by Jessica Cole
“It’s going to be okay. I’m right here.” A metal chair screeched across the tile and the sound made Jana cringe. She felt a hand on her forearm, but kept her eyes glued shut. His touch felt like comfort; that was the only way to describe it. She felt herself getting tired, exhaustion creeping in, body begging her to recoup some energy so it could fight off this new invader. “I swear I won’t leave you. I’m so sorry.” The moment before Jana fell asleep, her eyes fluttered open once more, and she saw Aeronth’s face.
When Jana finally came-to, he was still there. His hair was more disheveled than usual and dark circles rimmed his beautiful gray eyes. Asleep, hand in hers, Aeronth looked peaceful. Jana managed a smile and remained perfectly still to not rouse him. I care about him a lot. Does he even know? He has to. But whether or not he felt anything for her beyond wanting to appease her for the sake of their secrets, she couldn’t know.
24. Zephyr
“Please fasten harnesses. We’ll be landing in one minute.” The pilot’s voice boomed from the intercom. The small ship was shaky upon entry. Civilian transport pilots weren’t exactly the top of their class in flight training. Jana’s stomach churned, and she gripped the armrests tightly. Some privately owned ships could give a military model a decent run for their money, but the mainstream, run-of-the-mill ships were simply no match. The hardware used in civilian ships was budget-friendly, their components watered down versions of military technology, and were not licensed to have any type of gun mount.
Excitement was far from Jana’s mind as she and the others watched out the windows. Hundreds of thousands of pinprick lights dotted the ebony arc. As they came closer, she felt the shudder of the ship as it entered the bubble of atmosphere surrounding the colony. The sleek buildings reached up like glittering mountains.
Jana was all too happy to be off the transport. The asphalt ground had a palpable springiness to it. Absentmindedly, Jana pressed her toes into the ground. Vehicles glided over the roadway, hovering inches above the paved surface. There was no definite day and night in the colonies. Much like the military stations, people came and went as they pleased. Special energy fields blocked harmful rays from the nearest star.
Being here was odd. It didn’t feel right. It’d been ten years since she’d been around anyone who wasn’t military, aside from the occasional assignment out of the station. When her turn for leave came around each time, she’d never taken it. This life never appealed to her.
David touched her arm, urging her forward out onto the platform. The buildings towered above them, some more than sixty stories. “We’re staying in a hotel called ‘The Zephyr’ in the business district.” He pulled out a small, square piece of plexiglass trimmed with black rubber, and tapped it twice. A spot of white light at the center spider-webbed out into a latticework of roads and points of interest, a red dot flashing at its center. “Zephyr Hotel”. A line danced across the glass, connecting the flashing dot with a tiny blue square.
“It’s this way,” Jana said, pointing straight ahead. She started off in that direction. The others simply followed.
“Been here before?” Lexi asked.
“You could say that,” Jana replied dryly. They followed the lieutenant as she twisted through the streets. Everyone was admiring the glass buildings as they passed. They wore unofficial uniforms with no insignia, but it was one well recognized by the general public. People who passed by them nodded their head in appreciative acknowledgement. Jana felt uncomfortable under the public eye; she couldn’t wait to get back to the station.
The colony was separated into districts. There was the business district, the industrial district, and the residential district. These were broken into blocks, which were not really blocks, but smaller sections of the districts they were part of. Some of the blocks were upscale, and others were less well off. Down the street was a gigantic building. An enormous lighted sign blazed brightly across the otherwise darkly hued landscape. The streetlights’ glow pooled at regular intervals along the roadway and accompanying sidewalks.
The hotel lobby was comfortably populated. All around them, people dragged their luggage over the gold and white marbled tile floor. The walls and ceiling were gold, with milky white pillars spaced throughout.
“Welcome to the Zephyr. I’ll be taking you to your rooms. Your things have already been brought here from the docking station, awaiting you upstairs.”
“Well, hello there,” Lexi said, stepping closer to the bellhop. Out of the corner of her eye, Jana noticed that Aeronth was rolling his eyes. After her injections, when she was in and out of consciousness, she’d felt him there with her, watching her, holding her hand. But after she’d woken up, nothing. He was nowhere to be found. At the ship, she couldn’t tell if he was avoiding her, or the other way around. Either way, Jana wasn’t sure where to go from here.
The elevator was like a rocket in a glass tube, and she was absolutely mortified to be pressed in next to Aeronth. We have a whole week here. Maybe this is my chance to get this all figured out. A bell dinged, and an electronic voice said, “Level twenty-six” as the doors opened smoothly.
The bellhop brought them to the section of hallway their rooms were located in. Jana looked at the door to hers. The room was on the inner side of the hotel.
“Hey David, what’s your room number?” she called out to him.
“Twenty-six thirty-three.”
“Excuse me, “she said to the bellhop.
“Yes?”
“I can’t stay in this room.”
“Is something wrong with it?”
“Yes. I mean no...there’s nothing wrong with the room. Are there any rooms available on the other side of the hallway?”
“I don’t believe so,” he said, pulling out a screen similar to David’s map. “No, sorry. There’s a few on the floor above us. It’s a big holiday week,” he explained. “We could move your things up there.”
“No, it’s fine.” She sighed.
“You can have my room,” Aeronth offered.
Jana looked at him with hooded eyes. “Are you sure? Thank you!”
He nodded, motioning with an outstretched arm. “It’s only a room. Here, I’ll help you switch your luggage.”
Maybe my luck is finally turning around.
25. The Awkward Outing
Aeronth refused to let her move the stuff herself, instructing her to sit on the bed and wait. He scooped up his two black duffel bags and disappeared into the hallway. When he returned with her luggage, she was sprawled out and staring at the ceiling.
“Are you hungry?”
Is he asking me out to dinner? Jana bolted upright and narrowed her eyes at him. “What?”
“The others were asking if we all wanted to go have dinner. I told them I’d ask you.” He crossed his arms and waited for her response.
If I say no, would he go with them and leave me here alone? Or would he skip out, too, and stay here? Jana was too mortified to ask him. Her best bet was to just go along with it. They had a whole week; at some point, she’d find a way to get time alone with him.
“I’m starving. Let’s go with them.”
He shrugged. “Alright, I’ll let them know. David said they were leaving in an hour. I’ll catch you later.”
The bed was excruciatingly comfortable, an enormous four-poster draped with sage green fabric. A mural of the universe dotted the walls and ceiling of the dark room, an explosion of color. It took a lot of inner conflict for Jana to get out of bed. She splashed water on her face, and it felt wonderful. She opened the glass door to the shower and clapped her hands together. It was gigantic, with an overhead sprayer and tiled bench. If nothing else, this room was worth the stress of being where they were.
Not wanting to look like a bedraggled poodle, she towel-dried her hair after the shower. With no idea of where they were going, Jana donned a clean unmarked uniform and tied her long hair into a braid.
Her bed was calling to her, and within minutes, she was already doz
ing off. The door buzzed loudly. Aeronth came in. “We’ve been waiting for you. What were you doing?”
Jana yawned. “I fell asleep. How did you get in here?”
“Sorry, I forgot to give you the key.” He averted her gaze. David appeared behind him. “Is that how you get dressed up?” he grinned.
She rolled herself off the bed. “What can I say, I’m low maintenance.”
David chuckled. “Alright, let’s get going.”
Everyone else had changed into more comfortable clothing. Aeronth was in his usual jeans and black t-shirt, his hair unkempt as ever. The group left the hotel.
The walk to the restaurant was short, but not as short as Lexi’s dress. It looked like it’d been painted on with a roller, and barely covered her...assets. Half a block from the hotel, she was already complaining about her feet hurting. The shoes she wore looked like weapons, and with them on she towered over Jana. Lexi beelined for Jana and pulled her to the side, clutching at her arm.
“Are you honestly using me to support your weight right now?” Jana raised her brows.
“Shh. Beauty is painful. If I’d have known you were coming out like this, I’d have saved you. You’re itty-bitty, but I think I have a few things that might work for you. Just like playing dress-up with a doll.”
Jana frowned and gestured to her uniform. “What’s wrong with this?”
Lexi glared at Jana and ignored the question. “I’d kill for your bone structure and skin tone, kiddo. You don’t even know how lucky you are, do you?” Jana shrugged and Lexi looked positively disgusted. “Ugh. What a travesty.”
Jana glanced down at Lexi’s green dress. How the hell does that even stay down when she walks? Lexi caught her looking. “Spray glue on the thighs and ass. There’s nothing sadder than an insecure girl who spends all night pulling her dress back down. Oh honey, there are so many things I could teach you if you’d let me.”
Gordon held the door open for them all when they entered. Jana was the last one seated at the table, and ended up between Aeronth and Lexi. She couldn’t decide whether that was a stroke of luck or a bad omen. When the waitress came a few minutes later, they ordered. Aeronth was still trying to decide what to drink. The waitress began flirting with him, joking and touching his arm, laughing and smiling. Frankly, it made Jana sick. When she tried to ignore it and order her food, it took her three tries to get the girl to notice she was speaking.
“By the way, I’m Michelle,” she told Aeronth.
“Yes, that’s wonderful,” Jana stated. “Now, I’d like...”
“Are you from around here?” she asked him, ignoring Jana entirely.
“No, he’s not. But if you would please—“
“What’s your name?” Jana’s face began to turn red. The others were looking on amusedly, waiting for someone to make a move. It must have looked like a badly written soap opera. Jana felt hot anger welling inside her. When Michelle finally took notice of her, she actually seemed surprised, as if Jana hadn’t been talking to her for nearly five minutes. “Yeah?”
“Finally,” she snapped.
“Woah, chill out. There’s no need to throw a tantrum.”
“Just do your job and take our orders. Then, I wouldn’t have a problem.”
“You can’t talk to me like that,” Michelle replied defensively.
“Watch me,” Jana spat. “I can’t deal with this. You guys go ahead and eat. I’m not hungry.” Jana pushed herself back from the table, but Lexi put a hand on her back to stop her.
“No, Jana, don’t leave,” she began. “Excuse me,” Lexi turned her attention to the waitress, “we’d like to see your manager, please.”
“What?” Michelle asked stupidly.
“Now,” Lexi ordered.
The waitress had no choice. They got a new server, ordered, and the food arrived promptly. Michelle was taken into the kitchen, and before the door had swished closed, the group heard her getting an earful from the manager. No establishment wanted a reputation for being rude to military personnel.
“Did you see her face when her boss came over?” Lexi laughed. The dinner talk continued, but Jana took no part in it. She was embarrassed, and it made her feel awkward and uncomfortable.
“What the hell are you doing?” Lexi asked, leaning over Jana’s plate. The beautifully plated chicken dish was now ripped apart—the green beans in one pile, chicken in another, rice in a third.
“I don’t like it when my food touches.” Jana said, biting her lower lip and carefully moving each grain of rice into the neat pile. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Aeronth smirking behind the glass he was drinking from. Without thinking about it, Jana kicked him in the shin. He sputtered, beer dribbling down his chin. Oh my god, what did I just do? You IDIOT! She awaited his anger, but he laughed and reached an arm around her. Before she knew what was happening, he used her shoulder as a napkin to wipe the alcohol off his face.
“What are you, five?!” Jana giggled, shoving him away. Damn him. I can’t even brood when I want to. As much as she hated the display from the waitress, her heart soared at the attention from him. He obviously cared enough to show that he didn’t care if someone else saw his affection.
I could get used to this.
26. Drunk
The Universal Clock ticked away the hours, but time on colonies melded into one endless day. The sun never rose nor set, the seasons never changed, and the night was everlasting. To Jana, it had always been a paradise. But now, after having been to a real planet, she wasn’t so sure. She understood why the Government didn’t allow planets to be colonized. Humans had proven incapable of taking care of the things given to them. It was their fault that E-1 had become uninhabitable.
Now, they were paying the price.
Jana’s concentration was broken by the others standing up to leave. They’d been drinking, and Lexi looked like she was going to fall over as soon as she stood. It was going to be a long walk back. She let the others pass her, and smiled up at Aeronth waiting for her. He held out an arm, and she giddily took it. “Do you want to go find something to do? Just the two of us?” he asked. I’ve died. Or I’m dreaming. This can’t be happening.
“Absolutely.”
Three steps out the door, Lexi stumbled and twisted her ankle. The other two weren’t exactly in a position to be helping her, so Aeronth slung her arm around his neck and lifted her.
“Fucking fuck fuck fuck, that hurts!” Lexi cried out. They stopped under the closest street lamp and Gordon took a look at it.
“Broken. She’s gonna have to go to the medical center and be treated.”
David had way too much to alcohol in him. He kept shaking his head and blinking. Jana grimaced. Aeronth was the only relatively sober person aside from her. “Get those two back to the hotel. There’s a med center a few blocks down that I saw a sign for. I’ll take her over there, they’ll patch her up in no time and we’ll come back.” Of course it was too good to be true. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. And damn him, he looked it. Jana sighed and corralled the two men to get them back to the hotel and watched Aeronth walking the opposite direction with a sobbing Lexi hobbling along next to him.
Never again. Jana grabbed David’s collar for the fifth time and yanked him back onto the sidewalk. It was a challenge to get them back in one piece. David liked to wander, and Gordon kept stopping to talk to passerby and ramble on about medical procedures.
Finally back at the hotel, Jana brought her two friends to their rooms and flopped back down on her bed. There was a little digital alarm clock on the wall. It shouldn’t take more than an hour, even with any potential wait to see the doctor. She sat and waited.
And waited.
After three hours, she fell asleep. When Jana woke up again, it was another four hours later. He must have seen me sleeping and didn’t want to disturb me. He still has my room key. She’d had to ask the staff to give her another. When she knocked on his door, there was no response. Confused, Jana tried Lexi’s. She o
pened the door after a moment, eye makeup smeared around her face, hair disheveled.
“Oh, hi.” She said groggily. “Thanks for checking up. I’m fine. I’m never drinking againnn. Do you want to come in?” She stepped aside and Jana went in. Lexi’s ‘dress’ from the night before was thrown on the floor, and there were clothes everywhere.
“When did you guys get back?”
“There was no wait, so we were in and out super quick.”
“So where’s Aeronth? He wasn’t answering his door.”
“Your guess is as good as mine. When we left the hospital, he grabbed me a transport car and sent me back to the hotel alone. He called the staff at the hotel ahead of time to have them meet me when I got here to help me up to my room. I wouldn’t have even found it afterwards.”
Called her a cab and sent her back alone. They had plans, and he disappeared. He left her waiting around all night. Jana was beyond furious.
Where was he?
27. Family Matters
She returned to her room and a while later Gordon asked if she wanted to come with him to visit his family. Thankful for anything to get her out of here and hopefully take her mind off Aeronth, she graciously accepted his offer. They journeyed to the Residential District, stopping for coffee on the way so Jana could caffeinate herself into alertness. She clung to her hot chocolate and vanilla coffee concoction. Apparently, there had been a malfunction in the heating system, and they had to reboot it. It was actually cold in the colony, something that neither of them were used to.
“This sucks,” Gordon stated as he rubbed his hands together. “It’s got to be four degrees.”
