The Star Ceremony

 "Do you like it?" he asked as I sat down next to him on the blanket. We were at the star ceremony, it was the one where all the stars moved til they were in a perfect circle around the moon as it curved on slightly at the top and spread out to the rest of the horizon. It happened once every one thousand years, so not many people knew about it. But a lot still did.

"I didn't know it was tonight." I said, my mouth slightly a gape as he chuckled, pushing my mouth closed.

"I found out recently." he said quietly, pulling me to sit on his lap as we both gazed up. Our hands tangled together and I leaned my head back on his chest. "It seemed like a good idea."

"Yeah, it is." I said, looking at all the people sitting and staring up.

"Do you remember when I told you about this scar?" he asked suddenly and I glanced up at him a moment, taking in the angry scar that was on his face. I thought for a moment, letting the memory sink in.

I was sitting on his bed, looking at his pictures as he took a shower. He probably didn't even remember I was still out here, but I was pretty sure he did. I was proven correct when he came out ten minutes later, just like he promised, using a towel to dry off his bare chest as water fell from his hair.

I stared at the scar on his face, I wanted to know. I really wanted to know, it wasn't like when you wanted chocolate or a new book; no it was like air, you wanted it. No actually, you needed it. It was like oxygen, you needed it before you suddenly started to choke moment before you died.

"Where did you get the scar on your face?" I blurted out, before slamming my hand over my mouth as I realized it wasn't right for me to ask him about it until he wanted to tell me; if he ever wanted to tell me. "I'm sorry." I said, biting my bottom lip. I didn't want him to be angry with me because I probably just hit a nerve, or a tender subject.

I was looking down at his bed sheet as he walked over to me and sat on the bed next to me. He lifted me up by my chin so I had to look at him. "It's alright, I know you would ask soon anyway." he sighed, kissing me once before pulling away. He stared off as he tried to think of a way to tell me.

"I was 13, with my aunt and uncle for summer as we stayed at their farm. It was fun, we hunted animals and tamed them, milking the cows and getting the eggs from the chickens. But most of all it was the girl who lived on the farm next door." he started, still staring off into the darkness of the night that had fallen so suddenly over us. "I chose the room next to her specifically, the one where the tree went between the two houses. I chose that room, because I thought I loved her. I would sit next to the window and stare at her as she danced, and feeling sad when she fell because I wasn't there to pick her up....." he trailed off a moment, obviously lost in his own thoughts.

"...One night, she caught me staring. She opened up her window and crawled across the tree until she was next to my window as she knocked on it softly with her tiny hands......She came in and smiled, asking me why I was watching her in such a stalkery way....I told her the only reason I could come up with; because I loved her. At the time, I never realized how strong those two words were." His jaw clenched slightly a moment, I was to caught up in the story to pay attention. "She smiled just then, kissing me softly on the cheek as she whispered the words that were as fake as someone with dyed blonde hair; I love you. I was to naive to realize that she was just playing with me until I left that summer."

"What happened next?" I asked quietly, noticing he stopped.

"I came back again two summers later. I had written to her everyday and she had never replied after the first month of me being gone; I was ready to face her and find out why. When I got to my aunt and uncles house, I ignored all the things I used to love to do and walked up to my old room which I hadn't been in for almost two years. I glanced out my window where she slept waiting for her to do her usual routine of dancing. I opened up my window and sat on the branch for hours, until she showed up sometime later with a boy about a year older than both of us, holding her and whispering nonsense in her ear that she laughed too. They must have felt my gaze on them because they both glanced at me. Her eyes widened and she whispered something to him as he nodded."

He shook his head a moment.

"Long story short, she found out that she was pregnant a couple months later. It was around the time I got back, so her dad was naturally suspicious of me, then she told her dad that I was the father when really it was that other person. Everyone was in shock; not just because she was pregnant, but because she had waited this long to tell them who the wrong man was....." He sighed a moment. "Her dad was naturally furious, trying to attack me every moment he got as my uncle held him off. My aunt was crying asking me if it was true and when I shook my head, she kissed it and held me close, telling me she believed me when I know she didn't. Once her dad finally gave up on trying to get me, I refused to sit in the same house as my aunt and uncle.  I sat on the branch the whole time, until she came out and sat on the branch too, unaware of me being there. When I started to move back, she turned to see me. She glared at me, not with the normal glare; but with the glare that looked like it would scare death. she stood up, managing to balance herself on the branch even with a baby belly. She yelled at me, screaming and stomping her foot. The branch had quivered most of the time; but we were both to furious to know. "

"" Why would you lie?" I had hissed at her, and she just glared. "Because I wanted Albert to seem like the good guy who would save us from the abandonment of a father you'll be." "I'm not even it's father!" I snapped and she shrugged. "I thought you loved me." She had laughed,  and started saying how she never did and how she had hoped that I wouldn't come back but was actually glad when I did. She lied to me; and it was like a slap in the face. Which she did next, a red hand print on my face. Then the branch started to quiver and she glanced down, hearing the cracking sound just as I grabbed her and tried pulling her over here. She wouldn't come, so I pushed her back into her open window and the branch cracked under me. The tree was a good 8 feet tall, so I broke through some other branches; I was unconscious for more than a week. Her ring had caught the edge of my face, causing this scar. " he rubbed his finger down the shorter scar. "And this one, came from when I had fallen through the branches."

I snapped out of my thoughts and blinked a moment.

"You looked a thousand years away." he said, smiling slightly.

"I was, well more like about 4 or so years ago." I said quietly. "Yes I remember the story. You said you were afraid to fall in love ever again. Not even with me; I had accepted that though."

"Well. I think I should say this now." he said quietly and I glanced at him again. "I know I said I would never fall in love again, but...that was before I met you and when I met you before I didn't know. I couldn't under stand anything about you; I felt like an alien before you came. Just some freak that wasn't a father to someone who was supposed to be his but wasn't. The one with the freaky scar that no one knew the story about. Then you made me feel human again; like I had another chance again. I wasn't ready to admit to you that I did love you. Even when you left for college and I let you go; it killed me on the inside. I had wanted to grab you and tell you something; but I thought it would be better to have a clean break..." he trailed off. I had remembered that scene at the airport quite well. He had been staring at me with a regretful face and sad eyes until I disappeared from his line of sight.

"You wanted to tell me what?" I said, finally getting something although I wasn't to sure of what it was.

"I wanted to tell you that...." he was cut off by the fireworks shooting off and everyone glanced up at the sky. We stood up slowly, along with a few other people as we stared at the sky. The music started playing and I leaned against him as he pulled me to face him. "I love you." he whispered quietly in my ear, his warm breathing tickling me slightly.

I glanced up at him in shock. He loved me? It was like any moment from now he would admit he was faking this or that it was a dream. I waited, and nothing happened and I realized he was waiting for my response.

I kissed him right then; feeling nothing but burning passion as I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer to me.

When we pulled back, I laid my head on his shoulder. We started swaying to the music that was playing softly, ignoring the awe of some people around us and the sound of people getting to their feet and dancing along with us underneath the stars that were far more beautiful tonight that any other time before.......