Ned stared up at the heavens and his mouth fell open.

“It’s gorgeous,” he said with his eyes locked in place.

“Hmm. I guess it is kind of beautiful,” Sharon said as she followed his gaze. “I didn’t think it would be. It reminds me of that Summer in Memphis, the picnic in the park and that kiss under the stars.”

“Ever the sentimental type,” Ned said as he looked at her. “None of it compares to you, you know? I’ve always loved you.”

“I know.”

He dropped his eyes to the ground as the evening light grew brighter.

“Just teasing,” Sharon said, kissing his forehead, “I love you, too.”

They embraced. They kissed. They cried. They held each other tightly and tightly shut their eyes. The world got brighter.

Flaming hunks of metal that had once been an armada of ships streaked through the night sky. The battle to save the planet’s largest city had doomed it. A fiery steel rain pelted the entire Western Hemisphere with deadly debris.

The two lovers stood interlocked in each other until the burning end.