But I had to do something or it would give the impression that I was afraid. I wanted to show Allecra that it didn't change anything between us. I still wanted her regardless of what she was born with. She was still the same girl I had come to love so deeply. And that was all that mattered.
With that in mind, I surprised myself, and probably Allecra as well, by reaching my hand out to her. At this very gesture, Allecra recoiled like a frightened deer. I paused and looked up at her again. She bashfully turned her face away from my searching gaze, but I could see a visible tinge of red on her lovely cheeks. Her bright eyes seemed conflicted but not hostile. It was a wonder how her attitude reversed in accordance with her physical transformation. One moment, Allecra was the confident tomboy, and the next moment, she was just a shy little girl. What a mind-boggling contrast that was!
"It's okay," I whispered. "I'm not afraid of you."
I wasn't even aware of my own breathing as I reached over to her again. This time without prolonging the tension, I went for it. My fingers swiftly wrapped themselves around her hardness. A spontaneous sharp intake of air was loud amidst the silence.
I marveled at the fact that it was real and that it was really happening. My jaw went unhinged by itself. Allecra's white teeth bit down on her maroon lip to keep from whimpering. Her feet jerked a little under the water. I could faintly feel her pulse through my hand.
It's alive!
"Nina, please..." Allecra spoke in a strangled voice. "You're...squeezing me."
I realized I had unintentionally gripped her a bit too hard. I quickly relaxed my hand and almost retreated then. I was afraid that I had hurt her, but a glimpse of that sweet tortured look on Allecra's face intrigued and emboldened me.
She was soft and flexible, yet surprisingly firm and warm. It amazed me how a certain part of her body could turn this hard. And in the depth of my darkest desire, I wanted her this way — captured and surrendered in my hand. A slow shudder evidently went through her. It looked like Allecra was struggling to keep still.
"Are you okay?" I asked, but my hand already started to feel her up, cradling her stiffness and brushing my fingers over her sleek pinkish tip.
Allecra groaned in her throat. I was thrilled to discover how my caress could affect her entire being.
"Nina—please—stop moving—I can't..."
Ignoring her plea, I continued my curious advancement. My mind was too engrossed in the act of caressing that elongated 'girl nub'. It caused Allecra to throw her head back and moan louder. Her hands gripped her knees to support herself.
A lot of questions floated around in my head. Does this fleshy hardness give the same worldly pleasure just like mine? Can she really feel the mounting intensity from my touch?
It was weird and at the same time captivating with the thing I was doing, and perhaps a tad bit dirty, but nothing about Allecra felt unnatural or disgusting to me.
I heard a low hiss and Allecra suddenly rose from the water to embrace me. I had to release her when our bodies pressed together once again. Her strong arms roamed over my skin almost too roughly as she kissed me in earnest. Her supple tender lips moving over mine in pronounced desperation and hunger. We both moaned audibly at the same time. I felt her hardness nestling against my belly. Then Allecra's hips began to flex as if by sheer mating instinct. My heart fluttered and skipped so many convulsing beats.
"Oh god..." I huffed out loud, breaking from the kiss for needed air. Obviously, I should have known better by now. Yet I couldn't seem to stop from reacting exactly as Allecra had predicted the night before. She drew her face back to have a look at me. I could sense the extra amount of effort it took for her to tear herself away.
"I'm sorry," she apologized like she had just realized what she was doing. A spark of guilt and shame ignited in her eyes. I knew something had crossed her mind, but before I could open my mouth to speak, Allecra turned around and got out of the pool in such haste that a minute later she was out of the bathroom. I blinked in shock, unable to figure out what I had done wrong.
It was so silent in the room. I was left with the question of what had pushed Allecra away. The look I spotted on her face was a haunting mask of self-hate and disgust. She must have misinterpreted my startled response as a form of rejection. I wondered what had transpired this conclusion. There was only once I had seen her like that— the day she confessed about her past mistakes. I realized with a flash of emotion, Allecra had scars from her first relationship with Nattia. The memory matched the thing we were doing. How it had felt similar to her, and she might have thought I was repelled by it the same way.
I was so stupid!
After what seemed like a long wandering thought, I got out of the bath and readied myself before I went after her. I must tell her that she had gotten it all wrong.
A moment later, I found Allecra sitting alone on a loveseat at the portico. I slid open the glass door soundlessly and stepped outside. The winds blowing from the sea were less chilling and growing more pleasant after the sunrise. Allecra was drying her wet hair with a bath towel. She was now in a plain white t-shirt and a pair of black panties, yet looking completely stunning under the glow of the morning sun. I walked up to her quite nervously. Thinking about what we had done in the pool and how it had ended made the situation a lot more awkward than I had anticipated.
"Hey," I called out to her. Allecra turned around and then a small smile lit her face.
"Hi," she said. I was relieved when she held out her hand to me. I took it as she scooted over to let me sit down beside her.
"What's wrong?" I decided to ask, staring at her face with steady eyes. Allecra looked away again.
"Nothing," she said with a weak shrug.
"I'm sorry if I have upset you," I said. "I didn't mean to..."
"No, it wasn't you," she replied but didn't say anything further. I waited for a while.
"Tell me, Allecra."
"I'm just...upset with myself," she finally admitted. "If you want to change your mind, there's still time. I totally understand."
"What are you talking about? I'm not going to change my mind about anything," I said with vehemence. "I know what you're thinking, Allecra, and you're wrong. You're gentle, patient, and more in control than I could ever be."
"I might have believed all that until this stupid thing happened," she scoffed begrudgingly with a vague motion at herself.
It pained me that I had caused her to hate something about her body. I brought my hand to card through her soft blonde strands and then coaxed her into my embrace. She wrapped her arms back around my waist and sighed.
"I won't back out just because you're different," I said softly. "I know what you've gone through and the tormenting guilt you keep buried deep inside, but I'm not Nattia. I'm aware of the choice I made and I chose you. I want you just the same — every single part of you. You're still my Allecra, and nothing has changed that."
She was quiet for a long moment. I kissed the crown of her head gently. Allecra smelled like the fragrant bath we had shared. I inhaled her scent again.
"You were a naughty kitten," she murmured against my chest, which made me giggle.
"Sorry, but if I hadn't outed your secret, it would take you forever!" I said. "In fact, I started to wonder whether it was because you didn't find me desirable or something."
Allecra let out a melodious laugh and pulled away. I was glad she had brightened up again.
"You're probably right about the last part," she said. I shot her a look and then pinched her bare leg.
"Ow, Nina! Not again!" she yelped.
I giggled back and stuck my tongue out like I was five.
"Serve you right," I said. Allecra scowled at me.
"You're feisty," she muttered. "Let's go down for breakfast before I do something really naughty here."
She got up and pulled me along by the hand.
In the kitchen, Allecra and I helped each other prepare our first breakfast together. I cut the avocados whi
le she buttered the well-toasted bagels. I made scrambled egg and mixed salad and cherry tomatoes with olive oil, and she sliced up the salmon.
She was so expert with the knife that I had to stop what I was doing to watch her. All of the slices were cut evenly like a row of fallen dominoes. She laid the salmon on bagel slices neatly along with the avocados, salad, and my scrambled egg.
It didn't take us long to assemble everything onto the plates. After that, we sat down at the table and ate in a peaceful ambiance of the house. Allecra fed me a forkful of mixed salad, and I let her take a bite of my own bagel. It was the typical love-crazed couple scenario, but I knew how much effort we had put into it and how many barriers we had broken just to get us to this point.
"I miss you already," Allecra said as she brought a napkin to wipe the corner of my lips.
"But I'm still here," I reminded her.
"Yeah, but soon you'll return to your human world, and I will be left alone to miss my sweet kitten every minute that ticks by," she tried to sound pitiful. I gripped her jaw and gave it a little shake out of adoration.
"Don't be a baby. I'll see you again tomorrow."
Then I leaned in to kiss her on the lips. She tasted of butter and salmon.
"Ew...gross!" I grimaced, which made Allecra laugh. I handed her a glass of orange juice as I took a sip from mine.
"You could stay with me longer, or better yet — forever," she said. "I'll feed you well."
"With cat foods?" I laughed.
"Probably," she giggled along.
"You know how boring my reality is," I said. "I need to run off from your palace like Cinderella at midnight, or I might be in trouble."
Allecra pursed her lips as if to think of something. After a moment, her eyes lit up with a hint of excitement. She leaned towards me like she was afraid of being eavesdropped.
"What if I really want to take you away from here? Will you come with me?"
"What are you talking about?" I asked with a suspicious frown. "Don't tell me your sister's plan to kidnap me is still on."
"Don't be ridiculous," she said. "You'll just come on your own anyway."
"That's not true!" I protested. "I have my free will."
"Then where do you want to go for spring break?"
"Why you ask?"
"Just answer me, Nina."
"I don't know," I said. "I only want to be with you all the time."
"Great, would you like to travel the world with me then?" Allecra said easily with an impish smile.
"You know I can't just travel the world with you," I said.
"Why not? I want to look at you seeing the world with me."
I blinked. Something about the way she said it made me almost cave in.
"Maybe someday," I decided. "I don't think it's the right time yet."
"Aw, why not?" Allecra raised blonde brows like she had no concepts of a human dilemma, which might be the case.
"You don't understand," I said. "I still live with my aunt. I can't just flap my wings and go anywhere I want like a bird."
Allecra rolled her eyes. "You forgot who I am."
"Oh right, speaking of which, you need to know that in the human world, we deem it morally wrong to compel other people with your alien mind tricks," I told her with a chastising look.
"I didn't compel them," she said. "I just switched off some neurons in their brains and transferred some new information—"
"Whatever it is," I cut her off. "You can't twist their mind to get your way."
"Of course, I can!" Allecra defended.
"No, you can't!" I said again. "I meant — yes, you can, but you shouldn't do that, alright?"
"So can you ask them next time?" she said.
"I can't."
"See? That means I should and I can," Allecra said and quirked her brows at me.
I groaned.
"You haven't answered my question yet," she said. "If you could go anywhere you want, where would it be?"
I had no idea why she insisted on me answering that, but I finally complied with an annoying sigh.
"Well," I said, "I want to see the aurora in Alaska."
"What happens to relaxing by the beach with a parasol to protect your drink from the rain?"
"Half of the population on earth probably have it written down on their bucket list already," I said. "Besides, I think this is just one of my unattainable wishes. It doesn't matter."
"Whatever you want matters to me, Nina," Allecra said.
"What are you, a Genie?" I looked at her.
She bit back a smile.
"What if I told you I could take you anywhere you want without you actually leaving here?"
"You lost me at the entire question," I said, staring hard at her.
"Triton and Xenon don't like me doing this, but screw that. I'll do it for you. Besides, quantum jumping is so damn fun."
"Wait, quantum what?"
"You go into another physical world," Allecra simply said with a casual shrug. "Similar to a parallel world. Ever heard of that?"
"Yes! In science fiction!" I answered bewilderingly.
"Really, Nina? Look at me! Am I a fictional character, too?"
"You might as well be," I murmured. "Only fictional character is that perfect."
Allecra gave me one of her trademark scowls.
"Aw...you hurt my feelings. If I exist in your mind, then I'm real!"
"Okay, let’s suppose that the parallel universe exists," I said. "What does it have to do with me wishing to see the aurora?"
"I could bring you to Alaska in an alternate world, so you don't have to deal with the complicated stuff in this one." She made it sound as easy as a snap of her fingers.
"How are you going to do that?" I asked with a blank face.
"You pull in all your metaphysical energy inside your brain and then turn it inside out."
"You mean visualize it and make it real?" I simplified.
Her extraterrestrial concept was a riddle in itself.
Allecra nodded.
"Do you know how we aliens navigate through space?"
"With your flashy blinking spaceship," I said.
"Well yeah, there is a ship all right, but not exactly how you think it works," she told me. "It is more like a capsule to protect us from the subzero temperature in outer-space. The ship took about an hour to get us here because it was a long distance trip."
"An hour?!" I gasped. "Are you freaking kidding me? I thought it took you years!"
"Oh well, I forgot you humans are still primitive," Allecra said as if to herself. I shot her a withering look.
"Enlighten me then," I muttered.
"Alright, let just think of the universe as a fabric or a canvas instead of an empty space. Then imagine you own a machine so powerful that it could draw energy from the stars."
"You mean like time-machine or a portal?"
"Almost but not quite,” she said. “On my home planet, we had like hundreds of Teslas to build that special machine. It could pull in the fabric of the universe like a frog catching a fly with its sticky tongue."
"Do I look stupid if I said I don't get it?" I asked.
Allecra paused for a second before she got up to grab a sheet of blank paper from the island counter. When she sat back down, she began to draw two dots at opposite ends of the stationary.
"Okay, imagine the universe as this sheet of paper, and these two little dots as the Earth and my planet Arzuria. Now tell me how you would connect these dots?"
"I would draw a line between them, why?" I said. Allecra snorted as if I had said something funny.
"If you take a spaceship and travel in a straight line like that, by the time you've reached Earth, you'll be a long-dead skeleton," she said.
"Then how did you do it?"
"I'll show you," Allecra said. She pulled one end of the paper and folded it over in half, touching the dots together. "See? That is our secret of space traveling. The same way I'm gonna take you on our quantum trave
ling. You don't have to leave here. We'll just bend the fabric of reality and then jump in."
"This still sounds like something out of a horrible science fiction," I said.
"Oh, humans." Allecra sighed in defeat. "Alright then, let me show you how our modern technology works."
She took my hand and got up from the table. Allecra walked me to the hidden elevator in the house. I thought we were going down to her underground library, but it seemed to go even deeper. The doors dinged and slid open. I gasped in total awe at what I saw once again.
"Welcome to our playground," Allecra said, walking backward and pulling me along by the hands.
My eyes scanned around at the white clean place hooked up with transparent monitor screens and metal cases with blinking lights. It looked like a set of Star Wars movies.
"You also have a science lab?" I breathed.
"What kind of an alien who doesn't have a science lab?" she asked with mock horrors.
"How cliché." I scoffed, but she just giggled at me then walked us down the hall to another room. It was getting colder. In fact, it was almost freezing in here. Allecra came to wrap her arms around me and rubbed my shoulders.
"Sorry," she said. "The room has to be kept at this temperature or the computers would heat up and jam."
"What do you hide down here?" I asked curiously. "A flying saucer?"
"Now you’re being cliché," Allecra said and rolled her eyes.
When we stopped, we were greeted by a white plastic cover that seemed to hide something. I couldn't tell what it was underneath until Allecra walked to it and pulled the cover off. It fell easily and noisily to the floor, revealing a strange-looking piece of machinery like nothing I had ever seen. It was shaped like a giant ring made of shiny steel.
"What's this?" I asked while my eyes kept staring at the weird object in amazement.
"Triton and I remodeled it after the one that got us here," she told me, "—except this machine is not as powerful as the original one. We can only do short-distant traveling—well—unless my brother and sister join the force. But I know you wouldn't want that, would you?"
I just shrugged and slowly walked around to inspect the object with an intense interest.
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