Chapter 10: Fireflies

Summers in Stars Hollow seemed to stand still. The world kept turning, but somehow life inside the town limits was like listening to the same mesmerizing symphony everyday. The sun rose early every morning, children came out to play and ride their bikes, adults mingled under shady awnings and in the town square, in the evening the faint smell of barbeque would mingle with sweet floral scents, then eventually the sun would set, and the fireflies would come out to dance on lawns until the moon came up.

My life settled into a nice routine as well. In the mornings I would have breakfast with Dad while he read the paper. Then I would head over to Williams Hardware where Luke had pretty much taken over the business while his dad was sick. Luke would do the work necessary to keep the store afloat, and I would help where I could. In the evenings we would watch TV at one of our houses, go to a movie, or join in a pick-up softball game. It was sweet and comfortable. I was happy, and despite the difficulties in his life, Luke seemed happy too.

"So, great game today Mr. Five Home Runs."

Luke glanced over at me in the twilight. "You weren't too shabby yourself. You're getting better. Didn't I tell you it would be fun?"

"Yes," I drawled, not fully willing to admit it. "You were right. I still feel stupid every time I strike out though."

"But hey, that's less and less often now," he tried to be encouraging.

We were rounding the corner of my street. It was late and we were hot and dirty but I didn't feel like calling it a night just yet. "Hey," I stopped walking and he turned around to look at me. "Lets not go home yet."

He dropped his bag lightly on the sidewalk and looked at me, amused. "What would you like to do?"

I smiled coyly. "Let's just go for a walk."

"It's getting dark."

"So? It's Stars Hollow. What's going to happen?"

"You have a point."

"Come on," I tugged on his arm and batted my eyelashes.

He kissed my forehead and grinned down through my fluttering lashes. "Well okay."

"Yay!" I bounced a little and fell into step next to him as we turned around to drop off his bag at his house before our walk.

We made a wide loop around town, holding hands, seldom talking but happy in the quiet stillness that was settling over the town as the sun set. Our aimless path eventually took us to the lake behind the high school. The lake lapped up against the wooden posts of the bridge. Crickets were beginning to chirp and the first fireflies were coming out.

He looked at me. I looked at him. We settled wordlessly against the base of a tree. Luke was quiet for a moment, and then quickly reached his hand out and snatched one of the glowing points of light. He held it in two cupped hands and made a little hole in one end.

"Look," he whispered.

I peeked in between his hands. "Hey, there it goes," I whispered as the little captive lit up again. I wasn't sure why we were whispering. It was just something about the moment that called for whispering.

He opened his hands again and waited for the firefly to escape. One hand then settled around my neck and the other reached around to my knee as he turned towards me. His lips rested on mine; lightly at first, then with more pressure. His hand came up into my hair to cradle my head as we shifted around to face each other more comfortably. Our faces were so close as we kissed, that I felt his eyelashes on my cheek like butterfly kisses.

My hand rested on his chest and I could feel his heart racing underneath the fabric. I smiled into the kiss as his fingers inadvertently tickled the delicate skin behind my ear. He played on that and tickled me for real this time. I giggled and squirmed until I realized I was lying in the grass and he was looking down at me, smiling the most beautiful smile I had ever seen. My heart was racing, although it had nowhere to go. His eyes were asking me a question and I did not need a verbal translation. As answer, I began unbuttoning his baseball jersey. His lips fell on mine again and I was lost in the darkness and swirl of firefly lights.

Afterwards we lay covered in blades of grass and leaves, just listening to the lapping of the lake and our own breathing. All sense of time had stopped a while ago, but it was pitch black out, with only a sliver of a moon, and all of Stars Hollow was dead quiet. Luke lay next to me on his side while I stared up at the stars. He picked a leaf out of my hair and then one off my stomach. I swatted his hand away and he looked hurt.

"Don't," I murmured. "I've got a better idea." I stood up slowly and awkwardly, suddenly shy in my nakedness. He looked at me adoringly as I grabbed his hand and pulled him up along with me. "Come on, let's go skinny dipping."

I'm sure he was wondering what alien being had over taken my body, but I didn't care. We had already come this far, might as well have a little more fun before the night was out.

He shook his head in amusement at my suggestion, but all he said was, "okay, let's go."

We walked gawkily down to the lakes edge. He walked in readily, but I was suddenly hesitant. "Come on," he urged, pulling lightly on both my arms. I stuck one foot in and almost slipped on the mossy, wet stones. "I've got you," he steadied me. I stuck my other foot in and he guided us, walking backwards until we were both up to our shoulders. It was cold and I had goose bumps running down my spine. He pulled me in closer and rubbed my back, splashing water into my hair and freeing any clingy bits of nature from our earlier adventures. I did the same for him. When we were both clean we played a little in the water, like children at the community pool.

Eventually, we both knew it was much too late. We made our way out of the lake and back into our clothes, still dirty from softball. By the time we reached my house everything but my hair was mostly dry. All the lights in the house were out except for the flickering of the TV.

We stood at the end of the drive and exchanged a kiss that I knew I was destined to relive that night, and for many nights to come, in my dreams. He watched me walk up the path after we said our good nights, and I slipped into the house silently. Dad was asleep in front of the television, as I had assumed, so I slipped upstairs as quickly as I could without making a sound.