That was the headline the next day. Glenn La Belle became an instant celebrity the day he was born. After all these battles, the people of Macross City were excited about this. I took great pleasure in writing the article. Mark and Andrea, the baby's parents, gave statements to me about their experiences leading to the birth of the newest addition to their family. This news, along with Jenna's recovery, put me in the best mood since my arrival to Macross City ten months ago. I wondered if I would get to cover the first wedding in space. The Macross Gazette did not publish any wedding announcements. Then again, we are only three months from Earth and surely any engaged couples who found themselves on SDF-1 Macross would wait until reaching Earth so they can invite friends and family.
Over the next few days, there was a lull in the fighting. The enemy had not come to attack us since we sent them fleeing last month. I was glad for that, as I got to spend more time with Jenna. I got to know her more about two friends, Lani and Katie. Unlike Jenna, they were both from Earth. Lani was rooming with Jenna; she must sleep in that second bed I saw when I first set foot in Jenna's quarters. They spent a lot of time together, and they made sure to spend every Friday evening together. I got her for the rest of the week. I thought about my friends back in New York. Do they even know that I am alive? And what of my parents and brothers and sisters and aunts and uncles and nephews and nieces?
But soon Jenna would find herself in another battle. It would not be a battle with enemy fighters and pods.
It was the Miss Macross Contest.
From what I heard from interviews with contest officials, the Miss Macross Contest was held every year since the founding of Macross City nine years ago. This would be the first time Miss Macross was held in space. Captain Henry J. Gloval, the commander of the SDF-1's crew, will be one of the judges.
I got to do an interview with one of the contestants, a woman with curly blond hair who appeared to be slightly older than me and Jenna. She was Jan Morris, and she was a famous movie star. She flew in from Los Angeles, California to participate in the SDF-1 launch ceremonies.
"So, Miss Morris, how do you feel to be a contestant in the first beauty contest in outer space?" I asked her as we sat down on a table in the Variation Tea and Coffee Shop.
"I'm really excited," she said. "I'm making history here."
"Do you think you will win?" I asked.
"I know I will win, baby," she said. "This is going to make me a huge star once we get to Earth."
"We're only three months from Earth," I said.
"I will surely get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame," said Morris.
"By the way, Miss Morris, what was it like the day we launched?"
"Well, I had my own hospitality suite on the base where the ship would take off. It was me and some other stars. Then there was this air raid siren. Soon, the buses were taking us to the shelters in the hills. We stayed there. There was this light. Then gravity disappeared. These guys in spacesuits came, and they drove us to the ship in these sealed cars."
"Thank you for your time, Miss Morris," I said. I stood up and extended my hand to her.
oooooooooo
I saw Jenna on the sidewalk near the Lins' Chinese restaurant the evening before the Miss Macross competition. Seh was in her yellow sweater and blue jeans.
"Tomorrow's the big day," I said.
"Don't remind me," said Jenna. "I can't stay out tonight. I need to sleep. I never competed in a beauty contest, but I doubt having a hangover and bloodshot eyes are gonna help."
"Maybe we can eat out," I said.
"I'll just get take out from that Chinese restaurant over there. I heard that Minmei is gonna be in the contest too."
"Who?" I asked, not remembering the name at the time.
"The owner's niece. They had that birthday party for her at the restaurant, the night that I was injured and ended up in the hopsital for a couple of weeks."
"I remember," I said, thinking back to the time when I thought Jenna was going to die. "I hope you don't get called back on duty."
"I'm officially on special assignment from Colonel Maistroff himself," said Jenna. "Colonel Beckett can't order me to duty if there were a million enemy fighters attacking us. Well, I'd better go get some food. I'll be at the amphitheater tomorrow, okay?"
I kissed Jenna. When she went into the Chinese restaurant, I went to my apartment.
oooooooooo
The next morning, I had breakfast in my apartment. I went to work and submitted my articles to the Macross Gazette. I reviewed the past ten months of articles I wrote since we began our journey. I would definitely receive a Pulitzer Prize upon returning home.
The Miss Macross Contest would start at 7:00 tonight. I had to be there at 5:00. The contest officials gave me a press pass and it had arrived by mail yesterday.
Along the way, I ran into Lani Hart and Katie Taney.
"Hi there," said Lani.
"I'm going to be covering the Miss Macross Contest," I said. "I have an exclusive interview with whoever wins."
"If Jenna wins, it'll be a short interview," said Katie. "The entire squadron's gonna be there to cheer her on."
"We made this banner," said Lani. She and her friend held upo this huge banner written with crayon.
I read it aloud. "We heart u Jenna," I said.
"Let's just hope the enemy doesn't attack," said Katie. She and Lani leave.
I continued to the amphitheater. It had been under construction since the first modular transformation nine months ago. It will be first opened to the public for the Miss Macross Contest.
I went into a small buiding that was marked as the amphitherater's service entrance. There was a security guard at the entrance. I showed him my press pass.
"Come on in," said the security guard.
And so I did. I pressed a button for the elevator and went down. the doors opened, and I was in a hallway. There was a directory for offices. I walked along the hallway and entered one of the offices.
"Hello there," said a man in a suit, extending his hand. "Welcome to the Macross Amphitheater."
"I'm a reporter for the Associated Press," i said, holding my press pass. "I'd like to speak to the judges and contestants. Are they here?"
"Some of them are getting their makeup done. You can go anywhere except the women's dressing room."
"Okay, then."
I left the office and walked along the carpeted hallway. From the looks of this place, I could forget that I was on a spaceship.
Then Jenna called out my name.
"Jenna," I said. She was dressed in a skirt and a white blouse, and she had a bag full of clothes.
"I need to get my makeup done," she said. "I have this killer swimsuit. Well, you'll see when the swimsuit competition is on. See you at the contest."
she went to the makeup room.
I then heard shouting. I ran to this room where there were a lot of mirrors with light bulbs framing them.
"MUST YOU TAKE SO LONG?" a loud voice asked.
"Patience, Captain," said a makeup artist. "We want you to present your good side, after all."
I looked and saw a man with black hair sitting before a makeup mirror. He was wearing a Spacy dress uniform.
That was Captain Henry J. Gloval.
"Excuse me, Captain Gloval," I said. "Do you have time for an interview?"
The captain looked at me, revealing his black moustache. "With the time these people are taking, you could have ten interviews."
"How do you feel about being a judge at this competition?" I asked.
"I'd rather be fighting enemy pods with my bare hands," he said.
"Is there any contestant you like?"
"I'll have to see them first."
"Do you have high expectations of this contest?"
"It will boost the morale of my crew. We worked very hard in defending this ship from our enemies, whoever they are."
"Thank you, sir."
I walked out to the makeup room where the contestants were having their hair and makeup done. I saw Jenna among the twenty-eight of them. I walked around and asked questions of the contestants, taking notes.
oooooooooo
I sat in the press box and I saw the audience file in. They came in like a swarm. Some people in the audience were holding signs cheering for their favorite contestant. I looked and I saw a sign reading WE (Heart) U JENNA. That must be Lani and Katie and the others of Knight Squadron.
The announcer came in to formal;ly announce the beginning of the Miss Macross Contest. I and the other print reporters took notes, while television cameras for the Macross Broadcasting System filmed the event live. Boy, wouldn't Mr. Chegwidden and Quinn and the others in my office like this. The announcer mentioned that the prize was a fanjet buolt right here in Macross City.
Then the contestants were introduced, one by one. Their names and hometowns were announced.
"Contestant Number Eleven, Miss Jenna Murphy!" said the announcer.
And then I saw Jenna, in this stunning black dress with a red trim. It was colored just like her veritech. She gave this bright smile that was contagious.
"Jenna was born in Cork, Ireland, and her family moved to the Apollo Colony on the moon during the Global Civil War. She is one of our Robotech defenders, flying the veritech fighters to protect us from our enemies."
I looekd and saw Jenna's squadron cheering.
"Miss Murphy, what do you like about being a veritech pilot?" asked the announcer.
"I just want to protect you from the enemy," she said.
"What do you like to do?"
"Seeing movies, eating out, having drinks, gambling."
"Contestant Number Twelve, Miss Lin Minmei," said the announcer. I looked at the stage and started taking notes.
ooooooo
"and now, the swimsuit competition," said the announcer. Once again, the same twenty-eight contestants came forward in their swimsuits. I waited for Jenna, who is contestant number 11.
"Contestant Number Eleven, Jenna Murphy," said the announcer.
And there she appeared in a black two piece bikini. The bikini's color contrasted vividly against her skin, which I coul;d see a lot of. She looked like a jewel or something. I took a whole page just to write down notes. I could hear very loud cheering and catcalls, and that was definitely coming from Knight Squadron.
Then Jenna exited the stage and I watched her until she disappeared. The next contestant, the teenage girl Minmei, had a one piece suit which obstructed everything except her head, arms, and legs. There was little cheering. I could understand why. After what Jenna wore, a schoolgirl in a one piece does not cut it.
The contestants continued until it eneded with the actress Jan Morris. The judges would then select the five finalists, who would then be selected by the people of Macross City.
After a short break, the five finalists were announced. I listened to each name intently one by one.
When the fifth name was announced, I was a little disappointed. Jenna would not be a finalist. I looked and saw the five finalists, including Jan Morris and the girl with the one-piece swimsuit.
Jenna joined me in the press box, wearing a bathrobe over her swimsuit. "Well, at least I was there," she said.
"I liked you," I replied.
"This whole thjing was probably a publicity stunt for Jan Morris. She probably paid them."
"They're about to announce the winner."
"Lin Minmei!" said the announcer.
And then Minmei stood up. A robe was placed upon her body, and a gold crown was placed on her head. Photographers took pictures. She smiled and waved.
I saw Jenna smiling. "I should congratulate her," she said. "Any girl that can beat Jan Morris in a beauty contest while without showing a lot of skin deserves my respect."
ooooooooooo
After the audience left, I went backstage to do my interview with Miss Macross, who turned out to be Lin Minmei.
"How does it feel to be Miss Macross?" I asked.
"It was my dream come true," she said. "I always wanted to be a star, you know. I want to start a record. Maybe I can hire an agent once we return to Earth."
"Thank you for your interview."
"Why don't you report on my career? I'm sure you can win an award or something. I read about how you wrote that story on that baby born a few days ago."
"Glenn La Belle," I said. "here is my card." I handed Minmei my card.
"Thank you."
ooooooooo
We later celebrated at the Bright Star Casino. We had a round of drinks at the bar.
"You know, that Minmei girl is cute and all," said Vince the bartender. "But you got my vote."
"Thanks, Vince," said Jenna.
"That was a really hot swimsuit you had," said Lieutenant Ichijo.
"Yeah, I certinaly wouldn't want to be the guy wearing tight pants," said Lieutenant Landry.
"At least you have the titanium medal of valor," said Lieutenant Wolfe. "Can't win every battle."
"Hey guys," I said. "I want to propose a toast to Jenna Murphy."
"To Jenna Murphy, Miss Knight Squadron!" yells Lani Hart.
And we toasted our beers.
"Congratulations, Marine," said Colonel Maistroff who stood near our table. "You showed grace under pressure."
"Thank you, sir," replied Jenna. "May I have another medal?"
oooooooooo
Christmas was not long after the Miss Macross Contest. The fighter pilots on board SDF-1 Macross were going to have their own Christmas Party in one of the ball rooms. I was Jenna's date.
All of the fighter pilots who were not on duty were here. They were all dressed in their dinner dress uniforms. A few civilians were here, the dates of the fighter pilots. Punch and champagne were served, and there was a Christmas tree with decorations and lights. This was my first Christmas in space.
"You know, this was not my first Christmas in space," said Lieutenant Colonel Angus Beckett. "Two years ago I spent Christmas on board an ARMD ship."
"I wonder if my parents know I'm alive," I said. "The SDF-1 must have sent transmissions."
"The fucking enemy keeps blocking our transmissions," said Lieutenant Wolfe.
"Maybe you should mingle around," said Jenna. "Skull Squadron is here."
Then almost everyone in the room crowded to the entrance. I wondered what was happening.
And then I saw Miss Macross standing at the door to the room. She was accompanied by a young man in a Spacy dress uniform.
"She sure is popular," I said.
"So you're girlfriend's doing fine," said this woman with short curly black hair wearing a green uniform.
"Uh, yeah," I said.
"you don't remember me. you must have been drunk. I'm Claudia. The lady that drove you to the hospital."
"Oh," i said, now recognizing her. "Thank you."
"You are such a sweet person, Claudia," said Jenna. "I'm First Lieutenant Jenna Murphy, UN Space Marines."
"Lieutenant Claudia Grant, UN Spacy," said Claudia. "I'm Commander Fokker's date."
"Hello," said this blond-haired man. He was Lieutenant Commander Roy Fokker of Skull Squadron. He was the one who told Jenna she saved one of his pilots.
Everyone else was asking for Minmei's autograph or something.
"Hi, Minmei," said Jenna. "I was one of the contestants at the Miss Macross Contest."
"I remember you," she said. "You came before me. This is Rick Hunter."
"We've met," said Rick.
"Lieutenant Jenna Murphy and her date saved Rick's life back on Mars," said Commander Fokker.
"That's right," said Rick Hunter.
"Thank you both," said Minmei. "When I get my singing career started, I'll dedicate a song just for you."
ooooooooo
After the party was over, Jenna and I went to our apartment. There was one gift we had for each other that we wanted to unwrap.
Each other.