And that’s saying a lot.
“Zion, silly,” he laughed, carding his hands through my hair in a way that made me purr. “He was younger than I am now when he had Daisy, but big bro stepped up! I was barely a teenager when she was born, but it blew my mind to see the way he cared for her, despite our parents’ disapproval. And he had to figure it out on the fly, you know? I mean, he’d always taken care of the rest of us in his own way, but this was different. It was… unconditional.”
My borrowed heart broke for my mate once again. If there was one thing I’d observed during my time as a supposed superhero, it was thatallsupe families—heroes and villains alike—operated on extremely conditional terms. Clans were aligned, in marriage and business, through ironclad contracts, and even those related to you were expected to prove themselves ‘useful’ at every turn.
Or be culled from the herd.
“It sounds like how you… care for me,” I mused, unleashing a few tendrils to wrap around him, pulling him closer.
Perhaps even love me?
Micah sniffled and rapidly blinked, adorably trying not to cry. “Y-yeah. And how you… care for me too…”
Yes.
If there was one thing I knew, it was that what I felt for Micah was unconditional. I may have since reunited with both my makers, and inherited a much larger family in the process—through resonance and otherwise—but none of these connections were as strong as what I had with my stellar collision. Articulating those emotions were proving to be a challenge, but there was nothing my mate could ever do to change that irrefutable fact.
Nuzzling my face into Micah’s neck, I deeply inhaled, allowing his sunshiney scent to smooth out my lingering concerns.
I can do this.
“We’ll figure this out, Zig,” he murmured, expertly knowing what I needed to hear. “Together.”
We can do this.
Together.
12
MICAH
How the hell are we going to figure this out?
It had been a while since Ziggy first took me to the Muonova’s market district—and even then, we’d only visited the moreadult-focused stalls—so I hadn’t realized how vast of an area it was.
Aaaaand I’m already confused…
Besides the glaring lack of signage, there didn’t seem to be what one would call a kid’s section—or a universal idea of what that even meant among such a wide variety of species.
“I’ll be right back…” I murmured to Zig after spotting a blob-shaped creature herding mini-blobs through the crowded aisle. “Gonna ask that one a few questions.”
My man tore his gaze from the selection of high-tech weapons he was perusing—because of course he was—to squint at my target, no doubt assessing the threat to my wellbeing.
What does he think they're gonna do?
Absorb me into their blobness?
As soon as he nodded in approval, I approached the blob as non-threateningly as possible before addressing them in the trade language. “Excuse me? I couldn’t help noticing you have offspring?—”
“They are not for sale,” the blob curtly interrupted before reaching out with blobby arms to gather their children close.
Before absorbing them into their blobness.
Well, okay then.
“Oh! I wasn’t interested in…” I stammered before gesturing at Ziggy. “We have, uh, offspring of our own but are unfamiliar with where to shop for them. Could you please direct me where to find supplies for offspring… things…?”
I don’t even know what I’m asking for!
