Beeping, thundering, shaking. The rocket was in chaos.

Jamie hurriedly clicked buttons on the panel in front of her, trying to counteract the warnings blinking back at her. The rocket they were in was taking hits that it wouldn't be able to manage without the astronauts help. But, the damage wasn't slowing, and they were only prolonging what life it had left.

The situation was drastic and Jamie knew they had a slim chance of making it; but she had to. She was going to do all she could to see this mission through, for her, or else everything that brought her to this moment was for naught, and that wasn't an option.

"Captain we need to change course!" Jamie shouted over the screeching alarms and her pounding heart that had placed itself beside her eardrums. If it weren't for the audio connection between their space helmets she wouldn't have had any hope that she was heard as she was having a difficult time even hearing herself.

But perhaps those worries were warranted. There was no response.

The captain sat frozen in disbelief, while most things wouldn't have shaken him, this did. Quickly becoming a deer in headlights, an instance that he would say was brought on by an inability to adapt; a fatal flaw that destroyed many, and would destroy everyone if he didn't snap out of it.

"Captain!" Jamie shouted again, fear creeping in. The situation would only become worse if they truly couldn't communicate. Met with no response in the short time she called out, she could feel herself start to panic, even though that too would only lesson their chances of survival. "Captain!" Still nothing. Jamie turned to face her captain, to ease her stress. She could try to read his lips if she really needed to, it would be better than nothing at all. But she saw him still and unmoving. "We need to get out of here!" She yelled, trying to snap him out of it.

The ship shook violently as another bang sounded off, the power flickering. "Captain, the ship can't keep getting hit like this." Marcus the engineer yelled from behind. "The engine is at risk of going out, then we'll all be dead in the water."

Jamie's eyes widened a little. She could hear him. It may have been a small thing, but it gave her much needed relief.

Another loud bang rang through Jamie's ears before the ship shook more violently. Metal crashed against metal, finally snapping the captain out of his trance. As the ship continued to rattle the three crew mates felt that the ship was going to fall apart at any moment.

"Change the ship's course by 50 degrees." The captain hurriedly said, hoping that he could get his crew out of the mess they were in.

Jamie clicked a configuration of buttons on the panel and could feel the ship adjust slowly. But she wasn't certain it would be enough to get away. No, she knew it wouldn't be enough. They were already sitting ducks, and a good hunter wouldn't wait for their pray to run off.

"Danials strap down, I'm going to put the rocket to her limits!" The captain yelled back at Marcus, who was tending to the ruptures that had been made in the ship. Marcus quickly sat down and looped the seats straps around his arms. He knew there wouldn't be enough time for a proper strap in, so it would have to be enough.

The captain pulled the lever almost immediately, he knew they didn't have a lot of time. As the ship flew forward, Jamie could feel the dread lift off her. Maybe they would survive this. Maybe they would all make it back to Earth.

But those hopeful feelings quickly faded when her stomach turned and her mind shut off.

"Mom." Jamie's sweet daughter Sunny said as she poked her mother's cheek in hopes that she would wake up. But her cheerful greeting wasn't met with a smile. Instead Jamie shot out of her dream faster than the rocket she was just strapped in. Her heart still pounding and her breathing heavy.

Jamie looked at her daughter - wide brown eyes and messy hair that looked half brushed -, at first confused. How was she here?

A beam of sunshine warmed Jamie's face and blinded her eyes, drawing her attention to the window. Wasn't she just in a spaceship? She looked around her room, it wasn't as she had left it. It was clean and organized, when there should have been an opened box with papers scattered around the room, or at the very least some dirty clothes on the floor. But there wasn't and it was weird.

"Are you okay mommy? Did you have a bad dream?" Sunny looked at her mother with concern.

Jamie looked back at her daughter, and her heart skipped. Taking a fist full of her cover, she could feel the warmth on her hand. As she realized, tears started to well up in her eyes, and her delight took over any confusion that was still there. "You startled me." She said with a smile as she grabbed her daughter and held her close. A waterfall of relief continued to fall, as it more deeply settled in that it was was all just a nightmare, a very detailed nightmare.

"Mom, your crushing me." Sunny giggled and squirmed.

"Sorry sweetie." Jamie told her daughter gently as she eased her grip. It was almost surreal to have her in her arms and she didn't want to let her go.

Jamie gave her a final squeeze, and kissed the top of her head. It was like a field of begonias and lavender lived in her hair, instead of the normal aloe smell she was used to smelling. But then again, her father could have changed it.

"Okay, okay." Jamie said releasing her grip, looking down at her daughter that was grinning back up at her. "Are we doing anything special today?" Sunny asked sweetly.

Jamie closed her eyes, thinking about what they could do. "I don't see why I can't figure something out. But first, does my darling daughter want some pancakes?" She needed some time to figure out something to do, but for some reason which day it was escaped her, so she couldn't remember if she had plans in motion already.

"Pancakes, pancakes." Sunny squealed as she jumped off the bed and ran out of the room.

Jamie quietly laughed as she heard hangers and shoes tumble to the ground. She knew she had better hurry, because her daughter didn't seem to be in a patient mood; but what five year old was.

Jamie flipped the blankets away and slid off the bed. Even though she couldn't remember the date, she knew that she was going to have to leave for space soon. She had been preparing for the mission for so long that it was ingrained into her. The anxiety that came from preparing for it was probably why she had that nightmare.

There was a lot of weight on the mission succeeding and Jamie would make sure it did. At least she was going to.

The nightmare had brought up doubts, and now she wondered if she really needed to go to make that happen.

Jamie spat the toothpaste into the sink as she grappled with her thoughts. It was a lot to think about, but one thought in particular made her gut squeeze tight, and it was almost enough for her to quit all together.

She couldn't miss Sunny grow up.

She looked at her cellphone as her fingers floated over the dial button. Hesitating. Could she really leave? Would it be okay if she did? Others could do what she could, she wasn't essential to the mission. It would take time for them to bring her replacement up to speed, but it wouldn't take a lot. Maybe a few months if they trained everyday.

Her stomach squeezed harder as she put her phone in her back pocket. quitting wouldn't be as simple as she had hoped it would be. So, she would really have to think about it.

Jamie quickly brushed her fingers through her short hair until she thought she looked presentable. It wouldn't be long tell Sunny's thundering feet boomed back up the hall. As that thought left her mind Sunny did just that.

Bursting into the room, Sunny ran up to her mother with a huge smile. "Hurry mom, put this on." She said quickly as she handed Jamie's jacket to her. With how hyper Sunny was, Jamie was surprised that she didn't throw it at her.

"Okay, okay." Jamie smiled as she put her jacket on. Even though her future was uncertain, she resolved at that moment that they were going to have some fun.

They quickly left their small home and headed down the street towards the pancake house. While a ride down in the car would have been faster, it lacked the ease and peace that a walk could bring, and the pancake house didn't have accessible parking, which ultimately had made the decision for the two of them to walk down when they first started the tradition.

But, as they walked down the sidewalk that morning, Jamie couldn't help but feel uneasy. Even though the sun was shining and the birds were singing, something felt off. She looked around to see if she could place it, but everything seemed normal to her. She looked at Sunny who was cheerfully hopping across the cracks in the sidewalk. Something she used to do as a kid, back when things were simple. Jamie couldn't help but smile a little when she saw the carefree grin  on Sunny's face.

But Jamie truthfully didn't share in the feeling. Her stomach started to squish together again, and an undertone of guilt floated to the surface. But she didn't understand why. Maybe it was because this use to be a tradition between the three of them. She could practically see the image play out in front of her. But she didn't think that was it. She may have felt guilty about it, but that wouldn't make her heart beat slow as it was doing right that moment.

The roaring of a cars engine brought her eyes to the road as she watched the vehicle glide ahead of them. It was hardly going forty, but she swore that she heard the engine screaming. Her stomach started to squeeze even more, and it felt like she would soon throw up. "Why don't you walk over here sweetie." Jamie said, creating more distance between the car and her daughter, trying to make herself feel more at ease.

"Okay." Sunny said, hopping closer to the small businesses that were starting to dot the area. It was still too early for most of these stores to be open; red closed signs shone out of the establishments for everyone to see. So it wouldn't be a problem walking so close to the doors.

But the small separation didn't seem to give the peace Jamie was hoping for. While the puking sensation had passed, she couldn't but feel that something bad would happen. So, as the cars continued to pass them by, she could only feel her feet move faster.

Sunny stopped hopping along and ran up to catch up to Jamie, slipping her hand into her mothers. "You must be really hungry." She said, trying to match her mother's pace.

"Oh," Jamie slowed down and looked at her daughter. "I just wanted to make sure that we got there before everyone else." She lied, forcing herself to slow down. There wasn't any need to panic. She smiled. "I want to make sure we get the best pancakes. But I think I was going too fast." She told her daughter.

Sunny shook her head. "I can be fast too mommy." She said, pulling Jamie forward.

Jamie let out a little laugh, wanting to make the situation lighter. "Okay." She said, picking up her pace again, eager to get off the road. "But you let me know if I need to slow down."

"Okay." She said happily, going as fast as her legs would take her. Eager to be the one leading the charge.