XX.XX.XXXX?Heaviness of their sorrow kept pressing hard against their chest as they took the van they came here with—Team C must have gone somewhere else. And even Velvette and Victor, who once hated Theo, couldn't help but feel grief for their loss.Ethan knew the feeling he was experiencing, sentiment of nothing, absolut blank. But inside that nothing hid everything. Like the night sky with light pollution, deep black space. But behind that abyss stars dance, and galaxies swirl, they're just concealed.Sadness is the loneliest feeling, they say, though the feeling of nothing is much more solitary. Complete emptiness.Elodie and Ethan sat in the back of the van, the three seats in the front were occupied by the others. Unsure where to go, they sped off as fast as they could from that monster. Not Theo, Agnes.Ethan was crying, even from the inside, psychically. His heart was crying. The depth of his sorrow was only cutting deeper each passing moment, each tear he shed.He pondered on a way to save Theo. But he couldn't, no one could, even if they had a cure, his consciousness was gone. It was just the physical body surviving.As he sat in the van, still crying, Elodie pulled him into an embrace. Despite hating touch, he accepted it. That day he realized that no touch, no person or a feeling, could hurt him more than Agnes did.When she hugged him, he tried to imagine the touch was actually Theo's. But her touch wasn't reminiscent of Theo's at all, he could recognize his touch even if his senses were gone. His touch was so gentle, yet so firm. So comforting, like a warm blanket during cold nights. So intimate, it felt like a secret just between the two of them. So addictive, Ethan couldn't imagine anyone else's touch. No hold could ever compare to that. Well, at least in Ethan's eyes.He pulled away after a few couple of seconds, then turned his eyes away from Elodie, occasionally letting out a loud snivel, while sobbing restlessly.Meanwhile, the rest in the front were discussing their further plans."Where are we going?" Victor, who was driving the car asked, focusing on the path ahead—this car even had functional headlights."Far away from her,' Velvette answered. "But not so far, because saving the world is up to us," she added."This world?" Victor glanced at her briefly, noting the color of her hazel eyes they shared. Looking at his sister's eyes reminded him of his own eye color, he hardly remembered."Both," Velvette responded flatly. "We need to find the cure to the current crisis. The cure that was meant to be Theo...," her voice tinged with sadness with mention of Theo."We could find the cure, return back, defeat her and home that from there someone will help us out," Victor suggested."Yeah," Velvette paused before continuing, "but how are we going to casually find a cure to something, not even scientists could"."Actually... Alex was pretty close... He had done a lot of experiments, and I think he could help," Carmen broke his silence. There was still a lingering sign of sorrow in his voice, coming from the grief for Theo. He couldn't even shed tears for him, because of how empty he felt. Real empty. Not feeling anything but everything at the same time like Ethan did. Real empty, an eternal hole of nothingness. Theo became his best friend fast. And their bond only grew stronger, while they worked together, which caused the torment to considerably increase.Carmen rested his head on the car's window, gazing out. "Damn it. It was a bad idea, he hates us all... Especially me"."Do we have another option though?" Velvette said."We do. But with him it will be faster," Victor answered instead of Carmen. "And we don't know how much time we have before Mrs. Agnes attacks"."Yeah. Where's Alex anyways?" Velvette asked, directing that question specifically towards Carmen.When he didn't answer at first, she repeated the question. "Where's he?".This time he responded, "Don't know". His voice was filled with nought and his emotions were hard to understand."We could try the town," Victor suggested."If you know the way," said Velvette."I do. Though it's far".After what felt like hours, they met with the sight of a once beautiful town; now destroyed. Slight flames still remained after the explosion, casting a warm lighting over the remnants. Not much remained, just the ruins of larger houses.And then there was Alex, sitting on the remains of the thick brick wall. The fire turned his hair gold, just like the sun would. His knees were pulled to his chest, and he observed the town being burned to pieces, basically watching his hard work burn.They haven't noticed Alex yet, the car has just stopped and Elodie opened the back door, stepping outside. The fire illuminated its surroundings—after all the darkness inside the van it actually felt nice. Ethan meanwhile stayed in the van, his eyes were still tearing—though less now. He's been crying for hours, his tears weren't saltwater anymore. They were tinged with blood, stinging against his eyeballs."You ain't coming?" Elodie turned back at him.Ethan managed a weak nod in response.Carmen meanwhile walked throughout the ruins, clueless where to look first. But then, in the beam of firelight he beheld Alex. The firelight casted an eerie glow on his pale skin and his golden-brown hair seemed to glow with an ethereal light, almost as if it were touched by the fire itself.The sound of rocks crumbling beneath Camen's feet followed him as he slowly approached Alex. "Hey," said Carmen softly, taking a seat next to him.Alex glimpsed at him, surprisingly not shouting. His anger must've eased—or it was just overcome by despair. "Why are you here?" he asked."Although we've returned to seek your help... But I personally wanted to make sure you're alright...."."You betrayed me. I won't help you," Alex's anger seemed to come back. "And forgive you," he added, the ire beginning to subside, replaced by an air of melancholy."Will you let me explain?" Carmen spoke Calmly, the softness of his voice not abating.The silence indicated agreement."I was threatened that Mrs. Agnes will kill you if I don't let them in. I didn't know that they'd set up bombs," Carmen began. "And I simply just couldn't bare with losing you too".Alex remained silent."Please, say something," Carmen begged, pain evident in his voice. "I'm sorry. Okay?" the words were imbued with pure honesty.Despite Carmen's wishes, Alex's silence wouldn't cease.Carmen opened his mouth to speak but Alex was faster. "I understand," he said. "You know what kind of person she is, you should've gotten me killed instead of those innocent people".Carmen's black hair hinted shades of brown now that the firelight illuminated him. "I would never forgive myself both ways".Silence coming from both sides lingered between them before Carmen, after a moment asked, "Are you still mad?"."No. I never was, I was just sad about it and that turned into anger," Alex explained. "I could never be mad at you, even though you got my town blown up," he chuckled along the last words.Carmen's lips curled, "Thanks". He turned to him. "So will you forgive me?"."Overtime," Alex answered flatly. "You've said you needed help, right?"."We need your help finding the cure to the current crisis. You were so close last time"."Okay"."And Theo's dead". The words hung in the air like whispers, soft and hushed, carried by the wind."The blue-eyed guy?"."Yes"."How?"."Mrs. Agnes," Carmen paused before continuing, "You should know that he was also your step-brother. Mrs. Agnes is his aunt too"."What?" Alex raised his eyebrows. "And what has she done to him?".Carmen explained the whole thing."Damn," said Alex. "Are you feeling okay? Like now that he's uhm..."."Basically dead?" Carmen guessed, regardless of already knowing the answer. "I don't know, I feel empty. Though Ethan, he's been crying for hours...," he added shortly after his guess. "Isn't there still some way to save Theo?"."I'm afraid not, based on your description, his consciousness is dead. No cure will ever make him actually live again". Alex responded. "But we can cure the world...somehow".The stars were shadowed by gray clouds that were about to tear apart—it was about to rain. And moments later it did. The downpour was seeping cold against skin—cold like the space itself. Eventually, people get used to the coolness of this world generally, yet still, it will forever remain annoying. The climate never changed in this world, never. Forever cold. It has been the same since the very beginning—very beginning of the whole universe perhaps. Even if the world was burning from unbearable heat, this abyss would endure eternally chilled."It is raining," Alex mentioned a fact that was quite obvious."Woah really?" Carmen raised his eyebrows, his tone carrying a hint of irony. He said this as the rain began to soak his curls, their silky texture gradually giving way to a messier, tangled look under the increasing downpour. Carmen wasn't pleased by that scenario. "We should find a shelter. I don't want my hair to get ruined".Alex smirked, "Seriously? We could die any moment and you care about your hair?" he was pissed, though in a way that it was clear to understand it was sarcasm."Hey, if I'm going to die, I wanna die with my hair looking good," Carmen's lips curled into a smile."You would look great in both ways anyways". Alex's eyes mirrored the changing seasons in the flickering firelight, even as the flames weakened under the growing rain."Are you flirting with me?" Carmen teased with a light, amused ton."Nah," Alex denied in the same tone Carmen had used. "And come hide".Carmen remained seated on the rock, watching intently as Alex walked away. A lingering smile still played on Carmen's face, unchanged from earlier. In Alex's presence, the emptiness within him seemed to lift—just slightly. But even that small shift, if it continued to grow, could eventually overcome the sorrow he carried. Shaking off his thoughts, he stood and followed him. Together, they rejoined the others, who were already hiding inside the van"Finally you two," said Velvette, closing behind them so the water wouldn't damp the inside. "Are you two okay...like not fighting anymore?" she added."Yeah. Y'all still own me an apology though," Alex answered."Oh I don't owe you anything," Elodie crossed her arms tightly, her frustration evident in the tense set of her shoulders. "I'm still mad that you locked us up in that town"."So you're ungrateful because I gave you a place to sleep Literally almost for nothing?"."The both of you are just taking air, shut up," Velvette chimed in. With so many people in the back of the van, the air quickly became stuffy."What if we talked about stuff that's more important? Like the gravity of our situation?" Victor jumped in right after.Velvette considered his suggestion, looking lost in her thoughts for a brief moment, "For the first time you've said something useful". Elodie's signature was evident in Velette's hair; her braiding style was instantly recognizable. At least for Ethan. After spending a month with Elodie, he had become familiar with her unique braiding techniques, making it easy for him to identify her work. This whole observation was only a distraction from crying. His face was all sticky from the bloody tears that fell down his face and finally had held back. Perhaps this was the limit; not to mention the stinging pain in his eyes that would probably kill him otherwise. Not like he stopped shedding tears—mentally he still did. But physically he couldn't anymore. His heart was crying—if that counts. The sorrow seemed to strengthen, and the air stiffened in that small space, needing a replacement for a fresh one. "I need some fresh air," he said, his voice cracky.No one said anything until he left."I will go after him," Carmen said."Don't you care about your hair getting ruined?" Alex responded."No. It doesn't matter," Carmen left after that. Maybe the sudden switch came from the fact that Alex would basically see him as beautiful no matter how he looked. Despite questioning the sincerity of Alex's words, a part of him believed he was genuine, based on his tone and the way he looked at him. It felt as if he was convincing him with his thoughts.Ethan hadn't got far, Carmen could spot him the second he felt raindrops hitting against him once again. He was seated on the crumbling ruins of the town and appeared to observe the last lashings of flames fighting with the rain.Carmen approached him and sat down as Ethan glanced at him. Silence lingered between them, broken only by the rhythmic sound of raindrops hitting against the steel van, echoing loudly. Quiet moments are always accompanied by sound, even if it were to be just own thoughts."Do you think he in fact hated me and I spent hours crying for nothing?" Ethan asked.Carmen was shocked by the speculation at first and took a moment to rethink it. "No," he seemed to recall something. "After your argument he penned you an apology letter. Never read it, despite that, I believe he wrote about how much he loves you"."Do you have it?"."He wanted to give it to you today...but it has burned".Ethan's lips curled into a slight smile. It hurted, mentally, even physically. He pondered about the letter and what were the things Theo wanted him to know about. The things Theo's heart wanted to pour out but his mouth couldn't express out loud."I am such a fool. I am crying because he's dead, while he really isn't. I just know that what we all have seen...that wasn't him," Ethan spoke. Despite barely ever interacting with Carmen, this moment with him was comforting enough for him to express what he was experiencing. It held solace."You are not a fool, okay," Carmen stood up. "Now get yourself together, we gotta kick that witch's ass," he extended a hand to help Ethan up. "You can keep her head by the way," he added, a hint of sarcasm playing on his lips."Keep it for yourself," Ethan smirked, finally reaching for the offered hand."Your hands are ice cold," Carmen sensed the abnormal coldness of Ethan's hand."And yours are still warm. How? I'm literally freezing"."It's in the settings, right under the graphics menu".Ethan raised his eyebrows, "Seriously?". It felt nice for the sorrow to partly disappear and get replaced by more positive emotions."By the way, you should go to therapy after all this ends," Carmen said out of the blue.Ethan rolled his eyes and repeated, "Seriously?". His tone was more of a dismissive, with a tinge of annoyance.Carmen scoffed, "Yes. For the love of god, please get some help".Ethan shrugged off Carmen's suggestion with a half-hearted smile, dismissing it as a fleeting thought. Even though, the words intentionally carried a hint of seriousness, which had drifted through the air, eventually fading. Like the last flames they watched together until they were gone and complete darkness had surrounded them again. The flames faded, their light disappearing with them. The only nearby illumination were the enduringly shining stars above their heads because all of them will never fade into the depths of space. The amount of stars is so large that some will always be there, glimmering. They're always dancing around.