"Bless me, Father, for I… I think I've sinned."

To my surprise, this made the priest laugh.

"I haven't heard that one before." He chuckled.

I blushed a little, and I wrung my hands nervously. "I just… I'm not Christian, and I know what the sins are, I'm just not sure what they mean when it-" I paused, then sighed. "-when it comes to humans… when it comes to me."

"You mean to say that you're not sure if what you've done can be classified as a sin?" He asked.

I bit my lip, nodded, then remembered that he couldn't necessarily tell what I was doing. "Y-yes." I answered, glad he understood me.

I heard the priest make a sound of agreement, then he spoke. "I have no qualms with aiding you, but I have to ask; if you're not a Christian, why have you come to ask for God's forgiveness?" He asked, not unkindly, just sounding curious.

I searched for an answer, then hummed in thought. "I…. I guess… I just wanted someone to hear what I have to say, without knowing me, someone who… who doesn't know who I am and what I've done..."

"Someone without prior knowledge, so you can't be misjudged?" He said quietly.

I nodded. "Yes."

There was a pause, then the priest took in a breath. "I can help you with that, son. Why don't you tell me what you think your sins are?"

I placed my hands on my knees, and tapped my finger against my pants. "Well, um… I've never actually been to confession before… and… what I think are my sins are…" I closed my eyes. 'Where do I even start?' I wondered to myself. I shook my head and continued. "I… is distrust a sin?" I asked.

The priest readjusted his position. "It depends. Without a reason to distrust, then I would say it is… distrust in God is certainly a sin, but since you're not Christian…"

I dipped my head. "Then…. I suppose I have sinned." I gulped. "My…my friend… I knew him for a few months, and there was nothing really remarkable about him… he was strong, but he was also headstrong, and a little air headed, but he was kind, for the most part, and I enjoyed his company, I still do, it's just… I found out something about him that made me hate him… something that was connected to him, but something he had no power over… I was scared of him, I couldn't trust him around my older friends, and I know it hurt him… he forgives me, and he tries so hard to be someone I can trust, that everyone can trust, it's just-" I broke off. I reached up and grabbed my glasses, re-positioning them on my face. "I…. I can't… and I know I don't even have a reason to distrust him, but I can't help it! I feel awful, he's my friend, and he trusts me, and it's not mutual…" I felt tears prick at the corners of my eyes, and I quickly lifted my glasses out of the way and wiped at my eyes.

"But you feel guilty about it?" The priest asked.

"Of course! More than guilty, I really… I'm sorry I can't, and I wish I could, it's horrible that I can't fully trust him! Like… I feel like I would love to trust him with my life, and for the most part I would, but there's this little part of me that still doesn't trust him, that holds me back from being a true friend."

"You mean to say one can't be friends with another without complete trust?"

I clenched and relaxed my fingers nervously. "Isn't that what friendship is? Trust? Mutual trust?" I asked him.

I saw the nondescript figure shrug through the screen between us. "I wouldn't necessarily say so… Do you have any other friends who you wouldn't lend money to?" He replied.

A certain pink-haired "monk" immediately came to mind. I paled a little. "I uh… I guess."

"But he's still your friend."

I shrugged. "Y-yeah, he's my friend. I wouldn't call him anything else, even if he has done stupid stuff." I said slowly.

The priest continued. "I think that one of the first ways you can begin to be forgiven is by accepting that you don't fully trust this friend of yours. From there you can maybe begin to understand him better. Why is it that you really distrust him? Is it just because he's connected to something that affected you negatively?"

I thought for a moment. "I-I… I don't know, I think…" I closed my eyes and thought about that night, and the following days… the following weeks, the days before I found out… "I think… because he didn't just tell us in the beginning… that's where most of my mistrust stems from." I realized.

The priest was quiet, then went on. "I would say that the best thing to do is to first accept that you mistrust him, then begin to really understand why… and then, maybe one day, you'll wake up and realize that you have grown to trust him more… and I feel like if he knew what you felt, he would forgive you for it, once he knew why. Because, you would agree with me that it's not fully his fault, right?"

I nodded immediately. "Yes, most of it is just my previous experiences, not something that he did to me or anyone I know."

"As a fellow human, I'm sure he can understand those kinds of human emotions… I think you should try to forgive him, and he will forgive you… this, I feel, would absolve you of that sin without my help." The priest murmured softly.

My eyes widened. "Tell him that I don't- that would hurt him-"

"And if you don't tell him…" the priest trailed off meaningfully.

It dawned on me. "Oh… I would… be doing the same thing he did." I whispered into the dark.

"From distrust sprouts distrust, only from forgiveness can forgiveness grow." The priest said. "Do you trust that he will forgive you?"

I took a moment to think. Did I? Would he?"

"Completely." I said firmly.

The priest chuckled. "Then I think you've found your answer. Would you like me to say the prayer of absolution?" He asked me, sounding amused.

I thought for a moment. I smiled. "I don't… have a preference. If you would like to… then you can." I looked towards the screen, towards the blurred shadow of a face. "Father… thank you." I murmured.

I could imagine his smile when he spoke. "There's no thanking me… you walked into this monastery, you sat down in this confessional, and you faced yourself. I only helped you find the path to forgiveness." He took a deep breath and placed his hand on the screen. "I feel no need to say the prayer of absolution, for I feel that my God would forgive you without my suggestion… and even if you and I don't worship the same name, we seek the same thing, and we are here on earth to help each other."

I laughed quietly. "Perhaps."

The priest sighed. "Bless you, my son. May your forgiveness sprout another's."

I smiled. "I'll try my hardest."

"Thank you, son."

And another chapter gone and passed. :)

Hope you enjoyed.

Stay safe.

. o O o .

"ver·i·ty

ˈverədē/

noun

a true principle or belief, especially one of fundamental importance.

"the eternal verities"

truth.

"irrefutable, objective verity""