Sunset fic

Eyes, they told him all he needed to know about how Sunny was feeling. Beautiful, incisive, inquisitive, windows to the radiant soul within, or at least that’s how his were before Mari died. Then the light broke inside and they became withdrawn and glossy, staring into the void and imagining a time when it didn’t hurt to live, a time when the sun shone brighter and the light in his life was still there. Then the truth came out and there was only one eye left, but that spark from before was back, dampened and on the verge of flickering out, but it was back. Hero was determined to never let that light be snuffed out, not again when everyone was together and at peace, like old times. It would never be the same, not without Mari, but maybe they could build something new together.


 It was tough for Hero to accept what happened. So many sleepless nights staring at the ceiling while the truth of what really happened ate away at his very being, sat firmly in the pit of his stomach like a lead weight that tore his insides up as it sunk deeper and deeper. But it got easier to bear in time. It wasn’t gone, it would never be gone, but it did get lighter and less of a blemish on his psyche, especially when he went to visit Sunny. Hero was sure to visit Sunny every chance he got when his schedule would permit it, having nobody but his mom to talk to when settling into a new home was an experience Hero was well acquainted with. The quiet boy was never one for conversation, but Hero didn’t need it. Just sitting beside him while watching tv was more than enough to let a silent, understanding healing begin to sew their relationship back together. It’s what they were doing right now, shoulder to shoulder and legs sprawled out over the couch just like they used to do when they were younger.


It's a while before Hero realizes his head is resting on Sunny's shoulder. It's a while longer before he realizes Sunny is resting his head on Hero's, sighing softly as the stress disappears from their bodies and both boys melt into the other. It was easy for Hero to forget about the endless exams when he was with Kel Aubrey and Bssil, but Sunny made the whole world outside of the studio apartment wash away under the deluge of careful thoughts and ambient cartoons.


He couldn't blame Sunny and Basil for what they did, not when thinking about the stress Sunny was under when it happened; he hid it so well that Hero was oblivious to it. That made it easier to handle the painful truth that Mari was gone forever, taking it piecemeal and moment by moment. Besides, Sunny had already paid for his mistake enough, wasting away for four years on top of, well…


"Sunny, can I see your eye?"


The somber boy nodded, he was used to the routine by now. Hero couldn't help but check on the healing every time he was over, fussing over Sunny like Mari used to do. Kel and Aubrey loved to bring over silly looking eyepatches and have him wear them while they were over, and both liked to joke that Sunny would make a sick pirate captain this coming Halloween. Basil avoided looking at the right side of Sunny's face entirely, not able to face the reality of what he'd done, not yet anyway. It reminded Sunny of himself.


Hero was the only one who dared lift the patch up and see what was underneath. He told himself he had to as the big brother of the group, but that didn't make it any easier as his heart thumped heavily in his chest and he steeled himself to face the hideous truth underneath. Sitting all the way up Hero reaches both hands over to gently cup Sunny's pale face, taking a deep breath to steady himself as he brushed Sunny's dark hair to the side.


"Heh, we need to get you a haircut one of these days." Hero weakly joked, shooting Sunny that same charming smile that worked on everyone else. "Unless you plan on growing it out, I'm sure Aubrey has a hairband or two she can spare."


"Maybe." Sunny answers. They both knew this was just preamble to the main event, a way to break the ice and make what was to come easier to deal with. That knowledge doesn't make it any easier however.


"Well, I'll make sure to mention it next time I see her." Hero assures him, taking a deep breath as he rests a nervous thumb on the patch. It wouldn't be anything intense, just a quick peek to see what it was looking like six months from the incident. Hero could do this. He pulls the eyepatch up, letting it rest on Sunny's brow so he could put it back quickly after taking a look at Sunny's damaged eye.


He cradled Sunny in his arms while the ambulance came, trying anything he could think of to slow the bleeding as it gushed down Sunny's cheek to puddle on the hardwood floor beneath, whispering to the sobbing and screaming Sunny that everything would be okay. He didn't want to believe the doctors when they said the damage was extensive, but his denial of the truth didn't fix it. A yawning, weeping red void of gore that burrowed straight through Sunny's head greeted him. Misshapen and hideous and disgusting, yellowed and broken teeth lined the inside of the socket and seemed to spiral on into infinity while horrific sores bled dried and fresh blood in equal measure. The sharp, mettalic scent of blood on Hero's nose and tongue brought him right back to the moment he walked into Basil's room that terrible night and made his eyes water. The blood rushed to Hero's head and the hammering of his heart in his ear drowned out the tv completely.


"Hero…" Sunny starts, watching as Hero's smile fades into a morose frown that tugged at his heartstrings. "It's not your fault." It was the truth, and the same thing Hero told Sunny when he was still in the hospital, but Sunny knew well the power guilt could hold over a person.


Putting the eyepatch back down with trembling fingers, Hero pulls Sunny into a tight, heavy hug as the tears begin to drip down his face. Maybe if he was paying more attention,he would have noticed the signs. He could have gone over to Mari's house for the recital, he could have asked Mari to be softer on Sunny, he could have asked Sunny what was wrong, he could have tried to reconnect with Sunny those four years, he could have bust down Basil's door instead of waiting, he could have woken ran to the bedroom a bit faster, he-


"I know…" Hero breathlessly sobs, burying his face into Sunny's shoulder as all that guilt and pain crashes into him like a tsunami, just like when Mari died. "I know but…"


"I know." Sunny answers, returning the hug with as much force as he could manage, hands gently rubbing Hero's back while the bigger boy let go of the emotions bottled up since last time. Sunny's shirt grew damp with tears and snot, but he didn't care. "I know."