Gravity Never Suited Me

"I will die in an hour." Riley moans.

"Don't say that. I went through a lot of trouble to keep your ass alive." Zoe replies. Riley looks at Zoe, tears beginning to form around her eyes, and smiles.

"I know you did. I'm really grateful. That was terrifying. You're amazing for getting us through that. I'll tell your boss too."

"My boss?" Zoe is confused, squinting at Riley, who is surprised at Zoe's confusion.

"Whoever you work for. Whatever kind of system emergency responders have." Riley attempts to explain. Zoe stops rubbing Riley's back and laughs.

"I don't work for anyone. I'm just sort of like a tourist." Riley is surprised, and looks at Zoe with admiration.

"You're a civilian? You just saved me for no reason?"

"Well, not for no reason-"

Riley embraces Zoe, squeezing tightly.

"Thank you so much." Riley says. "You're incredible." Zoe hesitates, but hugs the young woman back. They begin to drift through the ship. It feels nice to make human contact.

After a few minutes, the Dramamine kicks in and Riley begins to acclimate to the environment of microgravity. She practices moving, holding onto a rail and preparing herself to jump. Zoe moves opposite of her, next to another handrail.

"Okay, it's really simple." She says. "Jump, very gently, and aim right here. Hold on and bring your legs to the wall."

Across the ship, Riley holds tightly to a wall, mentally preparing herself.

"Okay. Here I come." She springs off the wall, rocketing towards Zoe.

"Too fast!' Zoe shouts. "Too fast!" Zoe has no time to respond as Riley slams into her, knocking her backwards. They tumble through the ship, but Zoe manages to wrap her legs around Riley's midriff, catching a handrail and preventing a hard impact with a wall.

"Too fast." She repeats, as Riley latches on to her legs. "You don't have to push hard. There's no gravity holding you down."

"Sorry." Riley says, wiggling around to face Zoe and grabbing her around the middle.

"This is hard. I feel like I have no control." Zoe smiles at her.

"Yeah, don't worry. That's natural for people not used to it. In a week you'll be jetting around like a pro." Riley nods, and then appears thoughtful.

"One more thing." She says. "How do I use the bathroom?"

Some time later and an awkward explanation of the importance of keeping certain vacuum hoses separate later, Riley is relieved and Ryan is making preparations for their final jump. Zoe assists Riley to the ladder, from there she struggles into her chair and buckles herself in.

As Zoe prepares for the jump, Ryan cautions her.

[To insure your safety, a pre-flight checklist has been prepared.]

"Override." She says reflexively.

"Is that a good idea?" Says Riley, worried.

"Yeah it's fine." Zoe replies casually. "He just has sand in his vagina about some little things."

"Sand in his...vagina?"

[Standby for main engine launch.]

"Remember your breathing." Zoe says. "We're about to get really heavy." Riley breathes in sharply.

"Okay." She says. "Ready."

[Main engine launch.]

Both of them are pinned to the seat by 2G of force. Riley takes it quite well, and they reach travel velocity after 55 minutes of acceleration with no problems. Once again they are weightless as the ship hurtles through space at unbelievable speeds. Zoe unsnaps and moves to help Riley, who waves her off. She plays with the harness for a second and unfastens it herself, smiling at Zoe as she does.

"Nice job." Zoe says. "Now follow me down the ladder. Take it slow."

Carefully, Riley floats down the ladder, stopping herself with outstretched hands at the bottom.

"I think I'm getting better at it." She says.

"Yeah. Just keep working. We've got a few months of weightlessness to go." Riley rotates, looking up through her legs at Zoe, who floats at the 'top' of the ship.

"What do we do for two months?" She asks. Zoe lets out a sigh, drifting through the silent, empty ship.

"I watch a lot of TV." She says. "And I draw some."

"Ooh, I want to see! What do you draw?"

"Uh, not much." Says Zoe, embarrassed about the paltry amount of art she has created.

"They're in the cupola." She points to the ship's viewport, opposite of the airlock. Slowly and clumsily, Riley works her way across the wall, handhold to handhold, until she reaches the airlock. Zoe pushes off, floating past her gently to her chair and window, catching herself and waiting for Riley. Too late, she realizes she has left the nude drawing of herself taped to the window. Her face begins to flush red with embarrassment. Riley pulls herself up, drifting to the seat, and clinging to the back of it tightly. Riley looks over the pictures, studying them. Zoe shifts uncomfortably.

"Who's that?" Riley asks, pointing to the old man. "Someone you know?"

"Yeah, uh, one of my grandpa's friends." She says. "I used to visit him in the park sometimes. I always thought he would look better in space." Riley smiles politely, returning her attention to the drawings. She points to the nude self portrait, and Zoe's heart thumps in her chest.

"Is that a model?" Riley asks.

"Mmm, uh huh. Sort of." Zoe can't make eye contact.

"She has a gorgeous body. Someone else you know?"

"It's a, uh, a self portrait." Zoe coughs nervously, and wipes her sweaty hands on her pants. It's Riley's turn to blush.

"Oh wow." Her voice is small. "Um. It's really good." She says politely.

"Thanks. I know they're not that good, but I'm learning." They sit in awkward silence as Riley continues to glance over the three art pieces. They both look for something to say.

Zoe eventually breaks the frigid quietness.

"You want the tour? You're going to be here long enough." Riley smiles.

"I'd love that."

"We can start with food storage and medical." Zoe says. "Which reminds me we'll have to talk about rationing. I brought enough food for one person, so expect to lose some weight. We shouldn't starve though."

"Okay," Riley responds. "I'm just grateful that you're willing to share." They make their way awkwardly to the storage lockers, Riley still slowly climbing hand over hand. Once they arrive, Zoe explains the layout of her storage system for food and medical supplies, including securing everything for flight readiness. Riley pays strict attention. At the end of her presentation, Zoe grips a handrail and sighs.

"Hey I'm sorry about the nude." She began. "That was super weird, and I wasn't expecting company. I'll take it down."

"It's okay." Says Riley. "I'm really cool about that sort of thing. You can leave it up." Riley smiles at Zoe.

"Really?" Zoe says, surprised.

"Yeah." Riley blushes. "It's nice." They both look away from each other.

"Thanks. It's good to find someone who likes my art." Says Zoe.

"I do!" Riley confirms. "Maybe you can do one of me." Zoe's eyebrows raise incredulously. Realizing she misspoke, Riley almost yells. "That's not what I meant! Like a normal painting." Zoe laughs, and Riley covers her face, embarrassed. Through the gaps in her fingers, she moans. "You know what I mean." Zoe sets a hand on her new shipmate's shoulder, still laughing.

"Yeah, I gotcha. No worries." Riley looks up, shaking her head.

"Let's just finish the tour, okay?" She asks.

"Yep. I won't ever bring up the time you tried to commission me to draw nude art of you ever again," Zoe winks. "Probably."

They finish the tour of the ship quickly. It's not a big ship. As they wind down, Zoe shows Riley the sleeping quarters, with one bag velcroed to the wall in a 'floor' oriented compartment and one in the 'ceiling' compartment, facing the other. She helps Riley velcro her sleeping bag into the compartment so she won't drift, and they settle down for a night's sleep.

The next several days pass quickly. The two new friends kill time by talking. Zoe avoids the topic of Galileo's Guide, but learns a lot about Riley's history. Riley explains how she had grown up on Earth, and just recently graduated college with a degree in literature. Her parents had bought Riley and her closest friends tickets on the cruise ship to see Saturn while it was in conjunction with the Jupiter Orbital Station. Her story stops here, and Zoe doesn't press. When Riley returns similar questions, Zoe answers succinctly.

"It's my ship. I just came out here to get away. No big deal."

It only takes a few days before conversation gets boring. Once it does, and Riley has a decent mastery of maneuvering in microgravity, they turn the mobile display on for some movies.

"Uh, do we just kind of float in front of the screen?" asks Riley.

"Well, usually I sit in the chair and just kind of lock myself in with a leg against the window." Zoe replies, drifting across the ship toward the chair, her mobile display in hand.

"Will we both fit?" Riley eyes the single wide gaming style chair.

"Sure, you're petite." Zoe pats the seat next to her, scooting to one side as much as possible. Riley hesitates, floating nearby.

"Are you comfortable with that?" She asks. "Looks pretty tight."

"I get that from all the girls." Zoe winks. "Come on, sit down. I'm watching Friends." Riley pulls herself down to the chair, squeezing in next to Zoe. The chair is made for one person, and they fit tightly against each other.

"Mmm, comfy." Says Riley, sarcastically. Zoe laughs. Their shoulders are pressed awkwardly together, and they struggle to fit comfortably. "Might not work," Riley continues. "Unless you put your arm around me." She leans forward, and Zoe doesn't even pause, throwing an arm around Her. Riley freezes for a second, as if she didn't expect that. But Zoe is nonchalant, tapping the play button on the screen. Riley relaxes, laying against Zoe. And they watch Friends. And watch. And watch. And five days later, they have found every possible position to sit two people in one chair and watch T.V. The most comfortable position they find is Zoe sitting in the chair, Riley between her legs, leaning back on her chest. Zoe has one foot pressed against the glass of the cupola, locking them in so they don't drift. It's a bit awkward at first, but they quickly become comfortable with their extreme proximity.

Day 6

As Zoe gets out of bed, Riley doesn't follow. Zoe makes breakfast for two, checks for updates from Ryan, and returns to the bunk. She nudges Riley's bag.

"Hey, you up? Riley? I made breakfast. Well, 'made' in the loosest sense..." Riley's bag opens a tiny bit, and she sticks a hand out to grab the pouch of food. Zoe catches just a glimpse of her face, and can see that she's been crying. She hands Riley the food silently, and rotates on the handle she is holding, preparing to float away.

"I'm, uh, I'll be here. If you want to talk or anything." Zoe says, she thinks quite awkwardly. The bag opens a bit again, and Riley smiles out at her.

"Thanks. I guess I could use a hug." she says.

"Are you coming out? I can't hug you in there."

"There's room for two." Riley responds. "You proved that before."

"Hey now, you were freezing." Zoe says as she slips a foot into the bag, wiggling down next to Riley. "It kept you ali-." She is cut off by a strong embrace from Riley, which pins the oatmeal between them.

"I miss them so much right now." She is crying again. Hot oatmeal begins to seep from the crushed pouch, and Zoe catches it in her mouth to prevent a spill.

"Mmm, I'm sorry, uh, who you thinking about?"

"I don't know. My parents. Carla and Misha. Everyone. I wish you could have saved them." Zoe returns the embrace gently.

"Yeah. Me too. I'm so sorry." Zoe replies. Riley shakes her head, breaking the hug. Their faces are inches apart in the bag, and Zoe notices that she can smell Riley's hair.

"I didn't mean it like that. It's totally not your fault."

"Maybe it is. I could have been faster." Zoe feels her own tears beginning to rise.

"No!" Riley yells. Zoe is stunned by the volume with their faces right next to each other.

"It is not your fault. You were amazing. Just amazing. I'm so lucky you got to me."

They embrace again, both crying. They stay that way for over an hour, cuddling and talking.

Day 9

Zoe floats in front of the warming unit, waiting on a packet of corned beef. Riley floats gently and slowly towards her from behind. She stops herself silently on an overhead rail. Inches behind Zoe, Riley waits for perfect timing. The warming unit dings, and Zoe reaches in to retrieve her beef. Riley, grinning like a child, shoves both of her ice cold hands up the back of Zoe's shirt, pressing them against the warm skin on her back. Zoe shrieks, letting the beef float free. She whips around to find Riley, still giggling.

"You little shit." Zoe says with a smile. She lunges forward at Riley, grabbing her in a headlock. Both laughing, they tumble through the ship as Zoe vigorously messes Riley's hair.

"Hey, stop it!" Riley complains through laughter. "You're so warm! My hands are freezing. I don't deserve to be crammed into your boobs like this."

"You like it." Zoe says, releasing Riley and pushing her away. Riley catches Zoe's wrist, dragging them back together. They make eye contact, both smiling.

"Maybe I do." Says Riley. Zoe's smile slowly fades as Riley kisses her on the cheek. They both release, and Zoe drifts back to her lost beef, holding her cheek in confusion.

"Why the heck is it so cold in here? Can't you turn the heat up?" Asks Riley.

"Uh, yeah I usually keep it warmer." Replies Zoe.

"Then why is it so cold now?" Riley rubs her hands together in an exaggerated way, Pouting.

"I thought it would be more comfortable. You know, with clothes on." Zoe winks at her.

"Oh, gross, you usually go naked?"

"I usually don't have company." Zoe settles into the chair, motioning Riley over to her. She joins her, settling in next to Zoe and laying her head on Zoe's chest.

"What are we watching today?" She asks, bored.

"We just finished Star Wars one through eight." Replies Zoe. "So I guess we're on to nine through twelve." She flicks the mobile display on, beef in one hand.

"Don't scream," says Riley. She quickly slips a hand under Zoe's shirt, resting it on her stomach. Zoe winces at the cold hand on her skin, and glares down at Riley. Riley smiles back with a cheeky grin.

"If you don't turn the heat up, you're responsible for keeping my hands warm." Zoe rolls her eyes, and they settle in to watch Star Wars with Riley's hand up her shirt.

Day 10

Riley prods Zoe.

"Hey... You awake?" Riley's voice comes from right next to her face. Zoe blinks, her eyes heavy.

"I am now. What do you need?"

"I could really use some company. I'm sorry I woke you up." Riley replies. Her voice is shaking, her face is wet, and she is shivering with cold. Zoe holds open the flap to her sleeping bag.

"Get in." There is a brief struggle, and both women are crowded into the bag. Riley wraps her arms around Zoe and begins to softly cry. Zoe hugs her, and they eventually fall asleep.

Day 12

Zoe is in her chair, attempting to sketch a cat on a couch. Behind her, Riley is pushing off from the walls, catching herself, and pushing back to the opposite wall, playing 'Would you rather'.

"Would you rather... Lose an arm or a leg?" She asks, twirling through the empty space of the ship.

"Leg." Replies Zoe with no hesitation.

"Really? Why?" asks Riley. Zoe vigorously erases a line, redrawing carefully.

"Don't need legs in microgravity." She replies nonchalantly.

"You know it's unhealthy to spend so much time in microgravity?" Asks Riley, floating over and clutching the back of the chair.

"It's not so bad if you exercise." Says Zoe, still focusing on her drawing. Riley scoffs.

"Ryan, when's the last time Zoe met her daily exercise quota?"

[It has been 19 days.] Ryan answers mechanically. Riley leans around the chair into Zoe's face, with half a smile and one eyebrow raised. Zoe gently pushes her back with one finger to the forehead.

"Don't nag me. Next question."

Riley returns to jumping, flying around the ship.

"Would you rather have sex with a boy or a girl?" She asks.

"I'm not a pedophile." Zoe says, still uninterested. Riley thumps against the wall of the ship, clinging to a rail.

"Ugh. You know what I mean. A man or a woman. Weirdo."

"How old are you, still calling people boys and girls?" Zoe asks.

"Not as old as you." Says Riley, laughing. "I'm 23. You're ancient."

"I'm 31." Says Zoe.

"Yes. Ancient. You still haven't answered my question." Riley drifts back to the chair, peering at Zoe's drawing. Zoe hands the paper to her, and Riley drifts away, admiring the work.

"A woman." says Zoe.

"Why?" Asks Riley, floating upside down.

"I like boobs. They're fun to play with." Zoe answers. Riley pushes off a wall, gently floating into the glass of the cupola, right in front of Zoe.

"Really?" She asks, handing the drawing back. Zoe laughs.

"You act like you've never touched boobs before." She points at Riley's chest. "I think you have some attached to you."

"It's not the same." Riley frowns. "I've never touched anyone else's."

"How would you know it's not the same," Says Zoe with a smile. "If you've never touched anyone else's?" Riley rolls her eyes. She pushes up, floating toward Zoe and landing on her lap, straddling her, face to face. Gently, she pokes Zoe's cheek.

"You. are. a. pedant. I mean it's not the same, I assume." Riley emphasises. "I'd like to find out."

"Well don't let me stop you." Zoe says with a laugh. Riley looks down, her face serious.

"Really?" Zoe was joking, but her heart jumps as Riley asks genuinely. She can't find her voice just for a second.

"Uh... sure." She swallows, nervous. Riley reaches slowly towards her chest. Zoe's heart begins to race as she anticipates her touch. She expects Riley to touch her breasts through her shirt, but She is surprised. Riley gently slides her hands under Zoe's shirt, groping both breasts generously.

Zoe forgets to breathe for a second as they look into each other's faces. Riley rubs a thumb over each nipple, her eyes wide. She squeezes gently and bites her lip. For a moment, time stands still.

[Boss Lady, your heart rate is increasing to dangerous levels. Lie down, and seek medical care immediately.]

Riley pulls her hands from under Zoe's shirt, shocked at the interruption, but quickly bursts into laughter.

"Ryan, mute yourself forever!" Zoe yells, her face bright red with embarrassment. Riley begins to drift backwards off of Zoe, laughing uproariously. Zoe curls up, her face in her hands. Riley floats back down towards her.

"I didn't know I had that effect on you." She teases, wrapping and arm around Zoe's shoulders. Zoe doesn't reply, only grunting. Riley continues.

"You were right. That was nice. I'm still making fun of you though." She nudges Zoe. Still embarrassed, Zoe raises her flushed face.

"You don't get to. You looked like a kid in a candy shop." She answers. Riley laughs, finishing the thought.

"And Ryan scared me like my parents walked in." Riley squeezes Zoe's shoulders. "But I did like it."

"I liked it too." Zoe confesses. They both are silent. Soon, they start another movie, but neither of them pays much attention. Quietly, Riley works a hand under Zoe's shirt and up to her right breast, where she leaves it for the rest of the film.

Day 13

Zoe is waking up unusually late. opposite her, Riley is already awake in her bag, looking across at Zoe.

"Good morning." She says. "Even though it's, uh, three in the afternoon."

"Earth time doesn't matter out here." Zoe replies, smiling. "We make our own time." Riley smiles briefly, but quickly shifts to a serious tone.

"I wanted to talk about last night." She said. "Are we like... cool?"