Gadalik awoke around sunrise as usual. He got out of bed, made it up, then went straight for the bathroom to shower as he'd fallen asleep before taking one the previous night.

Once inside he began to undress starting with his pale green pajama top when he caught a glimpse of his bare abdomen in the mirror, his striped blue eyes staring at the scars on his chest and stomach. His mind went blank as if shutting down to avoid remembering the incidents that caused them.

He absently walked closer to the mirror, leaning against the sink in front of it and inspecting his reflection. It feels like it's been years since I've actually seen myself… Is that…really me…?

There was a knock on the bathroom door. Gadalik recognized the short rhythm to be that of his practical-father's. He grabbed his top and opened it.

"Sorry, bud. Didn't know you were in there," Gale said. "I can wait."

"N-no, I was gonna shower. You go ahead first," the teen answered, stepping out so the darker-skinned man could enter. The door shut again and Gadalik leaned back against the wall beside it, spacing out.

"Gadalik? You okay?" His adoptive mother had approached without him realizing it. She was still in her yellow night dress, the front of it the slightest bit tighter around her belly. Despite being twenty-four weeks along, she barely showed, although her medic assured them it was simply because she was so tall. Gadalik himself only stood just above her eye level.

"I'm alright," he assured her, glad for the distraction. "Are you? I'm not used to seeing you up so early."

"More like 'up all night.' I'm so tired, but it's hard to sleep. Especially without Gale next to me–even if he's just using the bathroom," Glacia explained. "And he's a light sleeper, you know. I pretty much kept him up with me."

Everything was normal, but normal was still pretty crummy. Gadalik couldn't help sympathizing.

"I don't mind it," Gale responded as he came out. Contrarily, as if on cue, a yawn escaped him.

"You both need to rest," the teen told them. "Let me finish my morning routine and I'll take care of all the chores today."

"I just need a nap and I'll help out," the mohawked man promised.

"Don't worry about it," Gadalik said dismissively. "I'll be fine. Go get some sleep."

"...Alright. Thanks, bud."

Glacia yawned and leaned against her boyfriend. She really did appear exhausted. Gale held her securely with one hand as they walked back to their bedroom.

Gadalik was glad his practical-father had moved in with them after six years. He couldn't believe they had gone that long without having a child sooner. He wasn't kidding when he told me they were careful about it. To think it just took one slip-up on their date night…

The teen finally showered and dressed into his handmade black shirt striped with gray across the chest of it, and matching shorts, this time leaving his striped green hair down to let it air-dry. He once again stared at his reflection.

Gadalik had purposefully kept his hair around shoulder-length, but it had grown longer over time. He was debating whether or not to trim it.

"You're Trent's boy, aren't you?" his mentor Janna had recognized him.

While he mostly took after his birth-mother Vilodia in terms of his race, the resemblance to his birth-father was unmistakable.

He mostly remembered their backs as he'd followed behind them; Vilodia had light green hair in a pixie cut, while his father's black hair reached his mid-back. But he also recalled their encouraging smiles as they taught him how to read in both of their languages, or how to use spell tags.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

His chest began to ache. It had been a long time since he'd let himself reminisce about his childhood. It was easier to just forget about his youth and focus on his day-to-day life. Easier…and painless.

The teen backed away from the mirror with a dismissive shake of his head. I'll leave my hair alone and see how I like it.

He was thankful that the chores gave him something to do–something besides falling into an existential crisis.

That's when his girlfriend's words suddenly came to mind:

"Nobody exists on purpose, so life doesn't really need a purpose to justify existing. People love you, Gadalik. I do. If anything, that alone should be a reason to keep going."

He let that sink in, feeling better knowing he had such great people in his life. Maybe he would take up his father's offer to help later.

He never did, however. When Gadalik had gone to check on his new parents, they were faintly snoring together, and he didn't have the heart to wake them. He ended up going above and beyond with the cleaning of the stable out back, afterward taking care of their two horses, before moving on to the rest of the house. He pushed himself until he was nearly too tired to ascend the staircase, but managed to make it to his bedroom, where he sat on his bed and stared at the wall. Now what…?

Nobody exists on purpose…so there's no purpose for existing. That means…we can find our own purpose, doesn't it?

What should I do with my life? Am I going to be this indecisive forever…? He shook his head. One thing that's never changed is my want to help others…be that ghosts, or anyone else. He thought for a moment. Just like with his hair, Gadalik decided to leave the topic alone.

He lied down over top of the covers and felt himself drift off.

Gadalik heard voices chatting from downstairs before he realized he was awake. By the sun he guessed a couple hours had passed. The spook got up and went to the first floor.

"Hey, big guy," Glacia greeted her son from beside her boyfriend. Uncharacteristically, they were both dressed in rather formal attire: she was in a silky red dress matching her irises with a darker red cardigan over it. Gale had on a beige tux. "I didn't think it was possible for this place to get any cleaner than you had it yesterday, but you sure proved me wrong!"

He felt his cheeks warm from the praise. "Thanks. Did you sleep well?"

"As good as possible," she replied. "I just keep telling myself: three more months and I won't have to deal with these symptoms ever again."

"Ever again? So no more kids after this?"

"No more," his parents both confirmed simultaneously. They exchanged a glance and chuckled.

Mom always did want a kid with him, even if he wasn't ready, Gadalik thought. At least they're on the same page now. "Why the fancy clothes?"

"We've had an errand to run at the courthouse for a while now, and decided it's about time we take care of it," Gale explained.

"Is it something bad?"

"Not at all! Just a few papers to file. We'll be back before lunch."

The younger male blinked, curious. "Should I come with you?"

"N-No!" they both said at once.

He shrank. "Oh… Alright."

"We need you to watch the house for us. We know we can trust you with that," Gale assured him.

"Oh… O-of course. I'll have lunch made before you come back, too," Gadalik promised. He felt better knowing that was the reason for his exclusion.

"We didn't want to leave while you were asleep," the man continued. "So now that you're up, we should get going. We'll be back soon."

Soon wasn't soon enough. Lunch was getting cold on the table. Gadalik went back to his room and picked out a book to pass the time reading, but he couldn't concentrate, as he was still hung up on his parents' absence.

It must have been important… The only time Mom ever dealt with the court was over buying this house for us. And with Dad, it could be anything regarding his career as a bounty hunter. Did something go wrong?

He jolted when he heard the door open, followed by a loud sigh from Glacia. "We're back!" she called.

Gadalik had already been halfway down the stairs before her words. "What happened?"

"The lines were longer than expected," Gale said. "But we finally got these done." He shifted through a stack of papers and picked one out, handing it over.

"A…marriage certificate?" Gadalik was shocked. He didn't expect them to get married, but if he had, he pictured a grand wedding.

"Glacia and I have been talking about it for the past few months. We decided on a civil marriage…just for now. After everything gets settled, we'll have an actual wedding."

"But that's not all," Glacia added, taking the papers from her now-husband and picking one out to give to her son.

Gadalik skimmed it, then froze, rereading it carefully to make sure he understood it.

"Well? What do you think?"

"They're…adoption papers," Gadalik said hesitantly, still in disbelief.

"That's right. All we need is your consent, and you'll officially be my son," the bounty hunter said.

"But–I thought you weren't ready? Are you really okay with this…?"

"I'm not ready," he admitted. "I could never be ready… Not for marriage, or fatherhood. I'm terrified of messing something up down the line. The thing is: life goes on, whether or not you're prepared. I don't know what the future will hold… But whatever happens, we'll face it…together."