"Michael Flynn - Falling Stars" - читать интересную книгу автора (Flynn Michael)

shanghaied, and The Man Who had let them take a turn at the controls; and she felt again that same
bottomless feeling she had experienced as the plane peaked and dived. Then she shook her hands and
dried them on a towel. тАЬI thought so, too.тАЭ
Okay, if she couldnтАЩtgo out there, she could at least look. The Star Gazers club she had organized
focused on practical urban astronomy: how to tell time and direction from the stars, but it was really just an
excuse for her to look at the sky, the way she used to do on the quad at Glenn Academy. They were
waiting for her on the roof тАФ six sisters ranging in age from seven to thirty sitting on the sundry lawn
furniture that had been placed there. Jacinta gasped an apology for being late, but nobody seemed to
mind. It was a lazy August evening and with sunset a cool breeze had come in from the ocean, seasoning
the odor of asphalt roofing with salt. So what better place to hang than up on the roof?
A few of the brightest stars pierced the city-lit haze overhead. Remembering how boundless the sky had
been near Mojave and how fiercely the stars had burned in the desert night, Jacinta thought this display
pale and featureless in comparison. Yet, you played the hand you were dealt. тАЬDoes everyone remember
why the stars move across the sky?тАЭ she asked. тАЬGinger?тАЭ
The youngest girl put a finger in her mouth and nodded solemnly. тАЬItтАЩs because weтАЩre all movingthat
wayтАЭ тАФ she pointed east тАФ тАЬso the stars movethat wayтАЭ тАФ pointing west тАФ тАЬbut I donтАЩtfeel like IтАЩm
moving.тАЭ
The girl had said the same the previous night. That was why learning required repetition. тАЬItтАЩs like riding in
a car,тАЭ Jacinta explained. тАЬYou feel it when the car bounces or turns or goes faster or slower тАФ when
something changes. But the Earth keeps turning with the same speed in the same direction. Did you
remember to mark where the sun set on our тАШStonehenge BoardтАЩ? Good. That will help us know when the
seasons are about to change. Now everyone find the Pole Star for me тАжтАЭ
She told them how they could use the Little Dipper like the hour hand on a clock. By then, the orange glow
had faded from the western sky and Jupiter blazed with ruthless clarity twenty-five degrees above the
ocean. Sister Tina had brought a pair of high-powered binoculars she owned and they passed them
around the group. Jacinta thought she could just make out the four big moons, but wasnтАЩt sure the others
would be able to, so she didnтАЩt mention them. A telescope would have been nice to have, but there was
no money these days for nice-to-have.
After the meeting was over and Sister Tina had taken Lilly and Ginger below for bedtime stories, Jacinta
remained on the roof, lying on one of the chaise lounges. She imagined it was the pilotтАЩs acceleration
couch and gravity was the launch force of an SSTO she was taking to LEO. But it was a pale pretense
and she soon gave it up. Such imaginations were for a young girl looking forward, not for a disillusioned
one looking back. The difference between anticipation and might-have-been.
тАЬWhat was the Academy like?тАЭ
Jacinta started at the voice and, turning, saw Sister Visitacion in one of the lawn chairs. тАЬTassyтАЭ was
fifteen; she could still have dreams. Jacinta looked back at the sky. тАЬIt was rough,тАЭ she said. тАЬThey break
your body and burn your brain. I almost washed out.тАЭ I almostdied, she remembered. Drowned in the
Neutral Buoyancy Tank. Well, that was one way to wash out. тАЬA lot of cadets didnтАЩt make the cut.тАЭ Ludwig
Schimmelpfennig, the one they all called тАЬLou Penny,тАЭ had developed asthma. He had been a class-A
pain-in-the-butt, but he had shared the same dream and you hated to see that happen. And Ursula
Kittmann, who had lost an arm in a plane wreck even before First Muster and who had come back with a
strange, new prosthesis to make the try anyway. A bitter, angry, cynical girl, yet JacintaтАЩs comrade,
regardless.
тАЬThatтАЩs not what I meant,тАЭ Tassy said. тАЬI meant тАж Well тАж There were boys there, right?тАЭ
Jacinta tried not to smile. At fifteen, not all dreams involved flying. тАЬMore boys than girls.тАЭ
тАЬDid any of them ever try to тАж You know. Touch you?тАЭ The inflection in her voice made it clear what sort
of тАЬtouchтАЭ she meant.
The question had been seriously asked and so deserved a serious answer. тАЬNo,тАЭ Jacinta said after a
momentтАЩs reflection. тАЬIтАЩm sure some of them wanted to тАФ I guess I wasnтАЩt the least attractive girl there тАФ
and there were some boys you had to be careful not to give them the wrong signals. Their wishful thinking