#hedanya

Love. A word that works almost like magic. We, as humans, crave this kind of magic. A magic so rare, but yet so common; a magic so pure, yet so heartbreaking. It may sound like I’m overdramatizing a word that is so often thrown around in the common vernacular, but in this story, it’s more than a word. Love really is magic.

At the youngest of ages, we were told that stars exist. They were told to be beautiful, bright, and vast. The only way to see these stars is if one were to posses a strong enough magic. And that is where the “love is magic” thing comes into role. As far as the history books go, love has been the only way anyone can see these stars. The sky I see is still very dark.

When the sun went down and the moon came up, I knew the day was ending and the moonlight was coming, because that’s just how these things work. Dogs would howl, lovers would stare at the stars only they can see, and people like me would carry on their normal business under the dark sky. It wasn’t a glorious night.

It was a normal September night- chilly and tiresome. I don’t know what I was doing at a place that promised loud conversations and a headache prone to happen from the many sweet scents escaping from every corner, but I was there, in a little two-seater table in the darkest corner of a small cafe. It wasn’t my first choice for a Wednesday night in September but, I wanted to escape the usual sulking coming from my father’s room. You see, my mother died a couple years ago and my dad hasn’t seen the stars since then. But that’s a story for another time.

As the night grew later, the voices in the cafe began to quiet down. Just as I was about to clear my stuff off of the small table, the previously empty chair in front of me was all of a sudden occupied.

“Hey, I’m Lydia, Lydia Martin.” The words seemed to fill the spots previously held by silence. She was beautiful; strawberry blonde hair, red lipstick, shining eyes. She was beautiful.

“I’m Allison, Allison Argent.” My words seemed to clash with hers and I prayed she didn’t notice my inability to talk to others. If she did notice, she didn’t show it.

The strawberry blonde reached across the table and I can hear my heart pounding in my chest. Her hands grabbed the mug of empty coffee and smiled at me

“Are you done with this, Allison?” She pronounced each word with enthusiasm. I couldn’t speak so I just nodded.

She smiled again and stood up, taking the mug with her to the kitchen. I sat at the table, cheeks reddening and confusion rising. What was that? Before I could think of it even further, I stood up and cleared the table of my stuff.

I was heading towards the door when I saw her again by the cash register. I turned and headed towards her direction, a small smile making its way to my face.

“Hey, Lydia,” I begin as she looks up from what she was previously doing, “are you here by yourself?”

She smiled back and nodded, “Yeah, actually. I’m usually the last one out.”

“So, do you sit with all your customers?”

Lydia’s eyes searched mine, her own smile faltering, and for a moment I regretted everything. But as soon as she gave me a smile, the thought was gone.

“Only the pretty ones.” Then just like that, she smiled and left.

I couldn’t fight the smile beginning to form on my face. The world seemed to be in my favor and I was blessed by it.

I made my way to the double doors of the small cafe and was met by an unusual brightness. They glowed with such radiance, I was immediately brought back to how Lydia’s eyes seemed to shine bright under the dim light of the small cafe. They were mesmerizing and beautiful. Stars. These are stars.

I heard the door behind me open and close. And by the gasp that followed, I assumed she saw them too.

I turned around to look at her just as she turned to look at me. Our eyes meeting and our smiles matching.