Flash Fiction 09 - Starlight

 Starlight

He was a star and Chloe worshipped him. She was the first in line whenever he had a new movie come out. It didn't matter if he was the leading actor or just a bit-player, Sam Hoss was her reason for living.

Chloe wrote Sam Hoss a fan letter every day and posted it to her blog. She scoured the internet forums to add her praise for all of his roles, and hotly attacked anyone who posted an unflattering review. She also mailed Sam letters every week, in care of his agent. Indigo ink on lavender paper detailed her love and dedication in terms too intimate to be shared with the world on her blog.

At first, Sam's agent bundled Chloe's letters with all of the other fan mail his client received and gave them to Sam's personal secretary. Then he pulled them and stacked them at the top of the bundle. After a few weeks and a worried read of Chloe's blog, Chloe's letters were routed directly to Sam's lawyers and filed with the Los Angeles Police Department.

Officers were ready at the red-carpet premiere party for "Charioteer," Sam's latest big budget movie. Chloe had been tracking the development of the film since it was first rumored Hoss was a candidate for the lead. For months leading up to the release, she wrote daily to Sam of her excitement. She would, she promised, see him at the premiere.

Sam Hoss's first role was in a low-budget scream flick. He died in a heroic last-stand gunfight so the heroine could escape. In "Charioteer" he was reunited with the actress from his first movie. Chloe knew Sam would appreciate the .40 Smith & Wesson she carried. It was just like the one that had failed to save him. This time, she would be sure Sam Hoss survived.

Chloe lives in a safe place. She sits before a television, her head bowed. Her day starts when a nurse pushes the play button on the DVD player. The theme music swells on a Sam Hoss film. Chloe's face slowly lifts to be bathed in the starlight.