As Richard Daniels sat on the floral sheets of the guest bed in Zoe's house, he looked at the Starstone in his hand. He hadn't had a chance to look at it very closely yet, but now he realized why Zoe wanted to touch it. There was something very captivating about it. The way it glowed, you could stare at it for hours. You could easily get lost in its beauty if you're not careful. So much power...
Knock knock
Richard snapped back into reality and quickly put the stone in his pocket.
"Come in," Richard said.
Zoe opened the door and stuck her head in.
"Hey, Johnny," she said cheerfully," Dinner's ready. I made meatloaf!"
"Yum," he said, halfheartedly, "my favorite."
Sitting across from one another at the table, Richard was poking at his dry meatloaf with his head resting on his other hand.
"What's wrong Johnny?" Zoe asked, obviously concerned for her new friends emotions.
"Nothing, just thinking." He was just thinking. Thinking about how his whole life will be different.
"What are you thinking about?" She was persistent.
"Just about all the things I've just lost."
"Oh. I'm sorry," Zoe's demeanor changed. "I've lost people too. My dad died a few years ago and it has just been me here ever since."
"I'm sorry," he said sincerely, "but my loss is different."
"Want to talk about it?"
"No. I can't. Not right now." He couldn't share this with her, but she did make him want to share something.
"Well, then. Why don't you tell me a little about yourself?" She suggested, smiling. "Where are you from?"
"Washington," he replied. "The state, not the city. Although I did train to be an astronaut in D.C." He stopped himself. Had he said too much?
"Ooh! You're an astronaut?"
"I was." He had to be careful not to give too much away. But he wanted to keep talking to her. He wanted to get to know her better, and he could tell she wanted to know him.
"What about you?" he asked. "What do you do?"
"I work at a shop down town," she answered modestly. "It's nothing like being an astronaut." She seemed fascinated with him, and Richard was fascinated with her. Richard looked at her as she answered. He saw how her light brown eyes sparkle when she talks. He saw how kind her face was, and he felt that she could see good inside of him. He wasn't sure what it was, but he could feel something about her.
"Maybe you could come see the shop tomorrow?" she suggested. "I would love to show you."
Richard could see an obvious joy in her eyes. He felt it to. But before Richard could respond, he suddenly felt a deep dread welling up inside of him. He can't get close to her. Not now. Not after everything that has just happened. His feelings were getting to strong. This was becoming too much for Richard.
"I need to get some air," he said suddenly as he stood up.
"What's wrong?" Zoe asked, concerned. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, I just need to be alone for a bit. I'm sorry." Before she sould say anything else, Richard rushed out
The air was fresh and the night sky was beautiful. Zoe's house was far enough away from town to allow Richard to see all the stars. He laid down in the cool grass and looked up at the cosmos.
He'd stared at the night sky countless times before, he had even been in it, but there was something different about it this time. It was almost as if he could... read the stars. As he watched the sky above, his grip on the Starstone tightened. The stars seemed to be moving, changing shape, spelling words. The stars were talking to Richard, and they were telling him something was coming. Something bad.
