Celestial Bodies

            The warm November wind caressed her and she closed her eyes at the elemental lovers touch. How long had it been since she had felt the human equivalent? She had lost count. The flies at the local bar didn’t interest her, and no sober man seemed to have the courage to approach her. Not that she was kidding herself as to why. Beth was jaded and she knew it. She was a smart and independent woman, a daunting prospect to most men anyway, but add to that the strange brew of signals she gave and most guys just lost interest. Normally she was fine with that, but like most people she still wanted love...

Didn’t she?

            Inside Beth made a pot of tea and changed out of her smart business casual into soft warm cottons. She pulled a black bag out of the hall closet and set it next to the front door. A sandwich and several cups of Earl Grey later, Beth pulled on her coat, grabbed the bag, and told her cat he was in charge of the house while she was gone.

            The bird sanctuary was the perfect place for her excursion. She parked herself on the crest of a treeless hill and watched the sun go down. Once the light had almost died the black bag opened and she quickly assembled the contents. First the equatorial mount, then the Newtonian reflector. The heavens had always amazed her, but serious study was a relatively new pursuit. Before she would be able to say where Cassiopeia was, when the major meteor showers occurred, and what caused aurora borealis. Now she was treading on different territory.

            About 50 feet behind her she could hear something moving. Beth listened closely, trying to decide if the animal was a threat. As it moved closer, her heartbeat quickened and she prepared to defend herself should it turn out to be a predator. She quickly realized no animal would make this much noise, even though it was simply the sounds of breaking twigs and crushed leaves.

            “Hello?” Beth said quietly.

            A startled gasp told her that it was indeed a human being creeping up to the top of the hill. This tidbit of information hardly calmed her down. A wild animal might have steered clear of her if she stood up and made a show, but the man approaching her could be much more dangerous than any prowling carnivore.

            “Holy crap you scared me!” was the deeply toned response.

            This got Beth giggling, from both nervousness and relief. Something about his voice put her at ease about his nature.

            “Sorry, I didn’t mean to. I assure you it was mutual. I’m not used to company out here.”

            As he came a bit closer, Beth could make out the shape of a bag slung over one shoulder of a tall frame. His glasses reflected the moon when he turned his head skyward, sighing.

            “Me either. I thought this spot was safe.  I suppose we’ll have to share it tonight, unless you want to kung fu fight for squatter’s rights.”

            She could hear his grin and smiled herself. He seemed harmless enough, and she did not want to argue with a man nearly a foot taller than her in the middle of the dark woods at any rate.

            “Be my guest.”

     The world was alive with sound, color, and motion. Fall leaves crackled as they were swept down the pavement, individual flashes of red and orange torn skyward by updrafts, drifting sadly back from the rooftops only to be caught in the furious wind bursts once again. Autumn always made Beth feel terribly conscious of the life flowing through her, the death of summer and the heady smell of moist decomposition made her more alert to mortality.

      The wind tossed her hair against her lips and as she pulled it away she wondered how many days there were before winter would be pushing past the doorstep. She watched a dog walking it’s owner pass on the other side of the street.  A young couple and a pink-cheeked toddler wandered on the lawn of a Victorian home, their laughter clear and sweet.  A white haired man leaning against a rake smiled at her friendly face and his eyes twinkled in the afternoon light.

     Beth sat on her front steps and watched the world dance.  Somehow being stuck in front of a computer all day made her appreciate the outside world in a whole new way. Here was a world devoid of key tapping, double clicking, and blaring florescent light. No business calls or deadlines here, no sir. She had decided that the modern business world held no true charm, just flash and mirrors. She needed out of it.

    

This first entry serves two purposes. First, to welcome the readers of my Nanowrimo project, secondly to warn all the old readers of "Erika's College Survival Tips" that this journal has been formatted and will now be housing an erotic fiction novel. If you miss this entry and find my first bit of writing on your flist page and go "Whoa!" I apologize wholeheartedly.

Let the writing begin!