Your third day off Earth, December 24th, 2167, an asteroid hits your ship. Big, space-cruising vessels like the Mercedes SC5000 or the Ford Exploration will shrug off most asteroids like rain on an umbrella. In your Sony Personal Transport, the asteroid punches through your outer hull, releasing most of your oxygen into [[inky, black space]]. You are hours from choking to death on your own carbon dioxide. Unless you freeze to death first. You turn the monitors off and dim most of the lights, leaving the Christmas lights for now. “We should get some sleep,” you suggest. “The air will last longer.” Lisa follows you into [[the bedroom]]. “You go ahead and sleep,” you tell her. “I’m just going to turn off a few more things.” You go to the hall and get out the extra blankets. You put them by the door to the bedroom for now. You set the heat to just above freezing and turn off the Christmas lights. You think about [[stepping into space]] and feel goosebumps cover your arms. Then you check the monitor and are reassured to see there will be enough power to get to Mars and make a [[landing on the surface]]. You walk back into the bedroom and spread the extra blankets over Lisa. You kiss her goodnight. Then you step into the airlock. You know that space will freeze you, asphyxiate you, and boil your blood. You also know this is the only way Lisa will have enough oxygen to make it to Mars. You open the airlock and let yourself out. You and Lisa are watching a Christmas vid when it hits. The monitor blinks out for a second. When it turns back on there is no signal. Your Christmas tree has fallen over, too. “What was that?” Lisa [[whispers]]. “Just debris,” you answer. You get up and check the monitor in the hall for a damage report. At your current rate, seven hours worth of air and power remain. You are twelve hours from Mars. “We’ll be fine,” you say. “We lost [[a little air]].” You walk back into the bedroom and look at Lisa’s sleeping form, knowing this will be the last time you see it. Then you pull a pillow over her face and push it down until she stops struggling. There just isn’t enough oxygen for both of you to make it to Mars.[[The Gift]]