Stars In Her I's

three

Chris lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling with Charlie in his lap. The one-year-old Vizsla was a present from Francis, as his dad was a breeder. He liked the little pup, and was actually pretty thankful to Francis. He wouldn't normally be able to afford such a fancy dog, but the pup and him had fallen in love with each other as soon as they met, so Francis kept a hold of him until Christopher turned sixteen. He had named the dog after a character he was fond of, although no one else knew that- Charlie was a common enough name.

He couldn't sleep because he couldn't get the thought of the note out of his head. Why would anyone bother to leave him something like that? It was obviously important, why the hell wouldn't they just slip it into his bag or something? Right now he felt more like Lestrade rather than Sherlock Holmes.

Chris sighed, stroking Charlie's head. Well, maybe she didn't have him in any classes. Who would pay so much attention to him if he wasn't even in their class? Well, other than most people, he could think of a handful of people. Sarah, for one. Jeanette for another. Maybe Macy.

Then there was that Lumos kid. Why had he never seen that guy before? Or had he actually seen him and just forgot about it? He sighed, clearing away his thoughts. No, he would remember such a guy. Maybe red hair and blue eyes ran in his family, he thought. He seemed... awkward. Like he had wanted to say something but was sworn to secrecy. Whatever the matter was, Lumos definitely knew something about that handwriting. Maybe he was friends with whoever wrote it.

He turned over into his side, causing Charlie to whine softly. He felt like a little kid on Christmas eve; he was so excited for tomorrow to come that he couldn't even go to sleep to make it go faster. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally succumbed to the warmth and dark of his bed and drifted off. Tomorrow was Friday.

***

Today was Friday, which meant everyone was in a hurry. Hurry for what, he never knew. Probably wanting to get someplace faster so they could leave faster, but he knew that, no matter what, classes lasted until the end of the hour. Getting there faster would only make you stay there even longer.

As he drifted through the day agonizing over the thought that the mystery lady wouldn't write back, he couldn't help but look out for that Lumos kid. He was curious to see if it was his own memory fooling him or just that he had actually never seen him before. Sure enough, he didn't see Lumos until he was at lunch, but he had to look pretty hard. He managed to glimpse the kid sitting over by himself at a table, doodling something on thick parchment.

Well, if he wanted to get closer to finding out who this girl was, he might as well start with the one true lead he had. He stood up, abandoning his friends just as Francis started telling everyone one of his stories from his youth in America. He got a few odd looks, but at least no one tried to stop him.

The guy practically leapt out of his chair when Chris plopped his tray down next to him. "Hey there, Sport." Chris spun the chair around and sat in it backwards, leaving on the back of it with his arms crossed. He glanced over the paper Lumos seemed to be working on. A pair of eyes stared back belonging to... a deer? Why put such detailed eyes on a deer? Whatever, it sure looked nice. "Neat drawing you've got there."

"Hi." Lumos gulped, pulling the sketchpad closer to himself. "Can I help you with anything?" Huh. He could have sworn those we're the art lady's exact words. Weird. Lumos was also staring at the table with a blank expression just like he was yesterday. Also weird.

"Yeah, actually, but first, how come I've never seen you around?" He wanted to know that answer almost as much as who this girl was. He had such a distinctive face- sharp cheekbones, sharp jaw, sharp mostly everything save for his button nose, deep blue eyes, deep red hair, and freckles that looked like a connect-the-dots that someone made after they just downed three Red bulls and an espresso. How would he forget such a face?

"Well, I don't think I'm in any of your classes." Now the kid looked uncomfortable. Like, really uncomfortable. For what reason, Chris didn't know. It wasn't that weird of a question. The fact that he sat alone at lunch meant he didn't have many other people to sit with, why couldn't he answer with that? Maybe he didn't like people. The thought made him scoot back a little further, hoping that giving more personal space to him would relax him. His shoulders went down, so Chris took that as a sign of success.

"Alright, I guess I'll accept that answer. You seem uncomfortable with all this, so I'll just get it done and over with." He pulled the note out of his jeans again- it was quite worn by now, as he had folded and unfolded it many times already. "You sure you haven't seen this handwriting before? Maybe you saw it over someone's shoulder, saw it on a poster, something like that?" He took a softer tone than normal. This kid had issues, that was obvious. He didn't know exactly what issues, but he tried to accommodate for most things he could think of.

"..." Lumos took his time, looking over the letter carefully. He seemed more focused on the creases in it than the words themselves. "I haven't personally, but there's probably a poster in the hall or something. I've definitely seen stars before." Lumos then looked up, connecting their gazes for the first time since they started this conversation. Something in his eyes made Chris pause. Some emotion was present there that he couldn't quite place. He didn't have much time to figure it out, as seconds later, Lumos dropped his gaze and looked at the floor again.

"Alright, kid." Chris sighed. This kid wasn't going to give up anything. He stood up, spinning the chair back around and patting Lumos hard on the shoulder. "Good talk."

***

Well, he might not have been able to find out who this lady was, but he was lucky enough to receive another note.

When he reached under the desk and felt that thick paper under the desk, his heart jumped into his throat. She wrote back! He ignored the lesson once more as he unfolded it, reading every word carefully:

"Hello, Christopher! I am surprised that you wrote back! Thank you! I'll always check to see if you have written letters, do not worry about me not getting them.

I would love to tell you who I am, but I'm afraid you wouldn't much like me if I told you. Besides, I don't think I could carry on a conversation with you without folding in on myself. I've seen how charming you can be and I believe I wouldn't last more than a few moments. If its alright, I'd just like to carry on like this. If you feel like you must call me something, you can call me Casey. Don't bother asking about a Casey, there aren't any that I know of at this school.

It's amazing what I can see from a distance. Rather recently we have been face to face, but I don't think you remembered it.

I doubt that I have better eyes and hair. Mine are only one colour and my hair is completely straight, not to mention how tough and wiry it is.

What songs do you like? What artists do you like? I really like Elton John and Prince. Elvis is very good too."

At the bottom of the page, very small and neat letters spilled out. 'PS, my favourite song is I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues and a close second is Can't Help Falling In Love :)' was just legible. He smiled. Alright, Casey. At least the mystery woman had a name and a favourite song. She seemed a little more real somehow. A little more solid.

He took out a page and began writing.