Xizi blinked, shaking his head slightly as he tried to clear the remnants of his dreams. “Just a notification from the ship’s systems,” he murmured, glancing over at Ashley. “Didn’t mean to startle you.”
Ashley yawned and rubbed at her eyes. “It’s okay,” she said, scooting closer to him. “Is everything all right?”
Xizi nodded, his eyes flickering to the viewscreen that displayed an announcement from the commanders. “Everything seems to be fine. We’re on schedule and still headed toward the sanctuary. They wanted to give us the go ahead to leave our cabin if we feel like it.”
Ashley noticed Xizi trying to steady his breathing as he gazed out the window at the vastness of space. It was as if the ping had set off a nightmare or a bad memory for him.
Ashley peered out the window as well. “It’s so beautiful out there,” she murmured, trying to get him to the present. “Do you ever get tired of it?”
Xizi shook his head, his eyes never leaving the window. “Never,” he said softly. “Not when I have you here with me.”
Ashley noticed his change in demeanor and placed a comforting hand on his arm. “What’s wrong, Xizi?” she asked gently.
“It reminded me of the lab,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper, his body tense as he recounted the memory. “The sound of the machines and the constant beeping. The sound was so familiar, I thought I was back in the lab. I was afraid they had found me again.”
Ashley reached out and placed a comforting hand on his arm. “I’m sorry, Xizi,” she said. “I had no idea. But you’re not there anymore. You’re safe with me now. Is there anything I can do to help you feel better?”
Xizi shook his head. “No, it’s not your fault,” he said. “I know, I just... I never thought I’d be able to escape. And now that I have, I don’t want to lose it all.”
Ashley gave him a reassuring smile. “You won’t lose it all. We’ll make sure of that.”
Xizi smiled back, feeling grateful for her support. “Thank you, Ashley. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
Ashley’s heart swelled with warmth at his words. She knew they had only known each other for a short time, but she already felt a deep connection with him. She could see the pain and fear in his eyes, and she knew that he needed her support. She leaned in and wrapped her arms around him, holding him close. “You don’t have to be strong all the time,” she whispered. “I’m here for you, Xizi. We’re in this together. You don’t have to do anything alone.”
Xizi leaned in to kiss her, his lips soft and gentle against hers. As their lips met, she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer.
She melted into the kiss, feeling his love and gratitude for her in every touch.
They stayed that way for a long moment, lost in each other, before breaking apart with a smile.
“We should probably get some more sleep,” Ashley said, settling back against the pillows. “Especially since we’ll be exploring the ship. Who knows when we’ll return to our cabin, having wasted time communicating with the other passengers.”
Xizi nodded, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Thank you for listening to me,” he murmured. “Sleep well, myenax.”
Ashley smiled drowsily, already drifting off, feeling content and at peace for the first time in a long while.
Nineteen
Ashley
Waking up in Xizi arms once again only cemented the fact that she wasn’t dreaming, and sharing a bed with an alien male was her new norm.
Ashley turned herself in his embrace, cocooned in a bundle of warmth, with Xizi’s arms wrapped around her and tail possessively covering her legs.
An emerald aura radiated from his scales, pulsing with each of his long breaths and tempting her to touch them by tracing the ridges of his scales.
Ashley shifted in bed, her gaze lingering on Xizi’s sleeping form next to her. Her mind was still reeling from the strange dream she had experienced after they first had sex.
It was like she had been forced to watch a movie about Xizi’s recent life, seeing the world through his eyes. Almost like a train wreck she couldn’t pull her gaze from, no matter how hard she had tried.
As she thought about it more, she realized that what she had seen were Xizi’s memories. The pain and fear he must have gone through during his capture and experimentation made her heart ache. She couldn’t imagine what it must have been like for him, and the thought of it made her feel sick to her stomach.
She knew humans could be cruel sometimes, especially regarding things they didn’t understand or were different. With the rise of social media and the influencer life, it was hard to stay away from the toxicity and drama, especially when she felt like she was forced to have it in order to date.
It was already hard to find a single man wanting to seriously date in the city known for its one-night stands, bachelor and bachelorette parties, and drive through chapels. Having to deal with keeping up with social media and trying hard not to use filtered and altered pictures made it hard to find anyone who wanted to date, especially someone as curvy as her.
But she wasn’t going to allow her own past and the grievances she had with human society to ruin whatever was blossoming between them.
