Mason couldn't sleep throughout the long night. He was torn between joy and terror. He clutched the necklace in his fist as thoughts ravaged his head. His blood pressure rose, and at the same time, his stomach felt on fire. Fear crept up his torso, spreading heat around his heart.
He tried to understand what was going on. Perhaps he was hallucinating, but it didn't appear so. He took another glance at the necklace, but each look only seemed to bring him closer to madness, giving him more confusion. He blankly stared at the necklace until the sun drove over the horizon.
As his daze snapped, he glanced over to his wall clock, notably 6:24 a.m. He stood up and ran outside. As he got to Raymond's house, he knocked, waiting patiently for the door to be opened. One minute seemed like a year, and each passing second seemed to add more to his panic.
He was about to knock again when the door opened, revealing Raymond's groggy face.
"What's wrong, Mason?" he asked, his voice thicker than normal. "Is something wrong?"
"I need to talk to you, Raymond. You're the only one that I can think of. You're the only one I can talk to right now, can you–"
"Calm down, Mason. Speak calmly. The world is not coming to an end."
Raymond closed the door as he stepped outside. Mason has never woken up on his own around this time before, not that he could recall. He values his sleep more than any treasure. But seeing him at his doorstep at this time of the day made Raymond worried.
The look on Mason's face, the dull black circle around his eyes hinting at a sleepless night, only added to the tension.
He led Mason toward the rock they'd sat on two days ago and gestured to him to sit. Mason obeyed, though his worried look's intensity never reduced.
"You can talk now. But speak slowly and calmly," Raymond said, trying to suppress his own curiosity.
"Do you remember I sold my necklace three days ago?"
"Why ask the obvious?"
Mason raised his hand, revealing the necklace. "It fucking came back, Raymond. I'm going crazy right now."
Raymond's eyes squinted, perhaps trying to properly get rid of the sleep in his eyes.
"Are you messing with me right now?" he grumbled.
"I'm dead serious right now. Would I sacrifice my sleep just to play a ridiculous prank on you?"
Raymond knew too well something Mason would, and would never do. But his claim is essentially unbelievable.
"It came back to me yesterday, but I only noticed it late at night," Mason continued. "Am I going crazy right now?"
Raymond, too, couldn't believe what he was seeing, but he knew it was not impossible. Why? He'd seen far worse. He thought back to the day he touched Mason's necklace. He'd always picked on him, but on the day he got on the necklace's bad side, he was just returning home after going to buy some foodstuffs in the nearby store.
On that fateful day, the sun was already setting, leaving the purple sky etched with swirls of yellow. Had he known, he'd have left Mason alone when he saw him crying on the bridge. But he decided to tease him to see if he was pretending or if it was real.
And to be frank, Raymond had thought of consoling him if his sadness was genuine. But Mason had warned him otherwise, asking him to leave him alone.
However, Raymond had remained obstinate, and that had been his greatest mistake. He'd placed his hand on Mason's shoulder, but the latter had yanked it off and put his necklace back under his clothes.
As Raymond set his eyes on the necklace, his curiosity was aroused, and he wanted to know what it was. "Let me see the necklace," he'd demanded, but Mason had only shouted at him to leave him alone. And out of curiosity, Raymond had pulled Mason from leaving and dug his hand under his shirt to grab the necklace.
The repercussion of touching the necklace had left a scar on Raymond's brain. He could vividly remember letting out a mighty cry that echoed through the streets, prompting neighbors to gather around him. The excruciating pain felt like his hand was being ripped from him while still conscious. He remembered waking up later to hear he'd been sleeping for four days straight.
"Are you listening to me?" Mason's voice jerked Raymond back from his thoughts.
"Yeah, yeah!" Raymond said, maintaining his composure. "I believe you, Mason, you're not crazy. You and I have seen what the necklace can do. Something like this shouldn't surprise you anymore."
"Yes, you might be right. But I can't just believe it. It was still just three days ago that I sold it, and it found its way back to me," Mason's face clouded.
"This is one in a million luck. You thought you'd lost it, but it doesn't lose you. It's a gift, so keep it tight."
Mason nodded, though his nervousness still lingered.
"Moreover… make sure you don't tell anyone about it; not even Nana. You can't bring her into this. You know that, right?"
"Who would believe it, anyway?" Mason put the necklace back on his neck.
"Your Mom would," Raymond said.
Mason raised an eyebrow. "What a funny joke."
"Trust me, she has every reason to," Raymond said, and Mason gave him what seemed like a questioning stare. "I have my reason, Mason. I've seen and heard so many things."
Mason lowered his gaze and decided to keep his curiosity in check. But his mouth contradicted. "If I may ask, what have you–"
"Mason!?"
His word halted, and he and Raymond turned back to see who'd called. Nana stood behind, staring toward them.
"You're Mason, right?" Nana pressed.
"No, I'm his shadow. Stupid question."
"I'm just surprised. You're already awake at 6?"
"And if my guess is right, you're on your way to wake me up, isn't it?"
Nana curled her lips into a mischievous grin. "Your instincts are always right, no doubt."
"Then I'd have been charged with murder."
"No, you wouldn't when you hear that Mom asked us to go buy some groceries at the convenience store."
Mason sighed and shrugged. He turned to Raymond and saw him crying.
Oh, he was laughing. Why did he always look like he was crying whenever he was laughing?
"Have you guys practiced your conversation beforehand?" Raymond said. "I can't help but crack up anytime I see you two argue. You'd really miss each other."
His last sentence drove Mason's hair on edge, and he gave Raymond a look that shriveled his testicles. Raymond's laughter dried out on his lips as he realized he'd inadvertently let the cat out of the bag.
"What are you talking about? What do you mean 'we'd miss each other'?" Nana, who also noticed, quizzed.
"I mean, when one of you goes to college," Raymond quickly said. "Or are you guys planning on going to the same college?"
His counter was swift and calmly delivered, which made Mason wonder if anyone would doubt Raymond if he told a lie. Even a lie detector would have a hard time with him.
Raymond quickly returned to his house without looking back. No doubt he, too, was nervous.
"Shall we leave now?" Mason asked.
"I'm ready if you are," Nana responded, and they trudged toward the bridge.