The Stars & Her | LT ONE-SHOT

The Stars & Her

I just finished performing and it was around 9 PM. I was on my usual spot, waiting for her to arrive. She usually stops by to watch the sky. I don't know how she finds that entertaining but one thing's for sure — she stole my heart just by sitting on one corner and watching the night sky. Two years ago today, I saw her for the first time. I don't know why it was such a big deal to me, considering the fact that I didn't even know her name — for two years up to now.

There she was, getting out of her Ford SUV as she took her equipment out — a telescope and a telescope mount.

"Hi, you're done early tonight," she smiled, setting her telescope

I ran my fingers through my hair, chuckling. "Well, yeah. Hailey got sick on stage. It was pretty bad."

She fixed her telescope on the mount before looking at me. "She's your pianist, right? How bad was it?"

"She was throwing up all over the stage so we had to stop the gig," I leaned back, placing my hands on the grass for support

I was actually part of a band. I was the lead vocalist and we always had a gig every night at the club just right beside the park. Whenever we were done performing, we would hang out here and I would see her, either staring at the stars or using a telescope.

I stared at her while she was looking through her telescope — like I normally do. She was wearing a sleeveless white top and a flowy floral skirt. It was weird, that wasn't her usual get up. She would always wear crop tops and skinny jeans. She was sophisticated, but very simple. Her hair was tied up into a beautiful braid with loose strands on the sides. Normally, she'd just let her hair down or tie it to a ponytail or bun. She must have went somewhere and I was really itching to know.

"So, where have you been? Did you go somewhere?" I felt like it was a very awkward question to ask her since we weren't really that close. I mean, yes, we do talk but we weren't really friends.

She turned her telescope sideways and signaled me to try it — as she always does. I stood up, wiping the dirt off of my bum as I bent down slightly, looking into the telescope. I have to admit, it was really beautiful.

"Well, I had dinner with this guy but it wasn't a thing," after she said that, I heard a scraping noise which I assumed was coming from a wood or something

I was still bent down as I whipped my head to her direction, where she was carving something on the trunk of a nearby tree. She always does that; carving something on that exact tree every single time.

"So, you went on a date?" I asked, not moving from my position

She pursed her lips to the side, throwing the sharp rock away as she wiped her hands with a handkerchief.

"Eh, I wouldn't call it a date. Although, he wanted me to consider it as a date, but I was like nah," she walked toward me, turning the telescope to her

I stood up straight, tucking my hands in my pockets.

"You like him?"

What the hell was that, Louis? Why would you even ask that question out of the blue? Well, it wasn't out of the blue because my question was clearly related to the topic. STILL!

She snickered, looking at me with a slightly amused look on her face.

I tried to avoid her stare and I ended up looking at the sky. There was a shooting star.

"Make a wish." I said lowly, still looking up at the sky

She instantly whipped her head toward the direction of the sky and I heard her let out a soft gasp.

"It's starting," she poured all her attention into the telescope

Even though I couldn't see her face, I could tell that she was amazed. It was a meteor shower. I couldn't help but watch her instead of the stars. She was even more beautiful than a meteor shower.

I should be nervous when her eyes looked to the side — my direction, specifically. She caught me watching her but I couldn't take my eyes off of her.

"You missed it," she smiled, faking a sigh

"No I didn't," I smiled back at her

Her smile got wider as she fixed her position, standing up straight.

"You did, you didn't even make a wish. They were a lot but you didn't get, not even the slightest chance to make a wish," she removed her telescope from the mount which means, she was going to leave

I grabbed the telescope from her and put it down. She looked at me with a very puzzled expression.

I sat down on the grass, tapping the space right beside me. She was laughing and shaking her head so I pulled her down and she playfully punched my arm.

"Why do you even love watching the night sky?" I asked, looking at her

Her lips were straight and one of her eyebrows was raised.

"And why would even I tell you?"

Because we keep talking for two years now and I never got the chance to ask you. For two years, I was just some random chitchat-ter to you. For two years, we managed to talk and laugh with each other but you wouldn't even consider me as your friend. You would usually stay here for only a few minutes but it was every night so approximately, in one week, we talk for 4 hours and if you sum up those hours, its total amount would be pretty big.

"Because I'm curious. When I first saw you, you were at the swing, just waiting for the people to leave and when they left, you started to watch the sky by yourself. So, I started to check every night if you would keep coming back and there you were, always present. Until one day, I got really curious so I came up to you and eventually, we talked and I'm pretty sure you know my secret but I don't even know the first letter of your name," I stated

She was pressing her lips together as if she was suppressing a laugh.

"What? What secret?"

You get really annoying sometimes but it's cute. I love annoying.

"You know THAT secret," I groaned

She laughed, "Okay. So, here it goes. There was this girl named Natasha, she was 28 years old and engaged but she and this guy whose name was Louis fell in love-"

"You're annoying, stop!" I half-shouted, laughing

"Well, I also have an unasked question for you. Is Louis your real name?"

I narrowed my eyes at her, "Yes. What kind of question is that?"

She rolled her lips in her mouth, looking away.

"I just.. It's hard to explain," she was pulling some grass off

"You're weird," I nudged her shoulder

She giggled, "I know."

Then later on, she checked her gold wristwatch and immediately stood up.

"I have to go," she picked her things up

I stood up, grabbing her wrist. It was the second year today and I gotta at least know her name.

"Just tell me your name, please. I just can't take it anymore. Not knowing anything about you. It just sucks,"

I didn't care if I sounded too desperate because I really was desperate.

She just stood there, giving me an 'oh-come-on-are-you-serious' look.

"I'm so sorry, I know you have to go but-"

I was remained stuck in my position, literally frozen and could barely move a single joint when I felt her lips crash onto mine. I closed my eyes and kissed her back.

She broke the kiss and spoke, "Jenna."

A warm and genuine smile spread across her lips. As I watched her walk away, my eyes landed on the tree trunk. I suddenly started to wonder what she was trying to carve on it so I went toward the tree to take a closer look. I tried really hard to calm my mind and not assume things when I saw what was carved...

J & L