Star Bright

Two: Crazy

   "Are you warm?"

  "Yes, thank you very much."

   "Anything else you need?"

   "No. This is enough."

    Jean nodded, walked to an empty chair and sat down. Dani was seated just beside her. Both girls stared at the teenage boy (almost Jeremy's age, Dani concluded) wrapped in a big grey blanket. He had hair as dark as charcoal, eyes as blue as the sea and lips as pink as a lady's dress. His face had dark smears and dirt all over. He stared back at them, not in the least embarrassed. On the table in front of him were biscuits and tea. It was the least Jean thought she could do after he saved her life. Dani had tried explaining how fast he had moved, how he had been nothing but a blue blur, however, Jean had written her off.

  "So..." She said. "Where are you from? I've never seen you in Hawks before."

  The boy smiled. "I'm not from here. Don't be confused."

  "Not from here?" Jean asked. "Like, outside town?"

  "No." His smile widened. "I'm not from earth. I fell here by accident. Anon was being rough."

  Jean and Dani glanced at each other. Then Dani decided it was her turn.

  "Not from... earth?"

  The boy nodded. "That's correct, Dani."

  Both girls froze. Through out the stranger's short stay in their home, Jean hadn't mentioned Dani's name once.

  "How do you know my sister's name?" Jean asked, suddenly on alert.

  The boy picked up a biscuit and bit it. "That's because she's my Source."

  "What?"

   "Mmmm, these tastes so good." He said, clamming more biscuit into his mouth and speaking between mouthfuls. "I've never eaten anything before; never even had a mouth. I didn't know what I've been missing."

  "Hold on, what do you mean by Source?" Jean asked.

  "What do you mean you've never had a mouth?" Dani asked.

   The boy looked startled. "Which do I answer first?"

  "Mine." Jean said, giving Dani the big sister glare.

  "When I say Dani's my Source, I mean, she created me. I'm a LoveStar, one of a million or billion, rather. We are born when humans fall in love with other humans. Dani created me when she fell for Jeremy."

  Dani caught her breath in her throat and coughed. When the fit had subsided, she said, "how do you know about Jeremy?"

  "I was about to answer your first question. Would you prefer I answer this instead?"

  "The first one." Jean ordered.

   "As I said earlier, I'm a LoveStar. We stars don't have features like noses or mouths or eyes. Our faces are plain and shiny. This is my human form."

  Jean looked flabbergasted. Dani looked scared. Why, oh, why had they gone to check the cause of the quake? Jean Drew strikes again!

  "And now for the second question," the boy leaned forward, "I know about Jeremy cause I watch you. It's only natural since you created me, Dani." The boy reached for the tea and sipped. He smiled. "Fantastic. I feel like there's a small fire in my stomach. Not too hot, not too cold." He dropped the cup gently.

  Jean had a false smile on. "Okay... Dani, why don't you help this...boy...., I'm sorry, do you have a name?"

   "Yes, it's Jerani. A mixture of Jeremy and Dani."