The Bucketlist

38| STARRY SKIES

"You surely know your way around the campus for a pass out." Will chuckled as we ascended the stairs.

Out of experience, do not wear heels to Fordshire High's Planetarium. All the good places here required a fleet of stairs to climb. I regretted the choice of footwear with every stair we climbed. I thought six-inches tops would help me pair up with Will, but alas! I was nowhere near him, and by tonight I was sure to end up with sprained ankles. I cursed under my breath when I nearly missed the next stair by a slight centimeter. The damned six inches heels!

The Fordshire High Planetarium was nothing less of an architectural marvel. It was curated to be an amphitheater model with a glass roof so that the stars from the night sky are visible to the viewer. But this was pointless, except on days of all day-all night boot camps, because nobody was allowed in here at night. The periphery of the circular stories opened into lecture halls, equipment labs, and of course, the infamous exhibit halls.

I wondered what made Will add this star-watching adventure to his bucket list. The planetarium was a marvel, but for a person whose life had nothing to do with celestial bodies, Will wanted to visit this place of all! I didn't take Will Turner to be a star gazer. He was a blunt, staunch, strict, and no-nonsense man; however, in the past few days, I have realized that Will is nothing like the person he appears to be. However, looks could be deceiving.

He was soft at heart a few times, caring if he wanted to be, and a great friend if he liked you! Some of the things may be false, of course!

I was still not over the emotional rant at the Trivia. I sighed as we reached the third floor.

Fifty steps- that's how far it is for you to reach the Star Gazer's Roof. The place was an observatory with too many telescopes in all models- ancient and modern. Will was freely exploring while I stupidly gazed at the glass ceiling, which was doing a great job of being a non-existent entity in the all too real world of aspiring Armstrongs. There was nothing in here that I had not seen before.

"Will?" I said, and he shifted his attention to me.

The observatory was moonlit as I made my way around, walking toward him. It was a full-moon night, and the clouds were sparse in the night sky. I doubt we could spot any stars in such weather, but surprisingly the sky cleared out sooner than expected. Will looked carefree, something I had missed over the past few days. As I neared him, I could see his gaze shift from the room to the sky and then to me.

"How high were you when you added this place to your bucket list?" I mocked as I landed my right arm on his shoulder. He chuckled.

"Well, I guess quite high for someone whose childhood dream was to be an astronaut!" He said, and my eyes went wide. This guy here wanted to be an astronaut? It was as if someone had told me that guys too have period cramps. Maybe, I was judging him a lot. But it was for his good. I was used to a dream-crushing, pain-inflicting, nightmarey version of Will, not the 'I to have dreams to touch the stars, Will'.

 FYI, I understand he is human too. All that's hard is to accept that he is no different than me. I gulped at the thought. 

"Mind showing the way to the roof?" He asked, and I nodded, dumbfound.We are cool.

One, two, three, four, five, Holy son of a-

I missed the sixth stair, and my equilibrium was gone. My back arched, ready to hit the wood, and my brain was preparing me for a concussion. Oh God, is this how I die? How pitiful! I will die a virgin. No pun intended.

I felt pulled, held together with force, as I found myself on my feet without a bruise. Phew, what a close call. Will stared into my eyes, his gaze piercing through me as he kept me on my toes, quite literally. I found myself going numb under his touch. If time could stop, now would be a great time!