STARRY EYES | mileven

seventeen

a soft knock echoed through the room just as el peeled back the lid of a tuna can. lu immediately appeared out of nowhere, tail flicking, eyes wide with anticipation.

"impatient as always." el murmured, scooping the tuna into her bowl. lu dove in, purring as el gave her a little scratch behind the ears before heading to the door.

she opened it to find mike standing there, cap pulled low, sunglasses on his face. he grinned wide and warm, "good morning, sunshine."

"morning," she said, leaning against the doorframe.

his gaze drifted past her shoulder, his lips twisting into a small smile as he made his way into the room. "ah, there's my favorite cat in the entire world."

he crouched down, extending a hand toward lu. she sniffed him once, then turned right back to her food.

el almost burst out laughing at the betrayed expression on his face. "she likes you," el said, folding her arms. "but she likes tuna more. sorry, mike."

his brows furrowed, the most dramatically sad expression twisting on his face. "i think this might be the biggest heartbreak of my life."

el let out a laugh, shaking her head. "you'll live."

he straightened and looked her up and down, expression shifting from playful to faux-serious. "wait. where's your hat? and sunglasses?"

"seriously?"

"yes, seriously." he replied, "or did you forget about the wonders of caps and glasses?"

"still not sure if i really believe that thesis." el tilted her head questioningly.

"come on, if i have to walk around looking like a baseball dad, you're not getting away with it either."

that earned another laugh out of her. "fine," she said, rummaging through her suitcase until she found her biggest pair of sunglasses. "happy?"

"i'd prefer a cap on top but fine, halfway happy." he wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "we should go."

she slipped the glasses on and reached for her bag. "bye, lu!"

"bye, luciana." mike added as they stepped out. "i still love you, even if you broke my heart."

"you're such a dork." el rolled her eyes, but she was smiling as she shut the door.

they walked down the quiet hallway, the walls lined with framed photos of saugatuck—old boats, sunsets, people laughing by the shore. comfortable silence settled between them for a few seconds, mike squeezed her shoulder then, like he wanted to grab her attention. "hey, i just wanted to—"

a door to their right opened, cutting him off. they both turned as max stepped out, balancing a stack of papers in her hands.

"hi!" el greeted, maybe a little too enthusiastically. she still caught herself getting starstruck around max and immediately scolded herself for it.

but how could she not be? she's so talented. her way with words painting everything so vividly, like a film reel behind eyelids.

her admiration bordered on shyness around her, she wanted to get closer to her, casually hang out even, but never found the right moment to push towards it.

max squinted for a second before her expression shifted. "oh—hey, you two."

el glanced at mike, who looked far too pleased with himself. "see? told you that the disguises work," he said.

"disguises?" max laughed.

"mike says a cap and sunglasses are all it takes not to get recognized," el explained.