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She'd never dream of telling Thena, but she's kind of afraid of the Space Center. Not even because of Ms. Aura, either! Well, not just because of Ms. Aura. It's more like she's afraid of space itself. The night sky always feels so cold, and it's so hard to wrap her head around the idea of all that nothingness. Plus, Petey in her class last year told her that the sky is full of ghosts, and even though Grandmother and Thena both tried to explain it, Juniper can't quite shake the notion.
The Space Center, when she lets her imagination run away with it, is like a shrine to all those ghosts. And that shouldn’t be scary, because she’s not afraid of the spirits Grandmother says are on the mountain. Maybe it’s because they’re closer. Maybe it’s because she knows all their names or because they live on the mountain, too. It’s almost like she knows them, like they’re old friends she’s never met.
Thena and Simon try to tell her the stars’ names, sometimes, but they always sound strange in her ears, and she struggles to see the shapes of the constellations they point out. It doesn’t help that lying on her back in the planetarium makes her uncomfortable, that shivery feeling of someone watching her from somewhere out of sight.
But it makes Thena happy to talk about the things she knows (even if sometimes she has to double-check with Simon before she’s really sure), and Juniper’s never had a friend like Thena before. She’s smart and kind and she actually likes spending time with Juniper and she doesn’t mind that Juniper tells stories the other kids think are weird or that she doesn't like playing a lot of the most popular games.
So it’s worth it to spend a couple of hours every week repeating after Thena and promising she’ll try to remember how to find Orion or whichever constellation Thena’s talking about today. She probably won’t remember, but she’ll remember the way Thena beams at her when she promises to try and the patient way she’ll forgive her and tell her again the next time they meet.
— — — —
Junie is so brave. Athena can tell that she's wary about some of the exhibits in the Space Center, but she always comes anyway when Athena invites her.
Athena can’t even commit to a single camping trip. The idea of sleeping outside is terrifying, even if it means getting to see the stars from up on the mountain. And Junie does it all the time! Just sets up a tent and falls asleep out where she can hear the wind in the trees and the rustling of animals wandering around and who knows what else.
But it’s Junie’s birthday, and Junie does so much for her. She sits with Athena when everything gets too loud, just sits and waits and doesn’t pressure her. She doesn’t mind that the only places Athena wants to hang out are the ones she knows well. She never pushes to go to the park, or the movies, or the arcade, or even the ice cream shop. Athena feels selfish, sometimes, because there must be things Junie wants.
But now that Junie is finally asking for something, Athena’s just not sure she can go through with it.
“Like…outside-outside?” she asks again, just to check.
“In a tent like the one I showed you in my photo album,” Junie replies, probably for at least the third time. She doesn’t even sound a little bit frustrated.
“And you’re sure it’s safe?”
“Thena, I promise I wouldn’t take you anywhere unsafe,” Junie says, holding out her pinky.
Last night, Mom said she had to decide by today so she could plan for the weekend. Simon said that she would never grow up if she didn’t try new things. Aura said it would be OK to say no, but that Junie would probably be really excited if she said yes.
Athena still doesn’t feel sure, but she links her pinky with Junie’s and nods. “OK. And we can go inside if it’s too scary?”
“Of course! Oh, Thena, it’s gonna be so much fun,” Junie assures her, smile as big as Athena’s ever seen, and she knows she made the right choice.
— —
Setting up the tent looks like fun, almost like helping Aura build models of her new designs, but Junie’s grandmother and one of their neighbors are the ones doing the work. They don’t seem to be having fun, and Athena doesn’t know how to help, so she just stays back, trying not to think about the creepy feeling of the grass grazing her ankles.
Junie must be able to see that she’s uncomfortable, because she leads her away from the tent and toward the woods.
Athena stops as soon as they’re under the canopy of the trees. “Are there wolves? Like in the song Aura sings?”
Junie frowns. “Thena, I made you a promise, right?”
“Right. It’s safe. Um, what are we looking for?” Her feet don’t want to move, but Junie’s already a few feet ahead of her, and she wants to be left behind even less.
“I want to show you the creek, remember? And…maybe we’ll find something cool,” Junie finishes slowly, sounding weirdly shy, even for her.
Athena figures it just means she doesn’t really know what they’re looking for. The only thing Athena is looking for, personally, is the path. If she doesn’t leave the path, she can’t get lost. Just like inside the Space Center.
Junie steps off the path, pushing her way through a patch of brush and not minding at all when the branches snag on her skirt.
Athena takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly, the way Simon showed her. She looks back at the path, clear and safe and familiar, and then back up at Junie, who’s smiling and waiting patiently, her hand held out to help Athena climb the slight incline ahead of her.
Athena reaches for it, because if she’s going to take some of Simon’s advice, she might as well take all of it. There’s nobody she’d rather grow up with than Junie.