[Creative] Under the Starry Sky [Snapshot]

It's quiet.

Truly.

It's so beautiful. I never imagined there could be so many stars in the night sky.

So stars really do twinkle, don't they?
Each one is flickering and shining so beautifully.
A view you can't see in the city.

It really is.
So this is what it means to be lost for words.

The two of us,
under the starry sky,
floating in a boat on the lake,
watching the stars.

There's no one else around.
Just the humid air of midsummer.

Not a single sound.
Only the starry sky wraps around us.
Just the two of us in the universe.

I used to think that things like meeting a lover in a galaxy, as in song lyrics,
or holding hands under a starry sky,
were just trite phrases.
But the world has
such overwhelming sights,
and there are moments when only those words
come to mind.
For the first time now,
I think I understand.
Cliché and romantic words
exist in this world for a reason.
Sublime and overwhelming existences
truly do exist in this world.

I also understand for the first time,
the meaning of why humans created constellations.
If there is this much light
in the dark void,
I could connect them
and create a story all my own.
That is how myths were born all over the world.
We are now
wrapped in the light of such myths.
You and I,
all alone.

Just the two of us,
if only we could stay like this forever,
wrapped in this night sky.
Look, see?
The stars are reflected in the lake.

It's as if the light is spilling out one by one,
and disappearing into the bottom of the water.
I can't reach the stars in the sky,
but that light looks like I could reach it if I stretched out my hand.

That's dangerous.
If you push it,
the boat will capsize.

But I'm so close to reaching it.

That's an illusion.

Even if it's an illusion,
if we could just chase the light like this,
and fall into the cold water together,
surely we could remain happy,
believing this world is beautiful,
and just fade away.

It's okay.
Hold on to me.
I suppose we will leave this world like that someday.
But for now,
instead of looking down
and returning to the water,
let's look up at the sky,
and for just a little longer,
savor the beauty of these stars
together.

Yeah, let's do that.
Ah, when I closed my eyes,
stars were twinkling behind my eyelids.
It's as if the light is entering inside me.
Won't you lie down with me and look at the sky?
If I open my mouth,
I feel like I could drink up the stars.
Hold my hand,
and don't let go.

Ah, I'm here.
Feeling the buoyancy of the boat against my back,
it really feels like we're floating.

In the universe.

Yes.

Why can't we just
stay floating forever?
Why must we suffer
and sink?

Surely it's because we aren't light.
We grow old within gravity.
But in exchange,
we can feel the warmth of holding hands like this,
and the resonance of your voice.

The softness of your hands,
and the warmth of your breath.

Yes.
The stars in the night sky aren't us themselves,
but perhaps something like a reflection
of our ideals.
Between the ideals of the sky and the watery grave of death,
I can live with you.

Being able to be with you,
being able to float in such a world,
is my happiness.

I am happy, too.

Oh, a shooting star.
Did you see it?

I saw it.
It vanished in an instant.
Without even time to make a wish,
it disappeared, didn't it?

Yes,
just like our lives.

(End)

※ In [Snapshot], I will irregularly post short dialogues or poems set in a single situation.

※ Archive of past "Snapshots"

That's all for this time.
Thank you for reading.
May today and tomorrow
be good days for all of you who read this.
Let's meet again
in the next essay or work.

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