After coming home, the unusual weakness overflown her entire body so strongly that she barely managed to slide into her bed, eyes immediately closing.
That night Sol had a very strange dream. In fact it was so bizarre she stayed at home for another day.
I was in the house of my early childhood, being no more than five years old. All the colors around me were extremely saturated and the sounds crisping clear. I could heard my fathers voice explaining the backstory of my name, my mothers encouraging words while she tirelessly thought me how to master piano like she did, and from the distance, I could also hear a child’s laughter. At first, the scenery blended together perfectly, but for some reason my curiosity shifted to the laughter in the background, and that was when things clashed.
Now the view changed, as I seemed to have stepped into one of 19th century’s illustrations. Taking careful steps towards the organ that shined like the sun in the distant, I saw angels floating all around me, glimpsing at me and sharing innocent smiles with one another. Calm, peaceful feeling followed me until I reached the organ. As I sat down to play a melody, I found I couldn't remember a single note, no matter how hard I tried to recall it. My hands were right in the air, trying to push a song out, but all in vain. Then the same laughter followed, only now slightly louder, indicating it was no longer at a distance. I could sense a presence on my left side and as I turned to see who it was, I saw Haven. She however, was not sharing an eye contact and would only stare in front, blurring the organ out altogether. I felt a nauseous feeling in my throat as I went ahead and touched her resting palm on the chair we both shared. At this the organ disappeared, along with the angels and the calmness, and at once I knew it was only a nightmare in disguise.
Now I was alone, standing in an absolute darkness, not a sound left for me to notice. It seemed a few moments passed like this, then suddenly, Haven rapidly approached me, as if she were flying across the dark space only to stop right in front of my face. Frightened, I stared at her expression in bewilderment. Her whole body was covered in thin layer of ugly scarring, while surrounding space was getting warmer and warmer until she stood in the middle of blazing fire. I knew she was not human, at least not underneath. She was the representative of the ultimate evil. With her eyes glittering she opened her mouth and formed a question, ‘havin’ a rough day?’ however not with her voice but with that of the clerk I saw in the convenience store. Scared to the very bones that still kept me glued together, I nervously laughed, and when I uttered laughter out I realized I was the one laughing trough out the entire dream.
It took her a few minutes of useless lying in the bed, to properly digest the fact that she woke up with tears following the predetermined path of her cheeks. What precisely was happening with her body, mind or spirit was beyond her reasoning, and the only thing she could do was to leave the tears to flow, while she blankly started at the ceiling, flashing memories of the past came hitting her like a train.
She saw images of trauma caused by her childhood friend Haven, she also saw her enormous zeal for playing piano that now felt like something taken from a previous lifetime, and she saw her brother sacrificing his own name for her, so that she could be the only one that shines like the sun he was supposed to become.
This made her eyes tear up again, as it was trough her father that she grasped the truth behind her and her brother’s name.
She was once called Luna and her brother Sol, as a result of her parent’s belief that each of them could shine trough a course of a 24hour span. Each taking it’s own position on the sky and complimenting each other. But because of her brother’s sudden death, drowning in the lake behind their own house, they took his name and attach it to her, as the sun is still carrying more power than the moon. And because of this knowledge, she felt a sense of responsibility to be the best child her parents could possibly have. She wanted to prove that she was the best, even if it meant she lost a part of her true self.
In the spirit of this burden she felt she had to carry out, Sol sacrificed happiness even before she could have a chance to really discover it. The mother taught her everything about appreciation of music, piano and importance of family bond, while the father gave her deeper understanding of her roots, knowledge about the mythological world, but mostly patience, which according to him was, ‘the virtue one needs to exercise the most.’
One time, when Sol was still a child, she secretly sneaked into her mother’s little practice room, or sanctuary as she call it, and started pressing piano keys with a specific intention: to imitate her mother.
She watched her many times before, in a concert or in their home, swiftly playing the piano like the keys were her extended fingers. After a certain dose of admiration and a great memory, she replayed the same melodies as the one who brought her to life did. Maybe this hidden genius flowed in her bloodstream as her mother was a pianist herself, or maybe she was extremely gifted in imitation, either way, the talent she clearly possessed had literally made her parents breathless. At this both of them encouraged her to take music more seriously and it wasn't long before her mother’s instructions begun, which meant fun times for Sol.
She quickly discovered that her comfortable spot lied in portraying religious music, and neither of parents stood in the way. It didn't matter the fact that her mother played jazz and that the only exposure to anything religion oriented was her father’s interest in the mythology. All it mattered, for all three of them, was that they started to move forward into life, while leaving death behind.
Soon enough the word, of this remarkable talented child, filled the town and eventually reached the only church that was present there.
Sol’s family had no interest in following the path of Christianity and it was all due on the behalf of the locals, and her eager mother that she was arranged exposure trough playing simple tunes on church’s organ.
Everything looked smooth, the future promising, until one day when her new friend showed on horizon, and shut the promising part out of her life.
Haven was average looking and absolutely nothing stood out on her except for two things. It was a fact that this girl was at home in church, as her father was a pastor, and it is needless to say that she was very devotional to God. The second more subjective trait, however still a fact to Sol, was that Haven held a certain glimpse of energy Sol could not pinpoint to anything familiar, but it nevertheless gave her a sense of fear, which she strangely enjoyed experiencing.
Influenced by her friend, Sol became deeply faithful, often also been graced with visions of Christ appearing in front of her. Trough religion, these two nine years old girls connected, with no force strong enough to break their bond. But after all it wasn't meant to last.
Haven was getting jealous by day over her miraculous talent, on always being kind and down to earth despite hearing constant praise, and mostly over her extremely beautiful appearance that seemed to glow from within.
Haven never felt so small and insignificant, so her whole focus switched on violating the light that lived in her talented beautiful friend.
***
The sound of the buzzing phone broke of the revisited images of the past, and to be completely honest, Sol was glad it did or she would get too deep to even stand up.
The display showed there were fifteen missed calls since last night and seven messages. All came from her three friends, concerning over her sudden leave from the previous day. She hesitated for a bit before she called Saint to excuse her for yet another day, half pretending to feel sick.
She knew very well that this humble girl would be the easiest to deal with in terms of giving little to no explanations at all. There were actually quite a few times when Sol turned blind eye over her gift of reading people, as it made her life a tad easier, and that day was a minor example of her trickery.
Outside the foggy autumn morning was evolving into a warm sunlight and trough her puffy eyes she saw a glimpse of hope. For some undefinable reason she wanted to see that clerk from
the night before again. When Sol locked eyes with the girl she felt something so familiar but so distant at the same time, that she couldn't help but want to feel it again. Perhaps all she wanted was to be certain it wasn't just her apparent exhaustion playing tricks on her.
Sol put on a decent outfit consisting of a white shirt, black velvet dress with black tights, Chelsea boots and a long coat in the light shade of grey. She wanted to look presentable like she always had, except the night before where she was unexpectedly caught unprepared.
With long strides across the relatively empty streets, that would lead her past the flower shop down to the desired convenience store, a few thoughts rumbled over her head.
Sol now firmly believed that this girl possessed something different than the rest of the herd and that it was for this very reason that made her mind act crazy to follow down the same path as yesterday.
She sure wasn't going on the verge of madness, or was she?
Just as she was passing by the flower shop, a pair of women entered the store like it was never even closed. This made Sol stop for a second to digest the fact that her grandmother’s shop apparently never went under the mourning period.
What is this, she thought as she approached to unravel the confusion. Once inside, she could see the business blooming just like it always had. The smiling pair of women eyed nice bouquets of lilies and roses – that kind that one leaves at the entrance of a wealthy home – and continued to spread the chatter across the store. The warmth from their vibe was plastered onto Sol’s stomach, making her forcefully craft a smile and pass greetings to the costumers. As she watch them leave a moment of silence passed before a voice spoke.
‘So you must be Sol, right?’
And like the whole world was put into a box for amusement just to watch her reactions, there she was. That same girl she wanted to meet with.
‘Who are you?’ asked Sol.
‘This is not how this goes,’ said the mystery girl leaning with both of her hands on counter making a forceful start of their conversation. ‘One doesn't answer a question with a question. Its only fair that you answer first.’
‘Yes I am Sol,’ she said waiting for the true face to peak trough the girl’s mask. ‘More importantly, what are you doing in my flower shop?’
At this a small giggle was heard from the girl, making her appear almost inhuman.
‘This,’ she replied while patting the counter desk, ‘is definitely not yours. At least not for the time being.’
‘What do you mean? This is my grandmother’s shop and now it obviously belongs to me.’
From the back of her jeans pocket, the girl brought out a piece of paper now severely crumpled and handed it over. ‘Look, I knew your grandmother very well, and this is something she explicitly asked for me to carry out’, proceeding to cut the mix of differently colored carnations she arranged would best fit into one of the empty vases.
Sol stepped closer to the counter that turned into working desk, hearing only the scissors cut trough dead greenery while she slowly read this apparent will left by grandmother, bewildering her on spot. ‘...I am sure my time is running out and as you are the only one I trust I have a favor to ask of you. If you could possibly take care of my flower shop until my granddaughter Sol becomes strong enough on her own, I will be forever grateful. Here is the key and you have my full permission to work in the shop. I trust you fully.’
There were no words left to voice out. It was clear as the bright sky that was illuminating the autumn weather outside that this letter of some sort, truly belonged to her grandmother. There was even the distinct characteristic in signature of putting space between syllables in her name only she was capable of producing. Sol knew her handwriting by heart and in no way this implied on being an act of fakery. Beside her name, there was also a bloodstain in the shape of a fingertip, indicating as a stamp or guarantee. Grandmother sure was thorough and obviously very sure of this decision to take trust in a complete stranger, Sol thought. The thing that strangely hurt the most was not the unexpected will or the uncomfortable encounter with this girl, but the fact that it was stated that she trusted this outsider twice on the same page. Sol knew very well that she was never trusted this much while living with the old lady, and it also seemed that there was more to her than just a label of simplistic thinking.
Flipping the paper around, Sol looked at the girl who was immersed in the act of flower arrangement. Looking her objectively, thoroughly, she couldn't comprehend how blunt this girl in front of her was, and how she couldn't shake the feeling off that she was indeed telling the truth. There were no lies beneath her exterior actions, no underlying intentions. This stranger wanted to be of help, either out of obligation to the will or maybe out of returning the favor from the past. It seemed almost surreal, but it was the only reality. The reality Sol needed to accept.
‘Unexpected, right?’ said the girl, forming her slight lopsided smile on her otherwise beautifully designed face.
‘It sure is,’ Sol sighted, placing the paper back on the counter. ‘Also, why is there only one blood stamp? Shouldn't there be one of ours as well?’ This unprepared question slipped trough her lips louder than expected, but in return the girl didn't even flinch at the proposal.
Stopping the task, the girl swiftly held scissors in one hand, separating both blades and pressing only the sharp point against her index finger. The blood immediately surfaced and after a moment of observation she pressed her finger down on the paper, right by the grandmother’s deep red circle. Sol watched this in silence, preparing to poke at her own finger, when suddenly the girl stretched to grab her by the wrist and roughly cut her finger, much deeper than hers. It was in fact a proper cut, making Sol produce a voice of discomfort. Nevertheless the girl pressed her finger on the paper for her, leaving a rather ugly mark next to two of them. All of this procedure was run out methodically like nothing happened.
‘Here,’ she said while cleaning the scissors blade with a nearby cloth, offering the will to Sol to take it, ‘now its official, no backing down.’
Sol shook her head indicating she doesn't need this paper, and rather stuck at the act of sucking her freshly made wound on her finger, gazing at the girl in disbelief. Up until this moment all of her moves were so smooth to the point of annoyance, without a hint of hesitation.
‘Oh, by the way, I’m called Min by my friends,’ said the girl.
‘What about those who aren’t friends?’
Min smiled and tilted her head towards direction outside, where the costumers chatted over the fiery yellow and red dahlias presented in front of the store. It was as if she knew something about her past or her future that was yet to evolve.
‘Well after this we really don't have much choice but to become one.’ Looking back at her, with those piercing eyes, she said, ‘so, what do you say?’
‘You have a point, though I must say we are quite ...different.’ Said Sol in a rather submissive tone. She picked on girl’s dangerous vibes since the funeral and this time around was no exception. It was her best bet to be extra polite to Min from this point onward, if this was indeed to be turned into a friendship.
‘I don't know what you define under different but I can only sense that being different is superior to being average,’ she paused for a brief moment for her words to really sink in, gazing more intently into Sol’s eyes. ‘Also you seem to enjoy playing a weak person, but inside you, you have so much fire. There is so much fire and this is what I saw at the funeral, and today as well. So you are as much different as I am, maybe even more.’
The bell by the door was heard, and the new costumer stepped inside, walking right towards the long desk by the corner with neatly placed bonsai trees, cacti and other potted plants.
Sol’s mind entered a perplexing state enabling her to move from the spot at the counter, barely noticing the costumers question about one of the plants.
Min quickly moved to the lady in need of help, explaining everything in a fi
rm, knowledgeable manner, never forgetting to flash her lopsided smile. It was less than a minute when she stood by Sol again.
‘Just leave this to me. I’ll take care of everything, I promise.’
‘You are right,’ said Sol, grounding her mind, ‘I will also try and trust you, for the sake of my grandmother.’
Slightly tapping her hand against Sol’s left shoulder, Min added ‘I hope I can trust you too.’
‘Of course you can!’ loud voice made their costumer raise eyebrows at them.
The girl leaned in so very close that Sol could feel her warm breath graze her face. ‘Good, because someday, you might need to return the favor.’
CHAPTER TWO
IN HELL NO ONE IS LAUGHING
For the next few weeks a rather dull routine took place in Sol’s life, until something peculiar occurred to throw this familiar path off the tracks.
Everyday she would drag her body across the house to get ready for school, which was steadily coming to an end. And even when the end was so near, becoming freer with each hour, she was time and again caught in a mentally draining state. The only thing that kept her going forward and not sleeping trough it all was a form of obsession she recently plunged into. Like a stalker, she would impatiently count the minutes on the clock at school to go to the flower shop again and again. Her odd behavior was noticed even by her three shallow friends, who kept hearing the same excuse of, ‘I’ll be going home earlier.’ Luckily for Sol, they never figured out about this little craving she gained.
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