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Right before the metro car door could close, Gabriel slipped into the car to take a seat right beside the bubblegum haired girl, who used to tell him stories on his way home from work.
He sighed, as usually from a long day and she waited until he got comfortable before saying anything. "Where are you from today?" He heard her say.
His tucked his hair behind his ears, offering a one-serving size of pretzels he from his jacket pocket. "2024."
"Hmm." She was clearly impressed. As far as she knew that was his current self. Star was never the jealous type, only when it came to little things. Existing in reality was never one of them. "I was going to tell you a story about waffles but I'm sensing by your lack of breath that this visit was an on-the-fly decision."
Chewing he complimented, "You never cease to amaze me."
Her eyes darted towards him, to the worry in his. Consistently wide, so much that he began to twitch a bit. "What is it this time?"
"Can't we just sit for a sec?" He asked, leaning his head against the window. He could feel the heat radiate off her body so much it eased the goosebumps and hairs along the back of his neck, just where a pimple had formed the night before.
Her skin was bare, not a touch of makeup. She had blemishes and acne scars, some of which he'd mistaken for freckles and discoloration. The discoloration turned out to be correct, in the long run.
She was young, straight out of community college with an associates degree in biochemistry, though science had always been her least favorite subject. Since the day he spoke to her, he'd seen her around on the trains now and again for a few weeks before, but it took awhile for him to muster up enough courage to introduce himself. She'd slipped into his dream so he wouldn't miss his stop. Ever since then he was smitten.
She'd occasionally slip in and out just to pop her head in. He stopped sleeping once he told her about his ability. She recommended he Jump to sleep an extra hour. Ever since then he wanted to kiss her.
Once she noticed he had taken her advice, she told him about her ability. He never asked if she'd ever entered any of his. And ever since then she wanted to marry him. Even if it was just for a little while.
Taking his hand in hers, she rested her head onto his shoulder, perfectly against his collarbone. "Aren't you gonna loop it?"
He kissed the top of her head, as if to answer her question.
"How long do we have?" She asked.
Gabriel glanced down at his watch, fighting the tears as they formed. "Fuck."
"Hey," she lifted her head. "You knew this wasn't gonna last."
"I know, I just — I just thought we had a little more time, y'know?"
"Gabe, look," she held his hand in both of hers. "I die. You die. We're all gonna die, it's inevitable but ... you have this extraordinary gift and I am so incredibly grateful that you decided to share it with me."
He licked his tears from his lips. Sniffing, wiping his damp face, he said, "I'm sorry I ruined this timeline for you — "
She scoffed, "I'm not, are you kidding?"
He kept his eyes down.
Star licked her lips, "Can you take us someplace quieter — ?"
The sounds of friction against the train tracks dispersed, leaving residue in Star's ear drums for a few seconds after they Jumped to a private beach. There was a father teaching his son, maybe eight or nine, how to surf along the shore. They were in wetsuits, having what looked like a blast.
Star took her coat off, digging her hands into the grains of dry sand, letting it ash her fingers and attach to the insides of her nails.
"There's only one reason you can't go back anymore." She nervously smiled. She always suspected since a little while ago he stopped talking about his daily life. At first she thought it was some sort of phase, but she got out of her denial in what she thought was an appropriate amount of time. "I've seen About Time."
He sighed so loud she could feel the hurt in the air.
She chewed on her lip, "Boy or girl?"
He took his time. "Boy."
"Boy."
"Have you decided on a name yet?"
He nodded, "Perseus."
"Does she know why?" She asked.
He gave her a kind smile. "It was her idea."
Star forced a chuckle, staring out at the horizon, seeing where the water colors grew brighter the farther out her eyes traveled.
Gabriel stood up, smacking his hands of the sand. He held his hand out, "I can put you back if you'd like."
She rested her shoulders, shaking her head and rejecting his hand. "I think I'm gonna stay here."
"What?"
"Yeah," she said. Gabriel didn't notice yet, but she was admiring the father and son running around in circles as the pregnant wife takes a video on her cellphone. She was the complete opposite of Star; looks, body type, hair texture, everything. She liked it that way, nothing to be compared to. That chapter in his life had ended. "If I'm going to die, this is where I wanna be. Watching you and your family."
In the distance, the father caught up to his son, setting him back on the ground, feeling two pairs of eyes on him. He stood there for a moment, in his middle aged mindset, caught in a daze. He lifted his hand up at the young, star-crossed lovers.
