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Newt was bathed in sunlight. His blond hair glinted in the light, and his smile was bright and full of love. As he chased his brother around the swing set, their laughter drifted over the grounds and met me at the benches. I watched with the smallest of smiles.

After a while, Dean set off for the slides and Newt came over to sit beside me. He was panting and sweaty and tired, but he was also more radiant than anyone else in the world.

"How are you always so happy?" I couldn't help but ask.

For a second Newt's smile wavered, and in the space between blinks I imagined him looking me in the eye and saying, "I'm not." But that obviously wasn't true because he was already grinning again, and he was playing with the hem of his shirt sleeve distractedly. It was all my imagination because the ground literally glowed wherever he walked and the sun always rose wherever he smiled and the rain always stopped whenever he laughed. An unhappy Newt felt as foreign as a different world.

"My aunt always tells me there's enough negativity in the world without us adding any more," he said thoughtfully. Then he looked up and there was a softness to his face. "Besides, life's hard enough without making it harder for yourself, right?"

"You truly are one of a kind, Newt," I said, admiration evident in my tone.

Newt just looked away.

unlucky (newtmas)Waar verhalen tot leven komen. Ontdek het nu