Sunny was laying on the floor, several dvd cases balanced precariously on his stomach in the shape of a house. Kel was sitting beside him, trying to add another to the mountain. Aubrey was sitting on the couch, spectating. There were only one more day before christmas. Everyone would be busy the next day, Christmas eve, so they were spending some time together tonight. They were all wearing ugly christmas sweaters Kel's mom had made for them and were planning to spend the night watching corny christmas movies and playing dumb games. Somehow, Kel had managed to convince Sunny to let him build a christmas dvd castle on him. It was going surprisingly well, despite them having to start over three times. At first, Aubrey had made fun of them and laughed when it fell over, but now she seemed just as invested in seeing how big they could possibly make this castle as Kel was. Sunny was good at staying still, he breathed slowly so it didn't move the cases around too much. Basil and Hero had gone out to do some last minute shopping so this was as good of an activity as any to keep their attention for the time being.
Kel added another dvd case, holding the most focused expression Sunny had ever seen on his face before. Aubrey leaved forward a little as the dvd castle swayed precariously and all of them silently prayed it wouldn't fall. When it didn't, Kel silently pumped his fist in victory, then grabbed the next dvd case, looking for a place to put it. Before he could start placing it down, the door swung open and a gust of cold air filled the room. Magically, the dvd case castle stayed standing. Basil and Hero walked through the door, their coats and scarves dusted with snow. Hero shut the door and for a moment, Basil stood there, processing what he was looking at. Sunny had to try his hardest not to laugh at his confused expression, they had made it this far and he was not about to ruin the castle.
Basil let out a slow sigh, "We left you alone for what," He looked at his watch, "Twenty minutes? And you've already done this?"
Sunny laughed, the dvd castle went tumbling to the ground and Kel whined, "Sunny!"
Aubrey laughed too, leaning her head back on the couch. Basil smiled slightly and carried the grocery bags to the kitchen with Hero before coming back out. Kel and Sunny were both picking up the mess.
"You guys are idiots," Aubrey insulted them but her smile gave away her true nature.
Basil came over and sat down to help them pick up, "I can't believe how you manage to do these things in such a short time frame," He sighed, "But at least you didn't break anything."
Sunny smiled, putting the dvd cases away before moving over to Basil. He sat beside him silently. He didn't know why, but he'd felt a strong urge to be near the flower boy recently. He felt nice whenever he was around him, he didn't understand why, but he didn't really care all that much. If he was happy around Basil then it couldn't be a bad thing. Basil smiled at him slightly, "We should go make some popcorn. I think Hero's putting the cookies in the oven right now."
Sunny nodded and they both stood up, walking to the kitchen together and ignoring whatever Kel and Aubrey had begun to bicker about now. Sunny subconsciously felt himself step a little closer to Basil, the blonde didn't seem to notice, but if he did, he didn't say anything. Sunny didn't know why he'd been feeling so clingy. Ever since they went to the fair he found himself taking any excuse to be near Basil, leaning into his presence but found that he couldn't bring himself to touch him like they usually did. Personally he could only describe the feeling he got when he was near Basil as "good nausea". He didn't understand the feeling at all, but he wanted to feel it. He liked the newness of it. He wanted to figure out what caused it, what made it feel different or spike. Maybe it was a normal feeling. He wouldn't know, he'd spent four years locked in his house. He'd have to ask someone about it sometime. The first person that came to mind was his mother, but he immediately vetoed the thought. He loved his mother, but they had never been close, even before what happened. So that was out of the question for him. He doubted Kel would know much about it, and he still didn't think he had the right to ask Aubrey anything. Maybe he could ask Hero? Hero was the eldest of them and had the most life experience so he'd most likely know what it was. Sunny pursed his lips, would Hero think he was weird for not knowing? He'd have to wait a little while.
Basil unpackaged the popcorn and put it into the microwave, "You alright Sunny?"
Sunny flinched in slight surprise, how long had he been standing there staring off into space? He nodded quickly, feeling slightly embarrassed.
"You've been quieter than usual," Basil looked at him with slight concern, "Is everything okay?"
Sunny didn't know how to answer. For some reason he felt like it'd be a bad idea to tell Basil about the feeling. He swallowed slightly, thinking up an excuse, "I've just been a bit distracted is all. I'm excited for Christmas, and the new year isn't long after that."
Basil smiled, "I'm excited too! My gifts are pretty much all prepared for you guys."
Sunny nodded, a small smile gracing his features, "Too bad I have to go home a few days after the new year."
Basil's expression immediately dropped and Sunny panicked slightly, he hadn't meant to upset him, "I-I'll be back for spring break though!" He rushed quickly, scrambling to find words to cheer up the blonde.
Basil seemed slightly surprised, but smiled, "I know, I know, sorry. You don't have to worry about me."
Sunny let out a slight sigh of relief, glad to see Basil smile again. Why had he gotten so worked up seeing Basil upset?
"Besides! That isn't for another week or two so we'll have plenty of time!" Basil smiles, "Not only that but after spring break is summer! So you'll be able to stay for longer. That is, if you visit for summer I mean."
Sunny nodded, "I definitely will! Getting down here is really cheap and me and my mother never really celebrate holidays so I can come down here basically whenever school is off."
"Oh right, I was meaning to ask about that," Basil leaned toward him slightly, "Is school difficult for you? I mean, since you were, y'know."
Sunny cringed, "I'm not too far behind haha..."
"You're lying." Basil squinted.
Sunny felt his eyes twitch ever so slightly, why was Basil so good at reading him? "I mean, well, I did do some learning during those years. You think my mom would just let me not do anything at all?"
"Define some."
"Jeez, I guess I maybe did some online school once a month maybe?" Sunny looked away sheepishly, what's with the pressure from Basil?
"That's not good Sunny! How are you doing in class right now then!?"
"Psh, why do you even care?" Sunny huffed, slightly annoyed.
Basil got a little bit closer, "I care about you is why. I want to know that my best friend is doing well! Is that so wrong?" He was practically pouting.
Sunny felt the strange feeling when Basil said those words and he looked away quickly. He knew Basil cared about him, so why did he feel so happy hearing Basil say he cared about him?
"I promise I'm not doing bad," He sighed, "The school has put me into a program that's made to help me catch up. I'm not bad at math or anything either so it shouldn't be too difficult to get where I need to be."
Basil backed away now, "Alright then. I believe in you! Do your best!" He smiled brightly, and for a moment Sunny felt almost dizzy.
He stood up quickly, feeling his face heat up, "I'm gonna go make sure Kel and Aubrey haven't destroyed anything!" He left quickly before the blonde could respond.
Basil was left standing there, slightly bewildered. Maybe Sunny wasn't feeling well, his face had gone all red before he left the kitchen. He'd have to check later.
In the living room, Aubrey and Kel were still bickering. Sunny decided to focus on their conversation to help himself calm down.
"No way!? You're spending Christmas Eve with your boyfriend?" Kel raised an eyebrow, "The whole point of Christmas is to spend time with family!"
Aubrey scoffed, "Christmas Eve isn't the same as Christmas. We won't be able to see each other on Christmas because we'll be spending time with our families, so Noah suggested we give each other our gifts the day before. Besides, it's not like my mom cares much anyways."
Kel huffed, "Your boyfriend seriously sounds like a wimp."
Aubrey chucked one of the couch pillows at him, "So? What's it to you! Ya jealous or something?" She teased.
Kel rolled his eyes, lifting his hand quickly to intercept the pillow, "Yeah right, I'm still just shocked you two are together."
"Oh please," She rolled her eyes as well, "Is it really that hard to believe?"
"A little bit."
She huffed, "Whatever. It's not like I would have dated anyone in this town anyways. Everyone knows each other too well it'd be weird and annoying."
"I'm not saying you would have ended up with someone from here. I'm just saying I didn't think a guy like that would be your type."
"Whatever." She sighed, she seemed super annoyed still for some reason but Sunny just figured it was because of Kel.
"What about you huh?" Aubrey stared at Kel, "When are you getting a girlfriend?"
Kel shrugged, "Dunno. I'm not really interested in all that anyways. I have better things to do. Besides," He smirked slightly, " with you as an example, girls are really annoying."
"Sexist pig!" She chucked another pillow at him as he laughed and blocked it.
Hero emerged from the kitchen, "The cookies are ready. They just need to cool and then we can decorate them."
"I've got the popcorn too!" Basil smiled, carrying out the bowls.
"Cool! Should I put the first movie on then?" Kel leaned forward, holding one of the pillows to his chest.
"Not yet!" Hero looked at Basil, "Will you go get the blankets from the upstairs closet? Oh and Kel, come help me make some hot cocoa."
Basil nodded and headed out of the living room, Kel followed Hero out as well, leaving Aubrey and Sunny alone in the living room.
They sat in awkward silence for a moment before Aubrey stood up and grabbed him by the back of his sweater, "Come with me."
Sunny hesitated, but followed her. She tossed him his coat and put on her own.
"Relax, I just wanna go for a walk and talk a bit. Don't look at me like I'm gonna murder you." She sighed, pulling her boots on.
"You probably could murder me," He shrugged but put on his coat and shoes, following her out.
Outside, the snow had stopped, an ankle deep layer left on the ground. They walked for a bit and Aubrey sighed, "I've been thinking about talking to you like this for awhile but now that I am I honestly don't know how to start."
He just listened silently in anticipation.
She took a slow breath, "In all honesty, I'm still pretty fuckin mad at you."
"Understandable," He said quietly.
"I talked to Hero recently," She admit, "I wasn't sure what to do. You're my friend, Sunny, but she was too y'know? I understand it was an accident, but I just can't let go of the fact that you kept it from us for so long..."
He sucked in a breath, unsure of what to say or how to respond. She didn't seem bothered though, just kept going.
"But I can't even imagine what it must have been like for you," She stopped walking, "I remember going to her funeral, seeing you there... I knew, even then, that it would consume you whole. I guess I was right but, I couldn't imagine the extent of it. Which makes sense since I didn't know the whole story, but still it mist have been beyond awful."
She swallowed slightly, then suddenly grabbed his wrist, "Come on."
"Where are we-" He realized before he even finished asking where they were going. She pulled him down the sidewalk and he followed with no resistance.
They walked down the path until they made it to the church doors. They paused outside, and for a moment Sunny considered asking Aubrey if they could go back. Before he could say anything though, she pushed the door open and pulled him inside with her. The church was dark, but the doors were always unlocked, open to the public at all times. They made their way past the rows of benches and to the door behind the stand.
Aubrey stopped once more at the door, "I haven't been here since that last time we all were here together." She hesitated, "It didn't feel right..."
Sunny looked at her wavering expression and this time, he reached out, pushing the door open. She needed him, he wouldn't abandon her. Now, he slowly pulled her out into the graveyard. They walked together over to the headstone with the words he knew rang ever true. They simply stared at the headstone, the only sound the wind brushing through the leaves.
Aubrey swallowed with difficulty, "I want to forgive you Sunny." She closed her eyes slowly, "I want to move forward. But I need to know why. Why didn't you tell us?"
He felt his eyes sting, his throat felt dry, what could he say to her? How could he explain what had happened?
Aubrey was unsurprised by his silence, "If you need time to work out your answer then that's okay." She sighed slightly, "It took me some time to get myself to have this conversation so I understand if you need sometime to get your thoughts in order."
He shook his head quickly, "I-I just-" He felt his throat close for a moment, and the tears welling in his eyes spilt, "I don't know how to explain."
She looked at him with ever so slightly widened eyes, now she herself couldn't find any words to say.
"I spent so long in that house." He choked on his words, "Letting myself live in a fantasy world that only caused more harm! I couldn't believe it was me who had done such a horrid thing so I didn't let myself believe it!"
His tears fell like waterfalls, the cold air freezing the streaks to his face, "I pushed it out of my mind! I forgot what had really happened! I let myself believe she had killed herself."
Aubrey's eyes widened even more now, and she took a step away from him.
He wiped his face roughly, "Basil held onto that guilt to protect me but I chose to forget it."
He hiccuped slightly, "I don't deserve your or anyone else's forgiveness."
Then, she punched him. Right in the stomach, he fell over and she grit her teeth.
"Quit it! Nobody think of you like that!" She had tears streaming down her face as well now, "You shouldn't mope about not deserving forgiveness! Us choosing to forgive you or not is our business! You don't get to tell us, to tell me what you deserve! You fucked up Sunny! Don't spend the rest of your life in self hatred. Work for the future you want! If you can't do that then you really don't deserve forgiveness!"
She breathed heavily, the frustration on her face apparent. "If you're unhappy then do something about it. Tell me. Do you want my forgiveness or not!?"
He looked up at her from the ground, he stood up, "Yes. I do."
"Then don't act like you don't." She looked away, "Don't give up on yourself Sunny. Basil, Hero, Kel, we all need you. Don't disgrace us, or her," She gestured to Mari's grave, "By saying you don't deserve us."
Sunny swallowed, "I'm sorry, Aubrey..."
She looked at him, "Yeah I know," She closed her eyes slowly, "And I'm going to forgive you, but I need you to promise me you'll start looking toward the future rather than staying in the past."
Sunny nodded slowly and she smiled, "Sorry for punching you by the way."
He smiled slightly, "It's alright, I think I needed that."
She smiled slightly, "Come on, we should head back. The others are probably waiting for us."
He nodded and they made their way down the street, walking in a comfortable silence. He wiped his face once more before they went inside.
The other three instantly rushed over to them as they came inside.
"Where were you!" Hero looked upset.
"We were worried!" Basil looked at them, "Don't just disappear like that!"
"Sorry," Aubrey smiled, "We just went for a walk."
Hero sighed, "Let someone know next time please."
"Will do," Sunny smiled, taking off his coat and shoes.
They all gathered at the couch once more, the lights were off and they put the first movie on, enjoying the rest of the night.