Romeo and Juliet The Story of Two Binary Stars

Romeo and Juliet

The Story of Two Binary Stars

The Prologue

Two scientists, both aligned in research,

In Caltech, where we begin our workday,

From Greek scholars to modern scientists,

Where ancient studies inspire new research.

From the barycenter of Sirius

A pair of stars will take each other’s lives;

Whose supernova ends their common orbit

Do with its explosion ends the stars light.

The supernova will be violent,

And the light of the brightest star in the sky,

Which nothing but the stars death can remove,

Is now the two years of our team's research;

The which of you with eyes turned to the sky,

What you whish to know, we strive to answer.

The laws of physics apply equally to all places in the universe and all things in existence follow these laws in the same way. Be it the brightest star in the night sky or a team of researchers, within the laws of physics we all behave the same. This is an indisputable fact of the universe, that no matter how different two things may be they are bound by the laws of physics in equal measure.

Two years ago, I began leading a research fellowship on the study of binary stars, with a special focus on Sirius A and Sirius B. Sirius A is the brightest star in the night sky, its light has captivated scholars and stargazers for centuries, perhaps millennia, but if you look closely, you will see two stars whose lives are irrevocably intertwined by a shared gravitational bond and an exchange of matter that links both together like a golden thread.

Sirius A and Sirius B, the star crossed lovers of the observable universe. Despite one being a main sequence star and one a white dwarf star they have stayed together locked in their orbit and mass exchange for millennia and will stay intrinsically linked until their inevitable supernova returns them back to star dust.

In my time observing the two stars I have come to the conclusion that the behaviour of the heavenly bodies and the behaviours of their earthly onlookers are in fact, the same.

My relationship with Jack was not an easy relationship, Jack was a military man through and though and I have a self destruct button built into me. I grew up in Vancouver and he in Charleston, we were born thousands of kilometers away from each other and we grew into very different people, but despite the improbability of meeting and the unlikelihood of getting along upon meeting, we fell into each others lives just as two stars fall into each others gravity.

“Your name is actually Venus?” These were Jack’s first words to me, a young Sargent who wished to climb the ranks as quickly as possible, in a neatly pressed suit with hair that refused to sit right. It wasn’t unusual to see military officials around universities, but my research was useless to a military or a private military contractor. “Who are you?” I asked staying in the doorway. “I am Sargent, Jack Montgomery. Yes, that is my actual name. What about you?” He said with the cheesiest grin I had ever seen on a man, and he looked so proud of himself for his “joke”.

“I though it was a great first impression.” He would tell me as he laid his head on my thigh. We were on our third date, and it had been raining all week, so he made us an indoor picnic complete with a projector of the night sky to light up the living room. “What’s your favourite thing up there?” He asked, as we looked up at the stars rotating around his living room ceiling. “The Sirius stars.” I said softy, then asked, “What about you?” He hummed lost in thought, “I’ve always liked Venus.” He said, he’s always been a smooth talker.

My team’s research quickly became fruitful, but it never seemed to satisfy me; or anyone one my team for that matter. We were cut from the same cloth, children who never stopped looked up at the sky and looking for answers. Now that we are adults we want to answer these questions. Sirius has been one of the most researched stars in history, my research is a direct descendent of ancient Greek scholars and I stand on their shoulders. “What do you want Venus?” Jack asked as I combed over my papers, it was two in the morning. “I want to be the one to figure out these stars, there are things physics has not told us yet and I want to know.” I said as he carefully removed my papers from my hands. “I want answers about them.” I whisper as he lifts me into his arms, he smells a bit like gunpowder. “Venues, tell me how your stars work.” He tells me as he airlifts me to our bedroom.

Jack was stationed at a base in Germany two months after we began seeing each other and I felt severed, but we never really left each other, whenever we could steal time, we would find each other. There was always an exchange of each others time, our conversation, and affection. It was during this time that I found a common understanding with Sirius.

Sirius A and B are very far apart, about 25 times the distance between Earth and the Sun and yet they will only truly be separated when one of them finishes their supernova. Until then they will be inseparable, constantly feeding each other with their star dust. Sirius A will continue to burn bright only snuffed out by the Supernova of Sirius B.

“Good morning, Venus.” Jack coos. He’s been back in California for 27 hours and for 12 of them we have spent curled up around each other. One year and 8 weeks of distance, of looking for any chance to close that distance, is finally and mercifully over. “Good morning, Jack.” I said against his chest.

Since that day we have not been separated and after two years together I think only death will part us. Something I don’t like thinking about because I know that it will be my fault that we fall out of our barycenter. My mom died when I was 17, she is the one who named me Venus as it was her favourite heavenly body. My mom gave me many things; her intelligence, her eyes, and sometimes I wonder if I look up at the sky long enough, I’ll find her again. I don’t want Jack to do that too. My mom and I will die of the same thing, Huntington’s Chorea.

“I had a dream last night that we got married.” Jack whispered. “I had a dream last night too.” I struggled to speak without falling apart. “And what did you dream off?” Jack asked as he pulled me into his arms, our heads sharing a pillow. “I dreamt that I died.” I whispered into the night.

“Why wont you marry me?” Jack asked looking up at the night sky. We were on the balcony watching the sky slowly grow lighter. “I am going to die Jack, before we get old.” The night sky always made me feel a part of something but tonight I just feel small and mortal. “We all die Venues; everything, roses will die and so would any other type of flower. Your Sirius will go into a supernova one day. And I want to go out with you.” He spoke softy and wrapped me in his arms. “We’ll go out like your two Sirius stars; we’ll be just like Romeo and Juliet. You and me baby, always.” He says before he gets down on one knee.

After two years our fellowship was changing, I stood in my empty lab and looked at Sirius one last time from my monitor. “Did you get the answers that you were looking for?” Jack leans against the doorway with his cheeky grin. “I did, our team did a great job, and I am very…” Jack cuts me off, “That’s not what I meant. Venues, did you find your answers?” I did, Sirius A and B gave me more peace with myself then I would have ever found without the stars. “I did Jack. I found that we are a lot like stars.” I gather my things and walk into his arms, and he speaks again, “Well, a very wise women once told me that we are a lot like stars, we made of star dust. We are all just stars, and you are my brightest.”

Jack and I are star crossed lovers, bond together much like Sirius A and Sirius B. Our behaviour is the same behaviour you can see when you study the stars.

I was 67 when I died. I was extremely lucky my symptoms occurred later in life because I got more time on Earth. Jack and I had spent the year slowly saying goodbye. However, I didn’t realize at the time that Jack was also saying goodbye. I died in Vancouver, Jack brough me here because of Canada’s lax laws on medical assisted suicide. I fell asleep in Jack’s arms, and he only let me go when he knew I was gone and only before reaching into his nightstand and grabbing a handful of sleeping pills. Then he laid back down beside me. “Just like Romeo and Juliet, just like your stars.” And those were the last words he said.

In a billion or so years the Sirius stars will go the same way as us, the same way as all star crossed lovers, be it humans or be it stars.