beryllium¹ shafts bisect the auburn stratosphere, careful not to graze the

edges of the yellow sun slouching on the horizon. "It's caused by an atmospheric

refraction of light," you whisper, lips imparting trivia slid from textbooks

meant to be forgotten after cumulative science exams. Rivers of ochre

fade into the impending night sky as your index finger caked with

chipping black nail polish winds the barrel of your digital camera —

*CLICK 7:59: the green ray is there

**CLICK 8:00: it's gone

"they said it was impossible to capture," you say, grinning. "well, now I've got it."

clouds stained blood orange begin to descend, but you insist upon staying —

on hearing the lapping of grey waves on Mars sand below, on hearing the laughter

of tourists before they leave to crash for the night. I want to go down and make a

sand castle with the kids but you didn't want to be left alone. understandable.

clad in fishnet stockings & fingerless gloves, a washed-out denim miniskirt, and

that neon tank — some people might get the wrong idea. we wait for dark, mosquito

bites molesting the skin between our tanlines until the night’s starlines appear.

​

out of your satchel comes a plastic container of melted chocolate chip cookies, and

in your left hand you turn on our flashlight & wave it towards the sky. i tell you not

to waste the triple-A battery life but you don't listen. "you think the stars can

see us from up there?"

​

you ask me this every. damn. time. "yes," i breathe, eyes absently fixed

on the blinding cerulean emanating from Vega².

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¹A metal that typically presents as silvery but can appear green-emerald in its pure crystalline form

²The brightest star in the northern Lyra constellation and one of the most luminous in the night sky