Aliens on Vacation by Clete Barrett Smith

Author:Clete Barrett Smith [Smith, Clete Barrett]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Tags: Ages 8 & Up
ISBN: 9781423133636
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Published: 2011-01-01T08:00:00+00:00

I don’t remember walking back to Grandma’s. My mind was too busy figuring out what to worry about most: the possibility of getting revenge-jumped by high schoolers, Sheriff Tate’s threat, or losing the only friend I had in this town. So many things had gone so wrong, I couldn’t muster up much emotion for any one of them. I just felt numb. Then there was the problem of what to tell Grandma. She’d been running her business safely and secretly for over forty years, and I had messed up everything in just a few weeks.

My feet figured out the way home by themselves, though, because suddenly I was trudging up the front steps of the Intergalactic Bed and Breakfast, Mr. Harnox following.

“Do you sense the empty feeling inside of you?” he said.

What? Was he reading my mind or something? Could they do that on his planet? “I do,” I said, without even really thinking about what I was doing. Oh, man, was I actually about to pour out my secrets to an alien? Could he actually—

“Because I am experiencing the emptiness inside of me.” Mr. Harnox patted his belly. “The empty-stomach-hunger feeling that signals a need for the half-day meal.”

Oh, it was just that. “I went shopping yesterday. There’s a fresh pile of tinfoil and some bottles of bleach on the kitchen counter.” I watched him nod happily. “I got you the Jumbo Family Pack this time.”

Mr. Harnox grinned hugely. At least I was able to make one person happy.

I pulled open the front door. Mr. Harnox walked past me, heading for the kitchen. I looked around and saw that a jungle was growing in the sitting room. I didn’t miss a step, just walked inside; I guess I was getting acclimated to the weirdness of this place.

With a second glance I realized it was only a couple of giant aliens having trouble fitting into their new surroundings. And giant is no exaggeration. The ceiling in Grandma’s sitting room is as high as a basketball hoop, and the aliens’ heads brushed up against it. Well, not their heads, exactly, but they had these weird growths—antennae, maybe, which were broad and green and looked kind of like the fronds on a palm tree—sprouting out of the top of their heads. Their bodies were brownish and tube-shaped and speckled with various shades of green and yellow. Adding to their rainforest look were long arms and legs, each ending in a dozen or so plantlike tendrils.

After a few moments of staring, I realized that even though their heads reached the ceiling, they were actually sitting down with their knees scrunched up and their backs hunched over. If they stood up they would easily be taller than the house. Even though the Tourists seemed to take up the entire room, Grandma found a small clearing and stood right in front of them, looking up at the huge creatures. She crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head.

“I’m terribly sorry, sir. We try to welcome everyone here, but I’m afraid it’s just not possible.

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