Dusk was settling on Kalm, casting the dull landscape into sharp relief and silence reigned as almost all of the few inhabitants of the small town had retreated indoors. One however remained, a boy, around ten or eleven years old, he had a look about him that spoke of hardship and maturity beyond his years, dressed in dusty, once black combats and a faded once brown t-shirt, the boy was frowning and staring vaguely at the horizon through powerfully dark blue eyes that were partially veiled by his light brown hair.
"Tifa says dinner will be ready soon," a voice said softly causing the boy to jump slightly, startled and look around, surprised as his eyes finally landed on a girl stood a few meters away by the entrance to the house, she looked about two years younger than the boy although despite the naïveté shining through so obviously with her smile she too held a look of hardship and age. She was dressed in a cream skirt and matching off-white sweater and her eyes were darting around, never stopping on the boy for too long which caused her to look almost afraid.
"I'm not hungry, Marlene, I want to think," the boy replied, his voice containing a mix of badly masked sadness and frustration, before looking back to the horizon. The girl sat down, her milk-chocolate eyes clouded over with worry; she paused, scuffing her battered trainers against each other as she struggled to find her way through the tension of the silence.
"What about?" she asked finally, with only the slightest hint of hesitation in her voice.
"About how much life sucks…"
The girl, Marlene, turned to him sharply, eyes ablaze, "Don't say that Denzel! Lots of good things happen all the time. Life is something to be happy about not a reason to be upset."
Denzel turned to her curiously, his concentration finally away from the skyline, "Like what?"
"Like everything," Marlene replied, "I bet I can make up a story with a perfect happy ending, let's see – Once upon a time two people met, they were called Ron and Hermione…"
"…After Ron died in the accident Hermione was so sad that she wasted away and died. The End."
There was silence for several long minutes, then Marlene stood up, dusting herself down.
"I guess that wasn't a very happy ending after all," she said sadly, pushing a strand of her medium-brown hair away from her frowning face, "Maybe you're right Denzel; maybe not everything does work out okay in the end. I guess life isn't as good as it seems." Denzel watched as the girl returned slowly to the house, walking rather than her usual vibrant skipping. As the door swung closed and her footsteps faded away into the house, restoring the silence, he turned back to the horizon and gazed out at the setting sun, watching as it filled the sky with oranges and pinks.
"I promise I'll help you find your happy ending Marlene."
