(GQ #10) Earth to Mia

1. A World That Never Ends

The loading deck's door opened up to a flash of white. A noon summer sky, tarmac, and the nearby spaceport came into view as the crew's eyes adjusted. The Celestion-5 had made its landing, and for the second time ever, Mia stepped on Earth.

Warmth touched her skin, a sensation she was unused to outside of the shower. Soft, thick air entered her lungs, and even though the scent of rocket fuel lingered, it somehow felt so much fresher than anything under the Lunarian Dome. Wind swept her hair to the side, nature's cooling fan. She saw clouds in the sky–real ones–in shapes she'd never seen before, and there wasn't an OrbiSoft error screen to be seen.

A black shape soared across the sky. A bird! Mia had only seen those on TV! Her eyes tracked it as it flapped its way into the horizon. It ventured into forever, and she felt she could stare at it for just as long.

"Are you enjoying the scenery?"

"Huh? Wha??"

"Ah, I asked--" Leon began to repeat.

Mia finally recovered. "Oh, yeah."

"Wait! I just realized! This is all probably new to you, isn't it? It must be so exciting!" His cloying eyes looked up at her.

But they weren't the only ones.

"Miaaaa!" Roxie ran over to her with a tube of something in hand. "You are very pale and have literally never seen the sun. It's first priority that your skin is protected!"

Mia let Roxie squirt sunscreen into her hands, not bringing up the fact that the sun still could be seen from the Moon, because it was nothing like this. This time, Mia could feel it. Was this just normal to everyone else?

"Everyone's going to be watching your reactions! Just like when I first went to space." Leon smiled as if that was in any way comforting. Maybe to him.

"You! Next!" Roxie thrust the bottle in his hands.

"Yeah, you're the star today, Mia!" Emil stretched while Roxie targeted Jun and Aiden next. "There's really no place like Earth, so watching you experience it all should be fun for everyone." He turned to his brother. "Can't we just stay here until the new guy shows up? It'll only be a week or so, and we got nothin' else to do."

"That would disrupt the spaceport." responded Captain Galhardo, walking ahead of the rest. "We're just here to pick up a fuel shipment from the nearby base."

"Captains, please accept my humble offering of sunblock! Your skin will thank you!" Roxie ran to the front of the group.

"Don't mind if I do~" Emil walked backward, reaching a hand out.

"...Thank you, Ranger Allen." The captain didn't seem sure how to respond to her, but appreciated it.

Roxie distributed sunscreen to herself last while they all ventured forward. Mia took her time walking, but it still felt too soon when they had to leave behind the wonders of nature to enter the spaceport's jet bridge. Inside the terminal gate, she saw the crowds of people, noise, and chaos that they would eventually have to work their way through. How annoying. At least she still got to look out of the windows.

"I'm so happy to be back here!" The spaceport might've been exciting to Leon, but for Mia, it was nothing she couldn't see on the Moon. "It's soooo cool. Literally, too! I was feeling kinda hot out there." He fanned himself.

"And now you'll get to enjoy it more insteada havin' to rush." Emil winked at him.

"Haha, yeah..."

"But I bet you're not too excited to be here." He spun toward Mia, reading her mind. "Don't worry, we won't be here long, I promise."