Sadalmelik—Heart like a sieve. Hair that burned me when I ran my hands through. Bit my lip too hard.

Wezen—Blanket hog. Splayed her limbs out, star of the sea. Kicked me out of the bed unconsciously long before she said to leave.

Rastaban—So, so many pretty words. Wrote me poetry and drowned my reason in her light. Got a tattoo and had to find work in the big city.

Pollux—Took me to fancy parties and kissed my throat on one of the daybeds we pulled out onto the balcony. It wasn’t going to work and we knew but god was it fun.

Alnath—A mirror of my self. Mutual pity. Peaceful in parting. Thank god for that. If we were any different we would have cracked the world on the axis of our ‘I’m Right’-ness.

Haedi—Smiled like the girls in the toothpaste commercials. Ate candy before noon and made my mother’s blood boil from the lightness of her mood. Fleeting. I could not stay within her orbit.

Chara—Golden and glowing and never awake before noon. Ate the first and the last cookies from my baking sheet. Made a habit out of sticking her finger into the dough and making me taste it. Forgot about my cactus when I went on a holiday and asked her to look after it.

Sheliak—Played at my train station for a month out of every year. Some days when I didn’t want to work I’d sit beside her and she’d play just for me. Made it big and never looked back. Good for her.

Adara—Eyes like saucers, head in the clouds. Took all of my breath when we kissed. Said I was the loveliest planet and wished me well.

Turais—All in shining armor. Offered to kill whatever god I liked, smiled like a lion. Me and her against the world. I helped her unbuckle her armor and took my turn at knighthood for a while.

Brachium—Took me hiking in the Badlands, leaned against me in the dusty sand and kissed me like a rattlesnake, eyes flickering open-shut-open. Like the shutter of a camera. I couldn’t keep up but she didn’t hold that against me. Just kept going.

Zavijah—Insufferable in the most attractive way you could imagine. I never wanted her to stop talking. Words in the creases of my elbows, the dip beneath my scapula. Transferred to another library. We kept in touch for a while, but I missed her breath over my sternum too much.

Talitha—Professional athlete, always away. Met her through a school function, and we hit it off really well. Didn’t pan out, not really. But she did get me into a stadium of my own volition, an incredible feat.

Algol—Almost entirely nocturnal. A very pretty face, high cheekbones and rounded lips. I could not live a lightless life. She took my hand before she faded and said there’s no treason in falling for the moon.

Gomeisa—Woke up before I did and stared at the stars until they all winked out. I would curl up next to her and watch the sun rise. She looked at me the whole time. I felt celestial. She had to go at some point, but left me her footprints, the way her eyes looked with the stars trapped in them.

Keid—Couldn’t cook to save her life, but always wanted to help me in the kitchen. She learned to make a mean omelet and was thrilled beyond her dreams. Never remembered the trash.

Porrima—Amazon tall, always wearing heels. Swooped down like a moth to kiss me, eyes like the bottom of the ocean, blankdark or glowing. Had somewhere else to be, eventually.

Sol—The most beautiful one I have seen. She makes the flowers grow around her, and she’s alternatively cruel and careful with them. She is going to tear at my roots and transplant me behind her ribs, work my boughs around her collarbones. I will love her for it as long as she will let me.