I Don’t Want to Start a Story!

“I need help!” Cy shouted from his desk without turning around. “How am I supposed to fill in questions 2-12 without doing the medical exam first? Max is an amnesiac, so he’s not going to know his age. Do you think I can get away with a lie?” Cy finally turned around. “…Is he okay?”

“Right as rain,” Darius answered as a pale Max quietly entered the room. “Skip those questions and declare on page 15 that he’s going to do and pay for his own medical exam.” Cy frowned slightly before flicking through the papers and finally finding the missing form. “There are going to be other tricky questions. I’ll help you out.” Darius was enthusiastic as he made his way over to sit next to his son. It was like a parent proudly watching their kid attempt to do homework.

As Cy looked over the questions he was having trouble with, Max looked around the room. It obviously belonged to Cy. The circular room was a mess stacked with stained books, beauty products, and thrown clothes. Who knew if they were clean or not? There was a large bed that had been neatly made. It was the only clean thing in the room. Perhaps Darius made it while his son was gone, but didn’t feel brave enough to deal with the rest of it. The sole little window had been covered up with a starry fabric, blocking out all-natural light. Above them were a few lit orbs, some of them were a light purple colour creating a mystical ambiance to the room.

“What should I put for his name?”

Max’s concentration suddenly snapped back to the paperwork. What did he mean? Cy knew his current name. Were they considering putting the names of his previous lives? Max scowled as he thought about it more. Cy couldn’t read his fate, but both of them called him ‘Ren’ at some point. Was it a previous name he had forgotten over time? They both said it was linked to his soul. But wasn’t every past name linked to his soul? He didn’t have enough information. His trust in Cy’s accuracy had grown over time and Darius made a strong introduction, so ‘Ren’ had to mean something.

“He’s got no last name at the moment, and none of his past names really apply… Just leave it as Max. Sounds okay, boss?” Max gave no acknowledgement to the conversation in front of him.

“Boss?” Used to his father’s oddities, Cy quickly gave up. “Never mind, the answer section for that question looks… incomplete?” Darius shrugged. Cy moved onto the next question. “Do you know your age?” Max didn’t move or say anything. “Not even a guess?”

Darius spoke on behalf of him. “Give it up. Elder Charaka will give you a good estimation, and the Elder Council will accept it. Let’s skip the ones he will answer.”

“Okay.” Cy flipped over to the next page. “Relationship status? Single. At least there’s one easy question.”

“Now, hold on a sec.” No. Darius turned around with a fascinated look on his face while Max fought against his overly honest face. “What do you want to put, Max? I guess you’re currently single. Or would you prefer if we jot you down as married? Maybe widowed would be the best technically correct term?” Why was this fucker bringing Ellie into this if he didn’t want Cy to know about the system?

Cy’s mouth was agape from the information as he looked back and forth between his father and Max. “What are you talking about?” He whispered when they realised Max didn’t seem willing to divulge information. If anything, he looked like he was holding back while staring daggers at Darius. “He was married?”

“That’s why Max didn’t appreciate you trying to play matchmaker with Adelaide.” Darius winked at a guilty looking Cy. What? Cy suddenly dropped eye contact and turned back to the papers.

“Let’s just put down single for now.” Darius pointed at the place on the form. “It’s not like Max can remember her anyway.” He turned to see a face brewing with anger. “But if you did suddenly remember, then I’m sure we can add Ellie to the forms even if it’s not technically correct. Unless there’s another partner you want us to write down?”

Confused, Cy complied with his father’s recommendation before reading out the next question. “Any kids?”

“Three.” Cy dropped his quill pen. “Wait, if we’re not going to mention Ellie then I guess we shouldn’t mention them either, ey boss?”

“You have kids!?”

“And that also rules out mentioning the grandkids. It’s a shame you didn’t get to see the youngest one before your big adios.” Darius’s wide grin remained as still as the glaring Max against the wall.

Cy tried to do the maths. “Wait… How is that possible? Unless…” Only an infuriated glare met Cy’s pitying look.

“Okay, okay, I’m making things too complicated. Boss, I’ll leave you to help Cy finish the paperwork. Just keep in mind that I know when your amnesia started.” Cy was about to tell his father to stop, but he decided it would be more straightforward to interrogate the source once they had some privacy. “Besides I need to get the guest room set up if you’re going to stay for a while. Which one do you think, Cy?”

“The one with the balcony.”

“Good choice. Alrighty boys, I’ll leave you two to it. Let me know if you need any more snacks. We need to keep this one,” he pointed over to Max, “out of the kitchen as much as possible.”

For once during this conversation, Cy knew what he was talking about. “Agreed.”

Max’s scowl deepened.

The moment Darius closed the door behind him. Max got to work rooting through Cy’s desk and ignoring his flood of questions about Ellie, his time before he lost his memories, and what he was doing. It didn’t take Max long to find what he was looking for, but he was careful not to take anything yet. Graphite, some old sewing needles, black ink… It should be easy enough to get soot and shampoo too... More than enough materials to make it work with a decent amount of detail after he completed their medical exam.

Discovering enough things to calm himself, Max took over Darius’s seat as he thought to himself. Earlier in the hour, he was starting to gain a bit of arrogance about the situation before Cy’s father had made it all come crashing down. Darius may not be able to see everything all at once, but he could see enough. More importantly, he knew how to use the information and stick it where it hurt.

Cy let out a frustrated sigh as he began cleaning up his ravaged desk. “So, who’s Ellie?”

“I don’t know,” Max lied bitterly. Time to change the subject. “What was your Dad talking about with matchmaking and Adelaide?” Was Cy the reason why her story shifted from a romance to a horror?

He gave an awkward laugh. “I was giving readings in the village, and she asked for one…”

“And what did you say?”

Cy hesitated for a moment. “That since she had a flexible fate, she had the potential to have a very happy life if she finds a suitable romantic partner… She kept asking me in private if I could see who would be a good partner for her, but I couldn’t find a fate that could match hers in the village… After a while, I was starting to feel bad for her… And I may have mentioned you might be able to take the spot since you didn’t have a fate… I may have also told her that if she persisted-”

“It was you? You’re the reason why her st-personality changed?”

Silence hung in the air.

“How did you know my name?”

“What? Don’t change the subj-”

“Dad mentioned it earlier and it got me thinking.” Cy interrupted while his focus remained on the stack of papers in front of him. “Also, we’re planning on staying for only thirty days, right?”

“Twenty-six. Twenty-five starting tomorrow,” Max corrected him. “Or we’re going to miss out on BB returning to port for us.” He watched Cy scribble down the dates.

The system had told him his name was Cy. At the time, Max had assumed Cy was going to be a brief character in this life, so he tried to startle him into talking more. Now, it was biting him in the ass. “I don’t know. You just look like a ‘Cy.’”

Cy looked up from the papers. “You really think so?” His voice was filled with hope.

Max wasn’t too sure what he was getting into. “Yeah, and then you never corrected me.” Cy had a smug look on his face as he resumed his work. “Why do they call you ‘little Cyrus’? Is it because you came here when you were young?”

Cy’s face crumpled as he ignored him. “How long were you at Baeg farm?”

“I don’t know. Four months? Five months? Not too long.”

“Really? I thought you were there for longer?”

Max shrugged. “I guess I just adjusted well.”

“Ignoring what Dad said, do you have any memories before you woke up on Bessie’s farm?”

“You know I don’t, little Cyrus.”

“Stop.” Cy raised his quill pen as if it were a threat. “Just call me ‘Cy’ like you normally do.”

“Why? It’s a cute nickname,” Max teased while Cy scowled at him. “The community must be close to you if everyone is calling you ‘little Cyrus.’” Apart from Darius, oddly enough.

“They don’t call me that because I was young when I was found. It’s because I naturally have a ‘little’ amount of magic compared to the others.” Cy kept his gaze focused on the question, missing the calmed gaze which was edging back into anger. “What is the purpose of your stay? I wrote down ‘to assist with magical research.’”

“You can add ‘to dig up the past.’”

“… Don’t you mean ‘my past?’”