RE:WRITTEN

033: Longing for Closure

"Amai!" I hear both my Momma and Ren call.

I open my eyes. I let out a slow breath of air. Why was that dream so terrifying? I just keep seeing my angry sister, yelling at me about how horrible I am.

It'll be okay.

I slowly get up. I stretch for a moment before walking to my vanity. I brush my hair a few times before I pick up my hairpin. I place my Written Charm in my hair as it shimmers a little. I feel a presence in the house. Immediately, I walk to the door. I open it, then walk to the kitchen. I rub my eyes, yawning before straightening my pajama shirt. As I walk into the kitchen, I'm met with pink balloons and my friends.

"Surprise!"

A small smile comes to my face for a moment. I run a hand through my hair as I look at Sakasu, Nova, Ikimono, Saisho, Momma and Ren. My cheeks turn pink.

"What... is everyone doing here?" I ask.

Nova gets up and walks to me.

"It's your eighteenth birthday, silly!" She tells me. "Your Momma let us in so we could surprise you with breakfast."

Ikimono nods as Nova guides me to a seat. "We didn't want you to be alone since today might be hard. So here we are."

Saisho nods as he walks over from the stove. "I helped your Mom make breakfast. We got plenty of food for everyone, but the birthday girl eats first. What would you like?"

"Uh... maybe some pancakes? A slice of bacon and some scrambled eggs?"

"Perfect. Coming right up." Ren says as he starts to make everyone plates.

Momma and Ren work together to plate up the food. They put food in front of everyone before sitting with us. I grin as Sakasu puts an arm around my shoulder.

"You guys didn't have to do this... it's so early on a Saturday morning."

"But we're here anyway," Sakasu says. "And we'll always be here. So deal with it."

I laugh a little. "Thank you."

As we all begin to eat, I smile to myself. This isn't so bad. I had been dreading this day since we got back from Destiny a week or two ago. I had lost track of time. The condolences from everyone at school about Violet's disappearance have been getting to me. It sucks that we have to lie about where she really is. I wish I could tell everyone the truth...

But that would harm so many people.

"Has anyone heard from Soveliss yet?" I ask quietly.

Ikimono frowns. "Not yet. But I'm sure he'll let us know as soon as they've got something on her." She says as she shoves some food in her mouth. "Give it time."

"Right. Time." I mutter. "That's kind of difficult."

"I know, sweetheart." Ren sighs. "But we have to hope that things will be okay."

"Times may be uncertain, but we'll get answers soon enough," Saisho says. "Trust the process."

"Hey! Let's distract ourselves from that!" Nova chirps. "We got a present for you, Amai!"

"For me...?"

"Yeah!" Nova reaches into the bag by her chair. She pulls out a neatly wrapped gift with a white bow on it. "This is for you. Iki helped me wrap it, and Saisho took us to the store to get the materials. We all painted it together!"

"Sakasu came up with the idea." Saisho points out. "Gotta give her credit."

Ikimono nods. "You should open it."

My friends pass the gift to me. I take it in my hands.

"Are you sure?"

Sakasu nods. "It's yours."

I unwrap the gift presented to me. I'm met with a black, painted canvas with five symbols in a line. A pink heart in the middle. There are four turquoise ovals in a circle and a golden flower on the left. On the right is a deep blue pair of circles, and an indigo oval next to that.

"Our Charms." I whisper.

Momma smiles at my friends. "That's such a lovely painting. You guys did an awesome job."

"It's to symbolize us as a friend group," Ikimono says. "We might all be different, but we're all special."

"We're a team! And that will never change!" Nova says.

Saisho nods. "We're always by your side."

Sakasu wraps me in a hug. "No matter what, girlie."

I sniffle a little. They're right. No matter what happens, I'll always have my friends beside me. Even if we save Destiny, or we manage to save Violet, or we ultimately fail, I'm never alone.

No one is ever truly alone.

"Thank you..." I whisper.

END OF BOOK ONE