Whatever Happens by Micalea Smeltzer

Author:Micalea Smeltzer [Smeltzer, Micalea]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-07-18T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eighteen

I watch out the window for Finn to come outside. It’s not like this is any different than usual. I wait for him lots of nights, but somehow this feels bigger than those nights.

When I finally see him step outside, it’s my cue to leave.

I’m already dressed warmly, my feet stuffed into a pair of fuzzy boots.

I slip outside and into the dark, carefully making my way from our yard to his, up the deck, to stop in front of him beside his giant telescope.

It’s huge, not like anything I’ve ever seen before. I’ve noticed it from my house, but up close it’s even bigger, almost the size of me. Holding out a hesitant hand, my palm hovers above the edge of the telescope.

Letting my hand drop back to my side I face Finn.

“Hi.”

Why does this boy make me so ridiculously awkward?

“Hi.” His voice echoes into the night, the faintest hint of his breath fogging the air. “You can … you can look.” He sweeps his hand toward the telescope.

I want to tell him I am looking. I’m looking at him, and as long as I’m looking at him I don’t need a night full of stars. He’s brighter than them all, he just can’t see it.

I don’t say any of that. Instead, I lower my head and peer through the lens. A gasp emits from my throat. I’ve never looked through a telescope and it’s nothing like I would’ve expected. It’s…

“Magic,” I whisper.

“Magic doesn’t exist. This does.”

My body tingles, tightening when I feel the barest pressure of Finn’s fingertips against my back.

“It’s beautiful,” I murmur, and it is. “W-What’s that I’m seeing?” I try to point with my finger in the night sky to what I see through the telescope.

“Saturn,” he answers, his voice close to my ear. His presence is all around me. I’m consumed by it. Lost in him.

Drowning.

Not too long ago I wanted to drown in memories. Now I just want to drown in Finn.

“It’s incredible.”

I’m running out of adjectives, but the view through the lens is so astounding that adequate words fail me.

“Let me show you something else.” His feather light touch leaves me as I step away from the telescope.

He does some adjustments with knobs and buttons that mean absolutely nothing to me.

“Now look.”

It’s dark, but I feel his eyes on me. I feel like he’s not just seeing the outer shell, but every single thought, emotion, and my very soul. It’s all in the intensity of his gaze. His body language. It’s so much more than a simple look.

I step up to the telescope once more.

“Oh, my God! Finn! This is incredible!” My exclamation is much too loud for the late hour, but he doesn’t shush me. I can feel happiness radiating off of him like this very real, tangible thing I can just reach out and grab.

I can see the rings around Saturn. Clearly. Fully. It’s magnificent.

“I see why you want to go to outer space now.”

It’s impossible to deny the majesty of seeing the planet so clearly.

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