Walker/Flyer

When they send a girl to space, they usually mean for her to come down. I didn't think that was true. At least not for me. Asia Walker, youngest girl to enter earth' s orbit. At least that's what they said I was when I went to Nasa.

I am seven years old. I am Asia Philipa Walker. I was never meant to exist. This has been but into my head every day for the past 2,557 days of my life. You could call this trip my birthday present. It was two days ago.

I say those first three sentences when I introduce myself. My mother says them to me when I go to bed. My father shouts them to me to wake me up. They have become part of who I am.

On February 19th of the year 2014 my father woke me up at 7:13 a.m. "Asia Walker! Get down here! We agreed that you would be down here each morning at seven fifteen, don't you dare question my authority!"

I was up and ready in a few seconds. I had slept in my clothes from when I was four. Every day my father told me not to. Every night my mother told me to. I didn't have to. I could have changed in two minutes. And we had never agreed on this. He had talked to my mother and then they yelled at me to do it. I walked downstairs.

"Hurry up, Bitch! And don't sleep in your clothes!" He slapped me across the face when I got near him. I stumbled back and he pulled me back hard so his face was inches from mine. "You will sit down now, Bitch, or so help me god I will make you sit on the floor!" He released me.

I sat down in a chair opposite him.

"Honey! I got the girl downstairs! Should I tell her?" He yelled over his shoulder to my mother like I wasn't there.

"I'd choose you telling her over looking at that thing any day!"

"Kay, Honey!" He turned back to me. "Ok, girl, listen up! You're not going to school anymore, like you'd learn anything anyway.

My wife is taking her own precious time and using it up to drive your ass to Nasa headquarters every day for the next year. If she hears so much as one word of complaint, you're going to pay hell for it at home!"

I was very confused at this point and I tried not to let it show on my face but my father noticed anyway.

"Argh, why do I even bother talking to you?! Look, Kellie, the Bitch can't understand a word I say! Just drive her there!"

They started arguing. Father got out of his seat and stomped into the kitchen where he started calling mother, 'woman.' I think they would have been nicer to each other if they had been married before I was born. It always seems to make people nicer on tv.

...

The next day, mother drove me to Nasa. I met a smiley lady there who was always chewing bubble gum and offering me some. I never took it. I didn't like the lady. She reminded me of mother when she is around people I don't know.

The lady's name was Jennny. Jenny introduced me to some other people. The people measured me and told me things. I couldn't hear them well. The whole year of training passed like I was in mother's car. You see something in the distance and you see it clearly for a second, them it's a blur. And after that, it's gone.

...

On February 2nd, my parents were happy. They bought adult drinks that make your mouth burn and that makes me cough when I drink them. My parents talked about fame and then my father started taking my mother's clothes off and she made some low noises. I walked away and went to bed.

In the morning I had a headache. I think that might have been because of the strange adult drinks that I drank.

...

When my mother drove me to Nasa that morning Jenny told me I should be exited. She said I was going to space to be the youngest girl to enter earth' s orbit. I would be famous. None of this made sense to me. What was Earth' s orbit? Jenny said it was space.

The grownups made me get into a tight, funny-looking suit. It wasn't like my father's suit, which he wore  with a tie when my parents went out for the night and left me at home. I only called it that because the Nasa people called it that. A space suit. I would where it when I went to space.

The Nasa people shoved my into a huge, pointy building and buckled me into a seat. The door closed behind us and when they went out they pushed a bright red button next to the thick door. They left me in the small room with scilence and a blank screen to keep me company.

Ten minutes later the screen came on. I gasped and pulled on the seat belt. I thrashed around a little and the people on the screen started freaking out. I saw my mother. She looked as if she could care less. She was talking to some people holding the biggest camera I had ever seen. I stopped thrashing. The people calmed down.

A loud voice came from all around me. It was saying numbers backward. My insides felt knotted up. My eyes grew. I didn't know why, but I was more scared them I had ever been in my life. The voice said a word. The world turned upside-down.

The building started growling and then roaring, like a lion but thousands of times louder! I covered my ears. The people on the screen started to scream and jump up and down. The building started to shake and rumble and then it was shooting up like the elevator in Nasa headquarters. No. It was faster then the elevator.

Time passed. I don't know how much. The building kept going up. My stomach turned over and over like a stone rolling down a hill. Then the screen changed to a picture. It was a blue and green and grey and white circle. There was a tiny circle next to the first. They were both growing smaller, until they both fit on the screen.

Then I heard screaming. Hundreds of rocks started flying at the picture. The screen changed to the people. They were shouting. My eyes grew even bigger. The camera that my mother was talking into turned around and faced something else. My mother sat down, she didn't care about the rocks, being a thousand miles away.

The rumbling of the pointed building started to mix with the changing and clanging of the rocks. I heard crashes and banging. The rumbling stopped rumbling. The clanging died away. The screen made static noises. Other then that, there was silence.

I unbuckled the complicated seat belt and walked to the screen. I turned down the volume so my ears wouldn't have to listen to screaming. Jenny wanted me to go to space. My parents wanted me to go to space. Nasa wanted me to go to space, wherever space was...

The grownups made me get into a tight, funny-looking suit...

"Hurry up, Bitch! And don't sleep in your clothes!" He slapped me across the face...

I saw my mother... she looked as if she could care less...

But I didn't want to go to space.

My head spun with the decision. I didn't have to go to space. I couldn't go to space. I didn't need to go to space...

And I could say no...

I smiled for what seemed like the first time in my life. I was alone here. I could controll my life! With no one to yell at me, I was free!

I walked to the red button. It would take me back. A building couldn't move. The button would open the door to take me to Nasa.

I held my breath.

I reached forward.

I pushed it.

And the door opened.

I was rushing out of the building, but it wasn't a building, not even Nasa. It was flying. I smiled. I was flying.

I could fly!

I smiled for a second. The picture on the screen of the circles was here too, growing even smaller. My smile grew. I was flying. I had left my life, my mother, my father, my entire life... behind.

I flew away. And I never looked back.