Author's Note: The characters are based on my childhood friends. This resulted from a daydream from last summer. I found it, polished it and here it is! A lot of purple prose, I know...but this was before I found YWS!
It was one of those nights when disturbance doesn’t come easily, when the air you inhale outside just makes you feel peaceful. Near Seattle, where I lived, I watched bluish-gray clouds roll across the sky, the hue of the sky growing deeper in the color of night as time passed. Even though morning dew had long passed, the seat of my jeans felt wet as I lay on my back, watching the clouds separate to reveal the deep navy speckled with the silver of stars. Soft winds stroked my face as gently as a lover’s fingers would and the air smelled of the ashes from cigarettes that my mom occasionally smoked and the dampness of Seattle’s wet climate—the last time it had rained was today, when I was in school.
Even though I was almost completely deaf, I could hear the soft plunks and strums of Steven’s guitar, transformed in a beautiful melody of music by my hearing aid. I sighed, closing my eyes and feeling the soft cushion of grass when it hasn’t been mowed in a while, those winds still stroking my skin in a languorous way.
A hand squeezed my shoulder gently, fondly. I smiled at the affectionate touch, glad to have company. I opened my eyes to see my three best friends lying in the exact same position I was. Hands behind their heads, legs like limp spaghetti noodles, stomachs full from that dinner that my parents had cooked, the food still warm in our bellies.
First there was Lauren, beside me. Her green eyes, a bit lighter than my own, twinkled welcome at me the same way as the stars did. Her honey-blonde hair was flattened to her head by the ground in a cute doll-like way. She had put on her grey fleece jacket before she came out and it hung over her curves, stopping just below her hips, while jean-covered legs were crossed at the ankle like mine. When a breeze came over us, it brought to my nostrils Lauren’s sweet flowery scent.
Then, there was Connor on my other side. He had gotten glasses, but the sight was still surprising to me and the perfect spherical shape of the silvery-white moon was reflected both in his glasses and his blue eyes. He was wearing a black sweatshirt over jeans and unlike Lauren and me; his ankles were uncrossed, giving me a clear vision of his sneakers. He smiled a smile similar to what was on Lauren’s face and what was probably on mine. The faint smell of his deodorant mingled with Rogan’s musky scent and Lauren’s delicate floral one.
Even though his name meant redhead in Irish, Rogan’s hair was still a coppery-blonde, but he was fifteen like Connor and Lauren. I was one year younger than the bunch—fourteen. His blue eyes sparkled at me in greeting. He was wearing an outfit like Connor’s, but his sweatshirt showed his school colors, gold and scarlet, like Harry Potter, he said.
Right now, I smiled at all three of them, Did you have fun?
Connor nodded, signing, How could I not?
True, Rogan chuckled. Lauren just nodded, grinning at me. Even though we had fallen out of touch for the last couple of years, we had greeted each other the most enthusiastically at the airport.
Right now, Lauren tapped my hand and I looked at her. She was looking at me, her eyes playfully serious and gleaming in the silver light, Have you ever wished upon a star?
I raised an eyebrow at her question, but she just looked steadily back. I wasn’t big on superstitions, like breaking a mirror gives you seven years of bad luck or a black cat crossing your path…
I’m not big on wishes, I answered truthfully. I just let the chips fall where they may. With that, I looked up at the sky again, studying the twinkling stars.
Lauren touched my hand again, But if you could have anything in the world, what would it be?
I smiled mirthlessly, Life’s not that simple.
Just answer my question, Ross.
I sighed sharply, my chest rising and falling quickly with the motion. I thought about it for a little while. Writing was my passion, my love, but I also enjoyed flying.
The chance to write about what I feel inside, I said finally. To write about what I dream. To let the world know about one fourteen-year-old. What about you?
Lauren smiled, For us to be together. All four of us together forever.
Me too, Connor signed.
Me three, Rogan echoed.
I smiled at my friends, signing, We have each other now. And that, for me, is enough. But, I know one thing that’s immortal to me. One thing that’s my immortal.
What? Lauren asked.
Our friendship, I replied.
Smiles spread across the three’s faces. With my responding smile, we all resumed our stargazing. We knew that this could be the last time we met.
But this moment, for now, was enough.
:P
