Auston Matthews Imagine

Auston Matthews - Part Thirty

I can hear my own breath as I walk through the foyer and into the back hallway, careful not to step on the lights. My heart is pounding my chest, there's no fear just wonder. The lights end at the slider that leads onto the back porch and right when I reach the door, another strand on the other side turns on. I slowly open the door and step back out into the subtle cold of Toronto air, my breath just barely visible.

The lights lead down the short stairway into the backyard where someone has shoveled a path where the lights rest. I step onto the freshly shoveled path, my hands deep in my pockets and my pulse pounding in my ear. Half of my backyard is open and the rest in sheltered by trees, which is where the lights lead to. Auston's words come back to me about being alone and no one knowing where I am. I shiver and push my hands deeper into my pockets.

Continuing on, I follow the trail through the dusting of trees to just the other side of them. I pause next to the trunk of one, my hand grazing the rough, cold bark as I follow the rest of the trail with my eyes. What I see at the end of the rope takes my breath away. I stumble forward, all previous hesitation gone. The lights lead up and wrap around the slender tripod of legs which are holding up something that I've dreamed about since I was eight years old.

I drop to my knees and stare in astonishment at the telescope in front of me. Raising a shaky finger, I trace the engraved words on the side of the telescope and let out a shaky laugh. "Arabian Nights" catches the glare of the lights all round me and I wipe at my cheek, a single tear slipping down from my eyes. This is the exact telescope that I begged my parents for every Christmas and birthday. I look at the position it's pointing in and realize that it must be pointed at something in the sky. Climbing to my feet, I bend over and look through. Polaris quickly comes into focus and I put my hand over my mouth to stifle the noise that comes out.

"So, what do you see?" A voice says behind me and I whip around, tears still falling silently down my cheeks as I can make out Auston's face, watching me warily as he makes his way slowly to me.

Utterly speechless, I stare at him in wonder, my mouth gaping open. Auston comes to a slow stop just a few feet away from me, his eyes dark and an expression I can't put my finger on playing across his features.

"Because when I look through it, all I see is you," he says softly and I realize how hard I have been breathing while trying not to cry.

I step towards him at the same time he closes the distance between us, my hands grabbing hold of the lapels of his jacket and his hands are on my cheeks as our lips come together. The ache that had been in my chest for the last few days comes boiling to the surface and I push all of it into our kiss. My nails dig into his coat and pull him as close as I possibly can to me as he opens his mouth to me. I lose track of the time as we speak without words, letting all the frustration and sadness from the last few days out.

When we break away neither of us can hardly breathe, our foreheads against each other. His eyes are on my hands still against his chest, mine are on his.

"You want to know what I see?" I whisper, and he closes his eyes at the sound of my voice. "Since I got here, since my very first night sleeping your couch... I've been home."

Auston opens his eyes and stares into mine, almost looking like he's trying to validate my words by staring into my soul.

"I love you," he whispers and I feel like I'm about to float up into the night sky myself.

"I know," I whisper back, smiling.

"Well you could have told me that I love you, would have saved us a lot of misery the last few days," he scoffs and I laugh, pulling my head back to get a full look of his face.