Missing Time

Chapter 5: A Slow Development

After a few moments, Nelvin decided to follow Matthew to his room. He was staring down at his English assignment, but he set it aside. Without looking up at her, he said, "You know, Dad wasn't always this way."

Nelvin could barely say "Oh?" in her astonishment. 

"When I was younger... of course, I can't remember everything from back then, but when I was younger, he was nice most of the time. Of course he wasn't perfect, but if I had a problem at school, I would go to him, and he would try his best to help me." He sighed. "But as I got older, he did less and less. I thought it was just because I was becoming more independent, but even in times where I could do nothing without him, he just stood by. And then," his voice cracked, "when I was eight or nine, I decided that I would find out why he cared about me less. But that was the day- the first time he hit me, and he keeps getting worse."

So it wasn't a sudden change. Lucas had become the person he was over time. Did James really cause all of this? "Did you at least find out anything?"

"I went for his phone," he explained, "and I got onto Discord. His most recent message had been from Becky Night. She had sent him a cheesy pickup line a couple days before. I scrolled up his message history with her, and it was all filled with her sending him things. They were usually memes or jokes, but sometimes she sent him a vent. After a long time of scrolling, I finally found the last message he had sent her. Apparently, she liked him, and explained all that stuff to him. And he hadn't responded to her at all since she told him that.

"But before that," he continued, "I saw who my Dad used to be. They talked a lot and were obviously close, and although he liked to poke fun at her, it was obvious that he cared a lot. One day, she sent him a long message about what he meant to her, but she thought that he hated her. So he spammed her- kept saying things like 'are you okay? where's this coming from?' Of course she answered later, but still. I think that goes to show how much he used to care about people."

"Wow..." Nelvin was speechless- well, nearly speechless. Even after Nathan's talk, she didn't want to believe that Lucas used to be so kind. It was easy to believe that he was always cruel, but it was painful to see that he used to be kind but was corrupted. But corrupted by what? "How long ago were those messages from?"

"The last time Dad talked to Becky Night was sometime in late 2019 if I remember correctly."

"And you were born in 2020, right?" 

He nodded, still not looking up.

Could that mean... Is Becky the mother? It seemed like a far stretch, but it wasn't impossible. They were really close, but stopped talking in late 2019, while Matthew was born in 2020.

"Yeah, I've had the same suspicions," Matthew muttered. "They were at their closest in August or September, and I was born in May. But that still leaves the question of how or why he has full custody over me, and I've never even seen her that I can remember."

Nelvin racked her brain. She somehow had to connect all of this crazy information. "Isn't your middle name Starlight?"

"It's Moonlight," he said, "but you were close enough. And yeah, my middle name could be a reference to Becky Night."

Ideas and theories were storming through her brain. Then, something dawned on her. "Becky Night works at the library in Stonewood!" It was a small town situated only an hour's drive away from theirs, Aluxberg.

"I wouldn't be too hasty if I were you," Matthew cautioned. "This is all based off of a few messages and speculations. You could definitely offend the librarian if she's not my mother, or worse, if she's not even the Becky Night we're talking about."

"You're right," Nelvin mumbled, but she still wanted to hope that she was getting somewhere with this mystery. Maybe if she knew why he had become this way, she could help him heal. Or maybe she could reintroduce him to his old friends who could support him. 

"What did you find in Dad's room?" 

"Well..." She was unsure if it were even appropriate to tell him. She had found a suicide note addressed to Lucas. "Someone made a bad decision and killed himself, and he wrote a note before he died. In the note, he was telling your father that he should stop trying to help people, because people were going to die anyway."

"What was his name?" Matthew asked intently.

His calm response relieved Nelvin. She didn't want to have to explain to him why anyone would kill themselves. Although, reflecting on her childhood, she realized that he probably already knew all about that stuff. "His name was James."

After a few moments of insatiable silence, Matthew said, "So that's what happened to Uncle James."

Nelvin's heart skipped a beat. James was Lucas' brother? Matthew lost his uncle to suicide? "U-Uncle James?"

"Dad used to talk about how nice he was- you know, when I was younger. Even though I was only a few years old, I can't forget the picture of Uncle James that Dad put in me. Uncle James was kind, talented, sweet, noble, polite, healthy and infallible. He was the kind of man that I wanted to become. When I was younger, maybe four or five, I asked Dad why I couldn't meet Uncle James. He said, 'He's in a better place than us right now, Matthew, but we'll get there eventually, and then you can meet him.' I don't usually remember details from years ago, but I do remember that specific sentence word-for-word."

"Wow..." She simply had nothing better to say. The man that Matthew admired had actually killed himself a long time ago. Lucas cared about that man and made Matthew care too. He mocked James up to be a hero, but in the end, he was his own villain. He died of his own volition.

"You should get back to your room," Matthew said softly. "Dad should be home soon."

Nelvin nodded and left the blue themed room. She went into her little space and plopped onto the bed. She felt little other than the need to help Matthew. He was growing up in a toxic environment, but she could change that. If she changed Lucas, things would be okay. But first, she would have to find out what happened to him.

After a few minutes, she heard Lucas pulling up in his dark gray minivan. He stormed into the house. "I can't believe I had to see Becky Night!" he shouted from the other side of the wall. "I thought I wouldn't have to see her ever again once I moved from Stonewood, but no! She has to show up at my doctor's building in Aluxberg! What is she even doing over here?! Did she come just to taunt me?! Most likely." He growled, slamming the door to his room. "Oh, I bet tomorrow, Nathan's gonna show up too! And Matt and Frederik! Hell, I bet even Kaycee Falcon's gonna be there!" He laughed sourly. "What a freaking party!" 

Nelvin knew she needed to find these old people. She would have to speak to Becky Night, but how could she approach a stranger with such daunting questions? It seemed impossible. Maybe I should just stay away from the situation. She sighed. But I want to help Matthew. I can't help him if I leave, so I have to stay.