They turned and saw the smiling face of Ben. Garry explained to him what they were talking about.
“Then I guess you don’t want me to say I’m sorry to see you go either, do you?” Ben said.
“Of course we really do care,” Garry admitted. “But it makes us sad when everybody tells us.”
“Then, I won’t tell you good-by, fellows,” Ben said. “I’ll just say ‘so long’ for awhile. Before you know it, you’ll come back into space and find us still cruising through the deeps in the Carefree. Yes, we’ll all be here.”
“It does sound better that way, Ben,” Garry replied. “But until then, we’ll still miss all of you terribly.”
“We’ll miss you too,” Ben said quietly, “but we’ll never forget you.”
The boys went to bed with a feeling of melancholy that night, for this was their last sleep aboard Captain Eaton’s wonderland space ship. The thought of leaving these good friends, possibly forever, brought a pang to Garry’s heart. But no matter how sorrowful he felt, he was determined to be brave about it.
Garry fell asleep thinking of all the fun he and Patch had had in the brief happy hours of their stay aboard the Carefree. Since the time passes quickly during slumber, the boy expected he would be awake before he knew it on another quiet morning, and that very soon thereafter he would be bidding good-by to his friends as he and Patch made preparations for the voyage back to earth and the orphanage.
But Garry woke far sooner than he expected. It was not morning, nor was it quiet; the air was charged with confusion and alarm.
Garry was aware of bustling footsteps and urgent voices in the dormitory. His eyes popped open in the bright glare of the lights that had been turned on fully. He had a feeling that it was the middle of the night and not morning, although he was not to find this out until a little later.