“Can I join the rocket controller team?” I asked nervously.
After a few seconds, I heard the answer:
“Permission accepted. Good writing. Everything is OK.
Countdown starts: 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… Goodbye!”
My rocket shook, and I felt myself leaving Earth.
After ten hours, everything was silent. Then suddenly:
SYSTEM ERROR! SYSTEM ERROR!
The alarm was loud, and red lights flashed everywhere.
Before I understood what was happening, the rocket started falling. I tried to talk to the controller team, but the connection was weak.
When I opened my eyes again, I was on Mars.
My rocket was still there, but the damage was huge. I couldn’t go back.
I said to myself:
“I must live on Mars.”
First, I put on my space clothes. Then I built an oxygen tent so I could breathe safely.
I collected parts from the rocket and made a small farm inside a greenhouse tent. It wasn’t big, but it gave me hope.
I tried sending messages to the controller team every day.
After one week, I finally heard a voice:
“Bilal, we received your signal. We are trying to send a rescue rocket, but we need one more year to finish it.”
One year? I felt sad, but I stayed calm.
“OK,” I said. “I can wait.”
Days passed slowly. I repaired my oxygen system, planted potatoes, and collected ice to make water. I talked to myself just to hear a voice. Sometimes I recorded messages to Earth.
One day, I woke up and heard a terrible warning:
OXYGEN LOW – FOOD SUPPLY CRITICAL
My oxygen tank was almost empty. My food was gone.
I had two choices:
Give up
Or build something new
So I worked all night. I created a new oxygen filter from broken metal and wires. I planted new seeds in a bigger area and used melted ice water.
Finally, my farm grew again. Small, but enough.
After many months, I saw something bright in the sky. A rocket!
They came for me.
When the door opened, I heard:
“Bilal! We made it!”
I looked behind me at the red planet. I had lived there. I survived there. I was not just Bilal anymore.
I was Bilal, The Martian.

By Bilal Bıkmaz
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