The sky's a strange thing you know? It seems so still and quiet, but it's always in constant motion, something is at least. This rule almost always applies at night, when it seems as if you're staring at a picture out of a magazine, but in reality it's a scene of utter chaos, with the stars turning upon themselves and the moon watching down from above like a silent judge.
Charlie stepped out into the chilling night air and instantly drew back. However, a strong pair of hands gently pushed her forward, guiding her into the darkness.
"Jason, where are we going?"
"You'll see."
"That's pretty cliché you know."
"I know Charlie, I know. Just trust me okay?
There was not much else Charlie could do but trust, as her eyes hadn't adjusted to the dark and she didn't know this area like she knew the rest of the camp they had been staying in for the last several weeks. He continued urging her forward, but her steps were short and hesitant, as they would be when you were blindfolded in a maze.
Finally, Charlie could see the dim lights of candles in the near distance, and she tried her best to not show her excitement. Both of their paces quickened, and as they got closer to the still rather unknown destination, Charlie decided to speak up.
"You didn't need to do this you know, we could've done something back at camp so you didn't have to spend all this time and effort."
"Charlie, you do realize there's absolutely nothing to do in terms of romance back at the camp right? Unless you dig a bouquet of guns and roses—oh wait, you just might."
"That's not a bad idea; I mean I know what you can give me for the next occasion."
A small chuckle escaped from Jason at the thought, but at the same time he saved the idea in the back of his mind, already planning ahead for Charlie's birthday which was approaching in the upcoming month or so.
"Alright, so um here we are. I mean I know it's not much, but I wanted to do something a little different."
The scene which befell Charlie's eyes was one unmatched by any other scene she had ever seen in terms of simple beauty. The candles dimly lit an old car, with vine-like plants spiraling up through the windows which they had broken with sheer force and over the roof, giving the car an ancient look of knowledge and wisdom un-equivalent to that of most of the people of the time. People don't realize how strong plants are, until you see some marvelous feat of nature that you wouldn't even think of otherwise. The car was covered in a rustic red paint, which was flaking off slowly with time. A blue and green checkered blanket had been spread over the hood of the car, with small rocks holding down the corners. Jason led Charlie up to the hood, and held his hand out to assist her up first. He then followed her up and sat down beside her.
The sky was clear and crisp, each star standing out brightly against the black, darkened sky. The twinkle of each one reminded Jason or the twinkle he often saw in Charlie's eyes, but lately, it had seemed to be fading, and he was worried. The lines of stress on her forehead and the tired tone of her voice upset him, but who could blame her? The camp had been experiencing a bit of trouble lately, and he would do anything he could do to relieve the pressure and cheer her up.
So they sat there, and pointed out which stars they for some reason liked the most, and the faintest craters they could see on the surface of the full moon, and for once the sounds of guns and bloody war didn't echo in either mind. It really was an almost perfect picture. The tall boy with his strong arm tenderly wrapped around the rather lean figure of a girl with her head gently resting against his chest as she began to tire.
The seamless minutes turned into a couple hours, and as Jason talked on about his childhood and life before all the pain, he realized there was little to no response from the girl leaning against him.
"Charlie?"
He had failed to realize she had fallen asleep, but the rise and fall of her chest comforted him, and he gently leaned back to avoid waking her, but to put himself into a reclining position. He pulled a blanket from behind him and wrapped them both in it.
"Charlie you see those stars? All of those up there? Even that numbers don't compare to the amount which I love you."
And the soft nuzzling which her head made into his chest made him realize she heard him, and loved him too.