"Sunny, would you like some sunflower tea?"
"Thanks. Just give it to me plain, no milk or sugar."
Sunny had started writing a draft of the story he planned to submit to the state writing contest.
The whole story he'd planned could easily fit the length of a novel, but the writing competition limited him to five thousand words. He realized he wouldn't be able to tell an interesting story if he had to condense all those events in the story down to five thousand words, and decided he'd instead write about one pivotal event in the story.
But which event should I write about?
Basil placed a steaming cup of hot sunflower tea onto his table. Sunny tapped a pencil against his head, pondering what event from that long dream inside his head would make the most interesting five thousand word story.
"Thank you," Sunny said.
Sunflower tea had a cool and refreshing taste, a good drink to have to clear his mind.
"No problem. Need any help from me, Sunny?"
Sunny wasn't sure if he ought to tell Basil about his dreams. It was a little embarrassing to admit that he spent so many days dreaming about going on an adventure with his friends for the purpose of finding him.
He would use different names for all the characters once he started writing the story, but maybe it wouldn't be hard for Basil to tell that each character was based on his friends and himself.
Conflicted, Sunny decided to ask Basil for his advice on which event to write about.
"If your friend was missing and you went out to search for them, which one of these places sounds like it'd make the most interesting adventure?" Sunny asked. "Outer space, a spooky spider-filled forest, a castle ruled by a crazy, self-absorbed queen, an underwater resort, or inside the belly of a whale?"
"Oh, wow...all those places sound so interesting!" Basil replied. "I don't know which one to choose..."
"What if you had to pick one of them?"
A cute, thoughtful look grew over Basil's expression.
"Well...I don't find spiders scary, so the forest wouldn't be that spooky for me. Outer space sounds like a big place...there'd be so many planets to check, I wouldn't know where to start! I'm not sure why my friend would go missing at an underwater resort...that sounds more like a place to take a vacation in. Unless the resort sank underwater? Haha...I guess that leaves the castle and the whale. Both sound pretty interesting and scary to me!"
Mmmm...
"Thanks, Basil," Sunny replied. "I'll pick one of those two."
"Need help with anything else?"
"It's okay."
"I'll get things ready for the party."
A few days ago, they'd bought gifts for Kel, Hero, and Aubrey even though it wasn't necessary. Sunny wanted to do something nice for his friends, and he'd chosen a thoughtful gift for each one of them.
For Kel, they bought a pair of new basketball shoes.
Basil told him that the last time he saw Aubrey playing baseball with her friends at the park, her glove looked old and rather damaged. For Aubrey, they bought a new baseball glove.
Picking a present for Hero had been difficult because he was the farthest from them in age, and he probably held the most resentment towards them for Mari's death. After some brainstorming, they finally settled on getting Hero a brand new cookbook with a notable basil tomato soup recipe, in case he wanted to angrily boil some basil...
Basil got a laugh out of that. We don't shy away from dark humor...
Their reunion party was in a few hours, and they'd spent the morning packaging their gifts as well as preparing food for the party—watermelons, chips, and a few bottles of soda.
Sunny took another sip of sunflower tea. He wanted to create an outline of his story before setting out for the party.
Unable to choose between the castle and the whale, he started outlining both stories. He wrote snippets of the major scenes in each story, solidifying the characters' motivations, the atmosphere of the settings, and the general sense of pacing.
Before long, he got so into writing each story that Basil had to snap fingers in front of his face to remind him that it was time to head out.
"Oh, sorry..." Sunny said, pulling his head out of the scene where the protagonist had to bake a cake for one of Sweetheart's chefs. "Is it time already?"
"We have to hurry! It's almost 3 PM."
Sunny still hadn't made up his mind on which story location to write about yet.
I'll think about it after the party, I guess...
As Basil picked up all the food they were bringing to the party, he grabbed the three presents and set out for Kel's house.
His heart thumped in his chest with each step he took towards his reunion with his friends. Kel had called yesterday telling them that it was okay for them to come to the party, but he didn't know how Aubrey or Hero would react to them showing up.
I hope they'll accept our presents, at least...
"H—How are you feeling, Sunny?" Basil asked when they reached the crosswalk.
"I'm going to be okay," Sunny replied, trying to convince himself that it was true.
"Ah—ah, that's good. I'm a little nervous...but as long as you're here with me, I can manage."
"I'm pretty nervous too," Sunny admitted. "I hope they've forgiven us, but if not...we should apologize again."
Basil looked ahead glumly at Kel's block. "...I don't know if Hero would ever forgive us."
"...Let's just hope for the best."
I'm going to see my old house beside Kel's. I wonder how it looks now?
When they reached the street that Kel's house was on, Sunny started seeing dark, twisting shadows at the edge of his vision. The familiar fear of being rejected, hated by his friends, alongside the anxiety that arose from expecting that fear, returned to his mind and made him envision all sorts of horrific scenarios.
Kel, Aubrey, and Hero's faces were twisted, mocking. Their shadowy visages chased after him and Basil with a basketball, a baseball bat, and a cooking pan. Dark goo dripped from their eyes and mouths.
...Feel everything that there is to feel, and don't reject your feelings...
Sunny took deep breathes, allowing all his emotions, even fear, to course through his body.
Gradually, the shadows began to fade. He made himself accept the reality of facing his friends with a cloud of guilt hanging over him, and the possibility of confronting their wrath and anger.
I want them to forgive Basil, even if they can't forgive me. After all, I was the one who killed Mari...I deserve the blame for instigating this whole mess.
When they came within view of Kel's house, Sunny glanced at the next house over.
His old home hadn't changed much, though it had a couple new cars in the driveway. The bushes in the front yard had been trimmed, and a new purple carpet had been placed in front of the entrance door.
It feels so nostalgic, seeing that house again...
That place isn't my home anymore, but it's where all my memories...of Mari...and...
"Sunny? Are you okay?" Basil asked, noticing the slowing down in his pace.
"Yeah...I'm ready," Sunny replied.
The two of them turned to face the path leading up to the orange front door of Kel's house.
I hear voices speaking inside. Kel's voice...
...I think I hear Hero's voice...and Aubrey's, too...
"Well, we're here," Sunny said, smiling in spite of his anxiety. "Let's go see our friends again."
Basil smiled back.
Together, they walked up to the front door. Sunny rang the doorbell.
In a way I feel...just like the day when I'd gotten out of bed and opened the door for Kel...and seeing everyone again for the first time in so long...
Footsteps approached the front door. Sunny glanced between Basil and the door, his expression growing more nervous, holding his breath.
Basil's trying his hardest to smile.
The door swung open.
"Hey!" Kel greeted them, all smiles.
"Hi, Kel," Sunny replied, happy to see Kel's brightness.
"Woah...nice hair you got there."
Sunny could feel a blush coming on. "Oh, this? I, erh, wanted to try something new, shed my old look."
"It's awesome! You really seem to like flowers now..."
"Ah—ha..."
"Hey, it kinda suits you with your eye patch."
Kel glanced at the presents in Sunny's arms, then at the food in Basil's. "You sure brought a lot of stuff."
"We've brought presents for everyone!" Basil explained.
"You shouldn't have—now you're going to make us feel bad that we didn't buy anything for you!"
"Sorry," Sunny said, smiling embarrassedly. "We were just so glad to be invited to this party, we thought we should get presents for everyone."
"Thanks again for inviting us," Basil added. "We hope you'll accept our presents."
"Well, come in!" Kel said. "My parents are out just for today, so we have the house all to ourselves tonight."
"Ummm...where's Aubrey and Hero?" Basil asked in a quieter voice.
"They're in the kitchen making food. I'll call them over."
Sunny took off his shoes and walked into the living room, happy and anxious to see Aubrey and Hero again after almost two years away from them.
"Hey, Basil and Sunny are here," he heard Kel say in the kitchen.
Basil stood close by Sunny's side, almost protectively.
Within seconds Aubrey walked into the living room. She still wore long pink hair tied with a light blue ribbon, short jeans, and a white top. This time there wasn't a spiked nail bat in sight, providing Sunny some light relief.
"Wow," she said, looking over Sunny from head to toe. "I never thought you'd be into that hair style."
"You don't think I look good with flowers and hairpins?" Sunny replied.
The look in Aubrey's eyes told him she'd never expected Sunny to say that sentence in a million years.
Having tried hard to be outgoing over the past couple of years, I've certainly gotten a lot more blunt with my words. Maybe...I'm even kinda sassy?
"...You've changed," Aubrey said.
"Yeah, I'm not a shut-in anymore."
"You're barely even the same person."
"...A lot's happened."
Sunny placed the presents down on the floor, and Basil put the food on the table in the living room. Hero still hadn't shown up yet, but they could hear him talking with Kel inside the kitchen.
"So...is this just a phase, or are you going to look like Basil from now on?" Aubrey asked, sitting down on the couch.
Sunny took a seat opposite her while Basil's eyes glanced away, averting attention.
"I'm only obligated to look like myself," Sunny said, adjusting his eye patch.
"This is your new self?" Aubrey couldn't seem to decide on whether that was confusing or hilarious. "Flowers, hairpins, an eyepatch...it's like you've thrown away everything bland about yourself and gone overboard in the other direction."
"Better than being monotonous," Sunny said, remembering all too well how it felt to spend every second as a pasty boy with a black tank top and black and white striped shorts.
To his surprise, Aubrey smiled in agreement. "You got that right. It's better than monotonous, but it's just so...flamboyant."
She glanced over at Basil. "Did you get him to try on this new look?"
"Ummm...a little," Basil replied.
"I chose to have this new look," Sunny cut in.
Aubrey faced away from them both, turning her eyes up towards the ceiling. "Hmmph. I guess I should've expected it. I'd thought any new look you'd try would look more like your old self, but, figures...you were always very close to Basil. Well, if that's the style you want to show off, who am I to complain? Good on you, Sunny."
"Thanks," Sunny said.
Any last vestiges of romantic feelings they might've shared had now fully vanished.
"...Since when did you become so open and talkative?" Aubrey asked.
"Maybe I've always wanted to be," Sunny said light heartedly.
"You? Open about your feelings and everything? I just don't see it. I feel like you've changed yourself completely on purpose."
"I don't want to go back to the way I was back then. I like myself more now."
Well...more honestly, I think I take on bits of the personalities of the people I spend time around.
After being stuck in my room for four years, completely alone, then talking to you and Kel again...I felt like I was a personality sponge, ready to soak up all the aspects of my friends I admired as I hung around them.
Aubrey turned her eyes away, looking in Basil's direction. "Hey, Basil."
Basil smiled nervously. "Hi, Aubrey."
"Ummm...how have things been? Haven't seen you around lately at all."
"Oh—oh, I've been fine. Life's kinda been busy for me recently."
"Yeah? I know, we've all got our own stuff to do nowadays."
"I heard you've been helping out at the church," Sunny mentioned.
"That's right."
"What's the story behind that?"
"You interested? Well...a week after our fight at the church, the pastor approached me and told me about this new after school program he started for kids who didn't want to go back home."
Aubrey tilted her head, putting on that vicious smile she liked to make. "Sounds lame, right? Well, it was lame. I thought, hey, I could do way better than this. I told the pastor to let me try running the whole thing, and, well, I was surprised when he agreed!"
She smiled more genuinely. "So I've been taking the kids out to play baseball, track and field, the movies, all that fun stuff. At the end of each week, we all go to Gino's for pizza. It's a blast."
"That's...amazing," Sunny said, legitimately surprised by her charity.
"Thanks."
"You've been doing all that by yourself each day?"
"Kim's been helping out, too. We...kinda know how it's like to not want to go home after school..."
Sunny could concur with that one hundred percent given his current situation with his mom.
"How's your other friends doing?" Sunny asked.
Aubrey looked surprised that Sunny was not only talkative, but showed genuine interest in her friend group. "We've kinda drifted. I mostly just hang with Kim nowadays."
"Oh."
Basil shifted in his seat. "...I'm glad you're helping those kids, Aubrey."
Aubrey smiled at Basil. "Thanks."
"Oh—oh, and I noticed people around the church have been...nicer, lately. I think it's because of you!"
"No way, they probably still think I'm a delinquent. But I'm glad people are treating you better."
"Just a little..."
"Hey, Basil...you're not still mad at me because of...what happened back then, right? Y'know...at the lake in our old hangout..."
Basil tried to smile. "N—No, that was all an accident. I don't even think about it anymore."
"Yeah, okay..."
Aubrey...has that been weighing on your mind?
She looked from Basil's eyes to Sunny's.
"I've...maybe not been as nice to you as I should've been, after you told me the truth," she confessed after a short silence. "Just been thinking...a lot of crap happens...and usually no one's entirely at fault. Maybe...I shouldn't have screamed at you after you told me what really happened to Mari."
"It's all right," Sunny said. "I'm really sorry for what I did."
"I'm sorry too," Basil said. "...We weren't thinking properly when that whole thing happened."
Sunny nodded. "I still don't think I can ever make it up to you—"
Aubrey waved her hand. "It's in the past now. We can't bring Mari back. So let's all just try to move on with our lives."
Yeah, that's as much as we can ever do...
They turned their heads up and saw Kel and Hero walking into the room.
"...Hey." Hero said, looking to Basil, then at Sunny.
"...Hi," they replied.
Sunny felt tense as Hero placed a plate of chocolate chip cookies onto the table.
Kel was the first to break the stifling atmosphere.
"By the way," Kel said, pointing at the packages Sunny had placed on the floor, "Sunny and Basil brought presents for us! We should've thought about getting presents for everyone..."
Hero glanced towards the presents, but there was no trace of a smile on his face.
"...You wanna check out what they got you?" Kel asked.
"I don't really want any presents," Hero said quietly.
Oh, no...
Kel sighed, putting on an exasperated face. "All right. You're just going to have to get it over with."
Aubrey raised an eye. "Get what over with?"
Sunny had never seen Kel look so anxious.
"...Do you guys remember that story I told you? Just...ah...after Mari died, there was a time when Hero screamed at me for like an hour...but he didn't really mean the things he said, and then he apologized afterwards?"
Hero's face grew red, wincing at Kel's words.
"Well...we've talked...and we kinda realized that he likes to bottle things up, but he'd really get over stuff a lot faster if he just let all his anger out in one go like he did that night," Kel said.
Sunny felt a lump forming in his throat as he saw Hero balling his fists.
"...Sorry in advance," Kel said embarrassedly. "Don't take it personally."
I've got a bad feeling...
Hero faced Sunny and Basil. "You're not going to like the side of me you're about to see."
Hero...never screamed at me after I told everyone the truth...but...
I know I really deserve to hear it from him.
"I'm really sorry," Kel said, backing away.
Hero sucked in a deep breath.
"What the FUCK?! What the God damn fuck were you two thinking?! How could you push your own sister down the fucking stairs? How fucked up do you have to be to frame her death as a suicide? God. You two fucks are messed in the head. Go to hell. You don't deserve a sister like Mari. You don't deserve her as a friend. Fuck you. You should've been the ones to die instead. God fucking damn you. I wish you two never came into my life."
Holy...
Sunny was totally speechless.
Judging by the looks on Basil, Aubrey, and even Kel's face, that was worse than what any of them had expected.
Even Hero was surprised. The angry color drained from his face, replaced by sadness.
With his head lowered, Hero walked out of sight back into the kitchen.
Maybe...I deserve to hear those words...
Kel broke the silence. "I'm...really sorry."
He went after his brother.
A brief stillness passed during which Sunny could hear Kel consoling a sobbing Hero. Sunny gathered his wits to face Basil and Aubrey.
"I'm...okay," Sunny spoke. "It was probably healthy for him to let out his anger."
Basil held his left arm. "Hero...really can't forgive us, can he?"
Sunny dipped his head. "I wouldn't expect him to."
"...He kind of went overboard," Aubrey whispered. "I never thought Hero could blow up like that. I guess deep down, he's got a lot of repressed anger towards you two. But...knowing how I treated...you, Basil...I can't say I'm any better."
Looks like we've all done horrible things to each other since the day Mari died.
Well, except maybe Kel...
Sunny gazed at the floor. "Hero's still a good person. He just had to blow off some steam. It's nothing worse than what I've done."
Basil took a step close towards Sunny. "Maybe...we should apologize to him again."
"Yeah," Sunny agreed. "He's been through a lot. We hurt him a lot more than his words could hurt us."
Aubrey leaned back into the couch. "I hope you can make up with him."
"We'll try our hardest to."
"...I just hope everyone's still in the mood for poker later."
Sunny waited for some sign that Hero would be returning to the living room; Kel came back first.
"Hero's...not proud of what he's said," Kel began.
"It's okay," Sunny said. "I know he's still angry at us. Could you ask him if he'd let us apologize again?"
"Okay, I'll let him know."
Losing Mari and not knowing why for so long...
If I lost...Basil...I wouldn't even know what to do with myself. I'd be so inconsolable...
I...really hope Hero will try to give us a second chance. If he doesn't, I guess...maybe some relationships can't be fixed...
A minute later, Kel came back with a teary-eyed Hero.
Before Hero could say a single word, Sunny bowed forward with his arms at his sides, the same way he'd seen Mari do before during serious apologies.
"I'm so sorry, Hero," Sunny said. "I know I'll never be able to make things right after everything I've done. But I still consider you my friend, and I hope you'll find it in your heart to forgive us one day."
Basil didn't seem to know how to do the apology bow, so he just looked at Hero in the eyes solemnly. "I'm really sorry, too. We've learned our lesson, and we promise that we'll never do anything like that again. We'll always tell you the truth from now on."
Sunny waited to hear more words of admonishment from Hero.
When nothing came, he slowly raised his upper body and saw that Hero had a totally incredulous look on his face.
"I'm...I'm sorry, too," Hero said softly. "I...said some really awful things back there. I know Mari wouldn't have been proud of me. So...I hope you'll forgive me, too."
"Of course we forgive you," Sunny replied, and Basil nodded in agreement.
A sliver of a smile appeared on Hero's lips. "I honestly didn't mean any of what I said. It's...really embarrassing...thinking back on it..."
"I know you didn't mean it," Basil said. "We just have...kinda crazy moments sometimes..."
Hero rubbed the back of his head embarrassedly.
"So, we're all cool with each other, right?" Kel said.
"I might need some more time to think things through...but we're definitely still friends," Hero said.
Thank you, Hero.
"Ummm...will you accept the presents we got you?" Basil mentioned.
"Oh, for sure."
Sunny smiled. "Go ahead and open them. They're all yours."
Just before doing that, Hero threw Sunny a curious look. "Nice new hairstyle you got there."
"Thanks."
***
Right after dinner, the group went over to the new poker table Kel's parents had bought, complete with a full set of poker chips.
"You guys play a lot of poker now?" Aubrey asked Kel and Hero.
"Mom and pop's been inviting their friends over for card game Saturdays," Kel explained. "It's really made our neighborhood a lot more lively lately."
Turning towards Sunny, Kel added, "Our new neighbors love coming to our games!"
"Really? How are they?" Sunny responded.
"Pretty cool bunch. They taught us how to play Euchre!"
"You guys gamble with any real money?" Aubrey asked.
"No, we just play for fun."
Aubrey rolled her eyes. "Bo—ring! Card games are only fun if you've got real money at stake."
"Come on, taking people's money over a game? That's just mean! " Kel said.
"You know why people play poker, don't you?" Aubrey replied. "Poker chips are for betting real money."
"Are you...are you suggesting that we bet real money at our game tonight?"
Aubrey smiled viciously. "Why not? I'm sure losing a couple bucks or a hundred wouldn't hurt you too badly. I've got a movie night with pizza to cover next week, and I'm running low on funds. If I take your money, consider it a donation for the children."
Kel's cheeks pumped red with anger. "As if! This was supposed to be a friendly game...what if we end up winning money from you?"
Aubrey leaned towards Kel. "Oh, is that a challenge?"
"What?! No. We should let everyone decide."
Sunny sipped the delicious red broth spiced with chopped green leaves from the bowl on the table in front of him.
Everyone had loved their presents. Hero had decided to put his new cookbook to immediate use, and his choice of the basil tomato soup certainly created a few laughs while raising at least one eye.
"Hmmm...a poker game with real money might be fun," Hero spoke, surprising everyone with his serious consideration of the idea.
"Don't tell me you want to lose money to Aubrey..." Kel muttered.
"The thing is...I can't believe I didn't get any of you presents! How about this? I'll lend you all money to play poker tonight. That way you won't lose any of your own money, but whatever money you hang on to, you can keep, all on me."
"Looks like Hero's all in on it," Aubrey said, snickering at Kel.
Kel was flabbergasted. "I can't believe you...you want to bet money, Hero?!"
"I could end up winning it all back," Hero said with a smile.
A sense of deja vu occurred to Sunny as he envisioned Hero, top employee of a casino-owning shark.
Hero turned towards Sunny and Basil. "You two wanna join in?"
Well...if it'd make Hero feel better about not getting us presents...
"Sure, why not?" Sunny replied.
"Sounds like fun!" Basil said, noticeably increasing the height of Kel's jaw.
"Well, Kel?" Aubrey said. "Looks like everyone wants to play a real money game."
"Argh...fine. I guess it doesn't matter if Hero's going to pay for all of it." In a quieter voice, "I hope you know what you're doing, brother..."
"Hah...how about I give each of you fifty bucks?" Hero said.
"Thanks! That should make things interesting," Aubrey replied, placing a big stack of poker chips onto the table.
The five of them sat around the table and each took fifty dollars' worth of chips.
"Thanks, Hero," Basil said. "If you lose all your money, I wouldn't mind giving it back to you."
"Don't worry. I'm not going to lose."
...I hope I remember how to play...
Sunny looked at his first two cards. It was a two of hearts and a seven of spades, hardly a good hand. He folded it.
A couple of rounds later, his hand was an ace and a jack, and there was also an ace and a jack on the board. He'd hit two pair, and he was sure that was the best hand.
"Ten dollars," Sunny said, placing the equivalent amount of chips into the pot.
"Twenty-five dollars," Aubrey countered.
What?! She can't possibly have a better hand...I bet she's just bluffing.
"Call," Sunny said, agreeing to pay twenty-five dollars if he lost.
They showed their hands.
"Looks like I beat you," Aubrey said, revealing a pair of jacks.
With two jacks in her hand and a third jack on the board, she had three of a kind, a better hand than two pair.
I can't believe I didn't think of that!
Sunny felt his pride being insulted as Aubrey took twenty-five dollars away from his stack of chips.
"It's okay, Sunny," Basil said, patting him on the shoulder. "Aubrey's really good at poker."
"I'll win it back," Sunny replied with determination.
Aubrey's smile couldn't get any bigger.
A few more rounds passed. Sunny received a strong hand, a queen and king of diamonds, and put lots of money into the pot as the cards on the board were revealed.
Two queens came up.
Now I've got three of a kind. I'm sure nobody can beat me with this...
"Five dollars," Sunny said, making the pot even larger.
"Fifteen," Hero raised.
"Seriously?" Sunny spoke. "Hero, you have to be bluffing."
"I'm not," Hero replied in his most truthful sounding voice. "...To be honest, Sunny, I think you should fold your hand."
Never!
"All in," Sunny said, pushing his remaining chips into the pot.
Hero almost looked embarrassed. "Ah...I don't want you to lose all your money, Sunny..."
"Then fold your hand."
"Actually, I want to see your hand, Sunny..."
Hero called, revealing that he had a straight from four to eight, an even better hand than Sunny's three queens.
Sunny was all out of chips.
"Wait, that's it?" Sunny said. "Hold on, I'm not done with this game yet."
He took out his wallet and grabbed fifty bucks. "I'm buying back in!"
"Oh, dear," Aubrey said. "You know, Sunny, now you stand to lose your own money."
"That's okay. I'll win it back!"
No one around the table seemed convinced.
I'll show you all, just you watch...
"S—Sunny, are you sure about this?" Basil asked.
"I'm not going to lose."
This time, Sunny played extremely tight. He folded his cards whenever someone raised over him. He just had to wait until he got one good hand, then he could really win lots of money.
Basil and Kel were in a pot, and Kel became frustrated when Basil raised twenty dollars.
"Come on...what hand do you have, Basil?" Kel asked.
Basil smiled, blushing. "Ummm...I wish I could tell you...but that's not in the spirit of the game, right?"
"Argh...you know what, I think my hand still beats yours. All in."
Kel shoved his chips towards the center of the table.
"Ah...I'm so sorry, Kel..." Basil said. "But...I do have the strongest hand here..."
With a call, they revealed their hands. Kel had a straight from nine to king, but Basil had a flush of five clubs. Unfortunately for Kel, a flush beat a straight.
"Nooooo!!!" Kel screamed. "I can't believe I lost all my money..."
"You gonna buy back in like Sunny?" Aubrey proposed.
"Don't worry, Kel, I'll give you half my chips, okay?" Basil said.
"Wait, you can't do that," Aubrey protested. "If you give out your chips, you'll never win any money!"
"That's okay...I really don't like taking my friends' money..."
"Nah, it's fine," Kel said to Basil, grinning. "All I did was make Hero lose fifty dollars. He's been swimming in money ever since he landed that internship at St. Jude."
Hero looked a little annoyed, but he smiled. "Okay, okay, I'll cover another fifty dollars just for you and Sunny."
"You don't have to cover for me," Sunny said.
"Really, don't worry about it. I'll cover you."
Sunny didn't like the thought of taking even more money from Hero, but he was low on funds, and would continue to be until he found a job.
I feel like a beggar...
"...Thanks, Hero."
"No problem."
Several rounds later, Sunny finally made a strong hand. He had an ace of spades and a six of spades, and there were three more spades on the board. He'd hit a flush.
"Twenty dollars," Sunny said.
"I'm out!" Kel folded his hand.
"Forty," Aubrey raised Sunny.
"You're bluffing," Sunny challenged her.
"Only one way to find out, Sunny."
Are you that eager to lose your chips, Aubrey?
"All in," Sunny declared, shoving his chips to the center of the table.
"That's easy," Aubrey replied. "I call."
He revealed his flush of spades, expecting it to dominate Aubrey's hand, but was instead dominated by her full house.
"Thanks, Sunny. You just paid for my next pizza night!"
Sunny stood there, frozen in shock, as Aubrey took all his chips with an I-told-you-so sneer on her face.
***
"I can't believe I lost every hand I thought I was going to win!"
Late at night, Sunny and Basil were going back home instead of sleeping over; Kel's parents had called, saying that something had come up and they were coming back around midnight.
Basil patted Sunny on the shoulder.
Well...at least Aubrey got the money to pay for her pizza night.
Come to think of it, I never revealed the status of my relationship with Basil to the group.
I guess...at this point...they might already know...
"...I'll just have to find a job," Sunny said with a sigh. "I really owe Hero for covering me."
"Don't worry, Sunny. If you're ever low on money, I'll take care of you."
Sunny blushed. "Thanks, Basil."
I wonder...is Basil making money right now?
Before he could inquire any further, he felt a kiss on his lips.
The black of the night shrouded them from visibility. Sunny stopped walking and put his arms around Basil, embracing him.
They kissed under the cover of darkness, the cool night breeze blowing their hair into the wind.
Sunny opened his eyes.
Basil's eyes were a gentle light in the darkness, and they shone so beautifully.
"...I'm really glad everything worked out today," Sunny whispered.
Basil nodded. "It's all because of you, Sunny. Everything's been going so well since you came back."
Let's hope they stay that way.
Sunny smiled softly. "We'll be fine as long as we're together, right?"
"Right."
They turned towards Basil's house.
Our house.
I want the rest of this summer...to be full of happiness.
He stepped forward, hand in hand with Basil, as a small grey cloud shrouded the light that the moon cast over the town.
~
A big thank you to pentakhlo for drawing this fan art!
https://twitter.com/omobasil/status/1416387736219566088
The poker art was by myself
https://twitter.com/PuddleUdon/status/1655346111861731334