Good news I had more time to write so here is a bonus chapter.

Chapter 20

"Where are you taking me?"

"It's a surprise just go with it!"

Tin-Tin had been with Gordon since the beginning of the week and over that time it had become apparent that she was doing her best to put on a brave face. She was usually a bright soul but now she was too bright, her words and actions strained with almost forced quality at times. Then there were the lows, he noticed the little things like the downturn in her face when she thought she was alone and the absentmindedness when she gazed over her tea in the evenings. He knew it had something to do with the weekend she was away. She had been so excited before and now she could barely bring herself to talk about it, but it was obvious the events of that weekend were playing on her mind, leading him to one conclusion. She wasn't telling him because he'd been the one to upset her when he inadvertently ruined their weekend away. When he went missing, they would have been called back. His dad hadn't said anything and he hadn't really plucked up the courage to ask what had happened when they realised that he was missing. He'd tried calling Scott but his watch was engaged and he'd messaged John who hadn't replied. Gordon felt guilty, especially when she'd come to keep him company. Tin-Tin wasn't the type to tell you to your face that you'd upset her, she didn't like to cause a scene and shied from any form of confrontation. Gordon decided he wanted to make it up to her with a day out at somewhere he knew she'd always wanted to visit.

The yellow cab pulled up at their destination just as dusk was falling. Tin-tin stepped out of the cab her eyes alight with excitement as she looked across the expansive lawns at the large white building with tall windows and three domed roofs. The late summer evening light glowed like an orange halo behind her as she shut the car door with a thud. She was awestruck. Gordon tipped the driver before he drove away leaving them on the kerb. "Shall we?" He proffered his arm.

"I can't believe your taking me to the Griffith Observatory!" She practically skipped along beside him. She'd wanted to visit ever since Jeff had introduced her to the concept of space. She would often proof read for John and a lot of his early journals had been written from this very observatory. He spoke about his time here with such fondness and passion that she had been desperate to see it for herself.

They stole up the sweeping lawns and straight into the main entrance before Gordon indicated they should head straight on up to the promenade walkway. At the top of the stairs, he covered her eyes with his hands and led her across the narrow corridor to an empty section of balcony. When he'd got her into position, he removed his hand. "Open your eyes."

She gasped; taking a moment to scan the whole one hundred and eighty degrees. "Wow! ... You can see everything!" She scrabbled for her camera from her shoulder bag and started to take a panoramic image taking in downtown LA, a flat network of buildings in the heart of the basin that spread all the way out to the coast on the horizon. You could see for leagues and leagues - she couldn't get over it. Los Angeles after dark would be a sight to behold from up here. Gordon stood back for a minute just watching her, letting her appreciate the view. He was just happy he had been able to make her really smile again.

She turned on her heel beaming back at him. "So, is there a plan?" She fell into step beside him her smaller pace just keeping up next to him. He threaded hands with her again and leaned into her shoulder as they strolled around to look at the east terrace where more panoramic views of Los Angeles awaited.

"Well, I have tickets booked for the planetarium at 8.45pm and then it's the Star party tonight." His eyes glinted with barely contained excitement. Tin-tin noticed for the first time that several groups of people were assembling telescopes all over the lawns. She had heard about these parties where the observatory invited local telescope groups to set up on the lawn and share their knowledge and passion for observing the skies.

"Oh Gordon, this is wonderful thank you!"

"You're welcome! Might as well have fun while I'm grounded." He winked.

They spent the next hour trapsing the terraces taking in the sights of the famous Hollywood sign, it was a fine evening, they could even see the Wilson observatory. Once done on the roof terraces they meandered around the exhibits till Tin-tin found the one she wanted.

The words were stencilled on the wall in black italics with the images she knew so well emblazoned below under the title of Quasar systems. A Quasar is a highly luminous astronomical object, a type of active galactic nucleus found at the centre of galaxies in their infancy. The exhibit then moved on to the most recent Quasar systems found including "The Tracy quasar system, discovered by John Tracy 25th May 2066." Tin-tin's hands traced over the stencilled placard at waist height.

"Do you remember that day? He called in from Five and hung up on himself three times in excitement, between that and Brains stuttering even more in his eagerness at trying to verify it. I'm surprised John's discovery ever saw the light of day." He smiled fondly at the memory whilst Tin-Tin chimed with laughter.

"We should take a photo to message him."

"Alright." Gordon pulled out his phone to take a selfie of them pointing at the exhibit over enthusiastically. They remained posing as the flash flared before stepping away. He glanced at his watch, It was time for the show.

They poured into the planetarium, the ebb of the crowd carrying them along the foyer like an electrical current. As they filtered in, he helped Tin-Tin to find their seats by the dim blue LED lights on the steps and walkways. Once settled they waited for the show to begin. The dome loomed above them dark and empty. Tin-Tin settled into the leather recliner shivering with a mixture of anticipation and from the coolness of the leather against her bare legs and arms.

"I think I need to pinch myself."

His lips quirked in a lopsided grin. "I assure you its real. I knew you loved astronomy but your bordering John levels of nerdom."

Suddenly the speakers boomed as the narrator began. "Welcome to the Samuel Oschin Planetarium. Let us take you on a journey of discovery through the ages from the big bang to the shaping of our solar system and beyond!" Gordon winced in pain at the feedback, his ears rang. He knew he might have trouble with the booming of the speakers, he pulled his noise cancelling headphones out of his bag. Once in silence he relaxed, the pain subsiding to the usual dull ache, the ringing becoming less intense. He wasn't concerned about not being able to hear the show, he didn't need a story teller to tell him about the cosmos. The history of the earth had been engrained in him since he was a small child by his father, John, even Alan was able to explain some of the major astronomical events with glee.

One last smile at Tin-Tin was lost as the dome burst into light, stars shone forth into existence as they blinkered around the dome. Their seats reclined back so they lay looking at the stars. As the 4D experience took hold he could feel the shudder of the chair and imagine the rocket sounds that would be echoing around the chamber as they took off on their expedition, he felt the slight sensation of a lighter G-force than a real rocket take hold of him as the stars came down around him. He couldn't help it; he extended a hand to reach the star next to him but it remained obstinately out of his reach. The stars rotated and imploded before exploding into nothingness; for in the beginning there was no light.

It started so slowly Gordon started to wonder if the projector had failed but there in the centre of the dome, something seemed to build, a swirling dark mass that was barely visible against the backdrop. His chair started to expand encasing around him as the temperature in his seat became warmer like heated seats in a car. He twitched at the sudden release of compressed air behind his neck and from the underneath where his arms rested, it was like the cold sensation of a spray deodorant. It tickled his skin as the seat contracted back before the heat returned as the mass of nothingness in the air started to undulate and grow before their eyes. The sky almost became a Martian red in intensity becoming brighter and brighter till there was a large flash! Gordon blinked as the cosmos reverted to the inky darkness. It was still really hot, the sky midnight black and empty seemingly of anything, but Gordon knew this was the time when atoms started to develop. A diagram pitched up in a 3D format above them to illustrate this. Then the atmosphere around them started to cool till it became really quite chilly, Gordon dug into the chair chasing after the last shred of warmth. The cooling replicated the stage of universe at about 110 million years after its creation. More areas of matter started to form before little lights started to blip into existence.

Gordon looked over to see Tin-Tin completely enthralled. As the starts burst into creation across the heavens they refracted like rebel diamonds in her eyes, twinkling as her blush lips pursed in surprise at the lightshow. She looked…...other worldly, more stunning than the creation of the universe bursting into life around them. He found himself drawn in by the way she bit her lip in concentration, to the way her eyebrows quirked in surprise. He wasn't sure when but suddenly he no longer felt anything but wonder at her beauty, the innocence that he adored and the gentle soul that slept behind that inquisitive gaze. He was no longer aware of where he was, for he wasn't really present anymore.

Eventually credits began to roll above them, the light becoming warmer like an energy bulb. He found Tin-Tin turning towards him. Her expression curious as she took in his features. Realising he was still staring he quickly broke into his best lop-sided grin and shucked his headphones. He could feel his heart beat in his ears. It skipped a beat. "Amazing right?" He led with.

"Incredible! Did you see the aurora borealis? It looked like the real thing!"

"Yeah, pretty stunning, I loved sensation of the launch and the expansion and cooling of the universe."

"And the shuddering as the Earth's core formed!"

"Sorry to break it up guys but we have another viewing in ten." The steward smiled warmly at them as she grabbed some old ticket stubs, shoving them into a black bag.

"Sorry!" They both chorused as they grabbed their things.

"No worries, glad you enjoyed the show!"

They smiled before exiting the aisle and heading out into the cooler night air. Tin-tin shivered a little, Gordon's jacket was off his back and around her shoulders before she could even rub her arms. "Thank you"

Dusk had fallen, the night a beautiful inky pink as the last rays of the sun faded giving way to the night. The full moon started to rise in the East. They strolled down onto the lawn where various groups of people huddled around forty to fifty telescopes. They walked from group to group each focusing on various fields of interest, snatches of conversation filtered across; discussing moon phases, planetary alignments and binary stars. Tin-tin didn't know which to explore first till an older gentleman stepped forwards. "Care to view? In just a few moments we are hoping to see Mars pass through the beehive cluster."

"Presepe is within the constellation of Cancer I believe?" Tin-tin enquired as she stepped up to the large telescope.

"Yes indeed; I see you know your constellations." He used his stick to help lever himself into a chair. They were the only ones surrounding the telescope - most of the other telescopes were larger fancier affairs drawing the eye of the public. This telescope was much older although Tin-tin suspected the kindly man was far more knowledgeable than some of the other surrounding enthusiasts.

"I dabble, its more of a hobby really. I'm drawn to the mythology as well as the science." She started to view the celestial event unfolding before her.

"Both subjects as fascinating as the other." He replied in a plummy British accent. "Tell me; what do you see?"

"Mars has aligned, the stars are framing it like diamonds, it really is very beautiful. Funny that the planet that shares the name of the roman god of war should find itself located in the manger."

The old man pushed his thick frames up his nose as he chuckled. "Among two donkeys' instead of a cavalry."

Gordon was lost with the mythology talk. "Is it true they recently discovered another planted within the beehive?"

"Yes, Pr0213 b was first discovered in January of this year and the IAU have now confirmed it is a newly discovered exo-planet just this month."

"Wow! it's that we are still only just discovering them now."

"Space isn't infinite but there's still much to discover, probably far too much to categorise in our life time much like the deepest depths of the ocean." Gordon smiled; he could relate to that. Tin-Tin waved him over to view the spectacle.

As he slotted in next to her, he tripped a little, his balance still off kilter. She steadied him by placing both her small hands on either side of his lower back. Her touch sent a shiver down his spine like an electrical current, he found he was suddenly hyper aware of where her hands made contact with the small of his back, with only a thin scrap of fabric holding back her touch. He swallowed and readjusted his position on the scope as she slipped away.

He could hear her chatting to the gentleman as he tried to focus on the spectacular event in front of him. If he missed this opportunity because he wasn't focused John would certainly have something to say about it. He blinked as his eyes adjusted to the lens. The stars dotted the landscape mostly clustered with the brightest in the centre of the mass. Just to the left he could see the outline of a disk that he assumed must be mars. It was indeed an incredible sight to behold.

He had never reacted to Tin-Tin's touch before but there was something about that steady confident hold that had caught him by surprise. Taking a moment to remind himself now was not the place to unbox these feelings, he composed himself and stepped back from the telescope.

"Pretty amazing, thank you for letting us use your telescope."

"You are most welcome; your friend here tells me your John Tracy's brother? I've read his book Quasars against the universe and have to say it was most compelling!"

"John's quite the astronomer – he has to be because I can actually understand most concepts of the universe when he explains them. Some have specified it's a miracle - I was the one family member not interested in astronomy or becoming an astronaut but John has a passion that's infectious. It's hard to ignore."

"Ah let me guess, Gordon Tracy the marine biologist. You have some interesting journals of your own. My good friend Professor Randall is very interested in your discovery of bacteria living in the walls of the ice cabins of Iceland. It has given us hope that if bacteria can live within the ice then similar micro-organisms might be found on some of the exo-planets that harbour similar Ice fields and caverns."

"See you don't think space is related to your subject but its more closely linked than you think!" Tin-Tin and Gordon regularly debated this.

"Why of course! Life on this earth was birthed from the sea, why should that not be replicated on planets with similar conditions?" The man gazed at Gordon expectedly.

"Because there aren't any with similar conditions." He countered.

"Not that we know of! As I said earlier the Universe is like the ocean dear boy! Just because you haven't seen a Architeuthis Dux doesn't mean they don't exist."

"Well, no, but giant squids are well documented in sperm whale dissections and there have been observations of them in the wild, they just aren't as big as what we expected them to be after the kraken myth. Its simply too deep to explore their habitat to gain conclusive evidence of full species and size."

"Exactly! Just like the universe is too far beyond our reach to gain conclusive evidence of other planets that can support life but we have identified the right habitats conductive to life. We mustn't write off theories until we can dispel them through science! One day we could have a need for marine biologists on space expeditions."

Gordon laughed politely. "Not within our lifetimes I fear."

Another family of two adults and three older children were now starting to take interest in the telescope. The man stood, making ready to limp over.

"I might be inclined to agree with you young man but I hope you may yet see it in your lifetime." He extended his hand which Gordon shook before he then moved on to pat Tin-Tin's hand in farewell. Pleasure to meet you both."

"And you Professor…" Tin-Tin paused realising she hadn't caught his name.

"Professor Sanderson."

Her face fell into a O shape in shock. He winked, patting her on the shoulder before departing to meet the family behind them.

Gordon looked at her in shock then back at the old man.

"Not the Professor Sanderson?" Gordon stood in shock. Even he recognised one of the greatest names associated with astronomy in recent times.

"Yep" Tin-Tin practically whimpered. The man who created dark matter filter for the hydrogen collider experiments that meant dark matter could be observed in action for the first time in history."

"Oh wow! And he's read John's books! We can't tell him; he'll combust faster than a primed supernova."

They both laughed.

Gordon scanned his phone on the lock before pushing through the doorway as it opened. Tin-Tin flicked on the light as she passed through, it was two am and although she'd had an amazing time at the observatory, she was starting to feel tired. She headed to the kitchenette and pulled out a glass before running the water. Gordon flipped onto the sofa, kicking off his shoes before checking his phone.

"I'm turning in, thank you for such a wonderful evening, I really enjoyed it."

"You're welcome, I'll turn in a bit later." He itched his ear.

"Are they still bothering you?"

"Not really, I'm no longer terrified of sneezing so that's a bonus. This one just feels a bit itchy."

"Hmm, well try to get some sleep."

"I will good night"

"Night Gordon."

Tin-tin drifted down to the guest room before entering the en-suite to get ready for bed. What an amazing day! The highlight had been meeting old professor Sanderson, to meet someone so extraordinary yet so down to earth was refreshing. She removed her earrings before swiping her makeup off with a flannel dipped in remover. The planetarium had been thrilling too, it felt like she had been there at the beginning of time. She was bursting to tell – Alan. The thought brought her up sharp at the sudden ache in her heart. Alan wasn't as invested as her in the science of the universe but he was still interested in some elements such as comets and the planets. He was also a firm believer of extra-terrestrial life that they sometimes speculated about together because his brothers mocked him for it but Tin-Tin never did for there was a small part of her that yearned for Earth not to be the only planet capable of life. She looked across to the empty side of the bed and sighed. The anger didn't dispel the loneliness she felt with him gone.

She suddenly realised she had left her bag in the kitchen. Her phone alarm would wake them up. Annoyed with herself she kicked back the covers and padded out in her blue satin nightgown and stole down the corridor like a ghost, not wanting to wake Gordon as she passed his room. When she got to the lounge and kitchen area, she noticed the light was still on. There on the large settee was Gordon, one hand trailing on the floor with his phone abandoned underneath. He was turned slightly on his side, his auburn fringe shielding his eyes. She wished she was strong enough to lift him to bed, he couldn't be comfy there. Instead, she grabbed the throw off the neighbouring armchair silently shaking it out before tucking it around him. She also pulled off a cushion by his feet and placed it just behind his head careful not to move him too much. It was then she felt the radiating heat from his right ear. She gently felt the skin behind his earlobe it was warm to the touch. She frowned. Why hadn't he said anything?

She removed her hand carefully before picking up his arm and arranging it on top of the blanket. She noticed the antibiotics next on the coffee table and counted the tablets, then she read the dose before looking at him over the packet. He'd been taking two not four a day! Silly idiot!

She popped them back on the table before retreating to collect her bag off the counter Tin-Tin paused, turning to check on him one last time. She rested against the doorframe. "You and I are going to have a talk later about following instructions" She shook her head softly "Goodnight Gordon and thank you again for a wonderful day." She whispered as she flicked off the light.