Will You Smile With Me From Now On?

Cherry woke up with a start and jolted herself up. She panted and sputtered as tears continued to stream down her face, breathing heavily. She hunched over and gripped her head tightly, steadily inhaling her composure.

There was an odd sense of warmth in her chest as it eased her sorrows, allowing her to recollect her thoughts without having a mental breakdown. She frowned and hugged her knees, deep in thought.

Damn it, why did Ren stop the dream so soon? She still didn’t finish asking all her questions. How was her mother doing? What was he doing all this time? What was he up to now?

Even now, the shock of the latest memories still hit her hard.

…She should’ve listened to her mother. She should’ve listened to everyone’s warnings. What a stupid, naive fool she was. God, never in her life did she desperately wish to turn back time.

She looked around the room, particularly the windows and the grandfather clock. It was seven in the evening, but on what day? How long did she sleep?

She glanced to the drawer beside her, where a cup of blood tea rested with a napkin covering it alongside a note. With a shaky hand, she reached for the note.

‘Welcome back, Cherry. It’s been one hell of a ride, hasn't it? Drink up and relax. When you’re ready, find us either in the living room or the courtyard.’

This handwriting… It was Theodore’s.

A knot twisted in her stomach as she slid a hand across her forehead.

To be honest, if Theodore hadn’t apologized beforehand, she wouldn’t have known that he killed her. The auditorium was far too dark for them to see each other, and his shot was way too sudden for her to register. Besides, the shot was meant for Monty! It was never his fault at all!

Oh, right! She died! How the hell did she survive the headshot?! Wait, Solomon was the one to save her, right? What kind of crazy sorcery did he perform on her?!

She frowned and rubbed her head. The headache finally ended, but the dizziness still lingered. She reached for the cup and steadily drank the tea, gradually relaxing her nerves. As soon as she emptied her cup, she sighed in relief, wiped her mouth with the napkin, and slid off the bed.

On her way to the living room, she paused in the hallway and turned toward the windows, letting the beautiful sunset steal her breath as it peeked over the distant forest.

No wonder she didn’t feel so uncomfortable when she first stepped inside this mansion. The beauty of the sky never failed to deliver solace no matter where she and her family went.

Except… a flash of Monty’s pretentious smile in front of such a sunset quickly shut down her feelings at once. She scowled and lowered her head.

Great, not only did Monty ruin her image of him, but he even ruined the sunset. Was this going to happen every time she’d look at it again? Just memories of Monty’s facade, tormenting her every time?

“It’s a pretty bright sunset, isn’t it?”

Cherry jolted and whipped her head toward a particular young man with a long, spiral ponytail, his gaze glued to the sunset a few windows away from her.

“Theo?” she called out, approaching him. “Since when were you there?”

“Just now. I heard your door opening, so I decided to greet you first.”

“I see. How long has it been already? How much time has passed since I slept?”

“It’s been about… twenty-seven hours or so. Heh, my father was right on the money, wasn't he?”

“Guess I should’ve expected it. So, what have you all been up to…?” She stepped closer and curiously peered at his masked face, and her heart dropped the moment she spotted his sockets flickering pure red. Without thinking, she grabbed his shoulders. “Theo?! Hey—”

“Relax, Cherry. I’m not getting brainwashed.”

“Huh?”

Theodore finally faced her, revealing the crimson light glowing out of the cracks. “Ever since Clover left, the mask went quiet but still stays on. My father said it could be risky if he uses his Crimoire while it’s still unstable, so I’ve been trying to awaken my powers to break it off myself.” He sighed and knocked on the cracks. “And as you can see, I’m making very little progress. But hey! Don’t you think these crazy lights look pretty darn cool? I look pretty badass!”

Cherry frowned. “Don’t lie. I can tell you’re hating it.”

Theodore froze for a moment before looking away, dryly chuckling. “Damn right, I am…”

She stepped closer, took his hand, and gently covered his knuckles with her palm, causing him to flinch. Even so, he didn’t move his hand away.

“Theo, did anyone tell you that it wasn’t your fault yet?”

“Eloi and my father did. Charlie didn’t say it yet, but I can tell he couldn’t blame it on me.”

“Then, let me say this for you—”

“That I shouldn’t blame myself? That you’ll forgive me?”

“What? No.”

“Eh?”

“If they already told you that, what difference will I make by repeating them? I wanted to say that you’re way better than blaming yourself for an accident you never intended to happen, you big goof!” She yanked him closer and grabbed his other hand, squeezing them together firmly. “Where’s the silly, confident Theo who refused to admit guilt? Where’s the Theo who dared to break pasta in our cooking class while the headmaster was watching our group? Where’s the prankster who terrorized Astrale Academy?”

Theodore sputtered his words. “Th-Those were meant for the laughs! This is different! We’re talking about accidentally murdering you!” His hands started to shake, and he began to step away. “I… I killed you…”

Cherry pulled him right back and squeezed her grip more tightly. “And it was an accident, Theo. We all make mistakes. I already know that headshot was meant for Monty, not me!”

“Cherry, some mistakes can be so bad you can’t simply gloss it over, you know.”

“You tell me. My mistake was ignoring my mother’s warning and causing this whole mess. If anything, I should be the one apologizing here! It was my fault that I didn’t listen and ruined everything!”

“What? No, it wasn’t your…” Theodore paused and scratched his head. “Damn, you got me.”

Cherry nodded with a smile. “Don’t get me wrong, I still feel pretty guilty about it, but sulking about it won’t bring me anywhere! I’m going to fix this. I’ll get my revenge on Monty for playing with us like fools!”

As she said those words, Theodore’s mask began to crack.

A familiar vision crossed through his mind—a vision of Monty and Cherry dancing on stage. It was the same vision he had of that night, where he had mistaken Cherry’s absence to be a result of a kidnapping.

As more spotlights shined on the two, the scene grew clearer. Monty wasn’t dancing with Cherry.

He was swinging her around like a hollow puppet.

Theodore clutched his mask as his blood boiled. “You’re right,” he muttered. “It’s all that bastard’s fault…” He stared down at her hands that remained locked in his. Slowly and hesitantly, he slid a hand over her knuckles.

“I’ve always wondered what you might think of me after you’ve remembered,” he muttered. “I still can’t remember much about our time together, let alone our relationship, so I… I couldn’t help but assume the worst…”

Cherry shook her head with a reassuring smile. “Can’t you tell how I feel from hearing my heartbeat? I’m not upset with you at all. I missed you and your funny antics, actually. After all, you, erm...” She blushed and looked away. “Mean a lot to me…”

His mask continued to crack at a faster pace.

“I-I mean, you’ve always cheered me up whenever I’m in a bad mood!” Her face turned redder with each word. “Y-You know! Whenever the students kept picking on Charlie and me, you were there to prank them and make us laugh! Whenever I’m with you, it’s always pure chaos… in a good, exciting way! And I’m always used to adventures! Y-You know what I mean. I’ve never regretted meeting you once.”

Theodore squeezed back in her grasp and lowered his gaze, failing to hide the red tips of his ears.

Cherry giggled. “Theo, you can be pretty cute sometimes.”

“What—”

She yanked him close and wrapped her arms around his waist, tightly squeezing him warmly. Theodore twitched and went stiff.

For a long moment, neither of them said a word, except for their rhythmic hearts.

With a sigh, Theodore finally loosened his shoulders and hugged back.

And with that, his mask finally shattered.

White shards scattered around the two, but neither broke the hug until later.

Cherry looked up, stared at a pair of golden eyes, and smiled warmly. “I’ve missed seeing that twinkle in your eyes.”

Theodore smirked and rested his chin on his index finger. “I’m still as handsome as always, aren’t I?”

“Of course, that’s the first thing you’d say!”

“But aren’t I?”

Cherry blushed. “I’m not saying anything.”

He stretched a toothy grin and hugged her again. “Then I’ll take that as a yes.” He laughed and began to spin her around. “God, it feels so damn good to feel the air on my face! I’ve never felt so alive!”

“Hey, let go!” she said, laughing along.

“Come on, we haven’t done this in a while!”

“Okay, okay. Just this once.”

The two laughed and joked around as such, and by the time their jaws hurt from all their smiling, nightfall arrived. With one more tight hug, Theodore whispered, “Thank you, Cherry. I mean it.”

She hugged back with a soft smile. “Thank you too, Theo.”

Theodore let go, pulled off his gloves, and stuffed them into his pockets. With a smile, he cupped her cheek. “You know, you’re pretty dang weird yourself,” he said.

Cherry’s face began to grow warm. “Birds of a feather flock together, I suppose.”

“Haha, so it seems.”

A pair of footsteps quickly grew louder.

“Get the hell away from my sister!” hollered a familiar voice.

“Oh, whoopsy me!” Theodore let go and twirled away just in time, dodging Charlie’s kick. He chortled and stuck his tongue at him. “As if I’m gonna get kicked again—”

Charlie spun around and struck his knee at Theodore’s waist, promptly launching him away.

Theodore groaned and clutched his waist, slowly staggering himself back up. While he did, Charlie turned to his sister next, who began to shrink away from such a glare.

With a sigh, Charlie relaxed his face and wrapped her in a tight embrace. “That thief,” he grumbled. “I was supposed to greet you first.”

Cherry softened up and returned the hug. “I missed you too, Charlie,” she murmured.

Charlie squeezed, tears welling in his eyes. “You have no idea...”

“I’m sorry. I’m here now.”

“Please. Please don’t ever leave me again.”

“I won’t.”

The twins broke their hug when three more pairs of footsteps approached them. Cherry’s heart swelled with even more warmth once she caught Penelope’s and Eloi’s smiles.

“Penny—er, Penelope! Your mask is already gone?”

“Somehow, it broke while I was talking to her in her dreamscape,” said Eloi, waving his prosthetic arm. “Let me tell ya, Missy. It was pretty crazy!”

“I’d love to hear all about it, Eloi. It’s so nice to see you back!” she chirped, raising a fist.

“Hah, glad to see you kicking too!” Eloi fistbumped with his silvery hand.

Penelope stretched her smile and rushed over, hugging Cherry next. “I missed you,” she whispered, nuzzling close. "You can keep calling me Penny. I missed it."

Solomon stepped forward and observed her pure crimson eyes with a nod. “It seems like the recovery went perfectly well,” he said with a smile. “Welcome back, Cherry.”

“Yeah, I’m…” Cherry swallowed and nodded, tears welling in her eyes. “I’m… I’m…”

She burst into tears and sobbed. “I’m back, everyone…”

She muffled her cries as everyone gathered for a group hug, all spiritually and physically sharing each other’s warmth.