I haven't finished the story yet, but Xx-LuSh3s-xX wanted to read it. Enjoy!
Space Lift
Space. I’ve always dreamed from the moment I was born that I could experience it. My name is Matthew, my friends and family call me Matt though. I’m 17 and have finished school. I am about to live my dream. In fact, I am sitting in my parent’s car, driving to the lift station. Mum and Dad have never been enthusiastic about me going on the lift, not since Greenpeace have started sending threats and things into the station. They’re against dumping our nuclear waste and pollution into space. A couple of months ago, there was even a bomb threat. My great Grandpa tells me about the year 2012 and how Greenpeace was never so extreme and that they would just protest. But my Grandpa is old, in fact, he was born in 1997, he is 93 now.
I looked at the car clock and noticed the time. “C’mon Dad, put the pedal to the metal! I don’t want to miss the lift! Besides, Kyle is probably waiting for me at the station!” Kyle and I have been best friends for ages, and he agreed to take the lift with me. We booked the overnight stay at the satellite. Dad sighed and accelerated from 70kmph to 75kmph. I rolled my eyes and peered up at the cable slowly appearing over the hills. We Australians were lucky that it was decided to build the project in Western Australia. It was a while’s drive but at least we weren’t taking plane flights and stuff.
“Matt, look! Wow, its...pretty high up. Are you sure that you want to do this, you can just come home...” Mum tried to sound convincing, and failed. “No Mum, you know how much I want to do this, besides; I can’t back out on Kyle!” Mum hung her head, disappointed that I hadn’t changed my mind. Dad parked the car. I jumped out with so much eagerness that I tripped over my own legs. Dad shook his head and locked the car. Mum took Dad’s hand and walked through the glass doors. I checked in and claimed my ticket, then turned to look at the architecture.
The inside decor was amazing. Blue, silver and black were the main colours. There were boards up with the departure times on them. The floating benches were everywhere; there were many people here just to admire the architecture. I looked around, but Kyle wasn’t anywhere. The loudspeaker crackled to life, “Would all passengers please report to the boarding bay for the 6:15pm departure. Thankyou.” My phone buzzed in my pocket. “That must be Kyle” I muttered to myself.
“Hey Kyle, why aren’t you here yet? Its 5:30! The final boarding call is in 15 minutes!” I waited for Kyle to answer. “Sorry Matt, I’ve come down with something. I’m stuck in hospital for a while.” Kyle’s tone was disappointed. “Is it too late to reclaim you money for the ticket?” Kyle coughed. “Yeah, gee I’m sorry. You have fun okay?” he coughed again. “Alright, I better go. You get better soon, alright? Bye.” I sighed. Now I would have someone else sitting next to me in the lift and in the hotel on the station.
“Matt, you’d better report to the boarding bay. Please, be careful, honey.” I hated it when Mum called me honey. I rolled my eyes and hugged her. I would only be gone for 2 days and yet she was acting as if I was moving out. I took my bag and stepped onto the escalator pad. It rose and took me to the bay directly. It was even more amazing up close. The heat shields were so thick, though they would have to be to go thought the atmosphere at the speed it needs to. The lift was enormous, silver, there were many small, round windows covered with clear heat resistant material and there was this huge solar power generator attached to it. I marvelled at the sight.
“This is the final boarding call for the 6:15pm departure. Please make your way to the boarding bay right now. Thankyou.” I headed to the crowd of people at the boarding door, the excitement and anxiety building up in my stomach. This was the experience I had dreamed of my whole life.
As I boarded the lift, it was amazing! There was a main cabin with 12 chairs in a circle around a large pillar in the middle. This had a TV and a snack bar in it as well as our headphones. I sat in my chair and waited for someone to sit in Kyle’s seat. These trips are almost always full. When no one sat down, I was surprised. This was the second last flight of the day. I examined the walls. Soft yet firm at the same time. The flight attendant came round to tighten the harnesses and give us safety instructions. She was half way though when a girl about my age came onto the lift. She quickly sat down into Kyle’s seat and blushed, embarrassed for being late. The attendant gave her a brief run down and when to go to the cockpit.
A speaker crackled, “Thank you for taking the lift to the space station, Stallion. Please enjoy the lift ride; it will be a 2 hour ride. The countdown will begin for lift off. Please brace yourselves. Thankyou,” I took a deep breath. I wondered how it would feel. I took another breathe, being careful not to hyperventilate, “10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.” The Lift flew upwards with tremendous pressure; I thought I could pass out. After 30 minutes of high speed and tremendous pressure, the lift was slow enough that we could undo the harness, keeping the seatbelt on.
Some people rested, some turned on the t.v and some read. I decided to talk to the girl sitting next to me. She had long, straight, shiny, smooth black hair, tied into a pony tail; her face was young and beautiful. Her eyes were an amazing bright blue. “Hi, I’m Matthew.” I couldn’t think of what else to say. “Hello. I’m Sophia. Nice to meet you.” She smiled and went back to her book. She made me think of my average height, my eyes were a dark green and my hair was a light brown. Her voice was like honey. Soft and sticky. “Excuse me Matthew, but how old are you?” I realised that she was looking me, her face lit with curiosity. “I’m 17, how old are you?” She giggled. “Same age as you, actually,” I was surprised. She looked pretty young to me, “Have you finished school too?” She giggled. I nodded sheepishly. She giggled again. “Well, I’m going to finish my book. Maybe we can talk later, ok?” She smiled and turned back to her book. I sat there staring at Sophia.
Somehow, two hours passed and we were arriving at the space station. I think I spent most the time staring out the window, into space. The earth looked so beautiful form above and the moon was so much more detailed. Sophia and I disembarked through the lift door, and I stared in complete awe. So technological, there were screens of data and diagrams of different stars, sections of space and the planets, the astronauts were working behind soundproof glass, so they couldn’t be distracted.
People were lining up to board the second last shuttle of the day and the crowd made it difficult for Sophia and I to push through the crowd. As we walked, she asked me some questions. “Are you staying here overnight?” I nodded. “Really!? So am I...” I cut her off, “Actually, you’re staying in the room my friend was supposed to be in, he fell sick and couldn’t come.” She paused, her face full of empathy. “We’ll I hope he’s better soon.” She raised one eyebrow accusingly. “It is a he right?” Sophia giggled. “Yes, it was a him.” We walked into the hotel together, looking around like Japanese people in a French speaking city. We were both lost for words.
The architecture was amazing! I walked in circles, admiring the space above me. There was antique styled furniture, from about 1920, and it looked so, beautiful. Teapots, tea cups and saucers made from china, wooden furniture, coffee tables with legs to support it, windows with real material curtains, it was all so different, like great grandpa’s stories! Sophia smiled a huge grin. “Like it?” she asked, her face lit with curiosity again. “Miraculous! The person who designed this was a genius!” I smiled back and she blushed. “Actually, my Dad designed it! It’s the first time I’ve seen it though. Amazing. So beautiful.” Her voice trailed off, and I stuttered “Your Dad designed this place!” She blushed a deep tone of red. “The furnishings, actually.” She began to walk to the counter of the hotel to check in.
Once I had finished checking in too, she turned to me “Matt, do you mind” I shook my head. “Matt, why did you come up here. For a holiday?” She stared into my eyes with deep curiosity. “Well,” I began, “I have been fascinated by space since I was old enough to know that it existed. I really wanted to experience it for myself. If I could, I’d like to get a job up here.” She starred at her feet, thoughtful. “That’s really interesting. I have the same fascination!” She smiled, though she looked distracted. “What’s wrong?” I asked her. She looked up at me, obviously seeing that I was worried. “Oh, sorry. I’m fine. Just thinking about what to do tomorrow. Whether I do the zero gravity first or the history of space morning session. We both laughed together as we walked up to the rooms. Since Sophia had taken Kyle’s booking, our rooms were next to each others. “Goodnight, Matt. Maybe I’ll see you in the cafe for breakfast, that is, if you’re up early enough.” She giggled again and entered her room. I heard a gasp before her door quietly fell shut. “Goodnight, Sophia” I muttered under my breath. I to, entered my room.
It was just so cool! The beds didn’t float and there was a small bedside table with a plug in lamp! It wasn’t even built in! There was a small bathroom with a shower, toilet and sink which you had to turn on yourself. I dumped my bag of stuff in the cupboard and went to brush my teeth. Two days of staying in this place will be such an awesome experience. I walked wearily to my bed and dropped onto it. How could one lift ride be so tiering? I drifted off to sleep in two seconds flat.
