Escape Velocity

Chapter Twenty-five

"You awake yet?" Melisse asked, croaky with sleep.

"Yeah, for a while, trying to catch up and finish the diary. It's so awful how my great-grandmother couldn't find her daughter, how she encountered such an impossible decision about moving to America without her."

I closed my eyes as I tried to picture the thin woman from Gramp's photo. Now I understood the expression on her face. It was loss and grief that was barely imaginable.

My fingers tingled like they needed something to do. I checked my phone, worried about the time. The rescheduled announcement was today. Although the delay had us all jumpy, it meant NASA officials would be here to welcome the winner into the Junior Astronaut Program. They had arrived for a special meeting with Dr. Seabron and Parallax had invited them to give out the award.

It would be Liz, Olivia, Christina. Or me.

Melisse rolled over like she was going back to sleep.

"Are you sick?" She deserved my support and I'd prove to her that runner-up wasn't the worst thing. Getting kicked out like Kate was the worst thing. Melisse was brilliant, a genius when it came down to it.

Melisse flipped her covers back and sat up. "I've made a decision."

"About what? Between French toast and pancakes?"

Her expression serious, her tone flat, Melisse said, "I've wasted everyone's time. Someone else could've competed in my place."

"No one could've replaced you."

"Working with Dr. Seabron and listening to your mom's presentation made me see things differently. My parents will be pissed, but I've decided to be a biomedical engineer. I have this idea about using nanobes to target and treat diseases. After what we saw with the nanobes' communication in the cave, it came to me that they could be used as an artificial spinal cord. For Jonathan. What if I could help him walk again? What if the nanobes can cross the blood-brain barrier? That's been a big obstacle with delivery of Alzheimer's medications. It could help your grandfather. Biomedical research is more important to me."

Finally, the animated Melisse had returned.

"You know how much I care about Alzheimer's treatments, but neither of us has to give up our dreams. You could do both. NASA needs all kinds of engineers."

"I know. But I don't want to take the spot away from someone else. It's more what my dad pushed me to do anyways."

"I sure thought you wanted it."

"Never like you. Everyone can see how important it is to you. It oozes out of your pores."

"All the wanting in the world won't help me win. That's pretty clear."

"You don't know what will happen." Melisse buried her face in her hands. "I dread saying anything to Ms. Robbins. Do you think she'll be mad?"

"No need to tell her. Your secret's safe with me." And I felt safe with Melisse. I could admit what had kept me from sleep most of the night. "I don't know what I'll do if I don't win. I can't bear the thought of telling Gramp."

"You can't honestly believe they'd take anyone else over you."

I sighed out my defeat. "Liz is the obvious choice. After you."

My phone pinged with a text from Duncan: you ok this morning?

S: yes. But not much sleep

D: no, i meant about waiting to find out who won

S: there are worse things

D: seriously? what's worse?