Jacita gazed out at the sunset as a medium-sized airship thundered by. Its massive engines blew her hair all over her face. She didn’t even blink. She was leaning against the whitewashed half-wall at the edge of the little porch. It was actually the roof of the house below, just like the roof of her house was the porch of the house above.

She idly rubbed the flat, round crystal tied to her wrist. It was glowing so dimly that the sunset easily overpowered it. She took a long breath, then sighed.

The evening air was cool. The haze wasn’t as bad today; she could see all the way to the west mountains. But she wasn’t really looking at them; her thoughts were down in the town, lingering in the corner of the cafe where she had been just last night.

“Jacita,” said a familiar voice. It was her mother’s voice.

“Mmmm,” said Jacita.

Her mother came and rested against the wall, the same way she was doing. Her hair was tied back with a packing tie; she usually didn’t have time to do it properly.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

Jacita took a deep breath and sighed. “Not too good.”

“I can see that. Your light is very dim.”

Mom’s light was also very dim. It was glowing in a worn-out sort of way.

Jacita didn’t respond for a while. A jaybird flew crazy circles overhead, the way jaybirds did.

Finally she sighed again. “Last night, Jaden told me he didn’t want to talk to me anymore. I know he’s dating Ralisha now, but… I still wanted to be friends with him. But it’s like he doesn’t even care about me anymore.”

Mother put her hand on Jacita’s wrist. “I’m so sorry for you, honey. I’ve been there before. I can relate.”

Jacita squeezed her hand. Both of their crystals flashed slightly brighter for a moment.

“Keep praying about it.”

“I know. I am. I just… don’t have any friends anymore.”

What little light there was in Jacita’s crystal was completely gone now.

For a while, Mom just stared at the sunset with Jacita. The sun was touching the west mountains now. Finally she said, “When I was your age, I dated about eleven different boys before I found the right one.”

“Eleven?!”

“Yes. People think of dating as this super-important high-stakes activity, like, if you don’t get your first date exactly right, you’ll have no chance of marrying him… that’s not what dating is about. How can you act normal and natural around someone while you’re trying to be perfect? That’s not your true self.”

“So what’s the point of dating, then?”

“It’s to gather information about people. To get to know them better.”

“Well, yeah, I knew that… but what if the date goes terrible?”

“It doesn’t matter! Just roll with it. It impresses the boys even more when you mess up and roll with it.”

Jacita sucked air through her nose. Her crystal was glowing brighter now. “…But messing up in front of people is hard!”

Both of them burst out laughing. “Absolutely!” said Mom. “Yep, it’s super scary! But nobody’s perfect. If they see the kind of person you are – and if you’re the kind of person who’s not afraid to mess up and keep going – they will be super impressed with you!”

Jacita brushed the hair out of her face. “So should I keep trying to be friends with Jaden?”

“I know he matters a lot to you. I think he’ll talk with you again eventually, even if he’s still going out with Ralisha. Just keep being nice. Try to find other friends.”

“How do I do that?”

“Just be nice to everyone you see. Talk to people. You know. And it takes a while. It takes a lot more than one date, one conversation, to really get to know a person.”

Jacita nodded. She understood.

They both looked at the last embers of the sun as it slid behind the mountains. Then, it was gone, leaving a sky filled with purple and red, sprinkled with stars and a few all-night airships chugging by high overhead.

The night wind whisked around the corner of the house, raising goosebumps on Jacita’s arms. “Time for bed,” said Mother. “It’s a busy day tomorrow.”

“Thanks for talking to me, mother,” said Jacita.

“I love you, my sweet girl!”

They hugged each other tightly, for a long time, and as they walked back inside the house, hand in hand, both their crystals were glowing brightly.