Author's Note: This was written as an entry for the goldenpair community's second annual Fic for a Pic contest. Hopefully you all enjoy it, and hopefully writing for these will break that horrible case of writer's block I've had on TOH for the last, um, year and a half…eep…Oh, and before you ask, yes…the title DOES come from that song. From that movie. Shut up, I thought it was pretty!
With the Light of a Star
There was a time when Eiji looked at the stars and saw something magical. When he was young. When he believed there were things in this world that were impossible. When he still listened to stories about magic and heroes and fantastical creatures, Eiji believed that there was something magical about the stars, and when he watched them, it was with wonder and awe.
That was before his brothers started to tease him about being a stupid little kid, before his sisters explained to him that the stars weren't anything magical at all, not fairy lights or spirits of ancients long past or wishes waiting to be granted or anything at all. They were, he learned, balls of space rock and gases, as big as anything he could imagine, some even bigger than the Earth, glowing so far away that he could never reach one in his lifetime to see for himself. And so when Eiji looked at the stars, he no longer saw magic. He saw miracles, amazing, real world miracles, and the light from millions and millions of years into the past.
As he moved from childhood on, making his way through elementary school, he learned the names of as many stars as he could remember. It wasn't much, but the constellations were simpler and so he remembered them instead. He could find them all in the night sky, describe their patterns in the daytime, even tell the histories behind their naming and what others had believed about them. The stars were like individuals, like paintings in the museum, or even better, artifacts from ancient civilizations, each with their own stories to be told. And when the stories became boring, the reality became even more fascinating. His teachers in middle school talked about formation of the stars, the science behind them, the literal history behind each star so far that humanity knew. Eiji found he actually liked science classes by the time middle school came around. It wasn't as much fun as anything active, much less tennis, but if he had to be inside, reading, studying, taking notes, trying to sit still…well, science was more than interesting enough to keep his attention.
There wasn't time to watch the stars anymore, not with studying and practice and trying to get to bed somewhat on time so that he wouldn't fall asleep in class the next day, but Eiji didn't mind much. He knew all about them. He could learn more and more and explore their mysteries without even having to see them.
Still, habits are hard to break, and even if Eiji did not look to the stars for wonder any longer, he still preferred nights to daytime. Only Oishi was more of a day person, himself. He would stay up late for Eiji's sake, but it would sometimes be a struggle. So Eiji took to talking to him into the earliest hours of the morning, until their families finally told them it was late enough and it was time for bed right this second, young men, asking questions and rambling on about whatever popped into his head until they had both fallen asleep without realizing it. And when they kissed, there were other things to keep them awake all night, until Eiji finally realized how much Oishi had done for him without asking for anything in return. That was when Eiji let his nights start to fade and began to live in the day again, moving through high school with more purpose and focus, trying his very best to show, to prove, without ever saying a word, that he loved Oishi just as much, that he would give up anything, no matter how big or small, to make him happy.
Compromise. That was what growing up was really about. Not coming to terms with yourself or discovering the purpose in your own life. Eiji learned to compromise for the sake of other's happiness, and he grew up.
When the time came to leave for university, Eiji wanted to go somewhere far away, somewhere that he could try out a bit of everything before deciding what he wanted to be. Oishi knew exactly what he wanted. There was no real way to compromise there, not with something so big, so Eiji promised to call whenever he could and Oishi promised to visit during all of his breaks so they could explore the world together. The real world, the world where grown-ups lived, where their own decisions brought them whatever they could get their hands on, was intoxicating. Experience was more interesting and magical than anything they could learn in school or from anyone else in all the world, and doing it together was more beautiful than anything either of them could have ever imagined even in their childhoods.
And when the time came to enter reality for good, to leave behind childhood for responsibility and adulthood, Eiji was not afraid because Oishi would be there with him. But there was still sadness for everything he had lost. He was an adult, on his own, ready to rent his own place, to earn his own keep, and the wonder he had once felt at everything was gone.
Eiji stares up at the stars that had once been such magical beings, the chill of the balcony banister sending gooseflesh up his arms and over his bare chest and the warmth of the late spring night chasing away the shivers that should have come. How long had it been since he watched the stars? How much longer had it been since he had wondered at what they really were? And did he even remember when he had believed there was magic in the world, with the stars as the most magical things anyone could see?
The faint sounds of Oishi's steps are familiar to Eiji, no matter what shoes he wears or where they are. The sound of him, the scent, the sight, the feeling, the mere presence of Oishi is easy to recognize, impossible to mistake. It's remarkable, a sixth sense between lovers, a connection that no academic studies have ever been able to explain. A kind of magic.
Eiji realizes, and he knows, and he remembers then that there is magic in the world. The stars aren't just burning cosmic rocks. They are all of the dreams and hopes and wishes of the world, and they have never been any less magical than when he was young and childish, no more than believing in the impossible like light from millions of years gone past or the kiss that wakes the princess or love.
Oishi moves towards him in his green robe, and as Eiji wraps his arms around him and touches his lips with childlike wonder, he can see the stars reflected in his eyes.