Two hearts and a thousand stars

“You’ve never seen the stars?” Jiyu asked, her eyes widening, astounded.

You shrugged. “I did notice some white dots at night, but I had never seen a constellation,” you admitted.

“You’ve never heard of Ursa Major?”

“I’d heard about them, but I’d never seen them with my own eyes,” you replied, scratching the back of your neck. From the tone of her voice, it sounded like you’d missed an essential part of the experience of life.

“Well, you have to see them!”

“Do I?”

“Wha—yes, of course!” Jiyu replied, almost offended at your doubt. “They are so beautiful!”

You scratched your head. To be quite honest, you weren't really interested, but her excitement was contagious. Her eyes were beaming, and you had a very big soft spot for her at that point, so you had to agree.

“Okay,” you sighed, completely swayed by her irresistible charm. “Tell me how.”

There came that smile that you loved—the prize for your continuous trips to the farm. “Yes! Okay, well, the problem is that you live in the city.”

“Right. The light pollution.”

“There’s a spot after our farm where I used to go when I was little; you’ll see them so well.”

“Is it very far?”

“No, we can walk there.”

“Okay, how long is the walk? Because I know you underestimate it.”

“About half an hour,” she said dismissively, leaning back in the chair to think about the path.

“Jiyu, that’s far.”

“No, it’s not.”

“Yes, it is—that’s a bike ride distance, not a walk. I don’t know, it’s not worth it,” you complained.

“You take twenty minutes by bike to get here!” Jiyu shot back and crossed her arms.

“To see you, it’s worth it,” you said.

Your brain couldn’t even check the words before they left your mouth. You realized it a bit too late. The silence that followed was embarrassing and suffocating. Jiyu’s mouth opened slightly, but no sound came out. She looked away, staring outside the window, pretending you weren’t there. You could feel the heat crawling up your neck and your ears reddening.

“...”

“...”

You cleared your throat, still not looking at her. “Okay, I’ll do it.”

“Good!” Jiyu said, both happy that you had agreed to the mission and that you were breaking the awkward pause. She stepped forward and shot a series of frantic pats onto your back. “We could sleep there. Have you ever slept on the grass?”

“Nope,” you said. “I have a bed.”

“Gosh, you haven’t done anything at all,” she teased. “You’ve never camped anywhere?”

“No.”

“No Boy Scouts?”

“No.”

“You’re like a housecat.”

“Unfortunately.”

“Okay, so I think I have a sleeping bag, but the grass is really soft. I don’t think we need that.”

“What about the bugs?” you asked.

“Well, just cover yourself in bug spray and it will be fine,” she replied. “We’ll lay some towels and it’ll be good.”

“Alright, whatever you say, boss.”

Jiyu pushed your shoulder. “Come on, it will be fun! You should sound more excited.”

“Just scared about bugs.”

You didn’t want to admit it, but the thought of spending the night by Jiyu’s side was making your heart do spins and somersaults inside your ribcage. You were already thinking about all the possible outfits you had in your wardrobe—which were three—and how you’d act next to her. It was unnerving.

You talked with her a little more, and the time to go home came. You took a tour of the garden to greet Grandma like you always did and hopped on your bike. You spent about an hour trying to match different pants and shirts and concluded that fancy clothes were the wrong choice. You were supposed to sleep there, right? You shouldn’t be trying too hard; you should be casual.

Alright, some comfy pants, a t-shirt, and an open dress shirt would be absolutely fine. It was going to be windy anyway. Snacks, towels, and drinks were already in your bag. You wanted to be extra careful and also brought a bunch of sprays and bug incense.

When you arrived there, Jiyu was waiting for you outside the porch. The sunset had just started, and its light hit Jiyu’s skin with a golden ray. She was wearing a casual black shirt with long sleeves. It didn't seem like she had tried, but she didn't need to. She looked amazing regardless. Your heart was racing already. You had to pull yourself together.

Jiyu turned around and, at the sight of you, her face surrendered to a big, toothy smile. Oh, you were so weak for her.

“Jiyu! I’m here,” you called to her.

“Took you long enough, mister.”

“Sorry, the traffic,” you said as you propped your bike against the wall of the house.

“You cycled here.”

“Uhhh, yeah.”

Jiyu slapped your arm. “You idiot.”