Meet Me in Outer Space
Page 17
“Galaxies colliding,” I said, barely a whisper. That’s how I felt when I was with him. I felt like he was unstoppable and I was unstoppable and together that put us on a collision course.
He pulled my hand into his, and I let him. “What?” he asked, leaning into me.
We were two forces that were on a course for inevitable collision. When the Milky Way and Andromeda collide, in four billion years or so, it will be catastrophic, but Hudson and me, could we avoid catastrophe? Could we collide to create something brand new? Something different, but better?
“Wes, I…,” I started, but stopped as a shooting star caught my eye. And then another. And then another.
“Meteor showers, or shooting stars, are often…” The soothing voice interrupted my thoughts.
“Look,” I said, pointing to the shooting stars behind him. “Make a wish.”
I made a wish as I watched the stars move. And then another as I watched Hudson’s face, enchanted by the swirling glow from above.
“Edie,” he whispered, his face lit by the meteor shower. “Do you ever see us together again? I just need to know.”
“Yes,” I breathed, closing my eyes to hold the image of the way a particularly bright shooting star had lit his face. The way the ceiling lit up when the two galaxies collided. The way I felt when we were together.
He cupped my face in his hands. “Yes to what?” I opened my eyes slowly, wanting to cherish and hold this moment forever.
If I could freeze time I would do it right now. In this very moment with this exact boy as the chaos of the universe settled around us.
“Oui, à tout,” I whispered.
“Yes, to everything,” he whispered back, translating for me this time.
acknowledgments
All the thank-yous to Emily Settle. I don’t even know where to start. Thank you for believing in me and my writing. Thank you for giving me a chance. Thank you for loving my book and the characters and their story. You have made me a better writer, and I will be eternally grateful. This has been a long journey, but there is no one else I would have wanted by my side.
Jean Feiwel, Lauren Scobell, Kat Brzozowski, and everyone else on the Swoon Reads team. You are all amazing! Thanks to the Swoon Reads community and to everyone who read and commented on my book. A special thank-you to Sean McMurray for beta reading MMIOS when it was in its roughest form and still giving it a thumbs-up, and Moriah Chavis for cheering me on unwaveringly, being my sounding board, and slyly incorporating yourself into my family. You have both been a blessing.
To my reading crew:
Michele Heintz. This book would not have been possible without you.… I mean it—don’t roll your eyes! You gave Hudson words that I never could have given him. La vache times a thousand. Rendez-vous: au Cosmos, shall we? Devon Carroll, for reading this book so, so many times. For editing even when I asked you not to. For being my sounding board over and over. For celery stalking and gray barrettes and “I heard spaghetti and meatballs.” Lori McCabe. My biggest fan. My number one cheerleader. The only person who has already cleared an entire bookshelf in anticipation of all my future publications.
To my supportive friends:
Thank you to Katie Martel for the German that made Edie swoon and for letting me borrow your name, which you borrowed from Granny. Even though I didn’t get a chance to ask her, I’m sure she’d have approved. Twenty-two years and counting. Big love, friend. Julie Bartolotta, I don’t think I could have gotten through this without you keeping me sane and talking me through everything, yb. Kate Lloyd. Hi. Love you. Steve Johnson for lending me your name. Amanda Jones for being my rock. Karole Cozzo, my Big Sis, you have been a godsend, truly. Thank you for answering all my questions, squashing my anxieties, sending me care packages I didn’t even realize I needed, and reminding me that we are all in this together. Writing can feel isolating, but you have shown me that it doesn’t have to be. I give you all the hearts times a million.
To Sarah Kurland, Jessica Sbiroli, and Megan Mahaney for giving me insight into your experience with having a disability in college.
To my crew at Sitrin: Debbie, Doreen, Brenda, Mayme, Dorothy, and Annie. I love you all dearly for so many reasons. Thank you for your support, all your questions, and all your excitement about my future book signings. Yes, Dorothy, you can certainly be at the front of the line.
To Cheyenne Lyn Foll, for spending so much time looking at my face. You’re a saint for putting up with me.
To my awesome family:
Thank you to Jon, my older brother, for teasing me about everything except this. Emily, my sister, who will forever stand up for me to internet trolls. You have been Edie’s biggest advocate, and your strength and insight have been invaluable. And Mathew, my brother, for putting up with all my questions about how college students speak, what they wear, how they act, how they text, what they text, etc., etc. Danielle Stolusky, for having the best reaction to the news that my book was chosen and for letting me name a fictional building after you. Jalie Vazquez, for reading all the things I write and for telling me the truth when you don’t like something. For laughing at my jokes. For being one of my favorite people on the planet, forever and always. Cheryl Rice, for inspiring me to continue writing, like you have. For teaching me that a writer is someone who writes, a title not exclusive to published authors.
To Andrew, for reading my roughest of drafts, encouraging me to push forward through disappointment, and supporting me. Thank you for believing in me so thoroughly.
To my dad, thank you for teaching me what perseverance looks like. You’ve shown me dedication and strength through the hardest times, even when giving up seemed easier. To my mom, thank you for giving me the words I needed to make Edie’s dress come alive. Thank you for showing me that you can pursue your dreams at any age. Thank you for teaching me how to sew and how to talk with pins in my mouth. Thank you both for always supporting me and encouraging me.
And finally, to Zelda. You have always been my inspiration. You were a brilliant woman, and I miss you every day.
about the author
Melinda Grace wrote her first piece of fiction in middle school, but didn’t write a complete story until an introduction to creative writing course at SUNY Oswego, where she earned a BA in human development. She went on to earn a MS Ed in counseling and currently works as a school counselor. When she’s not guiding the youth of America, she’s planning her next vacation to Disney World and laminating anything she can get her hands on. Meet Me in Outer Space is her debut novel. You can sign up for email updates here.
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contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
1. A Constant State of Huh?
2. And the Award for The Cutest Blank Stare Goes to …
3. I’m Cheering for Pizza
4. How About the 5th of Never?
5. Roger That, Over and Out
6. Pennies in a Pint Glass, Actually
7. Merci Beaucoup, Cookie Monster
8. Just Because You Can Wear Them Doesn’t Mean You Should
9. Gorgeous & Alone Seeking: No One. She Wants To Be Alone.
10. You Can’t Just Go Around Googling Everyone
11. This Is Not a Riddle
12. Three Words: High Fashion Lingerie
13. Your Enthusiasm Is Showing
14. We’ll Always Have Paris
15. Beer Pong? Beer Pong.
16. Monsieur, S’il Vous Plaît
17. Eleven Sewing Machines Sewing
18. Super Awkward, or Just, Like, Normal Awkward?
19. Do You Li
ke Me? Circle Yes or No.
20. That Hoodie Life
21. The Many Talents of Wesley H.
22. It’s Called Science, Duh
23. Sometimes I Just Like to Smile at My Notebook, NBD
24. It’s How I Know You’re … Uh … Awesome
25. That’s What We Call a Win-Win-Win-Win Situation
26. Who Are You and What Have You Done with Hudson?
27. A Kiss, to Kiss, We Are Kissing
28. A Picture Says a Thousand Uh-Ohs
29. This Misery Does Not Love Your Company, FYI
30. It Matters How This Ends
31. D Stands for Done
32. Angel Wings
33. And the Stars Look Very Different Today
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Copyright
Copyright © 2019 by Melinda Grace
A Swoon Reads Book
An imprint of Feiwel and Friends and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC
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All rights reserved.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.
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First hardcover edition 2019
eBook edition 2019
eISBN 9781250154323