by J. Judkins
It took several more seconds before Kim could relax the grip on her chest and regain adequate control of her breathing. “You nearly gave me a heart attack!”
Angel seemed taken aback. “I’m sorry.”
Kim threw herself into Angel’s arms, overcome with unexpected emotion. “I didn’t . . . I couldn’t . . . dear God, Angel, never do that again!”
Angel’s arms wrapped around Kim in a warm embrace. “I love you, too,” she whispered.
It dawned on Kim that she’d been babbling. “Did I just say . . . ?”
“No, you didn’t. Not right then. But you did tell me you loved me this morning. Don’t forget.”
Kim remembered. She remembered that moment all too well.
The pressure of the hug increased to a level just shy of painful. “You’re not allowed to take that back, by the way.”
“Wouldn’t think of it,” Kim managed to gasp.
Chapter Three
Kim slipped on her sunglasses as she stepped outside. She hugged her jacket more tightly about her to ward against the cold autumn air. “I thought you’d chased out the normal employees. Where is everybody?”
“I believe they escaped to the other building,” Angel said.
The building she indicated was a much smaller structure, seemingly constructed out of glass and steel. A small group of people stood assembled just outside. Apparently, their arrival had not gone unnoticed. All of them silently glowered at her.
Kim waved to them. None waved back.
Still resentful about being chased out. Got it. Kim took Angel’s arm and hurried her along. “Let’s go before one of them finds a sniper rifle.”
Once past the outer gate, they followed the private road to where it intersected with the city streets. Angel had hidden Kim’s Corolla behind one of the few trees in the area; Kim approved of the tactic. Approaching drivers would have had difficulty noticing the vehicle, although it would be plain to see for employees leaving for the day and coming from the other direction.
Angel nonchalantly tossed her bag in the back seat before getting in on the passenger side. “Where to?”
Kim fussed with her driver’s seat preferences. Her forced meeting with Harrison that morning and Angel’s subsequent rescue hadn’t even lasted an hour. She could still show up late for work, but there was also the new job to consider. Should she return to her old job and finish the day, or simply quit? It might be worth showing up just to be able to say, “Sorry I’m late, I was kidnapped,” and have it be the truth.
The idea of quitting without notice didn’t sit well with her. She’d worked at GDI Industries for the better part of a decade. That sort of long-term dedication demanded a certain amount of loyalty, loyalty she couldn’t just easily set aside.
Kim pulled into the light late-morning traffic, her destination still undecided.
While the details and specifics for her and Angel’s new “alien investigation” job were sketchy at best, Kim never once doubted that the job was real. The fact that Angel existed was proof of it, although one needed to jump through several logical hoops in order to reach that specific conclusion.
Kim still wasn’t certain if Angel was an alien scout, as she claimed, or whether she was the final result of the creative use of captured alien technology, as Harrison claimed. In either case, the results were the same: Aliens had to be real, because nothing else could explain Angel. This in turn implied that the job hunting aliens was real. To quote the movie Die Hard, they hadn’t been hired for their charming personality.
Speaking of which . . . “Why were you against me taking the job?” Kim asked.
“Because we’d be working for Dr. Harrison,” Angel said, “and I don’t trust him.”
“But isn’t this exactly the sort of job you wanted? You’ve always been interested in finding out more about yourself.”
“My personal history doesn’t matter to me.” Angel held up a hand before Kim could object. “I wanted to find out more about my people and their purpose here, but only for the purpose of rejecting them decisively. It isn’t more complicated than that.”
“While you were busy denouncing them, you sounded as if you knew everything about them.”
“A lot of what I believe to be true is guesswork at this point,” Angel admitted.
Kim bit back a response. Any other person might label what Angel had done as “making things up as she went along.” It wasn’t a point worth pursuing, though. Open doubt would be counterproductive.
“You’ve always worked under the assumption the aliens hoped to conquer the world,” Angel said. “We need more information to prove or disprove your theory. If it turns out to be true, I’ll assist you in stopping them.”
“Why involve yourself?”
“Because of you.”
Kim’s brow furrowed. “That’s it? Because of me? You want to save the world because you thought I wouldn’t like it if my world were invaded? That’s your only reason?”
“Because it would make you happy, yes.”
“You’re hoping to save the world . . . to impress me?”
Angel smiled a wistful smile. “Could there be a better reason?”
As an avid consumer of science fiction in all its varied forms, Kim knew professional spies and adventurer types would save the world for a host of different reasons. Some would be motivated by a pressing desire to do the right thing, or out of a sense of duty, or because “saving the world” was practically in their job description and they were damned good at it.
But to do it to impress the girl? To save the world for love? For romance? That implied that saving the world was incidental.
“Thank you. I think.”
“Ultimately, I want you to be happy. I want you to love me in return.”
Kim turned away to hide her embarrassment. Apparently, she’d misunderstood. Angel’s emphasis hadn’t been on saving the world, with “getting the girl” as a side bonus. She wanted to save the world in order to get the girl.
Leave it to Angel to do things backward.
“In the past, you’ve argued against me finding out more about myself,” Angel said. “Given that, why did you go out of your way to take the job?”
“Don’t get me wrong,” Kim cautioned. “I’m still against it. There’s no way to know what you’ll discover.”
“Then, why take the job? It seems counterproductive.”
Kim took a moment to consider her answer.
This was tricky business. While in the process of gathering evidence to prove her origin story, Angel had discovered Harrison’s employers were in the business of reverse-engineering captured alien technology. Kim had become so enamored with the idea of snapping up alien toys that she’d jumped at the chance to join up. It seemed like a dream come true.
It hadn’t registered until much later that this was exactly the sort of investigative work she didn’t want Angel doing. Others might label her a cynic, but Kim thought herself a realist. She’d seen the pattern countless times in science fiction stories over the years. Love of space travel trumped romantic love. A boring life on Earth couldn’t possibly compare to life among the stars.
Angel openly rejecting her alien heritage would normally be a point in her favor, but Kim suspected that Angel still didn’t actually remember the history she claimed to reject. Her statements therefore lacked a certain credibility.
“I took the job because we’re going to end up investigating anyway,” Kim said. “Might as well get paid to do it.”
In retrospect, she didn’t regret her decision. Someone needed to take the alien invasion threat seriously, and government agents in the movies always screwed things up. The aliens would inevitably escape with all their high-tech toys, and nothing would change.
Kim tightened her grip on the steering wheel. The thought of losing all that technology made her blood run cold. I can’t let that happen!
A nearby gas station caught her eye. She glanced at the fuel gauge; half a tank remained. It w
as a good enough excuse for her to stop, fill up, and consider her plans for the day.
“I need to quit my old job, but I need a good reason,” she said. “Any ideas?”
“What’s wrong with the truth?”
Kim snorted at the absurdity of it. “Think about it, Angel. As of today, we’re working for a nondescript and possibly nonexistent investigative branch of a company that shall remain nameless. We’re supposed to be operating below the radar. The fewer who know, the better.”
“Why give your employer a reason at all?”
“My boss deserves some sort of explanation. I’ve worked there for years. I’d feel guilty if I just quit.”
Kim signaled her turn and pulled up to the gas pumps, deliberately going out of her way to park out of the glare of the sun. She fished out her credit card. “Do you want anything?”
“No, thank you.”
She found two extra dollars and handed them to Angel. “Would you go inside and buy a lottery ticket?”
Angel cocked her head. “Surely you’re aware that the odds against winning are—”
“Yeah, I know.”
“If you’re aware, why buy a ticket?”
“People buy them because it’s nice to imagine winning,” Kim said, and stepped outside. She ran her credit card through the reader and selected the medium grade. “Yeah, I know it’s a blatant waste of money, but someone’s got to win eventually.”
Angel closed the passenger side door behind her. “Is money important to you?” she asked.
“I know money can’t buy happiness, but I love the idea of having the freedom to do whatever you want to do, whenever you feel like doing it. How could that not be good?”
“I see.”
Angel disappeared into the convenience store, and Kim’s thoughts returned to her employment dilemma. Should she claim a family emergency, or call in sick?
I’m dropping my old job to take a new one hunting aliens. I suppose I’m going to have to lie eventually, no matter what.
Angel stood waiting while Kim finished up and replaced the gas nozzle. Both then reentered the Corolla. Angel handed the lottery ticket to Kim, who placed it behind the sun visor and promptly forgot about it.
“I’ve given the matter some thought,” Angel said. “Why not say you took a plane and eloped with your new girlfriend? During the honeymoon, you found a local job and decided to stay. No one would question you for not returning.”
Kim’s blood chilled at the suggestion. “Oh, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
Angel seemed to be thinking about it, and Kim abruptly remembered with a shock of near heart-stopping proportions that Angel didn’t have a sense of sarcasm, and was probably interpreting her words as a serious suggestion.
Her eyes remained fixed on the road as she eased into traffic. Slip-ups like that were dangerous. She needed to quell this now, before it got out of hand. “Eloping is a bad idea.”
“It could work,” Angel mused.
“I don’t think so.”
“Granted, we don’t have the details as of yet, but together, we could create a good story. All we have to do is tell a few friends, and we could—”
“Are you kidding me?”
“If you’d rather not involve anyone else . . .”
“I don’t have any close friends to tell,” Kim said, then realized in horror that a notable lack of friends would make an elopement easier to accomplish, not harder. No friends to invite meant nothing was stopping them. They could get married right away!
Kim tried to keep a straight face. She cared deeply for Angel, but still wasn’t sure what it all meant. Angel was Kim’s first kiss. Her first relationship. Her first in practically everything. They’d barely known each other for a month. Wasn’t a month too early to talk about marriage and lifetime commitments?
Apparently, Angel didn’t think so. She had made her feelings abundantly clear, and had told Kim she loved her on several occasions. It took effort for Kim to tell Angel she loved her in return. It hadn’t been at a time of her choosing, but she didn’t regret doing it.
Now, she was paying the price. Actions had consequences.
This new development certainly fit the pattern. A casual observer might look at Angel and conclude she didn’t care about getting married one way or the other. They’d mistake her casual demeanor and indifferent expression for a complete and utter lack of interest. They’d assume the thought of marriage had never crossed her mind.
They’d be wrong. Angel was not one to be underestimated. Her flippant comment mere moments ago was all the evidence Kim needed. She’d seen the pattern demonstrated countless times in anime and science fiction throughout the years. The facts couldn’t be denied.
To a romantic like Angel, two people confessing their love meant the final obstacles had been overcome. She must have concluded marriage was the final step in a serious relationship.
This is ridiculous. When exactly did Angel decide she wanted to get married, anyway? We haven’t even been intimate for an entire week, and now she wants to make it permanent and get married? What prompted her to think this way?
Kim hadn’t proposed to her. She hadn’t even said anything that could potentially be misinterpreted as a proposal.
At least, she didn’t think she had.
She hadn’t, had she?
“Did I ask you to marry me?” Kim asked.
Angel spun to face her.
“That wasn’t a proposal,” Kim added. “I was only wondering if I had or not.”
“No. You haven’t.”
Kim breathed a sigh of relief. Good to know Angel wasn’t planning the wedding ceremony without the technicality of being asked.
But she wasn’t out of the woods yet. Angel often came up with inaccurate conclusions based on flimsy evidence without even realizing it. She might see Kim’s reluctance as positive reinforcement, instead of as a deterrent. In fact, it was entirely possible that if Kim even hinted at marriage while talking about something else, Angel would interpret her words as a deeply sincere marriage proposal, backed with full intent.
“I think you’re misunderstanding me,” Angel said, interrupting Kim’s thoughts. “My elopement idea was merely an idea. I didn’t mean to imply that we actually should—”
“I don’t think we should,” Kim blurted. Her thoughts skipped and jumped. If I tell her I don’t want to elope, will she assume I’d rather have a big wedding?
“Yes, you said that already,” Angel said.
Kim jerked back. Already? She’d told her twice? When did that happen?
“You were looking for suggestions—”
“It’s nothing against you, Angel, but we’ve only been”—Kim’s hands twisted, searching for words that wouldn’t embarrass her—“doing . . . stuff for barely a week. I’d rather not be tied down at this stage in our relationship.”
Angel seemed to consider her words. “I believe I understand,” she said.
“Good.”
“Is this a bondage thing?”
“No, not being tied down isn’t a bondage thing,” Kim snapped. “I’m talking about the two of us getting married.”
“I thought as much,” Angel sighed. “And you’d rather not do it now.”
“Or in the near future,” Kim confirmed.
“Then we’re in agreement.”
“There are reasons why we shouldn’t,” Kim insisted once again.
“As you say.”
Kim gave up, mentally throwing her hands in the air in exasperation. This was an exercise in futility. She’d have to find a better way to convince Angel she wasn’t interested. “How about we change the subject?”
“You were worried about a cover story to explain quitting your job. I merely suggested telling your boss that the two of us had eloped. It doesn’t matter if we actually elope or not. That part of the story is irrelevant. I’m only suggesting that we could pretend.”
“You know that pretending isn’t official, Angel,” Kim retorted. �
��That isn’t what I want.”
Angel turned away in a huff to stare out the window, evidently frustrated her spur-of-the-moment matrimony plans weren’t turning out as she’d hoped. “I’m not talking about actual marriage,” she said at last. “This isn’t about the two of us getting married. We don’t have to make it official. You simply tell them. Nothing more.”
“That isn’t legally binding. We’re not getting married.”
“You misunderstand. I’m not asking you to marry me,” Angel told her, her voice rising. “In fact, I never once asked you to marry me.”
Kim let out a frustrated sigh. “Don’t I get a choice in the matter?”
“This isn’t a trap, Kim.”
“Well, it certainly sounds like one! Why are you always in such a rush?”
“I’m not rushing into anything. As you’ve said repeatedly, we’ve known each other for only a few weeks.”
Recognizing she was becoming hopelessly distracted, Kim pulled to the side of the road, shifted the lever to park, and cut the ignition.
“It doesn’t matter how long we’ve known each other,” Kim said. “Marriage should be something way off in the distant future. It should be a special event, not some sort of spur-of-the-moment decision.”
Angel seemed as if she were all but grinding her teeth in frustration. “Please understand. This isn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision.”
Sensing she had pushed things too far, Kim gave ground. “I know you were looking forward to it, but we should really give it some time. In fact, we should give it some time before we even start discussing it.”
Angel closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them, she looked serene and calm. “If you insist on waiting, that’s perfectly fine with me,” she stated without even a hint of resentment.
“Why don’t we discuss it later?” The placating tactic had never worked in the past, but this time, Kim hoped for a different result.
“Fine,” Angel said stiffly.
