It was another bustling day under the big top at the circus. Everyone was a flurry of activity because, in just a few days, they would be celebrating Fizz's 18th birthday. The excitement was palpable as preparations were in full swing – decorations were being crafted, presents selected, and invitations diligently sent out to everyone in town. The circus had a tradition of going all out for birthdays, and this time it was Fizz's turn.
Fizz strolled past the tent where the invitation cards were being made. Curiosity got the better of him, so he asked if he could have one to take a look. They happily handed him an invite.
As he examined the invitation, a thought occurred to him. For this special birthday, he decided he wanted to invite Emmy to the party. He was about to set off in search of her when he heard Blitzo's voice.
"Hey, Fizz, word has it there's some new, top-shelf booze that's just arrived from the Gluttony Ring. Let's see if we can nab some before they realize it's gone," Blitzo suggested, a mischievous grin on his face.
Fizz hesitated for a moment before politely declining, "Sorry, Blitzo, but there's somewhere I have to be right now."
Blitzo felt a pang of sadness as Fizz turned down his offer. "Maybe another time, okay?" Fizz reassured him.
As Fizz was about to leave, Blitzo unexpectedly grabbed him and ushered him into an empty tent away from prying eyes. Fizz couldn't help but express his annoyance, "What the fuck, Blitzo?"
With his back turned away from Fizz, Blitzo stood in silence for a moment before finally mustering the courage to ask, "Are you going to see them?"
Fizz was uncertain about what Blitzo was referring to, wearing a puzzled expression as he asked, "What are you talking about?"
Turning to face Fizz, Blitzo came clean, "Fizz, I saw you at the witch's house."
Fizz froze in fear upon hearing those words. He had not expected Blitzo to discover his secret visits to Emmy's house. With trepidation, he asked, "Y-you were following me?"
Blitzo, realizing he had made Fizz uncomfortable, began to panic, "Oh, shit, I'm sorry... I didn't mean to follow you, but... I was wondering where you were going all the time, and I wanted to see... But I swear that I didn't tell anyone. I just want to know... Who was it you were talking to?"
Fizz found himself in a quandary, unsure of how much to reveal to Blitzo, who seemed to already have some inkling of the truth. He mulled it over, thinking, "Should I tell him about Emmy?" Finally, he took a deep breath and said, "Okay, Blitzo... I'll tell you." He pointed a finger at Blitzo and added, "But promise me you won't tell anyone, okay?"
Blitzo's face broke into a reassuring smile, and he responded, "I promise. No one will know."
Fizz rubbed the back of his neck, gathering his thoughts. He began, "So... the person I was talking to is... another Imp kid."
Blitzo asked, "Okay, but when did this happen?"
"I've been speaking to them since you went to the Goetia House," Fizz admitted.
Blitzo seemed taken aback. "So... you've been talking to them for 10 years?"
Fizz nodded, confirming it. Then Blitzo grinned mischievously and inquired, "And... would their name happen to start with 'E' by chance?"
Fizz's expression showed his surprise at Blitzo's accurate guess. "Uh... yes."
Blitzo laughed heartily and said, "Hahaha! So that's your mystery crush that everyone was talking about!"
Fizz's face turned a bright shade of red, and he looked at Blitzo with embarrassment. Sweating and stuttering, he tried to clarify, "N-no, no, E-Emmy and I... are f-friends. N-no, I-i mean, s-she's just a friend. I mean..." He covered his face with his hands, sighing at himself for making a fool of himself.
Blitzo, still amused, reassured him, "So her name is Emmy. That's good to know. Thanks for the info." He smiled at Fizz's awkwardness and then continued with a teasing tone, "So, what does she look like? She must be sexy as hell if she got your attention."
Fizz looked down at his hands, playing with them nervously. "Well... I've never actually seen her."
"Huh?" Blitzo expressed his confusion. "So let me get this straight. You've been talking to a girl named Emmy for 10 years... but you don't know what she looks like?"
Fizz confirmed with a downcast expression, "Yeah."
Blitzo was puzzled. "How come, though? That kind of sounds strange, don't you think?"
Fizz struggled to explain Emmy's situation. "Well... she... kind of isn't allowed to leave the house."
Blitzo looked puzzled and questioned, "Why is that?"
Fizz clarified, "It's just that her mom thinks it's too dangerous to be outside."
Blitzo remarked, "Kind of sounds like what a strict mom would do."
"That's what I thought too," Fizz agreed.
They both lapsed into silence for a minute, but Blitzo broke the ice by asking, "So... what is she like, this Emmy girl?"
Fizz's face lit up with affection as he spoke about her. "Well... she's really smart, considering she's never been to school. She has a really big heart, she's sweet, silly at times, she has a beautiful singing voice, she can be shy at times, courageous, and she also has a cool side to her."
Fizz noticed Blitzo looking at him strangely and asked, "Uh... Blitzo, is something wrong?"
Blitzo snapped out of his trance and replied with a grin, "Oh, ho, nothing... she sounds kind of awesome."
Blitzo added, "I wish I could meet her."
Fizz pondered for a moment and agreed, "Yeah, me too."
Then Blitzo had an idea, "What if you invite her to the party?"
Fizz's eyes widened in shock, and he blurted out, "WHAT?!"
Blitzo hushed him quickly, saying, "Shh, keep it down. Someone might hear us." He glanced outside the tent to make sure they hadn't been overheard, and then turned back to face Fizz. "Blitzo, I can't ask her that... her mom said she's not allowed."
Blitzo persisted, "It's only for one day, Fizz. What harm would it do?"
Fizz remained unsure, and Blitzo tried to reassure him, "Tell you what... Why don't we have our secret private party, just the three of us? It might be good for her to get out of the house, at least it won't be overwhelming."
Fizz hesitated, saying, "I don't know, Blitzo... It sounds like a good idea, it's just..."
"Come on, Fizz," Blitzo urged. "I'm sure her mom won't kill you if you take her outside."
Fizz looked away from Blitzo and admitted with a blush and nervousness in his voice, "It's not that..."
Blitzo, intrigued, asked, "Oh... then what is it?"
Fizz stared at the ground, still blushing, and stammered, "It's just that... I'll finally see the face of the girl I've been talking to all these years... and I don't know if I'm ready to... without my heart going out of control."
Blitzo couldn't help but smile mischievously. "Oh, you really have the hots for her, don't you?"
"BLITZO!" Fizz shouted, thoroughly embarrassed.
It didn't help things when Blitzo burst into uncontrollable laughter at Fizz's reaction. He wiped a tear from his eye as he chuckled, "Sorry, Fizz... It's just I've never seen you like this... and to think it's a girl? Now, I really want to see her."
"Please... stop," Fizz pleaded with Blitzo.
"Okay, okay, I get it," Blitzo said, putting a comforting hand on Fizz's shoulder. "I'll let you go... Don't want to keep that 'girlfriend' waiting."
Fizz pouted and retorted, "She's not my girlfriend."
Blitzo playfully dismissed it, saying, "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say."
Fizz then turned and walked away but looked back at Blitzo, saying, "Wish me luck."
Blitzo chuckled and responded, "For you, it'll be easy." With that, Fizz waved at Blitzo with a smile and headed off to see Emmy.
A few hours passed, and the day gradually darkened, though it was still far from midnight. Fizz and Emmy continued chatting animatedly, but Fizz found his thoughts drifting back to the idea of inviting her to the party. He was snapped out of his reverie when Emmy called his name.
"Hey, Fizz?"
He returned from his thoughts, replying, "Huh... yes, Emmy?"
Emmy noticed his distraction and said, "You seem distracted today... Are you still thinking about the deal?"
Fizz looked away and admitted, "Yeah... kind of... but I don't want to talk about it... not yet, anyway. I still haven't made a decision yet."
A brief silence hung between them, but Emmy decided to change the subject. "Hey, Fizz... You want to know something? Apparently, my mom had two older brothers."
Fizz was surprised; for as long as he had known Emmy, she had only ever talked about her mom and herself. He was taken aback by the revelation that she had other family members. "Woah, really? So, you have uncles?"
Emmy confirmed, "Yeah... I found a bunch of old photo albums from my mom's childhood. Imagine my surprise when I found a family photo with her parents' names, hers, and her brothers'... I asked her about it, but she just had a sad smile on her face... I assumed that they passed away."
Fizz was intrigued. "Maybe... whatever happened to them is why she's so protective of you. I mean, it would make sense for your mom to want to keep you safe in the house."
Emmy agreed, saying, "Yeah... But, I do wonder, though... about what she was like as a kid and what led her to where she is... who she could have been before she found me... and what happened that was so bad that she barely talks about them."
Fizz was puzzled by one of her statements. "Wait... did you say 'before she found you'? So, you're not biologically her daughter then?"
Emmy gasped and nervously giggled. "O-oh... did I say that? I'm rambling like always, hehehe."
Fizz took a moment to understand what she meant and then asked, puzzled, "Are you... someone else's kid, then?"
"Y-yeah," she nervously replied, "Yes, I am."
Fizz's eyes widened, and he asked, "So... you're an orphan... just like me?"
Emmy continued nervously, "Yes, I am."
Fizz couldn't believe it. She was more similar to him than he had thought. He felt happy about that but also a little sad, wondering what kind of parents would leave an amazing girl like her.
Emmy apologized, "I'm sorry, Fizz. I didn't know how to tell you... Are you mad?"
Fizz looked at the floor and responded sincerely, "No, of course, I'm not mad... I mean, I'm surprised but not mad... But how come you didn't mention it before?"
"Well," Emmy explained, "the thing is... I guess I didn't really know how to tell you, and in a way... I felt like a loser if you found out."
"Emmy," Fizz said with a reassuring tone, "I could never think of you as a loser... But I guess we both have a lot more in common than we thought."
He then asked while rubbing his neck, "So... did they die?" Emmy answered, "I don't know."
"What?!" he exclaimed in shock. "What do you mean you don't know?"
Emmy then explained, "Well, my mom... found me in an alleyway in a basket with no name and no note... I was left all alone... I mean, there was nothing of theirs to know who they were or no way of finding them."
"Oh, I see," Fizz said, understanding her situation. He then nervously asked, "Do you... hate them for leaving you?"
Emmy replied, "No, not really... I barely knew them... but once I get out of here, I would go find and ask them why they gave me up... I'm sure it was a good reason or it could be a bad one... I just want to know, that's all... but I can't be mad at them... after all... I was able to meet my mom and... meet you."
Fizz blushed at her comment. He then mustered the courage to ask her, "Hey, Emmy?"
"Yes, Fizz?" Emmy responded.
Fizz took a deep breath to calm his nerves and asked, "Would you... come to... my birthday party?" There was a moment of silence, and Fizz continued, "I know you're not allowed to leave the house... but it's only for one day... plus it would be a secret party... just you, me, and Blitzo."
Emmy then said, "Fizz, I'm not sure." Fizz's heart sank, but he didn't give up.
"Please, Emmy," he pleaded, "it would mean the world to me if you came... and I really want you to meet Blitzo... like I said, it would be a secret party, just the three of us, please."
Emmy's hesitation wavered, and she finally said, "Okay... I'll go."
Fizz was flabbergasted, feeling like he was in a dream. "R-really... you'll come?"
"Yes," Emmy replied warmly, "if it's for you, then I would love to come to your party."
Fizz was beaming with joy at the thought of having Emmy at his party. He was about to express his excitement when Emmy added a condition, "But I have one condition... I want you to promise me that when you see me tomorrow... it won't change how you think of me."
Fizz was puzzled by what she meant, but he quickly agreed, "Yes, Emmy... I promise when I see you tomorrow... it won't change the way I think of you."
Emmy then said, "Good... I'm happy to hear that... I'm holding you to it."
"Don't worry," he reassured her, "I will."
As Fizz looked up at the darkening sky, he realized it was getting late. "Oh, shit, it's that late... I better get home." He then remembered the invitation card he had and thought, "Oh, Emmy, step away from the door." He knelt down and slipped the invitation card through the tiny gap under the door frame. "That's the invite to the party... I'll come up to get it, okay?"
"Okay, Fizz," Emmy responded. "I'll see you then."
Fizz said, "Yeah... I'll see you soon too... farewell for now," and with the widest smile, he ran back home. He couldn't wait to tell Blitzo the good news about Emmy. Little did he know that his happiness would come to an end.