"I can't seem to remember so much quiet around me. There's always been the sound of a space ship, or the pumps back in the cities."
He did not answer but continued to watch her footsteps and to feel the dust squishing up between his toes. Then suddenly:
"Mary!"
She stopped, whirling around.
He was staring down at her feet.
She followed his gaze.
"It's grass!" He bent down. "Three blades."
She knelt beside him. They touched the green blades.
"They're new," he said.
They stared, like religious devotees concentrating upon some sacred object.