A Star's Acceptance

April 26th, 2017 (11:00 PM)
          The stars we look up to reflect what’s within us..
It was a cold and dark summer night on a remote hill that overlooked a small quaint town. Many people came up to that hill to look at the town down below; however, one night, a girl appeared on the hill, and her intentions were not the town… They were the stars. She stopped at the crest of the hill with her hands tucked into her pockets and sat herself down as she brought her knees to her chest and let out an exasperated sigh. It used to be regular for the girl to come up to the hill; however.. She never came up alone. Memories started to rush through her head and a single tear slid down her face. The night suddenly became far colder.

July 19th, 2007 (10:00 PM)
      “Momma! Momma! Can we go look at the stars??” cried a young girl as she jumped up and down excitedly.

A woman looked down at the girl and smiled warmly as she bent down to pat the little girl on the head, “Of course, Lou..It’s the perfect time to go see them, actually!”

The girl squealed with delight and ran to go grab a beanie and a large black hoodie with moon phases on the sleeves. The hoodie was far too big for her and she wore it more like a dress;however,  she still loved it dearly.

All the sudden, a gruff voice yelled out from the living room,  “Where the hell are you going?” The voice belonged to the girls father. He was an angry brute who supposedly cared for his daughter, but it was obvious the man only cared for himself. He stomped his way into the room and crossed his arms.

The mother tensed up slightly when she heard the man’s voice. She took a deep breath and sighed, “I’m taking Louise out to see the st-”

The man interrupted her rudely, “Again? Come on Liz.. Let her do something else for once!” The man took a step forward, he was much taller than the mother.

The mother clenched her fists together as anger boiled up in her head and she yelled out, “She asked if we could!” She stomped her foot and stood up to the man, this was a grave mistake.

The man growled and started to tower over the mother. His voice rang out and the plates in the kitchen seemed to rattle.“Oh yeah, sure! What’s so interesting about a bunch of stars!?” Louise took a step back and let out a small squeak of fear.

The mother put her head in her hands and sighed, ”They reflect who we are and show us the future.” Louise’s mother was very passionate about the stars. She believed that every star had a story and a purpose.

The man let out an eerie chuckle, “Well let me know if they reflect that you are a no good insufferable bitch who will never change!” With that, the man slapped her across the face and stomped away. Louise ran up to her mother and tried to hug her.

A tear streamed down her mother’s face as she held her hand to where he struck her. She sighed as she recollected herself and reached her hand out for Louise to grab. The two of them walked out the door.. Trying to forget what had just happened. They both headed towards a hill that overlooked the small rural town they lived in. It was a clear night.. The perfect time to see the stars.
~~~~
July 19th, 2007 (11:30 PM)
The two girls sat atop the hill and looked at the night sky, a sense of calmth rushing over both of them as the seemingly forgot about the episode that happened earlier.

Louise giggled and grabbed at her mom’s arm, “Momma! What’s that one?” Her eyes lit up as she pointed at a cluster of bright sparkling stars in the sky.

The mother chuckled and replied, “That would be Leo the Lion! He’s my favorite actually.” She looked down at Louise and smiled brightly.

Louise cooed in delight and continued to point at other stars as her mother named off what they were. This was what they did every night, and Louise loved every single second of it.

Louise pointed at a very bright star and looked up at her mom, “What’s that one?” She giggled slightly.

The mother laughed out loud, “Thats.. A helicopter..” Her voice was laced with amusement and she smiled happily.

The girl sighed in disappointment and put her fist down in annoyance. Eventually,  she started to snuggle in close to her mother. After a moment of silence, Louise spoke up, “Momma?”

“Yes, starshine?” answered the mother as she looked down at Louise with a smile.

Louise couldn’t help but smile when she heard that nickname, she loved it. Louise yawned and continued, “Are there more stars out there?” She yawned again, causing her eyes to water.

The mother smiled brightly and began to explain, “Why of course there are! Many of them exist in clusters known as nebulas..” She pulled Louise in close.

“Nebula?” Louise said as she tilted her head to side in confusement, “What’s that?” She looked up at her mom expecting an explanation.

The mother smiled at her curiosity and started to explain what a nebula was, “A nebula a cluster of beautiful colors and there thousand upon thousands of stars within it, each one of them holding their very own story to tell.” Her eyes sparkled as she looked up at the stars passionately.

Louise giggled slightly as she snuggled in closer to her mom, “..Will I ever get to see a nebula? Momma?” She asked sleepily and leaned her head on her mom’s shoulder.

Her mother chuckled and she pat Louise on the back, “Well.. Maybe you should look in the mirror when we get home, hm?” She smiled warmly and looked down at her daughter with love.

Louise perked up and looked up at her mother with confusion, “Huh? What do you mean?” She sat up slightly and tilted her head to the side again.

The mother smiled and held her close, “You will always be my nebula… Louise.” She chuckled slightly, “You will go very far in life.. And you will share with everyone the stories that you witness..” She kissed Louise on her head and smiled hopefully.

Louise smiled and yawned as she leaned into her mother and started to nod off. They stayed up at the hill for another few hours before the mother picked Louise up bridal style and carried her to her bed.

April 26th, 2017 (11:11 PM)
       Louise sighed as tears rapidly streamed down her face. She missed those days so much.. Things would have been different if her father wasn’t such a bastard.. Things would be different if only she was a better daughter. Everything would be okay, her mother would still be alive. She sighed and hid herself in her hoodie, the same hoodie she wore every night to the stargazing hill. Louise sighed once more, she came up here for a reason, and that reason was not to come up here to be depressed. She looked up at the stars and smiled, “Hey Mom… I’m here to.. Say goodbye,” She choked on a sob,” You always told me to be strong.. So I will do that.. I don’t know what my life will be like for now on.. But..I know I will never be alone. I love you momma.. And I miss you..” Louise started to shake violently and sob before she straightened herself up and got to her feet. Her name was Lou- No… Her name was Nebula, and she was the daughter of Elizabeth Charles. She was strong and would not let this get in the way of her. She took a deep breath and spoke confidently, “I will never forget the times that we came up to this hill, mom.. They were what made me who I am today.. And that’s all that matters.”  With that, Nebula left the hill. As she descended the slope, a shooting star shot across the sky and crossed right through the Leo the Lion constellation.. That couldn’t have been just a mere coincidence.
A voice echoed in Nebula’s head: When you miss me just look up to the night sky and remember I'm like a star: sometimes you can't see me, but I'm always there..
A single tear ran down her face and she smiled. It was that night that she knew: Everything was going to be okay.