I’m Not Just in Space by Myself

It’s been an hour since the day I blasted off and I gotta say I’m losing my mind out here. There’s nothing but black void behind me, black void ahead. It’s kinda cozy, I guess, but there’s nothing here in the way of entertainment. That can’t be it, right? Just me in a metal can flying through the sky at a million billion miles?

“Yes it can be,” I said to myself.

Wait, I didn’t say that, who did? I look around the blinking lights and smooth steel of my outer space tin can. Nobody is visible, just my bed, my terminal, and that’s it. Those boys back home didn’t even think to pack me a torch so I’m on my own here.

“Hello?” I asked. Wait, no I didn’t. Once again, who the hell is talking?

“Okay, seriously, knock that shit off!” I shouted. “If you don’t, I’ve got half a mind to do an EVA and find you myself.”

Whoever this is that’s talking is really threatening me right now. I float over to the suit station and slide into it in one smooth motion. It’s become muscle memory at this point. The second I pressurise the helmet, the floor drops out with an almighty blast of air forcing me out. I’m not tethered, I used to do it but now I just hook my arm on the railing and generally hope I don’t get sucked out into the void. I do a full scan of my surroundings, just like in training.

After that’s done I scramble across the entire can, looking around and looking into every window. No lifeforms that I can see, and…wait. I look into the portside window and there’s the definite outline of a figure. Somebody’s in the capsule.

I slam my palm a few times on the window but to no avail, whoever’s in there is adament about ignoring me. Swearing profusely, I drag myself back to the airlock and get ready to repressurise. I pull the lever to open the airlock and, BOOM I’m blasted away. The thing must have been repressurised while I was doing the EVA, and I’m too far away to get back. I’ve been trained for this, I just… Oh, I haven’t been trained for this.

I vaguely remember them breifly talking about this possiblity as I was beginning to fall asleep in yet another morning class. They said something about me being too highly trained for this to happen. And even if it did I would die eventually. Oh well.