“TOO CLOSE!”

Author’s Note: This is a Take Ten to Write story and has not been proofread for errors. If I feel inspired or if there’s interest in the story, I’ll post a revised, edited, and extended version at a later date. Happy reading!

Prompt: Write a story titled “Too Close”.

“YOU IDIOT!” Barry screams, running down the hallway after me, “YOU WENT TOO CLOSE!”

Sweat drips down my face as I race toward the engine room. “How was I supposed to know that?”

“NATE WAS YELLING AT YOU TO SLOW DOWN, BUT YOU JUST KEPT ON GOING! AND NOW WE’RE SECONDS AWAY FROM LOSING COMPLETE CONTROL OVER OUR SHIP!”

I skid to a stop in front of the engine room door. “Okay, I guess that checks out. But still, it wasn’t completely my fault. Kayla was supposed to be navigating, not me. Oh, and Hudson was supposed to bring me coffee. Just saying.”

Barry scowls and shoves his way past me into the engine room. As soon as I step inside, I’m bombarded with the screeching of alarms..

“Marilyn, talk to me,” Barry snaps.

She sticks her head out from around the corner. “It doesn’t look good, Captain,” she says with a sigh, wiping grease across her forehead. “She just doesn’t want to go on anymore. Maybe it’s because her side’s all scraped up and she doesn’t think she’s pretty anymore.”

Marilyn shoots me a hard glare before disappearing back into the maze of machinery.

Barry groans and puts his face in his hands. “If we go down because of your stupid mistake,” he growls, “you’ll be grounded for life.”

My heart literally stops. “I’ll be grounded? For life?”

Final Comments: I love a good sci-fi story.

Overall Rating: 😊