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Mindy, who’d always seemed like a ray of sunshine with extra sunshine shooting out of his ass, sat there, arms crossed and expression hard.

He was angry I was hurting his brother, and I got it—more than that, I didn’t hold it against him.

I was angry I was hurting Don too, but I was so fucking tired of being terrified, and I was worried that if I stayed, I would hurt Don far far worse.

My eyes drifted to the open door, hoping to catch a glimpse of Don, but I didn’t.

The meeting dragged on, and I paid absolutely no attention to it.

I wanted to return to my room or to Don’s side.

Once upon a time, I’d loved rushing about and being busy, but now, I missed the slow days of us traveling and relaxing.

When Kal, Seth, and Mindy stood, I followed suit. Mindy gave another warning, which I ignored, and Kal led me and Seth out without remarking. I kept hold of Seth as we wandered through the busy area. Kal had another meeting, and me and Seth were tagging along.

A flash of purple and black caught my eyes. I whipped around. Don. He was there. I could see the back of his head moving through the crowd. Why hadn’t he come and said hello or grabbed me? Was he angry?

Don, I yelled at his retreating back.

He didn’t react.

I pulled out of Seth’s grip.

“Vince?” Seth asked.

“Vince!” Kal yelled.

“I see Don,” I called back, slipping through the crowd.

“Come back,” Kal snarled, but I ignored him.

Don was right there.

I tracked his much taller head through the mass of people, ignoring the crush of bodies, the odd odors, and the snarls as I shoved people out of the way.

I caught up and froze. The alien with purple hair was Don’s height, but they weren’t Don.

They had deep black skin, four golden eyes without pupils, slits for a nose, and no lips.

“What?” they snapped.

My hand hovered in the air and my pulse thundered in my ears. I had left Seth and Kal. I was alone on a space station with xoi, and the person I’d chased was not Don.

“Weird fucker,” the alien grumbled, walking away.

I stayed frozen in one spot as I struggled to breathe, fighting off the black dots floating through my vision and the white noise clogging my ears. No. This wasn’t happening. I was fine. Everything was fine. I just had to remain calm.

Turning around, I looked around for Kal or Seth, but I didn’t see either of them in the sea of people who crashed around me. I wasn’t even sure what direction to look or head toward; I’d paid no attention to where I’d run, following that alien… The alien who was not Don.

I took a deep breath to try and still the shaking in my hands. I just had to find the ship, and I would. It would be fine. I was hardly helpless. At that thought, my hand dove into my pocket; I had my touchstone.

“Seth Harris,” I said, moving toward the wall.

“Vince,” Seth shouted, his voice reverberating in my skull from the touchstone in my grasp. “Where the fuck are you? Why did you run?”

“I thought I saw Don. It wasn’t him.”

Seth sighed. “Vince.”

“Can you come get me? I’m next to a shop selling beetles. Why the hell do people buy beetles the size of puppies? They’re terrifying. Who wants a beetle that big?”

“I don’t know. Aliens are weird. We are coming. Don’t move. I mean it, Vince. Stay put. If Don was here, he would come. Don’t run off no matter who you see.”

“I won’t.”

“You better not,” Seth said before disconnecting.

I leaned against the wall, putting my bitch-face on, and crossed my arms. I felt like an idiot for rushing off when I thought I saw Don.

It had been like an hour, and I hated being apart.

How the fuck was I going to survive an unknown amount of time on the drakcol planet, then six months to Earth—all without Don.

My eyes closed. I didn’t know if I could do this.

I couldn’t leave him. I couldn’t. But if I stayed, I’d be a fucking selfish bastard.

Don deserved someone better than me. I wasn’t sure I would ever be able to function independently.

I wasn’t sure I could return to who I remembered myself being.

But maybe I didn’t need to. I was still… me. Both versions.

Someone grabbed my arm so fast that I had no chance to act. They wrenched it behind my back. I thrashed, heart pounding. “Let me go, you bastard.”

“Fucking xoi. I knew they cheated me of all my property,” the gravelly voice said, grip tightening.

Panic like lightning sparked through my veins. No. Not again. Never again. I tried to yank away, making my shoulder pop sickeningly, and ripped a scream from my throat. The alien kept hold of me, dragging me by my damaged arm.

“No. Help!” I shouted.

The massive alien slapped me across my face and stars danced before my eyes and blood filled my mouth.

The alien grabbed my biceps and picked me up off the ground with ease. He was huge, at least seven feet tall. He had four arms, red cracked skin, and twelve black beady eyes. His face was utterly flat, except for a set of sharp mandibles coming out of his mouth.

“Shut up. Unless you would like me to kill you now,” he ordered, mandibles clicking.

Don! I screamed. Not again. Never again. I would rather die.