She felt so betrayed, by Mrs Starling, by Mr Boomer, by everyone. Sunny sat on a tree trunk, her hands on her face as she wept in agony. Her father was dead, and Mr Boomer was right, she really was an orphan, a foolish, naive orphan. She began to wonder what her purpose was, and what she must do now without her father. However, she took a deep breath, like what Mrs Starling did when she cried for her. Her eyes dried a little, and Sunny kept muttering to herself,
"It's going to be alright…It's going to be alright.."
She had always muttered this to herself whenever she felt lost and scared, but never before had she been this lost…and lonely. Her eyes were bloodshot, snot running down her nose. Her heart felt swollen because her beloved father was dead, and if only she was told that sooner, because maybe then, she would be able to visit his tombstone. However, there was no tombstone to cry over, no flowers to place at his grave, there wasn't even anything she could be able to tell him about her life. It was already a few hours and it was finally the middle of the night, the stars were glimmering, they rejoiced, shining brightly, and although the gloomy moon wasn't as bright, it still brought light for Sunny's dark night. But eventually, the young girl took another small, sharp breath, and stood up upon noticing a large rock. She picked up that rock, and she sat it down where there were no trees blocking the moonlight. She heads towards a flower-filled field, all on her own, letting out a somber, shaky sigh. She wasn't ready to forgive, not after a decade of lies. Mrs Starling was a deceiver, and Mr Boomer was only trying to tell her the truth, something she was blinded to. She then walked back to the scriptless rock, and she placed the lilacs in front of it, she made it the coffinless grave of her father. She then folded her hands together, her eyes closed.
"Daddy…I'm so sorry for running away from the orphanage, and I'm so sorry for being so naive…I don't know what to do anymore…" her words were choked, and tears kept running down her cheeks as she continued to speak to the grave, her eyes this time open. "She may be horrible, but I'll stay with her if that's what you want." She then forced a squiggly smile, her tears glistening under the moonlight. "I'll try not to cry, I'll try not to complain…But it's going to be so hard, especially since you're not here."
She then leaned forward, and she pressed her lips against the top of the cold stone as if it were her father's warm, flesh-and-blood forehead, and she bent back, standing up.
"I have to go, but I'll always visit you, I promise." she reassured, her smile returning.
However, her ears perked up when she heard chattering deep within the forest. The voices were deep and masculine, there were definitely men there. A chill ran down Sunny's spine, and she timidly embraced herself, her hands clutching her shoulders. She was frightened, fearing that there were thieves, kidnappers…or even murderers! Her heart thumped with anxiety, she needed comfort from a guardian. However, she cared any less, because those she loved were nothing but deceivers. She slowly moved her through the trees, making sure that her foot didn't step on crackable twigs. The voices grew louder and clearer every step she took, and she lightly gasped, seeing a group of tall, bulky men in black hoods, all of them in a circle talking to each other.
"Woah…" The curious but meek Sunny whispered, hiding near a tree with a bark thick enough to hide her. "Who are they..?"
One of the men spoke, "Now, listen, everyone. The boss had heard of a child who had the knowledge of the Creator, so that means she has lots of information that'll lead to trouble."
But suddenly, Someone interrupted, "Wait a minute! Knowledge about the Creator?!"
"Knowledge about the Creator?!" Another repeated.
All of the men began to chatter wildly about how this could be, out of their mouths came questions of how in the world did the child discover the Creator.
"ENOUGH!" The first man commanded, and shockingly, they remained silent. Clearing his throat, he said, "Now, listen, everyone. We're going to be searching for the child, and once we find them, we'll throw them away. But this isn't about the book…It's something more about the child. She mustn't remain here any longer."
The other men snickered coldly, agreeing to the first man's plan, they all began to split up, searching for the child. Meanwhile, Sunny lightly gasped, her heart feeling pity, because who could ever try to harm a child? She knew that she must do something about this as a witness, so she sneakingly moved away from the tree, making sure that she tip-toes through the forest so that nobody could hear her. Although she was too blinded by grief to think straight, she knew she must do something. The moon was already heading to the east, so morning was approaching, but the sun wasn't. She knew that it wouldn't be dark anymore, but to her dismay, she was deep within the forest, far away from the orphanage.
"Jiminy crickets!" Sunny exclaimed out of frustration, smashing her forehead against the hard bark of a nearby tree, only to endure a headache.
However, she immediately covered her mouth, making sure that nobody heard her. She let out a sigh, what use was an emotionally drained little girl? She felt so arrogant, even though she had the potential of solving this problem. She continued to rub her swollen forehead, still questioning herself.
"What would Mrs Starling do?" she wondered. "Was she ever in a situation like this?"
But she halted, she sighed heavily, she wasn't going to remember that woman, especially after what she's done. She didn't care what the reason was. But for some reason, she began to feel lonely, she was away from the woman who looked after her for many years. It was indeed natural, but Sunny's heart still throbbed with pain. She felt sorry for running away, imagining the tears running down Mrs Starling's face. It was something she never wanted to see.
"I'm sorry, Mrs Starling…" was all she could mutter, despite her bitterness towards her lies.
But there was no Mrs Starling to cry over, because she was far away from the orphanage, lost and drained. All she could do was walk back to her father's tombstone, kneel down, and just let her tears fall. She hadn't cried enough.
***
Meanwhile, there were two men in hoods who were walking down the road, chatting with each other.
"And then I told her 'Honey, it's true! There is a tarantula!' and at first she didn't believe me, but when she saw it herself, she fainted!" The first one joked.
The second chuckled lightly, "Aww, man, Bobbie. You always know how to make me laugh."
"I know, Donald." Bobbie grinned. "Anyways, I wonder where that kid is, and the question is: How do they know who the Creator is if they're an earthling?"
"I don't know, man." Donald shrugged. "But one thing is for sure, they definitely must go to where they belong, it's not safe for them to run along and tell everyone about who the Creator is."
Bobbie yawned, his eyes having bags under, "Why do we have to be up at this hour?"
"The others are awake at this time too." Donald sighed, looking at Bobbie like it was the easiest question. "And did you know that spiders are probably awake at this point?"
Bobbie shrieked like a little girl, "Oh, no! No, no, no!"
"Can you relax, Bob?" Donald patted his shoulder. "You watched 'Tarantula' too many times."
All of the sudden, the sobbing of a little girl snapped them out of their light-hearted conversation.
"Is that a little girl?" Bobbie gasped. "She doesn't sound alright."
Donald looked around, his expression serious and focused, "Be careful, it might be a threat."
"Wait, who's that over there?" Bobbie pointed to a figure covered in shadow, appearing to be in a sitting position, their head bowed.
The duo slowly approached the figure, making sure they weren't seen, and when the coast became clearer, they saw Sunny, who was already crying again at her father's grave.
"I tried to be positive, daddy." she wept, wiping her eyes, only for them to fill up with tears. "But I'm so scared, I just wish someone's here right now to help me."
The sombered Bobbie whispered, "Aww..The girl must be down on her luck."
Donald nodded, feeling pity for the lost, young girl, "She seems not much older than 12 years, and yet she is already going through so much loss."
Bobbie suddenly smirked, having an idea.
"Hey, Donald, ever heard of 'My Phantom Teacher?'."
"You mean that musical about a woman who was visited by a deformed man everyday, and that man soon became obsessed with her? Yes, it was quite interesting, you were right about new experiences being worth trying. I wasn't a fan of classical music until now."
Bobbie chuckled, "Well, I remember in one scene in particular where the nut job pretended to be the girl's father just to bring her to him."
"Are you saying you want to disguise as the girl's father and deceive her?" Donald gave him a cold and dark look, he wasn't pleased with this idea.
"I'm sure she's too naive to understand, she's 12, for the Creator's sake!"
"Shush." Donald hushed him, his index finger against his dried, brown lips. "We mustn't bring up the Creator like this."
"What about the idea?"
"Well, we are looking for the child, and the girl is one, so we'll take her. Just be careful, and don't do anything silly that will get us both caught. This is very important, especially since the boss instructed all of us to do this."
Bobbie nodded his head, and he began to approach tree after tree, until he was right behind Sunny.
"Ooohhh~" he made a dark and ghost-like sound.
Sunny felt a chill run down her spine while Donald shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Who's there?" she called, looking around, and Bobbie quickly hid at a nearby tree.
"Ah…I am your ghost's father—I mean, I'm your father's ghost!" replied Bobbie.
"I can't believe it…" replied Sunny, standing up. "Is it really you? You're actually alive?"
"No, no!" spoke Bobbie, still masking as the father. "I'm not alive, but I am a ghost! I'm going to haunt you forever—I mean hold you forever, my little sunbeam!"
Sunny tilted her head to the side, "'Sunbeam'..? You never called me that, daddy."
"Ah, I just got to be more creative with my affectionate nicknames for you! Oh, you look so beautiful, just like your mother!"
Now this brought even more confusion to Sunny, who replied, "I never had a mother, don't you remember, daddy?"
Bobbie gulped, "Oh! I met your mother, and she is really beautiful, it's been so long since I last saw her, y'know?"
Sunny blinked, confused, but then her frown curved into an ear-to-ear grin, "It is you, daddy! I missed you so much! Can you come over?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, dearest! But daddy's invisible, you can only hear him with his ghostly voice!"
Sunny giggled, "Daddy, you're as funny as ever."
Bobbie chuckled as well, trying to keep his voice recognizable, "I sure am, honey!"
Sunny sniffled, "I missed you so much, daddy! There's so much I want to tell you about!"
"Oh, and there's so much I want to tell you too!" said the awkward Bobbie. "I hope you die soon!"
Sunny gasped, taken aback by what he said.
"Oh, I'm sorry, sweetheart! You're still so young, and that was so selfish of me to say that!"
Sunny laughed, clearly assuming that it was just a joke. Meanwhile, Donald continued to watch their interaction, his expression blank, but he was already irritated with Bobbie's stupidity and deceiving nature.
"Come on, Bobbie." Donald called, aloud in hopes that Sunny will eventually figure out it really isn't her father. "We gotta get going?"
Sunny yelped, "Who was that, daddy?!"
Bobbie began to sweat, but he kept his voice sturdy and firm, "Oh, that's my friend, Donald! Yeah, he's dead too."
Donald grumbled, "Bobbie, I swear, if you take this any further, I'll—"
"It's nice to meet you, Mr Donald!" Sunny grinned. "And Daddy, I didn't know your name was 'Bobbie'!"
"Oh, yes! Well, you are 12, and of course you would have the right to know that my name is Bobbie!"
Sunny stood up, and she began to walk directly towards the voices, "Oh, daddy, if only I could see you right now."
Bobbie gasped, "Wait! Don't get any closer!"
Donald panicked, "I told you this was a horrible idea, Bobbie!"
But the moment Sunny saw them, her jaw dropped, her eyes widened. She had a look of shock and distress when she realized that Bobbie wasn't her father.
"Daddy?" she questioned in denial. "Why do you look so different? And why are you wearing a hood like Mr Donald?"
Bobbie gulped, "Oh, sweetheart, people change when they get older."
However, Donald slammed his heel against Bobbie, who let out a girly scream that caused the sleeping birds to awaken and fly away.
"OW!" he shrieked, clutching his agonized foot and balancing on one, hopping frequently. "What was that for?!"
"Look at what you've done!" Donald chastised. "Do you see how upset she looks now?! She practically has puppy eyes!"
And it was true. Sunny looked at them with glossy eyes, her hazel nut-like pupils widened, they were like wet stars.
"Alright, kid, don't cry like that." The calm and collected Donald tried to pat her shoulder and soothe her woes, but nothing worked.
"I can't help it!" she sobbed. "I was so naive thinking that I was actually talking to my father! I can't actually talk to a ghost! That just happens in stories!"
Bobbie gulped again, "Sunshine, we don't like seeing pretty girls cry—"
"No!" Sunny exclaimed, her eyes burning with anger. "Who cares what your reasoning is! The last thing I need right now is another person deceiving me!"
"I got the idea from 'My Phantom Teacher'! Everybody loves that musical!" said the ditzy Bobbie.
"I don't even know what that is, and I don't care to know!"
Donald shot Bobbie a sharp glare, "You see what you've done, Robert? You caused her more grief because of your stupidity!"
Bobbie crossed his arms, "Well, it's not my fault she's fatherless!"
Sunny couldn't help but sob even more, burying her face into Donald's broad chest.
"Now, look at what you've done!" Donald scolded Bobbie while gently rubbing Sunny's head. "Dagnabbit, Robert! Why the hell are you always causing me so much trouble when I'm doing my job!"
"Oh, come on! I have a job too! The same job as yours!"
"We're supposed to help people out, not make a little girl cry and cause her too much grief when she already has so much!"
"Boys!" called an elderly voice, causing Donald to release Sunny, who was still wiping her eyes, the tears kept flowing no matter how many times she wiped them.
"Darn it to heck!" Bobbie exclaimed, stomping his foot to the ground. "The boss is here, and we don't even have a child!"
Sunny gasped, "So you're the guys who are trying to kidnap a child?! Shame on you, you brutes! Mrs Starling always tells me that it's not lady-like to take things that aren't yours!"
"Well, sorry, little miss!" mocked Bobbie. "But me and Donald are men!"
Donald raised his head in defense, "Listen, we're going to have to take you."
"Why!" Sunny exclaimed, her hands on her hips. "First you deceived me, and now you're just going to take me?"
"Just listen to what we're trying to tell you, dammit!" exclaimed the frustrated Donald, who pinched the bridge of his nose. "We're doing this for your own good!"
"For my own good!" Sunny pounded her palm against her chest. "For my own good?! I think it's for your own good, you want your jobs saved!"
"Yeah, we want that, but listen! You just have to come with us!"
Sunny gulped, "But I can't. I just met you, and I can't just go along. Mrs Starling…she might be worried about me."
"Well, what are you doing out here?" Bobbie questioned. "Don't you have a curfew?"
Sunny sniffled, "It was my 12th birthday today, and I was so excited for my daddy to come back, because he said that he will come back that time…But it turns out that he was dead the whole time, and Mrs Starling, my caretaker, she never told me until now."
"Wow, what a horrible caretaker." spoke Donald, whoever this Mrs Starling was to Sunny, he loathed her for her terrible choices.
"Boys." The boss walked over to him, he was clad in a dark hood just like them.
Bobbie and Donald looked at each other, before turning their gaze back at the boss.
"I'll take it from here." his voice was raspy and elderly-like, it sounded familiar to Sunny.
The duo stepped back, and the boss approached the timid Sunny.
"I'm sorry you have to go through that," he said. "Oh, and I don't mind you knocking out my gold tooth. It's just a tooth painted by a professional."
Sunny gulped, "Who are you?"
The boss removed his hood, and the person behind that hood was Mr Boomer, his expression serious and calculated. Sunny let out a light gasp, backing away.
"Sunny, you should know by now what happened to your father." Mr Boomer somberly said. "And I am sorry for what has happened."
Sunny sniffled, "I don't understand, you were leading these two into kidnapping a child? Are you just going to take someone from the orphanage because Mrs Starling refused to give it to you?" Her face turned stern and frustrated. "That's horrible of you, Mr Boomer! I can see why Mrs Starling doesn't want me to go with someone like you!"
Mr Boomer sighed, "Sunny, listen, I'm only doing this for your own good. I want you to know that your father loved you more than life itself, and he would be heartbroken to see you like this, sulking over his death." He glanced at the handmade grave, and he shook his head, sighing sadly. "You truly missed him, do you?"
Sunny blinked away her tears, "Yes, I really did, sir! He meant the world to me…he was the one who always looked after me because my mother was never there…But I see now that I have to move on, and even if it wouldn't be easy, I know that you will help me out with this…Sir, I'm sorry for being so ignorant towards you."
Mr Boomer remained silent, but he finally said, "I'm sorry too. Boys, grab her."
The duo, without any hesitation, suddenly grabbed Sunny by the arms, their grips firm but gentle, they began to pull me through the forest as she began to scream out of fright.
"STOP! What are you doing?!" she cried, pouncing her feet onto the ground in an attempt to slow down, but it was useless, the duo were much stronger and had more stamina than her, it was already a few minutes, and they were already pulling her a long, dark way.
Mr Boomer could only follow as the two men reluctantly headed over to a treeless area, there was nothing but grass, and the sun was starting to rise, the dark purple sky getting a shade of orangish pink.
"You know what to do." Mr Boomer told them.
Bobbie gulped, and from his backpack, he revealed a foldable disk-shaped object, it was as dark as night. Sunny just stared as Bobbie and Donald together placed it on the center of the treeless area. But to her shock, they placed two fingers onto the top and bottom of the object, their fingers, for some reason, entering within and poking the edges, they soon began to back away as they stretched the object, it was a mind screw for Sunny, who watched as they began to expand it into one, giant hole that filled the entire area. If only she could scratch her hair quizzically, but her arms were unfortunately held hostage.
"This is the portable hole." explained Mr Boomer, who smirked with his arms crossed. "Don't worry, nothing horrible will happen. You'll just begin a new experience that's definitely worth trying for an earthling who knows about the Creator. Send her down, boys."
Before Sunny could protest, Bobbie and Donald grabbed her shoulders, and with one push, they threw her into the hole, sending her falling into the unknown darkness as she let out a scream of fright that went faint the further she fell down. In a matter of seconds, she was already gone, but the hole was still there, as if a young girl like her never fell in.
"Oh, my Creator.." Donald said, his calm demeanor shattered. "Where is she going, boss?"
"I told you before." spoke the cold-hearted Mr Boomer. "She's going to meet her destiny."