Laura Thompson's POV (Present Year: 2023)

I'm literally 40 feet underwater.

In a spacesuit.

Designed for the vacuum of space.

"Thompson, Musk, this is Control. Progress report. Over." The crackle of someone's voice from the Control Room above the water echoes in my ears, the suddenness of the call startling me slightly, causing me to fumble with the compact screw gun I'm holding.

I sigh, using the small mirror on my wrist to glance at the bulky figure of my Flight partner, who's beside me, working away.

Allowing my gaze to wander, I skim over our progress on patching the fairly large hole that's in front of us.

The damaged area itself is not life threatening to the Crew inside the vessel, but could definitely cause some serious problems on reentry.

Elon somehow has managed to make quick work of his side, the patch looking extremely neat, it's almost as if he's done this type of stuff thousands of times before.

I, on the other hand, have made pretty good progress, though if we're going for aesthetics, let's just say my handiwork would score pretty low on any rating scale in comparison to my Partner's.

"Control, this is Thompson. We're around 60% done down here. Over." I reply, my own voice sounding strange as it bounces back at me.

"Copy." Comes the simple reply from Control as I resume the task at hand.

The way we set this up - unknown to Control - is that we're working from either side, and meeting in the middle. Quick and easy.

The way the head honchos wanted us to do it was insane.

They would've rathered us work separately, that way, we could cover more ground in the event that there were more than one puncture needing fixing.

Which, for this training sim, there was.

But, we pretty much informed Control that both of us can work faster and safer, together.

Which is a fact.

"Damn." I curse silently, the small sheet of metal drifting away from me as I vainly attempt to hold it in place for the next step; screws.

This is gonna be ten times harder in Zero G.

I guess I can only hope that we don't have to do any emergency EVAs.

Hastily, I begin to repeat the same process I've been doing for the last three hours.

Wrestle with the sheet metal, hold it down and then take the screw gun to it.

Sounds easy.

Not in Neutral Buoyancy!

Reaching behind me slightly, I search for the screw gun that's tethered to the toolbelt around my waist.

Nothing is there.

Confused, I reach around the other side of me.

Nothing there either.

Where the heck could it have gone?

Removing my one hand from the metal sheet, I angle my wrist mirror towards the surface.

A white blob is far above me, quickly ascending towards the top of the pool.

There goes the one tool I actually need.

"Great," I groan inwardly, shifting slightly to face the man beside me.

How did the Divers not catch it drifting away? How did it even just stop being Neutrally Buoyant in the first place?

My thoughts spin.

Too many physics to deal with right now.

"Hey, Elon?" I speak into the microphone at my chin which is built into the snug cap worn inside the helmet.

A few moments of silence pass as I just float there, waiting for his response.

My visored gaze watches as he finishes up securing yet another sheet of metal against the hole, before he slowly turns himself to face me.

"Go ahead, Laura." His familiarly warm voice surrounds me, bringing a smile to my lips.

I really am head over heels for this man.

"Can I borrow your screw gun? Mine's up there," I chuckle, motioning to the area above us.

"Just don't lose this one, too." Comes his reply, carrying an air of usual humor to it.

"Don't plan to."

Slowly, my Partner unclasps the tool's tether from his own belt, handing it to me as if it was the most valuable thing in the universe.

Which, I guess, in a real scenario like this, it would be.

"Thanks," I smile, taking the compact tool from his gloved grasp, securing it extra tightly around my waist.

Elon simply gives me a thumbs up, returning my grin behind his visor as he begins to wrangle yet another piece of metal into place.

Time continues to pass as we work away, sharing the lone screw gun between us.

The lack of tools is slowing us down slightly, but not enough to have anything to worry about.

"Thompson, Musk. Remaining time of twenty minutes to secure the objective. Over." The sound of the Controller's voice crackles through the helmet's speakers, still somehow managing to startle me.

"Roger," My Partner's voice follows, almost instantly after Control's transmission cut.

"Roger that," I reply, a sudden coldness gathering in my right hand.

Confused, I allow the tool that had been grasped in that hand to float beside me as I clench and un-clench my fist.

The feeling doesn't change.

However, the scene in front of me does.

A small column of bubbles are rising from the wrist to arm connector.

That means-

My thoughts begin to scramble as I get on the radio, a conclusion quickly being mapped out in my head.

"Musk, Control. This is Thompson." I state into the microphone, my tone likely carrying a trace of the same fear that is rapidly gathering within me. "I believe I have a suit malfunction located in the right hand wrist to arm connector. Advise. Over."

Hearing this, I watch as Elon quickly stops his task and turns towards me, his helmeted gaze quickly settling on the ever growing stream of bubbles.

"Thompson, this is Control. Describe your issue. Over."

But, before I can even get a word out, the man beside me is already on the radio, describing the scene in front of the pair of us.

"Control, this is Musk. A steady stream of bubbles are emitting from her right-hand wrist cuff. Over."

The radio goes silent on our end as a nearby diver makes their way over to both of us, seeming to stop and examine the issue for themselves.

"Thompson, this is Control. Remove your hand from the workspace with caution. Over." The voice instructs rather lazily, obviously not feeling the same urgency that I'm currently feeling.

There is water gathering in my glove.

There is also bubbles escaping.

Which means I'm losing oxygen.

The suit will keep supplying it, but what happens if the glove comes totally off?

I shiver at the thought.

"Musk, Thompson. Begin your ascents now. Use extreme caution. Over." The same lazy voice orders once more, the same divers from earlier surrounding me once again, guiding me to the surface at a safe speed.

Now, I'm no genius, but I do know a thing or two about what happens when you ascend too quickly in a situation like this.

It's called the Bends, well, to Scuba Divers, anyways.

NASA calls it simply, Decompression Sickness.

Excruciatingly painful.

Occasionally lethal, too.

Let's not have that happen, today.

My gaze doesn't wander from the leaking wrist cuff.

The entire right side of my body is dead still.

"Thompson, progress report. Over." Control crackles through my headset, so loud, I wince.

"Same as last time you asked, just farther up." I mutter, resisting the urge not to shout that into the mic before I much more calmly answer, "Still leaking. No sign of significant pressure loss yet."

"Roger that."

The time seems to drag on forever.

Seconds turning into minutes...

Minutes turning into what seem like hours and hours...

I find myself fighting back a sudden wave of fatigue as the divers continue to gradually raise me to the platform that will get me out of this watery nightmare.

Why am I tired all of a sudden?

Lack of Oxygen?

Blinking a few times, my focus falls once more on the stream of bubbles racing towards the surface so much faster than me.

"How you hanging in there, Lori?" The distantly familiar tone of Elon's voice echoes around my head, the words not even registering with me completely.

"Fine, I think..." I slur, my gaze becoming blurry.

The stream of bubbles are almost hypnotizing...

My eyes begin to force themselves shut, my brain not thinking clearly any longer.

"Laura... You've got to stay alert!" My boyfriend's voice urges once more, his accent sounding slightly thicker than usual... Or is that my head playing tricks on me again?

"I... I can't..." I sigh heavily, my head slumping forward against the visor, my senses fading.

The creaking sounds of the water, the whine of the crane, people's frantic voices...

All so distant and dampened, it's like I'm floating.

For real this time.

The faint sound of what sounds to be like my helmet being unclasped drags me closer back to reality...

Suddenly, cool, crisp air floods my senses as I begin to cough and splutter.

Am I out?

What even happened?

Why are people so frantic?

What's going on?

Why can't I see or hear anything?!

Panic races through me as I begin to get my breathing under control, slightly.

"Thompson. Thompson! Laura!" An unfamiliar, urgent, older sounding feminine tone sounds rather close to me. "I need you to say something, hun."

All I can do is groan pathetically.

Everything feels so foggy...

"Get her out of that damned suit and get her to the hyperbaric chamber! Stat!" The same voice from seconds ago orders, her urgency matching the other faint sounds of commotion all around me.

I feel the heaviness of the EMU suit being lifted off of me, piece by piece.

My body is then practically dragged out from the hard upper torso I had been trapped in for hours on end and...

Laid down on something?

"Let's go! Let's go!" Someone shouts, the sounds around me slowly becoming louder.

I feel myself being picked up off the ground on whatever I'm laying on - a stretcher, I suppose? - before being sat down somewhere else.

That's really echoey.

"You'll be fine in here, hun. Just a few minutes, that's all." The woman assures, a slight pressure of some sort of restraint falling across my lap... Almost like a seat belt?

I want to scream.

Who are you people?

Why can't I see anything?

What's going on?

A sudden jolt of panic travels through me.

Where's Elon?

Did he make it out of whatever happened?

He was with me!

"Elon..." I hear my voice murmur, my own tone full of fear.

"He's fine," The woman assures once more, the sound of many people leaving me filling my dampened senses.

"Is she okay? What's going on?" Another, this time extremely familiar voice joins the rest of the chaos, his tone laced with such urgency and fear, my muddled brain sorts it as... Desperation?

"Mr. Musk, you need to step away from the chamber. She'll be out in a few moments, then we can asses her situation from there."

"But, wait-"

The voices all fade away as the clang of a heavy door being shut rattles through me.

I'm alone.

At this point, I'm so confused and overwhelmed, I just want to break down and cry.

Like a lost child.

I just want my senses back!

As I sit there in utter silence, a sudden hissing sound fills my ears, accompanied by a few quiet beeps and other mechanical sounds.

The fog begins to lift.

Groggy, my eyes slowly open as I take in my surroundings.

I'm sitting in a tube like room.

White, rounded walls, a few benches, a table.

Everything is blurry, but hey, at least I can see now.

Are those windows?

I lift my head weakly, turning towards the closest porthole like window, searching for someone on the other side.

However, to my surprise, someone is already looking in at me.

"Elon!" I gasp in genuine surprise as I slowly raise my hand to wave, only to fail miserably.

His expression goes almost instantly from one of concern, with his brow creased and jaw clenched, to one of pure relief and happiness, his eyes lighting up in a way I've never seen before.

Suddenly, another, longer beep sounds around me and the next thing I know, the door at the far end is being pushed open.

"Excuse me, excuse me," I hear Elon's stern voice rise above the other clamor outside.

I can't help but smile.

"Laura!" He bursts, ducking through the doorway and rushing towards my slumped and exhausted figure, wearing his oh so brilliant grin.

"E..." I murmur as he hastily sits down on the bench beside me, un-doing the seat belt around my waist as he does so.

"You're okay..." He breathes, wrapping my shaking form in an embrace, his chin resting against the top of my head. "You're okay."

He sounds like he's trying to reassure himself more than me...

"Yeah..." I murmur, burying my face into his chest, not caring what anyone on the outside looking in might think in this moment. "I'm okay..."

The man holding me in his arms sighs heavily, his hand on my lower back rubbing soft, comforting circles.

We stay there for awhile, lost in our own little worlds before reality comes crashing down on us.

"Ahem." Another unfamiliar voice sounds from the doorway to the small, tube-like room, pulling the both of us from our thoughts instantly.

Surprised, I begin to pull away from Elon's strong grasp, though he doesn't really let go...

I just twist myself away from his chest.

Make it look less... I dunno... Obvious?

"Sorry if I was interrupting something," The man in the doorway smiles smally, emphasizing the word 'interrupting' in a suggestive manner.

I feel my face almost instantly begin to heat up.

"It's quite alright." Elon replies, his grip still fairly firm around me as the older man joins us in the tube, sitting across from us silently. "And you would be?"

"I'm the NBL Supervisor," The man replies, his gaze skimming from my Partner over to me. "I am extremely sorry you had to experience what you did today, Ms. Thompson."

I sigh heavily, a sudden lump forming in my throat as I snuggle even closer to the warm side of the man beside me.

"It's..." I start, Elon's grip around me tightening slightly, almost as a squeeze of reassurance. "It's okay. I'm okay. He's okay. Everyone else is okay. That's all that matters."

At this, the Supervisor slowly nods as if thinking things over.

"You both are free to go. Get some rest, catch up with family and friends... The afternoon is yours." He grins, eyeing both of us evenly. "I would say you both did a superb job down there this afternoon, even with only one screw gun for the last little bit."

I chuckle lightly.

"Yeah, it just sorta drifted away."

The man in front of us also laughs before continuing, his tone more serious.

"Now, are you okay, Ms. Thompson, to continue on by yourself? I can easily get someone else to help-"

My Partner cuts him off.

"I've got her. She'll be fine with me."

The Supervisor turns to me.

"And I assume you're fine with that, then?"

I nod silently, a feeling of familiar warmth spreading throughout my entire being.

He's being protective!

"Alrighty then. Have a great afternoon, Mr. Musk, Ms. Thompson." The older man nods, leaving us alone in the tube once more, the commotion outside from earlier no longer evident.

"Well?" I murmur, leaning against Elon's chest once more, looking up at him. "That was that."

He chuckles.

"It certainly was."

Again, we sit there in silence, cherishing the quietness and the simplicity of each other's presence.

"We should probably head out." I yawn, stretching slightly as I pull away, making my way to my feet.

But, he stops me.

"Go easy, Love." He murmurs, standing in front of me before pulling me gently from my seat. "We'll take it one step at a time, okay?"

I nod.

"Okay."

One step, two steps...

Five steps...

The chamber they'd shoved me in before is in our wake now, but my body is feeling the effects of my blackout earlier.

Maybe I got a little bit of the Bends mixed in?

"I give up," I sigh, once more leaning against my Flight Partner for full support.

"Well, we've got a ways to go yet."

"Just carry me," I suggest, my tone a playful whisper.

Our gazes meet and he simply smirks, disbelief written across his features.

"Seriously?"

I pout.

"I'm not that heavy!"

Elon sighs, carefully scooping me up, bridal style, and we quickly leave the entire pool behind.

However, as we round the corner down the hallway towards the change rooms, a familiar figure catches my eye from my view over his shoulder.

Same white jumpsuit, that dark brown hair tied back into a bun...

I go numb.

She's still here.

She waited around the entire time.

Waiting.

Jessica did my final suit check.

And, I just nearly drowned because of a faulty seal.

She wouldn't try to end me!

Over a simple disagreement?

My fearful side says otherwise.

She had that gleam in her eyes!

Jessica is crazy!

And I mean it!

"How are you feeling now?" Elon's warm voice pulls me back to reality as we enter the large change room.

"Okay, I guess..." I trail off as he gently lowers me onto the bench before taking a seat by my side once again.

"That doesn't sound reassuring, Sweetheart." He murmurs inching closer to me. "You can talk to me."

"I know..." I reply, breath hitching in my throat as I realize just how close he had managed to get all of a sudden.

Our gazes meet.

Our faces basically inches apart.

My own gaze begins to dart from his captivating eyes to his lips, and then back again.

He's doing the same.

"I'm so relieved you're okay." Elon breathes before swiftly closing the gap between us, attacking my lips with such emotion, I nearly yelp in surprise.

Almost instantly, he deepens the kiss, his large, calloused hands gently cupping my cheeks.

Everything about the moment is absolutely intoxicating.

The faint smell of his cologne, added by the crisp clean aroma of the EMU suit's Nitrox hanging off of both of us...

Finally, he backs away, leaving me gasping for air.

"Sheesh," I laugh, regaining my breath as Elon simply smirks from across from me. "Someone was worried about me, huh?"

He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly.

"I guess you could say that..." He smiles softly before taking my hands in his, changing the subject. "Something's still bothering you, I can see it."

I nod slowly, grimacing.

"Yeah, you're right." I admit, my gaze falling from his.

Without a word, he softly pulls me closer, wrapping my frame once more in his strong arms.

"Go on," He urges quietly, "I'm listening."

"It's Jessica Morrison. Vivian's instructor."

"The Geologist and Communications Lead?"

"Yes. That Jessica. Anyways, yesterday, when you and I split up to check on the other two, her and I sort of got into... let's call it a kerfuffle of sorts..."

I feel his entire form stiffen.

"What type of so called, 'kerfuffle?'" My boyfriend inquires as I nuzzle closer against him.

"Oh, one where she pinned me against a lab table and threatened me."

"She threatened you?!"

"It's not like it was anything major... But after today's brush with death..."

"What did she have to do with your incident?"

"She did my final suit check, E." I explain, gazing up at him. "And then, as we left the NBL, she was still there... It's almost like she was waiting to see how her plan played out or something sick and twisted like that..."

"Huh," Elon hums, his thoughts sweeping him away momentarily. "Can you get me her info?"

"Why do you want her info?" I ask, our gazes still locked.

"If she's threatening you, that's enough reason for me to track her down." He insists, gaze ignited in a sudden anger.

"Well... what do you plan to do once I give her info to you?"

"It's not like I'd do too much. Just take the incident right to the top of NASA. Likely get her fired."

I can't help but frown.

"I don't really think that's necessary..."

"For all we know, she's the reason you nearly died!" Elon argues, siding with my head's logical side.

"Sure, but it also could've been an honest suit failure! It's happened before!"

He shakes his head, anger slowly subsiding.

"Why else would this Jessica have had reason to be in the NBL? She should be with Vivian running labs and such!"

"You're right." I sigh heavily. "But please... don't do anything just yet."

"One more incident. Then I'm going straight to the Administrator." He states firmly, a slightly humorous tone to his voice.

"I doubt Mr. Administrator would want anything to do with a meager employee." I chuckle, pulling away from my Partner's grasp, grabbing my pile of clothes and boots as I head towards the bathrooms.

"I'll take it to the head of employment, then. I'll make your case known, I can promise you that!" His voice follows after me as I slip into the bathroom stall, shedding my cooling suit and donning my much more comfortable Flightsuit.

"I don't doubt you would," I holler shoving my feet into my boots and tying them up. "And I appreciate that."

"Good," Elon's voice states from the main area, accompanied by the sound of his own cooling suit being tossed aside.

"I take it you're good out there, now?"

"Yep."

Smiling broadly, I grab his cooling suit off the bench and hang them back up where they belong before tackling him in a hug.

"Thank you..." I sigh contentedly, listening to his heartbeat against his chest. "For being there for me... I've never had anyone care for me like you've been - well, maybe except my Mother, but you know what I mean..."

He smiles, a genuinely happy, heartfelt smile as he pulls me closer, a hand gently running through my hair.

"Speaking of care," He starts, his voice lower than a whisper. "Why don't we head back to our Quarters, get cleaned up and meet in the common area by 9:00?"

I raise an eyebrow questioningly, surprise and excitement running through me.

"It sounds like you have something planned for this evening, do you?"

Elon laughs lightly, his trademark smirk falling perfectly onto his features.

"Quite possibly, but you'll have to wait and see, Sweetheart."

I groan inwardly.

"You're a real pain, you know that?" I tease as we leave the change room behind.

Our cadences quickly sync up, as per usual.

"You know you love me," He teases back as we walk through the lobby, nodding at the lone security guard on our way past.

"Oh, don't I ever," I agree, with a laugh. "But I'd love you even more if you told me what we're doing tonight for our first date."

"That's what you're considering it?" Elon muses aloud, a satisfied tone to his voice.

"What else would it be?"

"True, true."

We come to a halt outside the Crew Quarter's building, gazes meeting once again for what seems to be the thousandth time today.

"Nine-pm, common area. Be sure to wear something nice," My boyfriend grins, sending my heart into a tizzy.

"Sure thing," I nod, returning his expression with equal enthusiasm.

"Well," Elon mutters, chuckling lightly to himself as he kicks a loose stone from the sidewalk, his gaze suddenly darting every which way. "I'll see you later then."

"One-hundred percent."

He turns on his heel, heading in the direction of the JSC Complex's main gate.

"Where are you off to?" I shout after him, confusion settling within me as I quickly follow.

He stops in his tracks, turning once more to flash his trademark smirk towards me.

"That's none of your business, Sweetheart!" He chuckles, turning once more to leave as I continue to follow his trail.

"And don't even think of following me!"

Now it's my turn to stop in my tracks as I smile, watching his tall figure round the corner out of my view.

I wonder what he's up to...

Shrugging, I head back towards my Quarters, feeling more lighthearted than I have been in quite awhile.

No thoughts about threats, possible spaceflight emergency scenarios...

Just sheer giddiness at the thought of what tonight may hold.

It's like I'm a teenager all over again.

I chuckle at that thought.

Time for a nice long, hot shower...

Then, I've gotta find something 'nice', apparently.

I can't believe this is all happening.