'Celestial Seasonings' by S. A. Little

Celeste admired the constellation of colored bottles arrayed on her vanity. She reached towards one labeled “Earth”, changed her mind, and picked up “Neptune”. She dabbed a little on her throat, inhaled, let the rich scent engulf her. Earth was her favorite but she didn’t want to use up the last drops; it wasn’t made any more. Neptune and Jupiter, they were big planets, but little Earth, it was gone.

Her date arrived in a stunning nebula suit tied with a classic Orion belt. She approved, although the shoes were a little too Newtonian for her tastes. He whisked her off to his favorite restaurant, the Milky Way, and escorted her through the Pillars of Creation to their cozy table in the corner. He ordered wine, a Cassiopeian with a hint of stardust, delivered and poured by a cute sommelier. She was impressed.

Appetizers were on her. A flaming red dwarf for herself, and to be a little yin and yang about it, a cool white for him. The waiter, Asterion, commended her, turned his head, winked at him.

Her date took a long time choosing his meal, perhaps he didn’t know his constellations, or the varietals of trinary systems? She began to fidget, look at her watch, think of exit plans. Outside, orbits began to precess.

Her date looked up, smiled at her and signaled the waiter.

“We’ll have the dark matter filament from the Aquila region, served with a rotating quasar, and the aged supernova platter, for two please. Oh, and Asterion, we’ll take our dinner on the patio, it’s a beautiful evening for stargazing.”

Her pupils dilated. Heaven was back on the menu.