Eclipse

It was eight o'clock, and seventeen-year-old Kestrel RubyShield was in the bathroom, putting the finishing touches on her makeup. She had tied back her red hair to keep it out of the way. There was an eclipse that night, and she was going to ask her girlfriend, Caitlin WaterGlade, to go watch it with her.

She put down her rouge and let down her hair. She looked at her face from all angles. She ran her hairbrush through her hair a few times to smooth it out, and then, deeming her appearance perfect, put on her hat and started down the stairs. Her parents, Laura and Thomas, were also getting ready to leave.

'Where are you going?' asked Laura.

'I'm going over to Caity's,' Kestrel answered. 'The eclipse is tonight. I'm going to ask her to come with me and watch it.'

'Okay then,' said Thomas. 'It's too bad we have to miss it.'

'Well, maybe we'll be able to see it from where we are,' added Laura with a smile.

Kestrel opened the door.

'Bye Kessie!' Laura called.

'Have fun,' said Thomas.

'Bye,' Kestrel said. She closed the door and started off.

***

When she got there, she headed up the walk to Caitlin's house. The lights were on and the curtains open. She held up her hand to knock on the door, and movement in the house caught her eye. Caitlin was inside, sitting on the couch with another girl with orange hair and grey eyes. They were rather close together.

What? No, no...they're just talking. Okay, Kestrel thought, but she kept watching. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but they were smiling. Caitlin said something and they laughed. The other girl replied and Caitlin gave her a smack on the arm. This continued for a while and Kestrel started to look away, but before she did, she saw the orange-haired girl lean forward and kiss Caitlin.

Kestrel was frozen in a mix of anguish, disbelief, and fury. To her it felt like hours before Caitlin and the girl broke apart. The orange-haired girl saw Kestrel through the window and pointed her out to Caitlin. Caitlin turned around and her expression immediately changed to one of shock and fear. Kestrel looked at her angrily and stormed off quickly, wanting to get as far away from the house as possible.

'Wait! Kestrel, please, I can explain!' Caitlin shouted. She was chasing after Kestrel. Kestrel stopped.

'It had better be a damn good explanation!' she yelled, tears threatening to spill over.

Caitlin opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.

'Ugh!' Kestrel said, and she stomped off. She had gotten a few steps ahead before teleporting away, looking to get home as quickly as possible. She appeared a few houses down from her own, being unable to focus properly on her destination. Caitlin was not far behind.

'You didn't let me finish!' she said.

'Finish what?!' Kestrel shrieked, continuing in the direction of her house, Caitlin jogging to keep up. 'You didn't even begin! You just stood there with your mouth hanging open!'

'What I was going to say was that she was just a friend!' Caitlin said.

'What kind of a lame excuse is that?! "Just a friend" wouldn't have had her tongue down your throat!' Kestrel spat.

'I wasn't expecting it! We were just talking and then she leaned over and kissed me!' lied Caitlin.

'I didn't see you fighting back too hard!' Kestrel shouted, yanking open the front door to her house. 'I didn't see you indicating that you weren't available! That you already had a girlfriend!' She slammed the door behind her, and it was immediately opened again by Caitlin.

'Kessie, please!'

Kestrel stopped. 'Who was she?' she asked in a low voice with her back to Caitlin.

'What?'

'Who was she?!' Kestrel shouted, whirling around.

Caitlin didn't answer.

'Well?!'

After a few moments Caitlin finally spoke. 'Her name is Victoria. I met her a few months ago.'

'Where did you meet her, the street corner?!' Kestrel shouted.

'Hey!' Caitlin snapped. 'Now I get that you're angry, but—'

'No, you don't! You have no idea!' Kestrel sobbed, turning away. 'I loved you!'

'I know, I'm sorry—'

'Then why did you do it!'

'It was a mistake!'

'Cheating is a choice, not a mistake! Get out of my house!'

'Kestrel, please forgive me!'

'Never! I will never forgive you for this! I never want to see you again! Now go away!'

'Listen to me—'

Kestrel picked up one of the ornaments on the coffee table and threw it at the wall behind Caitlin, where it smashed. 'I SAID GO AWAY!'

Caitlin held up her hands and backed away. 'Okay, okay. I'm going.' She opened the door, walked out, and shut it behind her. Kestrel collapsed onto the floor and sobbed.

A small boy with blue eyes and fine red hair peeked his head out from the corner he was hiding behind. It was Kestrel's six-year-old brother, Ronan. He had been woken up by the shouting. He went over and laid down next to Kestrel.

'Are you okay?' he asked.

'Do I look okay to you?' Kestrel choked.

'I guess not...' he said. 'So, um...what did Caity do?'

'She killed me,' Kestrel said, still crying.

'You're dead?' said Ronan, a look of alarm crossing his little face. 'Are you a ghost?'

'No, no,' said Kestrel, laughing a bit. 'Not literally. Emotionally, though...I might as well be.'

'How did she emotionally kill you?' he asked, stumbling somewhat over the word 'emotionally'.

'She cheated on me,' Kestrel answered, starting to cry again.

'What does that mean?' asked Ronan.

'It means I meant nothing to her,' she wept. 'It means I was replaceable. It means I gave her everything, and she gave it to someone else. It means I wasn't important. It means—' She was now crying so hard she couldn't talk. Ronan took her hand and tugged on her a little, and she sat up.

'Come on,' he said, going upstairs.

She followed him into the bathroom. He was soaking a washcloth to help her wash her face. He turned around to give it to her, but she had collapsed again and was now crying into the toilet with her head on her arms. He sat down and held her hand, waiting for her to finish. She fell asleep on the floor, so he folded a towel under her head, went into his bedroom, got his blanket, and covered her with it. He then sat down next to her and watched the rest of the eclipse from the bathroom window.

***

When Kestrel woke up, it took a moment for her to realise that she was in the bathroom and not her bedroom. She sat up and pulled the hair out of her mouth. Then she went to the sink and washed the tear stains off of her face, before returning Ronan's blanket to his bedroom. She went downstairs and sat at the dining table.

'Good morning,' said Ronan from the kitchen.

'Hey,' replied Kestrel groggily. 'What are you doing?'

'Making breakfast for you.'

'Oh. Thanks. What is it?'

'Cereal.'

'Why cereal?'

''Cause Mommy said I can't use the stove.'

Kestrel laughed. He came into the dining room and set her bowl down on the table.

'Thanks for taking care of me last night,' Kestrel said. 'You're a good baby brother, Ronnie.'

'Okay,' he said.

'You should go to bed, you were up late last night,' said Kestrel, eating her cereal. 'It's a wonder you haven't fallen asleep already.'

'Okay,' he said, and went upstairs to his room.

Kestrel ate her cereal slowly, then went upstairs to her own room to try to get some proper sleep. She started to close the door.

'Kessie?' asked Ronan. He was looking across the hallway, standing behind his half-closed door.

'Yes?'

'Please feel better soon.'

She smiled. 'I already am,' she said. Then she closed the door, climbed into bed, and went to sleep.