Looking at his reflection in the mirror, Misha couldn't help but let out a hollow laugh. His face was as pale as a ghost, with big dark bags hanging under his eyes—even his lips appeared colorless, and his hair was nothing more than a bird's nest. If he hadn't known better, he'd have thought it was a corpse reflected in the mirror, not him. Before today, Misha had never known that lack of sleep could destroy someone's look to this degree, and he had countless sleepless nights before.
"I look awful," Misha sighed before splashing cold water on his face, trying to wake himself up.
Last night, he talked with Gabriel until the small hours. He told him the key points of the first timeline, including how he had never known about his fake relationship with Masha. When it was time to talk about his sister's suicide, he described the event fast, not wanting to go too deep into that memory. The same could be said for his father's abuse. He decided to keep some details on the down-low, revealing just enough so that Gabriel could understand the gist of what had happened.
Of course, they both tacitly avoided the subject of "Misha" liking Gabriel. Whenever he thought about it, Misha felt like strangling his other self. What the hell was he thinking?! There were things better left unsaid!
Meanwhile, Gabriel knew Misha's reaction tended to be on the violent side whenever he was embarrassed, meaning that Gabriel would surely suffer from a few bruises if he dared to tease him about his blunder. Yep. It was better to wait a bit before bringing up that subject.
All in all, they didn't sleep much. So when Masha came to wake them up, telling them that it was time to open their Christmas presents, they were both unwilling to get out of bed. Still, they had to, as Gabriel was supposed to leave before noon, and Mrs. Brown wanted her daughter's boyfriend to be with them as they opened the presents. She had prepared some for Gabriel too, and she wanted to give them to him before he left.
After washing his face, Misha dragged his body downstairs, lifelessly sitting on the sofa beside his sister. Not long after, Gabriel joined them, and Misha couldn't help but glare at the man, whose handsome face looked the same as usual, without any blemish whatsoever, as if he had rested very well last night. It made Misha scoff. How come he was the only one who looked like a goddamn ghost?! Gabriel slept even less than him! So why the hell did it seem like his skin was glowing…?
While Misha was busy inwardly cussing out Gabriel, Gulnas started distributing the presents, playing Mrs. Claus with great enthusiasm.
Honestly, Misha was somewhat curious about the gifts. He had never opened them up in his previous life. In fact, no one had the courage to open the presents Mrs. Brown had prepared just before her death. Whenever Misha tried to, telling himself that it had already been years since she had left this world, he found himself trembling and unable to unwrap the gifts. So he'd always put them back in the closet, mumbling something about doing it later—which he never did.
But now, Misha carefully unwrapped the presents one after another, smiling gently every time he laid eyes on their content. It mainly was toys for little boys, and almost everything was dinosaur-themed. Even when he opened the last present, it was still linked to dinosaurs. The handmade sweater was mostly dark red with a few touches of white, and in its center, there was a T-Rex wearing a Santa hat. His mother loved to knit, and for as long as he could remember, she would give her children and husband a Christmas sweater she had made herself every year. It was a weird tradition in the family, but at that moment, Misha realized just how much he had missed it.
Almost tearing up, Misha took the sweater in his arms, hugging it tightly against his chest. He thought it was stupid, but somehow, he felt all his mother's love for him through this simple gift. He could imagine her sitting in her bed, knitting his sweater with a gentle smile on her lips. Maybe, she was humming, wondering if her baby son would like her gift, even though she knew a boy of his age probably wouldn't like it very much. But nevertheless, she wanted to make something for him with her own two hands, and all she could do was knit him a sweater.
If Misha had been his past 10-year-old self, he would have discarded the sweater or thrown it somewhere in the closet, not even glancing at it a second time. But he wouldn't do that this morning, and instead, he quickly put it on, proudly showing it off. Then, he stood up and spun on his heels, asking, "How do I look?"
"Awesome," Masha giggled as she put on her own sweater before leaping to her feet and joining her brother, also spinning on her heels in the middle of the living room amid the torn wrapping paper. "And me?"
"Also awesome," Misha nodded before slumping back into the sofa next to Gabriel; his body was still too weak to move around like a spinning top, and now he felt dizzy.
Misha barely glanced at the man by his side, quickly focusing his attention on his parents, the tip of his ears bright red. The next instant, he scurried over to his mother to hug her, putting some distance between him and Gabriel.
What? He couldn't help it! Even if Gabriel didn't comment on his other self's confession, Misha was still self-conscious around him, feeling like he was walking on eggshells. The "him" in the message insisted that he was also in love with Gabriel. What bullshit was that?! He wasn't! No, nope, definitely not!
Seeing her little brother's strange behavior, Masha cocked an eyebrow, wondering what was going on in that brat's head. Usually, that child would have taken the opportunity to taunt Gabriel, saying things like the sweater looked ugly on him and whatnot. He never missed the chance to mock her best friend these past few months, no matter the time of the day. With this in mind, it was pretty surprising that he stayed silent, which, of course, aroused her curiosity.
While Misha was busy hugging his mother, nestling his small head in the crook of her shoulder, Masha went to sit beside Gabriel. She bent over and asked in a whisper, "Did something happen last night? Misha is a bit different this morning."
"Well, we had a little chat," Gabriel smiled, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes, stunning Masha.
"What kind of discussion could transform him into an obedient child overnight?!"
"You'll know sooner or later."
"What does that mean?!"
As an answer, Gabriel only offered a smile that made Masha's mouth twitch. Now, even Gabriel was keeping secrets from her!
Snorting, she decided to give him the cold treatment and pout, making the man chuckle faintly. Still, tenderness filled his eyes as he looked at the teenage girl's back. Last night, he and Misha agreed to reveal the truth to Masha, or more precisely, Gabriel highly recommended it, and Misha asked for some time to think about it.
Gabriel proposed such a thing for one simple reason: Masha was currently blinded by love, and even if they were to tell her about Camille's awful personality, she wouldn't listen. Rather, she would counterattack with all the qualities she could find in her lover and become defensive. Pranks would surely drive Camille out of the house, but not out of Masha's life—all she had to do was go to her girlfriend's house instead of inviting her over. Misha should know just how stubborn his sister could be.
Besides, how could they push her toward Yuki without arousing her suspicions? How could they bring them back together? This time around, Masha wasn't disabled, and Yuki wouldn't take care of her, meaning that they wouldn't spend a lot of time together, much less cultivate their feelings for each other.
Moreover, Masha was worried about her brother, losing sleep over why he had changed so much within a few months. Although time-traveling was a hard pill to swallow, many things would change if she knew the truth. It would also ease her anxiety.
Being honest with Masha would be the best course of action, and Gabriel took the time to explain why. Even if Misha didn't outright say yes, the fact that he agreed to think about it was already good enough in Gabriel's eyes. He knew the decision wasn't an easy one to make, so he didn't rush him. They were both aware that the truth would hurt Masha, and if there was one thing Misha dreaded, it was hurting his sister.
After opening the Christmas presents, they ate the breakfast Mrs. Brown had prepared, and soon after, Angela came to pick up Gabriel. The joyous atmosphere immediately turned bleak at her arrival. Still, everyone pretended not to notice it, faking a smile, and Gabriel left after saying his goodbye, kissing Masha's cheek and ruffling Misha's hair.
Once outside, he couldn't help but glance at the front door over his shoulder, an odd feeling rising in his heart. For Gabriel, he had lived in that house for almost a year, and going back to his father's place now felt strange. He was a little reluctant to leave.
'I sure will miss living with them,' Gabriel thought, a small, warm melancholic smile stretching his lips. 'Yes, I'll really miss it.'
__________________________
Chapter revised on 2022-06-01
Edited by Clozed! ♥
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