LOVE IN THE STARS

The fire in front of me was just trying to live on in the wind. The little twigs I was putting in was like just enough for its survival, but I knew that’s what the fire needed now. There were some small sparks of fire flying out whenever I pushed the stick into the fire and as they rose I was wondering if these sparks which I see in front of the stars which I see above me in the sky are one. If someone out there in the skies is playing with their campfire and that’s what I see from here.

But somewhere in those stars, I could see my parents. In those stars somewhere like an inseparable pair. I still remember those days when I used to come out camping with my parents and talking to my dad and seeing how a lot he has learned from this world was really a surprise to me. I could never be wise like my dad. And my mother’s part of camping was always the same, just fall asleep leaning on to my dad. For her, he was the world and that may be the reason she left her home to be his bride. My granddad was from Mexico and he hated their relationship so they had to elope.

Talking to my dad was always something I yearned for during our campings. He was not much educated to be talking about astronomy or crazy science stuff, but he talked a lot about life. He never wanted me to be a successful millionaire, but to be a good human and help anyone or everyone possible. I still remember the statement which he used to say “What someone can give to the society is not money or other things, but help in the making of a better generation”.

I was always inspired by that and tried my best to be a contribution to the society by my father, and that might be the reason may be for me never striving to be the best but always trying to be someone useful to the society and that’s how I started the old-age home for those elderly who have none, after leaving my highly paid job as I felt that I’ve made enough for me to live happily. Today it’s my dad’s birthday and it's my routine since he passed away to spend time alone with a campfire and some beer.

I still remember that last campfire with my dad, when he asked me whether I love someone. I don’t know why he asked that, but my answer was quite simple, “no dad, not yet. I still did not find her.” He smiled back and told “don’t rush my son, just wait for the right person. Sometimes she might come in a little late into your life, she may be from anywhere even from the stars. But son you are the best person and I feel proud of what I’ve achieved in my life whenever I see, so for you son may be the girl ought to come from the stars”. I just smiled and said,” Dad I’m not a great person as you think of me, I’m just the example of good parenting.” We had two beers that night and dad could still feel my mom leaning onto him even though she passed away two months before that. Even though I could feel that dad had become soft and maybe a little weak after mom’s death I never expected that he too will leave me alone.

That day, at my old age home after lunch when I and dad were walking through the corridors, he suddenly felt dizzy and I immediately rushed him to the hospital. On the way even in pain, he smiled and said, “your mother’s alone without me, so I need to go”. I told him not to speak such things and I would be left alone but when the doctors declared him dead I did not feel angry at him but adored him for his love for my mother.

While looking at those stars I felt a star was shining a little brighter than others, then as I went on observing that I saw that it was becoming brighter. I was a little surprised and looked at my beer to check if it was my usual brand or something new which got me high. Then I realized that it must be shooting star and remembered what my mother always said, “wish for something son, but don’t be greedy in wishing just for yourself .” I was thinking of wishing something for Mrs. Andrews at the old age home but I think it was all of a sudden the shooting star became too bright and I definitely think it was a meteorite that struck nearby. It sent a shockwave, even though minor it put out my fire and in the darkness, I was searching for my matchbox. My wonderful evening thinking about my dad was disturbed by a rock from the sky. Then I thought why again light the fire and I snuck into my van to have a good night sleep and thought that in the morning I’ll go looking for that bloody meteorite.

Maybe the beer had an effect or the meteorite but I woke up with a small headache. I got out of my van and walked a little and felt a strong urge to leave the water from my body. As I was pissing, I thought about yesterday’s meteorite and made a plan to walk to that location.

I did a little morning pushup which I’m very much habituated to, and then had some fruits and started walking towards the crash spot. I may have walked around 2miles I found a small crater. But remembering yesterday night’s impact I thought it would have been a lot bigger than what I saw and I could not find any meteor there. But me deciding on the size of a crater was like a baby deciding on what degree to pursue to be a programmer, so I took some pics of that and walked back to my van. It was almost noon and I needed to back at the old age home as there were some repairs to be done and an electrician, a friend of mine told, that he would be there by 3.

After I reached home, I immediately got into the shower and freshened up. I needed to head quickly to the old age home as John might be there and he’s literally an irritable old man and he might shout at someone at the old age home. He used to look after not only the electrical works but many other issues and to say he was a Jack of All Trades. My dad and he have been friends for so long that I can remember any time when they were not friends. He was family and he considered me his son as he never married nor had any children and he even went to the extent of making me the heir of all his properties. He was grumpy to everyone but always sweet to me.

I was quick to reach the old age home and maybe within two minutes of me reaching John was there and I saw a girl with him. He waved a hi to me, which was a little out of the ordinary since when I was a kid he always came near me and patted on my back but never waved at me. I thought this is something new, but he and the girl came close to me and he said: “Hello Kevin, how are you? ”. I was shocked, what's with the new style. From since I’ve been seeing John he always used to call me Kidzo and he never asked me how are you and all but just patted on my back and said, “God bless you kidzo, I know all is fine as all my prayers are with you.”

I casually asked him “What's up John and why are you behaving so weird?” and he immediately stopped for a second and he shook his head a little and rubbed his eyes and told, “Don’t know why kidzo but I’ve been feeling a little awkward from morning ”. He then introduced me to his niece Sicily, he told me that he has a sister whom he hasn’t met from long and Sicily came looking for him as it was his sister’s last wish. She was not a very beautiful girl for me to be mesmerized but she does definitely have a set of beautiful blue eyes. I was deep in thought looking at her eyes when she suddenly put her hand forward for a shake hand and I reciprocated. I have met many girls, but the eyes, they were something special. They had something which I never saw in anyone’s eyes. It was like a magnet pulling iron filings towards it.

With a little hesitation, I said a hi to her and she told that her name is Angel, and I would say really that name was apt for her. Two wings on her would really make her an angel. She had dark blonde hair, thick eyebrows, a parrot-like pointed nose, and cute curved lips. Her skin had a golden tinge. She said, ”from when I met him, my uncle has been talking only about you. You seem to mean a lot to him.” “That’s very sweet of him. I’ve been his unborn son and he too means a lot to me. He’s the person I respect after my dad.” As I looked at John while I said all this I could sense a feel of pride in him and I too felt that warmth in my heart.

Then we walked in and I was showing the old age home to Angel. The elderly people were happy to see a guest and for everyone there, I was like a son. The old lady Anna pulled me and as I lowered myself to her wheelchair, she whispered in my ears, “you do like her, Kevin and don’t try to lie to me.” Immediately I looked around to make sure that Angel was no where near and told Anna, “there is nothing like that Anna, it's just that she seems to attract me” and she just responded by saying “it all begins like that.” Even though I brushed aside all those thoughts and wanted to pretend to be a good guide to her in showing the home, somewhere in me, her eyes and then slowly she as a whole was attracting me. I was feeling like the moon revolving around the earth, just moving around her but never leaving her.

She was sweet to all the people at my home and they too like the way she spoke to them. While she was being with them I and John decided to look at all the repair works which needed an immediate look into. I think it was around 5 by the time we finished our work and returned to the recreation room where I saw Angel listening keenly to everyone’s story there like a small kid. First I was just attracted to her but now the way she behaved with the elderly was making me feel that she’s someone who loves those, who have none to love and in between I looked at Anna and she just smiled at me and looked at Angel.

I came to know that Angel is going to stay with John for a few months and somewhere in me there was a spark of joy but I never showed it. After a few days, Angel started coming regularly to the home and having more interactions with the elderly. Slowly we too started having more conversations but something in me told me that she was hiding something from everyone. Eventually, I put aside all those thoughts and just walked where my heart took me to.

The small chats between us turned to longer conversations and sometimes when we took out Anna in her wheelchair, Anna would nudge me whenever I was dumbstruck by Angel’s beauty and would forget to reply to something Angel would ask me. Day by day Angel also started feeling my love and one day upon Anna’s advice I proposed to Angel.

That day I asked Angel whether she’s interested in a campfire outing and she immediately agreed to that. From the home itself, we started out to my favorite spot for a campfire. We lit the fire and I handed over her a soda and took out one for myself. Looking at the stars I asked what she feels about them and what she said shocked me. She said that her parents live there and I was quick to respond that I too feel the same. She simply smiled at me and asked, “would you like to say something to me Kevin?”

I think telling a girl that you love her is really a tough task and with all my courage I told that to her. She smiled and said. “ I too love you Kevin, but you might have to wait for me” and I was like “what is this now, why to wait when you are here with me, do you need to go somewhere.”

I’ll tell you something Kevin,”I love you more than anyone in this universe but I’m a lot different than what you can even imagine.” For a moment I was like I find my soulmate and the next moment my soulmate doesn’t want to be my soulmate for some weird reason, what a paradox.

I asked her what that great reason might be and for that she told, “You need to promise me something Kevin, whatever happens, and whatever I might reveal to you about me, you must never hate me, as I cannot take that from you. You mean a lot to me and the love you show me is something I cannot miss in this universe. I hope you won't show disgust or hate towards me”. The love with she said that to me and those wonderful expressions in her eyes made me do that promise.

Then she moved two steps away and pressed her pendant, and then I had the shock of my life, a bright light glowed and she was turning into someone I couldn’t have guessed in a million dreams. Her hair grew longer and darker, her hands were the same but her feet turned into tentacles and she was bright like a diamond. Her skin appeared to be a little paler and she grew two wings and for a second I thought she was some angel as her name, but those eyes remained same. I was frozen and not even a small whisper was coming out from my mouth.

She then bent her head downwards and asked, “Do you hate me now, do I look disgusting, if yes please nod, don’t even say it, I won't be able to bear that” and I could see a few tears welling up in her eyes. Even though she definitely looked weirder, the innocence and love in her eyes really covered up her weirdness. For me the love for was everything, I loved her heart and not her appearance and I just went ahead and embraced her close to my heart. I could feel her heart beating faster, even though it was weird and then she slowly melted into my arms. I lifted her face with my finger on her chin and looked at her with all the love in this universe and kissed her and she too kissed me back.

After the kiss, we sat close to the fire but now she was leaning on to me like my mom used to lean on my dad. Then she starting speaking, “Do you remember Kevin, the last time you were here and you saw a meteorite crash” and I replied “Yes, but I saw nothing there the next day” and she started telling me the whole thing. “My people are from a planet called Xersex and we are basically a record-keeping race of the universe. I’m a scientist on my planet and my parents and sister live there. I had come here for researching how advanced your race has become and we come every 22 years to check that. We age similar to humans but as our technology is very advanced it takes us only 5 months to get to my planet from Earth. Generally, we look up for some old people who have no one and add a little of our story and live with them for some time and leave back after our research is done. But I saw you as soon as I landed here and like they say in my planet, when soulmates are found you don’t need their race, country or even planet, you just connect to them unknowingly. Today my research is done and I’ll have to leave but I’ll be back in a year to take you to my planet as you have to meet my parents.”

I smiled and told her, “I think meeting the parents is a rule, how much ever advanced, a civilization is” and she nudged me and gave a peck. I loved that and said to her, “ That’s not a problem, you go and come back and I’m ready to come with you, as I don’t have anyone else left here” and she responded, “You’ll always have me, dear, from now on.” After we spent that evening she left to her planet.

Today I lay here at the same place after a year looking up at the stars waiting for my love to be back. A star is shining brighter and I know it is her. I’ve been waiting and can wait no more………….