Catch a Glimmer of Your Star

This Balancing Act

They were at their old hangout spot again.

Kel was asleep as usual. Hero was preparing sandwiches and drinks for everyone. Mari and Aubrey sat by each other's side at their own corner of the picnic blanket. They sat with their backs against the tree, basking in a beautiful sunny day as a warm breeze gently stirred their long hair.

Aubrey's eyes turned to the flowers that grew nearby.

Those white, bell-shaped flowers hanging from the stems that sprouted near the tree only grew in that corner of the woods. Lily of the valleys were such unusual looking flowers. They were said to ward off evil spirits and to help people see a brighter future. They represented Mari the best.

But Aubrey was looking at a lily of the valley that had wilted, died. The flower's stem had gotten unearthed from the soil. She picked up the fallen flower with a sad light in her eyes.

Mari wrapped an arm around Aubrey's shoulder.

It was such a rare and pretty flower, and if more of them died...one day, they would not be able to find lily of the valleys growing inside these woods anymore. That made Basil wonder if many other plants and flowers in this beautiful place were doomed to a similar fate.

The colors of this scene faded away, replaced by red and black.

Instead of bell-shaped lilies hanging from a flower stem, a body hung from the tree, swaying in the wind.

Basil gazed at the body. Then he glanced at Sunny, standing beside him with eyes that had grown completely lifeless.

He remembered the feelings burning inside his chest. He remembered speaking words that could not reach the person he wanted to help most.

"Don't worry..."

"Everything is going to be okay."

The wind kept blowing.

Was this right?

It was right. Nothing could be done to help Mari anymore. The best thing to do would be to try to salvage what was left. He could still preserve some of Sunny's happiness. He just had to make sure that everyone believed this lie.

Was this wrong?

It was wrong. It was wrong because...

Because...

Because...?

Basil always had a feeling that this wasn't good, this didn't save anything. This was all messed up.

But Something had pushed Mari to her death.

Sunny wasn't willing to believe that, so Basil had to save him. Basil had to craft a lie that Sunny could believe in. That was the whole plan.

Was it so wrong then? Was it wrong to create a reality that made life more livable?

Sunny turned to look at him with those blank pupils, eyes more dead than a blind grey pupil.

"It's wrong because you broke everyone's trust," Sunny spoke. "It's wrong because you made our friends believe that Mari would kill herself without any sign. It's wrong because you traumatized us even further by making us hanging her body. It's wrong because you lied to all of us, and to yourself."

Basil turned his eyes away. The skies became red.

Then Sunny grasped Basil's hand.

"But you did the right thing," Sunny spoke.

Basil looked up into those dead eyes. "Sunny...?"

It wasn't Sunny anymore, but a pale boy in a black tank top.