Swirls of color and pricks of light swam in the astronaut’s view as he floated through the reaches of space. He had managed to sleep through his interpretation of the “night”, totalling 3 earth days of being stranded out here. He had come to accept his fate after mere hours, choosing instead to focus on the dazzling sights of the universe, though now his fingers began to feel numb.

With the lights on his chest panel dimming, he realized his suit’s power was depleting, and with that, temperatures began to drop. Oxygen was not a problem, he had plenty of it, but he just felt so cold. His nose began to turn blue in the corner of his vision, and he exerted the last of his energy in an attempt to shiver. He was far from anyone he knew, closer to Pluto’s surface than the spacecraft he was forced to abandon days ago.
He stared at the distant stardust, attempting to divert his attention from the dilemma. He imagined the sight of himself out in the barren space and chuckled. A dot of white hurtling through the blackness. He liked to think that he could be mistaken for a distant star if the viewer didn’t know any better. The amusement of that thought made him feel warmth in his chest, but he couldn’t keep himself from noticing the lack of feeling in his limbs. Even up his stomach he felt the chills of space reaching for him. Drips of cold sweat inched down the back of his neck, nearly frosting on his arms. He began again to look out at the nebulae and star systems, only now they looked different.

Instead of the vibrant oranges, greens, and yellows, there was only blue. The warm, colorful galaxies were stolen, replaced by unfeeling purple and azure. The astronaut, in his hypothermic daze, assumed some cosmic giant had snatched the beautiful galaxies, winked them out of existence. He cursed at this cruel giant, begged for him to replace them, but the colors remained cool. Now, there was no warmth in his chest. His body soon began to shut down, skin turning as blue as the stars he now hated to see. He couldn’t move anymore. Tears leaked out the sides of his eyes and froze above his cheeks. He tried to grimace at himself, but he found he could not even budge his facial muscles. Once more he looked morosely at the stars, only now they began to dim. He panicked, unsure why the giant was attempting to steal the ugly stars too. He tried to remember his home, his mission, his name. Only now, all that came was a blank. He could not process his thoughts anymore. He simply wished to view the stars again.

Consuming his last reserves of strength, he turned his eyes back towards the dim stars.

Only now, all he could see was darkness.