It was dark in the bedroom, the large black Lab taking up the bottom half of the bed. I went from sleeping in a king-size bed by myself to sharing it with a woman and her big dog. She slept quietly and didn’t snore, but Torpedo was a different story. He breathed loudly and even snored sometimes.
But I was still happy she was here.
It was midnight, and I was wide awake, thinking about my upcoming launch and the crew coming with me. Hyde wouldn’t be coming with me for this mission, which was always a disappointment. The rest of the astronauts were more than qualified, but I trusted Hyde in a deeper way.
My phone vibrated on the nightstand, and Laura’s name came on the screen.
Miss me yet?
I ignored her message and returned my phone to the nightstand. Why would I miss her when I had Charlotte? Not only was she amazing in bed, but she was the coolest chick I knew. She was smart, funny, and everything else that made a woman desirable.
Honestly, I hadn’t thought about Laura since the last time I saw her.
I hadn’t been interested in any women, actually.
Torpedo snored loudly, making Charlotte wake.
She groaned under her breath. “Shh…” She opened her eyes then sat up. “Go sleep in the living room if you’re gonna snore like that.” She gave him a gentle nudge with her foot.
Torpedo rolled over and stayed asleep.
She sighed then lay down again. “Did he wake you?”
“No. Can’t sleep.”
She snuggled into my side, hooking her arm around my waist and placing her cheek on my shoulder. “Why? Is it because he snores like a bear?”
I chuckled. “No.”
“Then what’s on your mind?”
“Just thinking about the schematics I had to go over. I’m not familiar with the rover program because a different team of engineers worked on it. So, I’ve had to do all the research and go over the manuals they have. There’re a few other things I have to do in preparation for the mission, and I can’t stop thinking about it…”
“Sounds stressful.”
I shrugged. “If it’s not stressful, it’s not interesting.”
“God, you’re a weirdo,” she said with a laugh. “I’m sure you’ll be fine, Neil.”
“Maybe.”
“Is Hyde going with you?”
I shook my head. “No…unfortunately. He’s scheduled to leave at a later time, when I was supposed to leave originally. But they moved up my mission, so we won’t be on the moon together.”
“I’m sure there will be another time.”
“Yeah…it just makes the whole thing a bit lonely.”
“Can you talk to your family when you’re gone?”
“I send videos to my mom, but we can’t talk in real time. And my mom doesn’t usually send anything back, so I don’t hear from her.”
“Because she can’t figure out the electronics?”
“No…it’s her way of protesting.”
She rolled her eyes. “They really need to let this go. You obviously aren’t going to change your mind, and something terrible might happen and they could lose the opportunity to talk to you one last time. It’s ridiculous.”
He shrugged. “My mother lost the love of her life… I understand.”
“But still, it’s your life.”
“Maybe being unattached makes it easier for her. Maybe she’s always preparing for my death, so it’s easier to tolerate.”
“That’s dark…”
“People cope with stress in different ways. That’s how my mom copes with this.”
She hugged my waist and pressed a kiss to my shoulder. “Well, I know you’re going to come back, Neil. You’re the smartest man I’ve ever met. I have complete faith in you.”
Great astronauts had died because of incidents that were out of their control. Tanks burst, pressures were switched, system failures occurred…all things that had nothing to do with them. Sometimes you just had to hope that everything would go right. Everything didn’t go right for my father…and he died far too young. “Thank you…” I didn’t voice any of this to her. I didn’t want to worry her when she was so positive. She was the only person in my life who was positive at all. I didn’t want to ruin that.
She tucked her leg between my knees. “Now go to sleep, Commander. We’ve both got work in the morning.”