Finally was Jim Ellison's first thought when he entered the loft. Shedding his dripping jacket, the detective scanned the loft for Blair. At first he couldn't find anything, then he heard a soft noise from the balcony.
"Blair?" Stepping up to the doors, Jim looked out, the pouring rain not affecting his sentinel senses. With them, he could see his Guide sitting outside. Blair, Mr. "I hate the cold", was sitting outside in one of the worst storms of the year.
Quickly, Jim was out of the loft, and kneeling beside Blair. "Chief? Why are you out here? In case you haven't noticed, it's raining."
When the grad student looked at him, Jim was shocked to see the blue eyes were bloodshot. Rimmed with red, they gave away the fact that Blair had been crying.
"Jim, it's raining. I can't keep my promise if it's raining." The words were Sentinel soft, but Jim could hear the heartbreak in them.
"What promise Chief?"
"To Megs. When she got real sick, she asked me to look at the sky on her birthday, and find her star. I can't do it man, it's raining."
Jim mind raced. Megs, Megs, who was Megs? Then he remembered. About six months ago, a girl that Blair had started school with had died of cancer. Blair was devastated by it. He had told Jim that she had been one of the first people to be a real friend, and not put off by his age.
Gathering his friend to him, Jim gave Blair a hug. The move startled the younger man, but that didn't keep him from returning the hug. "Come on Chief, it's only five, and I have a plan." Blue eyes looked at him, hope starting to displace the unhappiness. "But first, we have to get you," Jim paused, taking in his own sodden condition. "Get us dry. Then we'll grab something to eat."
Blair looked at himself. Suddenly realizing how wet he was, he began to shiver. "OK Jim."
***
Half an hour later, a only slightly damp Sentinel and Guide were heading south.
"According to the Weather Channel, this system is gone about a hour south of Cascade." Jim took a quick glance at his friend. The younger man was half asleep. "Go to sleep Chief, and I'll wake you up when we get there."
Blair nodded, and shifted until he was comfortable. As his Guide's breathing evened out, Jim heard, "Thanks man."
***
"Whoa." A simple word, but one that showed Blair's amazement. Here they were, near the ocean, with no lights as far as the eye could see. The best part was the clear skies"Jim, man, this is great. How can I ever.."
"Tell me about Megs."
And Blair did just that. He told Jim about how the pair had meet, what she had been like, some of the pranks they had done(Jim kept those in mind, never knew when a good prank would come in handy). Then Blair told him about when Megs had gotten sick, how helpless they both felt, and the money they had scraped together to 'buy' a star. Now, on the anniversary of her birth, in a celebration of her life, Blair was looking for that star once again.
"There it is Jim! Next to Cassiopeia, the bright one." Jim looked the direction Blair was pointing. Using his sight like a pair of binoculars, Jim noticed something.
"Blair, that's a double star."
Blair looked at the older man for a second. Then a grin broke out on his face. Jim could just see Blair bounce at the fact that Jim saw two stars, but then he merely grinned some more. "Even her star's got friends."
The two friends stayed there most of the night, talking, which in itself was a rare occurrence. As they got up to leave, Blair said his goodbyes.
"Bye Megs. I miss you a lot, but you always said I should meet new people, and I met one of the best. I know you'll always be there, watching me." Turning to the truck, Blair smiled at Jim. "I just want to say thanks man. This is one of the best thing that anyone's ever done for me.
Reaching over and giving the younger man a friendly punch, Jim smiled back. "You need this Chief." Looking at the eastern sky, Jim could see the first rim of light. "It's time for breakfast. Let's go to Wonderburger. I saw one as we drove up."
"Jiiimmmmmmmm.."
The End
