By Sruthi Nambiar
Xander stands outside, next to his colleagues. He is a bit confused. Ten minutes ago, he was trying to coordinate with three individuals, in different timezones and on different planets, a common time they could connect virtually. While trying to fulfil his extremely complex task, his stupendously important task, Clara, his best friend on Earth, dragged him outside, to join the growing crowd.
When he tried to learn why she interrupted him, he was left disappointed. She only handed him a pair of glasses before disappearing. This action added to his confusion. Clara knows that his eyesight is adequate, and he does not require additional seeing aides of any type. Additionally, the glasses she handed him do not look like the ones she wears. It also does not look like the sunglasses their reporting head wears either.
His glasses have a cardboard frame with a flimsy lens. Peering through the lens, he is greeted by unending darkness. Clara's instructions were extremely vague. She just told him to hold the flimsy pair of glasses that would be helpful later. She also told him the glasses would keep his eyes safe, but Xander did not understand why his eyes needed protection. She was incredibly particular that he wore it. Almost forceful. Her forcefulness added to his confusion.
The building excitement also adds to his confusion. A wave of anticipation ripples through the crowd. It seems like the entire office building has gathered in the garden today. Xander did not realize that the building could hold so many people.
A hand on his shoulder grabs his attention. It is Clara, and she is scowling fiercely at him. "Why are you not wearing the glasses?!" She asks, anger coating her words.
"I am unable to see anything when I look through the lens!" Xander states, defending himself. "That is the point. You need to wear these glasses while viewing the eclipse." She snaps. "The what now?! What do you mean by viewing the eclipse?!" He asks, surprised.
Clara softens. "Look around Mars Boy, the place is a little darker today. It is not because of cloud coverage. A total solar eclipse is happening right now, and we are in the path of totality. You are not missing this experience. Not when you can learn that your aunt was right about this."
She grabs Xander's glasses and shoves them over his eyes. Then she forces his face to turn towards the Sun. Xander's protests are silenced when he sees the half-swallowed star.
His aunt, a lady who left her birth planet to be with her love, spoke of an eclipse once. Xander, a child at the time, could not understand what she meant.
Now he gets the chance to.
He watches in awe as the glowing orange disk is completely covered by the dark disk. Once the sun is fully hidden by the moon, he removes his glasses to look around. It is dark, almost like nighttime. At the horizon, all around, he sees a sunset-like glow. The view is breathtaking, and Xander feels sublime.
Hours later, after the Moon and Sun have parted ways, Clara approaches him. He has completed his work and went back to the garden. He is staring up at the sky, in quiet contemplation. She smiles.
"What did you think Mars Boy? Did the eclipse live up to your imagination?" "It was… It was…" His thoughts are racing too fast for him to articulate them.
" Are you speechless? I know that feeling. You are lucky, you know. Some people will live their whole life without seeing an eclipse. Within six months on Earth, you got to see one. A total solar eclipse."
Xander did not respond. He was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't hear what Clara said. After some time, he starts speaking.
"I remember feeling incredibly disappointed the first time I saw Phobos and Deimos transit the Sun after my aunt's recollection of an eclipse. It was nothing like what she said and I could not even ask her about it. She was gone by then. As I got older, I thought she exaggerated the magnificence of an eclipse. I thought she made things seem better than they were to deal with her homesickness. She was right. She was right the whole time."
He turns towards Clara.
"When can I see the next one?!"
"Have I made an eclipse chaser of you Mars Boy?" Clara grinned at the thought. "Come on inside. We shall find that out. I know that it is an annular solar eclipse, and I cannot wait for you to see the ring of fire."
Xander smiles and follows his friend inside. Before he enters the building though, he looks up to the sky and finds his home planet. He wonders what his aunt would say, if she learned that he saw his first eclipse.
By Sruthi Nambiar
Well written.