“Did you know you can see Jupiter tonight?” Sophie asks. “It’s super bright. Come look.”
Kane’s eyes never waver, tracing my every movement.
Don’t feel anything.
Pretend he isn’t there.
That’s insanely hard when his emerald stare rivals the fire, and there’s something like a whisper of a smile toying around his mouth.
At least I was right—he doesn’t seem mad.
I don’t want to think about what else is running through his head as he watches me.
Sophie practically pulls me down on the stool in front of the telescope’s eyepiece, and Kane’s smile deepens.
“This is a serious telescope, Sophie. Really nice,” I tell her.
“Dad got it for my birthday. It’s real easy to use, that’s the best part. No wasting time trying to aim it just right.”
She holds up her phone, opening an app with a star map that matches the sky. She punches in ‘Jupiter’ and the telescope moves automatically, positioning itself to capture the planet.
“Amazing. I’ve never even used a basic one before,” I say.
She beams.
“Hey, Dan,” she says. “Margot’s never used a telescope!”
“What?” Dan pulls out his earbuds.
“I said she’s never used a telescope!”
The kid looks at me with mingled shock and that twitchy excitement kids get when they know something an adult doesn’t.
I don’t hold it against him, though, because he immediately launches into a mangled explanation of how telescopes work.
“That’s wrong,” Sophie says firmly. “They use mirrors.”
“Mirrors, yeah, duh.” He rolls his eyes. “That’s what I said.”
“You said glass, and that’s different.” She looks up at me apologetically, her eyes shining behind her glasses. “Have a look. You might have to adjust the zoom a little.”
She shows me how to change the focus, her fingers moving deftly.
I put my eye to the little black eyepiece and squint.
I’m not sure what I expected, but it adjusts my expectations like a chiropractor snapping bones.
I know what Jupiter looks like.
It’s a big gassy planet with cake-like stripes and swirly orange spots. I’ve seen the pictures.
But instead of the pristine NASA portrait in my mind, I get a field of really bright stars.
And there, right in the middle of my field of vision, is one that’s brighter than the rest. At this magnification, I can see the light and color, a fuzzy smear of a planet with several small moons dancing around it.
Okay, so it’s not perfect.
But for a second, I’m gobsmacked with wonder that’s hard to put into words.
