The deafening silence that filled the room after the door had opened—revealing that Sunny's friends were all here—was broken by Kel's cheerful voice.
"Hey, Mrs. S," Kel said, using the name everyone called Sunny's mom by back when they were all children. "We heard Sunny was throwing a reunion party, and he invited all of us to come and celebrate mom and son seeing each other again!"
Both Sunny and his mom stared at Kel in honest confusion at that statement.
"Party?" Sunny's mom retorted. "We're in the middle of—"
"We know things aren't all smooth between you, Sunny, and Basil," Hero added, smiling the most charismatically Sunny had seen in a long time. "We're not here to support Sunny against you or anything like that! We just want to get our honest thoughts off our chests."
"Honest thoughts? About what?" Sunny's mom asked.
Before she could protest, Kel, Aubrey, Hero, and Polly invited themselves into the room, standing together on the side of the space between Sunny and his mom.
Sunny cast a glance at Basil, and even Basil looked surprised at what was happening.
Did they script this whole thing out?
"Just what is going on here?" Sunny's mom demanded as detective Jawsum entered the room to gaze in wide-eyed confusion at the new arrivals.
"Mrs. S, I'd like to start by apologizing sincerely for the loss of your daughter," Polly spoke.
"I still cry about Mari sometimes! She was like a big sister to me," Aubrey said solemnly.
Wow...I have a feeling Aubrey's got something planned with the others but that is a huge change in tone from the way she normally talks these days!
"I looked up to her as a role model," Aubrey continued. "When she passed away, I didn't know what to do with my life without my big sister by my side. That's how much I missed her."
"I usually don't cry about the past, but even I can admit that every day was a lot happier when Mari was still around," Kel added with a sad smile.
Errhh, this is turning into a giant cheesefest.
"Well, you know me," Hero said, scratching his head. "Mari and I were...losing her was like losing a big chunk of my heart that I'll never get back."
Sunny looked at his mom. The empathy and sadness his friends were showing her still could not overcome the confusion written all over her face.
"Okay, why?" she asked. "Did you all come here just to say you're sorry for my daughter?"
"We just wanted to get our feelings out before we start celebrating the mom and son reunion party!" Kel said.
"No, I think you've got it wrong," she protested. "There's no 'party'—"
"And we can guess you're not in the mood for a party because of all the unresolved feelings between you and Basil, right?" Aubrey interrupted.
You guys really wrote a whole script for this, huh...
"That's why we thought we should also tell you why we all forgave Basil!" Kel piped in.
"You want me to forgive...that—?"
Before Sunny's mom could get another word in, Polly stepped forward with a whole speech prepared.
"Basil is the kindest, most thoughtful boy I've ever had the joy to be the caretaker of," Polly began. "Throughout my years raising him, I saw how he always put others before himself, always showing compassion for me and his grandma in everything he did. And the person he cares the most for is Sunny. I know he did something...wrong, in the past. But, as a child, you can't expect him to be able to fully differentiate right from wrong, so it's not fair to blame him forever."
Wait, Polly knows? Did the others tell her about what Basil and I did?
"You don't understand," Sunny's mom responded angrily. "Mari wasn't your daughter—"
"I loved Mari even above my own life," Hero said, as if he'd totally anticipated Sunny's mom to say that. "But I still forgive Basil. The last time we met, Basil apologized wholeheartedly to me. He understands that what he did was wrong, and he knows deep in his heart how much his actions ended up hurting everybody even more. I was...I was confused for so long, you can understand how angry I was at him, right? But when I heard his apology, I knew he really understood my pain. I believe he deserves all our forgiveness."
Sunny's mom stared at Hero, incredulous. "You really...? Even though..."
"If you don't believe Hero or Polly," Aubrey spoke, "to me, y'know, Mari really felt like my sister, like family, 'cuz my parents never cared 'bout me much. I was so angry at Basil when I found out what he did to my sister, for a while I really believed I'd never forgive him. But then I remembered something.
"Once, we were out during a thunderstorm, we were running to get away from the rain, when there was this really loud thunderclap that completely paralyzed me. I was so scared by how loud it was, I actually couldn't move. And then Basil came back for me while no one else did."
Aubrey glanced around shiftily at Kel, Hero, and Sunny, evoking a few embarrassed averting of eyes.
"Basil told me that if I couldn't move, it's okay, he'd stay with me. Even if it meant the two of us would be exposed to the storm—that we might even get struck by lightning—he'd stay by my side so we could face it together. That's how I remembered how much of a kind and thoughtful person Basil is...
"That's why, even though I'll never forget seeing my big sister when she died...I don't want to hold it against him. I forgive Basil."
That story hit Sunny's mom differently. For once, she didn't have a response.
"And Basil bought me this awesome pair of basketball shoes!" Kel added his angle, which gave Sunny a chuckle. "My team won at the state semifinals because of them!"
"Mrs. S, you see why we're all still friends with Basil even after what he did, right?" Hero said.
The expression on her face revealed that was stunned beyond belief. When she spoke again she stuttered, unable to form words.
Can't say I'm any less shocked.
You guys...you're all so amazing. I love you all so much.
"I...I don't know," Sunny's mom said. "There's just, too much, too much to handle and process—"
"Looks to me like your son has an amazing group of friends," detective Jawsum said. "You know what? After everything I just heard, I'm convinced. You should forgive Basil."
"I don't, I just..."
Sunny knew his mom had a lot of trouble accepting a barrage of information that contrasted her preferred worldview. Whenever someone told her she was wrong, she liked to laugh it off or just say something sweet and irrelevant.
But in this case, what was being challenged was her perception of Basil, the boy who'd done something so awful to her daughter that she'd spent years building up a seething hatred towards him.
No, that wasn't entirely correct. At first she'd believed Sunny and Basil had come up with that plan to hang Mari's body together. It was only when, after Sunny had confessed everything at the hospital, Basil had revealed that he was the one who convinced Sunny to hang Mari—
—that was when his mom's hatred towards Basil began,
when she realized that her husband had left her, and her son's life for four years went down the drain, because of what Basil did.
Basil had freed Sunny from taking any blame in his mom's eyes for their horrid plan.
All the conflicted emotions she'd felt towards Sunny, thinking that he and Basil had done that to Mari together—those emotions coalesced at once into a singular spear point of hatred at Basil.
Because to her, Basil had masterminded the total destruction of her family.
I understand what you're going through, mom.
That's why, more than anything, I feel sorry for you.
When he looked at her, he saw how the expression on her face wavered, conflicted between acceptance of everything that she was hearing and total denial.
Just like his old self, her first line of defense against accusations of wronghood was repression.
"I...I need a glass of water," she said, heading over to the sink in her room.
Sunny glanced at Basil.
Judging by the redness on his cheeks, he could assume that whatever Basil had originally planned, his friends had gone above and beyond.
They came and went all out to defend him even after all that he'd done.
Please just forgive Basil, mom.
After drinking a glass of water, Sunny's mom faced him again. The furious anger had disappeared from her face; instead she now looked miserable.
Sunny thought it was fitting. After a whole life of toxic positivity, years of pretending that what had happened to Sunny was okay and that simply saying "I love you" would make things better, she finally allowed herself to feel sad.
Actually, her miserable face is terrifying...
It really looks like she's not taking this well at all.
"Sunny, do you hate me?" she asked when she spoke again.
Sunny rolled his eyes. "I hate it when you don't listen to my feelings or when you tell me that I don't know any better just because I'm not as old as you. No, I don't really hate you. I just wish you'd leave me alone for a while—and stop trying to make me come back with you!"
"...It sounds like you hate me," she said.
"Mrs. S, you've got it totally wrong," Hero said. "Sunny just needs a break from you right now."
"I'm sure that if you let him live his own life, he'll come back to visit you one day," Aubrey added.
"But...when?" Sunny's mom said. "When will I know that my son doesn't hate me anymore?"
I hate dealing with you when you start talking like that, too.
You just want reassurance, but you can't get that if you keep asking for people to reassure you!
"I'll tell you one thing," Sunny said firmly. "If you don't accept my feelings towards Basil, then I'll never come back to visit you again. But if you do, then I'll make some time every now and then to call you and maybe visit you over the holidays."
That didn't seem to make his mom feel any better.
"You're always giving ultimatums, just like him," she replied.
Him?
My dad...?
"Just accept Basil, Mrs. S!" Kel said. "It doesn't take any effort, and you'll make your life a whole lot easier."
"But...if I do...who will I have to blame for all the horrible things that happened to my life?" The glass in her hand trembled. "I lost my daughter...my husband...and I'm going to lose my son...all because of him!"
To everyone's surprise, it was detective Jawsum that went to comfort her. He placed an arm over her shoulder.
"I know it's incredibly hard to accept, but sometimes there's no one to blame," Jawsum said. "We're all victims of extremely unfortunate accidents."
She looked up at him with tears in her eyes. "I just...have to accept him as if he didn't do anything wrong?"
"That's not true at all," Basil responded. "Mrs. S, I did something terrible to your daughter, and I'm really sorry."
Sunny felt kind of confused but also amused when Basil bowed in the traditional manner that Mari used for apologizing sincerely in their family.
The last time he bowed in apology like that was to Hero, back at their reunion party.
Did Basil practice that apology bow just for this?
"You don't have to believe that I did nothing wrong," Basil said, rising to meet her eyes again. "But...maybe...don't hold a grudge against me forever?"
The sad blush on Basil's face at having to ask someone to forgive him made Sunny's heart tear apart.
Mom, just forgive him already! I'll never forgive you if you don't!
He could see how torn his mom felt, too. Once again, she wavered between acceptance and complete denial.
When she opened her mouth to speak, he could almost hear her next words.
"I'll never forgive you, Basil!
"You ruined my life and I'll take my hatred of you to my grave!"
He winced in anticipation.
But to his surprise, she said something quite different.
"Fine."
Huh?
"Fine. I'll forgive you," she spoke to Basil so quietly he almost didn't hear it.
That's...totally unexpected.
She faced Sunny again. "You'll call me and visit me sometimes, right?"
...Is that what you cared about this whole time?
"...Yeah, that's what I said," Sunny responded, realizing he might have made a mistake.
"Maybe a call every week? Visit me on Christmas and sometime during the summer?"
Twice a year sounds like too much! And weekly calls? Urgghhh...how about monthly at most?
"I'll think about it," Sunny said. "Look...I'll try to make some time for you, okay? Just, no promises right now."
Her miserable expression uplifted a little. She might only be depressed.
But it seemed she still had one last surprise to throw at them.
"It's funny how similar the two of you are..." she said, a tear rolling down her cheek. A sob escaped her throat. "You're so stubborn, and...you both choose to spend your lives with the worst kinds of people!"
Before anyone could say anything, she burst into tears and ran out of the room.
Did she...did she just call herself the worst kind of person?
Or did my dad have someone else to go to when he left?
Whatever—I hate how you keep comparing me to him.
I will never abandon anyone the same way my dad abandoned his family!
Detective Jawsum, whom Sunny had the strangest feeling was closer to his mom than he'd liked to know, sighed and walked towards the door. "I'll take care of it. You guys enjoy yourselves, don't worry about her—I'll handle things." And then he went after her.
Sunny was relieved that those two were finally gone. All in all, their meeting had gone better than he'd expected—and it was all thanks to his friends.
"Wow, your mom is nuts," Aubrey said once they could be certain she was out of hearing range.
"Yeah, comes with the family I guess," Sunny replied self-deprecatingly.
"Aww, don't say that," Hero said. "I admit, I kinda feel sorry for the way her life's turned out. N—Not to hold it against you or anything! I really do forgive you two, now."
"Thanks, Hero," Sunny replied.
"Anyway, what are we still doing in this boring hotel?" Kel said. "There's a fair going on outside! Let's go check it out!"
"Yeah, we've got a hotel here too for a few days," Aubrey added. "We're gonna have as much fun as we can while we're in this city!"
The sound of a roller coaster rushing down steep tracks still echoed in Sunny's ears.
He knew Kel and Aubrey were going to enjoy that ride.
***
"How did you get all our friends to come over here?" Sunny asked Basil.
"...It started when I got a call from Hero."
The two of them were by themselves again, waiting in line to buy food for dinner. Kel and Aubrey were in the line for the rollercoaster—were they somehow managing to do that without arguing? Nah, they were probably stirring up trouble while waiting—and Hero, shook from the twister ride, opted to repeatedly go on a gentle merry go round with Polly.
"He called during that week you were sick," Basil mentioned.
Right, that would be around the time Basil responded to all the calls to my phone.
"I'm sorry for keeping all this a secret from you," Basil added. "I wanted everything to be a surprise!"
"That's okay! It actually worked out pretty well."
"Ah—ah...so Hero called and told me that he felt really bad about how he exploded at us back at our reunion party. He said he's forgiven us, and he wanted to do something to make up for it. At the time I really didn't know if there was anything he could do for us, even though he insisted on it."
Yeah, that sounds like Hero all right...
"But then I heard that conversation between you and detective Jawsum, and I remembered that you were planning on meeting with your mother. So that gave me an idea—I told Hero that maybe he could be there for us when the meeting happened in case something went wrong and we needed his help. But...ah—hah... what Hero actually did, bringing along Kel and Aubrey and Polly, coming up with all those speeches about me—"
Basil blushed furiously as he remembered the kind words of all his friends.
"—I didn't plan any of that!"
"I really owe it to them," Sunny said, smiling. "But, doesn't that mean that now Polly knows what we did?"
"Ummm...Hero said to me they never told Polly! He simply explained the situation to her, and Polly prepared her words herself...with an additional note that, maybe, I, ummm, wasn't the nicest to Mari after she died because I was attempting to...make you happy..."
I guess they told Polly that Basil might have done something bad to Mari, mainly to protect me, but never really the whole truth.
Kinda reminds me of what mom told detective Jawsum.
All these half-lies.
But the more he thought about it, the less it seemed to matter. His secret was safe; by this point, everyone wanted everybody to move on from the past.
Sadly, we'll never know for sure what Polly would think of Basil if she'd heard what he really did to Mari.
Sunny kept his smile going. "Thank you for doing all this for me, Basil. I don't even have the words to express how grateful I am to everyone."
"Actually, you know what? Let's get everyone dinner at one of the restaurants around here!"
"Sounds good."
They stepped out of the queue for hot dogs, since fast food really wasn't what they had in mind anyways.
Kel and Aubrey were still some ways from the ride for the rollercoaster, so Sunny decided to go on the Ferris wheel with Basil while waiting for them to have their minds blown by the first drop. Hero and Polly came along too.
Sunny and Basil got into the first carriage, while Hero and Polly took the one right after them.
As the Ferris wheel ascended, Sunny looked out the carriage window and saw a beautiful view of the city lights as the sun descended behind the horizon. It felt amazing watching the lights in each house turn on one by one. They were like tiny stars coming into view in the night sky.
Sitting comfortably and alone together in their carriage, he looked at Basil and caught sight of a boy that he never wanted to let go of.
Basil leaned closer, and the flower in his hair brushed against Sunny's dark bangs.
They pressed their lips together into a kiss.
It didn't matter that Hero and Polly were in the carriage right behind them and would be able to see them kissing.
Sunny sank into deep, sweet pleasure as the boy who had shared so much with him, been through so much pain and trauma and anger and happiness together, kissed his lips with overwhelming passion. He melted into the warmth of those lips, felt the gentle and close embrace of his arms.
Together, they came to fully understand that they were the other half of each other's lives.
They kissed as the ride took them to the peak of the Ferris wheel, the lights of the city shining distantly below; the fear of heights had become something that Sunny accepted, felt content with.
He kissed on—like two hearts nestled in each other's tender warmth in the deep cold of winter—offering and receiving a reassurance of comfort even when surrounded by all the perils of the world.
Their kiss was a promise, a vow that they would always be there to protect and support each other through all the hard times in life—and to share all the good times together.
As the Ferris wheel descended, they gradually parted their kiss, and Sunny saw the soft blush over Basil's cheeks. He was aware of his own blush, too.
They looked at the carriage right behind them, and, to their embarrassment, Hero and Polly both waved hi.
"Ummm, did you see us during the ride?" Sunny asked once they'd gotten off.
"Yeah," Polly replied honestly.
"We all already know you two are kind of a thing," Hero added.
Sunny turned into a tomato; Basil likewise.
I guess the secret's finally out...
Whatever, it was barely much of a secret in the first place.
"S—So...even Kel and Aubrey know?" Basil asked.
Hero nodded with a smile of embarrassed acknowledgement. Basil covered his face with his hands.
Speaking of those two...
Kel and Aubrey were stunned after stepping off from the roller coaster.
"That was terrifying," Kel said.
"It almost broke my back," Aubrey said.
"So we're going on it again tomorrow, right?" Kel replied.
"Yeah, of course! What do you think I am, a coward?"
***
The restaurant that Sunny and Basil treated their friends to was an Izakaya near their apartment building.
Hero and Polly were the only ones old enough to drink, but it seemed that tonight was not an occasion for modesty. Hero ordered their purest sake; Polly demanded straight up shots of vodka. Sunny was amazed when they started downing alcohol like water.
"I've seen a bit too much of the human condition during my internship at St. Jude's hospital," Hero said, his eyes growing woozy.
"You don't want to know what I saw last week at the elderly care home," Polly said.
In no time at all, the two were mad drunk and ranting about their problems to each other. Hero, to Kel's surprise, confessed that he was sick and tired of studying for his med school exams, and Polly—
Our narrator Sunny will leave out Polly's comments about the elderly care home for the reader's own peace of mind.
Meanwhile, the sane members of the friend group ordered a whole bunch of sashimi, sushi, teriyaki, curry ramen, and tempura udon.
"Hey, Basil, I've got some news for ya," Kel said with a smile. "Are you okay with talking about, uh, your parents right now?"
"Sure," Basil answered. "They haven't contacted me in a really long time."
"Your parents reached out to me recently. They told me they're starting to come to terms with...well, your relationship with Sunny and all."
"Why didn't they call me to tell me that?" Basil asked, a bit angry.
"I told them they should, but they said they're actually afraid to approach you again after they got angry at you last summer."
"Ah, I see," Basil said. "Well, I won't have anything to say to them until they're ready to talk to me. Oh, but if they're still in touch with you, can you make sure that they're taking care of my plants?"
Ha, if they let Basil's plants die off, good luck ever talking to him again!
"Sure, I'll do that!" Kel responded.
"Thank you so much, Kel."
"No problem."
Kel has always been such a good friend.
To think that everything started because Kel knocked on my door that day...
"Uh-oh, I gotta use the washroom," Kel spoke, and promptly ran off.
Taking advantage of Kel's absence, Aubrey decided to pose an interesting question.
"So, ummm, you two are a thing now, right? Well...I definitely support you. It's just that no one ever told me that it was okay for a guy and a guy to get together. But I'm also wondering, is it okay for...a girl and a girl to get together?"
"Of course," Sunny replied.
Who is it?
"That's nice to hear," Aubrey said, smiling. "I just...well, ummm..."
She blushed quite deeply. "As an...'experiment', I kissed...a girl friend the other day. I think we both liked it. Not sure what her parents would think, though."
"Who cares what her parents think?" Basil replied quite boldly.
"Wow, Basil...never thought you'd grow so rebellious."
"You're my friend, Aubrey, and I want you to love the person you care about if it makes you happy!"
She was the one blushing now. "Ummm, thank you, Basil. I'll talk to her about it once I get back."
Sunny smiled. "Glad to help."
The two of them turned their heads as Hero's collided against the table with a thud.
"Looks like he passed out," Aubrey said.
"And then you know what the guy said?" Polly ranted drunkenly to an unconscious Hero. "He told me, he told me—his grandkids hadn't even visited him for over five years!"
From the looks of it, Polly was way out of her mind.
Sunny blinked multiple times. "...Maybe the Izakaya wasn't such a good idea."
***
Their friends stayed for three more days to enjoy the city, explore the fair, and even have a picnic together in the middle of the snow-covered flower field.
But life moved on, and everyone had a place to go back to. Hero and Basil both had college to worry about; Aubrey was trying to become a counsellor, while Kel was aiming for that basketball scholarship. Sunny had to keep working his job and pass his last term of high school.
Exam season for high school began and Sunny couldn't take his exams online. He had to go to a local high school examination center for each of his courses.
"Today's chemistry," Sunny said with a huge tone of resignation in his voice as he packed his writing supplies.
"Good luck, Sunny," Basil said. "Always remember the trends in the periodic table going from left to right, and up and down each column!"
"Thanks. I'm really worried about organic chemistry..."
"Well...it's okay. Even if you don't pass, I saw how hard you studied, Sunny. And you have a job now, so...it doesn't matter that badly. I'll always be proud of you for trying your best!"
Sunny blushed at those words of encouragement.
His heart leapt at Basil's smile. These days, all he could think of was spending the rest of his school-free life by Basil's side, seeing his smile every day when he woke up in the morning and when he went to bed at night.
Maybe I'll propose to you soon.
On his way to the exam center, Sunny's mind became filled with thoughts of how he would propose. He wanted to make it a truly special event.
Valentine's day was coming up in just under a month. That would be a perfect time to propose to him.
Come to think of it, what exactly happened to my mom and detective Jawsum?
I haven't heard any word from either of them since our last meeting.
He didn't really care what they were up to as long as they weren't in some major crisis, and he couldn't spare the effort to find out.
At the exam center, he filed in with a bunch of other students and took his assigned seat.
As he waited anxiously for the proctor to announce the beginning of the exam, his heart pounding in his chest, he realized—
I have to stop thinking about proposing to Basil for about two hours and focus on this piece of paper in front of me!
Chemistry, chemistry, chemistry, chemistry between me and Basil—
Ahhh, this is gonna be torture!
Then he heard the proctor say the word "start", and he immediately began writing.
Balancing chemical equations, calculating the enthalpy of reactions, drawing organic chemistry flowcharts, and explaining chirality occupied his thoughts for the next two hours. Along the way, intrusive thoughts came into his brain, making unwanted remarks and bad puns about the chemistry in his relationships.
He was sure that if mini-Something were still here, it'd be quipping at him left and right.
In spite of those setbacks, when he reached the final page of his exam, he was surprised to discover that he was already done the whole paper with still half an hour left on the clock.
Wow, that was a lot easier than I thought!
He spent the remaining half hour looking over his answers to every question to make sure they were all correct. By the time the proctor announced that time was up, he felt confident that he'd aced the exam.
Yes!
Sunny glanced around the room, wondering how all the other students felt. He looked around for any defeated faces to bolster his own confidence...or perhaps ruin his own by making him doubt his answers.
That guy over there looks like the exam gave him a rough time.
The girl sitting in front of me seems—
—Mari?
Sunny froze solid.
Her long black hair, the white dress she wore, even the way she carried herself as she walked up to hand in her paper—it was all too reminiscent of her.
When he caught a glimpse of her face, however, he knew that she wasn't Mari.
I...can't believe someone looks and dresses just like her.
It reminded me...for a moment...
Sunny sat there in his seat even after the proctor collected his exam.
A cold grief settled with him as he thought about how, if things had turned out differently, Mari might have sat in a spot just like this one to write her high school exams.
Though he'd moved on from the past, seeing such a passing image of his sister still brought a quiet sadness into his heart.
He had to let the feeling flow through him, even bringing tears to his eyes.
Mari...
No matter what, I still miss you.
Sunny stood up from his seat.
He was the last one to leave the examination room, long after the girl that looked just like Mari had left.
I still have to think about proposing to Basil.
~
I couldn't fit this anywhere in the text, but this would be something like what Hero said to Polly:
"Right after Mari died, Basil went to Sunny and tried to comfort him. Apparently he said and did some things to Mari that weren't the nicest, thinking he could make Sunny feel happy that way. As you can imagine, it didn't work, and when Sunny's mom found out she got really mad at Basil."
"Last time we met, Basil apologized really deeply for the things he did to Mari. We all forgave him. We understood that he couldn't have known better when he was twelve. Can you help us convince Sunny's mom to forgive Basil as well?"
Anyway, 1 chapter left of this fic!