My Sky

Everyday people talk about a particular person who has been a great influence in their life, whether it was a parent, brother, sister, friend, idol or lover. There's always someone who turns your life around, makes your world turn at the perfect speed, and gives you a new perspective of life. I like believe everyone will find this person, someone will be never forgotten, someone's who's memory will make us smile in our dying bed - our last vision before we pass into another world.

I'm getting older as the seconds tick by on my clock, the wrinkles on my face and hands are becoming more defined with every passing minute. Soon, my soul will leave this body. They say this is just a stop in the never ending cycle of life. What an amazing stop it has been!

My doctors tell me I should be in bed, resting. I can't help myself. Every night, I creep into my grandchildren's nursery with a book. It is always the same book, but my grandchildren listen carefully, always as enrupted as if they were uncovering a treasure chest. The book is called Peter Pan. Every night I can feel the child within me wanting to be free, remembering a distant time that somehow doesn't feel so long ago. I read them the book, and then I tell them my story. This is how it goes.

I, just like Wendy, was taught how to fly by a boy. He was, for a lack of better terms, a God. Boys and girls alike sighed over him. Jaw that seemed to be chiseled by Michaelangelo himself. Constant 5 o'clock shadow despite his young age. A surly demanour and a constant glare, but laughter in his eyes. He was unlike any other guy I had ever met in my entire life. Kind of like the green crayon in the all-skintone box. Simply unique would be the best way to describe him really, you'd understand if you met him.

I, on the other hand, was a girl on a mission. Friends with asshole boyfriends, friends forever stuck in the closet thanks to this small town's close minded views, and not to mention my own parents messy marriage. I was just waiting for my chance to get out into the world. My nose always stuck in books so that I could get far away off to college.

The day I met him, was dark and wet. I could feel it was bound to rain soon. I had just left school, a couple of my drama friends and I trying to get a scene just right. They had offered me a ride but I thought the walk would do me good. I'm so eternally grateful I declined that ride.

"Please get me home before it starts to rain" my thoughts pleaded.

And of course this was the moment when the rain decided to fall.

"Why did I have to jinx it?" I thought as droplets of rain started to fall down.

Soon, I was soaked to the bone and was racing through the side walk, hoping to get home as soon as possible.

While I was trying to avoid puddles in the way a black, sleek car stopped right next to me. The window rolled down, revealing this handsome, dark haired guy with the perfect jaw and eyes that seemed to have every color of the rainbow.

"Are you okay? Want a ride?" he asked sweetly.

"Oh, no thank you but I'm almost home" I lied

"Please let me take you, you're going to get sick with this weather" he insisted

"Ok, four streets to the right and five streets straight 'till you see a white house" I accepted while getting inside the car.

"Almost there right?" he said raising an eyebrow.

"I'm Sky Chase by the way" I said offering my hand.

"Peter Pan" he said shaking my hand.

"Yeah right, if so, where's Tinkerbelle?"

"Really, that's my name" He took his wallet out of his back pocket and showed me his driver license. "Look its true."

"Oh my god, you're not lying" I said "Suddenly, I don't hate my mom so much for naming me Sky..."

We burst out laughing.

Two months later we were practically attached at the hip. Every girl at school hated me for spending so much time with the previously thought to be unattainble school hottie. We were just friends at first really, but he eventually got so under my skin we just fell into a natural relationship. I can't even pinpoint the moment I fell in love with him, but I can guess that it was probably while we were arguing. He understood my sarcasm and wit and could give back like no one I've ever met before.

We were walking down the street one day, hand in hand. He had handed me an extra pair of gloves.

"Why are you never prepared for the weather, Ms. I'll walk home in the rain?" he teased, he was right, of course, my hands were freezing.

We were walking in the fresh snow that was yet to be touched. He lets go suddenly, bending to form a snowball. I start to run away and he throws and I get hit. I run back to him to tackle him to the ground. We were rolling around in the snow that had once been untouched. We lay there on our backs, looking up at the sky. Out of breath, I hear him sigh and say,

"I know we're still in high school, and of course I don't have a ring, but look I found this golden thimble in the attic, hold on to it and tell me you'll marry me one day, Ms. Darling"

While I was moving closer to him I could feel something on my back, an acorn, how fitting.

"Here, we're doing this kind of backward since you're Peter and you're the one who's supposed to be receiving the thimble, while Wendy gets the acorn."

"Is that you're way of saying yes?" he asked hesitantly.

"Of course silly! I'd marry you in an instant!"

We decided to keep our engagement a secret until we finished college. He made me blush. He made me laugh. He serenaded me and I read aloud to him from James Matthew Barrie's book, Peter Pan. Love, I never believed in love until I met him. I wanted to be his world, I wanted to protect him and hold him and kiss him. I wanted to be his home because I knew he was mine. I wanted to listen to his voice singing me to sleep and feel how our hands fit together perfectly. We fit together perfectly, like clockwork.

One day, while we where home from college, I got a call. Peter, my Peter, and his stupid black car had been in an accident, in that same street we met. I ran those nine streets and saw him laying there on the ground.

"Peter," I whispered. He didn't respond, and I couldn't tell if he was sleeping, or if he had already passed away.

"Peter," I whispered again. I ran my fingers through his hair, which was a mess, as always. I couldn't even look at the rest of him, there was blood everywhere.

"Peter… Peter…" I cried more desperately. "Wake up."

The paramedics where all pushing needless into him, pulling me away.

I kissed him, knowing that this would be the last time I would ever do it again.

"Sky," he whispered. "I love you so much. For every word I've spoken, for every time I've smiled and every time I've cried, I love you more than I could ever explain to you. You're like every love song playing in my heart. Ever since I first time saw you, I believed in fate because there's no way meeting you could be a random occurence."

"Oh, Peter, I love you too, so much." I sobbed.

Peter smiled weakly. "Sometimes, I think I'm too much like my namesake. But there's two things that are different—I can't fly. But you're my Sky. I don't need to fly since I have you. And that we have to grow old and I won't grow old with you. Even if we were meant for each other, even if we fit more perfectly than the stars in a constellation, this is how it will end. Death will separate us from being together."

"But that's the thing about love, Peter," I said. "Love doesn't end with death. If we're so much in love, if our souls are as connected as we think they are, then our love will never end. That's what love is all about."

Peter's voice dropped back to a whisper. "But I'm still afraid of dying. Why is it my time now? I'm not even allowed to drink yet. I'm too young."

"Maybe it's because you've served your purpose here already. Maybe it's your time to move on to bigger and better things."

"What? What have I accomplished that was so important that my time here could be up already?"

"You changed my life," I replied simply and easily. "Before you came along, I was a ghost, too afraid to live until you arrived. I never lived until you taught me how to fly."

He looked at me and smiled my favorite smile of his.

"Sky, when I'm gone, promise me that you'll live life as you never have before."

I took hold of his hand. "I promise. I'll never stop loving you, okay?"

"And me, how could I ever stop loving you?"

When he left, he took a part of me with him. But strangely, I wasn't sad. Maybe it was because I knew that it wasn't over, and it never would be.

I have been true to my word, and have lived my life as fully as I possibly could. I moved on to become a singer and an actress; I filmed several movies and produced various albums. And I wrote this story, along with many others. I became everything I dreamed I could be, without a care in the world for what society demanded of me. I adopted a lovely daughter and she gave me the wonderful grandchildren that listen to my story every night.

These days, I do not fear death. I do not feel fear, just hope. I know that Peter and I will be together again and we will be right where we belong: second star to the right, and straight on 'til morning.