The stars reminded her of glitter, just like the one Thoma had split over her work project. It had been a frustrating experience for sure, but the situation awoke an odd emotion Lennie hadn't shown in years. Happiness. At the sight of the broken model building, sprinkled with sparkles, and her son's equally glittery, terrified face, she burst out into laughter. A burst of laughter which had for years struggled to come out. It was uncanny, the resemblance between the glitter and the night sky back then. She let out a breathy chuckle, looking up, at the stars, seemingly randomly scrambled across a black background. Years ago, her brother would have protested, indignantly adjusting his tie. The stars aren't random, he'd say, and he'd ramble on about constellations and whatnot. Lennie had never really listened, but she'd watch him, as his eyes lit up whilst he spoke, like those of a child on Christmas morning. They'd lay on the ground, side side, dirtying clean uniforms. They'd stay for hours, suspended between the celestial skies and the real world. And during that time, Lennie would feel truly blissful.
It became almost a tradition. She'd gaze at the stars through her middle school and high school years. In parks, at home, on the rooftop of the hospital. She'd plead to them for good luck, on the nights before exams. She'd be surrounded by them as she walked home. She'd make wishes to them. She'd look at them even when her brother no longer could. Through everything, she found warmth in the company of the stars. She found hope.
It was during a warm summer that the stars lost their spark. They no longer glistened like they once had, their sight now a cold ruin in her heart. Lennie began to grow. Leaving her old obsessions and juvenile thoughts behind. She got a job, got married, had children. She no longer looked to the sky. Never then had she expressed the happiness she would have before. Not the same one she had under the night sky. Not the same one she had with her brother. That's why it had come as a shock to her when she found herself unable to hold the chortle of laughter threatening to escape. So much so, that she had locked herself in the bathroom, to stifle the growing laughter. She hid her emotions better than she had before.
Until the day when she sat outside and gazed, once again to the shimmering sky. The stars watched over her with a gentle gaze. A grin formed on her face as she leaned back and closed her eyes. The sky didn't seem so dull anymore.
