The Night Light Restaurant perched high above the clouds of New London, a marvel of modern engineering hovering like a giant glass and metal Smartie in the night sky. It was only a couple of months after opening and it held a fresh feel, still secure in the favours of food critics and journalists a like. It was a place for the rich and newly rich, the stars of today and tomorrow, for intrigue...and romance. The gentle glow of mood lighting on the tables was matched only by the cold glow of the stars above, which glittered and shone like diamonds on a black velvet canvas -- not that Tessa Moriarty could see any of the beautiful things that surrounded her. She sighed and tried to stare in the direction of the caramel blur that was her dinner companion; she hoped beyond hope that she was staring lovingly at him but she realised she was most likely squinting again.

It had been almost six months since she had lost most of her sight while being held hostage, six months since she had last been able to see any of her friends. She was beginning to forget what they looked like and that scared her. But her eyesight was improving, from the dark world she had once inhabited to one now full of light and indistinct shapes. Her doctor had been pushing her to have her eyes replaced with grown ones, but while her sight was improving, while there was any chance of that sentence being reduced to corrective surgery, she held firm and waited.

Across the table she heard Peter Ling cough; he lightly touched her hand and the caramel blur that had been his face for too long came closer. "Tess, you remember you asked me to tell you if you were squinting again...well, you are."

She tried to relax and felt her brow smooth. "Thanks."

"No problem."

They had been dating for about nine months now and he had been the rock she needed to get her through the blindness, the fumbling and the danger, as she had learnt how to survive in the new world of shadows and shapes. She loved him more deeply than she had ever thought possible and in a completely different way to her ever-present friends and her small adopted family of Tennyson and his aunt; having him around made her feel safe. She straightened and removed her hand from his as she smelt food coming closer.

"Ours?"

"Afraid not."

She sagged as the smell passed and mingled with others on surrounding tables. Why Peter had taken her to a restaurant which took over forty-five minutes to serve food she’d never know; she was about ready to eat the table decoration, she was so hungry. Not that he couldn’t afford it now he was the Hornets' number one racer -- his partner, Craig Wilkinson, and he had been on a winning streak all last season and were limbering up for the next now. In fact this would probably be their last restaurant meal before he had to go back on the strict racing diet that their coach insisted on, if it ever got there. She sighed again and tried to remember the feel of racing her board high in the sky along the circuits of the world, and then shook herself; best not to bring herself to tears in public.

"....Tess...Earth to Tess. Have you been listening to a word I’ve been saying over the past five minutes?"

She shook herself again, if she didn’t buck up she was going to ruin the evening for both of them.

"Something about your board thrusters?"

"Try again."

"The new water-resistant membrane they’re putting over the boosters?"

"Nope."

Tess sighed. "Sorry, Peter. I guess I’m just not with it tonight."

"I guessed. I haven’t seen you this down for ages. What’s wrong?"

She shrugged and leaned back in the chair and Ling watched as she rubbed her short brown hair irritably. She hadn’t dyed it red since she stopped racing.

"I don’t know, I guess it’s just the fact that the racing season starts soon and you’ll be off round the world touring for the internationals and I won’t be able to see you again till come back for the nationals...it just gets me down, that’s all."

"You’ll have Tennyson and Miss Fayre to keep you company, and I’ll come back for a weekend or so."

"I know. I’ll still miss you like crazy, though."

Ling smiled and rubbed her hand; she couldn’t see the mischievous glint in his brown eyes, but it was there all the same. "You know you told me to tell you if any of your jewellery was wonky...well, your ring is."

Tessa looked confused and went to rub her hands.

"Ring? I’m not wearing a...."

Her fingers touched a smooth band encircling the second finger on her left hand...her wedding finger. Ling watched the expression of shock and surprise emerge on her face as her fingers found the ring and he grinned.

"You really should pay more attention to me when I’m talking, my dear."