Ever since that day, Sumire’s private name for Miu was Sputnik
Sweetheart. Sumire loved the sound of it. It made her think of Laika,
the dog. The man-made satellite streaking soundlessly across the
blackness of outer space. The dark, lustrous eyes of the dog gazing
out the tiny window. In the infinite loneliness of space, what could
the dog possibly be looking at?
