rooftops

A boy sat on the rooftop, his legs crossed and his arms wrapped around his shins.  He sat there, waiting for the sunset to reach its peak and its colors to explode in a peaceful vibrancy only the sky knew how to perform.  

A girl climbed out of the window of the neighboring apartment and watched him.  Her glassy green eyes met his cloudy grey ones and locked onto them.  She had paint strokes on her arms and messily braided hair.  She painted stories onto canvases and it gave her a feeling of excitement that shone in her smiling face.

“Hey,” she said, as she climbed over next to him.  “Hey,” he echoed.  The girl sat down, positioning her legs in the same position as the boy, resting her chin on her knees.   “My paint brush could never articulate the details of the beauty that my eyes can see.”   

The boy, sifting his hand through his ruffled hair thought deeply.  He glanced her way once, then turned his attention back to the sky before speaking.  

“If the canvas could hold such splendor, we wouldn’t have to come outside to enjoy it.” 

“You don’t say a lot, you know- but yet you do,” her cheeks flushed as she watched him smile at her. 

“Thanks,” he replied shyly.  “Being out here,” she went on, “fills me with a feeling of hope.  There’s a lot of darkness in this world, but seeing this beauty- helps me believe that divine good does prevail.  Despite what pain we feel sometimes, there’s always something good for us to look forward to.  Even if it’s in the little things- like this sunset.”  The boy relaxed his shoulders.  “I like that,” he smiled gently. 

They continued watching the sky, its pastel colors alternating back and forth, the clouds forming different shapes.  The sun continued to lower under the ever-expanding horizon, until shortly, it became entirely out of view.  The sky turned into a deep blue sea, its vastness overflowing with stars.  The moon shone in the background, the stars continuing to develop, not daring to escape the night.  The two sat watching, in awe of the beauty that enveloped them on the apex of the rooftop.