CHAPTER 1
Agan’s laughter is at odds with the harmonic buzz from the station lights, but everyone else laughs with him. Everyone except Kita. My best friend grimaces as she wraps a tentacle around my arm and rests her head on my shoulder.
But she doesn’t think any of her brother’s jokes are funny. She doesn’t really like anything he does.
I’m sure I’d feel similarly if I had a brother who got along witheveryone.
Agan does. He’s smart, he’s funny, he’s sexy… not that I would ever tell Kita I feel that way about him.
He’s just… everything a young alien ought to be.
“Ugh.” Kita groans and pinches me with one of her suckers. “Stop looking at him like that, Annika. He’s not as great as everyone thinks.”
I do stop looking at him, because Kita’s probably right. Even if I don’t want her to be.
She’s the one of us who would know, right?
“You left a mark.” I turn my arm and we both look down at where the pinch left a small crescent moon shape on my skin.
“Sorry. I forget how fragile you are.” She pets my skin and Ithinkshe scowls.
I’ve known her for two years and Istillcan’t read all her facial expressions.
“We weren’t all made for the vacuum of space.”
She chuckles. “A pity. I’ll never be able to take you home with me.”
I lean close and stage whisper, “Get me a space suit.”
Someone to my left snorts, and I look at the alien man sitting nearby. He’s all hollow chest and fishbowl eyes. But he looks at me with what is definitely a scowl. His lips take up half his face and never hide anything.
I don’t ask him what made him scowlthistime. He’s never liked me.
An echoing click makes me flinch and I look up at the waiter as they lower a tray laden with to-go cups on the table.
The languages written across them form patterns that make me smile… even if mine just says “Annika cappu”.
Kita passes me my small cappuccino from the tray and the rest of the group starts to break up. Most of us have work to get to. Stopping at this little cafe before is a habit we’ve all fallen into.
“Goodbyes” are thrown in multiple languages, and I kiss Kita on the top of her perfectly smooth check.
“I’ll see you after work. Don’t play too hard.”
Her laughter is sharp and thin, like the beads inside a maraca. “I always play too hard. Don’t work yourself to death! I was promised a commentary night and I expect to get it.”
“And you will!”
I walk away from her, chuckling to myself and thinking about all the things I’m going to have to explain in tonight’s screening of whatever Earth movie she’s picked out.
“Heading my way?” Agan slides beside me, moving silently on his pink and yellow tentacles and meeting my pace.
“I guess that depends on where you’re going.”
He smiles at me and then winks, not answering the question in my response.
I don’t really ever know what’s going on with Agan, but he’s pretty and sweet, and I’ve heard rumors.
“Still working at the duty free?” he asks.
