Chapter 10

Tap tap tap

There was tapping on my window. It was dark out, but a warm yellowish, familiar glow came from the window. Fran was smiling at me through the glass. She was in some cute strawberry pajamas, her blonde hair gently blowing in the wind. Did she do her hair before coming to see me?

I opened the window.

"Wow, one strawberry shortcake to go, please!"

She tilted her head at me in slight confusion, then covered her pajamas with her arms as she realized she didn't change before she left. She darted home and came back almost as quickly as she left, but this time wearing sweatpants and a hoodie.

"Come on out! I want to show you something!"

I felt like I was sneaking out, which I guess was true, but since I knew I was safe with Fran, it didn't bother me too much. I quickly got changed into jeans and a hoodie and walked out onto the roof.

"Close your eyes, Steven. I'm going to take you to a special place, okay?"

I barely closed my eyes before she picked me up onto her back and flew up into the sky. The cold wind blew on us, and I held on tighter. Her hair flipped in my face, but I didn't mind; she smelled like sweet flowers and peaches. I enjoyed just holding her tightly.

We slowed down into a descent and landed.

"Okay, you can open your eyes now."

As I opened my eyes, I saw the bright bluish-gray moon just over the distant mountains. It was full. We were on a cliff, and at the edge was a big blanket with some candles and a picnic blanket.

"Wow, you did all of this yourself?"

We walked over to the picnic and sat down.

"Well, I really wanted to apologize for running out on you the other day."

She looked down, but she smiled gently and pulled her hair behind her ear. We opened the picnic basket, and she had packed various fruits, cheese and crackers, and some summer sausage. There were also some freshly baked bread buns that were still warm.

My mouth watered as I felt the warm bread.

"Here, put some butter on it." She lathered some butter onto my bread buns for me and watched me intently. I stared at her plainly.

"Are you going to watch me eat this?"

She didn't blink.

"Yes, yes I am."

We chuckled a little, and I took a big bite out of the bread.

It was too salty. In a split second, I had to decide exactly what I was going to say and make sure it was believable.

"WOW, THAT IS AMAZING."

I've never had to tell such a big lie before. I looked over, and she was already scarfing hers down. Looks like I passed, whew.

She drank some orange juice that she brought with her and sighed.

"Everything tastes better when you make it yourself."

I countered,

"It tastes even better when someone makes it for you!"

We chuckled again. This was perfect. We were just being ourselves; there wasn't an awkward moment. Even the silence felt purposeful, like we were just enjoying the scenery.

We sat in silence, and I could feel my heart rate increasing. I glanced at her hand, which was only a few inches from mine. Should I go for it? I inchwormed my fingers closer to hers until I bumped into them. Her fingers found mine, and we started to hold each other's hand. She didn't even look down.

"Look up there."

She pointed with her free hand.

"How familiar are you with the stars, Steven?"

I shrugged. For a second there, it sounded like she was speaking a different language. My heart was racing so fast, and all I could think about was how she totally planned this all along.

"I'm familiar with the basics: Orion's belt, the Big Dipper, the snake one?... Little Dipper? Uhhh, I don't know any others really. To be honest, constellations never really made sense to me except those ones, hahah. The rest all seem made up."

She stood up, letting go of my hand, and pointed.

"That star right there is the North Star. It is actually two stars really close together. I heard a story once that they were two lovers. They were from two kingdoms at war. One day, as they were trying to meet, the woman arrived at their usual meeting spot and waited longer than was normal. She began to look for him and found him in a gutter stained with blood. He was still breathing but was weak. She held him tightly, and he whispered to her, 'Dearest... why did you come?' She said, 'Because I won't let anyone take you from me.' Tears fell from her eyes. He smiled a warm smile and said, 'I'm just glad you are safe. Please don't leave me...' She held him as he slowly faded away, and she cried to the heavens that they would stay together. As she laid there holding her love, she was found and mortally wounded. Their love was so strong that they were imprinted in the stars to forever remind us that with love, nothing can tear you apart."

She stood there a moment and turned around.

"That's pretty morbid, but I hope you get the idea!"

She smiled her bright smile, and her silhouette from the moon was beautiful.

I smiled. "That's funny. I thought it ended differently. When she found him, she brought him back home and healed his wounds. They ended up getting married, unifying the two kingdoms, and ultimately ending the war. The Gods etched their memory into the great canvas of the sky to forever commemorate that love triumphs over all."

I made that up; I had no idea what I was talking about.

She laughed, her sweet, beautiful laugh.

"I think I like that ending a lot more," she said as she sat back down next to me and laid her head on my shoulder.

My heart was full.