The box sat on the desk next to the computer.

It had arrived earlier in the day and

business had interrupted her opening it earlier. She didn't who had sent it and
briefly wondered who it might have been. As she began to unwrap it, she had no idea
that opening it would completely change her life.
Stranded. Yes, she was now the first person ever to land on Venus, but that was of
little consequence. Her name would be read by millions in school as the first to
land here, but that celebrity would never actually be seen by her. She looked at
the control panel and knew there was nothing that would ever get it back into
working order. She was the first and it was not clear this would also be her last.
Sometimes it's simply better to ignore the haters. That's the lesson that Tom's dad
had been trying to teach him, but Tom still couldn't let it go. He latched onto
them and their hate and couldn't let it go, but he also realized that this wasn't
healthy. That's when he came up with his devious plan.
The boy walked down the street in a carefree way, playing without notice of what
was about him. He didn't hear the sound of the car as his ball careened into the
road. He took a step toward it, and in doing so sealed his fate.
He knew what he was supposed to do. That had been apparent from the beginning. That
was what made the choice so difficult. What he was supposed to do and what he would
do were not the same. This would have been fine if he were willing to face the
inevitable consequences, but he wasn't.