Page 4 of My Alien Bughead (Supernova Casanovas #4)
Chapter 4
Lucía
Seeing me tumble down, the woman gasps. “Oh my god!” She rushes over to me. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
“Only my pride,” I reply, the excitement of meeting another human warring with embarrassment. Talk about terrible first impressions! Picking myself up from the ground, I wipe my hands over my coveralls. Somehow making my palms even dirtier.
I can’t help but stare at the two human women in front of me. The one who asked if I was hurt is a short redhead with shoulder length straight hair. The second one is taller, her skin an amazing shade of mahogany and her hair a wild mane of black curls.
They’re both clean, well-dressed, and beautiful. For the first time in years, I’m ashamed of my appearance.
A tall Syndoran is accompanying the women. His tail is protectively wrapped around the redhead’s waist and he’s constantly looking around, as if assessing for threats. His behavior is either really sweet and protective, or downright creepy, depending on whether the women are with him willingly or not. Neither of them wears a slave collar, though, nor do they act subservient in any way, so there’s a good chance they’re free like me.
My blush deepens as I realize I’ve been gawking at them all for a little too long. “Sorry,” I chuckle nervously. “I know I’m staring but I haven’t seen another human in four years. Honestly, I never thought I’d see one again and now there’s two of you. On Alevvo station, of all places!”
The dark-skinned woman smiles. “I know what that feels like. I gawked at Astra when I saw her for the first time as well. And the only reason we’re not also gasping in surprise is because the locals have already told us there’s a human living here. If they hadn’t, Astra would be squealing and throwing herself at you already.”
The redhead, Astra, playfully hip-checks the taller woman. “Oh, shut up, Nala. I did not throw myself at you when I met you.”
“Yeah.” Nala rolls her eyes. “Because you thought I was an enemy spy and had me locked up in the brig. Otherwise you totally would have.”
“She’s right, my Myále ,” the Syndoran chimes in, showing off his sharp teeth in a wide grin. “You hug strangers a lot.”
I chuckle to mask my surprise. He just called her his mate, which means they’re definitely not slaves or prisoners. The wave of relief that washes over me is so strong it helps me overcome the last vestiges of embarrassment and find my usual confidence.
So what if I’m all filthy and sweaty? I just got off work. Nobody would bat an eye over it back in my uncle’s garage and nobody will care about it here, either. “It’s amazing to meet a fellow hugger,” I say, smiling at Astra, “but I recommend we wait until I’ve showered and changed first. I’ve spent the past seven hours in a furnace and I’m afraid it shows.”
Nala and Astra exchange a cryptic look. “We heard from the locals that you work here,” Astra says hesitantly. “And we wanted to make sure that…you’re alright ?” She stresses the last word, watching the locals milling around as she speaks. Since nothing interesting ever happens on the Alevvo station, everyone is more or less subtly listening in to our conversation.
It takes a few seconds to decipher the meaning behind her words. “If you’re asking me if I’m here of my volition, then yes.” I tug down the front of my coveralls to reveal my neck. “No collar, see?”
Nala’s smile turns solemn. “That doesn’t necessarily mean anything,” she says. “There are other ways to enslave people that don’t involve collars.”
The pain in her voice suggests there’s a terrible story attached to that sentiment but I don’t ask for details. I doubt it’s the kind of story one discusses with strangers.
I reach out to comfort her, drawing my hand back when I realize how dirty my hands are. “I know there are but I can assure you, I chose to be here. The UGC got me this job, along with the necessary education, money, and pretty much a whole new life. But thank you for making sure I am free. It means a lot. Actually, I ran over here to ask you the same thing but I can see it’s unnecessary?”
I phrase my statement into a question, glancing cautiously at the Syndoran. Astra takes his hand and smiles before answering me. “It is. Tareq and his team actually rescued me from the aliens who kidnapped me. They’re the good guys, so you don’t have to worry about us. And likewise, thank you for asking.”
“I have to buy some clothes for my daughter,” Nala says, “but I’d love to talk some more. Can we meet up later?”
A daughter? These people don’t cease to surprise me. “Oh, we’ll be seeing each other a lot,” I say as I remember the reason I was delayed on my way to take a shower. “I’m supposed to help you fix your ship.”
“You are the technician Captain Zarkan hired?” Tareq asks, cocking his brow in disbelief.
“Yep. Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.” I’m not surprised he doesn’t have faith in my abilities.
To his credit, Tareq starts apologizing even before Astra elbows his stomach. “I meant no disrespect. I know humans are highly intelligent, I just didn’t think I’d meet one proficient in advanced engineering. I’m happy to have you around.” He hesitates. “Our technician won’t be, though. He’s set on doing everything himself and he’s…well, not in a good place at the moment. He might be a little rude to you.”
I shrug. “I’m used to dealing with condescending jerks. Needling them is fun and I get to rub it in their faces when they’re finally forced to acknowledge they were wrong about me.”
“You’ll love D’Aakh, then,” Astra says. “Sometimes it feels like he and Lyriana are competing for the title of biggest jerk on the ship.”
“Lyri is fine,” Nala objects. “Deep down inside, she’s really nice.”
Astra snorts. “Uh-huh. Sure. Very, very deep down.”
“Lyriana has always been like that,” Tareq says. “Ever since she joined the Voidstalkers. It’s difficult to get to know her but once you do, you’re in forever. D’Aakh, on the other hand…” He sighs. “He used to be friendly.”
Both women look at him doubtfully. “Now, that is even more difficult to imagine than Lyriana being ‘nice’,” Astra giggles. “Anyway, we should get going. Those clothes aren’t going to buy themselves. We’ll see you on the ship, uh…?”
“Lucía,” I say, wanting to smack myself but huffing out a laugh instead. “I’m sorry, I should have introduced myself. I was just so excited by meeting two other humans when I never thought I’d see another one ever again that I forgot how to act like a human myself.”
“No problem,” Astra replies, smiling. “There are actually three of us, but Nikolai has a brand new girlfriend so they’re tucked away in his room, ‘celebrating’ their relationship. Oh, and Nala here has a half-human four-year-old.”
“I love children. I can’t wait to meet her. If I may?” I ask Nala, not sure if she wants to parade her kid around strangers. I really hope she says yes, though, because I’m not lying. I really do love kids. The tiny wailing ones, the crawling drooling ones, even the tell-me-why smartass ones.
I’m friends with every single child on the Alevvo station and while I don’t have time to babysit, I always find a spare moment to play or chat with them. I’m not entirely sure about Zhuse’s snake youngling yet, but if the little python doesn’t bite or strangle me to death, I’ll probably be smooching it in no time.
Nala rolls her eyes. “I’m absolutely certain you’ll meet her whether I agree to it or not. She’s all over the ship, despite not even having any shoes. Please, tell me someone sells kids shoes here. After everything D’Aakh did to save us, the ship’s corridors are full of debris and shards. Ellen is going crazy confined to our room.”
“Of course. Ask Gz in that stall over there,” I say, pointing in the right direction. “He might have some stuff at hand and will make whatever else you need. I’ll take a quick shower and join you on your ship.”
Astra frowns. “Didn’t you say you just spent hours fixing something? Don’t you want to rest first?”
“Nah.” I wave my hand dismissively. Given the choice between sleeping and working on an actual spaceship, I’ll pick the spaceship one hundred percent of the time. Especially now that I don’t have to worry about being captured and enslaved. “Who needs sleep?”