Light

8:33 pm

The night began with how a day should’ve, with a conglomerate of flashing lights. Confused expressions and perplexing questions of what is happening are all I saw before the wave of shadows took over the sleepless city. Amidst the night’s tears and the crackle of laughing sparks, all I could sense was her hand clinging onto mine and the cries of the people all around the apartment, begging for an answer to why their world was immediately shaded into black.

8:55 pm

We clung onto each other in an iron grip, never letting go, as we tried to feel our way around like toddlers trying to walk. I bump my knee onto the kitchen table and she trips over a lamp before we could find the flashlight. We herded around for the light and we stayed seated on the couch, waiting for this to pass. Surely this couldn’t last for too long? And, almost perfectly, God answered with another roar of thunder as electricity arcs from the posts below. We were in for a long cold night and we only had each other to keep warm.

9:22 pm

The ground below us was in utter chaos. We could hear panic as glass shatters and people grunt and scream. Someone or some group was down there, abusing the helpless and taking what they can. This dire situation just got worse. She clings next to me and whimpers a bit, between the darkness, panic, and outcry of looters, her anxiety must be acting up. I embrace her tightly with the blanket we shared. I needed to say something, I needed to do something or we risk another disaster, one on a more personal level. “I’m so scared”, she mumbles and I just repeatedly assure her that things will be alright. “We’re on the fifth floor, they’d have to go through everyone before they get to us and by that time the police will have been alerted.” She only nudges me doubtfully as she says, “But who will call the police with no power?”

10:03 pm

The fire started as soon as the storm subsided. What irony as our glass window reflects the dazzling flames across the street. The building down the block is on fire and we hear the people shout for any sort of salvation. She clings onto me, shaking this time, and hyperventilating. I tell her to calm down, forgetting that meager words aren’t enough. 

“I-I can’t feel my hands” she stutters, and she looks at me pleading for help. In the light of the roaring flames, her blue eyes never looked more beautiful, but those eyes carried so much fear, panic, and doubt. She must have seen me gawking because she looks away confused and deeper into the clutches of her anxiety. I look outside, almost as if I was going to ask God for an answer when I see it. It was a long shot but maybe just maybe it will let her breathe easier. I nudge for her to look outside and she refuses almost immediately. 

“I don’t want to see anymore!” she pleads but I assuredly pat her and point upwards to the sky. It takes a few moments, but eventually she musters the courage to look outward and she gasps in awe. With the storm subsided and the city shrouded in complete darkness, we could see what we couldn’t see. Something we’ve neglected and only been hearing about in fantasy stories and fairy tales; the swirling maelstrom of stars and nebulas above us. I whisper to her ear, “Look isn’t it beautiful?” she could only nod as her jaw remains dropped. I smile and my heart begins to calm down as well, she seems to be more at peace now, staring into the raw splendor of the universe’s creation.

12:00 am

People were panicking below. Echoes of carnage and chaos shocked us out of the surreal moment, but just as quickly we are able to chase back the wonder. The moment was almost inconceivably crafted by some mad omnipotent being. Us, together and holding hands, amidst the chaos below rises a painting of stars and galaxies. It's painful but also so inspiring. I turn and the lights seem to dance in her eyes as she stares. I wanted to tell her the truth. I came to her apartment to break-up with her, but now I am amazed at how I never saw how much beauty she can hold in her eyes. It makes me feel so light on my feet, I wanted to dip my hand into the star spangled panorama and bring her a cup of the universe like an offering to a goddess. Any moment any looter could've broken into our apartment building but that doesn't matter. Between the dazzling splendor of the stars and her blinding radiance, dancing amongst the thrill of danger, I never felt more alive.

5:03 am

We seat there, stargazing our concerns away. By all means we were scared and frightened at what might lurk below, but with the rainbow of sparkling lights above, it’s hard to remember the fear.

“Who knew this was above us all along?” she says, hugging my arm. It confused me and so I say, “We did. It’s always been above us. I guess we just forgot.” 

She chuckles a bit, “Yeah, who knew that having the world go into darkness is what let us see the light.”

I smile, she has always been such a poet. “It’s kinda sad to think that after all of this, when the power goes back on, we won’t see the stars anymore.”

She lightly punches my shoulder, “No they won’t, whatcha talking about?” she giggles. “They’re always there, and they will always be there, we just never notice them. It doesn’t mean they aren’t there. Think of it like this, years from now, when another blackout happens, people will stare at the same beautiful sky as we do. Maybe it’ll just be for a few hours or even a few minutes but they will have the same feelings evoked as we do.”

“And what feeling is that?”

“Light” 

And almost perfectly, the day begins with the flashing of lights signaling that the night was over.