Paintbrushes dance over paper and leave stories behind. Smoothly up, swirl, back down. Wrist and brush working as a team. A life, an event, a feeling. That’s what paintings and all other forms of art do: tell stories. What are my stories? What do my paintings tell? I’m not really sure. I let the paintbrush go where it wants.
Prior to the ship, my life was not unlike most other peoples’. I had everything I could’ve asked for; no hardships, nothing extraordinary. So why is it that I’ve grown up for the majority of my childhood unhappy? Is that what I am, unhappy?
I slowed down, deciding that I’d finished my little creation. I leaned back to look at it. A simple painting: lines and swirls of black filling up the pure white page with a complicated design. Those are my two favorite colors, white and black. White so pure, empty and clean. So many possibilities for a white surface.
Black is filled with secrets, thick and deep. If white is everything ever said, black is everything left unsaid. They balance each other out; yin and yang.
The painting reminds me of this trip. The black symbolizes all the bad things that has happened and the white all the happiness that we can still have. Amazing, after so much, we are still able to love. We can hold on to the tiniest amount of hope. People are amazing.
Speaking of love, Allie has a boyfriend now. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Not sure if I should feel more sorry for myself now because she’s always with him, or more sorry for Fane, because Allie can be a handful for sure, even for me, and I’ve had 16 years of practice. He seems funny to me though. He reminds me of a little bulldog or something. Everything fast paced. Probably why him and Allie moved along so fast, I assume.
Ironic that the world ends and the two people closest to me start relationships for the first time right afterward. I suppose if it makes them happy, though, and they have another guy to comfort them, it’s good at least.
Tomorrow is going to be fun. In my mom’s Astronomy class, we are going to be the first to see Novelta! Scientists already know what it looks like and is mostly made of because of certain scans and things, but now we are close enough to officially see it with a high-powered telescope. I’m excited… but a bit nervous too. I’m going to see my new home, as it really is, not a put together model for the first time! What will I think? How will it compare to Earth? I guess I’ll find out.
I ate lunch with Kimberly. We were eating in the Astronomy room, because we definitely wanted good seats. The dark, circular room was one of my favorite places on the ship. I never thought I’d like this class, but I love it. Space is a beautiful and amazing place. Surrounded in black secrets.
“What do you think it’ll be like?” Kimberly wondered, wiping her face with her sleeve. “What if the water is, like, purple or something?”
I smiled at her. “Well I’m sure you’d be extremely happy then.”
She grinned back. “So what do you think of Allie’s man? Kind of funny, don’t you think, that your dads are so close and now their kids are dating?”
“How do you know that?”
“Well my mom told me. Apparently, before leaving her, your dad, and Fane’s dad all worked together on a project for the ship. My mom the legal stuff, your dads the sciencey stuff, I guess.” She took a bite of her sandwich (which was just jelly, by the way). “She told me a lot, actually. It’s not like they really need to keep secrets anymore.”
Why did I feel a little jealous? It’s not as if I was ever really close to my dad. “My dad didn’t tell me anything about his job. Or the government… or his self… He’s been acting really weird lately.”
Kimberly shrugged. “He’ll come around. He’s got a lot on his shoulders right now. Maintaining the ship and making sure it’s moving, it’s a big job.”
We finished our lunches in thoughtful silence. Once everyone had entered, the lights dimmed as they usually do. My mom (Professor Waters) entered smiling. Even though she could’ve, she hadn’t even looked yet. “Welcome! So, are you ready?” she asked.
Yes! filled the room and she did something on her computer. Little planets filled the room with Novelta’s solar system. The little holograms looked so real, as if I could just go up and touch them. Novelta was actually quite tiny compared to Earth, but compared to the huge planet next to it, Novelta was just a tiny speck. The planets began to grow as she zoomed in. Novelta closer… closer…
After about thirty seconds of agonizing zooming, here it finally was: Novelta. Revolving in front of us so everyone could see. Our new home. There were cheers and Kimberly said something but I couldn’t hear. It was… beautiful. The planet nothing but water, with two big landmasses on either side. Hundreds of small islands covered it, but we’d already known all that. What really was amazing, was the color, and the detail it showed. Patches of red and orange and yellow colored the land. Forests of different colors, maybe? The water seemed of a lighter color. Where would we be living? I want to get there. Novelta is perfect.
I smiled at my mother. She looked so happy. I felt sorry Allie hadn’t taken this class, she would’ve liked this. Maybe my dad was right. We would be okay. Life was going to go on, and Novelta would be perfect. We’d need to protect our new home, better than we did for Earth. A new beginning for everyone, for humans, and mankind. We’ll be okay.
