It was their turn to shiver. “My name from your lips is…how do you say…music.”
Her heart clenched as she squeaked, “Fuck.”
“Oh! I do know that one, I’ve been told it’s a…naughtyword, yes? MySpachtr—err—I believe the word you use is friend? Well, Quagmor tells me your species and language have many of them. However, I am not sure why you spoke it?” They relaxed her hands against the blanket before slowly tucking her back in.
“That-was-the-cutest-shit-anyone’s-ever-said-to-me.” She squeezed all the words out at once, grimacing and eye twitching inquick succession. Silence fell over them as Xexis traced the outside of her arms softly with theirs. It was sweet, comforting, and all it did was make more tears well up in her eyes. With a broken, whimpering plea, she spoke, “Why did you do this?”
“Do what, my mate?”
“You’re not—I’m not…What? Why didn’t you tell me you could talk? Why didn’t you say anything when you heard us? Why didn’t you say something?” She was spinning in her own head, lips quivering.
Their large face softened as a hand returned to her cheek, the other continuing to stroke her arm. “It’s tradition and insulting to not put my everything into our mating hunt. Also, I must confess, when I am hunting, I find my speech is lacking. No thoughts of words, only thoughts of claiming you.”
She exhaled heavily. “Claiming me?”
“As my mate.”
“And, as your mate?” She raised a brow, the reality of everything Xexis said crashing over her. They kept calling her their mate. They were tender and sweet. They had healers and technicians look after her. Her fingers curled around the sheets again. “What do you expect me to do?”
“I expect nothing,” Their face lit up, “We can do as you like within reason. I know your species is fond of exploring, and you were on an exploration crew, am I correct?”
She was only able to nod as she tried not to scream or cry or throw up. Regulating her emotions was the only control she had at the moment, and she wasn’t about to give it up. They continued, “Well, if you’d like, within reason, I can show you agreat many places, other quadrants your kind haven’t found yet or are not allowed. I do have responsibilities asKannatch, and duties I must perform for my people, and hunts I will have to engage in, but in between that I would be delighted to show you anything your heart desires.”
“And…what wouldyoulike to do…as my mate?” She wasn’tappalledby the idea. Space exploration with a being thatalready explored space?That could be an absolute delight. To not have to work and to just enjoy seeing new things.Like being a fucking tourist!Aphrodite had never been a tourist in her whole life! What would these missions have been like if she’d gone to sight see and experience them for fun.It’s the ‘mate’ part that was still throwing me for a loop.
Aphrodite felt loopy. Unconnected to her body, like hysteria had already sank in.A tourist? Really?Maybe it was the pain? Maybe she was hallucinating? But Xexis wasn’t saying anything she didn’twantto hear. They’d just unfortunately also terrified her and chased her through a dead ship and killed all her crew mates that she honestly hated…shit does that make me a bad person? I think this makes me a bad person. No, well, he didn’t kill everyone. Technically he killed Carso.Tedros got himself electrocute. Dan killed Max. And then those other hunters killed Dan, but, if she was being completely honest, she wouldn’t have wept over that fool by that point if Xexis HAD killed him.
“I would very much like to lay with you, but you’re still healing.” The blanket was pulled back down past her collar. One of their hands brushed along her throat and collar, pressing their palm against her skin. With a shiver, they whispered, “Your skin is so soft, and sweet…I would enjoy nothing more than to feel it against mine…But because your skin is delicate, the technicians say I must be gentle and resist my desires until your stitches have healed.”
Her stomach clenched.Oh no…no! No.Sexual attraction is a funny thing. Aphrodite found herself at the end of a questionable predicament. Because, on one side—there was a being so clearly infatuated with her, sweeping her up in sweet words and making her insides fill with traitorous butterflies, that had this been under any other circumstance she’d very on board of the ‘fuck-it’ train. On the other—Xexis hunted her crew, terrified her forwhat seems to be no reason, and now she was expected to be their mate.
A knock at the door interrupted the silence that loomed over her. Xexis smiled again in the way their face pulled at the pinchers and their eyes crinkled. Standing, they walked to the door and opened it.
Another hunter stood in the doorway, both speaking in a deep sounding language. It was as if Russian were drunk and deep in their chest, with harder n’s and sharper c’s. She furrowed her brow as the newcomer handed over a blue goop-filled jar to Xexis. Then, the most peculiar thing. The newcomer spun to face her. They put a fist to their chest, bowed at the hips, then spoke like they’d just learned the language. “Hello! Xexis’ mate, I amKiefgr.I amFzechnto Xexis. I am honored to—er—” They turned to Xexis and whispered a few words shyly. Xexis nodded and motioned at Aphrodite enthusiastically. Kiefgr beamed brighter, clasping all four hands together in front of them. “I am honored to have stabbed.”
“No-no, Kiefgr, honored to havehelped.”
“Oh! But I stabbed to help.”
“Yes, you did, but…context,” Xexis shook their head before motioning for Kiefgr to leave. The bubbly Kiefgr waved with all four hands before bounding through the door seconds before it hissed closed. Xexis sighed, glancing back at Aphrodite. “I apologize, Kiefgr is a youngling and stilleager.”
She nodded her chin to the jar in their hands. “What’s that?”
“Ah! It’sblephisnocotizus—uh, healing…goop?” They stepped up to the bed and clutched the item against their chest. Bare and exposed now. Their legs were covered by suit pants, black fabric with a hefty belt that held many gadgets and gizmos. Her eyes traveled across their body before stopping on their face. They pulled back the blanket to her hips and sat down again. “This may be cold.”
“Most healing goop is,” she wheezed, trying not to laugh at the hysteria that had become her life.
“Aphrodite?” And suddenly she got it.
Why her mother chose that name. Why her father called it pretty. Why she hated the way Tedros and Carso used it. Why she hated Danny calling her A.P. more or Max’s intention to only call her by her last name. Her name had never sounded like music before. Her chest filled with fluttering butterflies as Xexis unlatched the top of the jar. “May I? Or would you prefer—you are uncomfortable, but I cannot tell if it is me or the pain.”
And so, she lied,half lied,partially lied. “The pain.”
They brightened, eyes crinkling as they dunked two large, long fingers into the neon blue goop. “I had hoped as much. My mate, I never want you uncomfortable in my presence. Prepare your flesh, here comes the goop.”
She tensed. However, if she were being honest, the zap of frost to her nervous system was delightful. The goose bumps that broke out across her stomach and chest were worth it. For Xexis stared at them in awe, leaning in closeto study them.And she’d never felt so…Aphrodite tried not to think about how flattering it was that she was fascinating to Xexis.
She tried not to think about how nice it felt to have them rub the salve into her hot, angry flesh.
