Chapter 3: Clear to Me

Why? Why did he have to endure this? Bryce was at school, but it was far from pleasant. The horrible stench of cheap perfume and cologne mixed with disinfectant was disgusting. It seemed as if school was a holding cell. All of the classes had little purpose to him. He either knew how to do the work for it or it didn't pertain to what he wanted to major in. Apparently his junior year was going to be just like last year. His birthday came and went between the two years, but he didn't care. It was just a usual day, no party or anything. He sighed. Bryce knew exactly what he would have done that day: spent it with Violet.

"Miss Anderson, how do we find the least common denominator?" a girl asked.

*You've got to be kidding me. How do you not know that? Most of us have since eighth grade.* That was pathetic. Every school, private or public, always had kids like that. Bryce asked to be excused. He just needed to get out of there for a few minutes. Nothing had meaning to him now. Even what he used to enjoy lost that happiness. Bryce went downstairs to the office and signed out.

"Not feeling well?" the principal asked. She was a kind woman at heart, but with a few thousand kids in this school, she didn't know Bryce at all.

"No, been feeling bad since this morning." He lied. That pain had been there for two months.

"Need me to call your parents?" she asked.

"No, I did before I came in here." His parents wouldn't even care. The one decent thing that happened since Violet left was getting his license. He never drove anywhere except for school and shopping. As he was walking to his car, he wondered if he should have told his teacher. No, it didn't really matter. He had done this before. Sometimes he would just leave and not show up for a few days. The school didn't care as long as his grades were passing and his homework was being turned in.

The drive home seemed long. Maybe it was just the lights or the radio having no good songs on. He wished he had his MP3 right now, but it wasn't that big of a deal. Once he arrived, he opened the garage door.

*No other cars. Good.* Not like it would matter, but Bryce didn't want to deal with his parents. He walked to his room, letting his backpack fall to the ground. Feeling glad he remembered to bring it, he just sat in his chair in front of his desk and computer. After deciding on what to do, he finally decided to play Soul Calibur 4. It seemed like the world was like the story of the game. Everyone fought for what they wanted, but they never knew if what they fought for was truly the right thing. Bryce wasn't really paying attention to the game. He could play it unconsciously if he wanted to. It wasn't any fun though. Nothing was.

"Time is cruel. Even with all this power, I cannot undo the past." The voice of Algol said from the monitor's speakers.

*So true. I wish I had more time with Violet.* he thought, turning off the game. Lying down, he just fell asleep. He wasn't tired at all, rather, it was his escape from the world.

He was in a meadow at night. A lone tree blanketed the landscape. Bryce had his arm draped around Violet, feeling her soft fur. Those warm eyes looked into his. They were so beautiful. Suddenly, fireflies came from the tree, illuminating her in a green glow. She smiled at him. He smiled back, embracing her tightly.

That's when he woke up, his arms locked around nothing. He just stared at his hands, as if Violet was right there. He could even see a faint outline of her, but it faded away, as if the wind took it and blew it away.

He broke down. The wounds wouldn't heal. It wasn't a normal "breakup". The pain from her leaving was too real. How did he live like this before she came to earth? He felt like ice that could only melt by seeing her again. He cried until he couldn't anymore.

"I need you, Violet. I can't do this on my own." Bryce said softly. She was his guiding light, and he was lost…completely lost.

A small light flew in through the window. It let out a pulse that lit up the entire room in its glow. It wasn't Violet, though. He recognized that face though. He figure was puppet-like and he wore a blue hat with a blue cape.

"…Geno?" he asked, trying to regain his composure quickly. The figure nodded.

"Yes. I'm here to grant your wish." He said.

"What?"

"I'm surprised you aren't packing right now. I'm taking you to Violet." He said smiling.

"You can do that?" he asked. Geno nodded.

It was like the weight was gone. The cloud was lifted. He gave Geno a huge hug.

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" Bryce said happily. Geno laughed.

"It's what I do." He replied.

Bryce packed as quickly as he could, getting a pillow, sleeping bag, his MP3, and a few other things. After some difficultly, he stuffed them into a bag.

"You sure don't have much connection here." Geno remarked.

"Violet is all I have." He said smiling. Bryce couldn't believe that his dream was about to become reality.

"Ready?" He asked. Bryce nodded. "I'm going to teleport you to where she is, but I'm not going to stay. I'll leave you two alone." Geno said, winking.

Bryce blushed, but he nodded. "Thanks, Geno. I'm forever in your debt."

Geno smiled. "Just always remember to protect what you love."

The light engulfed Bryce and Geno. When Bryce opened his eyes, he was on a fairly small ledge. As Geno had said, it was just him. It took a few seconds to adjust to the darkness, but he saw a blue figure on the end of the ledge. It was her. Bryce couldn't move or speak. He just looked at the back of the person he missed more than anything…Violet.

Author's Notes: Geno is from Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. He wants Star Road to be repaired so wishes can be granted. He might make an appearance much, much later. Next chapter will be the best yet…