Jackie knocked on the front door, waiting for someone to answer. She had come over as soon as she could, impatiently tapping her foot while at the doorstep. As she waited, she looked around the neighborhood and checked out the sights. The sun was shining, dogs were barking and chasing eachother while kid's laughter was able to be heard as well. Everything seemed peaceful, the way it should be.

The door swung open, snapping Jackie's attention back to the house. Immediately, she smiled warmly and was greeted by a woman, Marco's mother, who smiled back. "Oh, Jackie!" She said with great hospitality. "What a nice surprise!"

"Hey, Mrs. Diaz. Is, uh, Marco home by any chance?" She said, switching sides of her casual stance, one arm cradling her skateboard that she had rode to get there. On her head, she still wore her helmet that she hadn't taken off quite yet.

Marco's mother looked behind her, gazing up on the stairs of the second floor. Then, she turned back to Jackie. "Uh, yes. But he hasn't come out since the beginning of summer." She stepped aside to give Jackie some space to come in while still talking. "He hasn't been the same lately. I don't know why." The frown on her face said it all. She was seriously worried about her son.

"Don't worry. I'm sure he's fine. I'll go talk to him." Jackie assured her. His mom gave Jackie a relieved smile and with that, Jackie had trudged up the stairs while buckling off her helmet from her head.

...

Jackie peered into Marco's room, leaving the door at a couple inches open, just a crack. From the view of his bed, she didn't see even a single trace of him. Still, to make sure, she called out his name. "Marco? It's Jackie."

Her next move was to come into his room and welcome herself in. That was, until she overheard a sniffle not far infront of her from further down the hall. It came from Star's room. She pivoted on her heels and moved further down to the next door across from Marco's room.

The door was wide open and there he sat, cradling the blonde haired laser puppy as it wagged its tail and panted with its tongue hanging out. Another laser puppy was next to Marco, clawing at the bottom of his pants as he sat on the ground, his back supported by the bed behind him. He stared out infront of him, staring at the plain, boring wall, not even caring to notice the bleach-blonde-headed skater girl in the doorway.

His mind had drifted to the girl he used to know, the one who used to be glued to his side. She had left before summer had began, leaving Marco with worries and only the memories of them. Marco blindly sat there, staring ahead, petting the laser puppy in his lap. He held Marco Junior close to him as if he was afraid he would leave him too.

The only thing that seemed to get Marco's attention was Sajak, one of the laser puppies in the room, disappearing out of thin air, leaving nothing but a mist of sparkles and magic dust in his place.

"Marco?" Jackie said, dropping her helmet and skateboard at the doorway and bringing herself in. She sat next to the brunette as he gazed up at her with a deadpan expression on his face.

"Hey." He mumbled carelessly, quickly drying his wet and reddened face though Jackie already knew he had been crying to himself.

"I, uh, invited you to the park, like, an hour ago. Do you really wanna just lay around in here? Why don't we go out and enjoy the summer?"

Star's room was dark, the shades drawn all the way down and everything was still. Marco dropped his head and didn't even look at Jackie. He thought it was sweet that Jackie had come to check on him but if he had to be honest, that was the last thing he wanted that day. He just wanted to be alone.

Marco hadn't left Star's bedroom ever since she had left. He stayed, waiting for her to hopefully return. Unfortunately, she never did. Still, he remained. He would wait so long, hours at a time it seemed, that he would eventually fall asleep in the guest bed of her room, curled up in a fetal position without any sheets to be tucked in as he usually fell asleep on top of them.

In his hand, he would hold tightly onto his shining interdimensional shears, scissors that would conjure portals to other dimensions. He would be torn between staying and waiting or going after her. He forbid himself from leaving to go find her, however. He accepted it was her time to go. Deep down, painfully down, he knew she would have to leave eventually. He knew she couldn't stay forever. She had a life on Mewni, an important one too. She was the Princess, afterall. She had to go.

Besides, if he chased after her now, what was his reasoning? What would he say?

"Star, I miss you. Please, come back to Earth."

Yeah, right. Like, that was an excuse for her to leave her home forever and forget her important duties as a Queen-in-training. How selfish did that sound anyway?

"Marco?" Jackie said again. Marco, instantly, was interrupted from his thoughts and turned back to Jackie with a tired expression. Underneath his hazel eyes was darkness as he did not sleep most nights and his hair remained a bedhead mess, but not because he was able to sleep deeply, yet it was from the tossing and turning he did when he couldn't sleep.

All he could do was drag his feet when he walked and move slowly from lack of energy. He found it was easier to lounge around and sob than go out and see the sun and join in with the laughter of the other teens nearby.

And when his mom brought him breakfast, lunch, and even dinner, he rejected it. Even his own homemade nachos didn't taste the same without his favorite golden blonde headed dimensional princess to share them with. After his first nacho platter he had made to hopefully cheer himself up from her, he had accidentally made himself cry, no longer craving nachos or any food at all. He would nibble here and there when he was really hungry but nothing more.

It felt to him as if a part of him had left with her, maybe even more than a part.

With the boring guest bedroom back to its boring dark and greyness, it no longer shimmered with the jewels and spacious tower from above. It was all gone, her breathtaking and enchanting castle tower and three stories worth of magical mysteries and walking and living teddy bears and bean bag chair creatures. Everything... gone.

"I know you miss her, but you'll never get over it if you just sit inside and mourn her." Jackie began, laying her hand on Marco's shoulder, trying to calm him.

"You don't get it, Jackie. Star was my best friend. I don't think I can go on without her. I know it sounds a little weird but... Star was... special to me. She always made me happy and... now it's like my happiness is gone and-"

"Dude, hey. It's gonna be okay. Maybe this was just Star's time. I mean, she couldn't stay forever. You know?" Jackie interjected with a chortle.

"No, really!" Marco snapped back with unexpected aggravation. "Everyday, her magic fades and everyday I realize she won't be back. The only thing I have to remember her by is Marco Junior here." Marco held up Marco Junior, the last of the laser puppies, the runt of all of the others, a puppy that Star had named herself in honor of Marco.

Jackie chuckled at the puppy's name. She then took off Marco's hood, revealing his face to her before she leaned in closer and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "C'mon. Let's go get some fresh air. Maybe we can walk Marco Junior too."

Marco, with a slight smile, nodded slowly. Little did he know his smile was forged when Jackie got up and beckoned him to do the same. He didn't want to get up but if that's what he had to do to prove to Jackie he was okay, he was going to do so.

...

Marco cradled Marco Junior in his arms, walking slowly behind Jackie. Everytime Jackie found herself ten feet infront of Marco, she would slow down at his speed to be by his side. Marco stared down at the cement sidewalk, watching as one foot went infront of the other at a time, watching himself walk.

Jackie chuckled, watching as the brunette did not put down the puppy in his arms, not even once. "Y'know, the whole point of walking him is to let him walk?" She said, trying to cheer Marco up.

"Mhm." He breathed as he had let Jackie know that he was listening but not. Still, Marco Junior didn't mind. He was still glad to be in his owner's arms, enjoying the sights and happy as ever.

Despite the fact that Marco had only been walking with Jackie for a couple of minutes, he was ready to go back home. But before he could tell Jackie, Marco Junior began to sparkle and glimmer. Marco witnessed with teary eyes as Marco Junior, looked up at him with sad eyes before he popped into thin air, disappeared, vanished. "No! Nonono!"

Jackie turned around from infront of Marco, ceased from walking completely. She peered around her shoulder to see Marco in sudden tears, trying to pick up the magic and pink mist that fell at his feet. Marco hugged the magic dust close to him, holding his sides as he dropped to his knees and all he could do was cry.

Jackie walked towards Marco, her hand wavering above him, wondering if she should comfort him or let him be. "Marco... I-I'm so sorry..." Jackie said, but he was quick to get up and dry his tears off of his face and sniffle back the rest of them.

He got up on his feet again, which surprised Jackie because of his quick recovery. Marco shook his head as he took out his dimensional scissors. "Star wasn't meant to leave like this. She wasn't meant to leave so suddenly. Something was wrong. Star could be in danger." He clenched the scissors in the palm of his hand hard. "What kind of friend am I if I just sit here and worry? I need to see her. I need to know she's okay."

Jackie's hand held onto Marco's hand as he held onto the scissors. "Go to her... you obviously care about her. I tried to make you happy, but I guess the only way you can truly be happy is... being with Star." Jackie sighed and crossed her arms before continuing. "That's why this makes this harder for me to say. Marco, I..."

"Jackie, what's the matter?" Marco asked, his stomach churning, seeing Jackie, for the first time ever, nervous.

"I think it's best if... we..."

"Jackie?"

"Marco, we have to break up."

Marco felt as if he had been punched in the gut. He felt like he was going to cry again. "W-why?" He choked out through his swollen throat.

"I tried cheering you up, I really did. But I guess that's not possible unless Star is the one to do it. I don't make you happy like Star does. Go to her. I'll be fine." Now Jackie's eyes began to well up.

Marco closed his eyes and thought for a moment.

It took a lot of strength to hold up his scissors and cut a portal, yet Marco did it. He snipped the scissors into the air and created a swirling, blue portal. Marco looked back at Jackie with a worried face, a quivering frown. "It'll be okay." Jackie reassured him, holding his shoulder.

Marco smiled and nodded, yet this time his smile wasn't forged, it was a hopeful and true smile. A smile that let Jackie know Marco was going to be truly, deeply happy and be with Star once again.

With that, Marco left, stepping through the portal as it had closed behind him and he found himself in a new dimension. He was in a castle, in the main hall, just aside the entrance. Infront of him, was a girl with a full head of golden hair, as golden blonde as he had remembered it. "St-Star?" He began, his lip wavering.

From the moment she had turned around, Marco had connected with her familiar vivid blue eyes, glistening and grinning eyes. There was no doubt that she had missed him too.

"Marco!" She said.