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The sun was setting over the little lake that they were resting at, and the birds were slowly waking up and starting to sing, Rena was smiling at the friend that was sleeping beside them, they had been friends for millions of years it felt. Their friendship had started from when the first trees were planted, from when the fish first started to lay eggs, from before the sky set for the first time, from before times started, from before the cosmos and universe was a thing. And in all that time, Rena Via Fisher, had been in love with their friend, and they knew this was gonna be forever, because they would never tell the boy, who so peacefully was lying in their lap, how much their heart desired for him.
Rena looked at his face for a bit, he was smiling in his sleep, and deep down in his sleep. It had been a long day, and Rena didn’t wanna disturb him, so they just relaxed and watched the wild life that surrounded them. They were out looking for his mom, she had disappeared, and everyone after 5 months had given up on finding her, but he would never give up, what he said to them before they left the town, which neither had tried before.
They looked down not at Jay, but at the dress they were wearing, it was a pinafore skirt, as Jay had exclaimed when they had called it a “long apron”
“No, no, no, jeez, how can I be friends with you so uneducated? No, it’s a pinafore, and this, as you call a “fluffy shirt” is called a pirate shirt, in most people's mouths. It’d look awesome on you!”
They missed the time they would joke around. After the disappearing, it was like a light turned off in Jay, and it was rare they saw him smile, ever.
They started humming wellerman, which was their both favourite song, no way around that, how could it not be? They wanted back to the simpler time where they might have had a shot with Jay, or the time the world was seen in a greater vivid colour, and they would dance around in the rain, laughing. But that was the past. Jay was now the main character of his story, and they were just the character helping when it was convenient. Not an actual friend. They felt their shoulders shake as the tears started dripping down. They knew when this was over, they’d be long lost in the memories of a quieter time. Jay would be the hero, and they wouldn’t become a significant person in his life, they had to get over it, and be strong for him. He had lost his mother. Not for death. But for the far far part of the brain. For forgetting. And maybe they had lost both their parents in that shipwreck so long ago, at least they knew they were dead.
Rena shifted a bit, and wiped the tears that were strolling down their cheeks. This was neither the time of place, it never was. They looked down and smiled at Jay, who was still asleep, and started singing instead of humming, just a near silent lullaby, soon may the wellerman come, with tea.. they kept singing, not noticing the eyes glinting that looked up at them.
Jay had been awake long enough to have noticed his best friend crying, but didn’t wanna say anything, and when they started singing, he felt everything wash away, and just heard their voice, he was tempted to sing in but didn’t. He couldn’t wait to go home with this person in his arms, this wonderful human. He wanted to get up and dance around with them, but he had a mission, he had to find his mom, and he had to bring her home. He didn't know why, but he had to, he couldn’t just give up
“Sir.. I regret to inform you.. the men found a body, at the lake earlier this day, we recognised the clothes as being the ones your wife was last seen in”
“NO!” He abruptly sat up, starting to cry, tears never ending coming out of his eyes. They couldn’t have found his mom, the body had been unable to recognise, she was out here somewhere. But why did she leave him? Why did she leave him here, all alone.
Rena looked shocked at first by the sudden yelling, but hastily crawled the few steps there were between them and embraced him, they didn’t know what ahd triggered this.. crying, but wanted to help, but didn’t know how.
“It’s gonna be okay! Shh, it’s gonna be okay” they just sat and rocked him back and forth a bit, and he slowly calmed down, and just leaned up against them.
they sat like that for a while, just intertwined with each other, Rena hearing their heart beat skip sometimes when they looked at Jay. They sighed, this was truly happiness, sitting like this, with the man they loved, it couldn’t get better, not as long as they were just friends.
“I love you” they formed the words with their mouth, knowing it’d be the only way to ever say it, they couldn’t say it out loud, they weren’t good enough for him.
What Rena hadn’t realised yet, was that they formed the words, but their vice ever so low said them too, and Jay now realized the exact feelings his best friend had for him, and he couldn’t wait to say them too, and he was gonna when he noticed something in the lake that made him stand up, and blindly walk into it.
The lake was known for having holes where you would sink, sink to you death, and even seeing the medallion your mom had with a picture of you and her in it, you should be careful, but eh wasn’t, he stepped right down in a hole as he got his fingers locked on the medallion, and just looked at it, while sinking, deeper and deeper down. But Rena noticed, and felt the horror fill them, now they were gonna lose him too, right? Jay hadn’t realised yet, how he was sinking to his death, and Rena was frozen from horror.
Jay with a smile looked up, his mom could impossibly be dead if he had found this here, but the smile faded away fast, seeing the face of his best friend, still not aware of the situation, and tried to step forward, only to realise the situation, he had so many times heard about people dying this way, and was not gonna be one of them, he looked around for anything to grab to pull himself up, and his eyes fell on the rope they had brought with them, and looked at Rena, preparing to try and get them out of the shock state they were in, but their eyes had followed his and was already working on making a noose he could hold while they pulled him in.
Rena tossed the end out to Jay and he took it, holding it with both hands, and got ready, the mud had swallowed his whole foot up to the knee and the water was at level as his throat.
Rena started slowly pulling him in, and at first they couldn’t see any change but slowly, as slowly as a snail, he was getting closer to the shore, his foot still being in the mud, and not moving yet, as he tried his best to get it free, and with a loud swoop, he got free, and swam up shore real quick, where Rena had started shaking, out of shock, they had nearly lost their best friend.
Jay quickly ran to them and sat her down, having his arm around her, not knowing what to do, he had never seen them cry while they knew he was awake, and he wasn’t that used to crying people, and for a bit just sat there awkwardly, when they looked at him, their eyes filled with something he’d never seen before, well yes, once, n the wedding picture of his parents.
He missed the time they actually liked each other, but oh well, love was a myth, right? He was doubting when he looked at Rena, they looked so in love that it hurt them, and before he got time to think about it, he kissed them, and they kissed him back. Maybe he had lost his mother, but he just gained something he could never describe. He, in short terms, fell in love with the side character