Somewhere in the stars

Friendly date

Today, the three of us are going to one of the largest public aquariums ever built, and Reya can't stop jumping up and down with delight. I just stared at her in delight. I also wore a wireless earpiece so that if I talked to Devin, people wouldn't think I was insane and talking to myself. I can just pretend I'm on the phone with someone by using my earpiece. Seems like a good idea. 

We simply stood there waiting for the aquarium to open. "Are you pumped? Because I am," I asked Devin, who appears to be in good spirits. He then grinned as he looked at me. "You have no idea," I simply smiled. Today, I plan to ask Devin about his life when he was still alive and how it relates to his unfinished business. I'm hoping he tells me this time.

 “We're about to open in 5 minutes," the speakers announced. Why am I suddenly nervous? Today I even dressed up. Damn it. After that entire 5 minutes, the public aquarium finally opened its doors, and all of the tourists and visitors entered the premises. The place was enormous! As we walked in, I was holding Reya's tiny hands. We wouldn’t want this little girl to get lost. It's actually pretty crowded today. 

"So, Devin," I said, "Tell me about yourself," He then chuckled and smirked. "Excited to know me much?" That made me roll my eyes. "You know why I agreed to this date. You also promised to tell me so that I could help you. Stop joking around," I stated firmly. He guffawed and threw up his hands in surrender. "Okay, relax. I was just joking with you," I then exhaled a sigh.

 And we came to a halt to observe the fishes and other marine animals. They were stunning. "I was never particularly close to anyone. No one, not even my own father. My mother is the only person I consider to be my best friend and the only person who truly understands me," I looked at him, surprised that he had finally begun to open up.

 "I grew up not having any friends, not being able to go to parties, and all of the other sappy stuff that every normal teenager has," I noticed as I looked at him, his eyes had a bittersweet look in them. It's no surprise that someone like him had so much unfinished business knowing now that he died without doing what he loved. "So, you see, this is why I don't have much to say, despite the fact that my family is wealthy and all. I haven’t done anything. Even before when I was alive, I had basically no life," I began to frown as I looked at him.

 I didn't expect someone like him, who always teases me and makes jokes, to have such a dull childhood and life. "I'm not sure how someone like you didn't have any friends. Like how? I'm sure some people attempted to befriend you. You were the only one who pushed them away," I stated. He then snorted, and a hooded expression appeared on his face. "Yeah, I'm sure they wanted to be friends with me for more reasons than just knowing I'm a Huxley," he replied sarcastically. 

I then sighed and eyed him. Does he really think all people are like that? "How can you say that? You know not everyone is after your money," I retaliated. He then scowled. "Well, Rumi, just so you know, the reason I'm here right now, dead, is because people were after my family's wealth," A moment of silence descended upon us. I believe this is the first time we've ever argued. I feel guilty and frustrated at the same time. I'm not sure how I could possibly help him. I know I shouldn't have said that without knowing the whole story. It was stupid of me, and now everything is messed up. I took a deep breath and cleared my throat. 

"I'm sorry, Devin," He  sighed, running his hand through his hair, as he briefly closed his eyes. He then opened his eyes to look at me, and smiled weakly. "It's all right; it's not your fault. You didn't know much about my life, so I understand why you said what you said.

 But, yes, I did try to accept people who wanted to be friends with me in the past...but one time I overheard them speaking negatively about me and how the only reason they wanted to be my friend was because I was a Huxley and it would help them someday," He shook his head and snickered.

 "Little did they know I heard every word they said...and after that I vowed to just be alone because what's the point? I obviously couldn't trust any of them. You're literally the only person I've told this to because I'm dead and you're supposed to help me but if it wasn't for that...I would have never told you," After saying that, he walked over to Reya, who was staring at the fish and touching the glass.

I hung my head at that. I clearly have a lot of things I still don't know about him. I recently discovered that he had a difficult childhood, that he only trusted his mother, and that he was basically a wealthy loner. I feel so sad for him. It doesn’t help that I said those things to him earlier. Oh, Devin. Don't worry. After hearing everything he's just said to me. I wanted to do even more for him.

 Actually, now that I think about it... What if his unfinished business was his inability to let go of his trust issues with other people? Or that he never did get to do everything he wanted to do when he was still alive? I have a bright idea!  We should make a bucket list!