Squishy Taylor in Zero Gravity (7 page)

It
is
a rocket. A real-life metal rocket, taller than my dad.

Vee is squeezing my arm and I’ve got my face pressed up against the wires.

‘Is Spacewoman there?’ Vee whispers.

I can’t see her.

There’s a lamp on, over a bench with some tools on it. Next to the rocket is a cylinder, which looks like a massive oxygen tank. The space helmet is resting on the bench. It’s dark green with a tinted window. But there’s no Spacewoman.

‘I don’t think she’s there,’ I say, inching closer to the gate. Vee and Jessie stay close beside me.

Without the wire in front of it, the rocket is
beautiful
. The silvery metal shines in the city lights. I can’t help walking towards it to take a closer look.

‘Squishy, what are you doing?’ Jessie whispers.

‘Squishy, she’ll catch you,’ Vee hisses. I can hear her nervousness.

I peep around the back of the rocket.

‘It’s OK, she’s not here,’ I call.

I wonder where she is. Then I turn and look at the rocket again. It’s just perfect for riding out into another
galaxy
, though it’s not quite finished. The three fins bend out at the base beautifully. It has a door with four little steps going up to it, and the rocket is covered all around in a skin of shining curved metal. But a strip of the covering along the bottom is missing. You can still see the skeleton frame.

I realise something as Jessie and Vee join me.

‘This rocket is wrong,’ I say.

Jessie is nodding, and opens her mouth like she’s about to speak.

But Vee grabs us both at once. ‘Shhh,’ she says. ‘The door –’

The door to the roof creaks open and we see a rectangle of light appear on the concrete. Then a human shadow moves in the light.

Spacewoman is back.

Spacewoman is coming, but I know exactly what to do.

‘
Quick!
Get in,’ I whisper and lead the way up into the rocket.

We crouch together inside the rocket and hold our breath. Because of the missing strip, if she looks closely she’ll see us. Luckily it’s still pretty dark on the roof. I cross my fingers. Spacewoman comes towards us, but doesn’t say anything. She starts moving things around on the bench.

As soon as I know she hasn’t seen us, I’m back to noticing how wrong this rocket is.

‘It’s way too small,’ I mouth to Jessie, who’s squished in next to me. We still have to be so quiet, because Spacewoman is barely two metres away.

‘And there’s no room for the engine,’ Vee whispers. I realise she’s right. There’s barely room for three kids.

Jessie has a tiny smirk on her face. I can just see it in the dark. ‘And doesn’t this metal look kind of familiar?’

It does look familiar. But I can’t remember where I’ve seen it before.

‘Shhh.’ Vee grabs me again.

Spacewoman lifts up a sheet of metal and pushes it so it covers the frame of the spaceship. She’s filling in the last strip. It’s so close to where my knees are! She pulls on her space helmet, lifts a long metal tube from beside the oxygen tank and fiddles with something. Then there’s a
pop
and a
hiss
. A blue-white flame bursts from the tube.

That’s not a space helmet or an oxygen tank.

‘She’s welding,’ Jessie whispers.

‘What’s welding?’ Vee asks.

I know the answer to that, but Spacewoman is too close for me to speak out loud. Welding is joining metal by melting it. With a really hot flame.

The flame comes closer and closer towards my knee. We try to shift away from it, but there’s no room. The flame is so close that I can feel the heat. Sparks start to fly off the rocket. I can’t stay here anymore. I don’t care that Spacewoman will find out we’re here.

Better busted than dead
.

‘STOP!’ I shout.

Spacewoman screams and leaps backwards. She drags the flame-tube with her. The oxygen tank falls over with a massive bang. Spacewoman tumbles backwards onto the ground and lets the flame-tube go. Fire is shooting out of the tube sideways towards the wooden workbench.

We hurry out of the rocket.

Spacewoman is gasping and struggling to stand up and get hold of the fire-tube. The flame is worming everywhere. Her helmet looks really heavy and I can tell she needs help. I run towards her.

‘Squishy, no!’ calls Jessie.

Spacewoman says, ‘Stop, stay clear.’

She doesn’t know how super strong I am. I reach my hand out to help her up.

And the fire twists and shoots straight at my wrist.

I stare as the flame hits my skin but I can’t feel anything. There’s just this hissing silence. Then I scream. Spacewoman screams. Vee screams.

And Jessie turns off the fire. She’s crouching by a twisty knob at the tank. ‘Are you OK, Squishy?’

The burning feeling starts. It stings so horribly.

‘
Ow, ow, ow!
’ I want to clutch my wrist, but I’m scared to touch it. I feel
panicky
and it
hurts
.

Spacewoman has suddenly got over her fright. She whips off her helmet, lifts me up and runs me over to the wall at the edge of the building. There’s a tap coming out at hip height. She drops me to my feet and turns the tap on full bore and shoves my arm under it.

I’m crying.

Jessie and Vee run up beside us. I don’t even try to stop crying.

‘What were you kids
doing
?’ asks Spacewoman, easing the tap so the water runs more softly.

‘Is it really bad, Squishy?’ Vee asks.

Jessie has turned into the responsible older sister all of a sudden. ‘Vee, go get Mum, quickly. I’ll stay with Squishy.’

‘OK.’ Vee doesn’t even pause. She sprints for the door.

As the door closes behind Vee, I realise something. I don’t want her to get Alice. I want
Dad
. All I want is a big cuddle on his knee. And Alice was so horrible last night. But it’s too late.

Spacewoman holds my arm under the water, saying things like, ‘What were you
thinking
? Good grief! How did you even get up here?’

Jessie turns the workbench lamp around and brings it a bit closer, until it’s at the end of its cable.

‘Good thinking,’ says Spacewoman. ‘Thanks.’

I sit there, watching the water trickle over my burned, sore arm and run down the drain.

The door finally opens. I was hoping Vee would realise I needed Dad, but she didn’t. It’s Alice, with Vee right behind her. Alice looks sleepy, horrified, embarrassed and anxious all at the same time. I wait for her to shout at me.

She doesn’t.

She runs over, kneels down, and gently takes my elbow, trying to see the burn in the lamplight. ‘Oh, Squishy –
jeepers!
What have you kids been
doing
?’

She turns to Spacewoman. ‘I’m so sorry about all this. You must be shocked. They’re not usually like this.’ She pauses. ‘Well, actually they are, but they’re good kids really. Oh, what am I even
saying
?’

Alice turns back to me, and pulls me onto her lap. She’s really careful not to tug my arm out from the running water. ‘Squishy, does it hurt?’ She leans her face in next to mine to look down at the burn. Her arms hold me tight.

Her cheek feels soft and friendly. It’s not like Mum. And it’s not like Dad. It’s Alice. But it’s Alice in a new,
comfortable
way that makes me feel safe. I lean back into her and cry a little bit more.

Someone else steps out onto the roof.

‘Is everyone OK up here?’

It’s Pyjama Man.

‘Hey, Rasheed,’ Spacewoman says.

‘Hey!’ Pyjama Man grins. ‘Nice to see you at home, rather than at work.’ He looks around at all of us. ‘I just had my
second
strange doorbell ring this evening –’

Vee smiles sideways at Jessie and whispers, ‘Lucky I still remembered his apartment number, otherwise we wouldn’t have gotten back in.’

Pyjama Man is still talking. ‘– and I got worried about what was going on up here.’ He looks down at my arm under the tap. ‘A burn? Not too terrible, I see. And you’ve got the best nurse in the burns ward looking after you too.’ He winks at Spacewoman and I turn in Alice’s lap and stare.

‘You’re a nurse? Not a spacewoman?’ I ask.

Spacewoman glances over at her
space-helmet
and then smiles at me. ‘Yes, I am a nurse. And in fact, it’s almost time for me to go to work. Maybe we should go to the hospital together?’ She glances at Alice, who nods.