Chapter 38
Christmas music was coming from the nearby speakers and everyone was wearing Santa hats. Noah thought that the only thing to make it even more festive would have been if the Christmas stargazing event had been held at the North Pole instead of Maple Tree Lodge.
Next to him, Beth was swaying and humming along to ‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’ whilst staring at her phone.
‘You all set?’ he asked her.
She nodded. ‘I’m just tracking the International Space Station. Hopefully we’ve judged it just right so that when it passes over during the meteor shower, the kids think it’s Santa doing a trial run.’ She shot him a look. ‘Don’t tell them the truth.’
‘I wouldn’t dream of it,’ he replied, with a grin.
‘Glad to hear it,’ she told him, adjusting her Santa hat. ‘Right, time to get this show started.’
Noah stood and watched from the veranda as Beth picked up her microphone and headed towards the large waiting crowd. Even a little way away, he could hear her enthusiasm as she explained the night sky to everyone.
‘When you’re experiencing the night sky, you connect with nature,’ she began.
‘That in turn can trigger a whole load of physical and mental benefits. It can lower stress, help creativity and even make us care more about taking care of the planet as a whole. It’s a way of connecting with the wider world and the universe.
When we realise that we’re all a part of something much larger than ourselves, it can help you to worry less about your smaller problems.’
‘She’s a natural,’ murmured Ben, who was standing next to him, alongside Alex and Jake who had come down for the weekend. ‘We’ve already got a waiting list for next month because these stargazing events are becoming so popular.’
Noah nodded his agreement, but kept his eyes on Beth.
‘I’m so glad you’ve all joined me tonight because the Geminids are one of the year’s best and most reliable annual meteor showers so you’re almost guaranteed a spectacular show tonight,’ she carried on.
‘In perfect clear skies like we have tonight, thank goodness, you may be able to spot 100 to 120 meteors each hour! Isn’t that amazing?
So who out there knows what causes meteor showers? ’
As the crowd shouted out their answers, Noah watched as Beth’s head nodded along, thrilled with everyone’s enthusiasm.
‘That’s right,’ she replied. ‘Meteor showers are typically caused by a comet. However, the Geminids are actually celestial debris left behind by a rocky asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon. That’s one for the real space nerds out there,’ she joked, giving the crowd a wink.
‘Now, I’ll let you in on a little secret,’ she carried on.
‘The Geminids meteor shower is one of my favourites. Why? Because of the distinctive colours you’re going to see tonight.
Hopefully you’ll see white, yellow, green, red and blue streaks of light across the sky.
Perfect colours for Christmas time.’ Beth checked her watch.
‘Now, our celestial light show is due to begin in around fifteen minutes’ time so take a moment to let your eyes adjust to the darkness.
That will help you to see much easier if you’re not looking at any bright lights, such as your phone screen.
I’ll let you enjoy the peace and quiet and then I’ll be back in a little while once the meteor shower starts. ’
Noah watched as Beth weaved her way through the crowd, handling them with ease. She was kind to everyone, listening patiently to their questions and answering them as best and honestly as she could.
She had been the same when they had talked the other night in the barn. He had opened up to her more than he had ever done to anyone in his life. He had spoken out loud of his internal pain for the first time ever.
Later on, whilst thinking over their conversation, he had anticipated that he would feel embarrassed, even cross that she might have tricked him into opening up to him. But in truth, it had felt cathartic to talk to Beth, because she had such a capacity to listen but not judge him.
She had told him about her heart operation that she had endured, and he thought it ironic considering she had the biggest heart of anyone he had ever met.
It worried him that her kind and loving heart would keep getting her hurt if she wasn’t careful.
And he found that he couldn’t bear the thought of that.
‘Here,’ said Alex, holding out a mug for Beth to take as she joined them. ‘Hannah made you a hot chocolate to keep you warm.’
‘Oooh,’ said Beth, clutching the mug close to her. ‘I knew there was a reason I loved her.’
‘It’s going great,’ said Ben. ‘And the microphone is fine. We could hear you all the way back here.’
‘More’s the pity,’ said Jake, grinning at his own joke.
Beth rolled her eyes and smiled. ‘Well, maybe even you, Jake, might learn something this evening,’ she replied. ‘What stars do you already know about?’
‘The stars on the England football team shirts,’ he said. ‘They’re pretty special.’
She gave Jake a nudge with her elbow. ‘That isn’t quite what I meant,’ she told him, before heading over to Noah. ‘Was it really okay?’
He nodded. ‘You’re doing great,’ he replied, anxious to reassure her.
She relaxed her shoulders. ‘It’s so hard to know what people expect,’ she said and he was reminded how little confidence she had in her abilities, despite her sunny and positive nature.
‘Just be yourself,’ he told her. ‘You’re a great teacher.’
She smiled at him. ‘Thanks,’ she said. ‘Are you going to stay and watch the meteor shower?’
‘Of course,’ he replied. ‘Why would I want to miss streams of cosmic energy streaking across the sky?’
She laughed. ‘Oh, wow,’ she told him. ‘You’re like my star pupil.’
They were smiling at one another when a ripple of excited murmurs went through the crowd.
Beth quickly spun around and immediately looked up to the sky.
Noah followed suit and saw that the meteor shower had begun.
For a moment, he was transfixed. How had he never studied the night sky before now, he wondered, as he watched the shooting stars fly across the inky black atmosphere above them. It was truly magical.
‘Isn’t it amazing?’ Beth asked him before heading back towards the waiting crowd.
It was, thought Noah. But he was starting to think that Beth was pretty amazing as well.