small world

chapter 41

“Before that night, I never knew I was missing something until I saw you. That’s when I knew my life was missing something and it’s always been you. I used to lie out back in the summer, in the grass, and look up at the stars. And I always felt so complete and present lying there looking up. And over time I’ve realized that I feel the same way when I’m on stage looking out, and even more complete than a cover-to-cover filled notebook or fitting the last piece into a puzzle. When I look at you, I feel the most complete. I see stars in your eyes Charlie. I don’t know,” he dropped his eyes and looked at his hands folded in his lap, “that night I saw you there and the next thing I knew I was right beside you in the grass, looking up at the stars.” He looked up again and dove into my eyes like the stargazer he always was, “And I really never knew what pulled me there in that moment, but now I have reason to believe it was the stars in your eyes I was drawn to that night.”

As he spoke, a knot formed in my throat and snowballed with each word he said. Tears built up in my eyes but I struggled to remain focus on the glimmer in his eyes. The glint that appeared when he heard their first single went number one, when he put his last breath into his solo, when he looked at me just before he was about to kiss me. I looked away, embarrassed and needing to wrap my head around how perfect he is. But he didn’t look away from me. Even when I was shy and overwhelmed he never looked away because in his eyes, in all of my forms, I completed him. And I knew no man would ever feel the same way about me as he did, ever.

I took his hand and jumped off the bench, pulling him across the uninhabited street. We got to the sidewalk and his face was confused, I took it in my cold hands and crashed my lips with his.

“You really love me, don’t you Harry?” I said just after pushing his face from mine.

“Of course I do, I always have. I always will love you Charlie.”

HARRY

Her hands fell from my face and she ran down past the sidewalk and into the snow blanketed grass. She looked back at me before sitting down in the ground.

“Charlie its freezing, what are you doing?!”

“Are you just going to stand there?” she called before lying back into the ground.

My lips parted as I stared at her, my jaw falling slightly before I picked it up with a smile that grew as I realized what she was doing. Without a seconds hesitation I ran to her, collapsing at her side on the icy ground.

Her hand slipped in mine, her touch warming it instantly as the heat from her coursed through my body – even in the snow covered grass in the middle of the night I was warm, because she was there. For a while we took it in, and I felt a smile on my face as I felt the completeness, hoping she felt it too. Charlie rolled onto my body and took my hands in hers as I lied with my arms above my head. She lowered her face to mine and I lifted my neck meeting her half way, pressing my lips to hers.

“That was the best birthday ever, because of you. Because of this.”

She took my wrist and checked my new watch that read 11:57 PM.

“Its still your birthday, Harry.”

She sat up, her tiny bum pressed up against my stomach she straddled me as she reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a small box. I took her sides in my hands and picked her up as I sat up, setting her in front of me as she handed it to me. I pulled an end of the carefully tied ribbon and the bow collapsed, lifting the tiny lid a white gold charm gleamed in the box under the glow of the moon.

“I wanted you to be reminded everyday that our love is infinite, too.” She said putting her hands around my neck and unclasping my necklace, she took the infinity heart charm from the box and slipped it on the chain along with my locket. As she fiddled with the necklace I noticed her matching ring I had given her, whose diamonds shined like the stars in her eyes. She slid her hands behind my neck, putting the necklace back on and keeping her hands pressed firmly against it. I stood, cradling her body as she wrapped her legs around mine and kissed her as I walked across the abandoned park and to the sidewalk. Setting her down the streetlights lit her face as she rose on her tiptoes and kissed my cheek, taking her hand in mine I led her back to the hotel.