WHEN WILLIAM crashed into him, all of the tension from his body evaporated. He wrapped his arms tightly around Orion's waist, and shoved his face into his broad chest. William's heart was racing. He had spent countless days trying to reunite with Orion, and now that he was finally here, he silently prayed that he wasn't an illusion.
Orion's arms rose, and when his large hands finally cradled William's head, water welled up in the man's eyes.
William knew what had to be said first. "I-I'm so sorry Orion, I shouldn't have just dismissed you like that. It was cruel of me." William sniffled into his chest.
Orion continued to gently run his fingers through William's curls, but his eyes were not cast downwards at the man. Orion's eyes were drawn to the man in glasses, who stood watching the two men with wide eyes.
When Orion didn't say anything, William pulled back to look at him. It took William no longer than five seconds to notice the familiar look on Orion's face. His eyebrows had been pulled together, and his lips slightly pursed. He was confused.
William flinched when Orion stepped past him and walked towards Christian. Orion stopped before him with his hands in his pockets and spoke. "Hi, I'm Orion. Your wish is my command."
Christian rose an eyebrow at William, before shaking hands with Orion. "Uhh, yeah, we've met before, buddy."
Orion spoke again, almost robotically. "Three wishes, and once I'm no longer needed I will be sent back to the sky. Of course there are certain things you can't wish for. You can't wish for me to harm any humans or animals, and you can't wish for me to force an individual to fall in love with you. Basically anything that inhibits someone's free will and right to live."
"You're a fucking star?"
"Yeah."
Silence ensued as the two men awaited Christian's reaction. Within a few seconds, looks of realization and embarrassment flashed across Christian's face. His eyes kept glancing between Orion and the sky, realizing that Orion had been in the picture the entire time.
Christian ran a hand down his face and shook his head. "Yeah, I think I get it now. I'll justâ" he pointed toward the open land behind him, "yeah."
Orion opened his mouth to question him, but Christian was already on his way walking towards his parked his car.
William stood two meters behind Orion, digging his nails into his palms. He couldn't deny that his heart burned at the fact that Orion had still not said a word to him, but he couldn't blame Orion. He couldn't blame anyone but himself for that reaction.
When he turned around to gaze at William, the curly-headed man held his breath. It was the first time Orion had an expressionless face. There was no warm smile that stretched from ear to ear, no wrinkle of his eyes as they twinkled, and no dimple that appeared on his right cheek.
Orion finally grinned as he walked towards him, and when his hands held William's face and pulled him closer, William was doused in relief.
William stood on his toes so that his arms could wrap around Orion's neck, and Orion's hands flew to grip the hair on the back of William's head. Although Orion rashly crashed their lips together, the movements of their lips came in waves, soft and gentle like a welcoming home. William pushed his body as close as he could to Orion, and gripped him harder than he had already been holding him.
As Orion's hands flew towards William's waist, he gave him a firm squeeze and the other man couldn't help but smile into his lips. William's hands slid toward Orion's chest, feeling him firmly just incase it would be the last time he could ever do so.
Orion was the first that pulled away from William, and the two men gasped as they caught their breaths.
"Sorry," Orion breathed, "I always have to say that little monologue whenever I get summoned."
William shoulders sagged in reassurance. Orion hadn't chosen silence. Orion still felt the same way about him.
William reached out toward Orion's hands, wanting to feel his warmth, and never let go. "I visited you almost every day."
"I know," Orion grinned, "I know, Will."
William shook his head. No, he had no idea. Orion had only seen him from his stargazing spot. He didn't see the countless hours William spent looking out his window in case he caught a shooting star. He didn't see how William left the few things Orion had owned in the same places they were before he left. He didn't see how William looked for him in everything he knew, felt, and saw.
"Can we start again?" William asked. "This time, no wishes?"
Orion nodded fervently. "I would like that, Will."
But, despite this heart-warming reunion, a particular question was still biting at William. He wondered what made him show himself to Christian, and not Willow?
William glanced down at their intertwined hands. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Anything."
"Why didn't you show yourself when my sister came to make a wish? Were you upset? It's.. okay if you were." William looked up at him, his eyes searching Orion's for any possible emotion.
"Willow?" Orion recalled. "Oh, I granted her three wishes about a year or two ago."
"What?" William asked increduously.
"Yeah. You have a very loving sister. I think it's better if you ask her what she wished for yourself, but with the recent good-fortune in your life these past few years in university, I'm sure you can guess what they were."
William couldn't guess. He had no idea, but he decided not to press it. Perhaps he would figure it out one day.
William's eyebrow rose as his thoughts flew back to Christian with annoyance.
"What do you think Christian's going to want? I don't want him to cause us anymore trouble."
Orion began to walk toward William's home with the other man's hand in his. "Let's not worry about that for now. I think we've worried too much about Christian already."
"Right." William agreed. "Let's worry about us from now on."
As fireflies hovered past them in the looming shade of the night, the two men continued to glance at each other out of the corner of their eyes. The illuminate shine of the moon from up above, the wafting smell of the pines, and the other glowing critters in the dark added beauty to their path toward William's home.
William found that it made perfect sense for Orion to be one of these night dwellers. There was a certain beauty to him that was unfound in the daylight.
William suddenly stopped in his tracks, causing Orion's hand to tug backwards towards him.
His eyebrows pulled together, and worry bubbled up in his gut, ready to spill over. "Are you really not upset with me? You don't have to forgive me that easily you know... I was kind of.. messy."
The look Orion gave him was intimate.
A corner of his lip rose into an innocent smirk, and Orion softly closed his eyes before turning back toward the night sky and looking up at where he came from.
"I knew that you needed time. I know that I confessed my feelings to you abruptly, but that's because I forgot about the promise I made to myself from the moment I saw you."
William tilted his head. "What was the promise?"
The buzzing of the fireflies was softer now. Almost as if every creature had been awaiting for Orion to say what had never been said.
"That I'd patient with you and wait for you to reciprocate my feelings, until I burned out."
And there was that smile.
The smile of a man who had already achieved everything that he wanted to in life.