Chapter Twelve

The class counted down together out loud.

“Ten, nine, eight, seven, six…”

“We have main engines start,” said the TV announcer. Nova glanced toward the classroom door. It would open, Bridget would run in, and they’d watch together because she promised.

She promised.

But the door did not open.

“…four, three, two, one…”

Nova drew her eyes back to the television at the front of the classroom without a second to spare. She focused on the bottom of the shuttle, where the fire burned.

Lift-off.

Thick white clouds like marshmallow fluff billowed up around the bottom of the space shuttle, from which a thick line of orange-yellow fire trailed. Birds, black dots against a gray-blue sky, flew off in all directions as the space shuttle shot up, attached to the reddish-brown bullet-shaped launcher. Challenger cleared the tower. It rose higher and higher into the sky, each second closer to the outer edges of Earth’s atmosphere.

On the ground, crowds cheered and took pictures.

“Three engines running normally,” the TV announcer said. Fire continued to follow the shuttle, like the tail of a zooming comet. Now that sky in the background was darker blue, true blue, like Francine’s eyes.

“That voice belongs to Public Affairs Officer Steve Nesbitt,” explained Mr. O’Reilly. Several students wrote that down to add to their postlaunch reports. Nova didn’t. She would remember. She would remember every moment, every detail. She had to.

Someone would have to tell Bridget.

A trail of fire, cloud, and smoke continued to follow the space shuttle like the tail of a flying comet. One minute had passed since lift-off.

“So the twenty-fifth space shuttle mission is now on the way, after more delays than NASA cares to count…,” the announcer was saying. The screen identified him as Tom Mintier, CNN Correspondent.

They were doing it! They were headed into outer space! Unable to control herself, Nova hopped from her seat, flapping and squeaking and ignoring Miss Chambers, who was saying “Sit down, please! Take deep breaths!” It was too exciting for sitting. It was too exciting for deep breaths. Up it went. Up and up and up, closer to the sun, closer to the stars. Up and up and up…

Mintier continued, “This morning it looked like they were not going to be able to get off—”

Then one minute, thirteen seconds after lift-off.

It exploded.

The Challenger exploded.

Nova dropped NASA Bear. She clutched her hands.

On the screen, fire and debris flew out from the spacecraft in all directions.

No.

No, it couldn’t have.

But it did.

The smoke resembled the Little Prince’s snake after he ate the elephant, a thin white line split in two for the mouth at the top, a long winding tail at the bottom, with a round ball above the center, where Nova could almost picture the elephant rolling his eye to the sky.

Oh, great. I’ve been eaten.