“You were thinking of Jaeyoung, were you not?” Zat’tor suggested. He sounded amused.
“Yes,” I admitted.
“Have you considered that he might be your filum?”
I paused, soaking in this idea. It hadn’t crossed my mind, but now that Zat’tor brought it up, I realized it could be true. The way I felt about Jaeyoung was unlike anything I’d experienced before.
“No. Perhaps I should,” I said. “Heisinterested in the concept.”
“All the more reason to pursue it.”
“But he does not seem as receptive as Levi. He is studious, and distracted by research.” I faced Zat’tor. “How did you court Levi?”
“On our first day together, I took him to the floating pool.”
An idea bloomed in my mind. “Ah, so you explored Eukaria. Jaeyoung would like that. He enjoys gaining new knowledge about our home. What happened next?”
“I learned that humans are shy when exposing their natural bodies, and that it is very easy to make them orgasm. Once you do so, they become receptive to further courting. At least, this is my experience with Levi. Your human might be different.”
It didn’t skip my attention that he referred to Jaeyoung as ‘my’ human. Maeleons did not own objects the way humans did, but we were fiercely possessive when it came to our filum.
I absorbed this new information gratefully. “Thank you, sibling. This is useful.”
Just as our exchange concluded, we heard a splash from the pond. Dai’zee trilled with laughter as she slapped her tentacles in the water.
Zat’tor’s whole being brightened with joy. He picked up his offspring and cradled her in his arms, pressing their snouts together in a display of affection.
That solidified my resolve. I wanted to produce offspring with my filum—with Jaeyoung.
Now I only had to convince him of my feelings.
“Linn’ar,” Jaeyoung said, surprised as he opened the den door. “You’re early.”
“I apologize for bothering you. Would you care to join me outside?”
He cast a glance over his shoulder, no doubt at his pile of research notes. “I was in the middle of something, but...” He paused for a moment before curiously meeting my gaze. “Where did you want to go?”
My hopes lifted at his interest. “I’d like to take you to the kofotta orchard.”
An undeniable flash of intrigue sparked in Jaeyoung’s dark eyes. He couldn’t resist the call of new knowledge and experience.
“Kofotta... Those are the trees with the silky fibers, correct?” he asked.
It excited me that he remembered. “Yes.”
“One moment.”
He dashed inside and returned with a small transparent vial. “For a sample,” he explained, pocketing the tube. “Lead the way.”
My feelers tingled with excitement. It was my first time showing Jaeyoung around my home. We’d only ever spent time inside the village together, surrounded by other Maeleons and humans.
But in the orchard, we would be alone.
Zat’tor explained that humans were oddly shy about nudity and intercourse. I didn’t understand why, but if Jaeyoung and I were unaccompanied in the orchard, perhaps he would be more open to intimacy.
“Your feelers are vibrating,” Jaeyoung remarked as we approached the edge of the village. “Is it from anxiety, or enthusiasm?”
“Enthusiasm,” I replied cheerfully.
