Constellations

Tricks on the ISS and an announcement

It is the day after you arrived at the ISS. You are currently laughing your head off at the ridiculous nature of a twenty-nine-year-old doing flips and other tricks on the ISS. At least he is under the supervision of Chris. He comes to a stop and he gives you a death glare. You know it's something that can't be avoided but you can't help it. 

"What?" he asks. You are too busy laughing to answer. 

"Come on I'd be laughing at you as well," You manage to catch your breath. It's a good thing that you know the pain from laughter is a good kind of pain. Hopefully, you can outdo him with your own ridiculous tricks. 

"Ok then let me make you laugh then we will move on to the experiments for Danny," You respond. You switch places with Kelsey. You proceed to spin yourself like a figure skater. You then somehow manage to pull yourself into the fetal position. You can hear Kelsey start to giggle. It is surprisingly easy to make someone giggle by spinning around. You stretch out your hands to stop but you have stopped by grabbing the floor, not the roof. A common mistake to make in zero-G. 

"Umm...Lilly your upside down," Kelsey hesitates to point out the obvious.

"I know," You retort as you skillfully flip yourself around. Kelsey gives you a dirty look. You turn your attention to one of the experiments that Danny sent up with you. It's a pity you have to get some work done before you leave.

"Kesley, can you give me some help?"

"Yes," He drifts towards you. You both get to work. An hour later you are finished. You move onto the next experiment. You are about to stop when you are interrupted.

"Lilly, can I get you anything to eat?" It is the German that Kelsey was talking to at dinner. Your tummy rumbles at the thought.

"Yes please," You respond. He skilfully gets the food prepared.

"Where in Germany are you from?" you decide to start with small talk.

"Munich," He responds. He flicks the food to you. He is careful not to spill it.

"Yuri told me you are related to Micheal Collins and you are friends with the rest of the Apollo eleven is that right," he asks. That's a fair question but you are tired of being asked. You are struck by an extreme feeling of modesty. At least you know it is easy to explain.

"Yup but I don't like talking about it," You respond. You feel like you've offended him with your modesty but you can't help it. 

"It's ok I thought I will clear it up because gossip isn't the best," you agree with him. It has been a week since you arrived at the ISS and you are getting the Kennedy capsule ready to go. It is taking longer than you thought because the trash is getting loaded. Chris is making sure that you can go.

"Are the explosive bolts ready to go?" Kelsey asks. You check the display.

"Enough force to get us away from the station but not enough to interfere with the station," You confirm. You hope that there will be nothing wrong with the re-entry. You can hear the docking clamps release. You get to release the bolts.

"On my mark three...two...one," Kelsey gives you the instructions to go for it. You push the button and you can hear a pop followed by the feeling of the spacecraft drifting back. You get your hand around the control stick to make sure you are ready to start the re-entry burn.

"Not yet," Kelsey responds. He can tell you are being impatient. Again there is something about him that makes you feel better about yourself. 

"Sorry, Kels. It's just I am ready to go home and get the report done," You retort. It will be another nightmare report. 

"On my mark. Now," He gives you the order to fire the RCS thrusters. You do it. You are now in position for the re-entry burn. The air in the capsule feels tense.

"Are you ready for the reentry maneuver?" Kelsey asks. You input the instructions into the flight computer. 

"Good to go," You respond. He flicks the control stick. Thirty minutes later the parachutes have deployed. Another thirty minutes later you can feel the capsule come to a sudden but painless stop. You can hear the sounds of the rescue workers getting to work.

"Hello Lilly," it's Jay. He extends his hand to you. You struggle to get yourself out but you manage. Twenty minutes later you are getting checked by a doctor. You are growing impatient and the doctor can tell.

"I'm sorry but I have to write my notes and translate them for you," he scribbles some notes. He then proceeds to translate it for you. It's just the normal stuff of how your blood vessels and other things have been affected by your journey to the ISS. You appreciate the fact that you need to be checked over but it is painfully boring. 

"You can go now," he finally dismisses you. Ten minutes later you have made it home and you are reflecting on your trip to the ISS. It was fun. You quickly start work on the report because you won't have much time. An hour later you have finished. The good thing about this report is it was more about the experiments as opposed to the spacecraft. You are about to leave when you hear a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" You ask because you aren't expecting anyone.

"Kelsey. I was thinking that maybe we could deliver our reports then we could get something to celebrate," He responds.

"Come in. the report is just printing," You remark. A couple of seconds later he has made it to your study and he is a tired mess. He places his report on the table. It is larger than the report that you did for Kennedy three. 

"Sorry I was up early to do this," He gestures to the report. You understand where he is coming from. Twenty minutes later you have both given Danny your reports and you are both at a cafe thinking about what you could talk about. The waitress passes a cup of coffee to Kelsey. She also passes you a cup of tea. You can tell that Kelsey is grateful for the drink. 

"So Kelsey why did you agree to come to the US?" You decide to make small talk. Hopefully, it doesn't make him uncomfortable.

"I was asked because I helped design the ESM and besides who wouldn't pass up an opportunity to go to the moon and then on to Mars," You can tell he is telling you a shorter version. You decide not to pursue it because it may take to long. 

"How about you Lilly?" He throws the question to you.

"Well I felt a yearning to follow my dad's footsteps and besides space is fascinating," You respond. You are lucky that you've had time to think about why you joined NASA. You take a sip from your tea. At the same time, you feel like talking to Kelsey about other stuff.

"What are you thinking about?" Kelsey reads your mind.

"How easy it is to talk to you," You respond. He starts blushing. A day later the group has assembled in the classroom. You can tell it is for something important. Danny walks into the room. He has a joyful step which can only mean good news for the group. He starts writing some stuff on the whiteboard. It's the team assignments. The first manned flight of the Orion capsule goes to Jess, Pierre and Jones. Like Apollo eight they will go to the moon but they won't land. The first moon landing goes to you, Jay and Kelsey. You are happy that you have the opportunity to be the first woman on the moon. Three minutes later Danny has finished writing on the board.

"Any questions?" Danny asks so he can determine if there are any problems with the crew. A ripple of negative responses flows through the crowd. You can't think of anything so you add your own negative response to the group.

"And congratulations to Jess and Lilly," He gives his final remark. Pierre leans over to you.

"Why did he congratulate you two?" He is a little confused. You would think that he will know some history.

"A woman has been in space but not to the moon," Jay jumps in before you can. The only thing you need now is the launch hardware. You assume they will be using the ISS EVA suits because they are very similar to those on the Apollo missions. You hate the fact that all of these things are annoying to think about.