Star Light, Star Bright - Mark and Ailee
It was a peaceful calm night, silence filled the streets as Ailee walked. It was comforting for her to walk alone at night. It made her feel more relaxed and calm before she must fight it out to stay awake. Ailee hated falling asleep, it always made her feel vulnerable and weak. Each time she fell in to the pit of darkness, a nightmare would always take itās chance to appear.
Sighing, she continued to walk, the street lights glistened brightly. The sounds of nothingness filled her ears, nothing except for a whistle. Looking around she spotted Mark lying down on a patch of grass. He seemed to notice her, smiling, he called her over. Ailee walked over and sat beside him. He started asking questions. But of course Ailee wouldnāt answer anything. She wouldnāt speak for no one. Plus she left her white board in her room. Therefore she couldnāt do anything but to stay quite. As always.
After a brief moment she knew he had caught on to her āI donāt speak to anyoneā kind of ways. The two just sat in silence for a while looking at the stars until he began a discussion about the stars. He pointed out different types of constellations. Which were interesting enough. Even though she knew she wouldnāt answer him, she felt that she had to listen to his voice. Her eyes were getting heavier and heavier. Each time she listened to his gentle voice she felt that sleep was taking control. Before breaking into an unconscious, she felt an arm wrapped around, pulling her close before falling asleep amongst the stars.
Mark didn't go out at night too often (other than to the practice rooms in the dorms or the roof during those bad nights) but it was such a clear night that he just had to spend it outside. Bringing a blanket with him, he found a good-looking spot of grass that had a clear view of the sky, and he spread it out and lay down to stare up at the night.
Footsteps on the lawn, and Mark sat up to see a girl walking around. He vaguely remembered seeing her move into dorm recently. A relatively new student, then. He whistled to get her attention, waving and smiling at her when she glanced at him. "Come sit with me?" he called at her, beckoning her cheerfully. Might as well take the chance to get to know her after all, and besides, it was late, and she shouldn't be walking around alone.
She sat down beside him, and he flashed her another smile. "Hey, you're new here, right? I saw you moving into dorm the other day. I'm Mark, nice to meet you." He paused, waiting for her reply, but she stayed silent. A little embarrassed, he raised a hand to rub at his neck. "...you... don't talk much, huh."
When he was met with more silence, he shrugged a little and lay back down. It was kind of refreshing, in a way. Most of the people here were models, dancers, singers, rappers, people who were open and used to speaking their mind and being friendly in keeping with their idol image, and Mark was used to listening to them ramble.Ā The silence was honestly quite nice, relaxing, especially in the tranquil night. A small smile on his lips, he turned his face upwards to look at the stars once again.
"Oh, hey! Virgo!" He said suddenly, before glancing a little nervously at the girl beside him. "Oh... sorry if I disturbed you." When she didn't respond negatively, he let himself smile a little. "Do you like stars? Do you recognize the constellations?" A little excited despite himself, he pointed up at the stars. "Virgo's my star sign, so it's one of the first constellations I learned."
He glanced over at her again, just to be sure. "If I'm bothering you, feel free to tell me to shut up. Or, uh, punch me or something if you don't want to talk." She didn't respond, and he took that to mean permission.
It had been a while since he'd really gone through the constellations, and some of his memory was quite fuzzy, but he could still point out the major shapes in the sky. Leo was still around at this time, and Hydra, and Ursa Major, and Mark traced their shapes in the sky while talking a little about their stories. He'd always loved the fables that people came up with about stars and the characters the stars were named after, and he shared what he remembered of them to the other.
Beside him, the girl's head drooped a little, and instinctively Mark wrapped an arm around her to keep her from falling forwards. He guided her gently back so she was lying down on the blanket, then took off his jacket to cover her. A small smile on his lips, he lay down beside her, wrapping an arm around her to pull her closer. It wouldn't be good to let her get cold after all.
He found his own eyes drooping shut, lulled to sleep by the twinkling stars and the gentle breathing beside him.
When Mark awoke the next morning, it was a little earlier than he normally would. The sun was just rising, and its glow had dragged him out of sleep. He glanced over at the girl next to him, still sleeping despite the morning sun.Ā
He hesitated, unsure if he should wake her or not, but he supposed that she probably had classes, as did he, and it wouldn't be good to leave her sleeping on the lawn alone.Ā
Cautiously, he reached a hand out to shake her awake. "Uh... You should probably get up. It's..." he glanced at his phone. "It's like 7, classes start soon and people are going to be getting up soon..." He smiled at her when she woke up. "I'll be heading back now, I guess I'll see you around? Maybe next time you can tell me your name," he added, laughing a little to show that he wasn't upset or anything. He was a little curious why she was so silent, but he figured she had her own reasons, and besides she had just spent the night listening to him ramble about stars, so it wasn't that she hated him or anything.Ā
"You can find me in 305A if you need me. See you," he waved cheerfully as he started back towards dorm.
He was already back in his room before he realized that he'd left his jacket with her. Oh well. He'd survive without it. Shrugging, he put it out of mind. Besides, it might give him a reason to meet her again.
