I knock on Susan's window. It's 5am and the glass is cold against my fists. I wait, seeing a light turn on in the room and then the blinds are lifted and Susan stares at my face, half confused, half surprised, half asleep green eyes staring into my brown.
Susan opens the window. "What're you doing?" She asks motioning to the slightly pink horizon.
I don't answer. Too excited to. "Let me in." I say instead, poking the screen between our faces.
She rolls her eyes, but doesn't complain as she lifts the screen and helps me climb in.
I sit on her soft white carpet, cross legged and she sits across from me, her eyes still tired, but with a bit of something behind that... I couldn't tell what it was.
"Did your mom kick you out or something?" Susan asks as she messes with her purple hair. She was only half joking.
"No!" I say. Taking out a folded piece of paper from my pocket, unfolding it and laying it flat on her floor. Susan walked over, glancing at it.
"A map of the neighborhood." She says. "Why?"
"Garage saling!" I say.
Her face turns uncertain, she sits on her knees, pulling a plush giraffe into her lap. "I don't know."
I widen my eyes and turn my mouth into a pout. The face that always convinced. Something about Susan had been off since yesterday. I thought this might help her.
"Pleeeeeeeease." I say
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We stroll down the street, walking from garage sale to garage sale. I've always loved these. Finding odds and ends people didn't want anymore and making them your own odds or ends. Susan didn't seem too interested though. She stood by, gazing at the junk as if she was in another world. She stayed like this, even when I showed her the coolest pancake lamp someone was going to sell me for $2.As we walked to the next street, my pancake backpack almost full, I grabbed her hand. She flinched and pulled away. I pretended not to be hurt. Something was very wrong.
I didn't want her to be like this. Not just because she was being no fun. Something was obviously making her sad and all I wanted to do was eradicate whatever that was from her life. Throw it into a volcano and laugh as it burned.
There was an old abandoned house on the street we were walking by. It seemed as if it had been that way for years Almost as if whoever was building it had just decided to stop.
I take her hand in mine and pull her to the door, opening it. (someone had probably picked the lock years ago and now it was just open.) I pull her inside.
"What are you doing?" Susan says, in a mixture of annoyance, anger and sadness. It made my heart break.
"Susan, something's wrong, tell me what's up." I still have her hand in mine. It's cold. I cover it with my other hand, trying to warm it up. It was the middle of summer. Why is she so cold?
For ten seconds (I counted.) she stares into my eyes. The green pierces my soul like a knife. Then she shakes her head. A tear rolls down her cheek and I pull her into a big hug. She needs one, even if I don't know why.
All of the sudden she's sobbing into my shoulder. I keep my arms around her. Running a hand through her purple hair. I love her hair.
It takes awhile before her tears subside into hiccups and she lays her head on my shoulder, looking up at the ceiling.
"What's wrong?" I say, poking her lightly, afraid I might make more tears come out.
Susan sighs. She closes her eyes. "My parents... They aren't bad people. They just... if they knew... " She opened her eyes looking up at me. Oh. "I'm just so afraid of them." Her eyes water again. Oh.
I brush her tears away with my thumb. I didn't have to deal with this kind of thing at all. My mother pretty much knew about Susan and I. My Mom and I were best friends, even if she was hurt and lost and would probably never be the same.
"I'm so sorry." I say, pulling her back into my hug, Hoping it can help.
"I just don't know what to do." Susan whispers into my shoulder, her eyes looking at an infinite of nothing.
"In the end." I say. "All we can really do is follow how we feel. Sometimes other people don't like how we feel, or they punish us, they say we are week. In reality though, I think we're the strongest ones." I say and bite my lip. It had just spilled out. I didn't even know I knew that. It was good advice though."Someday we can run away and go live in london together."
Susan smiles, closing her eyes for a moment she says. "I would like that."
We walk back to my house, hand in hand. Her hand is warmer now. She smiles at me and won't stop smiling and won't stop smiling.
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We're sitting in my room, still holding hands, listening to Green Day. A band Susan liked. I didn't care for them too much but they were okay.
"I got something for you." Susan said, reaching into her pocket.
"I didn't see you buy anything."
She rolls her eyes, a small paper bag in her hand. "You were too busy buying junk, you hoarder."
"It's not hoarding. It's collecting." I mumble, but stop when I see what she bought.
Two bracelets. Both silver bangles but one has a star on it while the other has a moon.
Susan has a small happy smile as she slips the one with a star on it onto my wrist. Then she puts her own on.
"Susan." I say.
"Hmm?"
"I think I'm in love with you."
Susan's smile widens. "I know I am."
She suddenly bear hugs me and I'm not ready for it and I fall over so then we are both laying on our backs next to each other, staring at the ceiling where I had stuck a whole bunch of glow in the dark stars I had found in the basement when we moved in, and a moon in the corner. It was getting late and we watch them as they got brighter. Everything seems perfect.
Because
Maybe
It is.
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A.n
Tomorrow I'm going to post the last thing in my stockpile then I'll start updating on like Friday's and Monday's idk. Nobody is reading this but I honestly love Susan and Lee too much to give up on them.
YOU ARE READING
The Stars, The Moon, And You
Teen FictionA bunch of short stories where two bits of space dust try to find their way in a world of darkness. I try to update every week but I'm shit at actually commiting to something so let's see how it goes.