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For most of his life Arius hadn’t felt as if he were complete, a person, alive.
He couldn't even tell what part of him was missing. To him it was simply a fact that he wasn’t whole, that he was unfinished. He could tell by the way emptiness echoed within his soul, his heart longed for a place he couldn't reach and his spirit yearned for freedom he had never tasted.
“Maybe it’s your down-to-earthness that’s missing,” his school friends had once joked, not really understanding him, before moving onto a new topic.
Perhaps they were to blame that Arius had turned away from most social interactions, preferring to indulge in a world of words. In books there was nothing missing. A story was always whole and full of life and Arius could experience it all without having to take part in it and be painfully reminded that he wasn’t suited for such.
And so Arius had become an avid reader and writer, even though he didn’t consider himself to be a good writer. He really was an amateur at best.
Lately though his writing had gotten better, more emotional and happier he would say. Although, that might be an underestimation as he started out writing mostly horror and was now on his way to write children’s stories and fairy tales. His change of genre had been rather abrupt, as well as his brighter mood.
But Arius wasn’t going to complain about it. He enjoyed feeling lighter, being happier, a bit closer to feeling complete.
And once he gotten his hands on Iris’ Adventure, it was almost as if he were finally an entire person. Reading about Iris’ incredible adventures with her friends lit a fire in him that made Arius want to write- no, experience such joy for himself.
Which totally validated sneaking into the newcomers award show to meet the author of his now favorite book. The added bonus of finding someone nice to talk to and, somewhere between leaving the party together and exploring Magnolia together, gaining a friend, had been unexpected but welcomed nonetheless.
Mio was strange, funny and smiled bright enough to warm the whole room. And there was so much familiarity in the way she took his hand to drag him through the streets, getting excited about small things like a beautiful flower just as much as a pretty and expensive piece of jewelry. There was understanding in the way they talked to each other.
“I’ve always felt like I was just half a person,” Arius confessed without the usual painful throb.
“Mhm! Me too! But that feeling is all gone now!” Mio replied, her barefoot feet barely touching the surface of the city’s river.
And right then and there in that August night Arius felt alive.