KRISTA MADE A PROMISE to herself: until JT boarded his spaceship and left this world, she wouldn't shed another tear. Their time on this last day was spent talking, loving, and reminiscing. JT had on the gray coveralls he had worn the night she found him. He refused to take anything she had given him. She had been hospitable enough, he had said, and in all actuality, he would have no use for such things when back in space.
The hour grew late, nearly eleven o’clock. His ship would be arriving soon in the same spot where JT had crash-landed.
“As much as I hate to say it, we’d better start heading out to the landing site,” Krista said. She and JT sat on the bench swing, swaying, stealing a few final moments of togetherness. A soft breeze brushed over their faces while the songs of night bir
