How To Live Under The Stars Again

prologue

—

"Then, in that moment,

everything turned to dust,

because you can't bring back the past,

nor can you relive it the same way again."

—

june 18th, 2018

        Everyday I'd sit on my window sill, my chin in the palm of my hands as I watch the sunset casts its golden rays upon the orange skies; the moon would soon replace. Thinking of the skies full of stars glittered across the cloudless world above me, and what it'd be like to look down on the world and encounter everyone's everyday life — not in a weird way of course.

A wisp of wind blows into my dark, glossy brown hair, the hues of red striking down wherever the light hits it. I brushed my hair back with my fingers, smiling to myself.

"You're creepy when you smile like that," he said beside me. I frowned and slapped him playfully on his arms. He pecked my cheeks, "You ready to go?"

"When am I not, Oliver?"

Oliver Collins. The boy was impeccably handsome, in the eyes of coffee hues; his hair was dark roasted coffee swirled to perfection yet his skin was latte. His eyes were brown like the dusky oak trees you'd find in the woods: mysterious. He had that sort of shy but dangerous look to him, but when you really get to know him he's honestly the cutest thing on earth.

His hugs were like a cuddly bear, and the sound of his voice soothes me; especially when he talks about the stars.

Oh the stars, they could never bore me at all. Maybe a little when he gets too into it and I can't understand a word he says, but I still find myself falling for him every time.

They have always interested me, I find myself always asking questions. And somehow, Oliver knows the answer to all of them. He knows everything about the stars, he wanted to become an astrophysicist.

Not something I'd have as a job, personally. Too much intellect for me.

So every Saturday, just after the sun sets, Oliver and I would head off to Lyra Fields, where there's nothing but the emerald, green grass beneath us and the shining stars upon us; you could see all the constellations from his blue pickup truck. If you went the opposite direction of the fields, there was a cliff in which there was an ocean crashing beneath it.

Every week we'd try to name all the stars and all the constellations; Oliver would always win, and every minute of every second he would come up with some hypothetical theory about it, some in which I don't even understand but sometimes it's just fun to watch his oh-so-kissable lips move.

His soft, pink lips make me happy. He makes me happy. He makes my heart flutter every time he speaks. I still have that same feeling every time he kisses me, that same explosion and that same sort of happiness that no one could ever replace.

"Val," he whispers, I didn't respond, "Valerie." I revert my eyes back to his as he flashes me a smile, "You're so beautiful."

I couldn't help but smile, teeth showing and all.

But today was different, today we'd go and watch the sunset and wait for the stars to appear in the sky. I didn't question him why, so I just said okay. We entered his car, and he turns his head to face me. "Where to miss?" He said, raising his eyebrows.