Thursday - July 18th, 2115:

I remember doing field training the same as every other day. But then dozens of armed men swarmed the base, pushing everyone away from me. They grabbed me, dragged me away without a word, and threw me into the back of an armored truck. I was drenched in sweat and sobbing from fright. Mama always told me not to cry and to be a man, but when surrounded by so many cruel-faced men, there wasn't a man out there who wouldn't cry.

The shackles bound me to the table, and a dozen masked 'doctors' surrounded me. They poked and prodded and caused my flesh to bleed. My body grew dazed from all the sedatives and injections they shoveled into me. Everything was unclear and uncertain. I wanted to run, but there was no escape in sight.

Each day, my resentment bubbled at the sight of them. The cold room and the silence they suffocated me in.

Days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years. I lost track of time as the numbness consumed me. I could hear the voices consuming my thoughts. It was droning inside over and over again. Why? There were so many doctors around, yet not one could help.

I think they're giving up on their tests. They come less often to check on me, and when they do, their faces seem far more distracted and bothered by my presence.

One day, they drove me for hours until I saw a shuttle pointing to the stars and several others patiently awaiting my arrival. They injected me with a series of shots down my spine and whispered into my ear, 'Field training is over. You're selected to board the Orion Space Station. Congratulations, cadet!'

That thought echoed in my mind repeatedly until it was all I believed in. I came to and was already aboard the O.S.S. in my resting pod. Soon, I was briefed and integrated into a routine that became the norm.

My favorite was going out for the spacewalks. It was serene and calming. The noise all but disappeared in that barren void called space. Stars shimmered, and the swirling hues that danced atop Earth brightened all it touched upon.

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I sat in the canteen once, and one of the cadets sat beside me. Catherine was her name. I didn't remember when I last saw anyone so adorable. Her smile was infectious, and the way she lazily reclined, speaking to me as if we had been friends for ages.

She made the days far more comfortable in comparison. Her presence attracted others as well; I met Roger, who was a belligerent old coot, but he had a humorous side to him. His sharp tongue paired with a kind heart and everyone knew it.

So many of them felt like they were trapped in space. They wished to go back home, to be free and escape the mission. It caused a sense of familiarity to swell within me, and I didn't know why that was. I too wanted to be free and go home.

Roger was too mean-spirited sometimes, though it made it all the more satisfying when I held his head in my hands.

We walked side by side toward the Maintenance Deck, and he fell, clenching his chest and heaving for air. And I held the man, his head rested in my lap, tongue lolled to the side, and eyes gaped open. I cried. I laughed. I embraced him tighter until the others came to help drag him to the infirmary.

Catherine's eyes changed that day and didn't shine as much as they used to. Her smile dimmed. It lost that lustrous joy that I knew her for. Why did she stop smiling in my direction? What caused her to keep such a distance away from everyone? She can't treat me this way. I've been with her since the beginning. What happened to Roger hurt her tremendously. I understood why she was so sad. The man was like a father to her. I was nothing to her.

I loved my routine. It kept me consistent, grounded, and focused. The space station was a homey place to be. It was quiet and peaceful, and I could enjoy my day-to-day without any stress.

I'm not feeling well. Can you do the spacewalk for me? Catherine asked in that sweet voice that whispered to my soul. She was always lazy with her tasks, but I was happy to oblige.

As I put the helmet on, Roger spoke. You always do end up looking the best with the helmet on. Hides that ugly mug of yours.

I laughed because it was true.

I floated amidst the stars, freely embraced in their vastness. I lost track of time and everything. There was only a silent void and a peaceful routine. Every time, the same steps and actions, the same results and consequences. Like a cycle of perpetuity, it spun without stopping.

It was the deepest of slumbers and the longest of rests. But nothing could last forever as the eruption of light swallowed everything it touched, and I felt the wake-up call shake me to my core. Earth was calling me home, and I had to answer the call.