At Time's End

Chapter 26 - Secrets

I walked into my room, our room. I was insanely worried about Karmella... I have no clue why. I'm catching feelings, no doubt, but why are they this strong? I hate her younger sister. Why is this even happening? I have no clue about that either. The only thing that matters is that she's back. Safe.

I know she's hiding something. She's tired. I know she is. I could ask her. Maybe now, when she's exhausted - getting kidnapped and tossed in a cell is hard, plus having to take care of someone's knife wound does not sound fun - she'll tell me. Is that manipulative? I don't know. Maybe.

I closed the door behind me. "So, remember that game of truth or dare we played ages ago?" I asked, carefully not to shut her up. "You mentioned that you were hiding something. Admitted, even." She sighed, not saying anything yet. "So, what's your secret?"

"Can we not..?"

"I want to know, Karmella." Nobody can blame me for being curious, right? "Come on, just tell me."

"...no." She lowered her gaze, in embarrassment, bashfulness, or... shame? Guilt? Anger? I could only guess... and hope.

"I'm ready for anything you're going to tell me."

"Trust me, you aren't. You seriously aren't." Is it just me or is she trying to play hard-to-get? Or... something else entirely? I hoped for the former, but she lifted her gaze, meeting mine, and it was clear she was dead serious. This wasn't about love as I initially thought. Or hoped. God, I don't know.

I swallowed. This was no point to back down. "What if I do? What then?" I was playing a dangerous game. A game, however, that I did not intend on losing. And if I did lose, now wasn't the time to think about that. What could her thoughts possibly hold, worth keeping it inside from presumably anyone this far..? Or, perhaps, only from me? "I want answers, Karmella. I need answers."

She sighed, lowering her head again. "You know, before the shortest game of truth or dare I've ever played. I told you about that party I was at. And someone I was..." She swallowed. It appeared she was holding back something... the secret or tears? "was with. At the party. Calaban Murl."

"...Yeah?" I finally understood. There was something between them, wasn't there? I should've guessed... Another tragedy in my life. First losing who I thought was my soulmate - perhaps still is, platonically, but the closest bond I've had in my life was almost severed and that's hard to forget - and now, when I finally had a chance again, it slips just out of my h-

I was interrupted from my self-pitying monologue. She had started talking again. "He's.." I could almost hear the crack in her voice, and at that moment it became clear to me, again, that this wasn't about love. In the slightest.

"He... er. He... was my close friend. Not a lover, a friend. He died in an... accident. He was a time traveler." She collected herself, before saying the words that would haunt me for multiple years to come. 

"The year was 2728... and the research center code was 1477."

---

I woke Eterna and Karmella up. They were quiet... unusually quiet. They had been, for a week. They barely said a word, to me or to each other... Did something happen?

"Where's... Chester?" Karmella asked, carefully. It was a regular question, I didn't understand why she was so wary.

"...He's out of commission for the day, I'd say." Karmella seemed to understand. I was willing to bet she didn't.

"Oh, the knife wound isn't healing well enough, huh-?" She was interrupted by the sound of someone throwing up. "Oh. Never mind."

"The knife wound is fine, it's just the withdrawal symptoms. Serpenthair sure is a 'miracle substance', huh?" I guess it isn't fair to say that, he used it for a long time with the only real break being working under Alice, it makes sense the symptoms are worse for him. That aside, she didn't question much further. 

"So, why are you both so quiet? Did Grape get your tongues? What happened?" the purple feline was walking around the chairs in the kitchen, Minttens following behind him.

"...I'd prefer not to talk about it." The answer I've been getting from Eterna for the past week. I suppose it isn't fair to badger her about it. "So, I heard one of the symptoms is not getting enough sleep..? Has he been sleeping alright?"

I nodded. "Yeah, though I don't know. He says he's fine, but that's hardly proof, is it... And with the knife wound, he's probably a bit overwhelmed." I hope he's okay, I've been considering sending him to the Venus Ring System - most hospitals are over there. The only problem is, serpenthair ferns are a native Cytherean plant. It'd be much easier for him to fall back in...

After we ate breakfast, mostly in silence, Karmella went to check up on Chester. That left me and Eterna in the kitchen. "So, what did you and Karmella talk about? Did she reject you or what?" She sighed, refusing to answer. "Come on. If it's a prank, it's not funny."

She hesitated, then let everything flow out of her head, her conscience - barely even stopping to think of the best words.

After she stopped talking, the only things I could hear for what seemed like decades were the deafening silence, my own words, and occasionally Chester's agony-ridden voice. "Okay... now what..?" I was entirely floored by this revelation. "What do we do with this information?"

"Let go." I was shocked to hear this from her... of all people. She always dwelled on things for far too long, sometimes even for years. I know she still hasn't let go of the 2728 incident, and neither will I for as long as I live, but she hasn't accepted it in the slightest. Perhaps she has gained some emotional maturity, at last. She's intelligent in the way schools would want you to be, not emotionally. "Move on from the incident."

"...Strange to hear that from you, Eterna."

"It's gone. It's an issue that has passed... It's always going to exist, somewhere in the corner of our minds - but that doesn't stop us from moving on, does it?"

And with that, we carried on with our days, at least a bit less burdened by what we both had to witness.

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AN: the crippling self-doubt i felt during this chapter was wild but hey at least it's out now :D