Carefully she parted her hair and let and let a simple yet beautiful glittering pastel coloured hair clip clipped her front hair, revealing the face feature that she had work so hard to conceal it. What was more, her hair clip made her dark raven hair looked livelier rather than dull-oily looking hair. It was a gift from Gitto for her birthday two years ago. And last year or to be exact last week, he gave her an eye make-up kit.
She does not know how to make up his gift. She was not exactly a person who shows her face to people regularly. She knew that Gitto adores her eyes. That boy had seen her eyes for the first time when they were both in their primary school. It was by accident that he saw it and ever since that he had been her supportive enthusiastic fan. That was why he gave her a hair clip and now, the eye make-up kit.
They share the same birthday though every birthday she fell ill and they had to celebrate it on her bed and uneventful. Her sickness never makes him avoid her and he never fails to be by her bedside on the eve of their birthday with a small cupcake and a lit candle. He started celebrating his birthday together with her when they both hit eleven and ten years old. Since then her lonely and painful birthdays had turned into cheery and fulfilling.
Gitto had and always be a friend that she never knew that she needed it. The boy that she knows now and the boy that she knew the first time they met was different. The little Stella would not even expect that she can have such a close relationship with Gitto and to think that it lasted for ten years.
'tap, tap.'
She heard a knock on her window covers and quickly took a last look at her face before she arranged her steps lightly toward her window. She looked different from her normal look but because Gitto had given her the hair clip so that he can see her face, today and the week before and the week after, Gitto can see her face for all he wants.
"Hey," he greeted her when the window latch was lifted and the covers were pushed to reveal her best friend levitated in the air. His smile never leaves his face, his hair was disheveled as usual and he wore his favourite denim jacket over his gray sweater. His dark hair was glistened under the shine of bright moon hovering in the starry night sky.
"Did anyone saw you?" she asked in a hushed tone. Their date was not supposed to be known by anyone even her little sister Lily. Not that they were up to anything naughty, they thought that it was fun to have a secret rendezvous between them. Well, if it was fun for Gitto then it was fun for her.
Gitto shook his head. "Ready?" He offered his hand.
Stella looked behind her back, at her darkened room, making sure that her door had locked and that the nightstand lamp was off. She had said her goodnight wishes to her parents and Lily when she finished helping them in the kitchen, brushed her teeth and made believe that was really ready to go to bed.
"Yes," she breathed satisfied with her job. Carefully she stepped up on the window shelf, the place where she always sits every morning to sing her morning routine for the flowers and trees and her parents' herbs. Before she clasps Gitto's hand, he withdrew his hand and abruptly landed his two feet on her window sill with his eyes went wide. Both of hands were cupping her face forcing her to stand near to him.
"Y—you don't wear the make-up I gave you," he exclaimed in a forced control voice. With the light that the moon reflecting, he inspected every corner of her eyes, trying to find a speckle of dust on her eyelids.
"I don't know how to wear it," she replied.
"You could've asked Lily."
"She's busy."
"You're her sister."
"I don't find the need to wear it."
"ME!" he answered releasing her face. "Can't you humor me, Stell?"
From the way she heard his tone, Stella knew that she had hurt her friend's feeling. The last time he was angry like this because of the hair clip.
The very first hair clip that Gitto gave her was on her twelfth birthday. She did not know the reason behind his gift and simply gave it to Lily. The next day when he found out when Lily wore it, he was furious and sulked for a whole week.
The second hair clip he gave her, the hair clip lasted for almost four years before it was gone blown by the harsh wind the night she went on her date with Gitto. The lost did not upset him and it gave him the reason to find a new hair clip for her which was the hair clip that she was wearing it now. She remembered that he did say that the hair clip had gone dull and outdated that he had found a reason to buy a new one for her.
Stella's head bent downward looking at her feet. Should she apologize to him when he was the one who said 'it' so many years ago? "You said that you adore my eyes," she said and her eyes wavered to the tulips in the flower pot. It was a gift too. Rich purple coloured tulips.
Gitto let out an exasperated sigh and he rubbed his neck. "Yes, yes I did and I'm sorry that I didn't tell you earlier the reason for my gift." Slowly he reached for Stella's hands and held it like she was a fragile object that might crumple it beneath his big hands.
"I gave it to you so you could've worn it as you did with the hair clip. I want to see you looking a lot more beautiful than you already are."
Then she really should apologize to him. She had angered him and by not appreciating his gift, she had once again, let him down. Like when the first time he gave her that hair clip. "Should I go wear it now?"
"No, it's okay. I'm letting you go for tonight but by next week you still not wearing it, then I have a punishment for you," he said softly after resting his forehead on her forehead with his dark eyes piercing into her eyes. She could feel his warm breath on her skin and how it made her skin tingled when it clashed with the cold night air.
"Punishment?"
"Yup."
"Is it going to be hurtful?" Stella cannot imagine what kind of punishment that Gitto talked about but the harsh punishment that her parents used to give Lily when she was being naughty when she was a small girl.
He smiled then chuckled. "Oh Stella, come on we're not delaying our date any longer."
He pushed himself out while at the same time his hand that was still holding her hands were pulling her whole body along out of her room and to be completely airborne like a bird. Gitto is an incredible person for able to control his air magic effortlessly especially controlling two person magic.
They flew up to her house roof where the view to the city is clear with its light flooding the streets made it looked livelier from where they perched their feet on. She could saw the institute dimly lit light along the perimeter of the gate and she could see the bazaar headlights lighting its outer wall that was decorated with vines and clay statues.
"So do you have any places you want to go tonight?" he asked as soon they landed on top of her house.
To be honest, she did not have any specific places that she wanted to go as long she can have her reconnaissance with Gitto. To be honest it was refreshing that she got to see her world, not through her fringe hair but to see it freely.
"I don't know," she answered looking at the boy who was standing beside her, his eyes never leaving her face and her left hand in his right hand. "What about you?"
"I shall follow wherever my lady shall go," he said playfully and once again Stella was reminded of how those lips were always tight in linear line when they were first introduced.
"You're not making it any easier," she commented and he laughed. The wrinkle that it made and the echoed that resounded made her shoulders felt bigger by the minute. To see the difference in his attitude of when he was a kid and of when he is now, she couldn't help but let out a small chuckled that she nor Gitto noticed. They were in their own little world that no one can burst it with. A little something that they had since they were just small kids on an orange coloured evening with a small pot of purple tulip.