They sat on the roof, legs dangling so far over the edge that they felt as if they could be pulled down onto the field below. They were connected physically in the smallest of ways. Their fingers intertwined and knees brushed to remind each other they were still there. Mentally they were so close they were practically one, thoughts and feelings sent through feathery touches. The silence wrapped around them like a blanket, keeping them from the cold voices of spoken mistakes. She wanted to hear his voice, to feel his emotions through the air, and to know his thoughts in his own tongue.

     “Have you ever wanted to be among the stars?” Her voice was small, shaking as hard as her heart was thumping. She was afraid he would hear her insecurities through the thunderous beating.

He didn't take his eyes off the stars.

     “We are homesick most for the places we have never been.” His words brought the sunrise, painting the skies of her heart with deep purple and orange hues.

     It seemed as if the empty bottle of red wine had spilled out bad ideas into their empty stomachs, devoured by their starving minds. Those ideas leaked out from her tongue. They were too sweet for her, but he loved sugar, so she let them drip into the air.

     “I'm always among the stars when I'm with you,” she said. He shifted his gaze to her, his eyes as bright as the stars. In that moment, it was just the two of them. They were no longer on the rooftop in the early morning. The sun was still asleep, and they were in each others heads, so far in the clouds that their minds left the stratosphere. She fell asleep in his arms, his warmth lulling her to sleep.

     She rose with the sun. The light streaming across her pillow reminded her of the tears she would never have to shed again. He was as still as the day outside. She was content with never reaching the stars in that moment. She didn't need to as long as her star was close enough to warm her cold night skies.