[He tenses. Apollo might not be in the same room as him, but the way his fingers run along the rim of the visor is familiar; it's the action Clay does when he's nervous, when he's trying to think up a lie.

He'd been sworn to secrecy, and Clay takes secrets and promises very seriously, even against his best friend.]

Uh...

[But...

Well, he already said a couple of bombs went off. The public was only supposed to know that the ship had malfunctioned, that he'd gotten Starbuck off the ship safely and heroically. Clay didn't really agree with doing it that way, but if it could sell the public, keep their attention away from the dangerous spy on the loose...

So, Clay lets out a sigh. His fingers relax, and he pushes his visor back up. He looks tired, and like he could really use a couple hours to just lay down.]

Because... we didn't want Mr. Starbuck to know what was going on. And the government wouldn't let Mr. Cosmos cancel the launch.

[In a world where the government would rather send their astronauts on a bomb-ridden rocket than cancel it entirely...]