The Gift

The sound was enormous. The earth shook. Hutch felt frozen in place, trying to process what had happened.

He had stood looking out at the night sky, not able to sleep. He had been thinking of Starsky and all the happiness waiting for them in the future, his heart overflowing with so much love he felt like drowning in it. His other half was away, visiting his mother in NYC for a few days to take care of some business on her behalf and he was due back tomorrow, in time for the Christmas celebrations to start.

The only “problem” was he hadn’t bought Starsky a Christmas present yet because he didn’t know what to get him. He didn’t want to give him something mundane like a sweater or something impersonal, like say, a tree. No offense to the tree but being with Starsky had taught him a thing or two about life and had changed him and his way of thinking. It had even made him love Christmas! So he wanted his present to be something beautiful and unique like Starsky himself. Something that would show his love and devotion and would show he had actually put time and thought into it.

He was contemplating all this, looking at the sky and just wishing he could actually give Starsky the moon and the stars. The way he saw it, it would be the only gift worthy of giving to the absolute treasure of a being Starsky was.

Then he noticed a bright light cutting its way through the dark sky, a falling star. Or at least that’s what he thought at first, his mind beginning to form the words of a wish. But the bright light hadn’t flickered out and vanished like the stars you wished upon did. It kept going, getting closer and closer, burning brighter and brighter until it had crashed somewhere on the horizon, shaking the entire universe.

Hutch was in shock. For a while he couldn’t even move. What the hell was that? What had just happened? He stood frozen for how long, he didn’t know. It felt like hours but it probably was only a few minutes. Eventually his nature and his training kicked in and his mind snapped out of its shocked state. Hutch didn’t waste any time. He quickly put some clothes on, holstered his gun, grabbed his jacket and ran out the door, towards the direction he had seen the object fall. People might be injured, in need of help. There could be huge damage.

As his long legs ate the distance, Hutch was puzzled. There were no other people out, no lights turning on, no shouts, no worried sleepers wondering what was going on. In fact, there was nothing except darkness and silence, the only lights coming from the decorated houses and Christmas trees.

Hutch started slowing down. He couldn’t see or hear anything that would suggest some kind of freak cosmic accident. It seemed he was the only person that had seen or felt anything. He started doubting his own senses. Maybe what he thought he’d seen, hadn’t happened at all. Maybe his brain, tired and in need of rest, had conjured the whole thing up. Maybe he had even fallen asleep for a minute there and dreamed the whole thing. It didn’t take more than a few seconds to dream up entire movie scenarios, after all.

Just as he was thinking of heading back, feeling confused and a little embarrassed, wondering if he should call the station and ask about any reports of a meteor striking or maybe a plane crashing coming in, he heard a voice speaking to him. “There is no need to worry, young man. There is no emergency.”

Hutch turned abruptly and saw a man looking at him wearing a small smile. He looked relaxed and he had kind eyes. He seemed to be holding something in his hands, his palms cupping each other as if to protect whatever was nestled in them.

Hutch approached him slowly so as not to spook him. “Sir, are you alright?” he asked while looking for any signs of injury or pain. Maybe the man was in shock.

“Oh, I’m perfectly fine. Trust me, there is nothing to worry about.” His voice was melodious and somehow made Hutch feel safe.

“Sir, I am a police officer, a detective and I witnessed some kind of crash from my window a little while ago. An object fell from the sky, somewhere in the vicinity. Did you happen to see or hear anything unusual?”

The man smiled softly. “I have seen many things in my long life that you would consider unusual but to me they are natural occurrences. Things that happen for a reason. Some call them miracles, some call them magic. People have different names for them but at their core, they are all acts of love.”

Hutch had no idea how to respond to that. He had no idea what the man was even talking about. He didn’t know what to say or what to do. He felt a little bizarre, being there in the small hours of the night with a strange man who talked cryptically but felt safe nonetheless.

“Do you believe in love, Detective?” The man looked at him with his clear, kind eyes and his soft smile.

Hutch was at a loss. This whole situation was the exact opposite of what he had been imagining to find when he set out to deal with what he thought would turn out to be a catastrophe.

“Of course you do.” The man said before Hutch could open his mouth. “This little fella wouldn’t be here if you didn’t. I wouldn’t be here if you didn’t. There are no cosmic errors, Ken.” He looked at the object in his hands and then at Hutch with a glint in his eye.

Hutch was flabbergasted. “How do you… how do you know my name?”

“I know a lot more than your name, my dear boy. I know your heart and that is far more important.”

Hutch looked at him, trying to assess the situation and decide what to do. The man didn’t seem to be dangerous but then again, danger didn’t always telegraph its presence. Maybe he was mentally unstable.

“Hey, maybe I’m the one who’s gone cuckoo here. Maybe all this isn’t even happening in reality. Maybe I’m at home sleeping and all this is happening in my head.” Hutch thought.

The man chuckled. “You are very much awake and the only cuckoo around here is the one in the clock on Mrs. Henderson’s wall. Delightful clock, that one!”

Hutch flinched and took two steps backwards. His heart was jackhammering in his chest and he felt light headed. He opened his mouth to speak but his voice refused to cooperate. He swallowed and tried again. A hoarse whisper came out. “Who are you?”

“A friend. Someone who knows both you and David. Don’t be afraid, Ken. I come bearing gifts. Or rather, one gift rare and precious enough that nothing else could ever come close.”

Hutch was speechless. He knew that what he was experiencing was something supernatural in nature and he was trying to wrap his head around it. He was always the practical and grounded one and he vaguely thought that if this had happened to Starsky, he would have embraced the whole thing wholeheartedly with child like wonder, yet this whole otherworldly scenario was happening to him!

He looked at the man with the handsome face, the kind eyes and the soft smile. He knew he was safe and he could feel warmth radiating off his presence. It was strange but he did feel like he knew him and although he couldn’t really tell where from, he was absolutely certain that if Starsky were here he would have been able to say who he was.

The man approached Hutch and lifted his cupped hands a little higher. “You wished for a Christmas present for David. I have it right here.”

“You… you bought Starsky a present…?”

The man laughed. It sounded like crystal bells chiming.

“I’m afraid I didn’t. Besides, this kind of present is not something you can buy. Not something you can find in a store, either.”

“What… what is it?” Hutch asked feeling a little dazed. The man was really mesmerizing.

“See for yourself,” the man said and Hutch lowered his eyes to look at the man’s hands. For the first time he noticed there was a glow coming from between his cupped hands. Then the man slowly removed the hand on top and Hutch saw a radiant star glowing brightly with a silvery white light while a billion different colors, some of which he didn’t have a name for, vibrated in its center.

Hutch’s eyes widened so much he felt like a cartoon character. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. It was right there, he was seeing it with his own eyes, yet he couldn’t believe it. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. Words weren’t enough to even come close to describing it, let alone doing it justice.

“This little fella heard you Ken, and decided to offer himself. A star for your star. He fell for you and David and the once in a lifetime love you share.”

“But… a shooting star… is not really a star, it’s a meteorite.” Hutch vaguely wondered how he could say such a Hutch thing in the face of an actual miracle. He also wondered if he should kick himself.

The man laughed again. “Well, you wouldn’t be you if you didn’t say something like that! I do know deep down you believe in miracles, though. David is a miracle. Your love for each other is a miracle. The fact he defied death and came back for you is a miracle. Why is an actual star falling from the sky so different? Remember what I told you? At their core, all miracles are acts of love. This star is here because of love. Your love. David’s love. Stars witness everything, Ken. It’s a rare honor when a star decides to leave its home for a human. It almost never happens. Your love is so strong and true that even the heavens are moved by it.”

Hutch was transfixed by the star with its many points and its incandescent light, pulsing like a heartbeat. The man reached out and Hutch instinctively cupped his own hands to receive the star. It gave off warmth and holding it made Hutch feel like he was holding the Universe. There was a faint sound coming from it, a harmonious hum.

“I can hear it… It’s singing…!” Hutch was awed.

“All stars do. It’s what you know as music of the spheres. This one is happy to be with you and can’t wait to meet David too.”

“So it’s alive!”

“Of course it’s alive. And as long as the love between you and David remains true and your bond stays intact, its heart will keep on beating and singing.”

“Does… does it have a name?”

“It does but it’s something your tongue couldn’t pronounce. In the celestial language it means ‘burning brightly.’ If you wanted to give it a name of your own, it would be perfectly fine.”

There were a million feelings swirling inside Hutch. “I wanted to give him the moon and the stars and now I can literally give him a star,” he whispered.

“The moon he already has, Ken. It’s you. That pendant you’re wearing, that’s David and you. You two already have the heavens in each other. What you’re holding in your hands is the tangible symbol of that. What better time for symbols and celestial bodies than Christmas, right?”

Hutch suddenly registered that his face was wet. He had been crying without realizing it and apparently he couldn’t stop. “Forgive me,” he said in a hushed tone.

“Nothing to forgive, Ken. Sometimes love and joy are too great for a heart to contain and they have to come out through the eyes, in liquid form. Do not apologize for feeling too much, for the surplus love and happiness your eyes expel. People with a heart as big as yours is something this world is in desperate need of.”

“Thank you. Thank you for all this. I know it’s not nearly enough but I don’t know what else to say.”

“It is more than enough. I should probably apologize myself for scaring you with the whole thing out of the sky crashing to earth demonstration but it was necessary to bring you out here. A bit dramatic but then, I am a big fan of the Bard.” The man gave Hutch a mischievous, blinding smile.

“Will he believe me when I tell him?” Hutch asked, thinking how unbelievable the whole thing would sound.

“Of course he will. This is David Starsky you’re talking about. Besides, don’t you think one star will recognize the other?”

Hutch smiled. His heart had grown approximately fifty times. Yes, his Starsky was a magical being that had brought magic into Hutch’s life. Of course all this would be something he’d accept without doubting. Doubting was Hutch’s department. Or used to be. As of today, the doubting department was out of business and closed for good.

“Take care of your stars, Ken. They both are here out of love for you. Now it’s time for me to take my leave. Enjoy the holidays. Merry Christmas!” The man gave another brilliant smile and turned away, his long hair flowing behind him.

“Wait!” Hutch shouted.

The man turned around and looked at Hutch with a Mona Lisa smile on his face

“I know you, don’t I?” Hutch’s big blue eyes were filled with awe and wonder.

“I don’t know. Do you?” The man winked and was gone.

Hutch held the star to his chest, feeling its warmth and gentle humming, knowing he was blessed beyond measure. He silently promised he would always love, cherish and look after both stars in his life and as he started walking back home the first snowflakes started falling from the sky.