. He made a note to keep an eye on the park entrance and their surroundings as he reached into his pocket.

 

"So... Sunny... How're you feeling?" Aubrey asked gently.

 

This momentarily broke Sunny from his watch. "Oh... I'm... doing good." Sunny nodded. "Thanks to you, and Kel, and Basil too."

 

"That so?" Aubrey asked tilting her head at him. "Well I hope I... We can help you continue to feel that way... Sunny." Aubrey smiled with a slight blush.

 

"I hope... I can help you guys feel that way too..." Sunny said thoughtfully. There was a long silence but it wasn't awkward. It was a comfortable silence.

...

But the silence was broken by the approach of multiple people's footfalls approaching. Sunny looked up with a slight frown as he noticed four boys approaching, two of them being the boys he saw whispering earlier. He could almost hear the combat music starting up just like in his dreams.

 

"So, my boys were right! The great and mighty 'Rose Tornado' brought low!" The boy in the front said mockingly. "Shoulda stayed in your shithole to recover or at least shoulda kept those dipshit friends of yours close by!"

 

Aubrey had a grimace on her face. "Fuck off whatever your name is. Can't you see I'm busy? So how about you take your boy band and go circle-jerk each other somewhere out of my sight." Aubrey finished with a smug grin on her face.

 

"Oh no, no, no. Not this time. My boys said you had to have this sheet of paper here help you walk over here! And they also said that your friends had already left so they ain't gonna come to back you up this time." He said while cracking his knuckles. "And it's not 'whatever-your-name-is' it's Troy. And I'll make sure you remember my name this time."

 

"Troy... Troy... wait... wait! I remember now! You're Fuck-boy Troy!" Aubrey laughed heartily while holding her stomach. "I seem to remember beating your ass with one hand behind my back. You really wanna do this?" Aubrey said with a menacing grin on her face, but Sunny could tell she was bluffing. She may have been able to win if she was in tiptop shape but with her injury she wouldn't last. On the other hand this 'Troy' seemed to be on his last nerve with his face a flustered red in rage.

 

"That's fuckin it!" He took a step forward only to stop when Sunny took a step between them. Troy had a look of confusion on his face and Aubrey had a look of shock which quickly changed to one of concern. "Outta the way paper boy. Before I tear you a new one." Troy said in pure unfiltered rage.

 

Aubrey leaned and whispered. "Sunny I-"

 

"I don't think I will..." Sunny said while staring at them with a dark and menacing expression on his face. His expression never really changed much, but somehow when he wanted to it was almost like he could exude his emotions like an aura.

 

Troy faltered slightly. "H-Heh what's the worst a twig like you could do against all of us, huh!?" Troy planted a step forward.

 

Sunny turned his body so that the hand in his pocket was out of sight. "Wanna find out?" Sunny said narrowing his eyes.

The sun was setting now and the lighting made only one of Sunny's eyes visible at this angle, but the one eye that could be seen seemed to ooze with unfiltered bloodlust. Troy and all of his back up instinctively took a step back. Almost like an involuntary response.

 

Troy gritted his teeth. "F-Fuck you! You think I'm scared of you! I'll fuckin show you!" Troy haphazardly rushed at Sunny with his fist raised.

 

"Sunny!" Aubrey cried out.

 

As Troy swung his fist though something unexpected happened...

...

MISS

...

Sunny dodged to the side and tripped Troy onto his face quickly straddling on top of him before finally pulling an item out of his pocket. It glinted in the light as it was pressed against Troy's neck... A blade glistened in the afternoon sun as Troy recovered from his fall only to find a sharp feeling on his neck. Troy's friends froze in place none daring to make a move.

"Y-Y-You have a f-fuckin knife!?" Troy stuttered out in panic. "Are you out of your fuckin mind!?"

 

"Haha. That's a funny question... Troy." Sunny said with no emotion and pure menace in equal measures in his voice. "But... for once after four years..." He said thoughtfully. "Yeah... I'd say I'm finally out of my mind..." He glanced at Aubrey who had a shocked look on her face. "... And I'm not planning on going back any time soon. So how about you and your friends... appreciate what you have instead of trying to ruin it for others." Sunny let the knife off of Troy's neck and got off of him before walking back to Aubrey. Sunny smiled at Troy as he slid the knife back into his pocket. "Everyone get's one... Troy." Sunny said with a small smile.

 

"Y-You're f-f-fuckin nuts!" Troy quickly scrambled to his feet and made his getaway with his friends close behind.

 

Sunny glanced around. It seemed like many people had noticed the scuffle take place, but no one seemed to be calling anyone so he could assume he did a good job making sure no one saw the knife. Sunny finally let out a quiet sigh and turned back towards Aubrey who still had a shocked expression on her face.

"Aubrey? You ok?" Sunny asked.

 

Aubrey seemed to break out of her stupor, a blush dusting her features. "H-Huh? Oh! Y-Yeah I'm good. Yep, good." Aubrey nodded. Holy shit! What was that??? I didn't think Sunny ever learned how to fight! But then he like fuckin side stepped that punch and then trippedandthenthepinwiththeknifelikeWHATTHEFUCK!! That was so fuckin bad assss!!! That was so fuckin HOT- Aubrey. Compose yourself... Wait... knife?

Aubrey sat there for a moment regaining her train of thought.

...

KNIFE?!

Notes:

Sunny learned a few moves in headspace.

Chapter 8: A Sword in My Evening

Summary:

Sunny has some explaining to do now.

"Sunny." Aubrey said sternly.

 

"Y-Yeah?" Sunny stuttered.

 

Aubrey gave the sweetest smile you'd ever seen. "Where'd you get that knife from buddy?" Her tone was sweet but the undertones of rage were obvious even without hearing it.

 

"Uhmm... A-... About that." Sunny started. "I... may have snuck it into my pocket when... You were in the bathroom earlier..."

 

"Sunnyyy..." Aubrey rumbled.

 

"I-I-I didn't feel safe leaving the house without it and it was just sitting where you last left it! So I... grabbed it before we left..." Sunny said ashamedly. "I'm sorry, Aubrey..." He said with a dejected look on his face.

 

Aubrey had a heavily conflicted look as she looked at Sunny. UGHH! THIS ISN'T FAIR!! HE'S TOO DAMN CUTE TO STAY MAD AT!!!!

Aubrey sighed. "Fine... It saved our asses, so I'll let you off the hook this time. BUT if you're going to bring it with you, you have to let me know from now on ok?" Aubrey reached over and held his hand. "I don't want there to be any secrets between us." Aubrey smiled gently.

 

Sunny blushed. "Mmm..." He nodded.

 

"Good." Aubrey said with a light blush. "Alright. I think that's enough excitement for today. Lets get back home." Aubrey said as she began pulling herself up from the swing seat. Sunny nodded his head and helped her the rest of the way up.

"And Sunny?"

 

"Yeah?" Sunny looked to the side at her.

 

"When you said you hope you can make us happy too? You've already made me happy." Aubrey said with a smile. Sunny turned his head towards her, his eyes opened wide in surprise.

"I... I did...?" Sunny said quietly.

 

Aubrey nodded. "Very." She finished with a big toothy smile.

 

Sunny turned his head away slowly but Aubrey could see the tears falling to the ground. The recent conflict and happy times of reunion almost made her forget that Sunny was still in a very fragile and vulnerable state of mind. She wordlessly held his hand, patiently waiting for him to be ready to go despite her leg aching.

After their moment the remainder of the trip home was met with comfortable silence as the sun fell beyond sight, an orange glow mixed with hues of red and pink.

The skies turned dark as they arrived back home. Sunny turned on some lights and set Aubrey down on the couch before putting his trusty steak knife back where it belongs, in the kitchen. Afterwards he returned to the couch and took a seat next to Aubrey, wordlessly their hands once again slipped into each other's grasps. They sat there in silence for a time simply enjoying the warmth they shared between their palms.

"..." Sunny looked at Aubrey who was simply sitting there lightly kicking her feet. She's really cute... Is the first thought that floated into his brain at this sight. He took this time to really get a good look at her, he's really only snuck glances till now but the more he looked the more he realized she's really grown into a beautiful girl. Upon a more thorough examination of her arms, legs, and... midriff, It's subtle but he can tell that her time as a delinquent has given her a good amount of muscle. As he made his way back up to her face he realized that Aubrey was staring at him with a bit of a smug but questioning expression. He quickly averted his eyes.

 

"See something you like, Mister Observer?" Aubrey asked playfully.

 

"I-I-I... I-It's... ahem... I'm sorry... I didn't mean to stare..." Sunny said bashfully.

 

Aubrey elbowed him lightly. "It's ok you dork." Aubrey smiled warmly. "So anything else you wanna stare at, hmm?" Aubrey questioned in a playful manner.

 

"W-What? I-I umm.." Sunny seemed at a loss for words as his eyes darted every which direction besides her, his cheeks developing a blush.

 

Aubrey continued smiling warmly as she grabbed his chin gently between her thumb and forefinger, turning him to look at her face. "How about here...?" She asked with a smile as she leaned just close enough to encompass the forefront of his vision.

 

Sunny's blush grew much deeper as his mouth opened and closed without a sound, unable to think of a word to say.

 

Aubrey took this time herself to get a nice long look at her crush's face. Still just as cute as I remember... She gentle caressed his chin with her thumb as she continued to hold it gently. "Enjoying the view...?" Aubrey spoke softly.

 

Sunny could only nod slightly in response.

 

Aubrey snickered as a light blush dusted her cheeks. "Good. I am too." Aubrey said with a smirk. Sunny's blush had spread to the rest of his face at this point and he seemed on the verge of breaking. Aubrey decided it was time to let up and let go of Sunny's chin and leaned back into the couch. Sunny did the same and took this moment to calm down.

Aubrey looked at the ceiling and thought about everything up until where she was now. She thought about everything starting from that fateful day where those then strangers found her crying on the sidewalk. How everything from that moment till now has shaped her entire life. From the friends she made to the friends she's lost, everything shaped her into who she is now. How would life have been different if she never met any of them? Would she still have become a delinquent? Would she have mourned the loss of Mari? Would she have made friends with the Hooligans? Would she have fallen in love? If given the opportunity would she have done it all again...?

...

She glanced at Sunny for a moment who was still recovering and smiled to herself.

... I probably would.

She sat up and looked at Sunny. "Hey."

 

Sunny shot up from his leaned back position into a straighter sitting position. "Y-Yeah?" Sunny stammered out.

 

"Lets get to bed. It's getting late." She smiled softly.

 

"O-Oh, yeah it is getting pretty late." Sunny stood up and was about to kneel down.

 

"I... can get up the stairs with just a bit of help this time, Sunny." Aubrey said stopping him from giving her another piggyback ride.

 

"A-Ah, right. Sorry." Sunny said helping Aubrey up, putting her arm over his shoulder.

 

"It's ok, just don't want you to suffer again." She chuckled. Sunny blushed lightly and helped Aubrey get upstairs and into her bed before getting into bed himself. He got comfortable and closed his eyes.

 

"Goodnight, Aubrey." Sunny said softly.

 

"..."

 

"Aubrey?" Sunny opened his eyes only to then feel something crawl into bed with him. "A-Aubrey?!" Sunny's eyes shot open as a pair of arms encircled one of his. "A-Aubrey...? What are you..?"

 

"Just... let it happen..." Aubrey spoke softly as she made herself comfortable next to him. Sunny didn't say another word as he stared at the ceiling. There's no way I'll be able to sleep like this...

But he bore with it. His mind racing one million miles an hour asking questions like What? and Why? and AAAAAAAAAAA-.

He could hear Aubrey breathing gently next to him, hell he could feel Aubrey breathing next to him. He did his best not to think about the sensations his arm was feeling with her wrapped around it. He felt like his mind was going to explode. Like he'd lose it any second now if he didn't get a hold of himself.

Ok Sunny... you can do this... remember.. take a deep breath... it's not as bad as you think...

Sunny steadies himself and remembers how to calm down.

Ok... now remember... it may seem like there's a lot going on... but I need to block out the little things and remember what's important...

Sunny clears his mind and remembers how to focus.

Ok... good... I have to keep going. I can't give up, no matter how impossible it may seem.

Sunny reaches deep and remembers how to persist.

Sunny gathers all his courage and learns to overcome.

 

...

 

Next thing he knows it's morning and he had somehow managed to fall asleep.

Notes:

The Aubrizzler has struck.

 

A bit of a shorter chapter this time around. A nice way to wrap up a rather chaotic first day out for Sunny. I hope you all enjoyed this short but silly chapter.

Chapter 9: A Noose Around My Neck

Summary:

Wake up.

Notes:

TW - Graphic body horror, starts at ~ and ends at ~~

Or... At least he thought he was awake. He looked to his side and saw no one, not even the air mattress was there. He looked across the room and-

...

 

She's staring at me.

 

The entire other half of the room was empty except for her. Standing there. Staring at him. With her black hair and white night gown. She stared.

He blinked.

...

She was closer.

It wasn't by much but... it was definitely closer. It was hard to tell at this distance but something was off about her eyes. Almost like they were on the verge of popping out of her head. It was wrong and the more he stared back at her the more he noticed was wrong... or maybe the longer he stared the more wrong it became.

He blinked again.

She was closer.

If the first blink was one step then this time it was two steps... He was sweating and he couldn't move a muscle. The only things he could control was his breathing and his eyelids. He couldn't move and he couldn't look away, not that he's sure he'd even want to look away... He didn't want to blink either but he couldn't keep his eyes open forever.

He blinked a third time.

~

She was closer.

She was halfway across the room now. He could clearly see her face now and it wore no expression besides its bulging stare. It was no longer recognizable as his sister besides the hair, gown, and body shape but even that was starting to give way. The body grew disfigured. The hair longer. The neck seemed to twist without its head nor body turning, as if something were trying to twist her neck off. Worms were crawling in and out of her arms and parts of her began to slough off the bone.

~~

He didn't want to blink again. He tried so hard to not blink again, but his eyes wouldn't listen. His eyes welled with tears as they burned, begging to be shut. Eventually he did and refused to open them. He could hear strangled breathing right in front of him. He began to sob uncontrollably.

 

"Won't you look at me... dearest Sunshine...?"

 

He shook his head violently as his body quivered in fear. Sobs continuing to rip their way out of his throat.

 

"Please open your eyes Sunshine. You love your Sister, don't you?"

 

He shook his head even harder as he began to whimper.

 

"OPEN YOUR EYES."

 

Without warning his eyes shot open only to have his vision fully encompassed by the horrific face of the being.

 

"Look at me. Look at what you've done."

 

He could smell the rot on her breath. It was disgusting and sickeningly sweet smell, like a dead animal rotting amongst decomposing fruit. He wanted to vomit but couldn't.

 

"Look at what you've let them do to me."

 

He could no longer close his eyes despite the burning sensation of them being open for so long.

 

"I'm rotting, being eaten and forgotten by the world."

 

"I-It wasn't my fault! I didn't know!"

 

"But you did know, little brother. You did know and you did NOTHING."

 

"I'm sorry! I'm-"

 

"It's too late for sorrys. You saw me suffering and let me die. This is your fault."

 

"..."

 

"But there's one way you can fix it."

 

"Please, I'll do anything... Anything for you to forgive me..."

 

"It's really lonely down here... I miss my little brother."

 

He could feel something tightening around his neck.

 

"W-Wait I-"

 

"I'll be waiting for you... Sunshine."

 

The tightening feeling continued until he could no longer breathe

"Mari...! Hel-"

He couldn't get out another word before his airway was completely blocked and it continued to tighten and tighten until...

 

CRACK-

 

He opened his eyes.

There was his normal ceiling... He idly rubbed at his neck. He was sweating slightly. He felt something on his right arm and found Aubrey still holding onto it. He swear he saw a pair of pale legs standing at the edge of his bed but when he looked he saw nothing... just the air mattress. He let out a small exhale of relief and tried to forget his... dream. He looked at Aubrey's face and began examining it.

...

She really was stunning to look at. She had this serenity about her when she had her eyes closed. Like watching an angel sleep. He stared at her face for a long time before hesitantly reaching out and cupping her cheek, it was very soft. He began to caress her face gently as to not wake her up. He couldn't help but continue, it was even better than petting a cat...

"Mmh..." Aubrey stirred in her sleep. Sunny quickly withdrew his hand and laid back down next to her. He then realized that he'd forgotten to change Aubrey's bandage yesterday and gently shook her.

 

"Aubrey... Aubrey wake up." Sunny spoke softly.

 

"Mmmmm..." She wrapped around Sunny's arm more tightly. Sunny felt something soft wrapping around his arm and it wasn't Aubrey's arms. He once again became aware of the situation his arm has been in and redoubled his efforts to wake her up.

 

"A-Aubrey! Wake up, please..." Sunny shook her a little harder which did not help his arm situation but was a necessary evil that he must endure.

 

"Mmmmmmmm..." One of Aubrey's eyes squinted open to find Sunny with a rapidly spreading case of tomato face. "What is it, Sunny?" She said groggily.

 

"I umm... I need to change your bandage and umm... I... Don't think my arm can withstand this much longer..." He said with an internal war raging inside of his reawakened pubescent boy brain.

 

"Mmmh... okayy." Aubrey said finally letting go of Sunny's arm and sitting up.

 

Sunny exhaled in relief and quickly excused himself to the bathroom to calm himself down. He washed up before returning to change Aubrey's bandage.

"How's your leg feeling?" Sunny said as he placed a towel underneath her leg and unwrapped the bandage.

 

"It's not as bad, but it still aches." Aubrey started. "It's also a little itchy... but I know I'm not supposed to scratch at it. Ugh... Stupid fucking mom..." Aubrey gained a look of irritation on her face at the mention of her mother.

 

"It's probably gonna ache for another day or two, but you should at least be able to walk today. Just try not to push it, ok?" Sunny said with concern in his voice.

 

"Yeah, yeah I know Sunny..." Aubrey said with a playful role of her eyes.

 

"Good. Now lets see how it's healing up so far." Sunny said uncovering the rest of the wound. It had scabbed over nicely and didn't have any discoloration so an infection was unlikely. Still he gave the wound a wipe down and reapplied disinfectant before wrapping it up again with a clean new bandage.

"There, all cleaned up and ready to go." Sunny put away the medical items back into the first aid kit before setting it to the side. He stood up and helped Aubrey onto her feet.

"So should we get something to eat?" Sunny said with a smile.

 

"Yeah, I could use a bite. We still got leftover pizza, should we just eat that?" Aubrey said as she passed Sunny with a slight limp.

 

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea..." Sunny began to follow her but stopped by the window, unable to help himself from looking outside to see the mutilated tree stump in the backyard. He remembers his father cutting down the tree after what happened and then regularly going outside to take out his anger on the stump. It could barely be called a tree stump by the time he vanished and never came back. He stared at that stump for what felt like hours, but only really lasted a few seconds. He could swear he was beginning to see the shape of something above the stump swaying in the wind-

 

"Sunny...?" Aubrey called to him from the hallway. "You ok...?" She walked up to him and looked out the window realizing just what he was staring at. Her lips tightened into a line as she stared at that stump. She then quickly shut the blinds before grabbing his hand and wordlessly leading him out of the room. She kept pulling him along despite her limp until they were downstairs and in the kitchen. She guided Sunny to a seat before sitting across from him and putting her hand on the table palm up, gesturing slightly for him to hold her hand. He quietly took her hand and looked her in the eyes.

"Sunny... would you... like to talk about her?" Aubrey asked with a pained expression.

 

Sunny looked at their hands and then back up at Aubrey. "I..." He looked away, a shadow looming over him. "I don't think I'm ready... to talk about that yet."

 

Aubrey looked at him with concern. "I... I understand." She closed her eyes and sighed lightly. She looked at him and gave him a sad smile. "Let's just eat some pizza, ok?" Without another word she got up and heated up some slices in the microwave before bringing them back for them to eat. They quietly ate their pizza with the thought of a certain black haired girl weighing heavily on their minds. They soon finished their slices and pondered what they should do for the day.

"Is there anything you'd like to do today Sunny?" Aubrey asked in a kindly manner. She briefly thought about the fact that she wouldn't be caught dead talking like this to anybody else.

 

"Mmm..." Sunny thought for a moment. "I'd kind of like to visit Basil if possible. I... still regret abandoning him..." Sunny looked down ashamedly.

 

Aubrey was suddenly reminded of something and looked down at her hands which she clenched in preparation for the question she was about to ask.

"Sunny."

 

Sunny looked up and tilted his head slightly. "Yeah?"

 

"I'm... not really angry about it anymore but... can you tell me something? It was... the original reason for coming to your house..." Aubrey asked with discomfort clear in her voice, as if she didn't really want to ask this but more like she felt she had to ask it.

 

Sunny grew anxious. "W-What is it...?"

 

"So..." She paused. "The Album."

 

Sunny's heart skipped a beat as time seemed to pause for a moment, his heart rate skyrocketing. He gulped and nodded hesitantly.

 

"It... it was you... wasn't it? The one who scribbled over the pictures of Mari." Aubrey asked, looking into Sunny's eyes with hurt in hers."

 

Sunny couldn't look at her as he nodded with shame.

 

"I see..." Aubrey's expression became unreadable as her head tilted downwards. "I ended up forcing Basil to tell me. It never added up that he did it and the thought was starting to bother me, so I forced him to tell me by threatening that me and the hooligans would destroy his garden otherwise." She looked to the side wistfully. "I never would have actually done it, but... I just didn't know what else I could do to make him tell me. All those years of suffering I put him through..." Her expression grew pained as tears gathered at the corners of her eyes which she quickly wiped away. She drew in a shaky breath before continuing.

"I don't know if I'll ever be able to fully patch things up with Basil... I... I hope I can..." Aubrey let out the shaky breath she had taken as she looked up, blinking away more tears. "I'm just... glad that I finally know..." She looked back to Sunny. "And I just want you to know that I'm... I'm happy that you're still with us." She smile sorrowfully as her wall fell apart, tears flowing freely as she sobbed.

 

Sunny could do nothing but hesitantly reach out and hold her hand. Aubrey immediately held on tightly as she continued to sob. He closed his eyes for he too felt remorse at the part he played in Basil's fate. If it weren't for him scribbling out Mari's pictures then Basil wouldn't have had to endure the torment that he did. If he hadn't hid away from everyone maybe they could of stayed together. If he... If he had just been there for his big sister...

...

"I'm waiting."

 

Sunny's eyes shot open as he stared at the table. He could feel a presence standing behind him, looming over him. He could see a shadow,her shadow cast over him like a wordless threat and above her shadow an ever darker shadow of a rope lowered down ever so slowly towards him.

 

"Big sister will always love you, Sunny."

 

The voice grew raspier the more it spoke. The shadows darkened as the rope grew closer. Sensations abandoning him as fear and despair overtook reason. A deafening ringing overwhelmed his hearing. Shadows took over his vision. Numbness stole his touch. Bitterness smothered his taste. Rot assailed his nostrils. He could barely hear Aubrey sobbing now as he lost the world around him. He could feel the rope slipping around his neck. Help... Please... His heartbeat continued to beat faster as he began to panic internally, unable to move a single muscle as if the shadow had paralyzed him. Somebody... Anybody... The rope began to tighten as he began struggling to breathe. Aubrey...! He had lost all sense of his surroundings by this point as darkness overtook his vision, numbness gripped his body, and the ringing deafened all other sound.

He was ready to accept his fate.

...

 

Aubrey slowly began to stop crying until she finally regained her composure. "I'm sorry for suddenly crying like this... I'm just both happy and sad that I get to have this chance with..." Aubrey looked up and realized that Sunny wasn't moving and not the regular 'Sunny isn't moving' either, he was like a statue.

"Sunny...?" Her expression grew concerned. "Sunny?" She let go of his hand which didn't move in response and rushed to his side of the table. "Sunny, what's wrong?" She leaned closer and saw a barely noticeable look of horror in Sunny's eyes. She grasped his shoulders and shook him gently. "Sunny?!" But he did not respond even slightly.

"Sunny, this... this isn't funny!" Aubrey's tone grew more concerned by the second. She cupped his cheeks and tried to get him to look at her, but he was as rigid as stone.

"SUNNY!" She yelled in the hopes that he could hear her, but once again there was no response. It was then that she realized that he wasn't breathing either and light was starting to fade from his eyes. She began to panic.

"SUNNY, PLEASE!!" She cried out futilely. "God! Fuck, fuck, fuck! What do I do?!" She thought about calling 911 but realized they most likely would arrive in time and shook her head. "I..." She looked at his lips. I need to get him to breathe... She hesitated, but only for a moment.

"Please, Sunny... stay with me..." She leaned in and pressed her lips to his as she began pushing air into his lungs.

...

 

The world darkened around him as he saw a girl in a white nightgown standing in the void in front of him. She was humming a hauntingly familiar tune to herself while sitting on a picnic blanket. He could see rope marks around her neck...

"Mari...?" He called out.

 

The girl seemed to be startled by him calling out to her. She slowly turned towards him until she was looking his way.

"Sunn...y...?" She said in disbelief, her expression that of shock which was quickly replaced with grief and horror. She rushed to her feet and was about to rush towards him before hitting an invisible barrier between them. She was confused briefly before her expression calmed down, letting out a breath of relief.

"It's... good to see you... little brother." She smiled at him, but that smile hid boundless grief behind it.

 

Sunny rushed forward but he too was stopped by that invisible wall. "What is this? Is... is this real? Is this really you? He asked on the verge of tears.

 

Mari's smile seemed to grow sadder. "I... I both hope it is and it isn't..."

 

Sunny seemed confused. "Why would you not want it to be...?

 

"Sunny... I'm dead... You know what that means don't you...?" Mari said with a frown.

 

Realization seemed to dawn on Sunny. "Am... Am i...?" The question seemed to hang unfinished for a moment.

 

"Not yet it seems... thankfully." Mari knocked on the invisible barrier separating them. "But if something isn't done soon..." Mari looked at him with worry in her eyes.

 

Sunny's eyes widened at this revelation, but his expression shifted to one of shameful acceptance. "It's what I deserve anyways..."

 

Mari's eyes widened in shock. "What..."

 

Sunny's eyes shifted to the side and grew resentful. "If I had tried to be there for you then maybe you-" He stopped as he heard Mari suddenly slam her fist into the barrier. Her expression was unreadable as she hung her head low.

 

"DON'T SAY THAT!" Mari yelled as tears flowed down her cheeks. "I... What I did... Nobody could of stopped except me..." Mari croaked out angrily. "I should have stopped... I should of held on a little longer... but no... I chose the easy way out... I abandoned everyone and everything I ever loved or cared about..." She looked up and her expression was that of rage which shifted to one of pure grief. "And I regret every second of it..." She held back her tears but could no longer as she fell to her knees wailing sorrowfully into the void.

"And... And now I'm about to have killed my own little brother with my STUPID FUCKING MISTAKE!" She cried out in anguish.

 

Sunny was about to speak, but then he started to feel strange. He looked down at his hand and saw that he was starting to shine. "Mari?! W-What's happening to me?"

 

Mari looked up and saw what was happening to Sunny and smiled with glee. "Sunny...! You're... You're going to live!"

 

Sunny looked at her in panic. "B-But what about you! I don't want to leave you Mari!" He grasped at the barrier to no avail.

 

Mari smiled sadly. "I..." She looked down. "To be honest... I don't want you to leave either Sunny... but you still have a life to live. I gave up my right to that..."

 

Sunny's expression became one of frustration. "No. No! I won't leave you here! He began furiously beating on the barrier between them, each hit reverberating throughout the void.

 

"Sunny! It's ok! I'll... I'll still be here waiting for you! I... I..." Her confidence seemed to waver. "I'll be ok...!" She smiled but Sunny could tell it was fake.

 

"NO! NO!! Not... Not before I at least get to hold your hand one more time!" Sunny bashed away at the barrier even harder and as he did so his body seemed to flicker for just a brief moment into a monochrome version of himself. The hits grew harder and more desperate as he felt himself being pulled away more and more. The barrier began to crack which caused Mari to jump in shock.

 

Mari rushed up to the barrier. "Sunny! Sunny stop! You don't know what you're doing!" Mari pleaded.

 

"I've never been more sure of anything in my entire life, Mari." Sunny said with no hesitation. He could feel himself beginning to lose his footing as he swung at the barrier one last time. With a resounding shatter his fist sent thousands of invisible fragments flying into the void and as he was being lifted upwards he reached his hand towards his sister desperately.

"MARI!!" He called out.

 

Mari reached out with a hopeful expression but hesitated for just a moment. She didn't know what would happen if she took his hand... but... with a shake of her head she jumped forward and grasped Sunny's hand with all her might, the two of them rising up into a light which blinded the two of them. The last thing she saw was her brother awash with colors of black and white...

 

...

Suddenly he could feel air entering his lungs as he was suddenly brought back into reality. He pulled away drawing in a ragged breath and coughing heavily.

 

"Sunny?!" Aubrey rushed to his side and knelt down in front of him.

 

Sunny was holding his throat and slowly began regained a grasp of his surroundings. He looked up after having recovered from his coughing fit and saw Aubrey knelt in front of him with a look of deep concern. "What..." He coughed more in his attempt to speak, his neck was sore from the constricting feeling from earlier.

 

Aubrey quickly took this as a que to get him a cup of water and rushed back to his side, offering the cup to him.

 

Sunny took the offered cup and gently sipped the water to soothe his throat, he choked a little but began to recover slowly. He didn't speak again until he could breathe without struggling.

"What... happened...?" Sunny asked.

 

"I... I was hoping you could tell me." Aubrey spoke softly. "You... You just stopped moving and... and breathing...! I... panicked and... and..." A blush grew on her face as she covered her mouth, taking a couple steps back. "I... had to get you to start breathing again..."

 

"You had to..." Sunny slowly connected the dots before realization suddenly dawned on Sunny as to what Aubrey meant by that last statement, a blush rapidly spreading across his face too. "You mean you..."

 

Aubrey nodded her head unable to look him in the eyes.

 

Sunny's brain short circuited for a moment before he internally berated his mind for making him miss his first kiss. Sunny put his head into his hands as he agonized over missing such a moment.

 

Aubrey looked in Sunny's direction and as if sensing his disappointment, uncovered her face and stepped towards him.

 

Sunny looked up at the sound of Aubrey approaching only to suddenly have his face cradled in her hands and a soft sensation press against his lips. Before he had even realized it Aubrey had begun kissing him, this time not to give him his breath back but to take it away. Sunny's eyes were wide with shock before they slowly fluttered close, welcoming this warm feeling spreading throughout his body.

 

Aubrey pulled away from the kiss, a blush burning her cheeks as she looked away with regret. "I umm... I'm sorry! I just... I just lost control of myself and-" But before she could finish that statement Sunny had already press his lips back into hers, clearly not having had enough yet as he held her tightly against him with one arm wrapped around her waist and the other holding the back of her head gently. They finally pulled apart, both gasping for air. After catching their breath they both stood awkwardly in silence, both trying to understand what just happened.

 

"So..." Sunny started. "What... does this mean... for us...?" Sunny looked towards Aubrey.

 

"I..." She hesitated for a moment. "I think... I love you."

Notes:

So I'm a little torn on where to take the story from here. I'm unsure whether or not I want to implement supernatural elements into the story. My heart yearns for mushy gushy brother-sister bonding and more emotional healing not just for Sunny but for Mari too. So I implore you my readers to inform me as to what you'd like to see from this story in terms of possible Mari stuff! Whether that be Mari living in whitespace, Mari being a GhOsT, or Mari second chance at life!

Thank you for reading so far as we begin our journey into Act 2!

 

UPDATE: I have decided the direction the story will be taking! I will now begin work on the next chapter, so I hope you are looking forward to it! Thank you so very much to those of you who contributed your feedback and thank you to those who have enjoyed the story thus far! See you all in the next chapter!

Chapter 10: An unfortunate update (Updated)

Hello everyone. I'm sorry if you thought this was an update the story. Due to... let's just say, very stressful living conditions and unforeseen circumstances I will be unable to update this for some time. I can't give any more detail than that. I am very, very sorry. I will still attempt to work on this but it will be more delayed than I had originally hoped. I hope you all understand. Thank you for reading thus far and I will hopefully see you all soon.

In honor of the people who took the time to comment here I'll be leaving this chapter here as I very much appreciated all of your words of encouragement. Thank you all so very much.

Chapter 11: 1-UP

Summary:

Wake up and smell the flowers

Notes:

Hello all! Sorry for the delay. I'm sure many of you have been waiting for an update. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

A gentle breeze sways. Trees rustle in the cool wind. A new day shines bright...

 

...

 

"So..." Vance starts. "What are we doing here again? If you're here for Sunday service you missed it by a day."

 

"I know that Vance." Kim replied. "I just figured I'd take a look around the place since Aubrey's busy with the whole Sunny sitch. Plus it's not like I asked you guys to come with me."

 

"Well we're kinda in the same boat." Angel pokes his head out from behind Vance. "We don't really got anything to do and Aubrey usually decides what we do so we just figured we'd follow you!" Angel finished with a big grin.

 

Vance sighed. "I wouldn't say that's my reason, but let's just go with that."

 

Kim raised an eyebrow but let it go. "Whatever. Let's get going then." Kim stepped through the door of their destination. Faraway Church.

It was just what you'd expect from the inside of a church. Pews, stain glass windows, a pulpit... The only things missing being the churchgoers and the pastor as the church was completely devoid of life until they had walked in. They continued to walk down the nave, inspecting their surroundings.

 

Angel gulped. "Th-This place is kinda... spooky when there's no one around..." Angel said glancing about. "I don't like how sound echoes in here... You think we're really alone?"

 

"Oh, can it Angel." Kim started. "I was doing just fine before you mentioned it! Now all I can think about is how empty and creepy it is in here..."

 

"Guys calm down. It's just an empty church. What? You guys think a ghost is gonna walk through the door to the graveyard and steal your soul?" Vance said with a lighthearted chuckle.

 

Angel took a deep breath and calmed down. "Y-Yeah... Yeah you're right Vance. Like, ghosts don't even exi-" Just then the door to the cemetery creaked open, pale fingers grasping around the opening.

 

"Oh you just HAD to say something! Now we're all gonna have our souls stolen and eaten by a ghost!" Angel grabbed Vance's shirt and tried to shake him, but only succeeded in shaking himself.

The door continued to creek open.

 

Vance stood stock still. "Uhhh... Sis what do we do??" Vance glanced over at Kim, whom was visibly shaking and also not making a move. "Shit..." Vance muttered as they all watched the door open revealing...!

...

The pastor.

They all stood their with a dumbfounded expression on their faces and when the pastor finally noticed them, he too seemed dumbfounded for a moment.

The pastor cleared his throat and recomposed himself. "Is there something you all need?" He smiled a gentle and kind smile.

 

"Ahh.. Umm... Uhm.." Kim cleared her throat. "Ah... No. Thank you."

 

The pastor closed his eyes and gave a single nod. "Very well." He said softly. "Then I will be taking my leave as I have business to attend to. If you all need anything I will be here tomorrow morning." He nodded again and walked out of the church.

They all watched him leave.

 

Angel sighed in relief. "Well I'm glad that turned out all goo-"

 

Kim smacked him upside the head. "You idiot! You had me half scared to death!"

 

"Sorry! How was I supposed to know! I really thought it was a ghost!" Angel plead.

 

Vance let out a sigh. "Just let it go Kim. I'm sure Angel was just as scared as the rest of us."

 

Kim huffed turning towards Angel. "Fine, but I won't forget thi-" Kim froze.

 

Angel gave confused look. "W-What? Is there something on my face?"

 

"What's up Kim you look like you've seen a-" Vance froze too as he turned to look at Angel, his eyes going wide.

 

Angel glanced between the two of them growing nervous. "Oh come on guys! If you're going to try and get back at me at least wait until later when I don't expect it!" Angel chuckled nervously. He looked at them and they seemed to begin growing paler.

"C-Come on this isn't funny-" He stopped in his tracks as he felt something tap on his shoulder. He gulped and began to turn slowly until his eyes met a tall figure standing behind him. A messy veil of black hair and a white dress draped the being.

"Uh- Buh- buh- buh- buh- gh- gh- gh-" Angel spattered unable to form coherent word.

 

And then it spoke.

 

"Sun-" It croaked out.

 

Kim stumbled over herself trying to back up, Vance was as still as a statue, and Angel had feinted on the spot.

 

"F-F-Fuck...! What do we do!?" Kim asked Vance.

 

Vance was frozen in fear unable to utter a word.

 

"Damn it! Do I have to do everything?" Kim stood up ready to defend herself.

 

The figure looked towards Kim, a single eye peering through the black curtain. "Sun... ny..." It spoke, it's voice dry as bone, but unexpectedly the figure fell to it's knees and clenched at it's throat, coughing uncontrollably.

 

Kim kept her guard up but began to lower it as the coughing continued and it seemed to struggle for air. She was about to tell Vance to get Angel and get ready to leave, but stopped as something clicked in her mind.

She hesitated a moment before mustering her courage and approaching the figure. She stopped in front of it and knelt down, apprehensively putting her hand on the being's shoulder... It was cold but... still had some warmth.

"Vance." Kim looked back at her brother who was still frozen with a thousand yard stare. "Vance!" Kim called out again which seemed to snap him out of his stupor.

 

"Y-Yeah?" Vance said regaining his bearings.

 

"Go run and get me a bottle of water from the store and make it quick!" Kim said sternly.

 

Vance looked like he was about to ask something but simply nodded and ran out of the church.

 

Kim watched him leave as she turned her attention back to the "ghost." She waited for it's coughing fit to stop, which eventually it did.

"So..." Kim started. "Sunny?"

 

The "ghost's" head jerked up to look at her at the mention of Sunny's name. "Su-"

 

"Before!" Kim cut her off. "You say another word... Wait until my brother gets back before you try talking. From the sounds of it your throat is dry as a desert so talking is only going to make you start coughing again."

 

The young women seemed conflicted at first but then nodded her head.

 

"Good." Kim replied. "Now let's wait until he gets back."

 

After a short time Vance came back huffing from exertion, carrying a bottle of water. He passed it to Kim who caught it and unscrewed the cap. She then handed it to the white garbed women who gripped the bottle shakily. She stared at the bottle for a long moment before hesitantly bringing the opening to her lips. She drank carefully at first but soon began to gulp voraciously from the bottle. In no time the bottle was empty and the woman's breathing had become less ragged.

 

"How's your throat feeling now?" Kim questioned.

 

"It's... It's much better now... Thank you." The woman said appreciatively.

 

"So a couple questions to start... First. Who are you? And second. What's your connection to Sunny?" Kim said inquisitively.

 

The woman hesitated before speaking up. "I... am not sure how much you know of... of Sunny... but those are both... very... very complicated questions." She started. "N...not because of the answers, but because answering will give more questions than answers..."

 

Kim felt uneasy but continued regardless. "Go on..."

 

The woman opened her mouth and hesitated again before answering. "My... Name..." She lifted her head and brushed her hair off of her face. "Is Mari... and Sunny is my little brother."

...

 

"W-What?" Sunny asked unable to believe his own ears.

 

Aubrey blushed heavily. "D-Don't make me repeat myself..." Aubrey mumbled.

Disbelief flooded Sunny's features as the neurons in his brain fired and short circuited in a tide of confusion. He simply could not believe his ears. He refocused his mind and looked to the blushing girl in front of him.

"I-" He stopped himself from speaking. The girl, startled by Sunny suddenly vocalizing, looked up at Sunny expectantly.

He looked down at his arms. His lips tightened into a thin line as he clenched his hands into fists. He looked at the awaited girl with resolve in his eyes, but she could sense that what he was about to say was not what she was hoping for.

"I..." He looked down again in shame, unable to look the girl in the eyes for what he was about to say. "I don't think I'm ready for this..."

He could not see her face, but he could see her hands clench tightly in response to his words.

 

"I..." She started. "I see." She bit the inside of her lip.

They both stood in silence for a moment that seemed to drag on into eternity.

She opened her mouth and took a quiet, shaky breath, but instead of speaking-

 

Before Sunny could react he heard the door get flung open.

 

-She ran.

 

Sunny stood there stunned for a moment before collapsing into the chair and planting his face into his palms. He felt nothing but sorrow as he sat alone in that dining room, shadows closing in around him despite the sun shining outside. His mind clouded with despair at having hurt the girl he loved... He didn't know how long he had been sitting there, but he stood up and closed the front door, locking it... He looked to the only thing he had become familiar with the past four years... standing up he walked to the kitchen and pulled it out from it's resting place. The glint that shown across it's edge seemed so inviting right now...

...

A girl ran out of the Suzuki household with no care for her surroundings. She ran with her eyes shut tight to stop the tears from flowing, guided purely by instinct. She ran to escape the tightness in her chest but it clung to her like a curse. She ran despite the burning pain erupting from her injured leg. She simply ran because she couldn't escape the pain in her heart.

 

But someone bore witness to this girl running as fast as she could from a nearby window. He stopped unpacking and stood up making sure to keep track of which direction the girl ran. "Mom! I just remembered there's something I forgot to pack. So I'm gonna head to the store and grab it." He called down the stairs while hurriedly putting on his jacket noticing the clouds rolling in on the horizon.

 

"Ay dios mío, mi hijo... You just got here! Can't it wait?" A woman called from the kitchen.

 

"I'm afraid not, Mom! I'll be back soon!" He said already rushing out the door and doing his best to follow the pink blur that just ran down the street.

As they both turned the corner heading towards the park, four individuals turn a different corner with a different destination in mind. One of them was still unconscious from experiencing the scare of their life earlier that day, one of them carried the unconscious boy on their back while the other two simply walked in silence with only one destination in mind... And after several moments later they had arrived only barely having missed the recent chase.

 

Kim looked at the taller girl who called herself "Mari" whom, at the moment, was staring in disbelief at what was supposedly her home. Kim didn't really believe in miracles, but after what she was told back at the church and the fact that this woman seemed to know the exact path to the Suzuki household she was inclined to believe that something bigger was at play here.

"Alright, we're here. But I don't think you need me to tell you that." Kim finished offhandedly.

 

The taller girl didn't respond. She merely closed her eyes and took a deep breath before pressing on. Kim followed close behind.

 

"Hey sis." Vance called out.

 

Kim looked back. "What's up?"

 

"If it's all the same to you, I'm gonna wait out here with Angel. Somebody needs to keep watch over him anyways and whatever is going on..." He looks at the woman walking towards the house. "...doesn't seem like a crowd is appropriate." He looks back at his sister. "If you need me call for me. I'll be right outside."

 

Kim nods and quickly rejoins Mari at the door. She seems hesitant to knock and after a moment too long in Kim's impatient mind she raises her own hand and unceremoniously knocks for her. Kim would be satisfied with herself but she heard the sound of something clattering to the floor behind the door.

 

Mari instantly gains a concerned look on her face and Kim narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the door. Kim then decides to knock again, louder this time.

"Hey! Sunny! Aubrey! It's Kim! I know you're in there!"

No answer.

Kim groans in frustration and knocks even louder. "SUNNY, AUBREY! THE SILENT TREATMENT MAY WORK ON OTHER DOOR SALESMEN, BUT I'M STUBBORN AS A NAILS SO YOU BETTER ANSWER!"

 

There's another long period of silence before a voice quietly speaks from the other side of the door. "... what is it, Kim..?"

 

Kim raises an eyebrow, surprised to hear Sunny answer instead of Aubrey. She also checks Mari's reaction to the voice and notices that she is clenching her hands tightly and was shaking slightly. In anticipation, excitement, fear, all of the above? Kim didn't know, but it just made her want to get this door fiasco out of the way that much more.

"There's someone here who needs to talk to you. She said it's very important."

 

There's a long pause. "I'm sorry, Aubrey. I... I broke my promise..."

 

Kim furrowed her brows at this. "What do you mean you're sorry? And why are you talking like it's Aubrey out here? Aubrey isn't in there with you??"

 

"N-No... She left recently... I don't know where she went..." Sunny sniffled. "I'm sorry..." He rasped out.

 

"I-" She wanted to question him more but she noticed how Mari was becoming more anxious by the second hearing Sunny cry and put it aside for now. "That doesn't matter right now. I'll go look for her. Right now you have someone here who needs to talk to you so open the door and let her in. We'll go make sure Aubrey is ok. Ok?" Kim finished in a rush.

 

There was more sobs and sniffles. "Ok..." Another sniffle. "... Who needs to talk to me...?" Sunny questioned through the door.

 

Kim seemed uncertain how to answer that question but settled on a simple one. "It's... best if you see for yourself... Anyways the rest is up to you. I'm going to look for Aubrey. C'mon Vance let's move. I'll go check her house, you go check..." Their voices faded away as they got further from the house, leaving only two siblings on the opposite sides of the door to their home. One stood outside as clouds loomed overhead. The other stood inside as darkness closed in.

 

Sunny hesitated for a long moment before unlocking the door, his hand resting on the door nob unable to bring himself to open the door.

 

Mari heard the familiar sound of the door's lock, but not the familiar sight of the door opening. She hesitated before putting her hand on the door nob as well.

 

They both open the door in unison, unknowing of what awaited them on the other end.

Notes:

Thank you for reading this latest chapter. I sincerely hope you enjoyed it and I thank you for your patience.

Chapter 12: My Pain, Your Pain

Summary:

Sometimes your pain hurts others too.

When her eyes were closed she saw nothing and could only feel the wind rushing past her. When her eyes were open all she could see were blurry houses flying by through her tears. But no matter how many houses were passed and how much wind flowed by, the pain in her heart never went away. She knew she was probably being irrational, that what she was doing only served to hurt her and Sunny more but she couldn't bring herself to stop. So she kept running, running as far as her legs could take her. She ran so fast that-

 

BEEEEEEP

 

She lost her footing and tripped from shock as her eyes shot open to see a pair of headlights flying towards her as she had run into oncoming traffic. She tried to get up but her injured leg had given up on her as the adrenaline ran out. Her heart was beating out of her chest as she desperately dragged herself as fast as she could. Suddenly though she felt a pair of arms grab onto her and yank her out of the car's way.

Her ears were ringing and all she could hear was her heartbeat and the heaving of her own lungs pumping oxygen in and out. She laid there for a long moment registering what just happened. She looked around noticing that there was no car, meaning that the driver hadn't stopped even for a moment to check if she was ok...

"Bastard..." She muttered to herself.

 

"... Language." The man heaved out next to her.

 

She then remembered that she hadn't avoided the car, she had been rescued. By a stranger no less.

"Oh shi- I mean... uhh... sorry." She said abashedly.

 

"It's... ugh... it's fine... Hoo... man I'm out of shape!" The man said absolutely out of breath.

 

She couldn't get a good look at his face because there was a short veil of brown hair blocking it, but his voice sounded eerily familiar.

"So... who are you and why did you risk your life to help me?" She said raising an eyebrow.

 

"Well... There's a few reasons. One being why you were running out of the Suzuki household... and two, well... You remind me of someone I used to know, and as to who I am." He finally fully stood up as he began to catch his breath, revealing a familiar visage that many would consider handsome.

"My name is Henry, but my friends call me Hero! I know it's kind of cheesy, but considering the circumstances I'd say I earned the title at least for today!" He chuckled with an awkward, but sincere toothy smile on his face.

 

She sat there gawking at the revelation as to just who her savior was.

"... Hero...?" Aubrey said in disbelief.

 

Hero noticed her expression and his confidence began to diminish.

"Y-Yeah..?" He replied not quite sure where this was going.

 

Aubrey's lips tightened as she tried to bring herself to her feet, failing as her wounded leg gave out underneath her.

 

He rushed to her side. "H-Hey! Easy there. You're probably still not doing so great after what happened. Here there's a bench just over there. Let me help you." Hero finished, offering his arm to her, helping her hobble over to take a seat.

"Now then... let's start with who exactly I'm speaking to?" Hero said with a small gentle smile.

 

She looked at him and then scoffed. "Pffsh... you've always been like that Hero." She said leaning back onto the bench.

 

"... Al..ways...?" Hero said with a confused expression.

 

Aubrey rolled her eyes. "Jeez do I need to spell it out for you!? It's Aubrey, you dipsh- ... numbskull." Aubrey finished quietly.

 

Hero's jaw dropped and took a long moment to collect his thoughts. He brought his hand to his mouth in contemplation thinking of something to say, finally landing on... "So you ended up keeping your promise to Mari after all huh...?" His expression being a somber one.

 

Aubrey looked at him with a shocked expression before it softened into a saddened one as she looked down.

"Yeah... yeah, I did..." She said quietly.

 

There was a somber silence held between them for a moment.

 

"So what brings you back in town." Aubrey spoke up.

 

"It's summer, so I'm back from college for the time being to visit the folks..."

 

"I see..."

 

"..."

 

"..."

 

"I'm happy to see you again, Aubrey."

 

"Me too. Hero."

 

"..."

 

"..."

 

"So..." Hero began. "Why... were you running from Sunny's house?"

 

Aubrey's face lit up like a red light bulb at the mention of Sunny. "Fuck- I mean shit- I mean-! Ugh... I'm such an idiot..." She planted her face into her palms as she lamented her actions.

 

"Hoo-boy... that doesn't sound good..." Hero winced in response.

 

"God... I fucked up so bad..." Aubrey said moving her hands up to her forehead. "God... where do I even begin..."

 

"How about... at the beginning?" Hero said putting a hand on her shoulder.

 

"Ugh... ok... It... started with..."

 

...

 

...

 

Knockknockknock

 

"S-Sunny! Sunny, please come out of your room! I'm- I'm not mad I promise! Please just... just come out!" Mari pleaded to the door in front of her.

 

"N-No! This... This isn't real! I'm...! You're not real...! Leave me alone!!" Sunny begged in a panic.

 

"Sunny! You're hurt! We need to get you patched up! Please just open the door!" She continued to knock on the door desperately as if knocking on it would make it open faster.

 

The injured boy in question had hurt himself again after Aubrey had ran out of the house, the bloodied knife in question still being held by the distressed boy cowering against the wall.

 

"Sunny! Sunny answer me!" Mari pleaded in vain only to be answered by silence and sobbing. She decided that she needed to take desperate action. "Sunny! ... I'm coming in!" She said slowly beginning to open the door. The opening revealed a panicked Sunny cowering in abject horror, pointing the knife that had originally been turned on himself towards what he believed to be his extremely vivid hallucination.

 

"S-Stay a-away..." He begged in fear, tears flowing from his eyes. "p-please..."

 

"Shhshsh... it's ok Sunny... everything is going to be ok..." Mari cooed gently as she slowly approached the cowering boy. "Just... put down the knife and lets talk... ok...?" She said trying her best to stay calm.

 

"N-No... stay away... p... please... don't hurt me..." He sobbed out, still shakily holding the knife out in front of him.

 

"Nobody is going to hurt you Sunny. Now please. Put. Down. The knife." She was starting to lose her composure as fear began to take hold. Not that he would hurt her but that he would hurt himself.

 

"No... n-no...! Stay away!" His eyes darted every which way as he scrambled himself into a corner. "Not... Not again...!" He held the knife in one hand and his throat with the other remembering the constricting feeling of suffocation he had felt just earlier that day.

 

"Sunny! Please listen! No one is going to hurt you! But if you don't put down that knife I'm afraid you'll end up hurting yourself. Now please just put it down!" Mari was trying to close the distance more quickly now as panic embedded itself in her mind.

 

"Hurt... myself...?" Sunny said looking down at the knife. Right... right. This is just a dream... no... a nightmare... all I have to do to wake up is... He grabbed the knife with both hands and began pointing it towards his stomach. "I just have to wake up." Sunny said absently.

 

"NO!" Mari lunged forward along with the knife and grabbed it any way she could which ended up being by the blade itself as it painfully sliced into her hands.

 

The blood dripping onto him that wasn't his seemed to snap him back into reality, the situation suddenly registering in his mind.

"... Mari...?" He said in wide-eyed disbelief.

 

"Yes... Sunshine... It's me...! Now please..." She said with a pained smile. "let go... of the knife..."

 

Sunny looked down realizing what he had just done, quickly letting go of the knife which Mari tossed across the room. "Mari! Mari I'm so-" But just as quickly as she had tossed the knife across the room, she had tossed both of her arms around her brother and hugged him desperately, wailing over his shoulder.

 

"Sunny! Sunny!! I was so scared that I'd lose you... I was so, so, SO scared that I'd lose you only moments after having gotten you back... Oh...! Oh, Sunshine...!" She cried like she had never cried before.

 

Slowly he found his own arms wrapped around her as well. "I'm so sorry... Big sis..." Sunny sobbed and found tears that he thought had run out.

 

"It's ok Sunshine... All that matters... is that you're ok..." Mari squeezed him as tightly as she could. Afraid that she would still lose him if she didn't hold him as tightly as she could.

 

Sunny, while having originally feared being suffocated again, welcomed this suffocating feeling because this time he knew it was real and it was warm...

"But... How...?" Sunny left the question hanging.

 

"I'm not sure myself but... all I need to know is that I'm here again... and I'm never leaving you behind again. I promise." They held each other for a what felt like an eternity, feeling a completeness that they never thought they'd feel again in this lifetime.

Mari eventually loosened her embrace. "Now how about we uhm... deal with this." She said gesturing with her hands at their wounds.

 

"Oh... yeah..." Sunny said looking down ashamedly. "S-Sorry..." Sunny said with a sniffle.

 

"It's ok, Sunshine. Come on, let's go wash these in the bathroom and patch them up!" Mari said, standing up with a comforting smile on her face.

 

Sunny nodded and followed suit. They both went to the bathroom and cleaned each other's wounds. No words were exchanged but they both felt sinking feelings upon examining each other's scars. It seems that even revival hadn't rid Mari of her scars.

Mari's hands hurt while patching up Sunny's arm but she bore through the pain. He's more important than a little pain. She thought to herself.

Sunny looked up at Mari while she was patching up his arm... she still had the rope burn scar around her neck. It was faint but it was still there. Sunny absentmindedly reached forward and touched it with his other arm.

 

Mari inhaled sharply. "S-Sunny...? What's wrong?"

 

"Oh. Sorry... you just still have the scar..." Sunny mumbled pulling his hand back.

 

"Oh..." She said reaching up and tracing it. "Yeah... yeah I guess I do." She grimaced. "A small price to pay to be with you again Sunshine." She smiled gently.

 

A small smile gently radiated from Sunny in response.

This smile was worth more than a million smiles from anyone else to Mari... well maybe besides Hero... maybe a hundred smiles from him... she smirked to herself.

I wonder if he moved on... She thought to her self melancholily. Part of her hopes he did, but another part of her...

...

She brushed it off for the time being. "Well now that we're all patched up. How about we go relax and... catch-up?" She said with a sad smile.

 

Sunny nodded and went to put away the medical supplies while Mari went back to the bedroom to collect the knife...

 

Mari picked it up hesitantly and examined it for a moment... She then realized that they probably bled all over each other's clothes. Upon further examination she figured out her theory was correct.

"Well I better change..." She walked over to the closet only to realize that none of her clothes was there anymore. "... Right." She sighed heavily and looked around the room trying to think of a solution, only to just now register a few things she hadn't before. There was an air mattress, a bag packed to brim, and a cage with a bunny in it.

"What is..." Mari trailed off. It looks like she has something to ask Sunny about. She decided not to disturb any of the various possessions and left the room with the knife. She glanced over to the bathroom seeing the light was off, Sunny had probably already gone downstairs. She continued downstairs and into the kitchen, washing and drying the knife before putting it back where it belonged. She walked past the stairs and stopped, she turned her head and saw the piano through the doorway.

She hesitantly walked into the room and looked at the piano. "You've gotten rather dusty haven't you..." She said while looking it over. She raised the cover and took a seat, the ivory keys still the same as she remembered them. She absently began to play a waltz like she always used to. It brought back so many memories... some unpleasant reminders of her parent's pressure to preform better. She played the waltz to a finish and gently closed the cover and stood up to dust herself off.

She turned to the doorway realizing that Sunny was standing there listening to her play. "Oh! I'm sorry Sunny I got a little sidetracked..." She said with an embarrassed blush dusting her features.

 

"It's ok." He said in his usual quiet tone. "It was nice listening to you play again." He said with another of his small smiles.

 

Mari smiled too. "I'm glad you think so." She finished brushing off the dust on herself. "Now how about that catching up, huh? After all I'd love to know just who's bag and bunny are upstairs." She said with the dreaded smug Mari smile.

 

Sunny gulped. "O-Oh... yeah... right..."

 

"I'm pretty sure I saw some girly things sticking out of that bag, Sunny." She approached ominously still wearing that smug grin on her face.

 

"I can... I can explain...!" He broke into a cold sweat.

 

"Oh you're going to explain alright Sunny boy... that and more!" She said grabbing Sunny by the shoulder and ushering him to the living room.

...

 

...

 

"After that I ran out the door and... here we are." Aubrey said with a sigh having just explained the series of events leading up to this point, glossing over or omitting the... more intimate or embarrassing parts...

 

"I uhh.. wow. A lot can happen in a few days huh..?" Hero responded with a bewildered look. "But wait... Is it a good idea to... you know... leave Sunny alone right now? Is he stable?" Hero said with a worried tone.

 

Aubrey's expression rapidly changed to mortification. "SHIT!" She shot off of the bench only to fall over as her injured leg gave out under her. She inhaled sharply as the pain was starting to catch back up with her.

 

"Aubrey! You need to take it easy on that leg. Sunny did a pretty good job patching it up but if you keep pushing it the injury will only get worse." Hero said kneeling down to her.

 

"BUT SUNNY COULD HURT HIMSELF OR... OR WORSE!!" Aubrey said on the verge of a panic attack.

 

"Yeah, but you're in no situation to be running right no-"

 

"AUBREY!!" A familiar voice calls from the distance.

Aubrey looks up to see Kim running over as fast as she can.

"Aubrey! What happened?! Who's this guy?! He do somethin to ya?!" Kim said taking up a fighting stance.

 

"No! No. This is an old... friend. He saved my ass a little while ago.. I'll explain it later." Aubrey said trying to calm down.

 

"Oh! Oh shi- sorry I was just about ready to deck you, man." Kim said relaxing with an awkward smile.

 

"It's alright haha.. I'm glad to see Aubrey's made a good friend." Hero said extending his hand. "Name's Henry." Hero said with his classic Hero smile.

 

Kim coughed a little awkwardly but extended her hand as well, shaking Hero's hand. "Kim." She said shortly.

 

"A pleasure to mee-"

 

"OK! Can we put the 'hey's!' and 'howdoyoudo's' until later??" Aubrey asked incredulously.

 

"Uhh... what's up with her?" Kim whispered to Hero.

 

"Can't explain, but now that you're here can you help her get back to Sunny's house? I gotta get there as fast as I can." Hero asked quickly.

 

"Of course. Did something... never mind, sounds urgent. You can leave her to me." Kim said jamming a thumb into her chest.

 

"Great. I'll see you there Aubrey!" Hero said running down the street as fast as his already tired legs could carry him.

 

Kim watched for a moment before looping Aubrey's arm over her shoulder and helping her up.

"So you gonna explain what's going on?" Kim questioned.

 

"... Later. For now we just need to get back as quick as we can." Aubrey said with a grim expression.

 

"... Gotcha." Kim said without another word.

 

...

 

...

 

Mari sat there with stars in her eyes while Sunny could only look away in pure embarrassment, doing his best to avoid that starry gaze.

 

"YOU SLY CAT! C'MERE!" Mari said hugging Sunny tight and rubbing her cheek in his hair.

 

"Mariii... you're messing up my hair..." Sunny whined.

 

"Oh, but my Sunny is getting close with his crush! I have to do this! It's my sibling obligation!!" Mari said with the biggest grin.

 

"Mariiii..." Sunny said with a pitiful look.

 

"Oh... alright Sunshine." Mari said with an apologetic smile and a little ruffle of his hair. "So where is she now? I'd love to see that pink hair of hers. I'll have to dye mine purple too to fulfill our promise!" Mari said with a nod.

 

"A...bout that..." Sunny started ashamedly.

 

Mari looked at Sunny and her expression became more dour along with Sunny's. "What...? Did something happen?" Mari said with a small tilt of her head.

 

"Well... the last thing I said to her was that... I didn't think I was ready... for... love and stuff..." Sunny finished awkwardly.

 

"Oh. Oh... Sunshine..." Mari held him close and rubbed circles into his back. "It's ok. I'm sure she'll understand."

 

KNOCKKNOCKKNOCK

 

"See? That's probably her right now. Let's go see her." Mari said standing up and quickly walking to the door.

 

Sunny slapped his cheeks and prepped himself for the worse before remembering-

"Wait, Mari!" He called out

 

"Just trust me, she'll understand once you talk to her about it!" Mari said unlocking the door and opening it without a second thought.

 

"..."

 

"..."

 

"..."

 

"... Hero?"