Page 18 of Starry Nights over Dragonfly Lake

She cleared her throat, which was suddenly thick. ‘So if you want your first lesson, just look up.’

She realised she was being terribly bossy but was somewhat grateful to see him do as she had ordered.

‘There, you’re doing astronomy,’ she told him, with a smug smile.

He turned back to look at her briefly before staring back at the vast inky sky above them.

‘You just need to take your time,’ she said. ‘Really look at the stars. Keep looking at them and not anywhere else. We’ll give it a quarter of an hour or so and then carry on.’

So they stood there in the darkness, a hoot of an owl nearby. But apart from that, all was quiet except for the sound of the breeze. It wasn’t an awkward silence though, she thought. Just comfortable. Her eyes roamed the skies continuously, like old friends coming out to greet her.

After some length of time, Noah finally spoke.

‘Has the sky changed?’ he asked, without taking his eyes away from the sky. ‘I’m seeing different stars to the ones I saw at first.’

‘Nope,’ she replied. ‘Your eyes have adapted to the darkness so they can see more stars and their varying degrees of brightness. Keep looking. You should now be able to see how some of the stars are different colours. Do some appear yellow, orange or even red?’

He nodded. ‘Why are there different-colouredones?’ he asked.

‘Because you’re looking at enormous balls of hot gas which are millions of miles away,’ she told him. ‘Some stars are quite cold, some burn really hot. Our own sun is a pretty large star but it’s about average in terms of size and heat. Anyway, the different colours are an indication of how hot a star is.’

‘So the redder ones are hotter than the others?’

‘Actually no, but that’s a common misconception.’ She shook her head. ‘Think about a flame. Maybe you’ve used a Bunsen burner? You know when the metal heats up, it goes from orange to red and then white to a blue-white flame. So the red stars are actually way cooler than the blue. For example, they have a surface temperature of only a few thousand degrees Centigrade. Blue stars are ten thousand degrees or even higher.’

She abruptly stopped. What on earth was she thinking? ‘I must be boring you,’ she muttered. ‘I’ll shut up now.’

Finally he looked away from the sky and stared at her. ‘Why would you think that?’ he asked.

She looked away, a little embarrassed. ‘I’ve been told that I ramble on for too long about all of this,’ she said, waving her hand around in the air as she continued to stare down at her feet.

‘Astronomy is your job from what I’ve been told,’ she heard him say. ‘And your passion, from the sounds of it.’

She gulped. It was true. She adored the stars but Jeremy had often reminded her, whenever she began to talk about it, that it didn’t make for very scintillating conversation. Of course, it didn’t help that his own expertise was far and above her own.

Finally, she raised her eyes to meet his.

‘Yeah but not everyone is interested in the same things that I am,’ she told him.

He studied her briefly before finally replying. ‘Well, I found it interesting if that helps.’

She was grateful that he hadn’t mocked her but was still a little embarrassed so carried on to say, ‘Well, it’s getting cold out here, isn’t it? I think I’ll head back inside.’

‘I’ll come too,’ he replied and she was left wondering whether she had been boring him after all, and sincerely hoped not.

9

Noah had never met anyone like Beth before, he thought as he followed her inside from the chilly veranda. She continued to amaze him, not just with her chatty friendliness but now he could add an expert knowledge of astronomy to her many skills.

She didn’t appear to have much self-esteem though, he considered, remembering how she had apologised for what she had assumed was boring. But he had always loved looking up at the stars; having often worked next to the sea he was used to endless dark skies at night so everything she had told him had been very interesting. She was, and he could think of no other word, fascinating. Whoever the man was that had broken her heart, he could think of no greater fool.

Still, he thought with a shiver, it had been a little cold out there. He had been anxious to seek some solitude after dinner but had forgotten to take his coat in his haste to get outside. The family had been very welcoming towards him but he just wasn’t used to the attention of so many people and it made him uncomfortable.

From the peace and serenity of the outside world, as soon asthey stepped in through the glass doors, Noah was immediately enveloped in a wall of cosy warmth and lively conversation.

‘There you are, Noah!’ called out Dotty, who was sitting on the sofa facing him. She appeared to be surrounded by a number of photo albums on the coffee table. ‘I’ve just got these out. Come and have a look at our very own rogues’ gallery!’

Noah smiled politely, although the last thing he wanted to do was sit amongst the group who had gathered around his aunt. His eyes flicked briefly to the door through which was the entrance hall and the stairs up and away from the family. He craved the privacy of the bedroom and yet he couldn’t say no to Dotty who had been so kind to him so far.