Love potion
A/N: ANOTHER SPOILER ALERT IF YOU HAVEN'T READ BBBGLX SS2 COMIC ISU 6-9 YET.
- Don't let the title fool y'all lmao. I got inspired by a prompt from Fb, I'll leave it in the end of the story. By now, I hope you guys enjoy this uwu
.
.
.
"So he is not gonna call me today huh."
Taufan sat on his beloved hoverboard, watching his brothers as they prepared to go outside. This time, Boboiboy summoned them for a cooking competition. Five of them to be exact, Taufan and Solar remained in this mansion.
"Sadly, yes." The other responded while putting on his earth gloves, expression clearly on his face. "I'm concerned, Blaze or Duri may unintentionally make a mess. At least you know how to bake."
"Aww Gempa, I'm sureeee it's gonna be fineeeee. Tho I'd love to bake some cookies." He laughed softly, Taufan knew that he should get used to it after all. Rest assured for him, Boboiboy gives them equal chances to go out and fight, well, except for one person. The other one stayed with him today.
The one with honey eyes sighed, rolled his eyes as if he already knew the answer. "Right", the troublemakers always backed each other up. Gempa shifted his attention to the light dimension, then decided to approach Taufan's close, whispering for only them to hear.
"By the way, could you please help me keep an eye on Solar, he has been locking himself in his room for days."
Oh dear, it seemed that he still had some tasks to complete.
"Sure, you can count on me. Have fun!"
---
Knock knock.
"I'm busy, go away."
Wow, how rude he is, Taufan could only comment bluntly inside his mind. "You should go out and get some fresh air. Gempa told me you have been there for days. " He made a point of emphasizing the last few words.
"No." The other responded nonchalantly. "Go away." He repeated himself, sounding kind of irritated.
This one is tough, Taufan thought. No one has ever made it in Solar's room but Duri, or on rare occasions, Gempa. Yet Taufan, on the other hand, was never one to stay still. And he continued rambling outside the door as much as he could just to annoy the person inside. "C'mon Solar, let me in! It's dead boring out here!"
"..."
"I won't touch anything, promise!"
"I don't believe you."
Taufan was offended, but he couldn't complain nonetheless. His priority was to either get Solar out of the way or convince the light elemental to let Taufan into his dimension. So he said louder, trying to come up with a creative plan just to lure the light elemental out:
"You can call Halilintar to electrocute me when he finishes the mission! Or I could be the subject of your next experiment! Oh, or perhaps-"
Before the door opened, there was a groaning sound. A click was heard, Solar appeared in front of the wind element, wearing his identical orange sunglasses.
"Stop that, you're making a lot of noise. Just come in and don't-disturb-me again."
Mission accomplished. "Sure thing!"
The light dimension, contrary to its name, didn't even provide Taufan with a bright side as it was supposed to. As soon as his feet touched the chilly floor's rough surface, mountains of paper poured down on him like an avalanche. Solar's room was messy, with scrap papers and chemical formulas thrown everywhere. Taufan wondered if the youngest was still concerned about his own matters, his well-being, or himself. Solar didn't look that dead inside, but the room did get him into another sight of his younger brother. An utter chaos, just like the latter's mind. He could smell the aroma of alchemic potion around the youngest's room, it somehow made him feel dizzy. Sure this is not Taufan's favorite sight of view, or at least, what he expected to see. How did Solar cope with this for days ?
Since he didn't know what was on Solar's mind yet, Taufan chose to observe the youngest, and as promised, there was no loud noise or hint of an annoying prank. Of course, the light elemental was puzzling, but he shrugged it off, deciding that it was more important for him to focus on his current task.
The potion.
He reached his overfilled ingredients cabinet, which emitted twinkling colorful lights and fragrant scents from the jars within. When he opened the door, he just managed to catch two bottles of gleaming sleeping potions that had fallen from the upper shelf. He sighed as he carefully re-shelved the bottles in his fingers while looking over his ingredients. Then he began his magical dance in order to brew his concoction. The contents of the glass jars flung around as they made their way into the bubbling cauldron. A loud crackling pink sizzle popped from the bottom of the pot each time a new ingredient was added. He nodded with assurance as he returned to the middle of his creation. The potion boiling over and beginning to smoke.
An explosion of smoke erupted like a mushroom cloud before everything crashed into the tiny test tube. Taufan's absolute bewildered expression went unnoticed to Solar, as he was too preoccupied with his invention. The second eldest just believed it wasn't going to be a harmless potion. Sapphire eyes shifted to where Solar had decided to put the potion to the test.
There was a thought run through his mind. Taufan didn't know much about chemicals, but he was definitely aware of the fact that: never try a potion if you're not sure of what it will do. By that moment, Taufan knew his brother was going to do something mental.
"Wait-"
"Here goes nothing", the light elemental mumbled to himself.
A loud thug was heard. Both of them tumbled to the floor, and before he could say anything, Taufan eventually realized that he was late. Solar had already drunk the potion. The latter was taken aback for a few seconds to register what in the world happened with him, not because of Taufan's abrupt movement, but because...
Nothing happened.
Solar felt a drop in his chest.
"Don't tell me you were planning to commit suicide!"
Right, Taufan was there, too.
Solar planned to be silent this time. However, his rage and disappointment restrained him from doing so. He clenched his jaw. He knew it wasn't going to work. Nothing he tries ever succeeds. And this is exactly what he had expected before, a failure, but not his brother's nagging sound. And he was boiling mad about it. His shaky breath turned into an unpleasant response.
"What exactly do you mean by "suicide"? We can't die from a drop of poison in this imaginary world! And I'm not creating any poison, you idiot!"
"Then what did you drink a minute ago?!"
And the latter burst out without thinking twice, "It was a freaking love potion!!!"
"A-- what?!"
An uncomfortable silence filled the room. It took both of them a second to realize that they had just been staring at each other for the past minute or so. While Taufan analyzed Solar's perplexed expression and his poor attempt to avoid the older brother's intense gaze, there was only one thought on his mind right now. That was a bold confession.
Taufan could do nothing but murmur, "Wow, Solar, I had no idea you had a love interest," with the hope to soothe the atmosphere. He bet neither of his brothers was aware of this information as well. Gempa and Halilintar would exchange quizzical looks, meanwhile Ais, on the contrary, would mind his own business as usual. Oh, and how would Blaze and Duri react after this? Duri would undoubtedly be the one to break the silence first, with a typically naive question, followed by Blaze's manic laughter. After such confession, he would have joined them to tease Solar for the rest of the day. But now it was just the two of them, and even if he wanted to, Taufan was too stunned to even function normally.
Solar's immediate response piqued his curiosity even more: "... That wasn't what I meant."
However, the youngest continued to act as if he had been caught in the act of committing a crime. Taufan leaned back, giving the other space, as he observed his brother had been holding his breath for what seemed like an hour, in spite of the fact that they had only been staring for a few minutes.
"Then why did you create a love potion and drink it yourself?"
It was now Taufan's intention to jump into the investigation, Solar must know Taufan was not the type to let it slide that easily. Perhaps some explanations will keep his mouth shut as well, but what he was attempting to do here was figure out Solar's suspicious actions these days. Taufan had never been as observant as Gempa or Ais, and despite his best efforts to avoid prying on the other personal information as much as possible, his curiosity was pricking him hard.
"I'm serious, if that wasn't a love potion or any other harmless potion, we'd consider that as a suicide attempt. Or you are stupid enough to do something like 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵." Taufan lowered his tone, this time it had a hint of concern.
The other retorted, "What? You haven't seen scientists testing on themselves before? Besides, it was for me, I have to test it out myself."
Additionally, they were unable to acquire a test subject in this dimension. Duri's plants were possibly the only living things in here. How could you put a love potion to the test on a plant? Taufan had no idea how to respond with a more reasonable answer than that.
"Okay... You got a point there, but still, what are you gonna do if they give you side effects?" ...Yeah, they couldn't die because of a drop of poison (correction: potion). Furthermore, if a love potion could work, there was no proof that the side effect couldn't as well. They were not supposed to consider the other elementals as their family, but Taufan couldn't help it. Neither did they. And by that means, Taufan has his right, he– no, they would be worried sick if anything happened to their little brother.
What may be the purpose for Solar to try to produce such an... odd formula, if the light elemental doesn't have a love interest that they can't know about? Which, without a certain, would never be used in their battles and missions.
Solar was quick to catch on in his brother's thoughts, so he remained silent. Although Taufan had moved back a little to calm him down, his chest was pounding and it was hard to breathe. He attempted to keep his attention away from those blue eyes as much as possible, afraid of spilling the tea out (again) once he met that caring stare. Solar couldn't resist them, so he chose to avoid them.
"Solar, are you alright?"
No, don't get him wrong. Solar appreciates their care, really. Is it because he was suddenly cared for that he felt so... overwhelmed? Should he confess everything or keep lying through his teeth? Which one was the right choice?
"I'm fine." Solar despised the fact that he couldn't answer that easy question.
And all he could think about was chanting it over and over in his head. Don't fall for what he says, don't care how he looks, don't–
"Really?" The other inquired, Solar's gaze drawn to Taufan's worried expression. They shouldn't have the same face, he thought to himself. He could imagine that same look on Duri or Gempa right now.
"It's fine if you ask for help. It doesn't make you any less cool."
Damn you, Taufan.
"You've completely misunderstood the whole point."
Taufan's dumbfounded face appeared once again. Yeah, what did both of them expect from this conversation in the first place?
"Well then, you'd better explain before I go off on another tangent." Taufan sat on his board, and when Solar dared to look straight to his face, it was... blank.
That was Taufan's little attempt to get this thing done. He realized Solar had observed his expression to the point he stressed himself out. Maybe he was worried how Taufan reacted, or he didn't like what Taufan expressed from the start. He didn't want anyone to be worried about him, but Taufan showed up. And the only emotion he gave was concern.
Solar took in a big gulp. He assumed the fear of telling the other had gotten to him, and he merely blanked out for a second. His mouth began to move, and time in his thoughts came to a halt. Everything unfolded at a glacial pace, and his stomach sank to his feet.
"I was... trying to figure out a way to forgive myself."
The room grew silent once more, but this time it was not as unpleasant as the first. His blood ran cold, Solar swore he could hear his chest thudding this time.
"You know what happened to us earlier. Those incidents. It was all my fault." His mind vividly recalled what had occurred at that time. It was once a nightmare, and it had always been the same. "Boboiboy has forgiven me, and yet I couldn't do the same."
The same? Taufan raised his brow, finally made sense of his response.
"And then one day, Duri told me that my problem was I had never loved myself enough to forgive."
No, he had lost it. Think about that again, the proud emotion when he achieved something, and how it was now all gone thanks to a miscalculation. Solar hasn't shown up since that incident, and it's not because Boboiboy doesn't want him to. Solar locked himself within the watch and wouldn't get out, no matter how hard the boy tried. Just by that, all of the boy's confidence tumbled down little by little. The continuous trauma. The others simply didn't know this since they didn't want to pry their master's mind. There had to be a reason, and Taufan had just heard it.
Solar honestly never thought this potion would work, but he tried nonetheless. And to his expectation, it didn't. It was worth a shot, or he was just too desperate to make a sensible decision. He could share his thoughts with the other elementals in the first place, like how they do with the others, like how Duri and Gempa tried to approach him. He knew the answer would always be the same, that they would forgive him, that it wasn't his fault.
But his brain, his insane brain, would never let him off the hook. He was well conscious that everything that had occurred to them was his fault. Not once, but twice! Despite his enthusiastic new lease on life, he still contemplated the true state of his emotions. He felt the sting of fear, the fear of loss. The loss of lives, the loss of familiar portions of the world, in short, the loss of anything he might love as a result of the merciless march of time and endless cruelty. The eyes of the dying still haunted his dreams and in his waking moments, he found no solace. He was a failure. One who cost many lives.
He saved no one, even his own family.
"I see, we're our own worst critics, aren't we?" Taufan had drifted close by, fidgeting with the test tube in his palm. That was enough to jolt Solar out of his daydream. Wait, when did he get here? Was Solar too engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't see the other's sudden movement? "You know what? I think this is a brilliant idea, but would not be so brilliant anymore if Gempa finds you writhing in agony the next day as a result of this potion."
"This is not the first time I did the same thing."
"Are you trying to reassure me or make me more concerned?" Taufan frowned, inwardly questioning his youngest's sanity.
The light elemental rolled his eyes at the former's tactic, he snatched the test tube back, casually curled himself again. Taufan was thinking of something else to say, but it did not bother him. Any comfort from them gives him the same result. Then he noticed Taufan seated directly next to him.
Two caring arms hugged him, and all-too-familiar feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness greeted him as he returned home. He tried to shake them off, like he had done before, but he was too exhausted to struggle. He returned the hug instead.
"Solar, maybe you don't need a love potion". The wind elemental muttered, while drawing a circle on the back of the other. "The point is...you were afraid of hurting people, hurting us. That doesn't matter, you see, all of us have moved on, but you. You worried about everyone but yourself. I guess that's why Duri told you to love yourself more. But training in chemical doesn't help you to solve emotional problems in life like this."
Taufan took a moment to observe his brother before continuing his statement there.
"If you are scared that much, then remember, you have to do good rather than feel bad."
"When I— uh, no, when Boboiboy was ten. I once fought Halilintar and unknowingly wrecked something else in the middle of the way. Despite the fact that I didn't do it on purpose, I felt awful about it." He chuckled, thinking how immature he was (technically, all of them were; what did he expect more from a ten-year-old? But Taufan enjoyed that nonetheless, as he could feel happiness inside that innocent child), "But then Tok Aba came and told me that: " Forgiveness comes more easily when you begin to feel that you've done your very best to make things better for other person "."
And there he tried. He wasn't the second eldest for nothing. Even though the three of them agreed with the idea of Gempa becoming their leader, the latter insisted on acting like a younger child on rare occasions. That was a sight only the eldests could see, and they were willing to help the third brother take a short rest.
So instead of talking to Gempa about this, which could upset their leader even more as Solar didn't want to. Taufan took it as his duty to assist his brother.
"You are our genius right? Dang right you are! And listen, not stressing yourself out is also a sign of loving yourself."
He snorted, "No promises though, but I'll try."
"There, that smirk fits you more!" Taufan smiled proudly and took a second to spill the next thing on his mind. "To be honest, I don't like the idea of you kissing yourself in front of the mirror."
The deadpanned expression from Solar intrigued him even more, and Taufan couldn't help but grin at his own joke.
"Just kidding."
They parted ways after the hug, with the decision to help Solar in cleaning up his place. The others would be back in no time, and Solar didn't want to go through what he had just done with Taufan a few minutes earlier. Although Solar was relieved to get his thoughts out, he didn't feel safe enough to tell the others about it just yet. He needed more time, or he could just start doing what the wind elemental had advised him right now without informing them. And the youngest was pondering the second option until he overheard Taufan's whisper next to him:
"Thank you for trusting me." The wind elemental was delighted that he was the one to whom Solar chose to share his story. Maybe a tinge of satisfaction, but overall, he saw it as a little effort that both of them had made to communicate, knowing that he had never been Solar's first choice for confessing.
"I didn't, your stare gave me too much pressure."
This made Taufan promptly shut him down, "It was that much tension?! Sorry–"
"Don't be, I'm just kidding." The youngest laughed lightly, ignoring his brother's sulky pout, "So, this is the secret between us?"
Both of them shared trusting glances, before Taufan eventually said: "Yeah, just the two of us."
As the cheerful wind left his room, Solar stood in front of his bedroom windows, which had been shut for the longest time. And he opened them. Did the skies appear... less gray? Perhaps. Perhaps... he would step outside today. Perhaps he would meet them. Perhaps he would come up with something new for their missions? Perhaps things would get better. Time will tell.
---
After the forest exploration, to be specific, the oddly perfect combination between Solar and Duri sparked the former's enthusiasm so much. "Pound it!" The photosynthesis duo bumped hands with each other, earning a content look from Halilintar.
"Hey!" He heard Taufan shout from afar, his hand waving up to the others, "I knew you could do it!"
Solar couldn't help but smile widely.
"Of course, I'm a genius after all!" He yelled back, and didn't forget to give their signature thumb up.
The other elementals simply stood there from a distance, exchanging glances. Now they were curious about what had happened between those two.
[End]
.
.
.
.
.
Original prompt:
The image above is the prompt that gave in inspiration! Something helped me escape my writer's block (temporary) lmao.
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: Truyen3h.Co