I don't own any of the characters or the Lunar Chronicles series. All characters belong to Marissa Meyer.
Four-year-old Carswell Thorne jumps out of the hover, dashes to the door, and knocks enthusiastically. His mother comes up behind him and firmly places her hand on his shoulder.
Carswell, be patient! Her words sting, and he tells himself to knock twice and wait next time. After all, he yearns to impress his parents, even at the age of four. His father opens the door.
Dad, look at what I drew! He stands on his toes and shoves the picture into his father's face.
His father remains unimpressed, and dismisses him with a curt nod and a fake smile. That's nice, son. Why don't you go in and wash your hands?
All Carswell wants is to be like his father, Captain Kingsley Thorne. He wants to own a ship and fly over the world and help people. He wants to be a hero.
Carswell runs around the playground, searching for his playmates. He surveys the structure, quickly finding one boy underneath the slide. He makes a beeline for the child, tripping and falling in his haste.
The children crowd around him, all peering over their shoulders in an attempt to catch a glimpse of his banged-up knee. He closes his eyes, trying to hold back the tears. He's a second-grader now, and he has to be strong. What would his dad say if he saw him crying?
The boy he had been chasing earlier volunteers to escort him to the nurse, where Carswell sits down in a chair and winces as the nurse cleans up his knee.
He knows that when his mother picks him up from school, she'll be concerned about him, and he'll finally get the attention he craves. But that never happens, and all he receives is an admonishment for being clumsy. He knows better than to object.
His reading comprehension test comes back with a red 'F' stamped on the front. His parents are furious.
You're in sixth grade, Carswell, they say. We know you can do better than this. Their disappointed looks don't make it any easier.
It's not that he doesn't understand the questions. He really does. But when he reads, the words get all mixed up, and he always runs out of time before he can finish. He tries as hard as he can, but when he makes an effort to read faster, the words jumble up even more.
It's not his fault. He tries to tell them this, but they just don't understand.
He's seventeen when he decides to join the military, to make something of himself. He likes it, with its showy uniforms and straightforward attitude. The officers call him by his last name. Thorne. It sticks to him. Simple, unusual. Nothing like what his parents would prefer.
There's not much reading in the military, and if there is, he has a partner to help him figure it out. Sometimes, even a whole crew.
He wonders if his parents would be proud of him. Probably not.
The stars surround him, and he's glad he can't see Earth. Next to him, Cress asks him about his family. He smiles sadly. Normally, he'd be tired of telling the story, but he'd do anything for Cress.
On the west coast, in Los Angeles. That's where I lived.
Cress points to the bottom of the continent, finishing for him. That's Houston, where you joined the military.
He's still thinking about Los Angeles. Yeah. I wanted to make my parents proud.
His darling Cress has all the optimism in the world when she speaks. I'm sure they'll be proud when they hear that you helped save Earth.
He chuckles, but there's no humor in it. Yeah, every parent wants a wanted criminal as a child.
For a moment, Cress can see the real Carswell Thorne.
When they meet his parents, they don't like her.
She's lunar, they say disapprovingly, stuck to their old-fashioned ways.
She's Cress. And she's perfect, he shoots back. And then he walks away, because he doesn't care anymore. He's already got all the love he needs.
