Gravel crunched under tires as Mark drove the car down the otherwise silent country road. The sun was setting in the distance and the moon could just be seen near the opposite side of the horizon, big and beautiful in the twilight sky, the stars just peeking out like pinpricks of light in a gigantic, beautifully woven cloth.
As the car pulled to a stop next to a gigantic field, Chica barked in the passenger's seat.
"Alright, Chica, let's get you out of there."
Laughing as she woofed in response, Mark walked around to her side of the car. It was a beautiful night, especially for this season. There weren't even any clouds in the sky, making it a perfect night for viewing the meteor shower.
After all, if there was anything Mark loved, it was space. And Chica.
"Okay, you silly goof, let's get you out of there!" Mark opened the door and let Chica out, giggling as she immediately attempted to tackle him. He happily let her succeed, laughing as she licked his face. "Come on, we gotta get going! It starts in five minutes!"
He quickly attached a leash to Chica's collar, letting her lead the way to the center of the field. The dry summer grass crunched underfoot, and soon, lightning bugs could be seen flashing tiny patterns - like stars on the ground.
Mark sighed as he sat down in the grass. Chica turned around and snuggled up next to him, licking his hands as he absentmindedly tried to scratch behind her ears. He swore. "I should have brought a blanket."
Despite the total lack of ground coverage, the pair of goofs were soon laying back on the earth and staring at the night sky.
"Ah, Chica, it's a tough life we lead," began Mark. "Day in and day out. One thing after another. It's nice, but… I wish we could do things like this more often, you know?"
Chica woofed and licked his nose.
"Sometimes… sometimes I wish I could just go out there and touch the stars. Just… I don't know, it wouldn't even have to be for long, just a single second would be enough…"
Chica whined, stood up, and licked his nose again. She then proceeded to lay directly over Mark's stomach, causing Mark to swear and sit up. He immediately looked back up at the sky as the first shooting star of the night fell. He sighed.
"It's everything, Chica. And I'm glad we're a part of it."
Mark squinted. Meteors usually burned up in the atmosphere fairly fast, but this one was seemingly a bit more persistent than the rest. What's more, it seemed to be going directly towards him.
Oh well, it was probably just an illusion, he thought, though the feeling of doubt stayed with him as the shooting star continued to get larger and larger faster and faster until he was sure there was something wrong.
He stood up, grabbing Chica's leash. "Okay, Chica. Let's go to the car and watch from there." However, Chica didn't want to move. She whined as Mark tried to pick her up, scratching at the dirt in an attempt to stay put.
"Fine. We'll wait here in the middle of this clearing where we're going to be just fine and nothing at all is going to crash." Mark sat down, frustrated by the struggle. It was strange, he thought, it seemed to be getting lighter outside, and there was a weird noise in the air, something between strings and a door creaking.
Mark looked up.
The meteor was heading right for them, probably only a mile away at this point. Mark stared at it, too scared to move. It zoomed towards them faster and faster and Mark closed his eyes and hugged Chica close and then -
The noise stopped with a deafening boom. A few seconds later, a door creaked open. Mark heard footsteps approaching. Chica squirmed in his arms.
"Hello, there! Sorry about the landing, she does that sometimes. Of course, it's more my fault, really - I never learned how to drive the thing. So!" There was a pause, and the voice shifted to a softer tone. "Are you alright?"
Mark slowly opened his eyes. The man in front of him was half sitting, half kneeling on the grass, staring concernedly at him.
"Ah!" The man grinned. "Good! You're okay! I'm the Doctor. You?"