Do You Know Anything About Stars?

At the last moment, they managed to catch the bus and got on, gasping for breath. After such exhaustion and the tragedy that was the public bus, Mika felt like he was going to faint. 

Saya held his hand again, which gave him some comfort. Saya sat at the window and looked out. The redness of the setting sun shone on the bus, creating a romantic atmosphere everywhere.

His drowsiness had intensified, and he struggled to keep his eyes open. It wouldn't hurt to doze off for a bit... An hour had passed.

"Mika, hey, wake up," Saya said.

He opened his eyes. They were still in the bus. The sky had darkened, and he was still holding Saya's hand, but now the bus was full of people.

 Something hit the left side of his head. He turned his head slowly to the left. It was Saya's shoulder. He lifted his head, and Saya looked at him.

"Sorry, I must have fallen asleep," he said.

"It's okay," Saya said in a calm voice.

He realized they were back on the bus, but this time his body didn't feel as bad. In fact, he felt somewhat okay.

"How much longer?"

"We have to get off at this stop, let's go," Saya said.

"Oops, sorry." Mika stood up, still holding hands. They got off the bus when it stopped. They walked toward the harbor.

Mika pulled out his phone. He had a message from his father.

"My dad left a message... He said they went to the bar, we'll be back a little later, we made some food for you. Eat your food," he read.

"They mentioned it in the morning too," Saya said.

"Yeah, let's deal with it when we get home. By the way, did you sleep on the bus?"

"No, not really."

"Why not?"

"What if we missed our stop? I was tired, but I didn't sleep. Besides, if I was asleep and you woke me up, I might have panicked."

"Panicked?"

"Yes, you tend to panic a lot."

"Really? I didn't know..." Saya chuckled.

 "Seriously, how can you not notice that?"

"Well, I just don't get it. Isn't that normal?"

"Right..."

They walked in the dark until they reached home. Once inside, they began to prepare their meal. The moon shone right in front of them, forming a crescent. After setting the table, they ate their meal. Suddenly, the electricity in the harbor area went out.

"W-what happened?" Saya asked in surprise.

"I think the power went out," Mika said, looking towards the harbor.

Why did it go out? Hopefully, it will come back soon...

"Mika."

"Yes?"

"Look over there," Saya said.

Mika turned to see what was happening. Saya was looking at the sky. 

"There are a lot of stars out there," Mika said. After the darkness, the moonlight illuminated everything. The stars were more visible than usual compared to the city they lived in.

"This is amazing," Saya said in awe.

An idea came to Mika.

"If you want, we can go up on the deck of the yacht. There are some things to sit on, and we can watch from there."

"Sure."

On the deck were two long chairs facing each other. They both sat down. Saya lay down on one of them.

Mika's feet hurt, and lying down didn't seem to be a problem. He lay down on the other chair.

"We can watch until the power comes back on," Mika said.

"Yes," Saya said, her voice filled with calm. Her blue eyes shone in the moonlight.

 "We've been under the stars and moonlight like this before, haven't we?" Saya asked.

"Yes, but back then there were still a lot of household lights around. Now, if all the electricity on the island goes out, we're hundreds of kilometers from even the nearest light source," Mika said. 

Even the Milky Way galaxy was visible to the naked eye.

"The stars are so beautiful, aren't they?" Saya said.

"Yes."

They sat in silence for a while.

"Time go by so fast, does it, Mika? Sometimes I think about how quickly we've grown up."

"Do you think so?"

"Yes. We'll be eighteen soon, you know. We'll be considered adults, and for some reason I don't feel ready at all."

"You're right." Mika thought about his past. The years of being stuck at home, aimlessly, and the time before that, the best part of his childhood... 

It's been almost four months since we met. We've been through so much in that time. Saya was right. It's hard to believe, even for me. My first plea for help online feels like it was just yesterday.

The sound of the gentle waves lapping the shore, the cries of seagulls, and the distant sounds of cars. Most of all, they could hear the sounds of yachts dancing on the surface of the water as they were hit by small waves. They both lay there.

"Do you know anything about stars?" Saya asked. She raised one hand and pointed at the stars with her finger.

"No, I only know one thing." Mika searched with his eyes. 

"Right there, the North Star. I don't know either, but I wish I could learn. They are so beautiful. The atmosphere is so wonderful right now. We're lying here, the gentle breeze, the sound of the ocean, and the smell of the clean air. It's all so beautiful."

Mika was also looking at the sky, but he hadn't noticed all these things. He wasn't sure if it was beautiful to him. But he was happy with his current state. 

Tomorrow, the return would start again and he would hardly see Saya again. Just thinking about it made him feel bad.

But it was the best thing for Saya.

 It had to be.