To the Sky of Glittering Gems

The final day of training before they headed out to Kennedy, Florida was a day of distraction, and it seemed to take the longest to pass by. However, at the end of their afternoon training Harry surprised them with the news that NASA was going to be giving them rides where they wanted to go only for the night, so they had to be back by morning to head to Kennedy for final launch preparations.

The guys weren't very discrete about discussing their plans, so Adena knew who would be going to the strip club, and it was a no brainer that A.J. and Grace would be taking off for some alone time on their last night on Earth. Standing at the front entrance of the building, Adena watched as they each drove away in the large black SUV's, the same she had gotten picked up in on that first day. She had wanted to be there to wish Chick luck, knowing that he had been thinking more and more of his family as the clock counted down.

But she had nowhere to go, no one to see. She had just watched her family drive away.

Sitting on the steps as the trucks disappeared into the horizon, she squinted against the orange-red of the sun, the fading warmth caressing her skin. Harry had remained behind as well, so she wouldn't be alone at the base. Maybe she'd take the night to read up more on the shuttle-

"Hey."

So lost in her thoughts, Adena's green eyes looked away from the distant sun to where Sharp was standing in front of her, dressed in casual clothes for the first time. Wearing his regular white shirt with a pair of well-worn jeans, she found herself smiling at the sight. "Will," she greeted, "So, you do own something other than that jumpsuit."

"Do you? Go get changed, we're going for a ride," he ordered, taking in her own bright blue suit. She hadn't thought to change since she hadn't been intending to leave the base, and now she was wearing a confused frown but he persisted until she had scurried back into the base to go and change into her own clothes.

When she came back wearing a pair of khaki coloured cargos and a black tank top—bearing the NASA logo on her breast—Sharp realized he shouldn't have been surprised. It suited her perfectly, from the time he had spent with her and could actually say he knew some of her personality. Her black sneakers and tied back hair were just an addition to her quirks. Her hands tucked into her pockets showed the definition on her shoulders and biceps and he could see a faint scar on her collarbone that appeared to be a surgical mark.

"So, where we going?" she asked as she jumped the steps to land next to Sharp, letting her hands slip back into her pockets as a natural reaction. "And how are we getting there?" she asked a moment later she was looked around to see that the drivers had left, even with some SUV's left in the lot.

"It's a surprise, and we're taking my truck," he evaded, nudging her toward the lot of cars and trucks as he jingled the keys she had not noticed in his hand. His truck was a sleek silver pick up that she could tell was well taken care of and had even recently gotten a wash. Sliding into the passenger seat, Adena marvelled at the new car smell even though she could tell that it was not a newer model. He really took care of his truck.

"Oh, god, you're one of those guys," she finally said in mock anguish but was distracted at the boisterous laugh that Sharp let out. He kept himself so composed when they were around the others at the base, it was like someone had replaced him with a happier twin as soon as the others had dispersed.

The guards of the gate must have been expecting him because he just had to flash his ID and they were letting them through, driving down the long road that led them through the open fields of land that NASA utilized whenever they had to do testing. He kept the windows rolled down, letting the wind blow at their faces while it was still warm with summer heat, pushing and pulling at the dark strands of Adena's hair even though she had tied it back. They were both smiling against the refreshing breeze as Sharp manoeuvred them through the streets with a precision of someone who had made the drive several times before.

They had alternated between talking and fighting over radio stations for an hour before they reached a small town. Sharp sobered up quite a bit when they were riding through the town, the warm pink of sunset giving it a homey and well-kept feeling. When he pulled up alongside a playground that had a couple of parents sitting watching their kids and children playing on the equipment, she knew exactly where they were.

"Are you going to tell them?" she asked when he didn't leave the truck, instead just watched the two blonde girls that were playing by the monkey-bars.

"No," he mumbled out, watching his daughters with a longing in his eyes that broke Adena's heart.

"Go and see them," she encouraged. Snatching the keys from the ignition, relieved that he had already turned the truck off, the brunette motioned with her head toward the children. "You don't have to tell them, but you can give yourself a reason to come home." Sharp looked to her with those longing eyes and it made her smile sadly before reaching over to give his forearm a gentle squeeze. "You're not gunna get these keys back until you go-"

"Come with me," he interrupted, gripping the hand that was still on his arm. "Come meet them."

Glancing toward the bench nearest the monkey-bars, Adena spotted the woman with light blonde hair that was watching them and, with a wince, the man that was with her. "Will she mind?" she asked after a moment, knowing that Sharp was well aware who it was that she was talking about. She had been worried when speaking with Grace that he would go back to his ex-wife, but it seemed he didn't have the opportunity.

"She doesn't get a say in who I introduce the girls to, come on." Popping open the driver's door, Adena still ended up hesitating before she did the same with her door and hopped down, pocketing Sharp's keys since she was still holding them. He met her at the front of the truck before they made their way, together, to the children and their mother. Adena became aware that she was still wearing the black shirt with the NASA logo on it, but she didn't really have any way of covering it up now.

It was the two daughters that noticed them first, taking off at a dead run with a scream of 'daddy!' before Sharp was tackled to the ground with his laughter mingling with theirs. Adena found the sound contagious and laughed lowly to herself as she watched the usually rough man as he wrapped his daughters up in his arms and hugged them tightly. Their mother and her boyfriend—husband?—rose from the bench.

"Willie?" she asked in surprise, but he was too focused on the two girls who were sitting on his stomach and chest, making it impossible to get up.

"Need some back up down there, Colonel?" Adena couldn't help but to tease, highly amused by the scene as a grin was painted across her face.

The youngest, who she remembered Sharp mentioning to be Veronica, stood up from where she had been draped over her dad's chest and moved to stand in front of her. "Do you work with daddy?" she asked in a soft, young voice. Crouching down so that the girl wasn't staring at her thighs, Adena smiled at her as she looked into those eyes that matched Will's.

"Yes, I do," she answered calmly, "And I'm going to have to believe that you are Veronica?" The little girl gave an excited wiggle and nod of her head, happy to be recognized. "And I also hear that you don't like salad croutons…" she trailed off, before laughing when the small blonde made a disgusted, dramatic 'bleh' sound and shook her head until her soft blonde hair flew around her face. "Yea, me neither."

"Will, what are you doing here? Who is this?" the woman asked when she had finally reached them, taking their oldest daughter from off of her father's stomach. However, as soon as Will was on his feet she had run right back to him, letting him pick the eight year old up and hitch her on his hip while facing him.

"Charlotte, this is Adena; we're going to be on my next assignment together. We haven't gotten out for a while so I wanted to bring her to meet the girls."

"Are you and daddy gunna fly?" Veronica asked excitedly as she bounced in front of Adena, tugging happily on her shirt.

"Yea," Adena answered as her throat seemed to constrict on her. "Your daddy's going to fly me and my friends somewhere so we can fix something," she answered as calmly as she could.

"The space people!" the older daughter shouted, who Adena had heard Charlotte call Rachel, as she pointed at the NASA logo over Adena's right breast. "Are you going to the moon, daddy?" she asked as she looked to her father, Veronica reaching toward Adena to gently trace the letters stitched into her shirt.

Will laughed as he adjusted his hold on his older daughter. "No, sorry baby, not the moon. Not this time," he answered, watching as Adena smiled and began to trace 'NASA' over Veronica's collarbone to match where it was on her. "I just wanted to come and see you before I left."

"What's your name?" Veronica asked the brunette, clearly not having been paying attention when her father had mentioned her name. The innocence almost made her want to cry but she kept her smile in place.

"Adena King," she introduced before making a show of holding out her hand to the small child. "And you?"

"Veronica Sharp," the blonde said dramatically as she shook Adena's larger hand, her antics even getting a smile from Charlotte. Tugging on her hand, Adena leaned closer as the girl wanted her to do, until she was whispering in her ear rather loudly. "You'll keep my daddy safe, right?" she asked, pulling back with large, hopeful blue eyes.

"I promise," Adena assured, holding up her hand with her pinky extended. Veronica smiled and reached up to wrap her tiny pinky around Adena's rough finger, both leaning forward to kiss their thumbs to seal the promise completely.

Saying their goodbyes, Will doing so very reluctantly, they were soon heading back to the truck with heavy hearts. Once they were back on the road, Adena nearly forgetting that she had the keys, she reached over to take one of his hands from the wheel to hold in hers to offer her assurances of what was to come. "What did she whisper to you?" he asked after a moment, knowing that a promise was made but not what the little girl had asked.

"She wanted me to keep her daddy safe," she answered in a soft voice, barely heard over the wind blowing in through the windows.

Will squeezed her hand tightly in his, but didn't speak again. They were silent until he pulled over for the second time, but this was further outside of the town, back in the direction of NASA, in the middle of nowhere. They had pulled out of the treeline on a dirt road and were now left in front of a large field that she assumed was usually used for growing wheat, with the sun casting a golden glow over the yellow plants.

Instead of just remaining as they were, however, Will made a three point turn until the back of his truck was facing the sunset and he was pulling the keys out of the ignition for the second time. "Come on, you'll love the view." Doing as he said, she jumped from the truck and moved to the back where he was folding back the covering and popping the back open. Helping her up, even though she knew she wouldn't have needed it, Adena smiled as she stood tall and looked over the field that was starting to transition to a soft pink colour.

"Wow," Adena mumbled as she nodded her head, "Well, I do love the view," she admitted, moving aside to let Will jump up onto the back as well. The sky was reflecting off of the plants and trees, turning the land a soft pink and orange.

"Knew you would," he said with a faint grin, sitting on the side. "You stare at the sky often enough," he added in a teasing voice.

Adena sat on the end of the back hatch, her legs dangling down as she leaned her elbows down on her knees, smiling serenely. After she had met Will's children she had thought she might feel off, like she would be put off because she was interested in a man that had two daughters, but instead she felt the need to prove that she could be a mother. After his words on her doubts there was an urge to prove to him that he was correct in his assurances.

"I've seen sunsets all over the world, from so many different viewpoints, but it's always so beautiful," she admired, her eyes scanning over every pink hue and beam of light that seemed to shine just a bit brighter than the rest.

Will sat himself behind her, holding her to his chest with his arms crossed across her torso. Leaning backward to let him support her weight, they watched together as the sky bloomed with colourful brilliance, shining the world in shades of reds, oranges, yellows and pinks. It was soft and precious, a picture that Adena wished she could keep in her mind and her heart forever.

Turning her head to look back at Will, her smile was peaceful—but there was a sad quality to it. Adena couldn't help but to feel as though this was her goodbye to the world, to see this one last beautiful sunset.

"Just stop thinking," Will whispered against her hair, kissing the soft strands as the faintest scent of metal came from them. Pressing his lips in a trail from her hair down to her jaw, Adena was finally relaxing against him as she thought solely on the feel of his lips on her cheek and jaw, of his arms cradling her tight, the strong scent of his cologne teasing her senses.

Tipping her head back, Will finally pressed his lips over hers with such gentleness that it was more of a haunting touch, a ghostly caress. Turning herself further into him, Adena pressed back into the kiss as her hand lifted to cradle his cheek, feeling the faintest trace of stubble against her palm.

Soon pulling her up onto his lap, Will Sharp held onto this woman so tightly, digging his fingers into her hair until it fell free from its tie while his free arm pulled her forward to mould them together. Only pulling away once to look at her face; Adena's eyes were closed and there was a look of ease that had taken over her saddened features. When her green eyes opened to look at him he was relieved to see that she no longer lingered on thoughts of goodbyes or tragic endings.

As one of their possible last nights on Earth, he refused to let her think on what could be lost. Just for tonight.

Tugging with the hand still burrowed in her hair, he kissed her again. Stealing the air from her lungs and conscious thought from her mind.

Laying her back on the bed of the truck, the brunette watched with curious eyes as Will bent to press his lips along her stomach where her shirt had ridden up slightly. As he moved up along her abdomen, following the smooth expanse of skin and muscle, he lifted the dark material of her shirt away to reveal more and more. Her torso was a light, milky white in comparison to her arms, her tank tops protecting her flesh from the sun. Adena smiled when he hit a ticklish spot near her ribs, lifting a hand to run long fingers through his hair.

Blue eyes flicked up to look at her before Will pushed her shirt up further, revealing the dark lacy bra she had chosen when she changed. Continuing his path, Will trailed kisses between her breasts while his hands pushed her shirt up until Adena was able to pull it off completely for him. Turning to rest his head over her left breast, Will listened. Her heart was a steady rhythm beneath his cheek, pounding a pace that he knew was slightly faster than normal. It was a beautiful sound, a symphony of her life.

Warm fingers carding through his hair drew him to look up once more, lifting his head from her soft flesh to meet her murky green eyes. The sunset warmed her skin but it was her smile that brightened her features. When she tugged gently on his hair, he let Adena guide him up until she drew him into a kiss.

Desperate to even the odds between them, Adena's hands drifted beneath Will's shirt to trace along the muscles that she knew had been there. Her hands were calloused and strong, but warm and welcoming as Will let her relieve him of his shirt until he could press own on her torso to meet bare skin. She sighed at the contact, tracing her hands along his back as his lips fell to her jaw, tracing the bone.

When he moved down to press tender kisses along the column of her neck, Adena looked up. The sky was darkening quickly, taking the colours with it as they gave way to deep blues and rich violets. Among the new colours, however, were stars. Smiling widely before she closed her eyes, the rig worker let her mind forget the danger and took that moment only to feel, to remember the beauty of stars and sunsets, the moon that circled the Earth like an ever faithful companion.

"What's with the smile?" Will asked quietly, bringing her to open her eyes as she looked to him. There were tears there, but they were not sad or grievous. They were almost happy.

Looking up at the stars, he followed her line of site to take in the glittering gems that had appeared over the treeline. Caressing the backs of her knuckles against Will's cheek, Adena brought his focus back to her.

"Take me to those stars, Flyboy."

As the day gave way to night, as the world became aware of the Asteroid hurtling toward Earth, they kept their peace. Between the subtle touches and the calm, whispered words, neither of the occupants in the truck bed allowed their burdens to return. Even as the moon drew across the sky, lighting the field in a silvery glow, and the entire stretch of deep blue was littered with a brilliant blanket of stars, they lay in ease.

Their rapture echoed through the trees and open field, chasing away the stress and burdens of the world that had threatened to drag them down, to ruin them.

And there was the calm.

Wrapped in an embrace of strength and reassurance, limbs tangled and hearts content, Adena could only smile. Tracing her nails along Will's chest as his fingers combed through her hair, all she could so was smile. And it was true. There was no falsehood behind her happiness, no need to force a façade of calm or a mask of indifference.

Leaning her cheek to Will's pectoral muscle, she let herself become lost in the strong and reassuring beat of his heart. It had calmed, slowed, and was now a steady rhythm to match with hers. Shifting to wrap her arm around him, she pulled herself as close to Will as she could manage. His arms tightened around her in response, a kiss falling against her hair.

There were no whispered sentiments, or declarations of love. The feelings were there, flowing through their veins as true as their blood, but they did not need to speak the words to show them. In every kiss, she knew his heart. In ever caress, she returned it. And in ever whispered comfort, they shared it.

I wrote this chapter three different ways before I finally decided that I liked enough to publish it. I hope that all the changing and altering was worth it, I greatly enjoyed this final draft. Listening to the Soundtrack for the movie and be very inspirational.