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“You see the big dipper?”
“Uh huh.”
“If you look up and left from there, you can see the little dipper.”
“Yeah, I think I see it.”
“The star at the end of the little dipper’s tail is Polaris, which is the North Star because it lies above the North Pole.”
Nico yawned and snuggled against Maki’s side, struggling to keep her eyes open. Maki felt the warmth against her side but didn’t take her eyes off the night sky. Still, a slight smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.
“Then if you look way further down, over there,” she reached out with her arm that wasn’t claimed by Nico and pointed, “you can see the brightest star in the sky. It’s called Sirius, which comes originally from the Ancient Greek word for glowing.” Maki felt added pressure on her shoulder and this time she looked down. Nico’s head was resting peacefully on Maki’s shoulder, and now her eyes were fully shut, her mouth slightly open and strands of silky black hair falling across her beautiful, glowing face. Maki reached down to tuck the loose strands of hair behind Nico’s ear, to which the sleeping Nico smiled gently. Maki returned the smile and looked back up to the stars.
“If you look up and slightly left from Sirius, there are five stars in an upside-down Y shape. That’s the Cancer constellation. It’s my favourite one, because Cancer is your star sign and… and when I see it in the sky, it reminds me of you.” Maki could feel her emotions welling up inside her as she spoke, and she was silently thankful that Nico wasn’t awake to hear her rambling. “Wherever I am, if I can look up to the sky and see that constellation, it’s almost like you’re with me. No matter how anxious or sad I feel, when I see those stars, I feel safe and happy. And that’s all because of you.” Maki felt herself blinking back tears, and cleared her throat as softly as she could. “I never used to believe that someone’s star sign could actually reflect their personality, until I met you. They say that people with the Cancer sign are emotional, loyal, and compassionate. And those are three of the things I love about you the most.” Nico unconsciously wrapped her arms tighter around Maki’s arm, burying her face into the crook of her neck.
“You see that star at the bottom right of the constellation? It’s the brightest star in Cancer, and my favourite star in the whole night sky. No matter how many millions of stars there are in the sky, that one will always be the most special to me.” Maki felt Nico stir slightly, as the grip on her arm loosened slightly, and the grass beneath them rustled gently with the movement. “It’s because it’s called Al Tarf, which people say is from the Arabic word at-tarf, which means ‘the eye’.” Maki turned to gaze upon Nico, who was rubbing her eyes in a way that Maki found almost too adorable to handle. As Nico opened her eyes, Maki stared into them, taken in and held hostage by the alluring ruby red. The brightest star in her sky.
Nico raised an eyebrow in her newly-awoken confusion.
“What are you doing?”
Maki reached down to grab Nico’s hand, and leaned in slowly to place the softest of kisses on Nico’s cheek, cold from the pleasant breeze blowing across the field. She retreated back slightly from her lover’s face, but kept the distance between their faces close, once again her gaze locked on Nico’s eyes, a sight more dazzling than a million stars.
“Stargazing.”