In Austin's sleep, he is lucid dreaming again. He always finds himself in a very mysterious yet familiar world every time he dreams. He never remembers them whenever he wakes up, but he can always remember what happened in reality in this place.
He dreams about this world almost every night. And whenever he's in here, his sense of maturity will instantly deny the innocence he has in reality. There is this feeling of helplessness inside him as if he's trapped. It feels like a puzzle he can't solve. What's even more curious is when he knows what the things in this world are called even though they did not even existed.
Hmmm, where should I go? He thought as he looked around and started to walk absent-mindedly.
It's currently nighttime but the street is bright with street lamps and light from the windows of the houses around him. He felt like these houses had families eating dinner inside. The sky feels alive with stars, unlike the lonely street he is on.
"You're back!" He heard a familiar voice behind him and instinctively turned to see where it was coming from. A cute girl, but taller, who is in a floral dress walked towards him. "Hello, Austin, how are you?", her warm smile is in contrast to the cold street they are on.
"Hello, April! I remember you. How are you?" Austin instantly recognized the girl in a floral dress. Whenever he dreamt, he would start to remember everything that had happened in this place. And as he walked towards her, memories slowly came back step by step. "I wish that I could also remember you in reality. Did you know that I'm always lonely?"
"But you're not lonely now, are you?"
"Huh? — Oh, right!... it's because you're here now."
"No – you met someone today, remember?" April reminded Austin about Fai who recently became his friend which elated his mood.
"Oh right! I met Fai today! Yes, he came out of nowhere, but we became friends. We even played the whole afternoon. It was fun!"
"It's my first time seeing your face like this. I'm glad that you met a new friend, Austin." She said with confidence in her tone. But before she could express her sadness, April turned around and looked up at the stars above. "Do you trust him?" Austin could feel the emotions behind the question and looked into the stars above, as well.
"I don't know – it just feels too good to be true. Just like how all of this is just a dream." April's body jerked a little but she tried not to make it obvious. Austin went to her side and looked at her serene eyes, which were reflecting the stars above.
April turned her head to Austin who was intently looking at her and said, "Austin, all of this is..."
"I know – And I know that you're just a part of my desires. I know you all are." Austin turned to look up into the stars again when the wind started to blow softly. April's eyes became worried.
"Austin, that's not..."
"I already knew that since the beginning. Whenever I'm in reality, it always feels like something is missing. I don't know if it's because I can't remember any of this when I wake up but I don't think that's the only reason." Austin looked down, held his chest, and gripped the shirt covering it. "Because every time I'm in here, I don't feel like I'm a child." Austin looked back to April. "I don't know how that's possible but I even felt like I already know what death feels like."
"What do you mean? But you're alive, right?"
"You know that that's not what I meant." His breathing started to get heavy and he pointed to a building from afar. "That building, how did I know that it was made out of glass? One time, when I saw a very familiar house that I didn't even see once in reality, I started to cry out of nowhere..." Austin started to move away as if he was desperate to make his point. "Why does everything in here feel so familiar, what's this feeling of longing and regret in my heart?", He stopped and looked at the pavement they were standing on.
"Austin." She whispered.
"This road, how does it feel so familiar? And how did I know that it was pavement? What is pavement?" Austin looked at April who was shocked about what was coming out of his mouth but he did not mind it. "I always asked a lot of questions like how did I know that it was a school when I visited school. What is this world? Why do I always dream about it?"
"Austin!" She yelled. Austin started to calm down but he did not stop saying his thoughts. He slowly walked towards April again.
"Whenever I'm in here, I always feel complicated. I don't know if I was happy, or sad, or disgusted, or scared, or angry, or if it's just all of it." Austin turned and looked as far as he could. Maybe he was looking at the distant lights the buildings from afar were emitting, or at the stars twinkling above them. April couldn't tell but everything stood still in silence as she watched his lonely back.
"Austin?" She asked.
"But in the end, everything feels like home. It feels warm, just like Mama's dish tonight." Austin started to relax and closed his eyes as he reminisced about the food he had eaten back in reality with his mother.
"She loves you so much." Austin turned her head and saw the warm gaze and smile April was showing. Austin smiled back in response. "Do you want to go somewhere?" April saw this opportunity to change the mood and Austin understood.
"Yeah! Let's go to that place."
"What place?" Austin did not reply but April already understood. "Why that place?"
"Because that place is..." Austin wanted to say that it was an important place for her. "Because it's fun there, I want to ride the Ferris Wheel."
"I see. Okay. Let's go?" April offered her hands for Austin to reach and they both started running.
"By the way, how can we go there?"
"Just think about that place, Austin."
"Alright?"
"Now, off we go!" To his surprise, April dragged him into one of the houses nearby and entered the front door.
"Why did we go inside a house? I thought we were going to the Amusement Park?"
"We are going to the Amusement Park!" They continued running through the empty house and went out to the back door. A strong white light disrupted Austin's vision which made him subconsciously cover his eyes while closing them at the same time. The world was silent and dark but then, "We're here!"
"Hah?" As he opened his eyes, Austin started to hear the loud noise in the Amusement Park accompanied by a BANG! Someone won a teddy bear in a shooting game. For the first time, Austin saw a lot of people in his dream. Some of the faces are familiar while some are not but most of them are blurry. Austin did not mind them because, in this busy environment, Austin could see the Ferris Wheel from the farthest corner of the park.
"Come on, we don't have much time!" They continued to run towards their destination and Austin's pace started to slow down due to muscle atonia so April started to drag him. "Not this again!" When you excessively run in your sleep, your brain will make sure that you will not start running in reality while in bed, thus the thing called muscle atonia occurs, causing your running pace in your dream to slow down.
"I'm sorry, it's frustrating for me as well, every time this happens. Especially if a monster is chasing after me." April stopped running abruptly and turned to Austin with a terrified look.
"Why did you think of a monster of all things right now? Are you crazy?!"
"What? Why?"
"Look around you! You know what will happen if you think about something in your dream." The people around them started running away from the Ferris Wheel. April held Austin's hand and said, "I'm sorry but you have to temporarily wake up."
"What do you mean tempo..." Pak! A loud slap woke Austin up before he could even see April's hands swaying in his cheek's direction.
***
"What? Hah? What happened?" He wanted to ask the humanoid shadow figure outside the window about what happened but he couldn't think clearly and his consciousness started to fade away again. He let his body relax back to the bed and closed his eyes again.
***
"W-what happened?"
"Nothing. Nothing happened. Come on, let's walk towards the Ferris Wheel." April prompted with an annoyed expression.
"Oh, okay."
"By the way, do you want to buy some treats before riding? Come on, I know that you love popcorn."
"Oh, okay."
As Austin's mind wandered to the thought of the delectable taste of popcorn, the tantalizing aroma of freshly popped kernels captivated both of them. With an eager smile, April took his hand as they navigated through the lively crowd of park-goers toward the vibrant popcorn stand.
They approached the stand, and Austin's eyes widened with excitement at the sight of the myriad flavors on offer: Buttery caramel, savory cheese, and classic salted popcorn, each enticing in its, own, way. April chuckled at his enthusiasm, knowing all too well his weakness for the snack.
"So Austin, take your pick," April said, "Caramel, Cheese, or the Classic?"
"Umm, I can't decide, they all look so delicious! Can we just have all of them?"
"I don't think that's possible, we're only having this for free so don't get too greedy."
"Is it free?" Austin asked, looking away from the popping popcorn to April. April just gave him a look that said 'Ask him,' as she signaled to look at the vendor. Austin followed suit, and the vendor winked in response. "That's so cool of you, mister.…"
"Oh, drop the Mister, kid. Coco, your friendly popcorn vendor, Coco." The vendor replied with a friendly tone and laughed like a big old engine starting up.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Austin. And this is April." He replied with an awkward smile.
"Oh, I know you two very well. How are you?" Coco greeted.
"I am doing good, thank you for asking. I met a friend today and he's as cool as you! Though we are the same age, his laugh sounded just like yours. I hope that you are doing well as well."
"Oh? That's good to hear. And, yes I am, thank you." The vendor looked at April with worry but April only shrugged her shoulders as if she were accepting of this fact. The vendor looked at the excited Austin again and added. "But you're still coming to visit often, right?"
"Yes, of course, why wouldn't I?" Austin tilted his head sideways as he genuinely got confused by the question.
"Just pick a flavor Austin, I'll go buy some fries over there. Just stay here, I'll be right back." The vendor stared at April as she walked away.
"You know Austin, I will miss you. This might be our first and last meeting so let me tell you this. Everyone you met here will miss you." The expression on the man's face was not sadness, in contrast to the greeting that sounded like a sudden farewell, he looked happy. Austin did not understand what this meant but he did not mind it any further because he knew that this was not the last.
"Oh, I know that we'll meet again. I'll come back here as usual so don't worry."
"Yes, we might meet again but not like this."
"Hah? What does that mean?"
"Don't mind him, he's just crazy." April's voice echoed against the bustling crowd. "Have you already made your choice? We don't have all night, you know. I've even already brought fries, you see?" she beholds the fries she is slowly eating. Austin looked at her with envy and looked back at the popcorn inside the glass.
"Ummm..." After a brief debate against himself over which flavor to choose, Austin decided to indulge in a large bag of buttery caramel popcorn to share with April. As Coco scooped the fragrant kernels into a striped paper bag, the tantalizing scent filled the air, making his mouth water in anticipation.
"Good, now let's go." April hurried.
"Nice to meet you Coco, see you around," Austin said but the vendor only replied with a wink.
"He's a kind fellow, right, April?"
"He was. He was just born in a shitty world."
"What?"
"Don't mind me. Now hurry up!"
Eager to savor their treat amidst the Amusement Park's lively ambiance, the duo hurriedly made their way towards the colossal Ferris Wheel near the bay with their snacks at hand. They were allowed to enter the line without any issues as if the gatekeeper had been expecting them. With no one else in the queue, they went straight to the front and were greeted by a smiling attendant who opened the remaining empty gondola for them. Austin smiled back before they both entered.
As they settled in each opposing benches, they pulled down the safety bars as per the safety rules instructed on their backrests. They waited for a moment, and then the sound of the machine echoed as the Wheel moved in counterclockwise. Austin grabbed a handful of popcorn, the warm, buttery kernels melting on his tongue in a burst of sweet and salty goodness.
As they ascend on the Ferris Wheel, the bustling sounds of the amusement park below gradually fade, replaced by a gentle breeze and the distant laughter of fellow riders. The ground recedes, revealing a kaleidoscope of vibrant colors. The air is warm, carrying with it the scent of popcorn and cotton candy.
Time seems to slow down, beholding a breathtaking view of the entire amusement park spread out like a miniature city below. Austin can see the details of each attraction: the intricate loops of roller coasters, the dizzying spins of the teacup ride, and the graceful arcs of the carousel horses.
They continued to slowly ascend and with each passing moment, the cityscape from afar seemed to come alive, pulsating with energy and vitality, offering a panoramic view of the urban landscape. It resembles a vibrant mosaic as they're treated to a breathtaking vista, with the city spreading out from afar like a luminous carpet. The gentle hum of the city's nightlife rises to meet them, mingling with the distant sounds of music and laughter from the Amusement Park below.
Nearly at its peak, and from this lofty perch, he can appreciate the beauty and diversity of urban life, as people from all walks of life come together to create a tapestry of culture and community. But nothing beats the peaceful scenery on the other side of this busy life as Austin twists to look at the sea under the starry night.
As the Ferris wheel reached its vantage point, he was enveloped in a sense of wonder and awe, humbled by the majesty of the universe unfolding before him. For a fleeting moment, time stands still. From this point, the night sky seems close enough to touch, but never enough. The darkness becomes a canvas for the stars to paint their brilliance. The moon, a radiant orb, casts its gentle glow, bathing the landscape below in a silver sheen.
As the Ferris wheel begins its descent, he carries with him the memory of this celestial spectacle, a reminder of the mystery that lies beyond the confines of our world. The salty breeze carries the scent of brine and seaweed, mingling with the crisp of the night air.
The gentle lapping of waves against the shore provides a soothing melody to the nocturnal symphony. Each ripple carries with it the whispers of the ocean's secrets. The sea, with its boundless depths and ever-changing moods, becomes a reflection of people's inner vast landscape, filled with beauty and danger.
A shooting star streaks across the night sky, its brief incandescence a fleeting reminder of the wonders that lie beyond what our eyes can see.
"Do you think that you'll be able to see the differences of one another by observing them from above?"
"April? Ah, yes, no, wait – what?" Austin's heart and mind which became one for a moment was dragged back to reality like she would always do. "Well, we'll see those differences once we are on the same level as them."
"That's right, but you just witnessed those differences being united like it was natural to happen, right?"
"I guess? Our differences are insignificant if you think about it. Our minds just trick us into believing that we are unique from the rest, driven by our sense of existence. But I don't understand why you're asking this."
"If you have the chance to change one thing, just one thing about everything. What would it be?"
"I don't like complicated things, April. But I wouldn't change anything at all."
"Why is that?"
"I am not in the position to decide for these things but I believe that everyone has their different upbringing which led them straight to where they are today."
"When will your idealist outlook ever change? It's good that you are filled with kindness. But don't forget to be kind towards yourself as well."
"I still dream that someday, everyone will learn to love one another. Because that's what they deserve, to love and to be loved. How about you, Have you ever had a boyfriend?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Come one, come on, spill the tea and tell me the sweetest love story you ever had."
"Quit it! You're being gross all of a sudden."
"You're so boring!"
As they chatted and laughed, enjoying the simple pleasure of each other's company and the delicious snack, the sounds of the Park faded into the background. For Austin and April, this moment of shared indulgence was a reminder of the joy to be found in the small, everyday moments of friendship and camaraderie. They watched the colorful lights dance across the sky and they knew that their evening had been made all the more memorable by the simple pleasure of sharing a bag of popcorn and fries.
"Austin – if by chance you'll never be able to come back, wou..."
"I will always come back, April," Austin reassured, but deep inside he didn't know when's the last.