Space Cadets

As if Colin wasn’t already nervous enough, now he had Eliza with him. He was grateful that she wouldn’t cause him trouble in front of his parents, but he wasn’t so sure about the other way around. Especially if they knew who she was. He stared out the window in thought, bouncing his knee anxiously.

“Can you stop?” Eliza asked, lightly kicking his foot. “This shuttle shakes enough without you shaking it even more.”

“Sorry,” Colin mumbled. “I’m just a little nervous, that’s all.”

“Right,” Eliza said, shifting in slight discomfort. “I’m sure everything will be fine.”

“Listen,” Colin said, finally pulling together some courage. “We have to talk about something, but it’s incredibly out of line for me to say.”

“Do I strike you as someone who cares about lines?”

“Guess not,” Colin chuckled. “Uh, well this might sound bad. My family can’t know who you are.”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“I mean,” Colin sighed, “They can know who you are. As a person. In fact, I’m sure they’ll like you a lot. I just haven’t told them that you hold a title. The family you come from. The fact that you’re the one I’m guarding. I told Rebecca you’re one of the nurses from the palace. I know it’s out of line if I ask you to lie for me, but I just have to do it this time.”

“A nurse,” Eliza repeated. “But I can be myself, otherwise?”

“Of course,” Colin said. “Who else would you be? It’s just the title. My family has a lot to think about, and I know that if I told them you were a visiting daughter of an ambassador they’d put too much energy into making the place ‘presentable’. I wouldn’t be bothered by it normally, but this time I just-“

“You want the focus on your father’s recovery,” Eliza finished. “It's alright, I understand. I’m not offended. I can pretend to be a caretaker for a few days.”

“Good,” Colin said, sighing in relief. “I hope you’re ready. We’ll be landing soon.”

“I’ve never been to Corran,” Eliza said, peering past him and out the window. “What’s it like?”

“Drab,” Colin said in a flat tone. “Dusty. Grey. Dangerous.”

“Oh, come on.”

“You can’t own anything nice,” Colin continued. “That’s how you become targeted by the gangs. They’ll probably be waiting for us at the port. They like collecting ‘tolls’ from people. You hand them cash or you lose a finger.”

“Why can’t you just punch them and move on?”

“Because there’s one of me, and hundreds of them,” Colin explained.

“You can’t take a hundred gang members on your own?” Eliza said, mocking disgust. “I’m telling my father. You can’t be any good as a guard.”

“Miss Rothschild, did you just make a joke?” Colin grinned. “Are you joking around with me?”

“I would do nothing of the sort,” she said. “Besides, it’s Nurse Rothschild to you.”

It was a fairly easy ride the rest of the way to the port. They arrived late at night, but like Colin expected, the gangs were still waiting. Eliza stuck close to him as he handed a man a couple bills to let them pass. He leered at Eliza for a moment, then gestured for them to move along. Colin put a hand on Eliza’s shoulder to lead her forward, and for the first time, she didn’t shake him off. She seemed a little uneasy in an unfamiliar and dangerous place, but Colin had her back. Even if he was technically on leave.

When they got outside the port, they were immediately hit by the cold chill of the night air and the smell of smoke in the air from the nearby factories. Corran tended to be a colder planet, and in the height of their summer there was still an icy wind. Colin was used to it, but he noticed Eliza’s cheeks and nose had turned cherry red, and she was bouncing where she stood to keep warm. He took off his jacket and put it around her shoulders, and her cheeks got even redder.

“Relax,” he told her. “I just don’t want you to freeze.”

Colin heard his name and turned around, seeing Rebecca waving at him with a bright grin on her face. She was wearing a grey cardigan over her school uniform and her blonde hair was in a messy braid over her shoulder. She looked tired. It seemed like she’d been hard at work from the second she got home from school.

“Becca,” Colin said, hugging his sister tightly. “You have no idea how good it is to see you.”

“You’re so weird,” Becca said with a laugh, pushing him off and turning her attention to Eliza. “Oh, hello. You must be the nurse. Papa is just on bedrest, but we’re grateful for your help. My name is Rebecca, but you can call me Becca.”

“Nice to meet you,” Eliza said, shaking Becca’s hand. “I’m Eliza. I’m glad to be of help. Hopefully I won’t be a burden.”

“Not at all,” Becca said, giving her hands a squeeze. “I apologize, my family is a little frazzled at the moment. Mother is working extra long hours and I’ve tried to keep up with the house while being at school. But Papa loves having guests. He’ll be so happy to meet you. Anyways, let’s get out of this cold. I borrowed Mr. Johannes’ speeder to pick you two up. He’s our neighbor.”

Colin picked up the bags and followed Becca and Eliza. The girls walked a little further ahead of him, already chatting and giggling. Colin was a little stunned at how polite Eliza was being and how well she seemed to be getting along with his sister, but he certainly wasn’t going to fight it.

It was a quick ride home from the port, though they did get stopped once more to pay a gang toll on the way. They were a little easier, seeing that Becca was in a school uniform, telling her to study hard before sending her on her way.

“Ridiculous,” Becca grumbled. “They take my money, then give me a motivational speech? If anything, they should be offering to pay my tuition.”

“Tuition?” Eliza asked. “Oh, that’s right. You’ll be finished with school soon. Have you chosen a university yet?”

“Actually,” Becca said, “I’ve been accepted to the Zenian Academy in their space exploration program.”

“That’s incredible!” Eliza exclaimed. “I’ve heard they have the most difficult acceptance rates in the galaxy.”

“They do,” Colin said, ruffling his sister’s hair. “Especially for families with no title or low educational background. This one is a natural born engineer. She’ll be leading the entire Zenian Aerospace Administration someday.”

“Colin, stop, you’re so embarrassing.”

“I can’t help it,” he chuckled. “I can’t let you get too big of a head, right?”

“Stop!”

Colin glanced over at Eliza and noted a strange look on her face. She was calm and seemed comfortable, but somehow fascinated by the interactions between Colin and Becca. They pulled up in front of the small house, and suddenly Colin’s mood fell. He never realized what a tiny and embarrassing shack he lived in until Eliza was with him. They didn’t even have trees in Corran. Just dust. Even in the winters, all they got was dark and muddy ice.

Colin avoided looking at Eliza as he picked up their things. Becca led them both into the house, where Colin was immediately attacked. George leapt onto his back from the kitchen table, roaring like some wild beast. Colin flipped the kid over his shoulder, setting him on the ground.

“You’ve gotten sneakier,” Colin said. “Good on you.”

“I’ve been waiting years for you to come home,” George yelled. “I had to finish reading my book about the haunted house all by myself and I was so slow when you weren’t here to help me. And Becca never wants to read to me.”

“Becca has been busy,” Colin said. “Have you said hello?”

George only then noticed Eliza, suddenly getting shy and hiding behind Colin. Colin gave him a little nudge forward.

Hello, George,” Eliza said with a polite smile.

“Hi,” he said quietly.

He stared at her for a moment, then ran off to hide somewhere. Colin gave her an apologetic look. He heard slow footsteps, followed by an annoyed grunt, and saw his father hobbling down the hall on a walker. He looked awful.

“Dad,” Colin said.

“Why is that kid running around so much…”

Josef Holman was someone that Colin always saw as a strong man. Growing up, his father was the sort of person who could hold both him and Becca on his shoulders while he worked. He was large and athletic with a thick mustache and overall manly demeanor. Now, he looked frail and broken. His leg was in a tight cast, but it seemed the radiation poisoning was hurting him more than anything. He was thinner than Colin had ever seen, and his face was a sheet white.

“Colin,” he said, voice cracking. “You’re here. Now, I told Becca not to fuss and that you were doing an important job. I’m sorry you came all this way for me.”

“It’s okay,” Colin said, hurrying over to help his father into a chair. “Really, they worked it all out for me. It’s not a hassle at all.”

“What about that girl you’re supposed to guard?” Josef asked.

“She’s being well taken care of,” Colin said, sneaking a glance towards Eliza.

She was hovering back and offered the both of them a smile. Colin gestured for her to come forward, and she moved by Josef’s side, speaking to him softly.

“Mr. Holman,” she said. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Eliza.”

“Please, call me Josef,” he told her. “You must be the nurse. Becca said you’d be coming. Now, let me just say that I don’t need any help. I can go out and run a mile if I needed to.”

“Yeah, sure you can,” Colin said.

“I can,” Josef repeated. “But, I wouldn’t mind having a pretty nurse by my side, since she’s already here. Just don’t tell my wife I said that.”

Eliza smiled as Josef gave her a cheeky grin and a wink, making Colin turn red with embarrassment. His father was a talker and quite the womanizer back in his day. He could go on talking for days, if he wanted to. He suddenly turned away, coughing roughly a few times.

“Well, you two have come a long way,” Josef said. “Why don’t you get a little rest? My wife, Thalia. She’ll be home soon. I think it would be a nice gesture if we have dinner ready for her, don’t you think? George, go set the table.”

George groaned, but did as he was asked after a stern look from Josef. Becca smiled at Eliza and gestured for her to follow.

“You’ll be staying in Colin’s room,” she said. “Don’t worry, we cleaned it to get all the boy stink out.”

“My room does not stink,” Colin said.

“I’m taking your room?” Eliza said, frowning.

“It’s okay,” he said. “I’ll take the couch. Just try not to fill up the room with any girl stink.”

Becca stuck her tongue out at him, then took Eliza’s hand to lead her down the hall to the room. Eliza glanced back at Colin one more time before disappearing into the room. Surprisingly, she seemed content.