finding the stars- hawk x female reader

chapter 8

"Oh, how often you'll remember the sudden pain of unnamed longing."

-Anna Akhmatova

Eli sat on the edge of his bed. His hands were covered by his dark green sweater.

To say he was nervous was a major understatement. He would not let his feelings jump to conclusions by saying he liked Iris. I mean, he only just met her.

Sure she was beautiful in the kind of way no other girl was. And sure she had an amazing style that was very similar to his.

But he knew deep down inside that his scar would be the bane of his existence that would never let a girl reciprocate his feelings.

Although he hoped that maybe Iris was different. Maybe he could be different-

The doorbell rang, snapping Eli out of his thoughts. He didn't even realize what was occurring until he heard his mother's footsteps rushing to the door.

She swung it open and immediately greeted their new neighbours.

Eli's heart raced as he heard his mother's cheerful voice welcoming the new neighbours. He couldn't shake the feeling of apprehension, knowing that this interaction could potentially change everything.

He hesitated for a moment, debating whether he should join his mother in greeting the neighbours or stay in his room where he felt safe. But a sudden surge of determination pushed him to his feet. He couldn't let his scar define him or hold him back any longer.

Taking a deep breath, Eli straightened his shoulders and walked out of his room. As he approached the doorway, he caught a glimpse of Iris standing in the hallway, her eyes scanning the room curiously. His pulse quickened at the sight of her, but he forced himself to stay calm.

"Eli, come meet our new neighbours!" his mother called out, gesturing for him to join them.

With a nervous smile, Eli stepped forward, extending his hand to greet Iris and her family. "Hi, I'm Eli," he said, trying to ignore the self-conscious voice in his head.

Sabrina and Brylan both greeted Eli's mother and Eli at the same time. They had wide smiles on their beautiful faces, lighting up the entire room. They had an aura to them that Eli could place as joyous. 

"Sorry about them, they can be a bit-" Iris put a huge grin on her face and opened her arms out wide, mocking the joyous energy that their mothers emitted. 

Eli smiled a genuine smile. She's funny. 

"That's okay, my mom's the same." The brown-haired boy pointed behind him where their mothers were greeting each other while walking towards the dining room.

"I like the sweater." Iris smiled, reaching out to gently touch the soft fabric of Eli's green sweater. 

If the blush on his face wasn't noticeable before, it was now. "Thanks... I uh- like your- dress." H stumbled over his words from the nerves.

Iris didn't seem to notice though. Instead, she grinned, showing dimples that Eli never noticed before. It made her even cuter.

"Dinner!" Eli's mother called out, interrupting the two that were still in the doorway.

Eli gestured for Iris to follow him, and she did, being able to watch him as he led her.

Being a bit on the shorter side has its perks. One of them is being able to watch Eli's figure. His shoulders were covered by his sweater, his soft-looking hair.

As they entered the dining room, both Eli and Iris couldn't help but steal glances at each other. Eli noticed the way her eyes sparkled with excitement as she took in their home and Iris noticed the way he looked so nervous it made her heart swell.

The dinner conversation flowed effortlessly, filled with laughter and shared stories. Mainly from stories of Iris' life back home. Eli couldn't imagine how different her life must have been, and part of him felt bad that she moved so far.

"Iris, was it hard leaving your friends to move all the way here?" Eli's mother asked and Iris tensed up.

Sabrina looked as if she was going to speak on her daughter's behalf, but Iris decided to answer. "Yeah, it wasn't easy but I've already begun to make new friends." She looked at Eli and gave him a knowing smile.

Brylan and Sabrina exchanged glances but didn't say anything.

Technically Iris didn't lie. She did begin to make new friends and it was not easy moving.

"Well, I hope you and Eli have the chance to hang out at school!" 

"We have! He has some pretty great friends that I've been introduced to." She grinned and picked up her fork to shovel some more lasagna into her mouth.

"That's wonderful! I'm sure you've met Demetri then. He and Eli have been best friends since they were young. One time at-"

"Mom!" Eli warned, shaking his head as he knew his mother was going to tell a rather embarrassing story that he did not want the girl he liked to hear.

"Sorry!" The mothers all smiled at each other and fell into a separate conversation about work.

Eli and Iris were mostly quiet. Truthfully, Iris was just trying to keep herself cool. She forgot how hot it was in L.A.

"So.. do you like cats?" Iris suddenly asked, swallowing the last bits of her dinner.

Eli pondered for a moment. Except for the time he and Demetri tried befriending a stray cat one time, he hadn't given animals much of a thought.

"I guess I do. I haven't ever had one though."

Iris nodded her head, "Well I have a cat. Her name is Kiki!" Iris excitedly told the boy sitting in front of her, unlocking her phone and showing a picture of her black cat bathing in the sun.

"Wow, she's adorable." Eli stared at the photo, smiling softly before looking up at the red-headed girl.

"Yeah, she really is!"

They both grinned at each other and continued to talk about random things.

As the evening drew to a close, Eli walked Iris and her family to the door, a sense of contentment washing over him. Despite his initial nervousness, the evening had exceeded his expectations, and he couldn't help but feel a sense of hope for the future.

"I had a really great time tonight," Iris said, flashing him a bright smile that sent a flutter through his chest. Her mothers had begun to walk across the street, leaving the two to speak. 

"Me too," Eli replied, returning her smile with one of his own. "I hope we can do it again sometime."

Iris nodded eagerly, her eyes shining with excitement. "Definitely. Maybe we could check out that arcade downtown together?"

Eli felt a surge of excitement at the prospect. "Yeah, that sounds like a lot of fun."

Oh my- did she just ask me out?

 Eli couldn't wipe the grin off his face. Maybe, just maybe, his scar wasn't as much of a barrier as he thought.