The boys had learned that Mr. Klecker had a hobby. He was very much interested in the circus of the old days. He had many books on the subject, and whenever he talked to anyone it was about the circus. Garry and Patch had heard from the others that Mr. Klecker still looked after the captain as if he were serving him in his mansion. He would lay out his clothes for him and attend to other small details. Once in awhile Mr. Klecker would be called on to assist in things of a mechanical nature, but he hated to get out of his full dress and don greasy coveralls. The boys proceeded to the gym. They were anticipating a good time. But something of a decisive nature was to happen which would have an important bearing on their future life aboard the _Carefree_. 10. THE LADY GOES WILD “Beat you into the pool,” Patch called a little while later. He dashed out of the dressing room and dove, with hands outstretched, into the water. Garry followed right behind, tumbling into the spray left by Patch’s dive. “Say, this is nice and warm!” Garry said. “And we’ve got it all to ourselves!” A little way back from the pool’s edge, Mac and Isaac were lifting weights. This exercise was to help them keep in good physical trim. Garry and Patch swam and splashed to their hearts’ content. It was the most fun they had had in a long time. They knew no one would ever believe their story of swimming in a pool in deep space! It was almost too difficult for them to believe themselves. But they did not care if they were never believed. They frolicked in the water for about an hour and then climbed up on the pool’s edge to catch their breath for a few minutes. “Boy, I could spend twenty-four hours a day in there,” Patch said, flicking water from his face. “I could too, almost,” Garry agreed. “But I would be satisfied if I could spend twenty-four hours a day aboard the _Carefree_ doing anything. Gee, it’s going to be hard leaving here to go back to the orphanage.” “Yeah,” Patch said sourly. “Gee whiz, Garry, why can’t they let a couple of guys live the way they want to?” “We can someday, when we are old enough,” Garry said. “But the only way we could get around having to go back now would be for Captain Eaton to adopt us.” “Say, that’s the answer!” Patch replied excitedly. “Why don’t we ask him?” “I don’t think it’s as easy as that, Patch. In the first place, I don’t think _we_ should ask _him_. He knows how much we like the _Carefree_, and he may have thought of adoption. But he should be the one who suggests it.” “Maybe we could drop a hint or something,” Patch said. “I don’t think they’d let him adopt us, Patch. Don’t forget, when they find out where we are, they’ll think we stowed away aboard the _Orion_, and that would ruin any chances we might have had.” “But we didn’t deliberately stow away!” Patch protested.