Stargazing

"Totally ruins the effect if you ask me."

Chloe didn't turn away from the observation windows. She knew Matthew's voice and he wasn't an intruder. Well, technically no-one would have been, but at least with her...friend his presence felt natural. So even as she heard the airman approach her, she continued gazing upon the colours of faster-than –light travel, the swirls of the universe's current. The effect was...

Wait, didn't he mention the effect ruining something?

"You okay?" Matt asked, coming alongside the senator's daughter and putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You've been quiet lately and-..."

"I'm fine," Chloe lied, not daring to meet Matt's gaze. "Just...tired."

The second statement wasn't entirely a lie. Yes, she felt tired, but that was only part of the truth. Sometimes it felt like she was halfway between being asleep and awake, like she didn't even know herself. And coupling that with how quickly her leg had healed...

She shook it off. She was on the observation deck, staring into space. If that didn't settle her, nothing would.

"You mentioned something about ruining the effect," Chloe murmured, still not looking Matt in the eye. "What did you mean by that?"

"Huh?" the lieutenant asked, taking a few seconds to understand the question. "The...oh, the effect. Yeah, I mean the FTL stream, or whatever Rush calls it. It just...well, I prefer stars you know?"

"Um...yes?"

That was another lie, but it was an obvious one and as such, Chloe didn't feel guilty for uttering it. Admittedly the whole stargazing (or FTL gazing, whatever) was new to her-back in the Milky Way, any time she'd been on a starship, her gaze was directed towards white paper rather than hyperspace. She hadn't really thought what others thought of the alternative to travel by stargate and Matt was no exception. Still, as the airman let out a weary sigh, she could tell that he was going to open up.

Good. Less questions directed towards her, as cynical as that sounded.

"I won't go into the melodrama of wishing upon stars and all that," Matthew murmured, reminding Chloe of Pinocchio for some reason. "Just...well, you were at Icarus Base for less than a day. As for me...well, stay there long enough at bar...other activities, gazing at stars was one of the few amusing things to do. Even if it was only twenty-five light years from Earth, it can still be interesting to see constellations from a different angle."

Chloe remained silent. Firstly, she had no idea what the airman meant by "other things" and something told her it was best not to ask. Secondly, she had to consider the full meaning of his words-twenty-five light years was practically next door to Earth for all intents and purposes, even before the Atlantis Expedition reached Pegasus. Thirdly...well, she couldn't think of a lucky three. It didn't seem that important anyway. And anyway, it was her turn to break the ice.

"I guess it's different out here though..." the secretary murmured eventually. "I mean...completely different constellations for one thing."

"Yeah, but how often do we see them? We're either in FTL or on a planet where are gaze is focussed anywhere but upward. I-..." He trailed off, looking embarrassed. Could have been he felt he'd said too much, or maybe it was a military thing. Either way, Chloe understood. And in lack of understanding as to what the hell was happening to her, it was welcome.

Indeed, she understood what Matthew meant by the effect...how stars were rarely seen from the observation deck. Certainly if they were visible now, she would have followed Pinocchio's example and made a wish...

...to be back home.