Chapter 19 - Quiet Moments
738 Words
The observation chamber remained peaceful.
The stars outside the massive window drifted slowly past as the ship continued its silent journey through space.
Mira eventually pulled herself away from the glass.
She turned and walked over to where Rethan sat on the curved seating platform built into the floor. The seat was large enough for several of the aliens, but Mira climbed onto the edge and tucked her legs beneath herself.
She glanced back once more at the stars.
Then over at him.
“You weren’t kidding,” she said softly.
“About what?”
“This place being good for perspective.”
Rethan followed her gaze briefly toward the window.
“It often is.”
Mira leaned her elbows on her knees, still watching the stars.
“You must get used to it though,” she said.
“Yes.”
“That seems impossible.”
“Eventually, it becomes familiar.”
She shook her head slightly.
“I don’t think I could ever get used to seeing this.”
Her eyes moved across the distant lights again.
“Every one of those stars probably has planets,” she continued thoughtfully. “Cities. People. Entire lives happening.”
“That is possible.”
She looked back toward him.
“You’ve seen other worlds, haven’t you?”
“Yes.”
“More than one?”
“Many.”
Her eyebrows lifted.
“Wow.”
Rethan watched the quiet excitement in her expression.
“You enjoy learning about new places.”
“Yeah,” she said.
“I always liked that kind of thing.”
“How so?”
She smiled faintly.
“Well… I used to work at a bookstore.”
Rethan tilted his head slightly.
“a*****e that sells books?”
“Yeah.”
She nodded.
“Books were like little windows into other worlds.”
Rethan gestured toward the massive viewing window behind her.
“You now have a much larger one.”
Mira laughed softly.
“That’s true.”
For a while they simply talked.
Nothing serious.
Small questions about Earth, about the ship, about the stars outside the window.
The conversation flowed easier than Mira expected.
Rethan spoke calmly, answering her questions when he could and quietly listening when she talked.
After some time though, her voice began to slow.
Her words spaced farther apart.
She leaned back against the curved seat.
The quiet hum of the ship filled the silence.
Rethan noticed it first.
Her eyes blinking slower.
Her posture slumping slightly.
“You are tired,” he observed.
Mira rubbed one eye.
“…A little.”
“You should rest.”
“I know.”
She glanced once more out at the stars.
“They’re just… hard to stop looking at.”
Her voice trailed off.
Another quiet moment passed.
Then her head tilted gently to the side.
Her breathing slowed.
Within a minute—
Mira was asleep.
Rethan watched her for a moment to be sure.
She had curled slightly into the seat, one arm resting loosely across her lap.
The tension that usually stayed in her shoulders had disappeared.
She looked peaceful.
Carefully, Rethan stood.
He approached the seat quietly, making sure not to startle her.
When he was certain she wouldn’t wake, he bent slightly and lifted her into his arms.
Compared to his size, she weighed almost nothing.
Mira stirred faintly but didn’t wake.
Rethan carried her through the corridors of the ship, his footsteps slower and quieter than usual.
The sleeping quarters were dark when he entered.
The large bed dominated the center of the room, the soft lighting dimmed for rest.
He stepped closer and gently placed her down among the blankets.
Mira shifted slightly, settling into the warmth of the bed without waking.
For a moment Rethan simply stood there.
Watching.
A strand of her hair had fallen across her face.
Without thinking much about it, he reached down and brushed it gently away, tucking it back behind her ear.
She didn’t stir.
Satisfied that she was comfortable, he pulled the blanket slightly higher around her shoulders.
Then he stepped back.
The room was quiet except for her slow breathing.
Rethan turned toward the door.
His duties aboard the ship were far from finished.
But as he left the sleeping quarters and returned to the corridor—
There was a faint sense of satisfaction in his expression.
Mira was safe.
And for now…
Peacefully asleep.
- Writer
