--
TJ stared at that message for about an hour, he thinks.
The first time he saw it, he thought that he was just hallucinating. He just woke up after all, and he hasn't completely adjusted to reality just yet.
Once he did confirm that he's actually awake, he reopened his inbox and saw the same message there.
It was real, down to the punctuation mark.
It's not the message that shocked him. It was the sender.
He sat on his bed, staring at that message for so long, feeling various emotions bubbling in his chest, mainly confusion.
'MJ.' God, it has been a long while since the last time he saw this nickname in his inbox.
Triiing!
TJ's alarm jolted him out of his thoughts.
"Oh, shit! I'm late!" He got up to his feet and was headed straight into the bathroom when all of a sudden, he remembered something.
"Wait, I'm not! I've graduated already!" he exclaimed, then frowned at the towel he's now holding. "Ah, whatever. I need a bath anyway."
He glanced at the still open message window on his face and decided to dismiss it for now.
It wasn't until after he took a bath and put on a new set of indoor clothes that he opened that message again and thought about how he should respond to it.
He didn't know what to say. Should he say hi? Ask her how she's doing. Demand answers as to why it took her literally two years to send even just a single message.
Should his message be casual? Light? Friendly? Sarcastic? Angry? Should he be mad? Upset? Or maybe just neutral?
He deliberated for a while, even forgoing breakfast just for this. And finally, he settled with
[TJ]: Gee. I didn't know ghosts could send text messages nowadays. Technology is really getting scarier, huh?
He wanted to slap himself after sending this message. Because seriously? Sarcasm? Passive aggression? This doesn't sound like the proper way to respond to a (probably) genuine regards.
But at the same time, knowing their history, maybe it wasn't his fault. He just couldn't help it. This was, after all, the first message he received from her after she went MIA for two whole goddamn years!
Beep!
TJ raised a brow. Her ID popped up again on the messenger app, prompting him to say, "Well, at least it didn't take her another two years to reply this time. Just two minutes, instead."
He opened the message, and it read:
[MJ]: Sorry. I didn't want to disappear on you. My situation—my illness, to be exact—became much worse. I found help, though. And I'm doing much better.
[MJ]: Still can't come to you. Can't be in contact for too long either since it's bad for my health. I'm really sorry. But you don't need to be worried about me.
"Liar," TJ blurted out before he could stop himself.
[TJ]: Some things never change, eh?
[MJ]: ???
[TJ]: Nothing. What do you want?
[MJ]: Nothing. I just wanted to congratulate you for making it through prep school. You did really great.
[TJ]: How did you know?
[MJ]: They sent me a copy of your report card.
"Ah, right. She's listed as my legal guardian." TJ finally recalled this information. Knowing this, it wasn't really weird for the school to give her copies of his achievements and diploma.
Beep!
[User: MJ sent you a package.]
TJ raised a brow at that. That was then followed by her message, saying:
[MJ]: You received it? It's yours. Open it.
He blinked for a bit. Not expecting her to do this at all.
Out of curiosity, he opened the package she sent. When he did, an explosion of colors flooded his vision for a bit, followed by system alerts.
[Package opened! You received:
• Class Transitioning Scroll [Special! ]
• Sub-Profession Badge
• Sub-Profession Scroll
• Weapon Stub [Growth]
• Equipment Stub [Growth] ×10
•Liquid EXP Bottles ×10
•Dawnstar Bank Credit Card [Black]
All items deposited in your inventory.]
"What the fuck!?" TJ's eyes widened like saucers.
He hurriedly checked his inventory and saw that all of the items that burst out from the package had been, indeed, placed there.
TJ couldn't believe his eyes, but as he inspected every single item he received, he had no choice but to believe that this was all real.
His hands shook as he hurriedly opened his messenger app and typed:
[TJ]: WTF!?!?!
[MJ]: Why? Is something wrong? Are you hurt? Did the items not arrive? Should I resend them?
"You got more!?" TJ's voice raised a pitch at the implications. But he shook his head and focused.
[TJ]: I'm okay. I'm not hurt. Yes, the items arrived. All of them. No need to send more.
[MJ]: Oh.
[TJ]: I was just shocked.
[TJ]: Look, I'm not really one to pry, but where the hell did you get all of this? I swear, if these are stolen goods, tell me ASAP. I don't want to be involved. You already disappeared on me for two years. This isn't funny.
Nobody could blame him for being so shocked or doubting her.
Let's ignore the rest and focus on that item called Dawnstar Bank Credit Card.
For starters, the Dawnstar Bank is the largest and richest bank in the entire world. That's a well-known fact. It's also safe to assume that they own every other bank in the world too, and that is mostly because, again, of their sheer wealth.
In terms of wealth, you'd hardly find anybody who could compete with them.
Becoming a client of the Dawnstar Bank means that you're a VIP in some way—maybe a high-ranked pro or official. Either way, this back doesn't cater to everybody. Only those that have a certain level of status.
MJ casually handing him this card implies so much that it's almost giving him a headache. Furthermore, this is a 'black' credit card she gave him.
A black credit card means a very high credit limit. How high exactly, TJ has no idea. But to a small figure like himself, it might as well be limitless.
In his brief inspection, he learned that the account was named after him, with MJ as the guarantor. Meaning that he could use this card as much as he wants without needing to pay anything because MJ will be the one to pay for it in the end.
How fucking ridiculous, right?
As far as he remembered, MJ has never been this rich nor this generous. She disappeared on him for two years with nary a 'hi' or 'hello,' then she'd contact him out of the blue and then dump these, frankly, very expensive and valuable items and expect him to just accept it?
How the hell was he supposed to not be doubtful of this?
[MJ]: Honestly? Fair. I doubt it too, if I were in your shoes.
[MJ]: Don't worry, though. It's all clean. I've got more where those came from. They're clogging my inventory, actually.
TJ's eyes twitched imperceptibly. He goes, "Flexing your wealth on me? Funny. Real funny."
[MJ]: I can't tell you much right now. Like I said, I'm good, but my situation remains sensitive.
[MJ]: Think of this as my graduation gift to you and compensation for going MIA without informing you.
[MJ]: I know it's not enough and that this isn't how I should apologize for abandoning you. I'll make it up to you in the future, I promise.
[MJ]: My time is up. Sorry. I don't know when I'll be able to contact you again. But like I said, don't worry about me. I'm where I want to be.
[MJ]: Flood me with messages if you want. I'll reply to you when I can, I promise.
[MJ]: 'Til then, take care of yourself, TJ.
**
TJ didn't know how much time passed as he stared at the last message she sent. She went offline right after that.
'She literally just contacted me, out of the blue, after disappearing for two years, like nothing happened, slapping me with wealth and a poor attempt at an apology.'
He'd laugh if he wasn't so upset.
Beyond the storm raging within his chest, though. TJ felt relief and acceptance.
What else can he do, really? It's not like he knows where she is. He's not capable of hacking or tracking the location where she sent these messages. Even if he could, can he even go where she is?
He wished that he could see her in person so that he could look her in the eyes and truly know if she's telling the truth. He can't do that through a messaging app, after all.
That said, even if he were to see her in person, what then? Aside from asking her questions, obviously?
'What did she even look like again? It's been so long that I can't remember anymore.'
But beyond all of this, there is only one thing that TJ was concerned with.
It's not her abrupt contact. It's not her surprising wealth or her apparent care for his well-being.
'I had my suspicions before, but now? They're more or less confirmed.'
'My sister is dead. She died on that night.'
'You're not her.'