Catch a Glimmer of Your Star

Manga

Basil opened his eyes. The morning sunlight streaming in through the window danced over the outline of a boy who slept soundly beside him, coloring his black hair a captivating shade of dark brown.

He blinked to clear his vision and verified that Sunny was sharing a blanket with him.

Ahhhh! Sunny?

Hot red warmth rose in Basil's cheeks. His eyes weren't lying to him; he felt more well rested than he'd been in a long time, so he couldn't simply be imagining things.

You offered me your blanket even though I didn't ask for it...

Did I seem cold while I was sleeping last night?

The thoughts that followed must've turned his face all pink with embarrassment. Basil refused to voice those feelings, even inside his head. He knew his best friend cared about him, but to believe that his best friend would feel something more—as he did for Sunny—was asking for too much after already being offered generosity.

Basil smiled from the heart.

He really appreciated the gesture. Sunny had enough kindness in him to make sure that his friend didn't sleep cold at night.

Basil carefully removed the blankets over himself and gave them back to Sunny. He didn't want to wake Sunny up, knowing that Sunny preferred to sleep through the mornings and was groggy whenever he woke up early.

As he stood up to walk out the room, he couldn't help the feeling that Sunny looked so peaceful, asleep under the morning sunlight.

"Good morning, Mrs. S," Basil spoke quietly outside their bedroom.

"Morning, Basil," she replied with a bright smile. "How was your sleep last night?"

"It was great!"

Did Mrs. S see Sunny and I sleeping under the same covers? I don't think she would've come into our bedroom without knocking...

"Sunny didn't bother you?" she asked.

Basil wished he could express that Sunny did the exact opposite of bothering him.

"No, not at all," Basil replied, deciding to keep Sunny's good deed secret.

"Sunny used to always stay up late playing video games," she continued. "I used to try so hard to get him to sleep on time so that he wouldn't miss his alarm in the morning. If you ever catch Sunny playing games after eleven, feel free to drag him to bed!"

She laughed, and Basil smiled as well.

Sunny can play all the video games he wants!

They spent the morning cooking breakfast together. Mrs. S remarked with wonder at how knowledgeable Basil was at cooking, even though all he did was fry some eggs and sausages. Basil told her he was just trying his best to make a decent breakfast but she just kept shoving gratitude towards him.

Given Sunny's knowledge of cooking, Basil knew that not every kid received the same kitchen training his grandma had taught him.

When Sunny finally awoke, Basil had already eaten and prepared an extra plate of eggs, sausages, and toast for him. Sunny was incredibly hungry. He devoured the plate, washing the food down with a glass of orange juice.

"Thanks for cooking for me, Basil," Sunny said. "That was delicious."

"No problem!"

"You should learn how to cook from Basil," Mrs. S said. "You're growing up, Sunny, and you need to start learning to take care of yourself."