Strangers at the Door

by Dan Eaton

  CHAPTER FIVE

  No place like Home

  Good morning fellow NLH residents. It’s Sunday, August 25th, 2038.

  In Habitat News, yesterday morning, the CLT30 liner Lunar Spirit returned from LL1 with the Sunshine Inc. engineering crew and Habitat locals Bryce Burns and Sandy Mussconny. They were stranded at the LL1 site for the duration of the recent emergency. There will be a party tonight in the main cafeteria to celebrate their safe return. Please join everyone at 18:00 this evening.

  In financial news today, the Lunar Stock Market closed Friday with shares of Mussconny Machine trading at $29.84 a share, Mussconny Fabrication at $32.68 a share, Hotel Whipple shares are at $30.43. O’Reilly’s Shellfish Company is at $24.83 a share, CDB Farms is trading at $25.06 a share. MM Brewing is at $2.57 a share, and Daniels Designs is at $2.30 a share.

  Commander Davies, chief pilot of the CLT30 liner Lunar Spirit and senior committee member on the panel in charge of CLT30 training wishes to announce that Bryce Burns has successfully completed his certification as a CLT30 qualified pilot.

  It was good to be back home. Being gone had been trying under the circumstances and I hadn’t realized there’d be lingering after effects from being stuck in zero-g for so long. My legs and arms felt curiously weak and I’d gotten dizzy and thrown up several times. I was feeling better, yet I was glad they hadn’t decided to throw the welcome home party last night. Mom and Dad had escorted me to breakfast this morning and then sat me down at a table. When they asked me what I wanted I said, “Anything, but scrambled eggs and sausage.”

  Mom laughed and then came back with a plate full of a garden omelet, home fries, and toast. The supply ship hadn’t made it in yet so there was no Coke for me. My dad brought me a big glass of milk mixed with the chocolate flavoring just like I liked it. We sat there and had a leisurely breakfast while visiting with friends that stopped by. After breakfast, we slowly walked around the Habitat. I wanted to go curl up in bed, although the limited exercise was far better for me and would help get my body back used to operating in lunar gravity.

  With the walk over, we settled back down in the cafeteria for lunch and then spent the rest of the afternoon back at home, resting up before the party. When it came time for the party, we walked over to the cafeteria and found a good table. The usual crowd was there and it was great to see everyone again. The kids from both classes all showed up and everyone stopped to chat for a while. It was a typical party at the Habitat and I wouldn’t have traded it for anything. The highlight of the party for me was when Christine came by and asked if Myra could have a hug. She said we still couldn’t talk, though she felt a hug was appropriate given the circumstances. Christine came back with Myra who ran into my arms. I’d missed Myra and it was clear she had missed me as we held each other for a minute before Christine lead Myra away.

  The party was winding down. I was sitting at a table with only Ananyu and Nina left. Miss Gayle had been asking me questions about the experience for the last forty five minutes. She finally ran out of things to ask and wandered off to talk with some parents. I suddenly had an idea about how to spend some time with Nina. Due to being stranded by the crisis, I was about two weeks behind the rest of the class. Miss Gayle had said not to worry about it, on the other hand, I was thinking it was actually a golden opportunity to spend some time with Nina.

  “Hey Nina, me being gone lasted longer than Miss Gayle was expecting. Would it be possible for me to spend some time studying with you so I can catch up to the class? I hate being behind.”

  Ananyu looked over at Nina with a challenging look and gave her a little nudge with her shoulder before she simply said, “Thirty seven.“

  Nina glared at her before turning to me with a smile and said, “Sure Bryce, I’d like that. Why don’t you come by my house around seven tomorrow night?”

  It worked out better than I had dared to hope. I went to Nina’s the first night and we spent most of the time working to get me caught up. The remainder of the time was spent with Nina asking him further questions about his time on the CLT30. She was particularly interested in the time he spent learning to fly it. He talked to her about his adventure, and the longer he talked, the more comfortable he became. By the end of the evening, Nina had told him he really needed to come back the next night so that they could work further on getting him caught up.

  The second session went as well as the first. While Bryce liked telling Nina about his adventures on the CLT30, he did remember Ananyu’s advice and asked Nina questions about Colorado. Ananyu had mentioned the Front Range trail and Bryce asked Nina if she had ever hiked it. Nina laughed and said, “Someday, I’d like to hike the whole trail, although its eight hundred and seventy six miles long. It runs from New Mexico on the south end, all the way up to Wyoming on the north end. I’ve hiked a lot of sections of it though. I really like the section going across the Air Force Academy and me and my dad have hiked that a bunch of times.”

  Bryce was used to hiking the flat land Katy Trail along the Missouri river with his parents and couldn’t get over the stunning views of the mountains that you had while hiking the Front Range trail. Nina had plenty of photos and they spent a lot of time looking at them while Nina shared her experiences on the trail with Bryce. Bryce couldn’t have been happier when at the end of the evening, Nina asked him if he’d like to go loping through the Grand with her in the morning.

  Bryce’s alarm went off entirely too early at 05:20 am. He had just enough time to hop out of bed, take care of business, and then pull on his running clothes before slipping quietly out of the house. Nina was waiting for him on the porch, looking like a million dollars, even if he was half asleep. They’d been spending time together for a month now, and he couldn’t believe how lucky he had gotten. On the other hand, as he yawned again, it was hard to believe how full his days had become. On weekdays, he got up at 05:20 am to go loping through the Grand with Nina. That lasted until 07:00 am when they parted ways and he headed home to get cleaned up and have breakfast with his parents. Next came school until lunch when he and Nina usually ate together. After lunch it was more school until late afternoon when he spent a couple of hours working for Sandy. Dinner with Mom and Dad was next and if he had any spare time he’d head back to Mussconny Machine for a little while. Finally, he’d meet up with Nina again at her house at 07:00 pm and they’d study together until 9:00 pm. After that, he’d head home and hit the hay, rolling back out of bed eight hours later to do it all again.

  The weekends were a little less hectic. Nina had asked him if he would mind not loping with her on the weekends. Ananyu was her best friend and she insisted on going loping with Ananyu on the weekend mornings. Bryce took advantage of the break by sleeping in and enjoying a leisurely breakfast with his parents both days. When his Mom needed him, and lately, Mom always seemed to need him, he’d spend the time between breakfast and lunch helping his Mom with the Farm. After lunch, came another two or three hours working on the Farm and then he had the remainder of the day to himself. Unless, Sandy needed some help or Nina felt they needed to study more. Occasionally, their schedules lined up and he was able to spend some time with Willie.

  He might not have as much free time as he used to have, yet he had to admit that Nina was having a very positive influence on his grades. He’d been behind in class when he had returned from LL1. With Miss Gayle’s and Nina’s help, he had quickly caught up with the rest of the class and with all the studying he and Nina had been doing he was pretty sure he’d see good results for his GPA when Miss Gayle announced the class standings later today.

  Nina led them off towards the western entrance to the Grand. Bryce liked the little park at the entrance and wished they could stop for a moment, although Nina was anxious to start covering ground before too many people were up and walking around the Grand. They started in at a steady lope and Bryce let his mind wander to tonight’s birthday party for Ananyu. Ananyu’s birthday was actually Saturday, so since it coincided with the H
omecoming dance, Ananyu’s parents had decided to hold her party a day early. Bryce was curious what gift Nina had picked out for Ananyu and asked, “Hey, what did you end up getting Ananyu?”

  Nina waited until they topped a rise in the path and then said, “I found a pattern she really likes and had a scarf made for her. That reminds me, I need to stop by Habitat Supply after school and pick it up.”

  “This place is climate controlled with the same temperature in every room. What the heck would Ananyu need a scarf for?”

  “It looks nice and lets Ananyu add a splash of color to what she’s wearing. As hostess at the Seline’s Bistro she needs to look nice and the scarf gives her flexibility with her outfits.”

  Nina led them on through the Grand, before they were done, they’d make fourteen passes through the structure, with each pass taking a little less than seven minutes. Bryce didn’t like getting up so early, yet it was worth it to get to spend time with Nina and with all the exercising he was getting he didn’t have to worry about over indulging when it came to eating. That was a big benefit this weekend with Ananyu’s party tonight and the dance tomorrow. Chef Patel doted on Ananyu and prepared the most delicious food for her party. Bryce was planning on enjoying the food to its fullest tonight. They finally completed their exercise and Bryce walked Nina back to her house. She kissed him on the cheek before going inside and Bryce walked back to his house with a smile on his face. The kiss on the cheek was a new part of their routine that Nina had started doing yesterday.

  School and work rushed by and suddenly it was time for the dance. Miss Gayle had been planning this Homecoming dance for the last month. Bryce hadn’t made any assumptions about who was going with whom so he had asked Nina as soon as Miss Gayle had started making noises about the dance. They had only been studying together for a week at the time and Bryce wasn’t sure how Nina really felt about him, though she had said yes when he asked her. The sophomore couples for the first dance would be Bryce and Nina, Willie and Jocelyn, Adam and Ananyu, and Blayze and Myra. For the freshman class, Bryce wasn’t sure how the couples had been selected. They were Javin and Regan, Konner and Meadow, Ankur and Evelina, and Stetson and Lylia. Miss Gayle and Christine had gone with a simpler plan for this year’s dance. Instead of the first three dances being limited to just the students, this year, the sophomore and freshmen classes would share the spotlight as the guests of honor and lead off the first dance. After that, the dance floor was wide open to all comers. The habitat’s population had grown by two hundred and forty people since the previous Homecoming dance and Bryce was pretty sure some of the newcomers’ antics would end up in embarrassing videos as they learned to cope with dancing in the lunar gravity.

  I walked the long way around to get to Nina’s house to avoid any possibility of running into Myra and her date. I remembered the fuss Myra’s mom had made about taking pictures of us for both dances last year. Myra seemed to be doing better and I was hoping that it wouldn’t be much longer before Christine would release me from my promise and I could spend time with my friend again. I rang the bell at Nina’s house and she and her mom came outside. What is it with moms and cameras? Nina looked great. She had her hair down in a mass of curls and was wearing a short black dress that she looked fantastic in. Her mom posed us for what seemed like fifty pictures and then we walked over to the cafeteria with her parents.

  Just like last year, there were bunting and banners in the school colors of blue and gray decorating the walls and ceiling. Hanging across the end of the cafeteria was a large banner announcing the 2038 NLH High School Home Coming Dance. What was different from last year, was they had expanded the cafeteria due to the influx of new people. The Kitchen/Storage area that formerly occupied the southern end of the room was now cleared out and turned over to more cafeteria seating. Just like last year, the tables had all been moved to create a dance floor on the north end of the cafeteria. The tables for us kids had been specially decorated, although every table in the place had a floral centerpiece thanks to my mom and the decorating committee.

  Just before the dance was to start, Miss Gayle rounded us kids up and took us outside for our grand entrance as the guests of honor. Christine called for everyone’s attention inside the cafeteria and then did her thing welcoming everyone to the Homecoming dance and then introducing us. With the two classes, it took longer than last year, however, eventually we were all on the dance floor and the music began for the first dance. I don’t remember what music they played. Nina and I were dancing and she was looking at me like there wasn’t any place she’d rather be and I was seriously thinking my life couldn’t get any better.

  The music ended and Nina gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek before hurrying off to talk to Ananyu. I watched her go and then there was a tap on my shoulder from behind me and a familiar voice said, “May I have this dance?”

  I turned around and it was Myra. She stepped in and gave me a hug as she said, “Surprise, Christine gave me the all clear to talk with you at our session yesterday and I wanted to surprise you with the news tonight.”

  The music started up and we melted into a couple just like we always had. She looked up at me and said, “Not that I could have told you any earlier, seems like Nina keeps you pretty busy these days. Are you happy?”

  I smiled at Myra and said, “Very happy. Some days I still can’t believe she’s actually spending time with me. Are you okay with that?”

  Myra looked up at me with an embarrassed look on her face and said, “You’re my friend and I’m good with it. Bryce, I’m sorry I tried turning you into something I needed instead of enjoying you for who you are. Will you forgive me?”

  I looked down at my friend and said, “Nothing to forgive, Myra. I’m just happy we can talk again.”

  We spent the rest of the dance just enjoying being together again. I was on the top of the world. I finally had the girl of my dreams for a girlfriend and my best friend was back in my life. I thought things couldn’t get better and then the song ended.

  Myra headed off to dance with her Dad and a stormy looking Nina grabbed my hand and pulled me off to a less crowded section of the dance floor. The music started up and we started dancing, yet she wouldn’t look at me. I asked her if everything was all right and in a quiet voice she just said, “Yes,” and moved in to hold me tighter.

  Sometimes, I can be a little dense about what’s going on with girls, on the other hand, it seemed pretty clear to me the only difference between the first dance where she was happy and our second dance where she was not so happy was the dance in between where I had danced with Myra. I looked at her and gently said, “You know Myra’s just a friend and you’re my girlfriend, right?”

  She just pulled me tighter to her and said, “Just shut up and dance with me.”

  I think if Nina could have had her way, she and I would have danced exclusively with each other for the rest of the night which I really wouldn’t have minded. Yet we were supposed to mingle and when her dad asked her for the next dance, it wasn’t like she could turn him down. Christine asked me for that dance and then Ananyu grabbed me for the next one. Nina tried to get me back the following dance, however, Miss Gayle put her foot down and said I was hers for that dance. Then my Mom wanted a dance and Nina and I had no shortage of people asking us for a dance. Somehow, Ananyu was able to keep her usual average and danced with me three more times. I was only able to get one more dance with Nina, the last dance before I walked her home. Something had changed tonight because instead of the normal peck on the cheek goodbye, she gave me a long kiss on the lips that I wasn’t expecting. I walked home on a cloud that night. Nina’s kiss tasted like honey.

  I’m not really a morning person. So when Nina had told me she’d be loping with Bryce on weekday mornings, I really wasn’t upset about it. We still talked as much as usual, I just got to do it without having to get up at an ungodly hour except for the weekends. I would have happily skipped running this morning if I thought Nina would let me, howe
ver, she was a stickler for keeping up with a plan and we were scheduled to go loping this morning despite being up late last night for the Homecoming dance. I walked over to her house where I found her outside stretching. I gave her a cheery, “Good morning,” and got back a less than cheerful, “Hi.”

  We walked down to the start of the Grand while I tried in vain to start up a conversation with Nina. All I got back were monosyllable answers and she definitely was making a point of not looking at me. I might have understood that treatment if the roles were reversed, yet Nina was the one of us that was a morning person and if I could be cheery and talkative on five hours of sleep, she could certainly do much better than she was doing. We reached the little park at the West end of the Grand and I said, “So do you want to lope a couple of laps of the Grand to warm up before you tell me what’s going on or do you just want to tell me now and get it over with?”

  Nina stood at the railing, looking down at the pool the waterfall flowed into and in a hurt voice said, “You danced with Bryce four times last night. He’s my boyfriend.”