We sat on an old oak bench in my terrace and it was New Year’s Eve and even though the lights outlining the structures of the houses in my neighborhood potentially blinded us,they weren’t much of a competition for the pitch – black veil above us.I sometimes wonder how many secrets the night sky possesses that turned it so melancholic – yet the stars prove that even melancholy is beautiful.
“Have you ever tried counting the stars?”,he asked,raising his arms up into the air pointing to the cloudy sky as though he could touch the clouds caressing the stars.
“Nope”,I murmured ,meekly shoving my right hand in the pocket of my coat out of nervousness and warming the left one by pressing it against my over-sized mug of coffee toasting my lap. He looked at me and smiled after puffing his cigarette. His amber locks came up to his forehead and his eyes gleamed into my soul. The aroma of my coffee assorted with the whiff of his burnt tobacco made the air soupy and I felt the muscles of my eyes relaxing. Before he could say anything else,I asked him.”Isn’t that impossible?”
For a moment he didn’t say anything but after crushing the powerless cigarette now burning the filter,he said,”It is but you see with you impossibilities become viable and tonight, the sky is being honored by just one star-and that is you, love.”
I woke up with perspiration streaming down my neck and breathing felt like an effort. In front of me,behind the pastel curtains overlooking the terrace, I saw the old oak bench staring back at me, reflecting the pale moonlight. Maybe that’s why a diamond that shines by itself is called a solitaire.
“Happy New Year” I whispered to myself when the faint noise of the fireworks could be heard along with the indistinct commotion of people cheering. Even the sky didn’t appear to be inky now – but it was temporary gratification.
–END–
