(yeahhhh…)(mhm. remind me, do you know what Astral does in there?)
So young… six years wasn't long, though, not in terms of souls. They probably hadn't even been reborn yet, or through the last stages. He… couldn't help but wonder where they are along the way.
((yeahhh they would’ve been pretty upset about being dead only because they couldn’t keep Simon safe anymore))((ummmm kinda? I don’t think you’ve told me that much tho so might as well remind me lol))
While it hadn’t been that long, those years had felt like an eternity to Simon. I suppose that’s what happens when you lose the only person who ever supported you.
(mhmm… of course, there would be a lot more to be upset about if they're in Astral's workshop)(Oh, I probably haven't mentioned it then! Careful, spoilers– Astral basically recycles souls that have existed for quite some time, but in all of their lives, no god or Mother ever showed even a hint of interest in keeping them around. He cuts the good parts out, then tosses the rest (even if all he took were like, the eyes or something and they're very much still alive and aware) into a waste bucket to be ground down into paste to make new souls from scratch. The taken parts are frankensteined into new souls too. Also all the souls in line for this are kept in little glass boxes that let them see everything Astral is doing to the souls on his table) (This is why Astral is so much of an ass- he has to be to do his job <3)
Astral kept close to himself, shaking his head some. He wouldn't be able to find them, most likely, and he doubted doing so would fix anything.
((true very true. Regardless, if Astral so much as mentions them, it’ll be enough to piss Simon off))((oh dammmmmmn ;-;)) ((Also have any guesses on who this person is or rather was?? :) ))
“Ooh! I’ve still kept clean of self harm since high school, are you proud Evan?” He asked, smiling a bit sadly. “I hope you are…” he murmured, resting his hand on the grave. Simon rambled on a bit more, just making small talk to the headstone in front of him, not quite wanting to leave yet.
(oh yeah, makes sense)(yeaaaaaah I did a lot of thinking on this one to see what fit his character) (mmm I'm feeling lover)
Astral… was a bit surprised by that. He'd really been able to go that long with his life? The god couldn't help but feel horrible for giving Simon another thing to have to deal with.
((yeahhhhh lol))((Well you did a good job lol))((ding ding ding you are correct, meet Simon’s one not toxic ex-boyfriend who got killed when hit by a car driven by some homophobic and transphobic kids from their school who were trying to hit Simon instead :) ))
One contributor to this was that Simon was experiencing so much more physical pain, that cutting had very little appeal, especially since he knew it’d anger his abusers. “Oh oh oh! And I got top surgery which is maybe the only good thing to come from my current situation. That may be as much as I’m ever able to transition but…I guess I’ll just have to be okay with that. B-but I still have that binder you got me all those years ago.” He smiled softly. “I know, it’s silly to still hold on to it.”
(Thank you!)(ahahaha, that hits close to home :') )
No, Astral had to disagree with that to himself. He'd make sure Simon would get the rest of his transition, without the pain, after the child is born. He couldn't leave Simon as he was. He looked away at the mention of the binder, he closed his eyes. He knew where that was.
((oh nooooooooes ;w;))
It wasn’t even a matter of if Astral would be willing to do it. The more likely scenario was Simon wouldn’t feel comfortable having Astral that close to him, let alone touching him. And since Astral had sort of ruined the first part of Simon’s transition for him emotionally….Simon wasn’t necessarily eager to finish. Simon had finally stopped babbling, laying down on the grass and pulling a phone out of his pocket. It wasn’t his, and judging by the age of the model, it’d most likely belonged to Evan when he was still alive. He opened up the photos, and this would probably be enough to resolve any doubt of who Evan was to him. Simon scrolled through an endless amount of photos and videos. Dozens of pictures with Simon being held in a taller man’s arms, or smiling as the other kissed his cheek.
Astral looked at the pictures as long as he could bear, finally closing his eyes again. Simon had looked so happy in those photos, he… he couldn't look anymore. He knew it was something he'd never be able to give Simon, no matter what. He wanted Simon to have as long as he needed there, though, so he wouldn't do anything to rush him.
In some of those photos, Simon even had longer hair. So Evan had been one of the first people he’d come out to, no wonder the man had been so important to him. Simon continued to scroll through the phone, lots of videos filled with Simon laughing and happy. They were all bittersweet memories now.
Simon… Astral shook his head some. Simon would have been so much better off with Evan in his life. He hated how much hurt had come into his life over the years, how much of it Astral himself had caused. He wanted to make things better, he really did…
After a few more minutes Simon sat up, turning off the phone. He wiped a few stray tears off his face. “It’s almost 8:30…so I need to get out of here before your parents show up. You know how much they’ve always hated me.” He kissed the top of the headstone gently, as if the man buried underneath could still feel it. He stood up, sniffling softly. “Goodbye darling….I love you. I’ll see you next year.”
Astral wiped at his eyes, gathering himself at that. Simon was coming back, then. He opened his eyes, looking through Simon's again. Thankfully, no one had tried to mess with Simon- most likely because they could sense Astral so near. So, he waited, right where he was, just like Simon had asked.
Simon wiped at his eyes a final time before forcing himself to walk out of the cemetery. He didn’t want to leave, especially since that meant going back to Astral. But he forced himself to regardless, keeping a blank face as he approached where Astral was. “I’m ready to go..” he said when he’d finally reached the man’s side.
Astral broke his connection with Simon's gaze, looking up some. He nodded without a word, offering his hand to the human at his side. He was ready to head back, even though he knows that when they do he wouldn't be interacting with Simon anymore. He'd probably bury himself in his work.
Simon took Astral’s hand, closing his eyes. He’d probably spend the rest of his day crying his eyes out again.
In a moment, Astral and Simon were back in the palace. The god let go of Simon's hands, retreating into his workroom and closing the door quietly.
Simon took off in the other direction, going back to his room, closing and locking the door behind him once again. He hoped he hadn’t worried Mia. He knew he’d been gone for a lot longer than he’d said he would.
Mia looked up when Simon came back into the room, hurrying over to the door.
"A-are you okay?" How could she have not worried? Mia had been terrified Astral had done something to Simon, that he'd been locked away somewhere until the child was born.
He nodded. “S-sorry..” he mumbled. “J-just lost track of time.” Once again he didn’t go anywhere near the bed, despite being exhausted. Instead he settled himself in a corner far away from the door.
Mia followed Simon, sitting down with him.
"I… There's n-no need to apologize," The doll said softly, curling up next to Simon's leg.
"I'm j-just glad he didn't hurt you…"
He nodded silently, leaning his head back against the wall. He almost hoped Astral would hurt him, then he wouldn’t end up doing it himself.
Mia closed her eyes, leaning her head against Simon's leg, shaking just a bit. Simon deserved so much better than this…
He really did. But he knew he wasn’t going to get anything better. He knew things would probably be this bad forever, and he’d just have to deal with that. He felt himself starting to cry again, just letting the tears fall down his face.
Mia didn't know what to do. He wanted to make things better, but there seemed to be nothing that could help anymore. So, she didn't do anything. She shifted some to look up, holding onto his pant leg.