Page 73 of I Fell for an Alien Popstar

I laughed into her shoulder.

She waved as she disappeared back into the crowd, her Neptune bag swinging.

I reached automatically for my bag to pull out my sketchbook, eager to capture her in the alley light before the image faded.

My hand hit empty fabric.

“Oh no,” I muttered, patting myself down as if the sketchbook might magically appear in a pocket I’d never had.

Nothing.

“Okay,” I told myself. “Maybe I left it in the cab. Or in the mess hall this morning.”

I pulled up Astrolynx on my wrist comm.

Galaxy Cab 900 was still at the top of my recent searches. I tapped it, and within seconds, the same hologram popped up— Your driver is two minutes away.

When the cab glided up to the curb, the door opened.

“Ah, we meet again,” Wyn said, grinning.

“The Jelly Lounge was amazing. You were right,” I said, sliding inside.

He looked delighted.

“I have been telling people about that place for years,” he said as the seat belt slid into place along its track. “No one ever listens to Wyn, but the food never lies.”

We pulled away from the food district and headed back toward the docks. As we merged into the elevated transit lane, the route arced high over the city.

From there, Minia looked even more unreal. The arena was a dark bowl with rigging rising around it like a metal forest—cranes, beams, and light rigs climbing into place.

“You okay?” Wyn asked, catching my reflection in the window.

“Yeah,” I said. “Just… having a moment. Hey, I didn’t happen to leave my sketchbook in here earlier, did I?”

“No, sorry. I haven’t seen it. I even went back to the cab loading bay to clean it out.”

“Ah, okay. I misplaced it and don’t remember where. I would have loved to draw the Jelly Lounge.”

“I’m sure you will find it in the least expected spot. Plus, there’s always next time. There are Jelly Lounges all over the galaxy. You’ll have your chance.”

We pulled up to where the tour bus was parked. The sun was shining so brightly that the holographic paint cast a rainbow across the bus.

Wyn dropped me back at the dock with a cheerful “Have a good night,” and I made my way onto the bus.

First things first, I needed to find my sketchbook. It would have been nice to have it with me that day to draw the café.

As I walked around the mess hall, I retraced my steps to where I’d sat earlier. The ledge was empty. The chair was pushed in, and the table had been wiped down.

My stomach flipped.

“Okay,” I whispered. “That’s fine. It has to be here somewhere.”

Maybe someone had found it and returned it to my room.

As I turned to walk back to my room, I noticed one of the marketing guys, Tev, clutching something beneath his arm. He sat at the back table, so I nearly missed him.

“Hey!” I shouted from across the room. “What are you doing with my glitter sketchbook?”