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This place is like the loft apartments I used to dream about when I thought I would move to New York City. The walls are cool neutral tones and colourful potted plants fill any area where the sunlight hits. Like the bathroom, everything has been modified with an additional step for me to come up to a reasonable height.
It’s all very domestic and I’m just a smidge tiny for it. But it also means when I heave myself up onto the stool at the bar I don’t feel too big. There is an odd comfort in feeling this small for once. I watch him pull out a jug of water from a hidden fridge cabinet and pour the glass in front of me.
“It’s filtered, since our water has a slightly different molecular structure,” he explains.
“Don’t drink the spicy water, got it,” I say.
The glass is so big I have to hold it with both hands. But it tastes like water to me.
Wow, being abducted by an alien is really not the scary horror show that movies make it out to be. I don’t even have that awkward feeling of being at a friend’s house for the first time. There’s the urge to snoop through all his things, but I don’t feellike I should be concerned if my shoes are on or off. There isn’t a sense that he wants me out of his space either. If anything, Ma’xon wants me here and he’s done an immense amount of renovating to make it suitable for both of us to live here.
I look around at everything again and just feel at home. Except there aren’t blankets everywhere like there are at my house. Then again, I wish I had my bathing suit and some shades with the weather this nice. My gaze drifts to the open doors, a sheer long curtain blowing in the breeze. There isn’t a thought in my head about running away. My only concern is whether or not Ma’xon has a pool or if there is a public one we can take a dip in.
From the corner of my eye, he shifts his hand down under the counter. I have a mind to ask him what he thinks he’s doing, and he opens his mouth.
“There is—”
“Mai’mai?” someone shouts very loudly outside. “You two decent?”
The navy colour is back in his cheeks instantly. While I don’t think my shirt is decent for anyone on Earth, it’s going to have to do for Axilaria. I watch his four finger hand scrub down his face before he walks around the counter. Along the way, he brushes his hand across my thigh and for a moment I feel that same heat from the brewery. My fingers twitch to grab onto him, but he’s already out the curtain door.
“What possibly can’t wait for a few days?” he shouts.
“Your nieces,” they shout back and suddenly there is a thundering of feet up stairs.
It only takes a few moments before there is a loud guffaw from outside the door and secret whispers. From here, I can see the outline of two tinier versions of Ma’xon outside. Should I go outside too? I’m sure I’m allowed, but this seems like a family reunion and I don’t want to spoil it for them. Giggles erupt and then there’s the sound of more feet on the stairs.
“You’ve been home for hours and you don’t even bother to send me a message. You don’t even smell like a frenzy. Sur’lax.”
The stranger sounds like my type of person. I can’t stop the smile on my face when a relatively small, grey head peers through the curtain. I wave before jumping down off the stool. The girls gasp and come rushing in, slamming into me like they had with Ma’xon.
Except, I’m not an eight foot tall beast of a man. We topple over like dominos into a pile arms and tails and more giggles. The three of us are about the same height, but the extra fins makes it hard to find my footing.
“Ke’lee, A’la, you weren’t raised in a Zoller,” a woman snaps, but there is no bite in her words. She sticks out her hand to help me up once they roll away and says, “I’m Pri’za, Ma’xon’s younger sister. The one with the pierced fin is Ke’lee and toothless is A’la.”
“Odette,” I tell her my name. “What’s a Zoller?”
“I think your equivalent is a bae-urn?”
“Barn,” Ma’xon corrects her pronunciation, while Pri’za mimics a chatty motion with her fingers.
Like her brother, she is ungodly tall. While slightly leaner, she still looks like she could take down any professional linebacker with a light shove. Her tail sways back and forth behind her and I try not to take offence when her nostrils flare at me. I’m sure I smell a little funky and the humidity is really making me sweat. Any deodorant I had on is long gone by now.
“You don’t smell like him.” She turns back to look at Ma’xon. “Do you need to see the practitioner?”
“Mai’mai has space cooties,” Ke’lee says with a sing-song voice, the jewels on her piercing tinkling as she shakes her head.
“And I’ll give them to you two if you don’t go play outside,” he growls and chomps his sharp teeth at the girls until they are giggling again and running out the door.
“Those aren’t a real thing,” Pri’za assures me with a smiles. “And we aren’t staying, I’m sure the frenzy will get you both soon and nobody wants the sloppy details. We confirmed you’re both alive, so I can actually get back to work.”
She points at Ma’xon and then waves, gone as quickly as she came with her daughters. He waits a few moments and then falls onto the couch. I stare at him, taking a moment to gather the feelings I have about the whirlwind meet and greet with his family. They seem nice, brash and caring in a way I’m not used to. There is clearly a much closer bond between them than I ever got close to having with my parents.
Will I get to be a part of that closeness?
A scrape noise catches my attention and Ma’xon’s heavy tail flexes around the couch as he adjusts himself into a better position. His thick thighs spread wide and I catch a glimpse of the large bulge in his tight pants.
I peel my eyes away from it and land on his broad torso. It’s only now that I notice the panelling on his tank top. The sides aren’t stripped, they are sheer and something around the upper part of his torso flutters as he heaves another breath.
