"That's one wonderful job done! Welp, that's my final act for today, your favorite magician, Matt Mathews at your service."

With a flourish of his hand, he performed his sole disappearing act earning the applause of the judges who marveled at his magic. Smoke suddenly found its way to where the magician stood. He sneakily escaped using the backstage and voila— he is gone.

Matt Mathews is a magician who brings surprise and entertainment both to the old and young. From time to time, he performs gigs at birthday parties, gatherings, and the like. But this time, he performed on an ACTUAL STAGE!

"Thanks, Len, I truly owe you a favor. I cannot find any willing assistant as willing as you— you are a true friend." Backstage, standing by Matt's side is his closest friend, Len.

"Nah, anything for you Matt," Len smiled and brushed her black hair behind her ear. "That is what are friends for. If you win this, you have to treat me to dinner." She added with a smile.

"Sure," Matt said with confidence. but he knows. "Wish me luck, Len!" It'll take him an enormous amount of luck just to win. "Even if I lose, I will still treat you to one. Ah— looks like the judges are done with their decision." He hurriedly added as he rush for the stage.

Ushered by the staff, Matt followed their directions to the stage. There, he saw the tense looks of his fellow performers. This is the grand finals and there are sixteen of them. 3 will go home victorious, while the remaining losers go home with nothing but the shallow vanity they earned from this TV show.

Len lightly twirls her hair as Matt turns his back from her. It has been the umpteenth time, but Matt remains headstrong in pursuing his dreams. This side of Matt, Len is strongly proud of.

The host took the center stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are here at last. The final moments of Talent Talks. We have been interviewing our fellow contenders, inspecting their daily lives, and scrutinizing the extent of their talents! and without any further ado,"

The drumrolls sounded to build more tension in the air. da-dum-da-dum

"For the third place gracing us with their aerodynamic flips— Flying Clown Troupe!"

A group wearing clown costumes stood forward— they are a dance troupe, its members gathered from several bankrupt circus troupes around the world. Looks like the third place is taken, but the second place is still much of the taking... Matt is anxiously tapping his shoes on the hard stage trying to ease his worry.

The drumrolls continued. da-dum-da-dum, da-dum-da-dum.

"The second place... Dreaded by his wonderful magical acts..." Matt waited with bated breath.

"The— Escape artist!"

Shit. It ain't me~ Matt thought to himself. At this point, he pretty much gave up. That guy, the escape artist, isn't even a magician. He escapes from traps, cages, cuffs, and everything that has locks. He is more likely a professional jailbreaker!

Magic is all about the flair, mystical elements, and optical illusions that amaze... Sigh...

Then Matt remembered Len. They have been friends for so long at least 6 years from what he remembers. Matt thought of her as a friend, but at some point, he thought of her romantically...

Maybe, he will have that luck today.

Matt closed his eyes and prayed— to whom— He doesn't even know, but he’ll take his chances.

"The first place and the final winner of the event! Let's have a shower of confetti for the—,"

da-dum-da-dum, da-dum-da-dum, da-dum-da-dum. 'Say it! Say my name!'

"SINGING DIVA!" Not Matt. Definitely...

Matt's stiff facial expression says how much embarrassed he is, for entertaining the idea of victory. While aware of how outclassed he truly is in terms of charisma, he still held hope for that unlikely once in a cloudy chance of meatballs... He is just a filler who luckily wormed his way to the finals, he should be happy that he reached this far. Still, he is sad. After all, he poured all of his efforts with the least rewards on the matter. Seeing the voting poll, Matt saw how miserable he has been lagging— last place.

This is just how people are... Greedy, ambitious, and wanting...

"I am a shame for all magicians," Matt whispered softly to himself as he enviously watch the Escape Artist bask in his victory, and unprecedented rise to fame.

"Thank you, thank you... My magic shall become more amazing in the future." The idiot now has the gall to call himself a magician of all the stunts he has performed, Matt saw no magic at all. There is only the guy's showcase of manliness via his bushy beard and meaty musculature. Sure, the guy escaped a water tank in cuffs while dodging hungry piranhas with his water acrobatic skills, then there's him trampolining on fire while he was restrained by 52 locks, then there are his motocross stunts while he carries a cross in his shoulder like Jesus PLUS with blindfolds and no breaks... Fuck yeah, he is awesome. Undeniably a daredevil...

"Wait, did I remember it wrongly? Was it him on fire? Or the trampoline?" Ah— it's both. Matt walked out in defeat, lumbering his weight to the backstage

Looks like Matt's plan for a date downright crashed— ‘I'll just have the consolation dinner then...’ Matt sarcastically thought to himself.

At the parking lot within proximity of the studio, Len is lifting the smoke generator Matt used as a prop in his performance. Matt was talking with the TV staff about some minor interviews, but Matt is finally here. He wryly smiled at the sight of Len's struggling.

"You are such a bad boy, what are you smiling at? Why don't you help me, doofus?"

"Sorry, I just thought you were so cute for trying so hard."

"Isn't that you? You just have to try harder next time. It's not like this is your last magic." Ouch.

No, you got it right, Len. It is my Last Magic in every sense. I am getting tired of it... Sigh... Len hits the spot quite accurately.

"Let me help you with that." Matt lifted the machine with ease faking a smile towards Len.

Len is an expressive lass within Matt’s same age range. They are quite a pair. Len has black hair as Matt does, they share underwhelming features that can blend in the background perfectly — they are what others call 'average'. Though, their resemblances are too uncanny many thought they are siblings sharing the same mother or father. Matt found it insulting, but Len thought of it as funny.

"Milady, Lenny Lengkins. Would you like to accompany me to a consolation dinner with this defeat?" Matt said with practiced dramatic flair.

Len snorted, trying her best not to laugh.

"My dear magician, I shall gladly do so." Len grabbed Matt’s arm like the high lady she is. Whilst, Matt opened the van's door like the gentleman he believe he is, then made a gesture for Len to enter.

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Matt made it look superfluous, but it's all cheap role-play in the end.

It only took them 30 minutes to reach the 5-star restaurant. Matt intends to burn through his funds— it's totally fine, he can handle it in light of his winnings from Talent Talks and recent gambling. Matt has to thank the idiots who made bets against him. “It's their fault for not being aware that the initial episodes being broadcasted on television already had results of WHO won, it's like I know the future. I must admit though, this is like, one of my best magic tricks recently. Hahahaha.”

Still, Matt is not entirely heartless, maybe he will treat them to something later... Like later-later.

“But the consolation dinner comes first— my emotional stability is at stake here. So~ Just what!? Just what is taking Len for so long in the comfort room?” Matt is having the urge to kick the door. But before he even made a move, the door opened by itself revealing a stunning lady wearing a black dress with a witch hat on top of her— it was Len. She has a light blush, it was the same foundation Len applied to Matt before his performance. Len used black lipstick on her relaxed lips and then raised her hands showcasing her black nails tainted by black marker. She covered her mouth with her palms trying to conceal her burst of laughter.

She appeared to be amused by the facial expressions Matt is making.

"I never took you for a witch. But damn, you look fine-good as a witch." If this were a real date, this would have been worth more than it should be. Len is on par with Matt in terms of ordinariness, but to Matt~ Len is the most beautiful thing he has ever seen. No, she is not a thing. That is just rude. Len is a goddess, right? My Goddess!

That won’t change for a long time, even if Matt can recognize Len’s costume to be low budget and fresh from the thrift shop. It doesn't matter if it's a cheap cosplay. It is the thought that counts. Though they are receiving strange looks, it doesn't matter for both of them. They are clearly living in their own world right now.

Matt and Len had their dinner, then exchanged news about each other. Len consoled Matt of his recent defeat on the talent show. She said that he can capitalize on the fame he gathered to further his career. It is an interesting prospect Matt gratefully appreciates. Matt asked Len about her university life. She said that she is pursuing archaeology and it's quite challenging.

It is idle talk, but in the end, it made their time worthwhile.

Len's parents are archaeologists of high pedigree dedicated to their craft. Meanwhile, their only daughter, Len is a healthy 19-year-old who has just been recently introduced to college life. It is Matt’s luck that it is her sem-break this week, thus allowing Matt her company.

Meanwhile, Matt is a high school dropout who gave up education for the fancy vocation he seeks. It has always been his dream to throw fireballs someday. And it is his bad luck that his family won't acknowledge his dreams. Matt might have been abrasive in how he took care of his future. But even with him being this far already from where he started, his family remained still distant from him.

"Hey, Matt. I have an interesting piece of magic in here. Wanna learn?" Suddenly, Len took a pocket-sized book from her bag. Matt looked at it with irresistible curiosity. Anything fancy that supernaturally relates to magic is always an interest to Matt. For unknown fears, they always remained a novel interest to him but never went as far as pursuing it, (initiating or believing it in any form or manner).

Matt treated it as entertaining fiction, a fictitious knowledge that allows him a respite of knowing that his childhood fantasies are not meager baseless delusions, but a substantial inspiration for how he became the person he is today.

'I can earn money. Good with the kids and elderly. I am a good person. Likable too, and I am not boasting... All I need is to save enough money, buy an engagement ring then get married. I am still young, very young. 19 years old is young, right?'

Matt is in a daze as Len babbles, her pool of knowledge, of words flowing and going like a pencil writing through the water. Len realizing that her listener is kind of out-of-this-world, sneakily leaned forwards and then blew cold air to Matt's ears.

"Len! That's mean!" Matt turned slightly pink at Len's prank, which the culprit breezily ignored with a soft giggle.

Len continued with a tirade of knowledge about the book’s origin. "My family bought this from a Chinese auction. It was unearthed from an isolated tomb north of China. The pocket book's contents have been unrecognizable so far. It's not Chinese. Surprisingly, many of the letters intimately resemble a mixture of chaotic scribbles and what appears to be numbers— according to my parents that is."

Len smuggled it from her house eager to share such novelty. She invited Matt to her house hankering to perform the ritual she barely understood from the pocket-sized notebook. Yes, notebook~ at least to Matt’s eyes.

Coincidentally, her parents are not at home. Matt's weird thoughts aside, this is his first time in his friend's home despite their long decade of friendship. They are not in the label-thingy of girlfriend-boyfriend relationships, Matt doesn't have the courage to ask for that kind of level up. He fears that their relationship might suddenly turn into, 180 degrees of horribleness, Matt can imagine it going wrong in so many ways.

Len brought him to her room, Matt's heart rose a degree. He focused on what he came here for— I am here for magic, that is my intention! Nothing else!

To Matt's surprise, his friend's bed is very underwhelming. It's organized. Nothing stands out from what is normal. The books were neatly placed on the shelves. Her study table is orderly. The bed is smooth, and not a wrinkle to be observed. Len was persistent in not letting Matt inside her room for reasons unknown, though Matt is curious, he respects his friend's wishes dearly. So basically, this is Matt's first time in Len's room.

Disturbingly so, there is a magic circle in the very center of the room.

"It is a magic circle I scanned from the book. I printed it in a series of long bond papers then glued it myself to make this perfect magic circle." Len smoothly explained. The magic circle is intricately filled with chaotic scribbles inside. Amid all this chaos, the circle's curves are in a perfect arc distinguishing its prominence.

Contrary to Matt’s hobby, this is his first time seeing an actual magic circle. He lacked the courage to actively search for these circles of the sort— one way or another— the possibility of being involved in some evil scares him too much. Speaking of evil, most magic is spread on the internet and through historical records... are stories always associated with demons, spirits, and deities.

As much as he grew from a family of atheists, Matt sees himself as quite the Catholic. It is an ironic, but objective truth (though shallow).

Matt sighed exasperatedly at Len's impertinence towards faith. "Have you written your will? You are Catholic, right?"

"Huh? You are an atheist, right? Stop joking. Hahaha. It is you who are crazy for magic right? Or maybe..." Len said with a challenging tone.

"What?! Spit it out?"

"You are scared, right? Mr. Matt Matthews?"

Stop that. Ugh... Matt always hated being called like that. He doesn't like being called mister with his full name on top, there is just too much alliteration it is annoying.

"I may have fear but the witch is on my side." Matt jokingly replied. Len just laughed. It is so easy to make her laugh sometimes Matt almost thought that she is mentally ill.

They stood in the center of the circle with their shoes still intact. Len insisted Matt wear them inside the circle, so Matt brought his black shoes from the guest rack. He is still wearing his magician outfit from the talent show.

"What does the magic do?" Matt curiously asked.

"It binds a person together throughout time forever removed from their mortal bonds." She said almost flirtatiously disregarding the profound meaning of the words she spoke. She advanced forward, her face an inch from Matt.

Matt recoiled back, but he stopped in time to gather his feet on the ground.

"Stay like that, this is rather romantic..." She whispered. Matt’s eyes met hers, she didn't avoid it. Instead, she stared back. They say the eyes are the gateways to our soul. It is true. Matt can see it. A lovable Len who's always helpful and hopeful, an insufferable optimist that never stopped wanting the best for everyone. Ah~ there is a difference between us amidst our similarities. Deep in Len’s eyes, there is a hidden hue of blue. It is calming and inviting. Just like her personality.

Matt can feel Len's yearning. There is passion, heat, and wanting. Yes, wanting... Combined with ambitiousness and greed. It felt nostalgic. Just a while ago, Matt is feeling the same emotions, but Len's emotions possess a different nature.

Then unknown turbulence washed over them.

Uncertain, but it did, it touched them. Matt felt it, ignored it, and thought that it was just the breeze.

But it is not.

Len lost the intelligent gleam of her eyes, it became dull. This scared Matt to no end.

The person remained the same, but not the ego controlling it. Len is stuck in a state Matt can't pinpoint, a limbo, the stasis, sealed. Then she cried, a drop of tear slowly streaming down her cheek. The sight pains Matt greatly.

From his peripheral vision, light seems to burn from the floor where they stand. Matt tried to break eye contact, but he can't. He found himself petrified in place. Len yelled gibberish in an almost melodious voice if not for the grating pitch weaving with each syllable.

The magic circle they are standing in is glistening with bright crimson flames. Matt forlornly watched Len's skin turn ash gray, like stone. He desperately cried Len's name, pleading for a reply that never came.

Matt's awareness was pushed to the limit as he notice the same color spreading in his skin. He was certain. In Len's eyes, a complete reflection of what he has become revealed his ending.

A statue.

In Matt's struggle with his awareness, he was able to raise his right hand trying to reach for Len. Like an invisible caress, he stared longingly at his friend, nay~ his world— the love of his life.

Matt's hands are just an inch away from Len's cheeks, and then just like that~ he stopped~ tragically ending their story.

Stone to stone. Dust to dust. Rebirth and reversal. Wounded of worlds. Plea or plight.