Falling Stars

1:09 AM

She quietly, slowly pushed the window up. It creaked and groaned after years of being stuck shut. Skin crawling, she glanced quickly over her shoulder. He hadn’t budged, sound asleep with his mouth agape, lost somewhere deep within his fantasies. She maneuvered her top half out the window, sitting on the ledge. Biting her lip, she glanced at the ground. Their room was on the second story but she wasn’t sure she’d be able to safely make it to the ground. Pulling herself back inside the room, she turned and leaned out again, this time reaching for the twiggy tree.

Latching on, she realized just how tragic her calculations had been. With her fingers wrapped tightly around the branch closest to the window, her body pulled toward the tree, her feet rising off the comforts of the hardwood floors. Realizing she was going to hurt herself either way, she squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the impact.

With a resounding thump, she smacked against the rather gangly trunk of the tree she had latched herself onto. “Jesus Christ,” she groaned, winded. She swung her legs around the trunk, straddling it to regain her composure. After several minutes, she started shimmying down the tree.

“The bloody hell’re you doing?” Zayn’s sleepy voice asked from the window.

She looked up and smirked. “Adventure time,” she chirped quietly, so as not to alert the residents in the room below theirs. “Join me!”

He exhaled a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding. “You couldn’t use the stairs like a normal girl?”

“Excuse you,” she retorted, still hugging the tree. “One. I am not, nor have I ever been, a normal girl.”

Zayn chuckled. “Case in point.”

She glared up at him, slipping down the tree as gravity pulled mercilessly. She readjusted her grip, shifting herself back up a few inches. “Two. I’m trying to help you. Help me help you by getting your ass down here.”

He struggled internally. Part of him wanted to see how this would pan out but the other part knew he had to help her. A small piece of him wanted to linger in the window, questioning her ideas of adventure and helping him. He closed his eyes, rubbing his fingertips against his temple. Of course she would be hanging from a tree during the middle of the night and call it a way to help him break out of his robotic funk.

He grabbed a hoodie as he stepped into his shoes. Grabbing the room key, he sleepily made his way to the stairs, tugging on the hoodie over his head. He quietly shuffled through the lobby and out the side door to the tree she desperately clung to. He assessed the situation.

“You know what?”

“Christ, I thought you were still in the window,” she cursed, directing her attention to the courtyard below her.

He held up her phone, snapped a picture. “I’m sending this to Niall.”

“Swell. Send it quick then help me down,” she quipped. “I believe I’m getting a rash.”

He took his time typing the text message to her brother. He was halfway tempted to check his emails from her browser. Having the technology and capability in his fingers was tempting but as he looked at her, stuck in a tree, he realized the purpose of this. She wasn’t attempting to make him forget the wonders of technology. She was trying to help him remember the fun things you can do once you set it aside for a while. So he sent the picture update to Niall and pocketed the phone, shuffling underneath her.

Reaching up, he tapped her thighs. “I’m below you. Just lower onto my shoulders.”

Slowly, she shimmied down until her thighs were gently resting against his shoulders. She waited to let go of the tree until she felt his hands spread protectively across her thighs, holding her in place. Instinctively she wound her fingers in his messy bedhead as he carried her away from the tree.

“Where were you off to?” he questioned, looking up at her.

She pointed in a general direction. “There. I wanted to stargaze.”

Walking in the direction she indicated, he carried her through the courtyard on his shoulders. She was confused, to say the least; she hadn’t expected him to carry her like that, especially after their banter. As he carried her, she looked to the sky above them, hunting for the perfect angle.

“Here,” she said suddenly. “Stop. Here. Let me down, please.”

Once he let her down, she immediately laid herself on the grass, using her hands as a pillow beneath her head. He followed suit, situating himself next to her. He tilted his head slightly so he could surreptitiously study her. She squinted, deep in thought. When she turned her head, their noses brushed. Her cheeks flared and she moved her head back to its original position.

“There,” she said simply, pointing directly above them. “It’s hard to see but it’s your sign. Capricorn, the sea goat.”

“I- I don’t see it,” he stammered honestly.

She hummed thoughtfully. “It’s typically best seen in September. As it’s January now, I don’t expect you to see it straight away.”

He stared at the sea of stars above them, wondering when she had become an expert on constellations. He couldn’t imagine her being able to see many stars while living in New York City. Nor could he comprehend an astrology course being included in her major.

“There’s not much to do in Mullingar,” she answered his silent question. “Ni’s just as good at this as I am. Though Greg never caught on.”

“Where’s yours?” he questioned. “Virgo, is it?”

She nodded, scanning the skies. “Virgo, the virgin. It’s probably not visible at all right now. It’s best seen in the spring.”

“The virgin, hm?” he mused playfully, rolling onto his side. He gently placed his hand on her cheek farthest from him, turning her head so she looked directly at him. “Wasn’t it springtime when you lost your-”

She sat upright, scrambling away from him and onto her feet. Focused on the stars, she aimlessly wandered the courtyard until she found another prime location to lie down. She held her tongue until he joined her side again. “Monoceros, the unicorn,” she explained softly, pointing out the stars. She traced its shape and heard him hum in recognition. “The unicorn was a symbol of purity and innocence to the Greeks. It could only be seen by mortals who were also pure of heart.”

“Then how come you can see it?”

“I meant unicorns, not the constellation.” She paused. “Asshat.”

Zayn snickered and curled up against her. “How come you know so much?”

Her eyes were already scanning for the next cluster. “Like I said.. Oh, here. Cetus, the sea monster.”

He listened as she told him the stories behind each constellation. He shifted around a few times until he found a comfortable position at last, his head resting on her stomach, eyes closed while her fingers idly combed through his hair. She told him the story behind Aries and Triangulum, and then discovered her favorite.

“Perseus,” she yawned. “The hero.”

“Weren’t all Greek gods heroes?”

“To an extent, yeah. Perseus was the chosen one to slay Medusa and bring her head back as a wedding gift. The gods gifted him with things like winged sandals, a reflective shield, and a helmet of invisibility. So he beheaded Medusa and on his way back to his kingdom, he saved Andromeda from Cetus – remember Cetus? The sea monster I showed you earlier? – and married her. Then he turned everyone to stone with Medusa’s head because he was pissed.”

He laughed softly. “Of course that one’s your favorite.”

“There’s Pegasus,” she pointed out, ignoring his side comments. “You might not be able to see it. I’ve looked at it so many times through a telescope, I can never forget. He was born from Medusa’s neck after she was decapitated.”

“Lies,” he objected on a yawn. She rolled her eyes at his outburst. “Zeus made Pegasus from a puff of cloud for baby Hercules.”

She giggled at his comment but otherwise remained silent. She could point out a few more for him but her eyes were growing heavy and she figured she had given him enough for one night. She continued to comb through his hair as her eyes drooped.

“Hey,” he whispered. She struggled to peel open her eyes. “Sorry about the virginity comment.”

Silence settled between them. Her fingers stilled momentarily before she shifted her hips, attempting to scoot out from beneath him. “We should get back inside.”

“Right.”

Standing first, he offered his hand to her and hauled her upright. He stationed his arm around her waist and led her back inside. They quietly took the elevator to the second floor, ambling down the hallway to their room. He helped her into bed, tucking her in, before he fished her phone from his pocket. He clicked the home button.

B good t her, malik

He slid the lock and typed a message back. He almost deleted it, thinking there was no way Niall would understand it, but remembered Adalae saying Niall was just as good at finding constellations as she was. Hopefully that meant he was as well-versed in the mythology tied to them as well.

She’s my Andromeda..

He had just set the phone down on the side table when it vibrated again. jus b sure t still be perseus after ya find her kraken