You say you love her But you don’t know her You don’t know the struggles she’s been through You don’t know the struggles she’s going through You don’t even know what’s going through her mind But you say you love her

Kevin was sweltering in his underwear. His ass was pressed against the rough wood of the pier at Lunar Lake, where he decided to take a swim after he got home from work.

“God the night is fucking bleak,” he muttered as he hopped into the lake, sinking deep before kicking himself to the surface. The water did nothing to cool him—it was warm from the moonlight, and when his head pierced back up through the surface, his face felt the brunt of the moon’s rays.

‘At least I got the lake to myself,’ Kevin thought. He recalled the days when, as a child, he would go to the local swimming hole on weekends. He’d be freezing in his trunks at high noon, but he would attack the water so ferociously that he eventually radiated his own warmth.

But that was then, when he still had the luxury of time and energy. Now, floating in that placid lake, he felt like a boiled potato floating in the water. ‘Pretty sure that’s what I look like too.’

He tried to do laps to the middle of the lake and back every so often, but if he went too long, he began to feel uncomfortably warm. And that’s how he ended up a potato most nights. He would lie on his back, bathing in the burning light of the moon, distended belly poking out of the dark water like he was a pregnant woman about to have a water birth.

Kevin missed day swimming terribly, but with his ten-hour shifts and a child to raise, he could never find the time to drive seventy minutes to the nearest public pool.

Kevin looked up at the sky. The stars were tiny pinpoints he could barely see, even in the depths of this place far from the bright lights of skyscrapers and the blinding headlights of cars. The intense rays of the moon washed everything out, coloring the world a gentle grey every night.

Earlier that day, it had been cold and bright. The rays of the sun had cooled Kevin’s skin as he walked from the bus stop to his office in the city. Even there, in that concrete labyrinth, the world was brimming with color, illuminated by the tremendous glowing marble in the sky.

Kevin’s short walk beneath the forgiving solar light was the only respite he got between the angry heat of the night and the unavoidable stress of work, both of which pushed him further and further into a growing state of exhaustion that never seemed to dissipate.

The evening heat drove him and his wife to sleep in separate beds, so any comfort they may have offered each other at night was often short-lived. ‘We should go on vacation,’ Kevin mused, dragging his hands through the water listlessly. ‘Somewhere subterra.’

The subterra communities lived in perpetual night, but one that was always cool and safe from the light of both the moon and the sun. Kevin had heard about places like Santa Ilt and Tmanoot his entire life. The former was known by most as the Paris of the subterranean; the latter had more of a New York vibe, but artsier, grittier, and more riddled with crime.

It was almost impossible to get subterra visas because they were in coveted locations built entirely by man’s manual efforts. Tourists were few, and illegal immigrants countless.

Still, Kevin dreamt of earning enough visa points to spend a month there at the very least. Cost of living was much higher underground and he knew he'd never find a job that paid enough to make rent. There wasn't much demand for workers in the lunar energy industry underground.

Santa Ilt and Tmanoot were the largest importers of lunar power from aboveground markets, and they had no intention of encouraging local start-ups because that would be even costlier than importing their energy supply. Lunar panels above ground would have to be hooked up to generators below ground, requiring years of planning and excavation. Labor was cheaper on the surface, so development and construction was quicker and more feasible, as evidenced by the success of the company Kevin had been working for for over 12 years.

Celestial Inc. was an industry leader, and it was their flashy employment campaign that had reeled Kevin in when he was still a fresh graduate. His diploma still wet with signature ink, he'd marched through Celestial's gleaming pearl-white doors and never turned back.

The sun was so bright That the moon could only hope to reflect its light, and the sun noticed that. The sun let itself die so that the moon may shine.

Moon’s hot today Shining bright my way Heat of the night to stay Morning light cools the day

Sun rays bring dew Night frays heat you Another hot night too Sticky clothes like glue Tessa🦋

The suns form of light dies down Shrinking it to a lifeless star Though now the moon shall collect Collect the light that flowed within the sun It powers our houses, cars, life…and our world The planets will have new habits Do to the moons new shine A shine that shall contain a new life A life for one’s new start in a new time The world would change dramatically The Earth would go on a ride A ride to a new life The moon is a shining bright black orb floating in space The people down at earth below will wake up to a nightmare that awaits Now that the moon is the new sun for our human race

I am so very lucky and blessed to have you You brighten my skies everyday You came into my world totally unexpected I have yearned for you my whole life

The day I met you I fell in love The moon to my sun My cosmic atmosphere completed

Your shining light from the heavens above Have illuminated the void I have attained

Your golden blonde locks So soft, your young tresses Your smile lights me up You amaze me daily To think of what you may one day be Beckons me and thrills me

Leah Moon Hughes… Our daughter

The sun.

There is no sun, anymore

It died, as everything will

You

Me

Sooner rather than later

As the sun no longer exists

And the moon is in its place

Like how we'll die

And the next generation will be in our place

Like how the old

Gets replaced by the new

Bright white paper mostly smooth with a little rough, the sketch pad was wide open on the braided oval rug. Her box of Crayola 64s was tipped over spilling a rainbow of options. Shamrock and mountain meadow, the grass was a mix of green slashes. River searched for the sepia for her oak tree trunk.

“It’s not a religion, it’s more self-help. First they break you down, releasing you from the habits and cycles holding back your true potential. We are expanding our minds, healing our souls,” Perri said.

“Okay, but Mom said there was this money involved, all this money. She said you were asking for all this money and stuff and I just don’t understand,” Uncle Chris said.

River added a pine green pine tree next to her oak tree to keep it company. Next she worked on the house. River closed one eye to draw the straight triangle roof on top of the square house. Her eyebrows knitted in concentration when she realized her house was askew. Quickly River added more leaves to her oak tree to hide her mistake.

“So this is about Mom. Dammit, you’re here to spy on me. Here to tell me I’m wrong too?” Perri’s voice rose. Uncle Chris said something soft and kind-sounding too low for River to hear. She snapped the point off her electric lime crayon and hid it in the crayon sharpener hole.

Perri shouted, “I’m hurting too. And for the first time in a long time I’m feeling good about myself and no one will support me. I have positive people around me for the first time. But all anyone can talk about is a few lousy dollars. What about me? When do I get to be happy? When do I get something for myself?” Perri began to cry.

“Sis, you know it is always you and me. We have each other’s back no matter what. I’m looking out for you that’s all,” Uncle Chris said.

River drew faster, scrubbing wild watermelon over the brick red house. Her roof was atomic tangerine above a shocking pink rectangle door. The midnight blue of River’s four paned windows smeared under the pressure of her moist hand like bruises.

“Let me show you the literature and you can come with me to an encounter group. Lance encourages us to bring friends. If you don’t believe me, you’ll see, you’ll see.” “Okay, I want to read it,” Uncle Chris said.

Perri pushed away from the table and ran back to the small apartment’s one bedroom. Uncle Chris rubbed his eyes when Perri left the room. He looked over at his niece, so quiet, coloring in the living room.

“Hey short stack show me what you cooking up?”

Her crayon paused in mid air. River stared at her uncle open mouthed. “No. Not done. No one can see it until it done.”

River wondered if the sky should be black or outer space, a strong peaceful gray.

“Not even for your favorite uncle?”

River looked at him then her eyes returned to the page. “You’re my only uncle?” River’s hand made broad strokes darkening half the paper.

“C’mon, do me a favor? I could use a smile right now.”

River slowed down and then sighed. Uncle Chris was making sad puppy dog eyes at her. She closed her sketch book and went to sit on Uncle’s Chris’ lap.

Uncle Chris opened River’s book.He studied the bright drawings.

“Cool house short stack, what’s up with your sun?”

“The sun blew out a long time ago. Now the moon makes the trees grow and keeps the house warm. See, see.”

“I see short stack, cool very cool,’ he said.

River drew wiggly canary lines from her sliver of a perwinkle. Uncle Chris hugged her tight and let her go back to drawing.

It felt like a flip of a switch but, I think it began slowly. First the light dimmed; then the birds grew quiet; the stars burned brighter; days shortened and the nights lengthened. And then, the moon began to shine — hot.

I only noticed the changes when I woke up to a sky as black as ash. The sun was still golden; it continued to sparkle. And the moon was still silver like a knife, and it’s light was still pale and shallow.

The moon was full that night — or should I say day. The man smiled down, as if his dreams had fallen into place. I remember seeing Mars, the Jupiter, and Venus, all in a row, that day.

I sprinted to my sister, shook her violently, screaming, ‘Wake up! Wake up! The sun in gone!’ We fell down the stairs and out into tue yard to marvel in fear.

Our jaws had dropped and our eyes went wide. I looked over my shoulder and saw my neighbors baring the same face; their fear hidden.

We sat by the television, watching the news, awaiting anyone with an explanation.

And sure enough, within two minutes of turning on the tv, President William J. Dodger came on. He said a few empty words about remaining stability and control of panic before he turned the show over to the woman to his right.

She was a thin woman with curly, blond hair and glasses. She wore a lab coat white as wind. She spoke calmly in a language that was foreign to my sister and I. Then, in plain English, she said, ‘For months now, the magnetic fields of the Earth and Moon have been changing. This has resulted in the reversal of the sun and Moon.’ She was finally beginning to explain things in a way that did not make me picture a zombie apocalypse. But then she said ‘We are working around the clock to figure out why the roles of the sun and moon have been reversed as well. But I can assure you that further complications should not arise. And as soon as we have more information, we will alert the public.’ A blinding mob of camera lights and microphones surged the President and scientist as they were ushered away into a sleek, black limousine.

I held my sister’s hand tight. Her eyes were red; I could tell she was fighting the tears. But as soon as I hugged her, the whales came crashing down.

They were wrong. Wrong about everything. The world was never going to be the same.

                                 .    .    .

School had been suspended for a week. It was Sunday night and we were to return that Monday. The school board thought a week was enough time to let kids get all their feelings out and adjust to the current situation.

I remember, all throughout the night, laying and staring at the ceiling, wondering how I would get to school in the dark. It was still pitch black every time the sun rose. My Pa had gone out early that week to by flashlights, but by the time he had made it to the store, they were all sold out. I had to rely on the little beam my phone produced.

I remember clumsily bumping into my seat on the bus. I sat in the silence of the dark. None of the kids dared to speak. We were too afraid that if we did, we might distract the bus driver and cause her to crash. The trees I usually admired on the way to school were seemingly gone.

When we arrived at school, everything looked the same — but nothing felt the same. The lights felt brighter and the air felt cooler. The bullies had given their prey a particularly generous pardon.

The whole day felt automatic. My body performed the ordinary motions of note taking, thumb twiddling, and weaving through the hallways. But my mind never performed these actions. I had been captured by the daze of night.

The cold brightness left the sky as the moon filled the land with heat and blackness. I shifted uncomfortably in my desk chair as I attempted to study for my final exams. The Moon didn’t used to give off heat; before, it was always the Sun. It made more sense, too, if you think about it. Fire gave off heat and the Sun was, well, a giant ball of flames. I remembered learning about it how and why their positions switched in school when I was younger, but I don’t remember the lesson, only that the lesson happened.

I brought my attention back to the numbers and equations; I couldn’t put off studying for math any longer. Eventually, hours seemed to have passed with me in my trance-like studying phase. The next time I looked up from my paper with consciousness, it was two in the morning and red glow was emancipating from my window.

The moon was as red as a strawberry in June. In a daze of fascination, I moved toward the window to get a clearer view of the moon where it wasn’t blocked by the oak tree growing outside my window. The next thing I know, I’m climbing onto that very tree and lowering myself to the ground. The heat burned my skin in ways I had never felt before, but my mind was too curious to stop moving, and I kept moving until I reached a plain corn field. Then I saw the bodies. Hundreds of bodies scattered through the growing corn stalks. Each one a little more burnt or melted than the last. I tried to run, to scream, but my body just moved me further into the field where I would remain.