Each night I wake and think that I am back on Earth In my old house. My old bedroom. I can hear my brother snoring in his bed across the way. That must be what woke me,’ I think, ‘yet again.’
It is still pitch dark but I can smell coffee, Mother must be up early, enjoying the quite hours before the world comes to life. I reach out for my glass of water because my mouth is dry. Instead of my bedside locker, my hand touches the cold metal of the ship’s wall and I remember.
All of that is far behind us. Countless eons.
I am aware of the vastness of the empty space surrounding us. I feel it pressing in, crushing me. It is terrifying. Endless. I want to scream in horror. To cry To go back in time and tell myself not to volunteer for this mission. Not to be such a fool.
Why did I do it?
And then the light beings to come on as the ship’s AI signals the beginning of another day. The fear declines. Reason kicks in. I know I will be fine now, until the night returns.
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