6
The station amazed her.
The idea that a place like this could exist--hundreds of spaceships hammered together to make this large mass of a space station, it was incredible.
Gianna could not believe some of the things she saw.All the aliens, all sorts of colors and breeds.Some had antenna, others had scales or fur or all sorts of stuff.
It was like something out of a dream.
And there were humans--ones that looked a lot like her, anyway.Some had markings or slight facial differences--ridges or lines or something on their face that gave them a distinct look, but all in all, it felt like something out of a movie.All the sights and sounds.She could hear and understand all the spoken languages, thanks to the chip on the back of her ear.
And Marcin!
He'd taken her to several food stands, and she'd gotten to try a lot of different things, but her favorite remained the Punos.Though the little sweet, chocolate-like candy desserts he'd found in another stall were amazing.Either or would bring her out of a bad mood, she guessed.
They walked and talked, a lot of it was about him teaching her different things she needed to know just to function.Like different kinds of signs that would help her navigate through the station.
They were eating something that tasted like a mix between ice cream and a slushy, and it was cold and quite enjoyable.
"We have talked a great deal about me and the station," Marcin said."But you have mentioned very little about your life and your family."
"There is not a lot to talk about."
"You said your grandfather was a POW?"
"So, I was told," she replied.
"You did not know him?"
"I didn't know any of my family.Not really."
"Why is that?"
She took a bite of her cold dessert and considered her reply.What did she say?That her mother was a horrible addict who preferred to chase addiction than care for her child?She didn't tell a lot of people about that stuff, at least not in detail.She wasn't even sure she'd told Tina, who was her best friend.Tina knew some of it, but probably not all the ugly details.
Which was fine by her.She wasn't a fan of sharing all the ugly details.
"I did some research on my family name and found out about my grandfather.The rest of my family is gone, either to wallow in their own problems or they had died."
His expression didn't shift.
And strangely, she liked that.Liked that he did not look at her with pity like so many did.She didn't want the pity.It was pointless.
"You are alone on your world."
"In a way."
"Did you grow up alone, then?"
"No, we had services that placed kids without parents in homes.It was supposed to be a temporary thing until new parents could be found and adopt the kids, but not many wound up working out that way."
"Were you one that it worked out for?"
"Nope.When I turned eighteen, I was out on my own."She glanced at him and saw the strange expression on his face."On my world, eighteen is considered the legal age of adulthood.Since I didn't bring in any more funds for my foster family, I was sent on my way to face the big bad world on my own."
"I don't understand."
"They were paid by the government to take care of me.When I was considered an adult, they wanted me to move out."
