Page 4

Aldo

The alarm for the oven beeps and I quickly run over in order to take the brownies out of the oven. They turned out perfect if I say so myself. They’re still a little gooey in the middle while the sides have the perfect crunch. One side has walnuts and the other has chocolate chips, that way Gendry has a variety of brownies to pick from.

I have no idea if aliens even like brownies but I sure hope so. This is my way into his good graces. My mama taught me that men can always be won over with food and I’m hoping the same can be said for tall, purple, sexy aliens. It would be incredibly awkward if I found out he’s allergic to chocolate or aliens can’t have fudge or something like that.

I let them cool before cutting them and arranging them on a plate. The plate is one I painted myself, covered in red mushrooms and a little fairy house in the middle. It’ll be a good way to keep the conversation going if it stalls at any point. Plus, I can leave it at his house and have a reason to see him again in the future.

The only issue I see happening is the whole language difference. I could try some charades. I’m not so sure my phone can translate alien dialect yet and I don’t necessarily want to rely on our other neighbor to translate for us. Especially not with what I’m hoping will eventually happen.

I can just picture his annoyed look as I ask him to translate ‘would you like to come back to my place so I can ride you like a cowboy?’

I am a very stubborn man and when I put my mind to something, I make it happen. One way or another, I will figure out how to talk to Mr. Tall, Purple, and Sexy.

Quickly checking my reflection one last time, I head outside my apartment to the door beside my own. I give it a knock and wait. A moment passes. And then another. Finally, Gendry opens the door.

His eyes widen as he looks down at me. His eyes land on my hair, staying there for a long time. I wish I could read him, but I don’t know him well enough to piece together the emotions playing across his face.

“Hi,” I say, lifting up my free hand and waving at him.

“Hi,” he says back, smiling at me. He holds up a finger before turning around and darting back inside his house. I’m assuming the gesture was meant to mean wait a moment, so that’s exactly what I do.

It only takes a few minutes before Gendry is back, looking awkward and shy, which is really at war with his stature. He’s large and in charge, yet so timid and shy. I’m surprised by how into it I am.

Gendry hands me a little device. I turn it over in my hand before realization dawns on me. I carefully put it into my right ear. Gendry reaches over, pressing something and his large finger crushes against the outside of my ear. A shiver runs down my spine at the simple touch.

“There,” he says, “can you understand me now?”

I blink a few times, trying to understand what’s happening. The ear with the device somehow understands what he’s saying but the ear that’s open still hears his low, guttural language. It leaves my head spinning.

My free hand goes to my ear, covering it as tightly as I can. “Try again?”

“Can you understand me?”

My face lights up with delight and my insides spark with warmth. “Oh my god! I can understand you!”

Gendry smiles so wide that his little fangs show. They are just as adorable as the first time I saw them. I can’t stop looking at his face, taking him in, checking out every detail.

“The device,” Gendry explains. “I brought it from my home planet.”

“That’s fascinating. I didn’t realize you had such technology!”

“We have much, but we choose to live simple lives as much as possible.”

“I would love to hear about it,” I tell him. I hold up the brownies. “Can I come inside? You can tell me stories of your home planet and in exchange, you can have some of my homemade brownies.”

“Brownies?”

I point at my plate. “They’re a chocolate dessert. Some of them have nuts and some of them have more chocolate. Would you like to try them?”

Gendry looks at the plate before nodding. “I would like to try them. Thank you, Aldo.” He opens the door and I follow him inside. His apartment is scarce, but that’s not entirely surprising. I’m sure he wasn’t allowed to bring all his belongings when he came to Earth.

“You need some more color, Gendry,” I comment, looking around. “Some paintings or something.”

“I was told I was not allowed to add color,” he says, his brows wrinkled. We walk over to his breakfast island in his kitchen. He pulls out two little plates, setting one in front of me and one across from me.

“You’re not allowed to paint the walls, but you’re allowed to have decorations.”

Gendry shakes his head. “I do not want to get too many things. I’m leaving soon and can only take the bags I brought.”

“How soon is soon?”

“About a year. It already feels like it will be too soon. There are so many things I still wish to do.”

I carefully place two brownies on his plate, one with nuts and one with chocolate chips. He smiles at me before taking a bite. I watch as his face morphs into surprise and then delight before he’s eating the entire thing in three bites. I really shouldn’t find that so adorable.

“Oh,” he breathes out, looking back at me. “That was wonderful! You made these?”

“Yeah. It’s my mother’s recipe!”

“She is a genius. These are delicious.”

“Thank you.” Gendry eats the other one just as quickly, eyeing the plate. I roll my eyes and place two more in front of him. “What other things are you hoping to experience while you’re here?”

I have to keep remembering to cover up my other ear while Gendry is talking but otherwise, I can understand him perfectly. His voice is incredibly soothing, the kind I wouldn’t mind falling asleep to. Or hearing huskily in my ear while we’re fuc--

“Christian calls it a bucket list? Things I wish to do before I leave. So far I have too many things and I just keep adding more.”

“Like what? Give me an example.”

“Like soccer! Have you ever played before? I found a match on the TV and it looks amazing. I want to try it.”

“I’ve played soccer before,” I tell him with a grin. “I play all the time with my cousins! We try to get together weekly to play. My family is from Mexico and there we call it football.”

“That’s what I told Christian! It makes more sense because you’re kicking it with your feet.”

My grin stretches so wide my face hurts. It’s been so long since I’ve felt like this, so connected to someone so quickly. Talking with Gendry is easy. He’s so laid back and excited about life in a way a lot of people take for granted.

“My cousins and I take our games pretty seriously,” I tell him with a smile. “Sometimes we bring new people to join but they can only come a second time if we all voted to keep them around. I’ve had past boyfriends kicked out before because of how they acted on the field.”

“Will you teach me?”

“It would be my honor to teach you,” I say. “What else is on your list?”

“I wish to pet a cat. I hear they’re the perfect pet and I haven’t met one yet.”

“There’s a shelter not far from here. We can go volunteer sometime.”

“Together?”

For some reason, my heart skips a beat at the question. Am I really volunteering myself to help Gendry with his Earth bucket list? I’ve sworn off dating, but that was before I knew an alien had moved in next door. It would be fun to mess around with Gendry and find out if all his appendages are size appropriate to the rest of him, but I’m also terrified of growing attached only to have him fly back to his home planet, leaving me heartbroken and alone all over again.

“Yeah,” I say, ignoring all the what ifs and worries. “We can do it together.”

“I would like that. I would like that a lot, Aldo. You are very kind.”

“Oh umm, it’s no big deal. Just being a friendly neighbor,” I say, ignoring the way my cheeks heat at the soft words. Is this an alien thing, to be so forward with one's feelings? Doesn’t he know, here on Earth, we hide shit like that from each other?

“These brownies, they are just a welcome gift?”

“Yeah, something like that. I just wanted to say hello and give you a treat.”

“A human welcome custom,” Gendry says, nodding his head. “Thank you for including me in this gesture. I will remember it for the future.”

Oh great, now I’m accidentally teaching him fake customs. Not that this is fake, because it really is a thing for some neighbors to give each other baked goods when they move in, but also, depending on the area, it’s not the norm. It’s fine. Christian is his friend and will make sure to explain it better for him. Hopefully.

“Your friend, from across the hall.”

“Christian?”

“Yes. How do you know him?”

“He came to Deltourah during the HLE. He was there for three years before deciding to come back to Earth. When he declared he would come here, I offered to come as well. Instead of staying for three years, I signed up to stay for only one.”

“Interesting,” I say, reaching out and taking a brownie for myself. “Did he not like being there? No offence of course. I’m sure your planet is lovely.”

Gendry tilts his head to the side, thinking. “I cannot say for certain, but I have a guess.”

“Is this some sort of tea? I love tea.”

“Tea? This is not a drink.”

“No, sorry. Umm, there’s a phrase here that means like sharing gossip. You’re spilling the tea.”

“Oh, I see. Yes, I have some tea to spill,” he says slowly, testing out the phrase.

I feel my heart swell within my chest. Just that one sentence has my belly erupting with butterflies. I really shouldn’t find that so adorable but add in the fact that Gendry is built like a brick house yet speaks with such softness, I am a goner.

“Let’s hear it.”

“I think that Christian fell for my Toralleh . Our leader. The two of them always had an antagonizing relationship, but beneath that I believe there were feelings. Something happened that put an even bigger wedge between them and that is when Christian decided to come back here.”

“Oh,” I breathe out, crossing my arm across my middle and leaning back in my seat. “They’re quite literally star-crossed lovers. But this can’t be how their story ends, right? Surely Christian will go back for your Toralleh ,” I ask, testing out the word.

“I think he will,” Gendry says, full of confidence. “Christian will follow his heart.”

“Following your heart sounds like such a fairytale trope.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s like in movies or story books. When everything is said and done, the main characters learn to follow their heart and somehow, that’s always the perfect choice for the situation. I’m not sure real life is quite that straightforward but it’s a lovely notion.”

“I think I understand,” Gendry says slowly. “You are, what is the word, a cynic?”

My mouth drops open in a gasp. “Gendry!” He smirks at me and oh boy, there goes those flutters again. “How dare you! I will have you know that I am the furthest thing to a cynic! I am capable of whimsy and wonder! I just choose not to at the moment.”

“And why not?”

“If you must know,” I say, letting my voice trail off.

“Yes, Aldo, spill the tea.”

I can’t help but giggle. I’m creating a monster and I love it. “I’ve given up following my heart for a little while. I’ve been burned too many times by men.” Gendry’s eyes widen and I can’t help myself. Before going on, I add, “ human men. I’ve had the most rotten luck and I’m ready to give up on human men all together.”

Gendry looks down at the plate in front of him, the tiniest smile playing at his lips. Very softly he says, “that is good to know. About the human men, that is.”

“Yes, well. Don’t let it go to your head. Just because I’m open to an alien suitor doesn’t mean you’ll win me over so easily.”

“That sounds like a challenge.”

I give Gendry a wink. “Maybe it is.”