Star Bright

Twenty: Ache

  Dani didn't make any move to leave the bed the next morning. She stayed under her yellow blanket, letting it shield her from the world. All through the night, she'd been sobbing, trying again and again to contact Jeremy. She texted, she called. No success. She tried calling Gabe instead but his phone was switched off. Not knowing what to do anymore, she continued her sobs quietly under the blanket.

  She remembered what Gabe has said about Jeremy; about him being a car and she being a driver. He had been wrong. But there was nothing wrong with the car, it was the driver who had misbehaved. Just when Jeremy was trying to hold still for her, she had gone and done something stupid.

  But had it been stupid to help her best friend? Someone who would do the same for her? This was literally the person who had her allergies medicine in his locker in case of emergency. No. What she had done wasn't stupid; it was fair. But in the process of doing justice against Tyler, she'd hurt someone else. Broken Jeremy's heart.

  "I suck." She sighed and threw the blanket over her head, blocking out the sunlight streaming into the room from the window.

  There was a knock on her door.

  Dani sat up abruptly. "Who is it?"
 
"It's Ian. I just wanted to see if you're okay."

  "Why wouldn't I be okay?" Yesterday after school, she'd gotten home and found it empty. No Jean, no Ian. Somehow, it made her all the more upset.

  "Well, I could sense your despair all the way from my room. I couldn't sleep. You kept me awake all night."

  Her eyes wide, she jumped off her bed and went to the door, opening it for him to step in. Ian wasn't lying. Just looking at him, she could tell he hadn't been able to get any sleep.

  His eyes had faint dark rings, his face looked a bit pale and he wasn't standing in the energetic way he usually did.

  "Apparently, being able to sense emotions while in human form has its disadvantages." He quietly said as Dani sat him down on her bed.

  "I'm so sorry. I didn't know I was keeping you awake."

  "Don't be sorry. I'll be okay, I just need sleep. So, what happened at school?" He stared into her eyes, searching her soul.

  Dani sighed. And as everything came coming back with full force, tears filled her eyes. She tried to stop them from falling, failed.

  Ian waited. He sat quietly by her side, watching her shudder with each sob. When it was over, he pulled her hair back from her face and tucked it behind her ears.

  "It's okay. It's gonna be okay." He slowly pulled her towards him, allowing her to choose whether she wanted the hug or not. As he wrapped his arms around, he kept whispering the mantra, "it's okay, it's gonna be okay."

  "How do you know?" Dani replied after some minutes of cuddling, "I haven't even told you what happened."

  Ian stayed silent.

  Dani pulled out and glared at him. "You did that I-touch-you-I-know-you thing again, didn't you?"

  Ian shrugged. "I guess I did. But I intended to comfort you still."

  Dani took in his tired features and chose not to care. He could see whatever he wanted, the world had ended for her. "Ian?" She whispered.

  "Yes?"

  "You said you can sense emotions, right?"

  He gave a nod.

  "Can you also... take them away?"