Page 86 of Stardusted

My heart in my throat, I reached for the door’s knob and eased it open again. The storm hissed and crashed, and when I steeled myself and peered through the crack, Sky ducked his head to meet my eyes. His half-hearted smile came and went.

“It’s really raining out here,” he said.

Oh, and he really did look pathetic. He didn’t look like an alien. Not right now. He looked like…Sky. A soaked-to-the-skin, ashen, worried version of Sky. Rain clung to his long eyelashes and slicked his face, and when he exhaled slowly, it plumed out in a cloud of white mist.

But because I had self-preservation instincts and my common sense was trying desperately to get my attention, I hesitated a moment longer. As if he knew, he squinted against my bright porch light, his brows tented beneath his dripping dark hair.

“Please, Rae. Just give me a minute of your time. That’s all I’m asking. I’ll be gone as soon as I’ve said my piece. I’m not going to…” A muscle ticked in his cheek. “I wouldn’t hurt you.”

He whispered the last part like it pained him to even say it, and maybe it didn’t say much about that whole self-preservation thing, but it rang sincere. Something wasn’t adding up. I tried again to equate Sky to the violent alien robot I’d encountered at the university and failed.

I had questions. And he wanted to talk. The curiosity thickened and stilled some of the shaky panic, enough so I released my death grip on the door and studied him warily.

He was right. I hadn’t known him well, but I’d spent enough time with him…okay, enough time watching him to feel like I hadsomewhatof a grasp on his personality. His habits and mannerisms. Right now, he seemed genuine, his dark gaze steady and possibly even hopeful when I continued to waver in the open doorway. He swiped a hand down his wet face, blinking away droplets.

It was such a…humangesture. I sighed.

This was how I ended up getting abducted by aliens. I knew it.

I stepped back and held the door open, gesturing with mace. “Okay. Come in.”

Like he hadn’t expected me to actually let him in, Sky blinked once before recovering. He eyed the pepper spray but wisely said nothing, pausing only a moment before stepping over the threshold. I peered out into the night behind him. Nothing stirred besides the wind through the leaf-bare trees.

Just me, a tiny canister of pepper spray, and my visitor from outer space.

Here went nothing.

I locked the door and tried not to hyperventilate at Sky existing behind me. When I turned, he stood at the farthest edge of the tiny landing, hands loose at his sides, something like relief softening his features.

This was stupid. On multiple levels. Sky was in my house, and I suddenly remembered I wasn’t wearing a bra. A flush crept up my neck, and I turned my shoulder to him, hoping he hadn’t noticed the…uh, chilly temperature situation.

“Take your shoes off,” I said, for lack of anything more profound, and brushed past him to mount the stairs.

I heard the rustle as he followed my instructions, then his soft steps behind me. Panic licked at me, but I squeezed the mace and made myself keep breathing.

Too late to push the alien back out now. I had no choice but to trust he didn’t mean me any harm. At the very least, if he did, I would hope that aliens could also be incapacitated by chemical sprays.

The thought had me practically sprinting the last few stairs, and at the top, I snatched up my phone and whirled. Clutching itto my chest, I backed away and watched Sky follow me into the living space.

He was impossible to read right now. His eyes stayed on mine for a beat before sliding away to scan my apartment. They lingered on the pizza box beside the empty wine bottle on the counter then traveled to the hand-me-down couch, the cluttered coffee table stacked with my laptop, study notes, and too many empty mugs. The janky lamp cast a soft yellow light over everything.

My modest apartment felt much smaller with him in it. Even beyond the whole alien thing, it felt…odd havingSkyhere, in my space. My mess. My chaos.

If I’d known I would be having extraterrestrial guests tonight, maybe I’d have cleaned up. A hysterical snicker threatened to bubble up.

By the time Sky’s eyes returned to mine, I had the mace raised. “Okay. You wanted to talk. Here’s your chance.”

He lifted his hands slightly in anI’m-a-harmless-aliengesture. “I meant what I said. I’m not going to hurt you.”

“You come in peace?” I snorted. “Original.”

I thought it was funny, but he didn’t seem amused. His lips pressed into a tight line. His voice, however, still had that maddening calm tone. “Raven, I know this is a lot to take in. But this is serious.”

“Oh, trust me, I get it.” I jerked my chin up, tightening my grip. I lifted my phone with my other hand. “I will call the police if you don’t start talking. You’ve got five seconds to give me a reason I shouldn’t spray you and run until someone carts you off to…to wherever the new Area 51 is.”

Sky’s temple bulged like he was grinding his teeth. Streaks of drying rain glistened on his forehead and cheeks, and he dragged a hand down his face once more, not quite maskinghis quiet, frustrated grunt. “Okay. Okay, I get it. Just give me a second…”

Once a second passed, I hoisted the phone and mace higher in warning.