Beneath the Blind Sky

Chapter 3

I pull away from Mina and wipe my tears in an attempt to stop myself from crying, because I have more questions and if I don't ask them now I'll have to wait till next Visiting Time -which is 2 weeks away. "Mina, how do you know about Earth? If we're so far away from Mars and the rest of the planets, how is it possible for you to know-" my voice cracks. "How do you know anything?"

"There's a small library on board, on the second floor. I snuck up there a few years ago to have a look around, and I found a small book about Earth tucked away in a corner. I figured no one would miss it, so I took it and read it to you." I don't even bother to ask how she got up there; I just think about all the times I heard pages rustling as Mina told me stories of Earth. Stories about Earth's big blue sky filled with soft white clouds that change from pink to orange to purple. Stories about dewdrops on green grass and soft rainfall hitting the ground with small splashes, making the air smell fresh and sweet. It's sad to think it was all a lie; I guess all good things are a lie one way or another.

I take a breath and ask another question that's been on my mind, trying to avoid the sadness welling up inside me. "Are we going to live on this ship forever? Are we ever going to land?" To be honest, I don't care if we land on a planet that no one knows about and no one will ever care about; I just want to step down on a planet and feel the sand between my toes and smell the waves lapping onto the shore of a beach.

"Charlotte, we're light years away from any planets. The Earthians can't even track us at this point. The chances of us ever reaching land is...none. Maybe the ship will get there one day...but we won't," Mina whispers. "The average life for a person on board is 40 years...there's no way that we'll reach a planet in time," she whispers in regret. I choke back a sob because in my heart I knew that was the answer. But it doesn't make the pain that I feel any less real. I'm preparing to ask another question, but at the same time I'm sick of hearing the truth; I'm sick of hearing that everything I ever thought was true was just a lie to keep me happy. Why did Mina lie to me when she knew that one day she would tell me the truth?

Nanny knocks on the door, and I hate to say I feel relieved...but I was glad to get away from Mina, away from the truths that I wish were lies. Ignorance is a curse to the mind, but a blessing to the heart. My dreams are more unlikely than the chance of Mina growing her arm back, more unlikely than me ever seeing the stars. And that pain is enough to make me wish that I never came to see Mina.

I nod my head to Nanny and tell her that I'm coming, but I make sure to tell Mina thanks. Thanks for talking to me, and that I wish that we could hang out more. To Nanny, it may seem like I was being sweet, but Mina knows me well enough to sense the sarcasm and anger in my voice. Without any response from Mina I walk out the door with Nanny and head back to my room.

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

Nanny opens my door and guides me inside; the loud cheer of a small girl and the pitter-patter of small feet on the tile greets me. I take a step back in confusion, but that doesn't stop the little girl from running into me and knocking me to the ground. I bang my head on the floor and attempt to stand up, but the little girl is climbing over me with her small hands. I eventually get into a position where I'm on my knees, and the little girl is able to touch my head.

"This is your new roommate," Nanny says in a monotone voice. I stretch my hands out to the little girl and feel her chubby face and short hair. "What's her tag?" I ask, hoping that Nanny will tell me. All of the Uselesses have a tag number and a description of them -most of the time the tag information is kept a secret, but the Nanny usually makes an exception for the roommates. It turns out that this was one of those times. "Her information is as follows," Nanny says with the same monotone voice from before.

"#391302, 4'5", 117 lbs., Trisomy 21, black hair, blue eyes, age 6." With that finished, Nanny leaves the room without so much as a goodbye. I wave anyway and I imagine her waving back at me, although I have no idea what she looks like. I turn my attention back to the little girl and study her with my hands, tracing over her face in an attempt to get an idea of what she looks like. The little girl laughs and giggles, which makes me begin to laugh as well. I'm glad for this distraction; if it wasn't for the girl I would probably still be crying over the newfound truths Mina told me.

"What's Trisomy 21?" I ask the girl, curious. I'm awful at remembering technical terms, and I know for certain that I haven't heard this one before. "Down-syndrome," she whispers, as if it's a secret we're both sharing. I nod my head as if I know what that is; I have a sudden wish that Mina was here with us to tell me what it is and why it's classified as a problem. As far as I can tell, the girl is happy and sweet.