Chapter Text
In a Garden that felt too bright, two boys sit with their backs against a tree, one quietly drawing while the other watched over his shoulder. Eventually, three girls run up the hill, red flowers in hand and ready to be braided into flower crowns.
A figure dressed in black steps onto a stage shrouded in shadows. As the lights raise around the figure and his opponent, he reaches for his microphone and begins singing.
The soggy darkness crouched down
Even if we shake our heads, it’s always the same place
I can’t reach you, so I imagine alone
You who shines, I stand next to you
Under the white lights of the infirmary, an older looking boy with dark green hair waits with bandages over his eyes. A few weeks prior, Lighter got into an argument with one of the other children which escalated into a fight between the two. While Lighter fared better than his opponent, he didn’t walk away completely unscathed. His eyes were severely injured, leading to them needing to cover them till they healed. Today is the day his bandages were going to be removed. Eventually, an infirmary staff member made themselves known and began unwrapping his eyes. Once the bandages were off, the white light of the infirmary seemed extra blinding, causing him to squint. “Any discomfort?” asked the staff member dryly. “Feels too bright” he muttered, squinting his eyes and attempting to shade them with his hand. The staff member simply brushed it off, “to be expected seeing as they were covered for so long. Give it a few days and you should start feeling better.”
After being told he can return to class, the discomfort Lighter felt only continued to persist. Eventually, Lighter returned to the infirmary to see what could be done to stop the discomfort or at least help manage it. “How would you describe the discomfort?” asked the staff member, “sorta feels like opening up an old wound…” replied Lighter, squinting his eyes. The staff member fell quiet for a moment, till they responded, “perhaps we can get you some tinted glasses to shade them then.”
So black, black as it can be
The dark sea gets deeper as you approach
Like a black, black sorrow
A story of such woe
At the end of this story, there is only a cold spot
stained with blood and empty air
Once Lighter was discharged from the infirmary, he went to his usual meeting spot to find Astra and Evelyn. To his surprise, a pair of siblings were there chatting with the girls. Upon approach, Evelyn noticed him first and gently nudged Astra, tilting her head in his direction. Astra’s face lit up as she sprang to her feet and ran over to meet Lighter halfway. “Oh Lighter! Happy to see that you’ve finally been discharged after that fight you got into” chirped Astra with a smile across her face, grabbing the older’s wrist and practically dragging him up the hill. “While you were away I made new friends, this is Belle and Wise” she said, releasing Lighter’s wrist and gesturing with an open palm at the siblings. “Oh, um nice to meet you two-“
“I like your glasses” said Belle, cutting Lighter off mid sentence. “Uh, thanks” he replied awkwardly. “Belle, it’s not very nice to interrupt someone when they-“
“When they’re talking yeah yeah I know” interrupts Belle as Wise shoots her an annoyed glance. “Anyways, it’s nice to meet you, Astra and Evelyn have mentioned a friend of theirs from time to time” said Belle, giving Lighter a sweet smile. Lighter gave a soft chuckle as he settled onto the grass with the other four children, “well, it’s nice to meet you too” replied Lighter. Eventually, Astra makes a suggestion to make flower crowns which catches Belle’s attention, as she moves to sit closer to Astra and Evelyn. “Sorry about Belle, she can be a bit much when you first meet her” sighed Wise softly, hoping Belle was too preoccupied to hear him. “S’alright, she reminds me a bit of Astra when I first met her” replied Lighter, moving closer to Wise to hear him over the girls. For the rest of the day, Lighter and Wise sat together chatting away about everything and nothing while Astra, Evelyn, and Belle made flower crowns. Once done with their flower crowns, Astra and Belle approached Lighter and Wise, depositing a flower crown atop both of their heads with bright smiles on their faces. As the small group continued to chat and play over the coming days, Lighter and Wise always seemed to find purchase together during their free time in the Garden. When the small group would meet on their hill, Lighter and Wise were somewhat drawn to each other, sitting together with their backs against the tree, or at the shallow pond where they’d sit in some shade together while the girls played.
Where your eyes reach
Where your fingertips brush
Waiting for you endlessly
The red light inside the black darkness
Turning the hourglass
Spending a long time with you
“Lighter?!” called Wise as he rushed to the older when he noticed how unsteady he looked on his feet. “What happened?” he asked, wrapping an arm under Lighter’s. “That guy who was bothering you, he won’t bother you anymore” said Lighter as he adjusted his tinted glasses. The frown on Wise's face only deepened with Lighter’s words, “don’t tell me you got into a fight with him…” said Wise trying to guide the pair to lean against a nearby tree. “His mistake, takin your things and whatnot” replied Lighter, leaning into Wise’s touch. A faint blush creeped onto Wise cheeks, “I didn’t think anyone noticed… thank you” he whispered. “We should get you to the infirmary at least,” said Wise, slowly making their way towards the infirmary.
Once again, Lighter found himself in the white light of the infirmary, the only difference this visit is that he has Wise with him. When a staff member attended to Lighter’s injuries, he was told to stay the night to make sure none of them opened back up. When dinner rolled around, Lighter expected Wise to return to his room but to his surprise, Wise came back to the infirmary. “Surprised you came back, thought you’d go back to your room for the night” said Lighter softly, slowly sitting up in his bed. “I figured you wanted some company, Astra did mention you end up in the infirmary a lot” replied Wise, pulling a stool over to Lighter’s bedside. “Thanks, in the past Astra and Evelyn would visit, but most of the time it was to gossip about what our classmates got up to,” said Lighter with a soft chuckle, remembering all the latest gossip Astra would tell him when he’d been out of class for long periods of time. “Ha, sounds like Astra, she tends to know what everyone is up to at any given time. My guess, her charm’s what draws so many people to her” replaced Wise with a giggle. “She does have that effect on people, I remember one time she got into trouble with Evelyn. Evelyn was ready to accept their punishment but Astra managed to talk them both out of it” laughed Lighter, finding himself relaxing into the stiff bed. The pair’s conversation lasted late into the night, sharing story after story about the three girls that made up their little friend group. Eventually, Wise’s eyes grew heavy so he laid his head down on the bed and drifted off to sleep. For a while Lighter simply stared at the younger, a fond smile across his lips. I wish I could express how much you mean to me, but I don’t want to taint that beautiful smile of yours. Something went unspoken between the pair that night, a fondness both were too scared to put into words, fearful that if they said what they felt, they might lose the other’s friendship.
So back, black as it can be
A dark sea gets deeper as you approach
Like a black, black sorrow
A story of such woe
At the end of this story
There is only a cold spot stained with blood
One day at breakfast, Astra, Evelyn, and Lighter notice that Belle and Wise hadn’t shown up yet. “Maybe one of us should go make sure they’re awake,” said Astra, a look of concern on her face. “Give it a little longer before you go looking for them” said Evelyn, resting her hand on Astra’s in an attempt to sooth her. Eventually, Wise appears at the entrance to the dining hall, his face pale. When he approached, Lighter asked what was wrong, trying to even his voice to hide his concern. When Wise collapsed forward, Evelyn was the closest and fastest, and caught the younger in her arms as he cried. “Belle, she’s dead” Wise sobbed quietly, tucking his head under Evelyn’s.
After breakfast and class, the children were released for free time in the Garden. The usually lively group of five had turned into a mournful group of four, sitting quietly atop a hill under the shade of a large tree in silence. Wise and Lighter leaned against the tree, shoulder to shoulder, with Lighter watching Wise from the corner of his eye. Astra had her knees tucked against her chest, leaning her head on Evelyn’s shoulder. Evelyn rested her head atop Astra’s gently rubbing circles into her back. Things were never the same in their little friend group after that day. On a quiet day, Astra and Evelyn sat together and made a flower crown of red flowers while Lighter and Wise sat in silence, Wise resting his head on Lighter’s shoulder. Once Astra and Evelyn finished the flower crown, Astra slowly stood up and walked to the base of the tree, setting the flower crown down gently, as if it were something fragile enough that the slightest movement would shatter it into thousands of pieces. Together the small group of four sat in silence, remembering the cutest younger sister and her bright smiles.
Such black, black sorrow
To me you are
To me, you are my
Black sorrow
You are my
Black sorrow
You are my
Black sorrow
As the score was tallied up behind Lighter and his opponent, Lighter’s thoughts drifted to the shared silence between himself and Wise, the way the younger was more expressive and vulnerable in his company. 90 to 68 read behind him before Lighter Win appeared in its place. In the shadows, a pair of heterochromic eyes pierced through the darkness, watching in silence as Lighter walked off the stage.