look.
She’d seen it numerous times throughout her career. Whether it was a student doctor, a new nurse or even an old-timer exposed to a situation they weren’t used to.
She just hadn’t expected it from Mr Confidence.
She walked over quickly and stood right under his nose, reaching over and touching his arm. ‘Austin?’
He blinked and stepped back. He hadn’t even realised she’d entered.
She squeezed his arm. ‘You did good. Thanks for your help.’ It was all she had time for. She had to leave right now. But her knowledge and experience meant she’d never leave a team member without acknowledging their part.
His blue eyes met hers. Zing. It was like a little thunderbolt. ‘Any time,’ he murmured quietly as his gaze drifted down to the floor.
Her stomach flip-flopped. Frank was her priority. Frank was all that mattered right now. She nodded and ran back to the door.
Everything else would have to wait.
AUSTIN GLANCED AROUND the room. He’d met all the other candidates as they’d arrived over the last two days, but this morning was their first official training day. The room was awash with the signature bright blue flight suits. He’d felt a real surge of pride this morning as he’d put it on.
He’d worked hard for this. Focused hard to finally get to wear the uniform he’d always wanted. He’d snapped a quick pic to send to his mum and dad. That had been around fifteen minutes ago—by now, his mother would have printed out twenty copies to give to all her friends.
All the instructors were standing in front of them. Everyone in the room knew Frank was missing. He’d found a handwritten note from Corrine in his mailbox this morning saying Frank was doing as well as could be expected. His hand slipped into his pocket and he touched the piece of paper. She’d used a purple pen. It had made him smile. Kind of quirky.
Corrine looked tired this morning. She had dark circles under her eyes and he wondered if she’d stayed at the hospital all night with Frank. She was wearing her obligatory dark suit and a pale pink shirt. And because he was sitting in the front row the scent of her perfume was drifting towards him. It was light, but not quite floral, something more vanilla. The kind of scent that made you think something was good enough to eat.
Adam Bailey cleared his throat. ‘Guys, I’ve been where you are. I know how proud you all feel right now and I want you to know that we recognise your achievement of being selected. There were over six thousand applications for the Astronaut Candidate Programme this time around. It’s not an easy process to go through—we all appreciate that. But the time for celebration is over.’
He pressed his finger down on the desk in front of him. ‘Now is the time for hard work.’ He looked around the room. ‘Your Astronaut Candidate Training will include scientific and technical briefings, intensive instruction in International Space Station systems, Extravehicular Activity—EVA—robotics, physiological training, T-38 flight training, water and wilderness survival training and medical training. If you can’t already do it—you’ll have to learn to speak Russian. And your training will be in a variety of settings. You’ll be in Kazakhstan and in Russia. You’ll be in the Aquarius research station in Key Largo. You’ll be in the desert. You’ll be in the jungle. And you’ll log more hours in the neutral buoyancy lab than you’ll want to.’
He turned towards Corrine and the rest of her team. ‘You’ll already know which doctor has been allocated to you to work with you through your training. These people will get to know you better than you currently know yourself. Use them. Work with them.’ He turned back to the candidates. ‘While I’d love it if you all ended up in space, the simple fact is that some of you won’t. Medical issues can crop up. Life can get in the way. Your focus and commitment is essential to your success in this programme. I expect you all to do your utmost to fulfil your dreams.’
The person next to Austin started clapping. There were a few seconds of awkward silence before others joined in. The surge of pride went through him as he looked around. God willing, in a couple of years’ time he could be spending a few months in space with these people.
The ultimate goal.
He looked along the line of instructors. Three of them had been astronauts. Some were doctors. And others were experts in the types of technology they’d use aboard the space station. Every one of them had something to teach him.
So why did his eyes keep going back to the tired blonde on the platform?
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