Aurora and the Borealis

Life 25

Female voice: "Life 24 complete."

I then began to mumble the name over and over again:

Me: "Aurora, Aurora, Aurora."

Female voice: "Okay we really need to figure out why he remembers something! That is NOT supposed to happen. That's not supposed to happen to any of them!"

Male voice: "Why is it so important to you? It's not like he can break it. We control him. We have the power here."

Female voice: "Then why won't he forget the name?"

Male voice: "That's why we're still continuing, to find out."

Female voice: "That doesn't sound powerful to me."

Male voice: "It doesn't matter. Start the next one."

I was a 7-year-old kid, and one morning I was talking to my dad about space and the sky and the thought of a new, yet familiar word popped into my mind, "Aurora". Before I left for school, I asked my dad:

Me: "What does Aurora mean?"

Dad: "Oh wow, they're already teaching you about the Aurora Borealis?"

Me: "The what?"

Dad: "Oh uh, it's basically beautiful strips of color in the sky in the northern parts of the world."

I shook my head in unsatisfaction and I went to school as if nothing was different. A few weeks later we learned about the Northern Lights, my déjà vu was triggered but again in another unsatisfying way.

This time the dream lasted what felt like years. The next time that word had any significance I was 25. My father had recently died, and when we went to the funeral, I couldn't bare being around all those people so I went outside and sat against the back of the building.

Evidently a woman no older than myself noticed and followed me. She walked up and apologized for my loss, I told her that there was nothing to be sorry about. However I realized that I didn't recognize her though so I asked:

Me: "Do I know you?"

Woman: "Probably not, I met your dad a couple years back, he was my physics professor, I was actually one of his star students, but he probably never mentioned me. Hi, my name's A-"

Me: "Aurora!"

Aurora: "Oh, so he did mention me, that's really nice."

Due to my déjà vu lighting up like the northern lights themselves, and her beautiful smile shining even brighter, she immediately lifted my mood.

Aurora: "Anyways. It was nice to meet you but I won't bother you much more, I'm sure you still want to be alone."

Me: "Wait! Could you stay?"

She smiled once more and she sat down next to me. She took out a pair of earbuds and handed me one, we sat and listened to music for what felt like hours.

Two years later we were on our honeymoon. She had said a number of times throughout our relationship that she had always wanted to see the Aurora Borealis, being that she was named after it, but every time she mentioned it I got a flash of a past fate. I told her multiple times that I didn't think it was a good idea, but being that I couldn't give her a firm, believable reason that didn't sound like it was coming from a crackhead, we went.

Mid flight, we hit a flock of birds and one of the engines on our plane burst into flames and we started going down. Aurora grabbed my hand tightly and looked to me with tears in her eyes. Before we hit ground, she took off her seatbelt to sit in my lap and hugged me with all she had.

A few minutes later we woke up surrounded by fire and wreckage. We looked to each other, she began crying, and between coughs she apologized over and over.

Aurora: "I'm so sorry, you always said it wasn't a good idea but I never imagined this would happen. I'm so sorry, this is my fault, I did this to y-"

She stopped when she realized I wasn't scared. In fact, I was smiling.

Aurora: "What is it?"

Me: "It's okay Aurora, I'm spending my final moments with you."

Just then I got flashes of every death with Aurora in our past lives, telling me that this was definitely the end.

Me (continued): "Exactly like I always have. I remember all of it and I know now, we've ended up here 24 other times. This is why I keep coming back, this is what I live for. I live for you, to find you, and spend our final moments here, in this town... under that."

I glance up to the sky and use all my energy to scoot over to lay right next to Aurora.

Me: "I don't think it matters how we do it. How we die. What brings us here. What matters is that our inevitable love draws us together, and leads us here. It's so that you can experience the one things you've wanted to see your whole life, and I can be here with you, getting to watch you do it over and over again."

Aurora is clearly trying to process everything that I'm saying but I can feel that we don't have much time left so I try to wrap it up as well as I can before we start again:

Me: "I love you Aurora. If you remember anything, remember that. I love you. I always have, and I always will. And I'm more than happy spending every life I have by your side."

And in our final moment we laid next to each other, embracing one another under the Aurora Borealis.