Stars Like Dust

The rain pours down onto the roof of the car, its music so intense I can't hear my own songs coming through the speakers. Yet, it doesn't seem to matter. I don't start the engine right away. Instead, I stare through the droplets crafting intricate patterns on my windshield at a sky full of stars. I can't see them through the clouds, but I know they're there. I finally drive away, vision hindered by darkness and a rain slowly turning to hail. In the passenger seat, he is silent as we pass relics of my past, and breath fails me. I grip the wheel a little tighter and pull off to the curb as memories hit me with the force of a hurricane. He reaches over and takes my shaking hand, steadying me as he murmurs meaningless but necessary platitudes. And I feel my heart slow. And the seconds tick past as if they are waiting, for what I don't know. And the world stops turning. Just the two of us sheltered from the storm.