His eyes are wide, alight like he’s shining from within.“Is that what that sound was?”
“You've never heard music?”
He shakes his head.“I have never heard anything like that.”
I wonder now about the logistics of this whole thing.About what he is, who he is. Is he stuck in one spot forever when he’s in the sky?Right over the forest?
If so, he would've encountered humans, but not many.Not like he would've if he was over the city.
“Here,” I say, picking up my phone and opening my music app. I don’t listen to a ton of music, mostly preferring the quiet, but I have a few playlists saved that Mackenzie has sent me over the years.
I pick one at random and start a song that blares loudly through the speakers, something with an upbeat, jazzy rhythm.
Starlight jumps up from his seat, his eyes fixed on the phone in my hand. At first, I think I might have frightened him. But then he smiles, big and wide and bright.
“It’s perfect,” he says, and then his shoulders start to move. “It makes me feel…” His body begins to sway.
I laugh. “You want to dance?” I set the phone down and join him in a gentle sway. I can’t help it. He’s smiling so big that he’s really living up to his new name.
I’m far from being a good dancer, but he’s so overjoyed that I don’t think he’ll notice that I can’t hold a beat. Besides, if he’s never heard music, he’s probably never seen anyone dance, so he won’t know I’m a total dork.
The song shifts into an electronic chorus and Starlight throws his arms out, wiggling them hilariously. His whole body is moving now, and all I can do is watch him, smiling as he enjoys himself.
The song comes to an end and another starts, this one slow, featuring an acoustic guitar.
Starlight hesitates a moment, and then his eyes drop to my phone. “This is much different. How do you dance to this?” he asks, almost out of breath.Fascinating.
“Oh. Well… I guess you could just dance slower, or…” What am I even doing? What arewedoing? Dancing? When we should be figuring out how to solve this problem?
But it’s like gravity, pushing me toward him. I’m helpless to stop it.
“Or?” he asks, when I hesitate too long.
I take a step toward him, pulled like something on a string. My hands go to his waist, his skin warm under my palms. His eyes meet mine, curiosity clear, and then he settles his hands over mine.
I have to hide the gasp that leaves my mouth. “Up here,” I say, guiding his hands up to shoulders.
I settle back around his waist and pull him a little closer before starting us on a small sway. I know it’s a bit juvenile but I’ve never been a good dancer, and I’m not qualified to do much more than this.
I wish he was wearing a shirt. All he has on is my sweatpants, swung low on his hips, and I’m face-to-face with a broad expanse of muscular chest, a light dusting of hair, and shoulders that might as well be mountains on their own.
My eyes meet his again, and nerves settle in my stomach at the way they’re focused on me, like he’s trying to read something on my face.
“I want to know everything about you, Mason,” he says, voice soft.
The music keeps going, but I can barely hear it anymore. “What do you want to know?”
His hands shift, and one of his thumbs presses gently under the collar of my shirt, sliding along my collarbone. I can’t tell if he even notices he’s doing it. “What brings you happiness?”
Of all the questions running through my mind, that’s not one I anticipated. “I guess… maybe I’m not entirely sure I believe in happiness anymore, not in any concrete way.”
His mouth turns down at the corners. “Oh, no, Mason. Happiness exists. I am sure of it.”
“Yeah?” I don’t realize I’m gripping his hips for dear life until I’m afraid I might have left marks on him. I loosen my hold. “What brings you happiness, Starlight?”
His eyes scan over my face, pupils so wide that I can’t see his mud-colored irises anymore.
He opens his mouth, poised for an answer, but then his eyes catch something over my shoulder, and his face lights up with joy.
