Seeing Stars

by Rachel Burns

  “Yes,” he answered, shrugging his shoulders as if it were nothing.

  “But you should have told me. I never would have bothered you like that.”

  “Sandy,” he said sharply. “You didn’t bother me. You can call me whenever you want to. Is that clear?”

  I felt an overwhelming need to call him sir. I even heard the words softly coming out of my mouth. “Yes, sir.”

  He nodded at me with approval, but I could see that he was thrilled to hear them.

  “So tell me about your latest movie,” I said changing the subject.

  “It’s the kind of movie that one would expect from me.”

  “What does that mean?” I asked him politely.

  “It means that I think it’s time for me to do something else, a drama or something historical perhaps. Maybe I should play the bad guy.”

  I shook my head. “I wouldn’t like that. You’re too good of an actor. You’d end up scaring me.”

  He shrugged his shoulders again, and I got the impression that he wouldn’t play the bad guy just because I’d said he shouldn’t.

  “What is your next project about?” I asked him.

  He told me all about it. He was funny, and I enjoyed listening to him. His voice gave me the feeling that he was rubbing my shoulders. It was such a shame that I’d made a fool out of myself. The thought of having someone like him be my first was amazing. He would be worth the wait. It would be as if I had saved myself for him all these years. But that would never happen.

  He asked me about my friends and what my interests were. I told him that I loved to watch movies at home. I hated going to the movies.

  “Why? The atmosphere there is second to none.” He was surprised.

  “I’d rather wear my pajamas and cuddle up under a blanket on my sofa.”

  “How big is your blanket?” he asked me.

  “My blanket?” I asked him confused.

  “Would there be room for me under it too?” he teased me.

  “I don’t share my blanket or my popcorn,” I teased him back.

  He made a face as if I were killing him then he smiled at me. He was so funny. Maybe we could become friends. We sure did get along well. We were talking like old friends, and there was a familiar feeling to everything.

  I ended up having a great time. He wanted to know if we could drive by the teacher’s house I had egged as a kid on the way back to my apartment.

  I laughed aloud when he asked that. So much so that it turned into a coughing fit, he rose to his feet. He was about to give me the Heimlich maneuver when I stopped him.

  I even snorted like a pig once because I was laughing so hard.

  He took it in stride. I think he saw me as his friend too. There was something about him that made me feel as if we were the only two people at the restaurant.

  When he brought me home and up to my apartment, he told me that he’d had a good time.

  “I really enjoyed myself too,” I confessed.

  Then he leaned down and gave me a kiss on my cheek. “Sleep well, baby.”

  I unlocked my door about to go in when I had to peek at him one more time. He was on the stairs, wanting for me to be safely inside before he left. “I really enjoyed your company,” I told him.

  He dipped his head to me like a cowboy would in a western movie. It was so charming and cool.

  I went in so he could go home.

  When I was alone, I smiled to myself. The evening had been amazing. I wondered if I would ever see him again. I knew I would see him on the silver screen, but I wanted to see the real him. I liked that guy, and I wanted to be his friend.

  I hoped that we would continue to write to each other.

  The evening had felt somewhat magical.

  What should I tell people when they asked me how my date was?

  No one was going to believe me. I should have taken a picture with him. It had been stupid not to do it, but friends didn’t do stuff like that.

  Keeping him as a friend was important to me.

  I wondered if I should go back to the dating site so they could find me someone new.

  I’d do that tomorrow after work. I still needed someone to share my life with. I still wanted to have a child of my own.

  Chapter 14 ~ Keith

  I drove home, feeling as light as a feather. Everything had been perfect. She hadn’t stared at me or acted weird about who I was. Sandy was the real deal. She was hot too, ample bust and an ass that rounded exactly the way I liked them to.

  I needed to get her a proper vase. I decided to have one delivered to her with some more flowers and a thank you note for a wonderful evening. I hoped that she’d put them beside her bed. That way they would be the last thing she saw before she went to bed and the first thing she saw in the morning.

  I wanted her to think about me. After all, she was on my mind too.

  The evening had been perfect and funny. There had been a moment when she stopped thinking of me as Keith Davenport the movie star and saw me as Keith, her guy.

  Sandy had been so relaxed about everything. Not every woman could handle being with someone famous.

  In fact, she accepted the challenge extremely well.

  On the drive home, I also thought about the fact that I had been so taken with her before we’d even met. Was I really in love with her, or was I desperate to finally be with someone?

  No, I really liked her.

  We’d take it slowly, like she wanted, and then we would see where things went from there.

  That night it was different when I came home alone because I had a good feeling that I wouldn’t be alone for very long.

  I looked at my place, wondering what she would think about it.

  This place was great for a single guy or even a young couple, but if we had kids, we’d have to move.

  Did she want kids?

  I did.

  Why had we never talked about kids?

  I laid in bed, wondering what sort of home we should buy when we moved out of here. I liked the idea of a ranch. Sandy grew up on a farm, she might like that.

  My grandparents lived on a farm. My family always went there to help out when they needed it. A ranch would be nice. Kids should run around on a farm.

  If I married Sandy, we would have normal kids. If I married an actress, there was a large chance that my kids would be spoiled brats.

  I didn’t want that. I looked forward to being a father, and I didn’t want kids with bad attitudes to ruin that. In moments like those, a father needed to step up.

  It would be better if our kids stayed away from other Hollywood kids. They needed to be around normal people like I did too. After all, that was why I went looking for their mother. I mean, Sandy.

  I was jumping the gun again, but I had such a good feeling about her.

  Chapter 15 ~ Sandy

  Wow, I thought as I woke up the next morning. I’d had a great evening with Keith. There came a time when I forgot that he was a famous movie star. He was my Keith in those moments, and it would have been so easy to dream of being his wife and having his babies.

  Children, that was another reason for him not to date me. If we had kids together, they would be less cool because of my genes.

  I was glad that I hadn’t told anyone that I was planning to go on a date last night. Well, other than my mother.

  I’d told the saleslady too. She was the one who had given me such bad advice with my choice of clothing. I was never going to wear that outfit again. I’d never go in that store again either.

  During the lunch break at work, I stayed quiet and listened to the others talking. I thought about looking for a new guy on the dating site. I mean they had matched me up with Keith Davenport. They obviously thought that I was something special.

  Who else would they find for me? It might be better to be completely honest this time. I’d change my profile and put my real weight on it and be upfront that I was looking for marriage.

  Would Keith go back online to f
ind someone else too?

  Thinking that made me feel as if I were in mourning. I’d wanted it to work out with him. It was a pity that it hadn’t.

  I ate my salad, thinking that the computer had only paired me up with him because I’d lied about my weight. Now was the time to actually lose it. I really needed more willpower. Food couldn’t be more important to me than finding a man.

  ~

  I went right home after work and did my workout DVDs. I was getting good at them, and my body was able to bend further and stretch and reach places that I couldn’t reach a couple of weeks ago. I was proud of myself, and I loved being in better condition. No more shortness of breath for me.

  I was sweaty and disgusting when I sat down at the computer and changed my profile. I did change my weight, but this time I only lied down ten pounds. Those I would definitely be rid of before I met the guy the computer fixed me up with.

  I wasn’t surprised when my phone rang. It was my mom. She wanted to know how it went. I confessed that he was great, but that I doubted that he was interested in me. She made a noise as if she had expected as much.

  This time, I said nothing. I wasn’t sure if it was bad luck or a sign that I wasn’t meant to find someone.

  It might be that God wanted me to be single to keep down the world’s population. There was no longer a need for people to be fruitful and fill the earth. That was a job that we could consider accomplished. So it made sense that I should be alone. After all, I was a third child. The one too many who didn’t just replace my parents.

  My doorbell rang. It never rang. Why now when I looked like this? I was still sweaty and wearing ugly workout clothes. I told my mom I had to go.

  I answered the door and saw a guy with flowers. Did I somehow have another date?

  “I have a special delivery for Sandy Collins,” the guy told me.

  “That’s me,” I replied surprised.

  The guy handed me the flowers. They were in a beautiful crystal vase. The flowers were amazing. Red roses again. Red was the color you gave someone you loved. How could Keith not know that? Maybe he forgot to mention a color to the florist, and they’d assumed wrong.

  “You might want to set them down. I have something else for you,” the guy told me.

  I set them down beside the other ones I got. Having a proper vase made a world of difference. These looked so much better.

  I turned back to the guy, and he gave me a wrapped box. Then I had to sign for my things. As soon as I was alone, I snatched the card out of the flowers, wondering what Keith had written.

  Thank you for a wonderful evening. Now you have a set. I knew it. They were from him. But what did he mean? A set of what, I wondered.

  I opened the box and pulled out the matching vase to the one that my flowers had been delivered in today.

  Keith was such a sweetheart. He was a gentleman through and through.

  I immediately put my flowers from yesterday in their new vase. They looked so good in a proper vase. It made a world of difference.

  I sat down and wrote to Keith to thank him.

  My flowers and vases just arrived. Really you shouldn’t have, but it was an amazing gift. I love them. I too had a wonderful evening. Thank you for taking me out. I wrote back to him.

  Almost immediately, I got an answer. My pleasure, baby. Have you made plans with your friends for this weekend? Let me know when you want me there.

  What? Keith still wanted to show up and meet my friends. He was such a great guy. He was so sweet. It amazed me that he would do that for me.

  You don’t have to do that. I wrote to him.

  Sure, if you think we should get to know each other better before I meet your friends, then that’s fine. It’s your call. I want you to feel comfortable with where we’re going. He wrote back.

  Keith was making it sound as if he wanted to see me again. As if he were my boyfriend. That didn’t make any sense.

  I thought about how I should word this. I didn’t want to start a fight.

  Where do you want this to go? I wrote back, trying to get a feel for what exactly he meant.

  I told you that I lied on the questionnaire. I want marriage. He replied.

  Did he mean what I thought he meant? Be careful, I told myself. I was getting my hopes up. My heart was racing.

  Did you have anyone in mind that you were thinking might be marriage material? I asked him. If he meant what I thought, he would think that I was flirting with him. If I was wrong, he’d realize what I was thinking and want to clear that up right away.

  I went out with an amazing woman last night. She’s gorgeous, funny, she likes to tell me that I’m important, and she chewed with her mouth closed. What more can a man want?

  Okay, he was either flirting back, or he was making fun of me. I still wasn’t sure which. But seriously, there was no way that a guy like Keith Davenport would be interested in the likes of me. Things like that never happened in real life.

  Or did they? Maybe I should check the net for stars who were married to regular people. Did that ever happen?

  That does sound attractive especially that last one, but isn’t it too soon to decide something like that after only one date? I asked him.

  Sounds like I need to ask my girl out on another date so she knows that her dance card is full. From top to bottom, it reads Keith Davenport. How about I pick you up and show you around my town. That way I could show you off.

  To whom? I asked him.

  Anyone who will listen. Besides, I’m partial to cute girls with blond curls. He wrote back, making me grin.

  But straight hair is ‘in’ at the moment. I countered.

  So my girl will stand out in a crowd. That’s great. If I wanted to marry a clone of every other woman out there, I would have by now. I’m looking for a sexy woman. Sure, what man isn’t? But I also want someone to laugh with and to share my life with. I’m free all weekend. Let me know when you have time so I can set something up for us to do.

  Okay, that was clear. He wanted to see me again, and he was talking plainly about marriage. I wasn’t sure what to think. I sat down and stared at the screen. Could this really be happening? I was never lucky. This couldn’t be real. But it might be. There was a chance.

  My computer pinged again. Unless, I’ve read the situation wrong, and you aren’t interested in getting to know me better? He asked.

  What? No! I couldn’t let him think that.

  Don’t be silly. I was just checking my schedule. I’m free all weekend, so you can plan something and let me know. I wrote back so quickly that my heart raced.

  That I will, my lady. I’ll get back to you. Have a great evening, baby. He wrote.

  You too, honey. I threw in the ‘honey’ to see how he would react to that.

  No answer. He must have taken it in stride. That was typical of him. I could say that because I knew him personally. We talked daily. Keith Davenport was the man I was seeing. He was my guy.

  I screamed out like a teenager as my entire body shook overjoyed. The hottest guy ever was my boyfriend.

  He wanted to see me again. I was so lucky.

  He was the only guy I knew who wasn’t afraid of the word marriage.

  I folded my hands and sent a prayer of thanks up to heaven.

  Chapter 16 ~ Keith

  The ball was in my court. I needed to impress Sandy, but I had to keep it clear that I wasn’t trying to show off.

  I wracked my brain for over an hour and then gave up. I called my manager and told her that I wanted her to find a good wedding planner. I made it clear that I was asking for a family member. I didn’t want her to get the wrong idea.

  Well, it would be the right idea, but as yet, we were taking it slowly. Soon, I’d be able to tell people, but Sandy wanted to take it slowly, and she was the boss.

  The wedding planner gave me a call about half an hour later. I explained my problem and asked her where I should take my girl.

  She had several ideas, but the one I liked
the most was mini-golf on the Holt Estate. She told me lots of couples held their weddings there, and it would be a nice idea to have an emotional connection to the place in advance.

  I loved the idea. Mini-golf and a burger at the bar. It was definitely elegant but not showing off. It would be fun to play again on our wedding day, or at least our guests could play. We’d probably be too busy with things like cutting the cake and dancing.

  I wrote to Sandy and let her know that I decided on a simple date. She should wear comfortable clothes that were a touch elegant.

  Chapter 17 ~ Sandy

  Comfortable with a touch of elegance. What on earth did he mean by that? I had no idea what to wear. What could that possibly mean?

  I wrote back, asking if he could be more specific.

  Mini-golf and a burger, but someplace nice. He replied.

  The corners of my mouth lifted up. One summer I had taken part in a tournament for mini-golf, and I won. It had been the best moment in my entire life. I was so proud of myself at that moment. But I hadn’t played in years. Maybe I should go over and play a round after work tomorrow.

  I wrote back, thinking it was only fair to warn him. I used to be good at mini-golf. I look forward to playing again. It’s been years. That was good. He was warned, but he wouldn’t know that it was one of the few sports that I was actually good at.

  We’re on. He wrote back, looking right through my pleasantries and making me giggle like a schoolgirl.

  That had me rolling. I had a date, a real date with a guy who seemed to truly like me. Life didn’t get better than this.

  I just realized that I should have played dumb so you stand behind me and teach me. I wrote back. Flirting with him was now my new favorite hobby.

  It’s too late to try to dumbfound me with your womanly wiles. I’m already in competition mode. I hope I can teach you a few things when I win. He tried to taunt me.

  I think it’s adorable that you’re keeping faith that you might beat me. It struck me that I was talking to Keith Davenport as if he were one of my brother’s friends. Everything was so relaxed and comfortable. Keith, I love talking to you. You’re exactly what I needed in my life. I’m looking forward to our date. I’ll bring a handkerchief with for you. You might need it when I win.