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“Beats the gym,” Eli quips.
“Don’t wait for us,” Kip says. “We’ll join the rest of you in a minute.”
I look at Bode, Eli, and Keene. “Are we doing this?”
Keene starts toward the door to the next set of stairs. “Race you to the top.”
Eli follows after him. “Racing is not allowed.”
I laugh and follow them through the door. I pause and look back at Bode. “So you’ve done this before?”
He nods.
“Any tips?”
“Are you claustrophobic?” he asks.
I look at him confused. “A little.”
He tilts his head from one side to the other, “Unless it’s really bad, I’d do it. You don’t want to miss this.”
“Okay,” I say starting up the stairs. It’s not lost on me that my ass is practically in his face. As we climb the ceiling begins to curve in as we get higher and higher toward the top of the dome. I’m having to lean down. I stop to catch my breath and look out one of the windows.
“Woah,” I gasp. “We’re so high.”
I turn back to Bode. He’s not even winded. “This is a tight space for me. How are you fitting? Are you crawling?”
He laughs. “Basically.”
“People were a lot smaller when this was built, I imagine.”
He nods. “That’s true.”
“So I’m guessing that you come down the other side? There’s no room for two people to pass.”
“Yeah, you come down the other side,” he confirms.
We start climbing again. Eli and Keene are long gone – too far ahead for me to see. I call over my shoulder. “They’d never let you do this in the U.S. It’s a fire hazard.”
He laughs. “Yeah, I hate to break it to you, Juno, but if there’s a fire, we’re goners.”
My heart is pounding harder with each step. The space keeps getting smaller and smaller. Just when I’m about to stop and take another break, I see a spiral staircase. It’s so small and steep, there’s a rope to hold as you climb it.
“We made it,” Bode says. I put my foot on the bottom step and grab the rope but wobble a little. Bode grabs my waist to steady me. My back presses against his body. Oh, god – this feel so good. I need to move. Now.
“You alright?” he asks.
I clear my throat quickly. “Fine, I probably should have caught my breath first.”
He releases my waist, and I climb up the stairs. I know my ass is really in his face now. At the top is a small door, and I climb through it. He’s right behind me. As soon as I see the view, I cover my mouth. “Oh my god.”
He looks over at me, a big smile spread across his face. “Worth it, right?”
We walk toward the railing where Keene and Eli are waiting. “We’re at the very top. Like the tip top. I didn’t think we’d be this far up.”
Eli motions us over as soon as he sees us. “Check out this view.”
Keene points. “Look. You can see for miles.”
