Handshakes

So this one came about after I watched the episode with the foreign exchange student, Gustav.

Crystal Persian: I'll definitely get to work on that.

I don't own Star vs. the Forces of Evil.

GENERAL POV

Star chewed on the end of her wand thoughtfully, staring at Marco across the table as he munched on his cereal.

Marco glanced up with the spoon halfway to his mouth and raised an eyebrow at the princess. "Star? You okay?"

The girl pursed her lips and set the wand down on the table, twirling a strand of blonde hair around her pointer finger. "I just had a question."

Marco smiled gently and set the spoon back into his bowl, leaning forward on his elbows. "Shoot."

Having learned that shoot did not, in fact, mean to shoot various objects around the room, Star kept her fingers away from the wand and creased her eyebrows. "The other day, when Gustav was here…when he first came in you guys did this weird jumpy hand thing. What was it?"

Marco chuckled and leaned back in his seat. "That? It's called a handshake. Well…kind of. It's a different kind of handshake, that close friends sometimes do with each other."

Star frowned, about to ask another question, when Marco happened to glance at the clock. "Oh, shoot! Come on, Star, we're gonna be late!"

Star hesitated, but pushed her chair back and followed him to school.

"Hey Marco!" Star shouted, bouncing up next to the boy in the hallway.

Marco looked up from a text message and grinned. "Hey Star. What's up?"

The girl tilted her head and held out a hand. Marco looked at her funny, and then glanced down the hall and spotted Ferguson. "Ferguson! My man, gimme some!"

Stars jaw dropped as the two boys did a complicated series of hand movements, some knee slapping, and a chest bump.

Ferguson paused, panting and putting his hands on his knees. "I'm just gonna…I'm just gonna go," he said, gesturing weakly towards the science wing.

Marco slapped his shoulder and sent him on his way, turning back to Star to find her staring at him open mouthed. "What?" he asked in confusion.

Star shook her head. "Why-?"

The bell rang and Marco gave her an apologetic smile. "Gotta go Star, don't wanna be late to English!"

He gave her a wave and darted off, leaving Star to stand in the hallway with a sad look on her face.

Marco stepped into the house and slung his backpack onto the couch, walking into the kitchen to find his mom kneading bread dough. "Hey Mom. Have you seen Star? She wasn't on the bus."

Mrs. Diaz raised an eyebrow. "She got home about five minutes ago. She seemed a little off. Did something happen at school?"

Marco frowned. "I…I don't think so. I'll go talk to her. Help you with dinner later?" he offered.

"His mother smiled and kissed his cheek. "You always do."

Marco leaned against Star's doorjamb and rapped his knuckles against the open door. "Star? You in here?"

A hand appeared on the second floor landing of Star's room and Marco started for the stairs. "Can I come up?"

There was no answer, and Marco furrowed his eyebrows, climbing the stairs quickly. "Star, are you okay?" he asked, popping his head over the landing and leaning his elbows on the floor.

Star glanced up from where she was flopped on the floor, her chin buried in her arms. "I guess," she murmured.

Marco frowned and ascended the steps completely, walking over to Star and sinking down next to her. "Star? What's wrong?"

Star huffed and sat up, glaring at the floor. "Marco, you said that really good friends have special handshakes, right?"

Marco tilted his head and leaned forward on his knees. "Well, yeah I did but-"

"Then why don't WE have one?" the girl yelped, sitting up and looking at him anxiously, her lower lip trembling. "I thought we were really awesome friends!"

Marco froze, a lump forming in his throat as he realized how scared Star looked. "Star-" he started softly.

The princess shook her head, looking away. "Never mind. I guess I just thought we were good friends."

Marco chuckled softly and scooted over to Star, wrapping a tender arm around her. "Star. You're my best friend. We don't need a dumb handshake to prove that."

Star looked up warily, brushing at her eyes. "But you said-"

Marco held up a hand. "Handshakes are just…a weird way to say hi. They don't really mean anything, and they don't define who we're friends with. Star, if you really want us to have a handshake, we can make one up, but we don't need that for me to say I care about you."

Star's face brightened immediately and she threw her arms around Marco tightly, burying her face in the crook of his neck. "Can hugs be our handshake?" she mumbled into his shoulder.

Marco smiled and tightened his grip on her. "Of course they can."

Awwwwww such cuteness. Anywho.

Review?