Sing to the Stars

"One Day" (Stacy AU)

This song makes me cry every time, dammit.
I'm not a very sensitive person. I'm not a really quiet or shy person, unless I'm surrounded by strangers. But I relate to the girl in the song. And it made me cry.
But it also made me inspired. And because I have no characters this works for, I went with a Stacy AU because she's the character closest to the girl in the song.
Also because I frickin love Stacy's entire story.

Stacy walked through the halls quietly. "Hey." A familiar voice called from in front of her. She didn't look up, feeling butterflies in her stomach, and ran past Travis, weaving between people to get to her dorm.
For a moment, she wondered if he knew if her name, but shook her head: probably not. She'd had a crush on him since middle school, when her cousin had told her who he was. But he'd never...never called her name. It hurt, but she knew he didn't mean to hurt her. Iluka looked up from her books, blinking her brown eyes at her roommate. "Running away from Travis again, are we?" She asked.
Stacy nodded such a small nod it was hard to tell if she was actually nodding. "Earth to Stacy." Iluka said. "O-Oh...yeah." She murmured, realizing she forgot her roommate had terrible eyesight. "Just talk to him."
She shook her head. Iluka sighed, stood up, put on her glasses, and walked over. "Stacy. I know you're shy. But you have to talk to him." She said. Stacy's eyes widened in fear, and her legs buckled below her. "I...I can't." She murmured. "Why can't you?"
"I...I'm scared. He makes me so nervous. I think about him so much...I'd...I'd slip up. I don't want him to hate me...or for it to be too awkward." She replied, pulling her knees to her chest. "You won't know if you don't try."
"I know...but...I'm scared, Iluka. I wish I was as confident as you..."
"You think I'm confident? Ha! I'm pretending. The reason you can't find me before track meets is because I'm hiding and panicking."
"Really?"
"Totally. Though, I'm not sure why you didn't know that."
"I wouldn't know..."
"Listen...Just try to at least look at him tomorrow, okay?"
"I can't...His voice makes me scared. Eye contact is..." She made a fearful noise from the back of her throat.
"You don't even have to do that. You don't even have to talk to him. Just, don't look down. Look past him or something. It's...progress."
"I'll...I'll think about it."
"That's all I ask."
That night, Stacy stared at her ceiling, knowing she was supposed to be asleep. She really did want to talk to him. But she was terrified. She wanted to call him hers, for him to be hers. But she knew that would take time, time she was afraid she didn't have. She was fine even if he wasn't going to be hers. It hurt her to think they would never be together, but she knew she would be too scared to ever have a full conversation with him, let alone be with him.

The next day, Stacy tried to do as Iluka had asked, but she couldn't. She felt too afraid. Butterflies swarmed in her stomach, and she was about to start running again as Travis called her name. But she just kept walking, surprising herself. She bumped into him. "Sorry." She murmured, trying to walk past him.
He caught her by the waist and pulled her in front of him. She froze, not looking at him. "Can you...look at me? Please?" He asked quietly, awakening swarms of butterflies in her stomach. Nervously, Stacy slowly dragged her gaze to look at him. She felt herself blush, finally meeting his eyes, and unable to look away.
"Do you..." Her voice was soft, almost inaudible as she spoke, so she cleared her throat. "This whole time have you even known my name?" She asked. "I want to." He murmured. " Sta-Stacy Martin." She said, wanting to look away from him but already lost in his eyes. Subconsciously, she knew there were many other people around them in the hallways, but they were in the small area next to the water fountains that nobody paid attention to. So she felt like it was only the two of them there.
She suddenly had no idea what she was doing, and tried to run, but he caught her wrist. "Please. Stay, Stacy." Travis said. Hearing her name in the tones of his voice sent the butterflies in her stomach crazy. She wanted to run, but she didn't want to. She wanted to hide, but she was too scared to move. He pulled her back to him, and she could suddenly see the terrified look in his eyes.
He's scared too... She thought. He seemed like he was searching her face for something. Stacy felt awkward, just staring at his face like that, and before she realized it, she found herself pouring out her heart to him.
"I always run away from you because you make me scared. You're not scary, I'm just terrified. I think about you, you know. A lot. In every 100 thoughts, at least 99 are about you. And I'm terrified of talking to you because I think I'll mess up and tell you something I shouldn't. You're just such an amazing guy that I don't want to screw up my chances. I want to be yours and go on dates with you and hold you and kiss you and all the things couples do but I'm just so scared and it hurts that I can't because I'm such a - oh my God, what am I saying?" She cut herself off, realizing she was not only rambling, but telling him everything.
She turned her face away from him, wanting to leave, but he still had her wrist in his grip. In a second, Travis was close. Too close. "Stacy..." He murmured. Her eyes widened, and she couldn't breathe. Couldn't move. She was paralyzed by fear. "You're my only light." He said. Stacy didn't do anything, but her thoughts were racing in her head in fear. She was suddenly aware of everything: the way his breath made the hair next to her face shake slightly, the deer-in-headlights look she had in the reflection of his eyes, how his grip on her wrist had tightened slightly, the numbers of people passing behind her but not paying any attention, the rapid beating of her heart, the way she somehow knew that no matter what, they wouldn't be together because of school social classes.
"I-I can't be with you." Stacy murmured sadly, finally having the ability to voice what she needed to say. "Why can't we? You think about me a lot, you just said so yourself. And I wouldn't be able to be with anyone happily if I knew you were wishing you were with me." Travis said. She tried to look away, but he put a hand under her chin and forced her to look at him. Heat rushed to her cheeks and she felt tears prick her eyes. "I'm the cousin of one of the most popular girls in school, but I'm still in the background. Your brother is popular, and dating my cousin. People know who you are, but I'm just walking in your shadows. And I'm fine with it. I don't want to bring you down with me. I can...I'll be fine." Stacy said, trying to push away from him.
A tear ran down her cheek, and she could feel the butterflies in her stomach curl up and die slowly. She loved him, with all her heart. She had for a long time. But she knew they couldn't be together. It hurt her. She wanted him like she wanted to run, and running was her life.
"No. Please. Stacy...!" Travis reached for her, and Stacy felt the tips of his fingers grasp for her hand, but she just ran for her dorm.
Every day after that, when he called for her in the halls after their classes were over, she ignored him.
And every night, she broke down to Iluka and Ben about wanting him. She swore Ben to secrecy, but she didn't know if he ever ended up telling his roommate.

But that was until the night before one of her track meets a few months later. Stacy always talked to Ben before them, to calm her nerves. "Ben?" She called for him, walking around the meadow they usually met in. Who walked out of the shadows wasn't her friend. It was the person she'd been trying to avoid for so long. "Stacy.." Travis said quietly. She froze, terrified, feeling the butterflies in her stomach lift up their heads and flutter their wings hopefully.
He walked closer to her, slowly. And he gently reached for her waist. "Please." He said. Stacy widened her eyes, wanting to pull away, but not finding it in herself to leave. "I've thought about what you said. And...I don't know what to say. But please, I want you. Please be mine." Travis said, pulling her closer.
Stacy wanted to call him her own. She wanted be his. But she was scared. Not only because of her upcoming track meet, but because Travis was so near to her, asking for her to be his. Suddenly she couldn't bear it anymore, and she broke down crying. Her legs buckled underneath her, and she fell into his embrace. "Please. I've loved you for three years. I love you still. Please." Stacy couldn't take it anymore. So what if his reputation was dragged through the mud? She was tired of being afraid of that. If he wanted her, she'd happily be his, forever and ever.
"I love you too." Travis murmured quietly, holding her to his chest. "I'm yours." He added into her black hair. She hugged him tightly. "Mine..." She sobbed. "You said you're mine...You have no idea. How long I've wanted to hear that." She said weakly. "Well you heard it now." He said. Stacy moved her hands up from around Travis's torso to around his neck. "Mine. Finally..." She pulled away from his chest and looked up at him, smiling like an idiot with tears still falling from her eyes.
He moved one hand from her waist to her cheek, brushing tears from her face with his thumb. She leaned in first, tasting salty tears but happier than she'd ever felt in her entire life. Happier than even the time her whole team was relying on her to bring their team to nationals the previous year. And she hadn't, but they'd all been so happy that she'd even came in second, beating their school's rival.
Stacy felt Travis's pulse speed up when she kissed him. She couldn't stop smiling. And she felt her own heart calming at the same time. "Finally...I'm yours." She murmured into their kiss. "And you're finally not running." He replied quietly. "I'd never."

Yeah, so what I kinda went acted on a whim after I ran out of material from the song. Also I regret nothing. I was crying this whole time 'cause not only was I listening to "One Day" on loop while writing this, I was also watching "The Blind Side." Usually I don't cry from stuff like that, but it was honestly all three things combined. Also when I was finishing this up I started listening to "Still" from Cytus II and I just couldn't stop crying. Gosh darn Cherry's death just hit me so hard in the feels. Not only was it the second of only three cutscenes I have found voice acted from the game, it killed me. Especially because I found it soon after I found the cutscene where I had to watch Kaori go through electric torture and PAFF technically having an existential crisis. So I was dying.
BUT I FEEL ACCOMPLISHED-

Aand I should leave. 'Cause I still have to finish the movie with my father. So.
I bid farewell to you.
Later!