HORNS (BoyXBoy)

Chapter 163

Chapter One Hundred and Sixty-Three 

I've always found stars incredible. 

There was just something special about them.

The day had spun past us in a flash, mostly because of the midday napping and sunbathing we'd all taken part in, but we'd gotten in a bunch of fishing, swimming, and had even returned to shore two hours before sunset for a very fish-oriented dinner before casting off again.

We'd chilled together, chatted, I'd been taught some more Russian and a little bit of Faunish, we'd had some arm wrestling, and now, the sun was fully down, the heat of the day was cooling, the late twilight sky was full of stars, and I was at peace, just lying on my back being rocked by the boat with my cousin and my brother and my sister-in-law resting on the couches all around.

It was shaping up to be a quiet night, dark and blustery, but the night sky was clear and there wasn't a cloud in sight. The stars shone, twinkling faintly above us like dancing diamonds. The slurping and slopping of the water bumping against the pontoon was all I could hear aside from Luka's breathing, since he was the closest to me. Sasha had been quiet for a while, so I wasn't sure if she was awake or not, but Dari was audibly snoring which told me he was out cold

"Big Horst?" Luka murmured softly. 

"Hm?" I hummed back, lulled by the motion of the watercraft. "What's up?"

There was a momentary pause.

Then...

"Stars be pretty," my brother quietly mumbled; I tilted my head back to bump Luka's horns with my own. We were lying head-to-head on the boat's slightly longer oval couch, and while snug, it was a comfortable fit--especially since Dari and Sasha were sleeping on it, too. I twisted slightly to see him lying on his back, arms beneath his head, gaze trained on the sky. He was glowing, the moonlight from above bathing his hollow cheekbones and making his eyes glint.

"Yeah," I agreed, lying back down and studying the vast openness above us. 

He made a soft noise. "Stars be special, too."

I didn't immediately respond because I could feel his emotions and I could tell he had something other than the stars on his mind. But instead of voicing the million other things trying to force themselves from my mouth, I simply asked, "how so?"

"They just be special. They so far away from here, and yet, on nights when Luka looking up, it almost feeling like we can lift hand and be pinching stars from sky." He used wide gestures as he spoke. I watched as he danced his clawless fingers in the air, jumping over invisible hurdles and through constellations only made for his eyes, transfixed with awe as he was. I looked back up as memories of being told stories about certain constellations came back in a rush.

"Aerin actually taught me a few stories about them," I murmured without thinking. 

"Oh?"

"Yeah. He always tries to set aside some time for me when I visit," I chuckled, grinning at the mental movies of my memories. "Sometimes he'd grab a blanket from his room, usually one that smelled like him and Bash to make me feel safe, and then he'd take me out into the garden. Sometimes we'd lie together in the grass, while others we'd just jump up on the roof and lie down together, but wherever we choose to spend time, he always points out the constellations and tells me stories about them. It makes me feel special... sharing time together like that."

"Horst be very special," Luka muttered before he could stop himself.

I chuckled. 

"Nah... I'm really not," I honestly rebuffed, "but I appreciate you saying so. If you'd like, maybe I could tell you some of the stories he's told me over the years. I think you'd like a few of them."