Counting Stars นิยาย & เรื่องราว

Kat's POV The measurement of time was man made and arbitrary. There were twenty four hours in a day. Sixty minutes in an hour and sixty seconds in a minute. So how was it possible for time to slow down like this? How is it that the hands on the clock seemed to move backwards instead of forward? I was counting every second and yet time did not move. I wasn't entirely sure how much time had actually passed since he left. Amelia was long asleep on the couch beside me. Jason had been in the backyard the entire time waiting for some sign that he was needed. Sam had put her boys to bed and seemed so calm. Her entire aura was calm almost as if she didn't have a care in the world.

"Keep believing, then one day your wish will come true" Gray clouds rolled in the sky, moving sluggishly with the gusts of wind that froze to the bone. No one could see, behind the thick clouds thousands of stars were scattered, twinkling like gems. If you look closely, two special stars differ, because of their size and their glow. One smaller, one bigger, side by side as if holding hands.

She stuttered, her finger already pointed at the stars as she cheerfully counted– Rubin spontaneously joined in without hesitation. "It looks fun" He retorted and she smiled. "Yes, that's why I really love counting them ."

"Now go home. Don't cause trouble for me here." At seven that evening, I reserved the window seat at the upscale restaurant where we had gone on our first date. I ordered a table full of dishes Victoria had once loved most. Soft violin music filled the restaurant. Outside the window, the city lights and traffic glittered through the night. I sat there quietly, watching the red countdown in midair that only I could see, watching it keep slipping away. [Death countdown: 41 hours, 30 minutes, 12 seconds.] Seconds and minutes passed.

At six, she was a whirlwind of imagination and curiosity—always drawing, asking impossible questions, or sneaking into Lucian’s study just to “see what grown-ups do.” One evening, she walked in while he was on a call with the Foundation board. “Daddy?” she whispered, tugging on his sleeve. “Why does everyone always look so serious in here?” Lucian covered the phone. “Because we’re talking about boring things like numbers.” “Numbers aren’t boring,” she said proudly. “I counted all the stars last night.” Lucian smiled despite himself. “All of them?” She nodded with absolute certainty. “There were five million and twelve.”

It was then that Randall expressed his curiosity about the birth and death of the stars. With a smile, I immersed myself in a detailed explanation. "Randall, stars are born from clouds of gas and interstellar dust, known as nebulae. These clouds collapse under their own gravity, forming dense nuclei where the temperature and pressure become so high that the nuclear fusion process begins. This releases a huge amount of energy, and thus, a new star is born."

She said as the tears began to fall. Maia stood there blankly, unsure of how to react. She still held the paper and she carefully folded it. “I’m gonna miss you too.” She repeated, not knowing what the words truly meant. Maia had a very limited vocabulary and missing someone wasn’t a part of it. But she knew one thing. It was going to be very lonely without Jasmine. She felt tears come to her eyes as she remembered being all alone in the attic. She was terrified that it was going to happen again.

It was on my birthday and we had a picnic at the beach. Though old enough to move around, I stay clung to my Dad like a koala. “ Dad, what are those little shiny things in the sky? ” “ They are called stars, Ira. ” “ What are stars? ” “ They are huge, glowing balls of gasses and each one of them is bigger than the earth. ” “ Really, Dad? ” “ Yes, Ira and you know what? ” “ What's it, Dad? ” “ There are about 200 billion trillion stars in the universe and God knows them all by name. ”

The children have been put to bed, their dreams a world away, leaving Tom and me to revel in this quiet moment. Leaning into Tom's embrace, I feel the warmth of his presence enveloping me. The crackling of the fire and the soft strumming of the guitar create a soothing symphony. Above us, the stars twinkle like diamonds, casting their radiant light upon us. I tilt my head back, my gaze fixated on the vast expanse of the night sky. Each star holds a story, a testament to the wonders of the universe. In this moment, I am captivated by their beauty and the infinite possibilities they represent.

Andrew looked at the slight pout on my lips, his long arm reaching out to drag me back down onto the furs beside him. "Do you have any concept of how many stars the stargazers log into the ledger every single moon cycle now?" I shook my head, my eyes tracking the movement of his throat; I had spent my youth tracking wolves, not studying the cosmos. "It must be an elite gift," I muttered. "Otherwise, why would Serena use it to mock my position?" Andrew let out a deep, rumbling laugh that vibrated against my ribcage. "That is the ignorance of the lower dens speaking. With the current tracking mirrors used by the central elders, thousands of unnamed stars are discovered every winter. There is n