The roar of thunder slices through the air outside the small apartment. Not a single light is on, leaving a candle as the only source of illumination. The miniscule flame flickers with a ferocity that threatens to go out at any second. The hassle of lighting it again would be more annoying than it is worth. However, the candle has to go out at some point. It is resting on a small cupcake after all. If someone doesn’t blow it out, it will probably fall over or die by its own accord.

The cupcake rests on a paper plate, sitting between some old magazines on the coffee table. The heater of the apartment stopped working again about twenty minutes ago, but I don’t seem to have the will to go hit it. Instead, my eyes are trained on the flame that violently waves back and forth. If I listen closely, I can almost hear it as well, providing a natural melody. Of violence or conclusion? I’m not sure… All I know is that the flame looks back at me in a taunting nature. As if it is some mighty power that cannot be silenced. All the while, it takes two fingers to snuff out this ember.

Maybe that’s how I was. A mighty spark until I met the douter to my own fire. Those friends took away my own magic with just a simple song. One far stronger than mine. Now, here I await, watching a stupid flame. Not because I am mesmerized by its color, but because the meaning behind it is… odd. Most people would see this cupcake as a celebration. A means to smile. I, on the other hand, see it as another mark on how long this unbearable life has gone on for. Another year.

What is the point anyway? If my magic is gone, it just feels so pointless. Tiring. Draining…

“There WON’T be a next time, Adagio. I’m done with this shit,” Aria’s voice lingers in my ear, her last words telling me all I need to know. I never needed them in my life. I can’t understand why they couldn’t see the big picture… They just focused on what they wanted. I tried to help all of us reach our true potential. Instead, they called me a bully. I don’t need them. They needed me.

“I never want to see you guys again,” Sonata’s whisper echoes in my head just as the flame flickers brighter than before. All I did was focus on the big picture. If they couldn’t see that, then it was their loss.

Yet… it feels cold here. Even though a blanket is wrapped around my shoulders, I can’t help but feel cold inside. A freezing ice that I can’t seem to get rid of even when the heater is working. I’ve never minded being alone before, but now? The world feels empty. Without my magic, I am isolated. On a day that is supposed to “celebrate” my life, I am alone. And for some ungodly reason, that haunts me. Surely it’s because my magic is gone and the idea of celebrating this torturous existence is futile. Even if those two idiots were here, it wouldn’t make me feel better.

Reaching my hand out, I quietly snuff out the flame, leaving the room in darkness. No point in blowing out the candle. There is no realistic wish to make. I can see it now. Birthdays are idiotic in the core fundamentals… There’s no point for me to keep celebrating the years that go by. Because there’s no purpose anymore.

Chapter I: Don’t Light Those Candles

The sound of a whirring is constantly repeating itself, over and over. It feels so hot, yet a small breeze tickles my face. Ah, I know what that sound is now… Taking a deep breath, I try to open my eyes, but my body refuses to budge. To be fair, I didn’t get much sleep last night from Sunset’s attention and… that dream. The whirring sound reminds me just how annoying a ceiling fan can be once you’re awake. But it’s almost necessary at this time of year. The summer heat threatens to melt houses. It almost makes me wonder how the birds are able to chirp so lively under the threatening gaze of the sun.

The light coming through the window is nearly blinding. It was a mistake to open my eyes… I guess Sunset decided to pull the blinds apart, giving me an eyeful of the ball of hellfire in the sky. I swear that Sunset is trying to kill me half the time with her ideas of “fun”. Her side of the bed is empty as expected. How in the hell did Sunset have the energy to get up in the morning, turn on the ceiling fan, and open the window? We stayed up pretty late, leaving me with little energy left. Who knows? Maybe that smile of hers keeps her going somehow…

Slowly, I sit up in bed, rolling my eyes. As weird as that dream was, I have to go to work anyway. Time doesn’t wait for me. That dream was more like a memory though… A birthday I had a few years ago at this point. The last one I truly tried to celebrate. At this point, I don’t do anything for my birthday anymore. Sure, I could be celebrating myself and how I’m like a gift from the gods, but… It feels like a gross overindulgence when I already spend most days indulging myself and joking that I’m better than everyone.

Given, I am better than 90% of the people on this planet. Most people seem so… idiotic. I’m just glad that I have good people in my life. People like Sunset make this existence enjoyable. Not just tolerable like before. Chuckling to myself, I slide out of bed, pulling on some pajamas. The clock on the nightstand tells me it’s almost eight in the morning. Better time than any to get up I suppose. As much as my body wants to stay in with my wife, I do have a studio to run. Although, I could technically have Aria run the place for me…

No, don’t even think that. The place would probably burn under her control. I need to be responsible for my business after all. Today is also a pretty big day for the studio. We haven’t had a lot of clients since I turned it from a lesson-based operation to an actual recording studio, but I managed to schedule a couple of clients this afternoon. Despite the low number of customers, I know I can make it a bigger operation with the right touch. Fancy Pants just didn’t have the right ideas when he owned the place…

Walking into the bathroom, I rinse my toothbrush and quickly apply some toothpaste. My hair looks awful right now… I never can understand how Sunset finds my sleeping face pretty when I look like this. Probably because I’m the biggest critic of Adagio Dazzle… I’m my own worst enemy. Aside from Aria and Sonata. Those two have a way of frustrating me like no one else…

Spitting into the sink, I quickly rinse my mouth out, closing the door on the way out. Halfway down the stairs, I can hear hip hop music playing in the living room. The sound of some slight arguing makes me sigh as I reach the bottom of the stairs. In the middle of the room, Aria and Sonata are standing on a dance pad laid out across the floor. However, it looks more like a rug due to how slim it is. The TV shows some sort of silhouette dancing, encouraging the players to follow its moves. I bought this pad for Sunset just a couple months ago, but I haven’t got a chance to try it with her… The other two have made great use of it though.

“Stop throwing your arms all over the place,” Aria demands, desperately trying to defend herself from being hit by our friend’s recklessness.

“The person on screen is doing it!” Sonata retorts, trying to reason that she has to move so erratically. However, she’s taking up more than her fair share of the dance pad. Aria is almost being pushed off the damned thing.

“You’re making me lose this ga-” Aria’s words are cut off abruptly as soon as the music stops. All I did was press the pause button and they both immediately ceased their argument. However, their eyes quickly glare at me.

“Before you get mad, I have one question to ask you two,” I cautiously hold my hands up at them. “Where is Sunset? I figured she would be down here.” That question only seems to inspire more anger from Aria, scoffing before grabbing the remote from my hand.

“Can’t keep track of your own wife? Jeez… She went over to Twilight’s place,” she tells me in a huff before turning the TV back on. With a small push, she moves Sonata back to her side of the dance pad. Her words still ring in my mind though. It’s odd… Sunset has been going over there a lot recently to help our friend with some science project. Sunny said it is supposed to be soon, but… I don’t know. This is the fifteenth day in a row that she went over there.

“Oh. Okay. Have fun,” I half heartedly reply, my mind focused on more distracting thoughts. Moving into the kitchen, I can’t shake these thoughts about Sunset. Being lonely is a normal emotion, especially since we only got married around eight months ago. But… I don’t know. It kind of makes me feel ignored. It’s not as if I want all of her attention… Okay, maybe I do…

Quietly, I start filling a cup with water. I could spend time with Aria and Sonata, but that won’t fix my actual lonely feelings. Taking a drink, I try to calm my thoughts, but they only seem to get louder. It’s been more than two weeks now and Sunset is still spending practically all of her time with Twilight. Eight hours a day… I really want to know when this project of hers will be done. She never elaborated, just opting to reassure me by saying it will be done soon. That’s even if this project exists…

Why did I think that…? Of course this project exists. I’m just angry. That’s all. She wouldn’t lie to me. Although, my birthday is coming up. It would be unlike her to miss it. Even though I don’t celebrate my birthday, she always gets me a cupcake and sings happy birthday to me. Partly out of respect for my wishes to not celebrate that day, but also wanting to do at least something small. Those are the only kind of celebrations I would want by now. Small and quiet with the woman I love. Not making a big deal out of it. She wouldn’t forget about my birthday, despite how much I try to treat it like a normal day from now on. She would have it bookmarked so we can have a movie night and keep track of it for at least a month before.

And… she’s been working with Twilight on some mystery project for over two weeks now. My birthday is in just a couple of days. Maybe that’s the deadline… Maybe that’s the whole purpose she’s been gone…

“Oh, shit,” I tell myself, bringing my hand to my forehead. The mere thought of Sunset constructing some surprise party or elaborate gift is making me sweat already. She wouldn’t do that though. She knows I don’t want to celebrate it. The times match up too much though… Whatever it is, it isn’t sitting well with me. I should ask her about it when she gets home…

Laying the silverware down on the table, I look back at the clock again. Once again, it confirms that it is only half past eight. The pasta I made for two isn’t exactly going to spoil in the next hour, but seeing a table with two plates and only one recipient is a little… sad. Sonata and Aria decided to go out tonight, letting me know they would be gone for a while. However, I have not heard a thing from Sunset. I thought she would be home by now. I mean, I wanted to celebrate a little. I just got my first major deal with a couple of musicians. Maybe Sunset has something else she got caught up in…

Taking a deep breath, I look down at the dress I have on. It is not something overly fancy, but it does give the right attention to my body. Something to make me look nice without seeming formal. I had thought it would be nice to surprise her with a little time to ourselves, but I don’t know if that will happen after all. To be honest, it would also serve as an excuse to calm my mind from the worries of some birthday surprise being planned. I mean, she would probably get some time to tell me what she has been working on if she makes it for dinner.

The sound of the front door opening makes me peer into the living room. Sunset walks into the house with a tired expression on her face, taking off her earrings before anything else. The way her body hangs upon itself communicates the extent of her exhaustion well. Sunset’s eyes finally meet mine, widening in an instant in surprise.

“Hello, Sunny,” I say with a small wave, fully stepping into the living room. “You came home just in time~ I made some dinner just for the two of us.” Granted, it probably isn’t great, but I followed Sunset’s recipe as well as I could. Cooking is the one area I admit that I am bad at. At least it is easier with Sunset’s help and her recipe list. The look on her face seems hesitant with a hint of sadness.

“Oh, um… I’m sorry, Alligator,” she sheepishly tells me while laying her purse on the coffee table. “I already ate… I didn’t think you would make something and Twilight was pretty hungry as well.” She looks down to the ground, conflicted. A small tinge of pain attacks my heart, but I ignore it. It couldn’t have been helped… Surprises are sometimes ruined like this.

“That’s alright. It’s just pasta. I can put it in the fridge. We could still sit down and talk about your day over a movie. Which one would you-”

“I would love to have a movie night with you, honey, but… I’m feeling really tired right now,” Sunset interrupts me, a sad and nervous expression on her face. Walking over to me, she wraps her arms around me. “I appreciate the effort you’ve done to try to spend time with me, but could we take a rain check?” The look in her eyes seems genuine enough, but… a part of me is still a bit upset. She has been pretty busy, so maybe it would have been better to try and plan for a better time, but still.

“Yeah, that’s fine. I’ll put your serving away so you can have it for lunch tomorrow,” I respond with a slight shrug. Sunset smiles and kisses me on the cheek, a sense of gratitude behind the gesture.

“Thank you~ I’m going to head to bed now. I’m sorry for cutting this short.” After another quick kiss, Sunset moves towards the stairs, walking up them with a great deal of weight behind every step. The truth is that I also wanted to talk about my own day. To brag a little about finally getting a deal that will boost the studio’s success. Something that can help me with my vision for the studio… But if she’s too tired to listen, then… I guess her work with Twilight was more important.

Looking up the stairs, I stare at Sunset’s back before she disappears in the direction of our bedroom. Something in my mind keeps nagging at me. Telling me that something isn’t right here. All of this time spent with Twilight over some stupid project… If it does have something to do with my birthday, then… I need to find out what it is. I-

Oh, fuck… Ugh… Why now? My head feels like it’s splitting open. These… These fucking migraines strike at the worst… times. Holding my head, I make my way to the couch, rubbing my temple as gently as I can. It can usually take anywhere between ten-to-twenty minutes to coax these stupid fucking…. Headaches… To make them go away. The funniest thing is that I’ve tried to use my magic to get rid of the migraines, but it doesn’t work. They’re one of the only things my magic can’t seem to fix. It is probably due to a lifetime of stress at this point…

Pulling out my phone, I exhale sharply, feeling the pain rise again. However, I keep a straight face as I type in a number. The device starts to ring for a few seconds until the recipient answers. From the sound of her breath, it sounds like she ran to the phone.

“Heya, Adagio! How are you doing today?” Apple Bloom’s chipper voice asks me, but the high tone only seems to make my headache worse.

“Fine, Apple Bloom,” I lie to her, trying to not sigh in anger at the pain. “You have a driver’s license, right? Are you free tomorrow?” Rubbing my head, I can hear Apple Bloom count something under her breath.

“Yeah, I can drive. I would have to borrow the car Big Mac has been working on. What time are you thinking of?” The way she sounds so inquisitive almost makes me feel bad about what I need to ask of her. It’s not really a specific time that I need her tomorrow. More like I need a ride throughout the day.

“All day,” I quietly respond to her, rolling my eyes. It’s a little pathetic I’m even asking this, but… I need to get to the bottom of this. “I need to… follow someone.”