Under The Stars (Stephew)

4

Matthew burst the door open, which loudly creaked in response, he ran to the tiny room at the end of the hall where his woodworking station was. It was a simple room, the floor and walls both not covered with flooring or wallpaper. There was a small table in the middle of the room, where basic tools were, two types of saws, sandpaper, and a file. The brunette glanced up, getting a sense of time before grabbing the last piece of wood lying around, he then started to carve it, before rubbing the file and sandpaper on the carving

It was made of basic pine wood, shaped into a bird, the polygons on the outside giving it a homemade look, the edges smooth enough to not prick at your skin. Small details were carved into it, no lines indicating feathers or anything, but small rings showing eyes, and small marks on its beak. Matthew knew it could look better, but time was of essence, and time wasn't something Matthew had much more of. He wrapped the bird in his hand, walking to the backyard, for once speeding up and ignoring the sights around him. Crickets chirped in protest, and fireflies flickered behind him, begging him to give them attention. Matthew simply found himself blissful as he walked, though he ignored things he usually focused on, though that wasn't the only unusual thing.

Matthew had the tendency to focus on the sights, little things, like sea painting the surface of a rock, smoothing the edges with it's white foam. But for once thoughts were flowing through his head, of course, different from the observing the beauty. There was a reason behind everything, and a desire for knowledge pushing him onwards.

Apparently knowledge about the pretty girl who watched the stars with him.

He reached the path and saw the smaller female coming from the horizon. He didn't bother waving, as it was already quite dark out, though when they were in talking distance Matthew greeted Stephanie with a simple, "Hi." Matthew could see Stephanie's smile as she greeted him, "Hey Matthew." Matthew smirked, "Remember your promise?" He said slightly sarcastically. "Of course I did." She said, quickly pulling out a sandwich wrapped in aluminum foil, something Matthew had only seen a few times, since the rich people's kids would sometimes make hats out of them, and it was used to wrap certain foods to keep in the iceboxes in the store, though Matthew was rarely over there. He carefully took off the metallic covering, as Stephanie moved her gaze to the sky the pair bonded over.

Matthew took a glance at the sandwich, examining the basic layers which formed the iconic BLT, before biting into it. He took the bird from his worn pocket and placed it on Stephanie's leg, who flinched away, as if she was nervous, before grabbing the bird and smiling. "You didn't have to do that." She said, "Good actions should be repaid." Matthew said, shrugging nonchalantly. Stephanie looked at the bird closer, running a finger over the slightly rigid edges, which caused Matthew to make an excuse. "I didn't have time to make it much better." "It's amazing." Stephanie replied, "Really?" Matthew said, but Stephanie chattered on, "It'd be perfect with a little forest, and other animals- Oh, and maybe you could paint it!" Matthew ignored the fact that he had no clue what paint is, and listened to Stephanie keep talking about how amazing a whole set would be. It made Matthew smile. However the last part caught his attention, "Y'know, sculptures like this would probably sell for a lot." Matthew seemed slightly embarrassed, "They're not that good." He said sheepishly, "They're better than anything I've seen." Stephanie retorted, "It's not even realistic." Stephanie turned to face Matthew, who was halfway through the sandwich. She smiled, the joy on her face enough to light up a room. "Exactly, it's unique."

Matthew watched Stephanie place the small sculpture in her lap, falling in love with the way she looked at it; as if it would fly away.

"We should get to know each other." Stephanie suddenly said, her gaze back on the stars. "I mean, we'll clearly be seeing each other more." Matthew nodded, responding with a quiet "Yeah," The two remained silent for a moment, before Stephanie spoke, "Why is it hard to think when you want to think about it?" Matthew laughed, a grin appearing on his face as he spoke. " I don't kn-" "Maybe it's because it disrupts the natural flow of the conversation." Stephanie interrupted. She then shrugged, "Who knows?" Matthew started laughing, "What'd I do?" Stephanie said, but Matthew didn't stop laughing, "Come on, please tell me!" Despite how stressed Stephanie seemed, she wore a half smile, "If you aren't gonna tell me, I'll just go home." she teased, but she then stood up, and Matthew stopped laughing. "I actually have to go now anyway," She looked up from her wrist , and then waved "Bye Matthew, I'll see you tomorrow!"

Matthew watched as Stephanie walked off, "Why would a person want to be so secretive?" He said to himself. Matthew then shook his head slowly, before scanning the ground, and grabbing the foil that fell onto the ground. "Maybe, this friendship can benefit both of us." He stood up, "Financially, and personally."