Chapter II - Looking forward

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William Steiner kept walking despite the heavy rain; he even slowed down his pace, like he meant to get completely soaked.
But that wasn't quite true.
He just couldn't help it but to refrain himself and admire what was destined to become his home for the next 18 months.

Now standing still, hands in his pockets, already unaware of the rain pouring down on him. The perfect subject of a black-and-white picture if only there was somebody to take a snapshot; it would be considered a classic.
A flash briefly illuminated William's surroundings, making him turn around, surprised. He smiled.
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-"I knew where you were headed! You just couldn't resist, could you?" - Rick Shepperd cried, trying to keep his voice above the wind and rain.
-"Yeah, and you were casually passing by in the neighbourhood!" - the other man replied with a laugh.
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Still holding a camera in his left hand, Rick pulled the photo that just had been revealed.
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-"Hey, this one is a classic!" - he handed the squared piece to the improvised model.
-"A classic should be black-and-white, not color." - joked him, although feeling good on how well he himself looked in the picture.
-"You're just envious of my new camera, Bill!" - unable to hide the smile of a proud owner, Rick was showing off.
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Acting like he knew nothing about the revival of instamatic cameras, William read the name on it.

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-"Say... the Polaroid TimeZero ZX150... Are you going on vacation or something?"
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Both men laughed feeling amused. But after that, silence imposed itself, right before the notion of wind and rain overcame everything, even their thoughts. They were now looking the same direction, and a respectful admiration could be devised in their expressions.
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-"Are you worried?" - Rick asked - "About the weather, I mean."
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William moved aside, standing as he was in the picture previously taken. He knew his friend was avoiding any mention to each own personal fears, whatever those fears were anyway. Every man has his demons to be confronted with, and sooner or later in life they'll pay a visit.
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-"No, not worried. Latest reports confirm what we knew before. It should rain until tomorrow morning, but after that... no strong winds, sunshine all the way."
And after a brief pause, continued:
-"What about you, Rick, are you worried?"
-"No, Sir!" - instinctively changing his posture to an all-military style, thus denouncing some level of anxiety, which made him feel a bit embarrassed - "I'm looking forward to it." - he reinforced.
-"Good." - a sympathetic William smiled again - "Let's go back before your pretty camera gets ruined under all this rain."
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The two men walked side by side under a slightly weaker rain. Each step closer to shelter left further away the massive Solaris IV rocket standing proud on its launchpad.
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