Eating Stars by angel martinez

Author:angel martinez [Martinez, Angel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Mischief Corner Books

Chapter Six

The new dwelling seemed a temporary sort, more like a spaceport cabin than a place to call home. There were no facilities for Serjeh to prepare himself food, for one, and the single room offered no separation, something humans seemed to need.

Een didn't completely understand what had happened. Other humans, humans in authority, had arrived and had upset Serjeh. They had frightened him, then threatened him. Whether the other humans had meant harm or whether Serjeh merely thought so didn't seem important in that moment when the closest human had drawn a weapon. He couldn't stand by and watch his host, his friend, hurt for trying to protect him.

Perhaps panicking and throwing the melai hadn't been the best choice, but it was only supposed to keep them still until more reasonable thinking prevailed. The melai had paralyzed them, yes, but also rendered them unconscious and, according to Serjeh, had stolen bits of memory. He should have realized that reactions would be unpredictable with unfamiliar physiology.

He hadn't been thinking except to protect Serjeh. Perhaps he had committed a crime. It made him dizzy to think so, his joints aching from worry. Serjeh had been on his pocket communication device for some time, seeming more and more agitated as he paced and spoke. He had smiled for Een, said everything would be okay, and had left the temporary dwelling.

If only he'd had a little more time to understand this new world before having to face it. With no knowledge of social or governing structures, he was at a loss, anxious over how grave the situation actually was. What if Serjeh now felt he was too much of a risk? What if he had abandoned Een in this place? At least he had left the larger data device. Een tried to bury himself in language study, devouring concepts and context, wishing Serjeh was there to answer questions.

Serjeh would come back. He would. Een trusted him. Liked him. More than liked. He had never felt so comfortable and companionable with any other alien being. While the rational part of him said that he couldn't understand the motives of a being he could barely speak to, every fiber of his physical being said that Serjeh was just as he seemed—patient, gentle, and compassionate.

The first sharp aches in his lim surprised him as he struggled through information on federal agents. He dismissed it as the aftermath of throwing melai, something he hadn't had any need to do since he'd matured and taken mates. But the pain grew worse as he waited for Serjeh, and when he reached up to touch one of the lim, the outer covering was tender.

He had been expecting it, of course, just not so soon. It was probably for the best that this came now. Serjeh didn't deserve to be driven from his home, and with Een gone, he would be able to return to his life.

Serjeh returned before full dark with packages and furtive looks out their single small window.

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