She had wanted to reach for him. To offer comfort. To ask what happened. But the way he had shut down, sharp, final, told her that whatever lay behind that sentence was a wound he didn’t want touched.
She turned onto her side, pulling the coverlet up to her chin. The ship felt safe, just as he’d said. But she didn’t feel safe from her own thoughts.
Why did she care so much? Especially after she wanted to protect her heart more than ever. Why did his pain feel like something she wanted to shield him from?
She barely knew him.
And yet… she felt as if she’d known the shape of his silence her whole life.
Eventually, exhaustion dragged her into a restless sleep.
She woke to the soft chime of the ship’s morning cycle. Nayli tapped on her door. She was already dressed and Kora joined her in the corridor.
“We’re nearly there,” Nayli said. “Blayze told me.”
Kora snorted. “Of course he did. He’d tell you the ship’s shoe size if it had one.”
Aelanna smiled weakly, and her stomach fluttered.
Nearly there. Nearly at Ohiri. Nearly at the place Darren didn’t want to talk about.
She dressed quickly, and the three of them made their way to the elevator where Darren waited.
Darren’s gaze flicked to her immediately — quick, assessing, lingering for a heartbeat too long. She felt warmth bloom in her chest.
“Did you sleep?” he asked.
“A little.”
Something in his eyes tightened. “We’ll be landing soon, but you’ve got time for breakfast. Shall I escort you to the diner?”
She nodded.
To take her mind off Darren, she got to know some of the other girls at breakfast, though it was difficult; he joined his brothers who were already sitting at the next table. The two girls who hadn’t gone into stasis were Daisy Fisher from Boston, who had curly red hair and freckles, and Prosperity Parker who came from Connecticut.
“How are you feeling today?” Aelanna asked, sitting at their table. “How was the journey? I hear you found it a bit rough.”
They nodded their appreciation and their anxious looks dissipated. “Better today, I’m glad we’re about to land,” said Prosperity. She was staying with her friend Daisy at the time they left for the spaceship, she explained. Prosperity hadstraight brown hair, brown eyes and a serious manner, though it could have been the circumstances.
Kora breezed in and sat down next to Aelanna, placing her cup and plate of the alien version of breakfast bagel on the table.
“They have a passable coffee here. I’d like to know what it’s made of,” Kora muttered.
“I’m not sure I wanna know,” said Aelanna.
“They might not have it everywhere in Ohiri, but it’s good.”
“They must have it on Ohiri, the ship came from there.”
“Good point,” agreed Kora.
Also, sitting with them were twins from South Carolina, Shamone and Devon, who were Afro American. They didn’t say anything and didn’t eat anything. Stumbling through introductions, they only clutched their drinks taking a random sip every now and then. Aelanna understood; just out of stasis, they were likely feeling overwhelmed.
Nayli sat with the brothers, though in Aelanna’s opinion she was only making it harder for her and Blayze to say goodbye.
Right now, he was blinking rapidly as she dabbed at a faint smear of sauce on his cheek with a napkin.
“You missed a spot,” she said quietly.
