(A/N: Hey all! I'm really sorry for the late update! Since I'm in my senior year, I had to focus on school. (Mostly because I struggled with some subjects.) I finally found some time to write the third chapter though! I apologize in advance if the next chapter will take so long as well. The finals are coming up, so yeah. At least around June, I will have more time and I will try to update regularly then.^^ Also thank you so much for your sweet comments! It really makes me happy and makes me want to continue this fanfic instead of dropping it. ;w; With that aside, enjoy this chapter~)
Darkness.
Marco was surrounded by darkness. He could not see a thing, even though his eyes were adjusting to the dark. The only thing he could see was himself, though that wasn't an easy task either. No sound could be heard as well from where he was standing. It was as if he was all alone in a void. Even when he turns around or take small steps, it felt like he was going nowhere and nothing will appear. He was even swinging his arms around like an idiot, but the only thing he touched was air. He couldn't even remember how he ended up here in the first place.
"Just… what's going on?"
He mumbled in confusion to himself. There was no way Star would've brought him to this kind of place. Unless she did it by accident, which could be a possible reason. Still, it's no use to think about what might be the reason. He got to recall what happened before being in this strange place. What actually happened yesterday? He remembered going to that blood moon ball and he danced with Tom. After their dance, he made Tom extremely furious. Luckily before he got hurt, Star helped him out and they went home. Star scolded him a bit, but that was all. Soon after that, he went to bed.
Was this Tom's doing then? Maybe this was his revenge? He had his outburst yesterday after all. However, that's no reason to dump him in the middle of nowhere. At least, he hopes that Tom is kind enough to not do something like this. If he sees Tom, he must absolutely apologize for… insulting him. Unless he's here already. He suddenly got chills just thinking about if Tom might be here, watching him. Well, there's only one way to find out. He cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted Tom's name.
"Tom, are you here?"
He listened carefully if there was any response, but no. He heard nothing at all. He shouted once more, but this time louder and more desperate. Once again he heard nothing. Maybe he was really all alone here. Just considering the fact that he might be all alone here forever made him laugh out of disbelief.
"This can't be real like? I don't even have a phone with me to contact Star! No wait, maybe a phone would be completely useless in this place. Wherever this might be. Will I stay here forever? Will I even survive that?"
His thoughts were accelerating inside his mind. Meanwhile, his breathing became more rapid, more shallow. He wanted to tell his mind to shut up, so he could breathe, but it didn't shut up. He felt like he was almost out of breath, so badly that he could collapse any minute. His heart was hammering in his chest as if it wanted to leap out of his chest. Like he was running away from a murderer. This has to be a nightmare, that is the only reason he could come up with.
"What if no one will find me? What if I somehow got erased from existence? Breathe. What if I starve here? Will there be someone out there to help me? Breathe. How can I survive here without anything? What about school? About karate? About mom and dad? About S-"
"My my… You seem to be in a quite… devastating state. Calm down, boy. Take some deep breath."
Just hearing someone else voice, which sounded overly familiar, made him feel much more relieved. It did help him calm down a bit, but his breathing still comes in gasps. It took some minutes and some breathing exercises he learned from karate to fully calm down.
"Who are you? Where are you? No, more importantly, where am I?"
The voice chuckled loudly at those questions. Marco listened carefully where it came from, but it felt like the sound was everywhere, yet nowhere. Wait, he heard this kind of chuckling before. It sounded really familiar, yet it's not from someone he personally knows. Her voice sounded feminine, so it could be a woman. Did he meet this woman before? He doesn't really recall anyone who could have magic powers like Star. Wait, so she could be the reason he's here? What does she want from him?
"I can see you have a lot of questions in your mind, but you know the saying. Curiosity killed the cat. So, don't think too much about it. Still, to relief your curious mind, I will answer some questions. I go by many names, but you can call me Reiko if you so desire. We met before and we'll meet again. I only visited you today to deliver a… well let's say, a message. So listen carefully."
There was a pause. It was as if she was waiting for Marco to spits his ears or something. Well, before he could say anything, he will let her finish. He got absolutely no clue what was happening and what is about to happen. However, instead of bombarding her with questions like an interviewer, he will keep quiet for now.
"Once the Red Rose starts to bloom, embrace the power of the Black Goat. Pain and power come hand in hand, being together when the snow melt and leaving one behind after the storm. Don't let the petals fall in the meantime, only then true happiness will come."
"Hold on, hold on. Is this some kind of riddle or prophecy? What are you-"
Not waiting for Marco to finish his sentence, a bright light suddenly shined the whole void. Everything turned from black to white in a flash. It was as if Marco was looking directly at the sun when it's only ten feet away. He quickly blocked his eyes with his arms out of protection, hoping the light wouldn't blind him.
"-co! Marco!"
Marco snapped his eyes open, only to be greeted by the sunlight coming from his window and Star standing next to him, wrapped around in lights. He slightly grunted and threw his blanket over his head, wanting to hide away from the blinding light. He doesn't exactly remember what he dreamt about again, but it somehow felt important.
"Marco, if you don't get out of bed. I will eat your breakfast~"
xxx
"AAARRRGGGGGG!"
Tom threw his pillow against the wall out of frustration. After trying to get some sleep, he hoped to wake up realizing everything was just a nightmare. He still can't believe that Star's friend is his soulmate. He won't accept this. There must be a way out of this. Like that one saying about "have fate without destiny". They might be fated to meet each other, but they are not destined to stay together. If he could not escape from this fate, he will just go to an alternate universe where he could date Star again. There must be some way to get to another universe. Though some may say that he could destroy the multiverse that way, but well, what could be worse.
The pink bunny, Marshmallow, jumped towards him and just seeing the sight of her made him feel warm inside. She's just too adorable to stay mad after all. He crouched down and held his hand out so Marshmallow could hop into his hands. He petted his favorite bunny and smiled kindly at it. Yes, fluffy bunnies are his cure. He sighed softly and sat back on his bed.
"Maybe we should start off as... friends …"
Just using the word 'friends' already gave him goosebumps. He is absolutely not looking forward to that. Maybe he should ask Brian for advice, he's his life coach after all. He asked one of his servants to bring Brian to his room.
"You called for me, Tom?"
Tom gestured for Brian to sit down and explained the situation to him. He also slightly apologized for his behavior yesterday night. He knows he shouldn't get so furious. Sometimes he wishes that he could use magic to make his anger issues disappear. However, he knows there's no easy way out than working on it by himself.
"Well, how about I help you with motivation? If you can spend three hours with Marco without losing your temper, you can have this graduation badge. It shows another accomplishment of your anger management. That's another step of being anger free."
Brian offered a kind smile and showed the badge with an image of a sun on it. This badge already motivated Tom to accept this challenge. He glanced down at Marshmallow and then back at Brian. He remembered the time he danced with Marco, which was surprisingly pleasant. Besides, he needed to apologize to him anyways. At least now he got an excuse for himself to maybe get along with Marco. Well, if he gets along with Marco, that means he could get along with Star again. He really missed her after their breakup…
Tom petted Marshmallow rougher now, trying to pet his sadness away. He doesn't want to cry again. He doesn't want to relive that moment again. He softly shook his head to bring him back to the present. He looked at the badge and then smiled determinedly to his life coach.
"I will do it. I can handle at least three hours with him."