Brandon sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the box in his hands.
"...."
It was clumsily wrapped in Christmas paper, some edges not even fully covered, as if the person wrapping it had been in a rush or simply bad at it.
A small smile tugged at his lips, but it quickly faded. Vanessa had left it for him, insisting that it was important.
He didn't want to open it.
He thought he'd moved past the worst of it, but because of Vanessa's appearance, and the sight of this gift, this reminder, made everything resurface.
With a heavy sigh, Brandon slowly peeled away the wrapping.
His hands shook slightly, and for a moment, he paused, staring at the small USB flash drive inside.
There was no label.
He already knew, though.
He knew it was from Evelyn.
His chest tightened painfully as he plugged the USB flash drive into his laptop and clicked the file. The screen flickered for a second before her face appeared.
Evelyn.
Alive.
Brandon's breath caught in his throat as he saw her.
Evelyn was in her room, wearing pajamas, her dark—purple hair loose around her shoulders.
She looked.... alive.
So casual, so normal, like she'd just recorded this on a quiet night in, without any clue of what was to come.
—Is this thing even on?
Her face was close to the camera, brows raised skeptically.
—What's this, like the fifth attempt—Ah, wait. It's working!
An innocent smile spread across her lips.
Brandon could hear her light chuckle through the speakers, and it made his chest tighten.
—Uhm, hello? You might be wondering what this is for, but I thought I'd get you a Christmas present to thank you for inviting me to the Christmas party. Hehe, I couldn't think of a proper gift, so I thought of doing this instead.
Brandon couldn't help but feel the bitter irony in her words.
She had made this video as a lighthearted gift, never knowing that it would be the only thing left of her.
—You know, when you first invited me to that party.... I was a bit surprised. Honestly, I don't go to many gatherings. I guess you already knew that, though.
Evelyn leaned back into her chair, lost in thought.
—I wasn't sure how to feel about it. I mean, I'm not exactly the 'festive' type. But... it was nice, in a way, to be included in something like that."
She paused again, her fingers playing with the edge of her pajama sleeve absentmindedly.
—And I just wanted to thank you for that. For thinking of me. You're a good uncle.
"...."
Brandon's brows furrowed. Uncle? The hell?
She hesitated again, her fingers tracing the rim of her cup on the desk, her eyes downcast.
—I've been thinking a lot about... you know, things. Life, death, all that. It kind of hit me after we went to Big Sister Yi Jihyeon's funeral. There were so many people there, so many who cared about her. And it got me thinking....
what about me?
She laughed again, but this time, it sounded hollow.
—I wonder, if I died, would anyone come to my funeral....
Her voice trailed off, and for a moment, she just stared into the camera with an unreadable expression.
—Nevermind, sorry. That's not the purpose for this video. Just my inner thoughts spilling out. Hehe.
She laughed softly, but it didn't reach her eyes.
Evelyn leaned closer to the camera, her expression soft.
—I'm proud of you, Brandon. I don't know if I've said that before, but I am. You've come so far.
She paused, her eyes shimmering slightly.
—Don't ever forget that. No matter what happens, no matter where life takes you.... I'll always be proud of you.
She laughed once more, a warm smile spread across her features.
—Merry Christmas. I look forward to the party.
The screen flickered again, and then the video cut out, leaving Brandon sitting there, alone in the silence.
He stared at the blank screen, his mind spinning with everything she had said, everything she had left unsaid.
Drip. Drip...!
For the first time since her death, Brandon allowed himself to cry.
Not just tears of grief, but tears for everything he hadn't said, everything he hadn't done.
He cried for the mentor—and mother figure—he had found in Evelyn, and the hole she had left in his life.
Drip. Drip...!
***
The moment Vanessa returned to the memorial service, she looked around, realizing the abundance of people that had gathered to pay respect.
There were a lot.
People Vanessa knew—people Vanessa didn't know.
Most probably, people who were thankful for Evelyn.
After all, she was a famous figure in Holy Britannia. A ranker who had saved an insurmountable amount of people in the past.
"Is he not coming?"
Hearing the question, Vanessa turned to the side and noticed Bellion, wearing a black suit, crossing his arms as he stood by the entrance.
"He is."
"Then where is he?"
"It'll take a while. But he's coming. Could you tell them to delay the ceremony for a bit?"
"Is that so? Alright, then."
With that, Bellion disappeared.
Vanessa glanced around before finding a seat. She hadn't seen the contents of the present itself, but the nametag on the present specifically wrote; 'For my Student.'
It was evident to her that it was for Brandon. After all, Evelyn held a certain bias to the boy.
'It was a Christmas present....'
The fact that it was just stowed away in her room told Vanessa enough of what happened.
'Jeez, you're even that embarrassed to hand your favorite student a Christmas present?
Time seemed to pass by in a blink of an eye. People had left flowers for Evelyn, and gathered around in their seats, eagerly waiting for the ceremony.
A sorrowful smile tugged at Vanessa's lips.
Everyone in the room present knew.
That there was no body to be buried.
Yet despite that, people came to pay their respects anyway.
That was how influential Evelyn was.
All of a sudden, the room fell silent. Eyes suddenly flicked towards the entrance, and Vanessa followed their direction.
"Took you long enough...."
She mumbled.
Brandon had arrived.