Late into the night, the child returned.
She slowly unclenched her fist.
There, in the palm of her little hand, lay a radiant star.
It was no bigger than when it had hovered in the sky.
But it was brighter now, as luminous as the glow intensifying on the horizon.

Author’s Note: For Sydnee, with love.

Bob Thurber is the author of “Paperboy: A Dysfunctional Novel” and two collections of stories. A celebrated master of Flash and Micro Fiction, his work has appeared in 60 anthologies, received dozens of awards, and been used in schools and colleges throughout the world. He resides in Massachusetts where, despite severe vision loss, he continues to write every day. Visit his website at BobThurber.net.