IMAGINATION, IMAGINATION.

let some light in

"do you ever really think about how wet the brain is?"

a small chuckle trails out of sean's silence. his head pops up from under his blue duvet. "junie," he says softly, "what on earth are you talking about?"

"i don't really know," she says, her lips puffed in thought. "i was watching a hospital documentary the other day and i've just been thinking about it since."

his head stays up, elevated above the waves of draped blanket, just to frown deeply at her. he looks at her like she's grown a third arm, but a hint of a smile pulls gently at the corners of his mouth. she welcomes his narrow-eyed marvelling at her craziness like an old friend. it's better, more like him, than the deep weariness sean is currently enveloped in. he is framed in his bed, a flower pressed and brittle and locked in from all four corners into the kind of suffering that hollows you out.

"alright, alright. i'll stop talking and let you get on and concentrate."

"concentrate?"

juniper peers in his direction with a non-committal expression. "yeah, i don't wanna get in the way of your... intense mouldering session."

sean blinks once, twice. he puts his head down and there is no movement. juniper goes back to trying to trace patterns in the stubborn fur of his comforter, stiff with neglect. she wonders when the last time was that he painted one of his nice fancy paintings. his room is ajar, noiseless, and unlit, not dissimilar to a pit.

"have you ever thought about how dark it is inside the human body?" juniper looks over to see sean slowly pulling himself up into an upright position in bed. he pulls down his sleeves, tries to tease out the wrinkles in his jumper, but the cloth puckers back reflexively into its little valleys. "in the textbooks, our insides look so bright. but really it's always pitch black."

juniper scrunches her nose and thinks. "yeah, i guess so. but i feel like there are some pretty simple ways to let some light in."

"yeah? like what?"

"swallow a torch? that sort of thing?"

"uh huh." he deadpans.

"i'm kidding! lighten up." she wiggles her eyebrows at the pun, and he shakes his head with a twinkle in his eye.

"now," she continues, "can i get a spotlight, please? a performer needs her spotlight." she flicks her gaze to the curtains standing sentinel against the glow of the setting sun.

sean looks at her, looks at his room. at how the dimness drapes itself over his things like a shameless mistress. he turns to his curtains and gingerly peels one back.

juniper nods encouragingly at him, cheer rising up in her chest like a sweet bubble. "you want me to get the other one?"

"...yeah, please."

she gets up onto her knees and tugs, and then there is light. the walls steep themselves in the sun's honey - almost everywhere is dripping in it.

"god, it's bright," juniper half-whispers. she opens her mouth, as if she is about to yawn, and then turns to face the brilliance in the sky.

"what the hell are you up to now?"

"i'm letting the light in. duh."

sean stares at her, incredulous, and then laughs.

"that's the spirit. now hold that position and face the window."

he feels a bit silly with his face like this, chin propped on the windowsill. but he can sort of feel it working. he doesn't know if this is placebo, but the warmth on his cheeks helps a little. he sticks his tongue out and hears a giggle.

"stop laughing. i feel like a plant."

he glances over to see her laughing at him, and she looks like the sun was made to sit on her skin. she really dazzles, and she does it so well. everything looks beautiful. for some reason he begins to cry.