After our shower together, we leave the locker room a full hour after we entered. Because of our time-consuming activities, we have to rush to the planetarium to meet Perez's dad. Jack pulls his car into the empty parking lot just on time.

Perez's dad--Mr. Perez, I guess--lets us into the lobby of the planetarium, giving us the keys to lock up and instructions to be out of here before seven am.

That sounds like more than enough time for me to experience the best night of my life.

It's dark all around, with light only emanating from the ceiling, where tiny, luminescent stars glow in the darkness. I wrap my arm around Jack's body, tucking myself under his arm as we walk slowly down the hallway from the lobby to the actual planetarium. Small planets seem to float above our heads, hung from the ceiling with invisible string.

I imagine this place is cool during the daytime, but it feels utterly magical at night. I tell this to Jack, who just smiles and tells me to hold my breath for the main attraction.

The planetarium is huge, with a giant curved ceiling that makes me dizzy looking up at it. I'm pretty sure my mouth hangs open as I stare at the projection of the galaxy above me. "Woah," I whisper, stopping in my tracks to take in the view. The projection is moving, making me feel as if I'm in a spaceship traveling through space. I feel like I'm far away from Earth, away from all my problems and worries.

Or maybe that's just a side-effect of Jack's hand being twined around mine.

I look back at Jack, catching him watching me with a smile. I blush, slightly embarrassed. "I've just never seen anything like it," I laugh, looking back at the ceiling. "I feel like a kid right now."

"I was hoping you'd like it." Jack looks up at the ceiling with me. Then I feel his hand gently tugging mine into the room. "Come here. I want to show you something."

I find it hard to believe that this could get any better, but I follow him with a newfound excitement anyway. He leads me between the rows of chairs, down to the front of the planetarium, where there seems to be some sort of stage.

I slow my steps when I see what Jack is leading me to. On the stage is a pile of pillows and blankets. He said we could stay the night, but I didn't really think about where we would actually be sleeping. Honestly, I would've been happy just sleeping on the cold, hard floor, as long as I was with him.

But this is more than I could have imagined. Jack made a bed for us literally under the stars. Jack lifts me up onto the stage before joining me, watching me for my reaction.

"You set this all up?" I ask. I notice a bunch of food next to the pillows and blankets. Upon closer inspection, I realize they're all my favorite snacks.

"No, I actually had Mya plan this all, and I just had to show up here with you. I'm just as surprised as you are."

My happiness falls the tiniest bit, but I try to not let it show through. "Oh."

Jack laughs, kissing my cheek when he sees me frown. "Yes, I set this all up." He lowers himself onto the pile, pulling me down next to him. The makeshift bed is a lot more comfortable than it looks.

I wrap my arms around him, leaning forward so his back hits the pillows and I'm on top of him. Jack presses his hand on the back of my neck and pulls me down for a kiss.

We stay like that for an unknown stretch of time, concerned only with the feeling of the other's lips against our own. I don't need to take his clothes off to feel drunk on his presence, and from the lack of Jack's protests as we just keep kissing, I assume he feels the same way.

After a while though, my lips start to feel raw, my face sensitive from the feeling of his slight subtle rubbing against my skin. When Jack pulls away, his lips are just as red as mine, only making me want to kiss him again and again.

"Seven a.m is gonna come too soon," Jack groans, rolling over onto his back. He turns his head to me. "Are you hungry?" He sits up, prepared to reach for whatever I could want.

I think for a second before shaking my head. Then I wrap my hand around his arm, pulling him so he's laying back down next to me. "Food is probably the last thing on my mind right now." I laugh and rest my head on his bicep, draping my legs over his.

Jack's hand points up to the ceiling. "Look."

I look up at the ceiling to see that the scene has changed. Instead of a zoomed-out view of the galaxy, it's projecting a realistic view of the night sky. The stars are perfectly visible and bright, dotting the 'sky' above us. I decide that I like this view even more.

"Want to hear a story?" he asks.

I smile. "Always."

"Alright." Jack pretends to clear his throat. "There once was a—"

"No, no, no," I interrupt, shaking my head. "You have to start it with 'Once upon a time'. Have you never told a story before?"

"Fine, fine. Didn't know I was entertaining a story connoisseur," Jack says, adjusting his arm around me. "Once upon a time, there were two stars who lived right next to each other."

"These stars are sentient?"

He laughs. "Yes, these particular stars are sentient."

"Okay, continue."

"Thank you for your permission. Now, where was I?"

"The stars live right next to each other. Which actually raises another question: do they have houses? Or are they just existing in a specific place?"

"No, Scar, stars don't live in houses," he says, exasperated.

"Well, stars also aren't sentient. I'm just trying to get the facts straight." I pause. "Okay, I think I'm ready for you to continue with the story."

"Continue?" Jack laughs. "I haven't even started it!"

"It's not my fault your story has technical flaws."

"You're right. I am so sorry." Jack collects himself, trying to contain his amusement. "Okay, so these two stars, they exist near each other. They were named Lux and Ren."

He pauses. "No questions this time?"

I smile. "Oh, I have a million, staring with if these stars have genders. Do they have genitals?"

This actually stumps Jack. "You may imagine that they do if you so desire."

"I do desire, as a matter of fact."

"Perfect." He finds where he left off in a story. "So Lux and Ren loved each other very much."

I nod. "Like, in love?"

"Maybe, maybe not. They loved each other the way stars love each other. They'd been together since they were stellar nebulas and everything."

"'Stellar nebulas?'" I turn my head, looking at him with surprise. "Since when did you know all these star terms?"

"Since I decided I wanted to show off to you with all my astronomy knowledge. May I continue?"

I stop talking. He kisses the side of my head, finally getting into the story. "Lux loved Ren, and Ren loved Lux. They were always together."

"So what was the catch?" I ask.

"The catch was: Lux loved to explore. Lux would travel to other galaxies all the time, wanting to see as much of the universe as possible. It made Ren sad whenever Lux would leave, but Ren loved Lux so much that Ren waited patiently every time. In fact, when Lux would leave, Ren would never stop looking, waiting for Lux to return. It taught Ren patience—how to wait for those you love."

"Sounds like Ren loved Lux more than Lux loved Ren."

I feel Jack shake his head. "No, Lux loved Ren enough to come back every time, to push aside their dreams of exploring to return. They loved each other equally, they just had different ways of showing it."

I'm silent, letting his words sink in. I would've never thought to think about it like that.

Jack continues. "But one day, Lux traveled too far, to a galaxy so far away that home wasn't visible at all. Nothing looked familiar." He pauses for effect. "Lux was lost, with no way of getting home."

I look up at Jack and notice a far-off look in his eyes as if he's lost in his own story.

"Deep down, Ren always knew that Lux would return." He pulls me closer to him, and I find myself searching for his heartbeat. "So when thousands of years passed, Ren knew that Lux was lost. Ren knew that Lux would never leave on purpose."

"How?" I look up at his face, which is tilted up to the ceiling. "How could they be so sure?"

He smiles down at me. "Ren just knew. After years of waiting, Ren knew how to be patient."

I nudge him, wanting him to go on with this story. "How did Lux get home?"

"Why are you so sure that Lux makes it back home?"

"Because you're a hopeless romantic, and they have to have a happy ending together."

Jack chuckles. "Fair enough. Here's what happened: Ren knew only one way to bring Lux back."

"How?"

Jack takes a breath. "Ren died."

I startle in his arms, not expecting that. "Ren what? What the fuck?"

But Jack isn't stirred. "Ren died. To bring Lux home. You see, when a star dies, they don't just die. They explode, releasing all their energy in the form of light. A supernova."

Slowly, I see where this story is going. "Ren died to become a beacon for Lux to navigate home?"

He nods, his fingers threading mindlessly through my hair. "And it worked. Lux saw the supernova from galaxies away and finally went home."

I stay silent, waiting for him to keep going with the story. But he just keeps combing his fingers through my hair, and I realize the story is over. "That's depressing," I say sadly. "I thought you were going to tell me a happy story."

"I don't think there's such thing as a happy story," Jack says. "Some stories are destined for tragedy. But it's in the midst of tragedy that you can find a love unlike any other. A connection so powerful that only tragedy could have created it. So powerful that it can withstand anything that comes after."

I hug my arm around Jack tighter, suddenly feeling like I never want to let him go. "Did you just think of that story?"

I don't expect Jack's body to tense the tiniest bit, but it does. "No," he admits. "My dad used to tell me that story all the time. When I was little." He swallows hard, and I wonder if he's getting emotional. "The last time he told it to me was the night of my seventh birthday. The next morning, he was gone. And that story was all I had left of him."

Jack barely talks about his father, and this glimpse into his relationship with Jack is the most intimate thing he's ever told me. And I feel honored to be the one he shares it with.

It almost brings tears to my eyes—the thought of seven-year-old Jack repeating that story to himself after his dad left his family. Wondering what he could possibly do to bring his father back. Thinking of how he could shine bright enough to maybe catch his father's attention. To be enough for him to return to.

Then I think of the way I left him and how Jack never lost hope that I would come back to him.

"In my version of the story," I place my hand on his jaw, tilting his head down to look at me, "Lux realizes that the entire universe doesn't compare to a day with Ren. Ren never has to sacrifice anything or wait another second for Lux to return, because Lux never leaves again. They spend the rest of their millions of years together, burning brighter every day."

Jack places his hand over mine. "I like your version."

Then I look back at the sky, pointing to two stars that are shining brighter than the others, seeming to circle one another. "Look, that's them right there."

I know I'm trying to rewrite history, to write over the pain in Jack's past by showing him that leaving isn't synonymous to love. Love doesn't always have to be tragic. And from now on, I'll do anything in my power to make sure that ours is anything but.

Jack stares at the two stars I'm pointing toward, the sadness on his face slowly dissolving. "I love you," I whisper, and I've never meant anything more than I mean those three words.

Jack looks away from the stars and kisses me. "I love you," he says, "as many times as there are stars in the sky."

We lay with our heads mere inches apart, choosing to gaze at each other instead of the stars above us. And I know deep in my soul that this is the view that I want to see for the rest of my life. The stars and galaxies be damned, as long as he's beside me, my heart will be full.

Jack's hand softly strokes up and down my arm as he holds me, and I find myself getting tired. I feel so calm right now, more at peace than I ever remember being. I try to keep my eyes open for as long as possible, watching the light from the projection shine down and dance over Jack's features.

"Go to sleep," Jack says quietly. "I'll be here when you wake up."

I let my eyes flutter shut. "Promise?"

"Promise." I feel him kiss my eyelids gently. "I'll always be here."

♔

I wake up to a loud noise. Jack's still beside me, but he's sitting up, looking around. "You hear that?" he asks me. "We're supposed to be the only people in here."

I sit up next to him. But before I can say anything, something even weirder happens: everything turns off. We're plunged into paralyzing darkness when the projector turns off, taking away the only light in this room. A deafening silence also surrounds us as the air conditioning turns off.

"Jack?" I don't know why I'm whispering.

"I'm right here." His hand reaches over and covers mine, calming me slightly. "We're getting out of here. Now."

I scoot closer to Jack, holding onto his arm. I don't say anything, but I'm guessing he feels the uneasiness rolling off of me. My discomfort eases up when Jack shines his phone's flashlight in front of us, at least giving us our sense of sight back. But that sense of comfort is stripped away when Jack hands me his phone, standing up.

"Go to the car," he says, keeping his voice steady. "I need to lock up."

"I'll go with you," I say, not letting go of his arm. At the very least, he should take his own phone. "It's dark. Someone could be in here."

"Exactly. That's why I don't want you in here." He takes my hand when he realizes I have no intention of letting him go. At least not without me. "Scar, it's probably just a trip in the breaker. It's nothing. But I need to lock up for Mr. Perez."

I shine the flashlight up between us so I can look at his face. Not wanting us to spend more time in this building than necessary, I nod. "Take your flashlight." I hand it toward him.

"Can you use your phone's flashlight?" I shake my head, remembering my phone is dead. Jack pushes his phone back to me. "Take it. You'll need it to find your way to the entrance."

My uneasiness is growing by the second, but I try to keep the panic out of my voice. "But you can't see anything." I grip his hand tighter. I know I'm probably being annoying, but I don't want him to be wandering around in the dark.

He kisses my forehead quickly before slipping his hand from mine. "I'll be out of here in no time." He smooths the crease between my eyebrows. "Don't worry about me."

That's like asking me not to breathe, I want to tell him. But knowing arguing over the flashlight is a losing battle, I let him walk off in the opposite direction of the entrance. I watch him until the flashlight's light can't reach him.

Then I turn around and rush to the exit, feeling the fear of being alone in this pitch-black place. The hallway that I thought was so magical before, now feels like a never-ending entrance to hell. The planets hang ominously above me, shining like glowing eyes in the darkness when my flashlight hits them.

I let out a breath of relief when I push through the entrance doors, stepping out of the planetarium. Right away, my first instinct is to look behind me, optimistically hoping that Jack finished whatever he was doing and is right behind me.

But I'm still alone.

I all but run to Jack's car—the only one in the lot—propelled forward by the paranoid notion that someone is right behind me. I don't look back until I get to Jack's car and behind fumbling in my pocket for the keys. I almost smile, amused by my own paranoia, when I see that there's no one in this parking lot with me.

I unlock the car, counting my own heartbeats and keeping my eyes on the entrance of the planetarium, hoping to see Jack burst through the doors any second.

I'm at twenty-four heartbeats when a hand slides over my mouth and I feel something sharp pressed against my neck.

A familiar voice whispers in my ear from behind. A voice I was hoping to never hear again.

"Waiting for someone?"

♔

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