Finally awakened from his lucid dream, Sunny laid comfortably on his bed as his mind swarmed with the cryptic message delivered to him by Celestial. He couldn't shake the feeling that her presence and her words were more than just figments of his imagination constructed to soothe his troubled soul.
With the mention of Kara and the thought of the universe, and possibly fate itself, guiding him to this unknown person left him with more questions than answers.
There are so few answers and so many questions.
The morning light filtered through the curtains, casting a warm glow over the room. Sunny rolled out of bed, stretching his limbs and feeling the familiar ache in his muscles. He wants to just forget about school and continue sleeping to rest more.
An ounce of his mind yearns to return to that blissful realm where he had spoken with Celestial. But he knows staying here and pondering about it won't get him anymore. Not when he has responsibilities to attend to after the crazies and unsettling things that happened last night.
Sighing exhaustively, he moved and sat at the edge of his bed, his eyes still tired despite having restful sleep throughout the night. "I need to find a way to search for this Kara," he muttered to himself, chewing over the situation. "There's no point in ignoring it."
Whether it's still a dream or not, something still tells him to go with the flow and see where it takes him. Regardless of whether it is fruitless in the end, he must try or risk looking like a lazy person, as he always does, before rising from the bed and stretching his arms.
Yawning widely, Sunny marched towards the exit door, his footsteps echoing through the room. He doesn't feel like brushing his teeth, washing his own face, or taking a shower. There isn't anything that he feels like doing except getting through his day like there is no tomorrow.
Hopefully, it's not going to be crazy like yesterday. Although he still hoped something interesting would happen when he went to the University of Espers, his heart pounded in anticipation of what was about to transpire in his coming future.
When his fingers touched the door knob, a certain shocking sensation raced up his spine, causing him to pause and glance back at his room. It was a fleeting sensation, gone as quickly as it came, but it left a lingering unease that he couldn't quite shake. "Huh?" Unease gripped his heart, a feeling he hadn't felt since the first day he killed those men in self-defense.
The existence of ghosts was always a matter of debate in his mind. But now he is beginning to wonder if such a phenomenon is real when things like the Ark exist in the real world.
Or his overthinking about it too much, the tiredness he feels at the briefest of moments, and the lingering effects of the dream he had last night are playing tricks on his mind. He is unsure of what to believe or even if he should. Still, he brushed the thought aside. "Probably just my imagination," he told himself, shaking his head and turning the knob to leave the room.
Believing it to be just his worn-out mind making things worse for him. Its logical explanation is the most probable one. The rest is just an illusion, a product of his own mind trying to cope with the recent events that transpired just a few days ago.
Heading to the kitchen as he always does, Sunny grabbed a glass from the cabinet and turned the faucet after seeing no one but himself in this area of their home.
Watching the cold water stream down the glass, his mind became numb to the present world around him, and his thoughts focused solely on this very glass as the facet continued to mercilessly drip and splash into it.
When his drink became overloaded with its contents, he continued staring into the clear liquid, the droplets clinging onto the sides of the glass, slowly sliding down to join the rest.
Time seemed to slow down for him. The world paused in its tracks as he took a good long look at the liquid in the glass. "I'm still unsure if anything I do has some merit behind it," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. While he was still encouraged to be a good person and striving to do the right as many times he had said that to himself to the point that this is who he wanted to become, right?
Yet he is still pondering if any altruistic actions he has taken have any meaning to the world at large. Like a small fish in a large pod, is he even making a dent in the greater scheme of things when others are already doing great works for humanity?
He is not saying that he is better than anyone else, but the feeling of insignificance is weighing him down. The fact that there is someone out there who has already done the things I wanted to do makes him feel as if he was just chasing an illusion.
No matter what he does, it will never reach the same level of importance that the first person has achieved. And he felt envious because of that, growing bitter and resentful inside at what other people had done, if not better than anything he did.
As he continued to stare at his own glass of water like a deep well of introspection, the world seemed to blur around him. He was lost in his own thoughts, drowning in the ocean of self-doubt, the weight of the world pressing heavily on his shoulders.
And he began to wonder if leaving the Ark was worth all the trouble. If the earth was just as corrupt and stale as it was before, then why bother trying to change it? No, he does not want to believe it. Sunny believes in the importance of discovering things that may create things that are unsuspecting for someone like him.
"I'll never know unless I try," he murmured to himself, a faint smile crossing his lips. "Just because someone has achieved a goal I wish to obtain doesn't mean I need to be discouraged from pursuing it. I can still make a difference, even if it's just a small ripple."
Yes, that's what he should do once he finally leaves this damn place. A chance to start something anew, seeing his own boring life morph into an adventure of seeking new paths in his life that may lead him to a more meaningful existence than staying here forever.
However, the strange, odd feeling came once again. This time, it was in the kitchen rather than his bedroom, as uncertainty and fear gripped his heart when he felt the presence of someone creeping behind him like a cat stalking its prey.
He knew there was no one in the house, but the feeling was too strong to ignore. He wanted to turn and see this person but couldn't for some reason. Whether it is being stone-stricken or he is just simply too afraid, he is unsure. He only knows that he couldn't move, his body frozen in place from what was about to commence.
Gulping nervously, he lethargically moved his other hand, turning off the facet while holding the glass of water. His breath hitched as the sound of a faint footstep rang in his ears. The hair on the back of his neck stood up, and goosebumps raced across his skin.
He was petrified; the feeling of being watched made his heart race, pounding in his chest with trepidation. Sunny wished to scream, but his throat was as dry as the desert. He is cornered as if he were a frightened rat, not knowing what to do next.
But then, just as suddenly as it came, the feeling disappeared. The hairs on his neck lay flat, and his racing heart began to slow when the familiar cold and metal hands touched his shoulders. "Boo!" She laughed, her voice light and teasing. "Did I scare you, Sunny?!" Her mischievous grin gleamed in the morning light as she turned to face him.
The Angeloid was anything but a ridiculous prankster like her sister. "Oh Sunny~!" The eyes twinkled with laughter. "You're so easy to scare."
With an angry look of frustration, he turned to see Mei smiling like a Cheshire cat. "Mei, you better have a good reason for scaring me like that," he growled, still trying to catch his breath. "You know how I hate it when someone does that to me."
Being jumped by her like that is just not something he likes, especially when he is still in a mental state of vulnerability. Looking at her narrowly, he waited for her to say something, hoping that the reason would be worth the fear of scaring him like that.
She giggled, her eyes dancing with joy. "Sorry about that! You know how much I love messing with you," she said, her hands waving in the air in a dismissive gesture. "But I've got something important to tell you," she said, the playful demeanor quickly replaced with a serious expression.
"You need to go into the living room; there is something of importance you need to see." Mei's tone was stern and unyielding, making him feel the urgency of the situation that needs to be attended to.
"What is it?" He asked in surprise, having never seen Mei this serious before.
Without bothering to respond, Mei quickly grabbed his hand as they walked outside of the kitchen and then to the said living room, where Lei and Nelson sat on the couch watching the news play on the television.
It was a sight that Sunny had never thought of before; seeing the entire family with serious expressions plastered on their faces was unprecedented. Making him worry about what is going on, as he knows that, in fact, there is something very wrong happening in the city if everyone in the household is watching the news altogether.
"Lei, dad? Mind telling me—"
"Shhh," Nelson turned around with his index finger between his lips. "All of us need to watch this," he muttered, his voice laden with concern and fear. The old man wasn't known for getting worked up over the news, but the current events were enough to make him lose his composure when something terrible happened for the first time in their lives and everyone else present in the Ark.
Having no choice, Sunny complied with his curiosity, which piqued as he took a seat on the vacant couch. Eyes were directed to the broadcasting news that showed the carnage of dead bodies laying outside of Malcom's restaurant. The recognizable scene from last night drove him to feel extreme dread, anxiety, and panic as the name of his friend, the one he had saved from those bastards, was mentioned in the news.
"Oh no..." Sunny had become deeply afraid of himself and the consequences he had made tonight. "Shit." Sweat began to form on his brow as the reality of the situation hit him like a truck.
"They're going to investigate me."
Speaking out of his mind, he spoke in a low volume that is nearly impossible for anyone to hear except Lei and Mei themselves. Causing the latter to quietly be caught off guard, she looked at him with a mixture of shock from what she had heard coming from his own mouth.
"Could it be...?" Mei doesn't want to believe it, thinking Sunny is just making things up. But then, the fear in his eyes and the way he spoke just now told a different story.
It was as if he already knew that the investigation was coming. The realization of the truth slowly dawned upon her. "Were you responsible for this?" Quiet like a snake, her focus is now on the young man, observing his every move and reaction in search of the truth.
