Page 21 of Space Daddy and a Boy Called Twink

“Yes, Twink. I am,” he said, wide-eyed and serious, stepping closer.

I was shaking, and I had to stop that or he was going to realize this was all an act. But of course, trying to stop shaking is like trying to stop a boner. And it wasn’t helping that he was close enough to touch me again.

“Because of the way technology has taken over your planet,” he continued, “I didn’t know how to get you alone and ensure we wouldn’t be monitored by whoever had seized control of your mind.”

“So, you’re so worried about someone seizing control of my mind that you seized my body?” I shouldn’t have made the sarcastic barb, but given the circumstances, I was mostly operating off adrenaline.

“Yes, exactly,” he answered, clueless, which was for the best.

“Let me get this straight: You’re saying my phone is controlling my mind and everyone else’s, and you’re an alien who’s come to Earth and who wants to protect me from…my phone?”

The only reason I was able to say any of it seriously was because, while the logic was ridiculous, the situation was…well, also ridiculous, but scary as fuck.

“That’s exactly what I’ve been doing.” He stepped even closer, until he was inches from me. I had to resist the urge to slide farther from him.

“It’s a lot to process right now.” I considered how I could get him to give me some space so I could make a run. “Could I have a glass of water?”

His brows tugged together, as though he sensed something was off, but then he said, “Of course. I’m sorry. I infused some into you after rendering you unconscious, but maybe it wasn’t enough.”

He walked around the table, to a panel on the opposite side of the room from the doorway. This was it! My chance to escape! And if it didn’t work, I was really fucked.

I slid off the table, which was taller than expected, and between the surprise and the lingering effects of whatever he’d used to knock me out, it wasn’t as easy as sprinting out, but I headed through the doorway, which rounded a corner before I hit another wall.

“Ow,” I called out as my body absorbed the blow, my head hitting last. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.” It seemed I was lucky to not have the strength to break into a sprint since if I’d gone any faster, that might’ve knocked me right back out.

“Twink?” I heard behind me, his tone unassuming, reminding me how easy it was for him to gain my trust.

In a panic, I knew I needed a weapon. I dug into my pocket for my keys and retrieved them, positioning them between my fingers to use as a claw.

Hey, it was the best I could do!

I walked back into the room where he’d been holding me captive.

He was still on the other side of the table. “That wasn’t a way out,” he explained in such a calm way, the sort of way a guy who knew I was fucked would talk.

“Whereisthe way out?” I shouted at him, hoping to make him feel that I was more confident than I was. “Tell me!”

“Don’t you see that I’m trying to help you?”

“Don’t you see I’m really struggling to see how that’s the case? What do you want from me? I’m just a guy who works at a bookstore, whose boyfriend cheated on him because I wasn’t good enough. I’m messy and my life is fucked up enough as it is. You could have picked anyone. Why me?”

He was quiet, studying my expression. He looked almost sad. “Is that all you think of yourself? I see more than that when I look at you.” His eyes lit up in a way that both concerned me and reminded me of the chemistry that had initially drawn me to him.

Fuck. Eric was right. I really did have a broken picker.

Fortunately, my terror outweighed any attraction as he started to approach again. Clearly, the keys weren’t a big threat to this space monster.

No, not a space monster! That was impossible.

“Look,” I said. “This stuff about my phone, you’re wrong. Like, yeah, we enjoy our phones, and sure, they might have some influence on us, but not in the way you’re thinking. We’re freely choosing to obsess over our phones, and maybe that’s a waste of time, but it’s not trying to hurt or control us. And…and…” Tears started sliding down my cheeks. I was so damn desperate not to die.

His gaze drifted, as though for the first time, he was reconsidering his delusion.

“You’re telling the truth,” he said, which wasn’t what I was expecting.

“How do you know that?”

“Your heart was beating faster when you lied before and said you were thirsty so you could get out.”