Kairos

Chapter five - elliptical

Eventually, Reuben had exhausted his knowledge of constellations. So, a comfortable silence washed over them, as they quietly continued to explore the map of another world above them. Halley lost herself again in the view above, and let the star encrusted, expanse of velvet sky envelop her. She had the same feeling as before, of floating weightlessly in space. Except this time, Reuben was floating right beside her.

Halley was still positioned so that she was half laying on Reuben. The arm, that held Halley to him, was aching slightly. But he didn't dare move, for the fear that he would disturb her.
To distract himself from the slight discomfort, he watched her head rise and fall softly in time with his breathing.

A moment later, Halley turned her head to look at her arm, which she rubbed with her other hand. Halley emitted a sigh, which Reuben almost missed.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Nothing. It's just these stupid freckles."

Reuben chuckled, "what's stupid about them?"

"They're everywhere! It wouldn't be so bad if I tanned a little, but my skin is so pale. Big brown spots, on ghost white skin. I might as well be a Dalmatian."

Reuben laughed at this, " I happen to think that freckles are cute."

This time, Halley felt a pink heat in her cheeks.

She sighed, "is it bad to want to look a little different?"

Reuben shook his head, "everyone feels that way about themselves, it's natural. I know people who want freckles so bad, they draw them on."

"Hmm", Halley wasn't completely convinced, but she did feel better.

Reuben could see Halley was still a little troubled, and desperately wanted her to smile again.

"Get up for a second. I want to show you something."

Halley knelt on the blanket, watching Reuben sift through his bag, until he eventually revealed a pen.

Reuben shuffled closer to Halley, and reached for her arm. He circled his hand around her wrist, and stretched her arm out in front of him.

Her skin was pale, but a smooth ivory rather than a ghostly white. The freckles that sprayed across her arms mimicked the stars; some bigger, some fainter, but all equally beautiful.

"Ok, close your eyes now." Reuben instructed. "No peeking."

Although confused, Halley complied and shut her eyes.

She felt the cold nib of the pen press on her skin. It glided across her arm, in short, slightly hesitant lines.

Being a very curious person, Halley was tempted to open her eyes on more than one occasion. Although she had successfully overcame the temptation, it was becoming increasingly harder to.

Fortunately, Reuben finally said she could look.
She brought her forearm closer to her face, so she could see what Reuben had drawn in the dim light.

The lines he had drawn, were connected by the freckles on her skin. At first, she thought they were constellations, but on further inspection, she realised it was a word.

With furrowed eyebrows, she deciphered the letters one by one.
"K, A, I, R, O, S"

"Kairos" Reuben pronounced.

"What does it mean?"

It was Reuben's favourite word, and had quickly memorised the definition.

"The perfect, delicate, crucial moment. The fleeting rightness of time and place that creates the opportune atmosphere."

After he had said it, Reuben realised something:

Never had a word, in Reuben's bizarre range of vocabulary, described a moment so perfectly.

***

Elliptical: the oval shape of the orbit that a comet makes.