March 14th, 1990 — Cape Canaveral, FL
11:21 AM, EST

"Shelby, might we have a word, please?"

Shelby had been working diligently in her lab, Black Sabbath playing loudly through the portable stereo she had hauled in from her office. The redhead looked up to see her boss standing in the door way. She turned off the tools she had been using and quieted the stereo, then flipped her safety glasses up onto her red hair, which had been haphazardly piled into a ponytail.

"Sure thing."

She had changed out of her blazer and dress pants, knowing full well that they were not good clothes to work on circuits with. Instead, she had donned a pair of jeans and a ratty MIT t-shirt that she was fairly certain she'd stolen from Robbo when they were dating in college. She wasn't sure who Joe was bringing her to meet with, but she hoped she wasn't underdressed for the occasion.

She knew that they had been finalizing the crew for the Tenacity launch, and her hopeful heart was racing in anticipation that this was it. This was the day they would tell her she was going to space.

"Who am I meeting with, Joe?" She questioned. She trusted him with her life. Joe Feldstein had quickly become Shelby's mentor in her time at NASA.

"Croft and Patrick." He replied. Kevin Croft and William Patrick were essentially the two most important men at NASA. Well, at that time they were, at least to Shelby. They were in charge of the Tenacity launch. Of course, neither man would be going up in the craft, and neither had lifted a single finger in the design of it, yet they were choosing the crew that would be launched into space.

Shelby simply nodded, then asked, "Do you know what it's about?"

Joe gave her a look, then said, "I think you know what it's about."

"Oh." She replied, twisting her hands behind her back in nervousness.

"Don't be nervous." He said, offering a smile. "You're a shoe in. If they don't see that, they're stupid."

"Careful, Dr. Feldstein." Shelby laughed. "Those are your bosses you're talking about."

Dr. Feldstein gave the girl a sly smile, as if indicating that he couldn't have cared less that he was making fun of his bosses.

They reached the conference room and Joe led the way inside. Shelby was nervous. She knew she was definitely qualified enough for the mission, if not the most qualified, so she shouldn't have been nervous. But, Shelby had her doubts.

"Dr. Feldstein, Miss Colewell, thank you for joining us." Dr. Croft announced as the two entered the room. Both he and Dr. Patrick stood, and Shelby shook both of their hands, glad she had at least washed them before leaving the lab.

"You'll have to excuse my appearance, I was in the lab—"

"Working, yes, Shelby." Dr. Patrick laughed. "If you don't get a little grimy once in a while, are you actually an engineer?"

The redhead grinned. "No, sir, I suppose not."

"Well, take a seat." Dr. Croft was the colder of the two men and didn't often see the point in humor or small talk. He was all business, all the time.

Shelby sat down across from the higher-ups, her hands wringing together in her lap.

"Shelby," Dr. Patrick began, "Let me begin this by saying that you are invaluable to NASA, and we are so glad to have you. I know you are an extremely beneficial asset to Dr. Feldstein and his team."

"Thank you, sir. This is where I've wanted to be my entire life." The redhead stated.

"Unfortunately, Miss Colewell," Dr. Croft cut in, "We just don't think you are the right person to go up with the Tenacity launch."

Not the right person?

Shelby glanced over at Dr. Feldstein, who looked just as shocked as Shelby felt. It was like she had been punched in the gut and thrown off a building.

"I'm sorry," Shelby chose her words carefully, knowing that how she handled this moment could be representative of every moment of her future with NASA. "Would you mind elaborating?"

"You just don't have the experience some of our other applicants do."

"Experience doesn't always make you the most qualified for a job." Dr. Feldstein interrupted. "Listen, Dr. Croft, Dr. Patrick, I put my recommendations in on who I wanted on that team. I'm going up there, and there is no one I would rather have by my side up there than Shelby."

"I'm sorry, Miss Colewell, but you're not going to be on the launch." Dr. Croft said. "You're fresh out of undergrad. You don't even-"

"I don't even have a doctorate?" Shelby finished with a laugh. "You're right, I don't, but that doesn't mean I haven't brought my A-game to this. I know I'm young, I know I'm not as educated at the others, but I'm a hard worker, I'm smart, and I'm working for that doctorate right this very moment. My life is this organization. I know Tenacity better than I know myself, Doctors. My entire heart, soul and brain have gone into that ship."

Dr. Croft glanced over at Dr. Patrick for a moment before responding. "Beyond experience, Miss Colewell, we just think that you would not be a good fit for the rest of the team. It wouldn't ... it wouldn't be a good unit. It wouldn't be good for you to be up there." Dr. Croft stated.

"What do you mean?" Shelby questioned, folding her arms over her chest. "If the team members are coming out of Dr. Feldstein's team, then I'd say we get along pretty damn great."

"Shelby," Dr. Patrick began, "It's just ... you will be up there for four weeks. That's ... that's a long time for those men to be up there. We can't send one female into space with all of those men. It wouldn't be safe for you."

Shelby smirked. "So that's it, then? I have the wrong genitals for the Tenacity launch?"

"Miss Colewell," Dr. Croft sternly interrupted. "Do not paint us as villains."

"But it's true, isn't it? If a man had my brain, my skill, my passion, my ambition ... I'd have been your first choice." Shelby said, her temper blazing.

"May I interrupt?" Dr. Feldstein asked, glancing over at Shelby. "Why are you so concerned with the way your male astronauts will behave in space?"

"Well, they're men, Dr. Feldstein. They have urges. Being up in space, with one woman ... it may be tempting for them to try and take advantage of Shelby." Dr. Croft explained.

Shelby laughed again. "Oh, I know you aren't saying that! I don't care what little faith you have in your male employees, Dr. Croft, but they all respect me as an equal here. All of them except you, apparently. I'm pretty sure I helped design that rocket, and I'll be damned if I don't go up with it."

Dr. Feldstein's face grew cold and his voice stern. "Dr. Croft, if you are concerned that any of the team members are going to act predatory towards Shelby, I believe that is a problem for them, not for her. They should not be going up then. In fact, I refuse to go up with any man that doesn't view Shelby with complete and utter respect, as an equal member of the team. In fact, I demand Shelby be on that flight."

Shelby shook her head. Despite the fact that she wanted to go up with Tenacity more than anything, she wouldn't pitch a fit, or ask Dr. Feldstein to beg on her behalf, to get on board. "No, Dr. Feldstein. It's fine. It's clear they don't want me on the flight." She nodded at the two men before standing and brushing off her clothes. "Thank you, Doctors. I must get back to work. I understand that you are concerned about my age and experience and, apparently, my well-being in space. I ask you to consider whether these implications mean anything in terms of whether or not I would be the best for the job up there. I am also not concerned about my safety, as all of my co-workers in Dr. Feldstein's cohort treat women with the utmost respect." The redhead forced a smile and shook both of the silent men's hands, then exited the room.

She clenched her jaw together in an attempt to prevent tears from streaming down her face. It was the worst heartbreak she had ever experienced, but she couldn't let it show that she was broken inside for fear of being judged as too emotional. Emotions were supposed to be a good thing, but not in a man's world.

As she reached the women's bathroom and was about to head inside for some privacy, she heard running footsteps behind her.

"Miss Colewell! Shelby!"

She turned around to see Dr. Patrick frantically making his way down the hallway. "I, as you know, am Dr. Croft's superior, and I must say, you've made a compelling case." The slightly overweight man took a deep breath before continuing. "I've made an executive decision, effective immediately. You, Miss Colewell, will be an astronaut. I'd love to send you to space."

April 20th, 1990 — New York, NY
7:18 PM, EST

"Anthony, didn't you say you had a friend that worked for NASA?"

Tony was getting ready for a date with a girl he'd met at a bar the week before when his mother had called him in from the living room. She was watching some national news special on a space launch that was going to be taking place the following year. NASA was sending another ship to the moon.

"Yeah, I do." Tony replied, straightening the tie that was around his neck. He sat down on the sofa next to his mom, knowing he had a few minutes before he had to leave.

Maria pointed at the TV. "The Tenacity, they're calling it." She said. "Going to the moon. Your friend Shelby, right? The redhead?"

"Here with us we have Ms. Shelby Colewell, an electrical engineer at NASA and recent MIT graduate that will be going up with Tenacity. Ms. Colewell will be the youngest woman, and youngest American, to go into space." The newscaster announced. "Miss Colewell, can you tell us a little more about the design process?"

And just like that, there she was. Shelby Colewell was in his living room, on his TV. She'd gotten her hair cut a little shorter, the auburn curls resting a little below her collarbone. She wore a white lab coat and a pair of old jeans, and he could see a black Guns N' Roses t-shirt hidden below it. Of course, she wasn't Shelby Colewell, circuits lab partner and best friend, she was Shelby Colewell, NASA engineer and future astronaut. Nevertheless, to Tony, the woman on the screen was the same old Shelby.

"Honey, don't you have to go pick up your date?" Mrs. Stark questioned. "What's the lucky girl's name?"

"Oh, yeah." Tony nodded, standing up again. "Um, Cassandra. Her name's Cassandra."

His mother nodded with a smile. "Well, have fun. This will be good for you. You're doing great, Tony. Working hard, getting along with your father. Going on dates." She smiled. "I'm so proud of you."

Tony smiled before placing a kiss on his mother's head. "Thanks, Mom. See you in the morning."