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The sun never set on The Plane.
That wasn’t hyperbole, it wasn’t a metaphor, and it wasn’t a term of phrase like the one you’d be taught in history class. It was simple, objective, fact. A fact that Liam knew far too well.
He had done the math. He had spent 224 days on The Plane. That was 224 days spent in broad daylight, with the only release from the blazing sun being a makeshift shack they had built for that very purpose. Liam had never thought about nighttime much, he didn’t have any reason to, it was just another normal, everyday thing.
Then again, there were a lot of normal, everyday things he had never bothered thinking about before.
He laid against the back seat of a car, still unable to shake a small sense of awe at the realistically very subpar cushioning. He had spent so long sleeping on the grassy ground and sitting atop logs that he had almost forgotten what it was like to sit on something soft. This whole hitchhiking thing had involved a lot of adjustment and recollection. Especially when there was little to do aside from stare out the window.
Last night he had been so caught up in everything- he had been too busy thinking about being home, about being separated from so many people, about being legally dead. There was so much on his mind, he probably hadn’t given the sky more than a passing glance, which probably wasn’t helped by the constant pelting of hail. But once he was on the move, his gaze was completely locked on the outside world he had spent so long detached from.
At first it felt strange, seeing the sky turn darker. He remembered that it did that, obviously, but it was almost jarring to actually see it again. It was gradual, sure, but it kept catching him off guard. He’d manage to pull his gaze away, get lost in thought staring at cryptic notes, only to turn back to the window and find the sky a different shade. It was funny almost, how the mundane suddenly felt strange. The sight always brought a small smile.
By now, it had actually gotten dark . 7 months ago, he might’ve seen that as an inconvenience, but now, it felt like a luxury. To be fair, it wasn’t exactly like San Francisco had the best view of the night sky, what with light pollution and everything, but tonight was rather different.
He honestly didn’t entirely know where he was anymore. He just got in whatever car would take him, gave them the address and asked them to take him as far as they were willing. Right now, it seemed like he was in the middle of nowhere. A long road outstretched over grassy fields and farmland. Far away from any cities or bright lights.
The dark expanse seemed to stretch out as far as the eye could see, every speck of it illuminated by a breathtaking construction of lights. Instead of a black void, it was a tapestry full of life, wonder, beauty- and it was all natural . Just another part of the world, so mundane and yet so, so wonderful.
He felt a drop fall onto his chest.
He froze, finally looking away from the window. His gaze was starting to cloud and his throat felt a bit strained. He was.. Crying? He looked back at the window, only for more tears to form. It had been so long since he’d seen anything like this.
He had gotten accustomed to sleeping with a light in his eye, he had memorized the shape and positions of every cloud on that hellish place, he had lost any semblance of his prior internal clock. And he was robbed of this. Every. Single. Night.
Tears streamed down as that information sank in. 224 night skies. There were so many small, mundane things that had been completely ripped away from him. He was amazed at the prospect of watching rain fall on a window or brushing his hand against a book- even something as simple as engaging in small talk. Amazed at the prospect of having a life again .
Funny, isn’t it? A dead man longing to live.
Maybe if he got- scratch that when he got all of the others out of this mess, they could go to an observatory together or something. It would never make up the lost time, but at least it was something? After so long, the night sky felt incredible, he could only imagine what the view in an observatory would-
He felt a pit in his stomach. Scenty. She was still trapped in that hellhole and with Airy back no less. He shuddered to think about what she might be going through at that exact moment. The stress, the grief, the longing. She had done so much for him, sacrificed her own happiness, her own life to try and get him home. She had helped everyone keep going after Airy’s disappearance. She had helped him begin to move on.
But now everything had changed again. All of that letting go was out of the way. All the connections he had made back on The Plane.. What were the chances he’d even see most of them again? He shook away the thought, refocusing on the now. He had Stone’s notes. He had a chance. And for what it was worth, he was home. It wasn’t perfect, but he had so many wonders, so many little joys.
At the very least he was in a place where the sun could finally set.