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“What does it feel like?”
“The sun, you mean?” I look back up as a young Zvezdi couple walk along before me, one of them a pale gray color and the other with a slight blue tinge to their skin. “It’s…warm. Even when the day is cold, the sun is warm. You can actually feel the light on your skin—you can feel it like it’s a touch. And all the colors seem brighter here, too. Not so washed out like they do from the artificial lights back home.”
Mari sighs again, a dreamy, faraway look coming over her soft features as Elena pokes her head back on screen, now holding her own plate of paella.
“So, when are you flying me over to join you?” she asks, sitting down and blinking at me prettily. “The sun does look amazing, I think it would do me good.”
“AfterMari. I might have to bring you all one by one, I don’t know.”
Elena pretends to be upset by this in her usual, dramatic way. “After Mari? After? Who’s the reason you’re even on Zvezden? Who bought your flight so you could actually get to your scholarship, smarty-pants?”
I sigh gustily and slouch in my seat, taking another bite of my springy, sweet bread. “You’re going to use this against me for the rest of my life, aren’t you,” I muter through my mouthful.
“Of course I am, Ana! I carried an alien’s baby in my stomach for thirteen months so that we could get a fat check and afford your ticket to Zvezden to attend one of the best universities in this sector of the galaxy.”
“That was five years ago! You didn’t even know I was going to come here back then!”
“I knew I was doing it for you,for the family.”
“Okay, fine, once I’m rich I’ll bring you over first.”
Elena puts her chipped dinner plate on the table to cool and settles back in her chair, looking smugly satisfied. “Thank you.”
I sigh and finally take a sip of my milky kafe, which tastes almost like coffee—but more earthy, somehow. Why does Elena always have to make drama out of nothing? “I’m going to do my best to get everyone over here; we’re family, we don’t leave anyone behind…”
“I’m the oldest sister, Analina, I practically raised you all while mom worked three jobs. I should be first to come over, though.”
“You?” I huff. “You were always off with some new boyfriend or other. I’m the one that was helping Mom around the house!”
“You were always off studying.”
“Wow, guys, chill!” Mari leans over to force a hug onto Elena, who doesn’t hug back but doesn’t move away, either. “How about you’re both amazing older sisters?”
Elena puffs out a breath. “But me just a little bit more.”
I roll my eyes, doing my best to ignore her pouting. “Anyway, guys, I’m starting my shift at the restaurant in an hour. I should probably go—”
“Wait, Ana, I need a favor,” Elena interjects quickly.
“No more favors!” I say. “I’m already bringing you here first, what more do you want?”
“Do you know how expensive a ship to Zvezden is, Ana? If it wasn’t for me—”
“Oh my god,” I groan, standing up abruptly and heading off, too cold to be sitting still any longer. “Fine! What do you need?”
As soon as I agree, the annoyed look drops from Elena’s face and she smiles as if we hadn’t just been arguing. “Okay, so, I never actually told you, but the child I was a surrogate mother for is actually from Zvezden.”
I pause mid-step. “Seriously?”
“What? How do you know?” Mari asks and stares at Elena with the same look she has when watching her old-world Spanish soap operas.
“Because I gave birth to a Zvezdi boy, dummy.” Elena cuts Mari a flat look, who pouts into her rice.
“The parents could have been off-world…”
“Anyway, Ana, could you find the kid for me?”
I frown at the camera in confusion, and shove the last of the pastry into my mouth. “Uh, why?”
