Sand Glass

Two figures stand in the long dark hallways of an underground facility. The air smelt clean. Too clean. A single source of light came from where the boys stood, which was a door. They call it an orphanage, a refuge, its name is Safe Harbor.

There was no sunlight here, so everyone looked oddly pale. The elder kids who read called themselves Dracula, and drank cherry flavored water like it was blood.

“Ced, come with me,” an ash brown hair boy standing in front of the door said to a hazelnut hair boy standing a few feet in front of him, “he wants you and me both in there.”

“For what?” Cedar asked, “Hahn, I thought he didn’t need help.”

“Don’t ask,” the ash brown hair boy said, “trust me.”

The Hahn opened the door behind him, and guided Cedar in. Hahn put his hand on Cedar’s back, as if he was an escort.

The room that had one now had three in it. They were all eighteen or so. To them, time has sped up in recent years like time itself has sped up like a car accelerating with its gas pedal pressed down as much as it can. The day was still young.

The initial inhibitor of the room had light brown colored curls. He was mindlessly spraying hair fixate on his hair. When he saw the two visitors, his eyes lit up.

Cedar walked towards the inhibitor. Cedar’s eyes landed in the mirror, “Justin, your hair is magnificent.” Hahn was in the corner of his peripheral vision, moving bottles and containers around. Cedar looked further, “it matches your outfit.” Justin was wearing a tuxedo in the front pocket as a handkerchief. The plain and white fabric untainted like his emotions for Cedar. His eyes looked at it every other moment, to make sure it was still with him.

“Ced,” Justin said, “they say it’s really my day, but is it?”

“What do you mean?” Cedar asked, “you found family, shouldn’t you be happy?”

“You are the only family I’ll need,” Justin said.

“Every era comes to an end,” Cedar says, “when it ends, a new one starts.”

“Have you ever admired anyone?” Justin asked.

“What do you mean?” Cedar asked.

“Have you ever seen a person as more than a person?” Justin replied, “I have.”

“No I have not,” Cedar replied, Justin stood up, “im not done yet, what are you in a hurry for?”

“Can I be truthful to you for the remaining time I’ll see you?” Justin asked.

“You may,” Cedar said, “why are you so odd today?”

“I love you, do you love me?”

Cedar looked at the back of Justin’s head, “n-no?”

“Are you telling the truth?” Justin asked.

“Why would I lie to someone speaking the truth to me?” Cedar asked.

“Answer my question!” Justin said.

Justin’s eyes looked like they were the throat of a viper zapping at Cedar. “Yes,” Cedar reluctantly replied.

“I love you unconditionally,” Justin said.

“Why?” Cedar asked.

“Love does not need a reason as its vessel,” Justin said.

Justin’s hand wrapped around Cedar’s. Justin raised it, putting the back of Cedar’s hand on the side of his face.

“What are you doing?” Cedar asked.

“Being mindful of your presence,” Justin said.

“I’ll be here,” Cedar said, “when I leave, I’ll find you, it’s just one more year.”

“I won’t stand for a week, nevermind two years,” Justin said.

“You’re going to shine,” Cedar said.

“I want you!” Justin said, “I want to be with you.”

“Stop! I won’t say it again,” Cedar said, and he looked at Hahn in the corner and gave him a dirty look, “see you on stage.” Cedar left the room.

“You’re being way too out of the blue,” the ash brown hair boy said.

“What do you know, Hahn?” Cedar asked.

“We grew up together,” Hahn said, “I knew you when you wet your bed when you were seven, the day you began shaving, the day you performed your first minuet on that piano in the living room, the day your voice dropped, the day—”

“Shut up!” Justin said, “Hahn, the goodbye ceremony starts in an hour, get me the scissors.”

Hahn went to the scissors, “here, don’t hurt yourself.”

Justin grabbed some hair off his head, and cut. It was the length of his finger. “Any rubber bands?” Justin asked.

Hahn went through some drawers, and found one. Hahn tied it around his hair, to keep it together. He put his hand up onto the front pocket of his tuxedo, and pulled out the cloth.

He found a small bottle of cologne, it was tiny, on it was a few letters S-A-M-P-L-E-R. Sampler from where? Neither Hahn nor Justin knew.

“Coriander and Bergamot,” Justin said, “too bad they’ll go to waste.” He pulled off the atomizer, and dumped out the remnants. He coughed at the spice of the coriander and the tanning from the bergamot. “Wash this well, put the hair in it, preserve it, when you or Cedar leaves–whichever comes first– give it to him.”

Hahn looked at him, “you’re obsessed.”

“I am,” Justin said, “and you will do as I say so you can complete my last wish here.”

“Perfect,” Hahn said, “I will– do you want the cloth in the package as well?”

“Good idea,” Justin said, “Thank you so much.”

“You should get going,” Hahn said.

Justin smiled, “I have only…” he looked at the clock, “...forty five minutes, I better get going.”

“See you on the stage, ” Hahn said.

“See you on the stage,” Justin said.

“It is now time to say good bye,” Madame Patchoulius Khan—better known as ‘mother’ here— said, “this is a ceremony that allows you guys the ability for rebirth. Your new life awaits out that door. Any last words children?” She handed her microphone to the children on stage.

There were four on the stage. The first was Ambrofix, a sweet girl, she had a fondness for flowers, her paintings were everywhere at Safe Harbor. They were like dreams, everything was floating around in bubbles. “I’ll miss you guys,” she said. Her eyes and hair were the same shade of amber. She didn’t look at the crowd, perhaps because of the bright light.

The next was Adam. He had a smile, his blue eyes and dark curls were distinct from everyone else. “I’ll see you guys in the outside world.” Unlike Ambrifix, he looked straight at the crowd. There was a faint response from the crowd as he said that.

Geranium was up next, “I’ll write letters,” she said. She wasn’t popular among the facility. She was like glass, there, but not quite there. When she was little, people teased her, that was the only way anyone could get a reaction out of her.

The last, Justin, “I want everyone to know that every moment I’ll spend out of Safe Harbor will be spent thinking of the faces here,” he said. He smiled a little, “of the flowers that most of us are named after.”

There was laughter in the crowds, “I’ll miss you guys,” he said at last. He looked at the light. He whispered something to himself.

“It’s Eleven o’ five AM,” Madam Khan said, “we are late, gotta go children!”

The four left the stage, and went backstage. They went into the door where no one came back. The door was locked at all times. There are three across this five level facility. From top to bottom, the floors’ roles are Dormitory and Cafetaria, The Garden, The Study, Free For all, and Storage.

This stage and the first door is located in the Cafetaria, the second door is in the storage, the third is in the Garden.

The rest went straight to the dorms.

The last lamp in the 7th dormitory stayed on at midnight. Cedar was wearing shorts and a shirt like everyone else. He looked at the two empty beds one is his, the other for a newcomer.

This room is for boys 14-17, there are ten types of rooms. 1-3, 4-7, 8-11, 11-13, 14-17, boys and girls are separated. With 8 identical rooms for each type, there are 80, ten beds, accounting for a total of 800 children.

Cedar knew the owner of each bed by heart. Cedar found Hahn’s, and nudged him. Hahn wanted to speak, Cedar put his hand on Hahn’s mouth.

“Where were you?” Cedar asked Hahn, “I didn’t see you during the ceremony.”

“I was performing Justin’s Minuet,” Hahn asked, “I couldn’t stand them doing the little pass-it-around-for-show-and-tell thing, so I figured I’ll get on that piano and perform.”

“Liar,” Cedar said, “you haven’t even seen the sheet music, Justin put it under my pillow for me to fix some errors. Only he and I know this.”

“Well, he and I know this,” Hahn said, “he left you this.” The bottle of hair and the handkerchief was handed over. The smell of bergamot was heavy, “his hair.”

“What has gotten into him?” Cedar asked.

“Nothing,” Hahn said.

“Thanks,” Cedar said.

“What is going on?” a voice echoed. A slim, long finger reached for the lamp, and pointed it at the two, “making out?”

“No Leonard,” Hahn said, “mind your own business.”

“Is it about him?” Leonard asked. “Justin?”

Hahn wanted to speak, but Cedar put his hand over Hahn’s mouth again.

“Yes,” Cedar said.

“You can live lifetimes and never deserve him,” Leonard said, he pointed the light down to avoid waking up others, he walked to Cedar’s bed, and pulled out the sheet music “did you know he composed this for you?”

Leonard walked to the two.

“It’s the key of C Major, if C is zero, then you count all the semitomes, they are 0-8-1-4-0-5-2-2,” Leonard said, “notice anything?”

“Augest Fourteen, May twenty second,” Cedar said, “our—”

“Look in your socks drawer,” Leonard said.

There was a single line of text on the folded paper:

So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, so long lives this, and this gives life to thee

– Shakespeare

Unfolding it, there’s confession. The cream white paper had a single smudge on it. This smudge landed on the last sentences.

No matter what, you can be as poor as rust or as prized as gold, I’ll find you. No matter the outcome. You were the only one who stood by my side. I wish I could do the same when the same circumstances happen to you.

Cedar’s mind drifted into a day years ago. Some girl made some extravagant dessert for a sick, dying child. Someone stole the dessert, and as Justin was caught in the room, he was named the culprit. An older boy gave eleven year old Justin a black eye.

Everyone called him that.

That night Cedar snuck into the kitchen and made a simple ice pack for Justin. Justin winced as the ice hit him. Only Cedar comforted him. When the whole facility called him a thief, only Cedar did not.

To make Justin a little happier, Cedar taught Justin all he had learnt about the piano from a mentor. These sessions happened at night, thirty minutes at a time. First came a simple melody, then came chords. Symphonies, Concertos, Waltzes. Justin would play, Cedar would instruct.

When the Black eye faded, so did the drama.Soon the dying girl left the moral world and the Baking Girl left the facility. A few months afterwards, no one spoke of this incident again. Justin regained his smile.

“For five years, he’s been relying on you to live,” Leonard said, “he told me to tell you this.”

“Why?” Cedar asked, “why didn’t he tell me?”

“He wanted you to be the stronger person,” Hahn said, “but today was his last chance for anything so he told me to bring you into the dressing room.”

Cedar’s eyes looked at the door, there was a dim light. Madame Khan was checking the corridors perhaps. This started after someone caught Justin and Cedar’s private piano lessons.

“We shouldn’t be out of bed,” Cedar said, “good dreams.”

“Good dreams,” Hahn said. He looked at them, “don’t think too much about this.”