9 FRESH MEAT

9 FRESH MEAT Lunar day 188 Dinnertime My parents sprang me for dinner. They had been so busy with their various duties that day that it wasn't till evening that they heard I'd been grounded. Once they did, they were livid at Nina. First, everyone who'd witnessed the raw-egg incident had made it clear that Patton Sjoberg was as much to blame as me—if not more. And neither Mom nor Dad felt it was Nina's right to ground me. So come dinnertime I was seated in the mess with

everyone else. Normally I would consider dining at MBA to be as big a punishment as being grounded, but since fresh food had arrived that day, I was actually excited to eat for once. Everyone else was too. Most nights the Moonies dribble in at random times to scarf something down as quickly as possible. (It's the general theory at MBA that the faster you eat your freeze-dried crud, the less chance you have of actually tasting it.) But tonight the mess was full, everyone gathered together and eager for their meal. On a normal night we all prepare our own food. (Even Violet can work the rehydrator, so long as she doesn't stick chewing gum in it.) But the fresh food took a bit more care. So Nina, Chang, and Mr. Grisan had the honor of prepping it while the rest of us waited. It was too crowded for my family to have a table to ourselves; Kira's father and Daphne Merritt sat with us. Kira was the only person at MBA who hadn't shown up for dinner. "Where's your daughter?" Violet asked Dr. Howard bluntly. "Hmm?" asked Dr. Howard, who'd been staring off into space. He looked around and seemed to notice for the first time that Kira was missing.

However, he didn't seem concerned about this. "Oh, she's off exploring her new home, I suppose." "That shouldn't take long," I muttered. "This place isn't big." "That's one of the things I like about it," Daphne said cheerfully. Other than Violet, Daphne is the only person who seems continually thrilled to be at the moon base. Unlike Violet, though, Daphne is fully aware of all the base's faults; she simply doesn't care. "It's cozy here, don't you think? Much nicer than a big, empty moon base." "Yeah!" Violet said. "I like it here too!" No one else seconded the thought. I wondered if Kira was off trying to hack the computer somewhere. This was probably the best chance she'd have. With everyone in the mess, she had the rest of MBA to herself. Across the room I caught sight of Zan, sitting at a table with some of the other temps who'd come in that day: two solar-panel contractors and a woman who I hadn't been introduced to yet. While the others chatted, Zan caught my eye and gave me a quick wink, letting me know we were still in this together. Dad turned to Dr. Howard. "You ought to track

Kira down. There won't be another meal like this for a while. She really shouldn't miss it." He pointed toward the kitchen, where Nina, Chang, and Mr. Grisan were busily preparing dinner: actual, honestto- goodness hamburgers. They couldn't grill the burgers at MBA, of course. We can't have any open flames, as they'd suck up all our precious oxygen. And if the base catches fire, there isn't anywhere else for us to go. So the burgers were all cooked back in Houston (where they really know their grilling) and then vacuum-sealed in plastic sheets. These look weird, like huge meaty button candies, but the plastic preserves the flavor amazingly well. Now our chefs were microwaving the burgers as quickly as they could—and serving them up with sides of relatively fresh carrots, pickles, and coleslaw. The Sjobergs had selfishly demanded to be served first, even before the kids. They'd just received their dinner, and the smell of cooked meat was intoxicating. My mouth was watering so much I was worried I'd drool on the table. Virtually everyone else in the mess was equally mesmerized, eagerly waiting the moment when they'd get their food. Dr. Howard, however, had

already checked out mentally again. "Hmm?" he asked once more. "Kira? Oh, I think she's a vegetarian." "You're not sure?" Mom asked, surprised. Dr. Howard shook his head, smiling vacantly. "Who can keep track of what a twelve-year-old girl likes and doesn't like?" There was a soft ping and then my smartwatch displayed a text. It was from Eliza Bock: How's your new girlfriend? "Dash, no messaging at dinner," Mom said. "I know." I didn't feel like responding to Eliza anyhow. I pretended to turn my watch off, while actually setting it to silent mode. I glanced toward the Sjobergs, my stomach grumbling. The entire family was making a disgusting show of enjoying their food, groaning with delight at each bite and smacking their lips. "This is absolutely exquisite!" Sonja announced. Her lips, which had been overinflated by a plastic surgeon back on earth, were now painted red with barbecue sauce, making her look like a tropical fish. Lars Sjoberg and his children only grunted in response, not even lifting their heads from their plates.

A microwave dinged. Everyone else in the mess turned toward it expectantly, like dogs who'd seen a squirrel. Now that the Sjobergs had claimed their burgers, the base children got priority on the next round. Mr. Grisan set the burgers and slaw out on plates, and then Nina and Chang delivered the goods. Nina brought two plates to our table, acting nice and friendly, as though she hadn't spent the entire day chastising me. "Here you go!" she announced to Violet and me. "Enjoy!" She took a step away, then looked back and asked, "By the way, Dash, have you done your video log yet?" I'd forgotten all about it, but I stayed calm and lied convincingly. "I'm still working on it. I'm taking my time to give you exactly what you asked for." Nina's eyes narrowed briefly, like she knew I was lying and wanted to bust me, but then she smiled and said, "Thanks. I'm looking forward to seeing it." As annoyed as I was with Nina, I still could have hugged her for bringing me that burger. I'd never seen anything as delicious in my life. My salivary glands immediately went into overdrive. Mom, still angry at Nina herself, glared after the base commander as she headed back to get more