Stellar

Chapter one

"Sarah, the news is on,"

"Turn it up!" I demand, rushing to the kitchen with my feet shoved harshly into my sneakers. Mac cranks the volume up to thirty as the anchor lady transitions into the next story.

"In other news, the scientists behind the manned mission to the sun is undergoing its final tests before lift off this Friday at 10pm MST. The entire mission is estimated to take 305 days traveling at a speed of nearly 25,000 miles per hour- that is 210 miles faster than the Apollo 10 mission launched May 18th, 1969.

"The brave pilots of this mission are Seth Thomas-Lee, Richard Hunt, and our very own Sarah Cantwell. Lead scientist and engineer of this operation Professor Tom Shauld stated that it's been nearly 40 years since even the idea of this mission had come up, and, with the labour of his team, the generosity of NASA and JAXA for support and funding, and the benefit to the world-wide energy crisis, he couldn't be more proud and grateful to finally achieving this goal.

"Samantha Ramirez; Fox31, Denver,"

"My girl's going to the sun!" Mac laughs, literally lifting me out of my shoes. I squeal as he spins us around.

"You've known for months!"

He sets me down, looking at me with his enchanting teal eyes, "That's not stopping me from being so proud of you," He caresses my face with his large warm hand. I stand on my toes, kissing him.

I pull away slowly, looking into his eyes again. "I'm proud of me too,"

"You-!" He lifts me up again, sharing another laugh. Not even the sun could melt me before the sounds of his voice.

"Put me down! Put me down! I have to get ready,"

"What wrong? It's extra High-G training," He smirks, placing me down on the floor so suddenly I nearly forget to stand.

"You couldn't handle that thing. You could barely handle the Merry Mixer at the fair," I pick, slipping my shoes on properly.

"I ate a bad pizza slice,"

"Yes, so you keep saying," I walk to the door, grabbing my bag filled with extra work clothes and important documents. I face Mac one more time. "Good luck with your Stem-Cell Immunotherapy paper. You'll save millions,"

He takes my hands in his, his skin much tanner than my own. "I'm proud of me too," He says with his charming smirk.

We kiss one more time, then I turn and walk out the door, another day closer to launch.

#

The late morning air is still so thin and cold. It was suppose to warm up this week, but I'll get plenty of heat near the sun. This is the first time anyone has traveled beyond the distance of the moon, farther than Mars is be from Earth, to the center of all creation of the Solar System, the source of life itself. The sun is the beginning and the end, and we three will go to harvest it tremendous power for the people of Earth to use for all of our time here. Three days from now, life will never be the same.

My thoughts pouring through my mind made me forget the stinging in my chest and throat, breathing quickly as I jog down the street to the labs. I don't live incredibly far from the Science Building; just a quaint apartment on Speer Boulevard. People smile and wave at me, congratulating me on my success and luck into the mission. Somehow becoming a local celebrity hadn't crossed my mind when joining Professor Shauld's team.

I enter through the front entrance, the scent of bleach overwhelming my sense of smell.

"Watch your step there, Stel, I've just got done mopping the floor," I joke.