1 /Jaeyoung
As our spacecraftbarrelled out of control, there was only one thing on my mind—that our captain was an ignorant, foolish, embarrassing dolt.
Honestly, who crashes their ship because they’re too proud to ask for help from their crew? The absolute gall of some people...
But that was in the past, and I was over it. Mostly. My forgiveness was fostered by the fact that, miraculously, all three crew members walked out of the crash unscathed. Had anyone been injured, I might’ve been less lenient with Levi.
And yet, despite his utter failure as a captain, it was difficult to be truly upset with him. After all, hedidrecently fall in love with one of the locals and give birth to an alien baby.
Talk about the discovery of the millennium.
If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it. But sure enough, Levi swelled up like a beach ball and gave birth to an infant—one with green skin, fangs, and horns. Never in my entire career had I seen such a thing. In fact, forget my career. This had never been documented in all of human history.
It should’ve been biologically impossible for a cisgender male like Levi to give birth. And yet, it happened.
How?
I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I wanted to know. I wanted tounderstand.
“Jaeyoung.”
The voice of my mentor, Fhi’ran, jarred me from my obsessive thoughts. He was a Healer, the Maeleon version of a doctor for the village. His purple scales glinted as he stepped into a beam of sunlight in the den.
Fhi’ran gestured at the table. “You have been sorting the same herbs for the last eon,” he remarked with a hint of amusement.
Embarrassed at my lack of concentration, I put the bundle of herbs aside. “Sorry, Fhi’ran. It won’t happen again.”
But Fhi’ran just nodded gently. “It is all right. If you’re tired, please head home to your den and rest.”
Two months had passed since our crash-landing on Eukaria, and I still wasn’t used to the laid-back nature of the locals. Every waking second of my life on Earth was dictated by stress. My career paths were vicious, competitive, and demanding. People could die if I didn’t do my job correctly—which I actually cared about, unlikesomeex-captains I might name...
But things were different on this planet. My daily schedule was structured without being strict. My work was satisfying without being draining. I completed my tasks without a supervisor constantly breathing down my neck, demanding I work harder and faster, put in overtime, work myself to the bone.
And yet, I did that anyway. Old habits were hard to shake. I still wasn’t used to it. Besides, what else was I supposed to do with my time?Relax?That was a riot.
“Jaeyoung,” Fhi’ran said.
He placed a clawed hand on my shoulder and jolted me back to reality for a second time.
“You are tired. Go home.”
I frowned. Fhi’ran’s words weren’t accusatory or dismissive, but I was still sorely disappointed in myself. I hated being anything less than perfect.
“I’m fine. Let me make one last bundle of herbs,” I argued.
Fhi’ran wordlessly gestured to the wooden table that functioned as my workstation. It was overflowing with herb bundles.
“You’ve done enough for today,” Fhi’ran assured me. “Rest now.”
I couldn’t rest. I’d barely earned it. Hell, it was still sunny outside. What was I supposed to do for the rest of the day?
A sleek, dark green head popped into the den. “Hello?”
I turned instinctively. The melodious voice belonged to Linn'ar, one of the local Maeleons. Since I became an assistant in the Healer’s den, he’d developed a habit of visiting every day, asking for one thing or another. At first I assumed he was a hypochondriac, but I was starting to think there were other reasons for his daily drop-ins...
Linn'ar scanned the den, stopping when he saw me. His eyes lit up and the mane of feelers trailing from his neck floated in the air.
“Oh! Hello, Jaeyoung,” he said, as if my presence in the den was a pleasant surprise.
