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“I’ll suit up,” she said. He was a few steps ahead of her already. Through the window, she saw him cresting his ship and jumping her way.
* * *
CALIGHER
Lucca’s dark brown eyes were wide behind her air helmet. She stepped into the airlock, clad in a suit that was…
Pink.
“Lucca.” He couldn’t stop staring, couldn’t unsee it. The suit was far nicer than anything he’d seen on humans before. He didn’t think they allowed customization. “You want to explain?”
“Hmm?” Her eyes met his.
“How’d you get a suit in that color?” He knew they didn’t just hand them out for fun where she came from.
She looked somewhat bashful about it. “It was part of a PR campaign. Very few women were on the Aerinus when it left Earth. They wanted us to be included in pictures so it wouldn’t look like they were sexist. And when they asked me what color I wanted my suit to be, well…”
She chuckled with wry humor.
“They thought it would be stereotypical to give me a pink spacesuit. Too girly—an insult to my accomplishments and to all women everywhere.” Her eyes scanned down her own body in amusement. “But I have no regrets.”
He couldn’t complain. The suit looked indecently good on her, hugging every curve and making her look somehow more naked than without the clothing.
“Would it be offensive if I said that suit makes me want to do bad things to you?” he asked, all but leering at her.
She flashed him a playful grin before focusing on what they were about to do. Whenever she looked through the window, her pulse quickened.
Her mouth popped open in a quiet gasp as she took in Wingless’s rust-red form, only a few steps across the gulf. The red reflection was mirrored on her helmet and in her brown irises.
She was beautiful. The way she took in the outside environment fascinated him. She looked at everything with trepidation and innocent wonder.
The blocky characters on her wristwatch turned green as her oxygen pack expanded with a suddenwshhh.
Everything she wore was a reminder of her vulnerability in space. There was a reason she double-checked everything. Survival. She wouldn’t have been there, about to cross the void with him, if not for those endless tools and considerations.
Pawing at her air pack, she murmured, “The popcorn’s ready.”
“What?”
He didn’t think she would explain that statement. With a shiver, she found the wall controls and depressurized the room. The sound made her flinch. Her hand pressed flat to her stomach and she laughed, breathing hard.
“That really is—startling,” she said.
He took her hand in his and pulled her to the edge of the room—right against the door. Even with her suit, she looked so apprehensive. Like it could still go wrong.
“I’ve got you,” he assured her.
She met his eyes and nodded. Then she took in one more deep breath, exhaled, and announced, “I’m ready.”
He opened the outer door.
First, her arms tightened around him. Lucca’s wide stare was cast deep into the abyss. Her stomach filled with air and held—something that was tangible even through her gear. With the clarity that surrounded them—the absolutenothing—Lucca’s touch was the only sensation left in the universe.
It felt immensely, wonderfully right, and it was worth every bad thing that had ever happened. It was worth it all.
Wide, sparkling eyes gazed back at him and she smiled—pure and brilliant and blissful. It made her cheeks lift, changing the shape of her face.
“This is exhilarating!” she exclaimed through the helmet, pressing her hand over her heart and peering over the edge. “I feel like my heart is gonna float away.”
