How do you recognise a person you don't know? Obviously – by their appearance. And visually – that much was clear – the one standing at the pool table, playing as if he had never done anything else in his life, was unmistakably Sebastian. But the feeling his presence stirred in Charlotte was new. She couldn't tell if it was a good feeling – it just felt different. When she thought about the night they had spent in the chicken coop, she remembered the familiarity she had felt. Otherwise, she never would have opened up to him so much, never would have told him about Eric. This familiarity was gone - yet, she couldn't stop watching him.
Sebastian lined up the cue again. He was about to take his shot but then noticed Charlotte's gaze on him and twisted his mouth into that crooked smile once more. Then, he took his shot – and sank the targeted ball into a pocket, using two rebounds off the walls.
Sam whistled through his teeth and nodded approvingly."Did Charlotte hide a pool table somewhere in her cabin, or why are you this good?" he asked.
Sebastian chuckled. "I've always been this good," he replied simply. Then, his gaze flickered to Charlotte. "Now I just have a reason to show off."
Sam let out a slightly strained laugh before stepping back up to the table. Charlotte took another sip of her Coke before walking over to Sam and playfully patting him on the shoulder.
"Trust me, no one has ever managed to win me over with pool," she remarked.
Sam grinned. "Good to know," he joked.
Charlotte noticed Penny staring at them from the couch near the table.
"It's not even about winning her over," Sebastian claimed as Sam lined up his next shot. "That part is already done."
With that, Sebastian widened his lead – because not only did Sam miss the ball right in front of him, but he also struck the cue ball with such force that it kept rolling and eventually sank into a pocket.
With a jolt, Sam looked up at Sebastian. Charlotte could read in his expression that he was silently asking,Dude, what the hell?– and she silently agreed.
But two could play in this game. "For the record, no jerk has ever won me over. I prefer laid back and nice." she said.
She heard the saloon door swing open. Following Maru's gaze, who seemed to wonde whether it had even been worth showing up after work, she watched as the door opened. And then, sure enough, Alex stepped into the Stardrop Saloon, glancing around. When his eyes landed on Charlotte, he immediately strode toward her.
"…That being said – I'll be right back!" she called out and went to meet Alex before he could get too close to the pool table and be affected by the dark cloud that had suddenly settled over Sebastian – a shift so intense that Charlotte could feel it in her back.
"Good game!" Sam called out after finally sinking the last ball – making an improbable comeback against what had seemed like an unbeatable lead from Sebastian.
"Good game," Sebastian muttered, shaking the hand his friend held out triumphantly in front of him.
The moment Charlotte had not only left the room but also the saloon with Alex, Sebastian's enthusiasm for the game had evaporated completely. Normally, at this point, he would have been unstoppable – he loved winning so much that he never would have let a lead like that slip away. But as soon as Charlotte was gone, he hit the cue ball so hard that aiming became impossible.
"No need to be jealous," Sam joked, trying to lighten the mood – but his words bounced right off Sebastian, who kept staring at the door as if Charlotte would walk back in any second.
"Dude, Seb, please don't act like a rhesus monkey in mating season," Maru glared at her brother, clearly annoyed. "All that's missing is you pulling down your pants and peeing on her."
Sam snickered. "Yeah, please don't do that."
"I can't wait to get out of here," Sebastian just replied. With long strides, he walked over to the old cigarette vending machine - one Gus had probably last dusted off when he took over the Stardrop Saloon. But it was well-stocked, luckily. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to endure this situation much longer. What did Sam and Maru know about how he felt, anyway? Besides, why should he care what they thought of him? Soon, he'd leave Pelican Town for good.
He had finally opened the letter his father had sent him. It contained the spare key to his apartment."For emergencies – Dad,"was written on the note his father had enclosed, along with the address and directions from the nearest subway station. The apartment was a bit outside the city - Sebastian had been looking for something more central. But if it meant he only had to pack up his PC and go, he'd deal with the longer commute until he found his own place. Now, he just needed to catch up on the job interviews that had been put on hold since the body swap. But if he moved to Zuzu City beforehand, that would actually be an advantage. He could attend the interviews in person instead of sitting in his childhood bedroom.
Everything he'd been waiting for was finally falling into place - and at the same time, he wondered why he hadn't done this sooner. He should've searched for his father right after graduating, should've written to him the moment he found one of his profiles. But he'd been afraid of hurting his mom. She'd get over it. Just like he would get over all the lost time.
Sebastian grabbed a pack of cigarettes and left the saloon without another word. As the door clicked shut behind him, the tension in the room eased slightly. Sam set the cue stick down on the table and ran a hand through his blond hair.
"Well, that went great," he muttered, grabbing his beer. He took a sip and sighed. "Maybe… he just needs some time to get himself together?" he asked cautiously, glancing at Maru before his gaze landed on Penny. She cleared her throat.
"It's possible that…"
"He's not himself!" Maru cut in, dropping onto the worn-out couch next to Penny. "That was not normal."
Penny slowly shook her head. "I haven't spent much time with him in a while, but… he seems different to me too," she murmured, staring at her hands. Then she looked up at Sam. "I made a mistake."
Sam shook his head firmly. "But everything worked out fine with Charlotte, right? She's still the same, isn't she?" He turned to Maru, who only shrugged.
"I guess so. But to be honest, I barely knew her before all this."
Sam mumbled something under his breath before looking back at Penny. "You didn't make a mistake," he said, trying to reassure her. He was afraid she might start crying, but Penny was stronger than he gave her credit for.
"I… saw a Junimo. This morning," she said, her voice lowered.
Maru raised an eyebrow. "Junimos don't exist. Did you get enough sleep last night?"
Penny shook her head. "It was there. In my room. It was like… it wanted to tell me something." She turned to Sam, searching for understanding. "I swear, it was real!"
He simply shrugged. "After everything that's happened, I'll believe anything you tell me." He gave her a lopsided smile. "You're the only one who could actually know the truth. No one else has read all those books."
Penny blushed slightly, then lifted her gaze again. "If we presume that my translation was right - something else must have turned out wrong. I think the Junimo wanted to make me aware of this. And meeting Sebastian today made it even more obvious."
"So what do you think happened?" Sam asked, leaning against the pool table.
Maru sighed. "I guess he wasn't true to himself.", she muttered. Then she looked at Penny. "You explained it to us. In the process, they had to reveal their deepest wishes. And we know Sebastian.", she looked at Sam. "I thinkweknow what he truly wants. But I barely know anyone who gaslights himself into wanting to be anybody but himself as successfully as Seb." She sighed.
Penny's eyes widened. "You think he didn't tell the spirits what he truly desired - but what he would want if he was somebody else?"
Maru laughed sarcastically. "And then he turned into exactly that person. Whoever that is."
"Seb, you idiot.", Sam muttered.
Outside, Sebastian half-expected to run right into Charlotte and Alex - but the two of them were standing a little further away, near the dog pen. It was already dark; they were talking under the glow of the streetlamp. If he took just a few steps closer, he could hear what they were saying - but the burning feeling of jealousy in his chest already told him enough. Alex said something that made Charlotte laugh out loud - Sebastians hand clenched around the pack of cigarettes. What kind of bullshit story was Alex feeding her now? That he wasn't actually screwing Haley, that Charlotte was the only one he wanted? Yeah,sure.
Sebastian scoffed and lit a cigarette. He finally took a slow drag - not all the way into his lungs, just enough to feel the tension drain from his body. Leaning against the saloon wall, he watched them.
They kept talking until Charlotte suddenly stepped forward and hugged Alex. Sebastian's eyes narrowed. His fingers fumbled inside the pack for another cigarette, and as soon as he found one, he lit it immediately. The first, only half-smoked, was crushed out on the trash can beside him.
Then, Alex turned to leave. Charlotte didn't follow him. A strange sense of satisfaction spread through Sebastian, but the jealousy still simmered underneath it, refusing to fade. And he didn't even try to hold it back when Charlotte walked toward him. She would have passed right by him if she hadn't smelled the cigarette smoke and spotted him.
"Were you eavesdropping?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
Sebastian let out a dry, sarcastic laugh. "No need for that."
Charlotte groaned. She was so done with him. "I don't know why you're acting up like this, but could you please calm down?" Her blue-green eyes blazed as she glared at him.
"I'm not upset," Sebastian replied.
Charlotte scoffed. "Oh, really? Then explain it to me - what the hell is wrong with you?"
"Nothing is wrong with me! I'm finally myself again, finally free to do whatever I want!"
"Oh, so you've always been an asshole?" Charlotte had unconsciously taken a step closer to him. Her cheeks were flushed with anger, and strands of hair had slipped loose from her hairstyle.
Sebastian glared at her. "Maybe I have. But I didn't get the impression that being an asshole bothered you withhim.", he scoffed, flicking his cigarette to the ground. He stomped on it angrily and took another step toward her. He wasn't much taller than Charlotte, but still, he loomed over her. He was so close she could smell his aftershave. "I got the impression that they are exactly your type."
"I don't get what your damn problem is!" she snapped, gesturing toward Alex's house behind her. "Alex is a good guy. He's kind, respectful, funny - and you're none of those things."
"He's not right for you!" Sebastian burst out.
Charlotte flinched, worried for a second that someone might hear them. "And what makes you think you know who's right for me?" she hissed.
She saw something flicker in Sebastian's eyes. And whateveritwas, it flipped a switch inside her, sent a wave of goosebumps racing down her skin.
Sebastian stepped even closer, scanning her face, taking in every tiny reaction and every freckle lit by the diffuse light of the street light. There was something in his gaze - something so determined that it made her stomach twist into knots.
"Because I had a lot of time getting to know you." His voice was much softer, almost conciliatory. But the tension between them was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Charlotte wanted to reply something, to push back - but the words were gone, swept away in an instant.
Sebastian took her parted lips as an invitation. His hands cupped her face, and he pulled her in, pressing his warm lips to hers that had cooled down in the night air. She froze for a second - but there was no inch in her body that wanted to pull away. Because how long had it been since somebody had touched her in this way? And maybe - just maybe - there had been this part of her that had known that Sebastian would be the next one to do it. He noticed how her body thawed next to him - and deepened the kiss. It wasn't soft, it wasn't romantic - it was hurried, hungry - longing for more.
Charlotte's mind felt like a runaway rollercoaster that had jumped the tracks and crashed straight into a wall. There was nothing - No thought, no logic. Just sensation. The heat of his body against hers, the familiarity of his scent, the taste of him - cigarettes and something else, somethinghim, so intoxicating that she didn't even care about the bitter smoke.
Her heartbeat pounded in her ears, building, climbing, rushing toward a cliff's edge - and when Sebastian groaned against her mouth, it jumped.