by Erin Lee
Star
Chapter Seven
Through Esmeralda’s looking glass
Neptune sat on the sky bus and waited. This is taking forever. I need to get out of here. Something could go wrong. I need this over. Once we are on the star path, I’ll be safe. Hurry. Please. The engine rumbled beneath her as last-minute three-headed passengers kissed loved ones goodbye and climbed on board. She looked at her watch: Ten thirty-five. By now she would normally be washing Little Anus’ work clothes, cleaning the bathroom, or doing some other disgusting chore at the restaurant that Little Anus was too good for. She grinned. He can clean up the wall next to the toilet himself from now on. I’m not the one who misses when I piss. Most likely he wouldn’t, though. There was no doubt in her mind that he’d let the place fall apart and Luna would hire someone else or just hire Stardust back for the 23rd time. That, or he’d bring in another sidepiece to take care of him and his shitty parents who only cared about making money at the eatery. Little Anus had never functioned without the women in his life taking care of him—first Luna and, later, his stepsisters whom he spoke so poorly of. Within a week, the diner she’d poured her sweat and love into for no real reason at all would be in shambles. Let him do whatever he wants. Luna too. It’s not your problem anymore.
The bus lurched forward as it began its journey. She laid her head back against the headrest and closed her eyes. She thought, or fantasized was more like it, about her future freedom. She would find a job as fast as she could. First things first, she had to find a place to live. She didn’t know much about the other planets – only what she’d seen on television and through the podcasts. She’d try anything to start over fresh and become the justified poster child for female rights. Staying with Little Anus in that crummy job would have been a sham, she knew. I can do this. She was even willing to stay in a space shelter if she had to—at least for a while. Long-term she wanted a place of her own where she could finally plant her roots and, if she was lucky, a new star garden with fledgling stars she would pick out herself – purple ones. Or lilac.
She thought about dying her hair red, bright red. She’d always wanted to be a redhead. Maybe, she could get a job at a nice diner someplace on a planet where people knew women were equal. She hoped she would meet kind aliens and make a few friends. On that part though, she would have to be very careful. It will all happen as it’s supposed to, she thought. She had to believe it too, because there was no going back now. Her face was all over the galaxy news as the three-titted alien who took a stand against fart-smelling humans.
She remembered the three-armed, neon-skinned attendant at the sky port telling her it would take about twenty-four hours, including stops, to get three galaxies over. Not as bad as she thought it would be, but a long ride all the same. It could be worse. She could be off course like Rim Job and his sidekick. Her legs and back would certainly be feeling some discomfort, but she was used to aches and pains from long hours at the diner Luna never paid her for. It was a small price to pay for her freedom from the eatery and its prized son of an employee.
For the next few hours, she watched tall glass buildings disappear and air traffic dissipate. Occasionally, she found herself watching the rockets that flew beside them and wondering about the passengers inside: What kind of life do they live? Are they happy? When she saw couples, she wondered if they were in love. She wondered other things too: Does he beat her? Does he treat her like she is nothing more than a cook and waitress with no dreams of her own? Does he shit on her star gardens?
On more than one occasion, children looked out their windows and waved to her as the air bus ship passed by, almost as if they were wishing her luck on her new adventure. She grinned and waved back at them. She would never be a mother but it didn’t mean she hated kids. It was partly because she didn’t want to bring children into a galaxy with abusive assholes like Little Anus. It didn’t matter now. She didn’t even know if she ever could have children considering all the damage he’d done to her body. Big Anus’s words about her tits not making milk still stuck with her. She wasn’t sure why it bothered her but it did. Maybe I do want kids? No. That’s ridiculous. I can’t even take care of myself. The thought of adding more to her plate right now was just too much. Besides, she decided, children deserved to be brought up in two-parent homes and she was done with men.
When darkness arrived, Neptune could barely keep her eyes open. With glittering stars in the sky, she felt more at ease. Little Anus wouldn’t know of her absence for at least another day. He was probably drunk and laughing it up with his pals or hanging out with Rim Job, never thinking of her once. Her back was beginning to feel the strain of the ride, but she scooted down into the seat and tried to get some rest. Hopefully, she would wake up at their next stop so she could get a snack at an automated vendor with those adorable amphibians and stretch her legs. The lull of the bus comforted her as her eyelids grew heavy. The feeling of comfort was strange at first, but she quickly grew accustomed to it. It had been such a long time since she had experienced comfort of any kind.
She wasn’t sure what time it was when they stopped, but the sound of someone rustling around woke her. She jerked her head up to see that it was still dark outside and the traffic was light. After a few seconds, she realized the entire sky bus was empty and they had stopped at an air fueling station. Deciding to stretch her legs and get something to eat, she stood and headed toward the front of the bus. When she departed, she saw the driver who informed her that they had to fill up and she had thirty minutes to stretch and eat. She didn’t know what a gas station would provide, but it didn’t take her long to see that it wasn’t a regular sky station. What galaxy are we in? When she walked inside, sleepy-eyed and groggy, she stumbled over to an overnight Krispy Kreme stand next to an Arby’s. Is this near Earth? Goddess, please! What in the actual fuck are you doing to me? Not more earthlings!
Her stomach growled with hunger. The first thing she needed to do was find a bathroom, then she would get something to satisfy her hunger. When she returned, she didn’t have much time left. She quickly ordered a cheeseburger, fries, and a glazed donut. Lastly, she bought a bottle of water from the cashier at the front of the rest area service center. Afterwards, she didn’t return to the bus right away. Instead, she stood to the side of the store enjoying the feeling of being on her feet instead of sitting scrunched up. She tried not to think about how similar to Earth this place appeared.
Back on the bus, she ate her food in silence. She was grateful none of the passengers were interested in talking to her. She wasn’t in the mood to try to hold any conversations, or divulge any information about herself either for that matter. She believed her trip would be better that way. She wasn’t sure exactly where they were—only that they were at a service station marked ‘Galaxy Nine’—but she knew she was a long way from the eatery and her home planet. A home that, in time, had become a prison because of the way men treated her. It already seemed so long ago and far away, and it hadn’t even been a full day yet.
A strong voice came over the intercom: “Next stop: Planet Earth. Boulder, Colorado. All passengers will depart.”
She sprang up.
“No!”
A week later
NEPTUNE ENJOYED THE fresh air of Escape, Colorado, but she didn’t enjoy the heavy snow that had bombarded the town overnight. She should have been used to it, having lived on a northern planet for so long. Oh well, it is what it is. As far as she was concerned, she was in heaven compared to where she had fled from. How it is possible Earth is better than space? Talk about the twilight zone.
She walked to the bus stop, already crowded with earthling people. Most were probably going to work like she was. Please don’t speak to me. She grimaced against the sudden wind that had picked up and thrown flurries into her face. Taking small steps to keep from slipping, she finally made it across the street and next to the shelter of the waiting area. It wasn’t large enough to allow any others inside, so she stood on the end
where she would be better hidden from the wind. She didn’t want to get too close anyway. She couldn’t afford for anyone to realize she had three tits. You have to be discreet. If they find out, everything will change. Keep your head low and ears covered.
Her eyes travelled over the landscape and rested upon the peaks of snowcapped mountains far away. They looked close enough to touch and as beautiful as any painting she had ever seen. This was where she belonged. It was something about the friendly smiles on people’s faces and the way no one asked questions. Unless, of course, they were curious ones about her Volusian accent. But, even then, the questions were innocent. People here were used to tourists and that might be why, she supposed.
She was glad for it, and for them. Without the tourists, she wouldn’t have found a job so quickly. It would take months for her paychecks to be forwarded from her planet. She needed to save up to hire a rocket to return for Venus Rights speaking engagements. She was lucky, she decided. The universe was finally working in her favor. The Goddess had known what she was doing when she forced a departure on planet Earth. Neptune had been blessed by finding something within the first few days in a small diner, Ellie’s, run by a kind woman named Lottie near the city limits of Escape. It was a modest place, but the food was great and the clientele was mostly friendly. Truthfully, Neptune didn’t really have many complaints. How could she?
She’d picked up shifts three days a week at first, but after a couple of weeks she was awarded full time because one of the other girls was fired after getting caught stealing from the register. There was, she learned quickly, a Stardust in every crowd. She didn’t like working weekends, but it was the best days for tips so she didn’t argue with Lottie, who, unlike Luna, asked her how her day was.
Her boss, Lottie’s boyfriend Al, was a nice guy. He treated the women with respect, which was something she hadn’t been used to from the men in her life, mainly Little Anus. She tried not thinking about him, but it was hard not to since she had spent too many years within his grasp, literally. Yet, somehow, he’d kept her a secret from his overbearing mother. It doesn’t matter. I’m out of there now. No more customers who smell like dog ass. No more six-dicked aliens with something to prove. Here, on Earth, I’m practically invisible. It’s nice.
Sometimes, the image of Little Anus’s face would invade her thoughts and fear would jump aboard for the ride. On more than one occasion, nightmares caused her to wake up drenched in sweat. Still, she already felt years younger and was beginning to remember what times before Little Anus had been like. When it got too much, she took her mind off the puckered starfish ex by moving her thoughts to Jizz. She hadn’t expected to miss him so much but she did. But he wasn’t worth returning there right now. Anus had to be angry. Returning to her planet would be too risky and the eatery dishwasher just wasn’t worth it.
It was a relief, knowing she would never return to Little Anus—that had been the true nightmare. She couldn’t yet shake memories of lying in bed for hours listening to him babbling on and on about all the hotties on her planet and asking for threesomes with woman with six hands like his precious mother. Worse had been waiting for him to return from the living room drunk out of his mind wanting to have what he called “fun”—wanting to push himself on her and in her until he passed out on top of her. She hated him. She couldn’t help herself and knew it would take a long time for those feelings to leave her. If they ever did.
For the first five days of her stay in Colorado she lived in the shelter for battered women. At least, on Earth, they were trying, she’d decided when she’d first heard of the option. It certainly wasn’t her idea of luxury, but neither was sleeping in the streets. It wasn’t too bad, she told herself on the nights when women got too rowdy. She had a bed to sleep in, showers to use, and a washer and dryer at her disposal. She knew many had it worse than her and, as bad as it may sound, in a sickening way that was comforting to her. Misery loves company. It was on the sixth day that a waitress told her of an opportunity no woman from her planet would ever resist.
“...They’re good people Neptune,” Reba told her. “Neither of them drink. They are in their early sixties and have two extra rooms and simply want to rent one of them out to help with the bills.”
Neptune finished filling the salt and pepper shakers and wiped off her hands. She blew a strand of hair, which she had dyed red, out of her face and looked at her new friend.
“Do you know how much they want for rent and if they want a month up front?” she asked Reba. She wished she could explain that she was good for the money but that the space ships only did inter-galaxy mail calls once a month. Maybe at some point in the future, the planets would align and get their acts together with direct deposit. She hoped so but doubted it. There was too much tension with the nuke launches on either side, someday to go too far and be the end of all galaxies and lifeforms forever.
“Honestly, I have no clue, but I talked to them a few days ago. That was when they asked me to help them find someone and I thought of you. Do you want their number?”
Neptune didn’t hesitate. Living in a shelter for nearly a week was quickly losing what little appeal it had to begin with.
“Yes, please and thanks, Reba. You have no idea how much this means to me.” Stardust had never tried to help her. Instead, she’d glared at her for earning bigger tips and envied her middle tit.
Reba wrote the number down and handed it to her.
“Actually, I do. There’s more to this gorgeous face than meets the eye, honey. I’ve seen hard times, too.”
Neptune wondered what her new friend meant by those words, but didn’t ask. She knew, all too well, that sometimes it was better to let people have their privacy. And if Reba found freckles to be an asset, all the power to her. Frankly, Neptune thought she looked like she’d been sprayed in the face by a wayward comet, but who was she to judge? Reba was making an effort. She was also trying to share with her. If Reba wanted to volunteer more information, she’d be happy to listen and wasn’t about to argue about what was and wasn’t attractive. Return the effort. Make a friend. Learn to trust. Not everyone is trying to screw you.
“If this works out, I would like to buy you a drink. A girls’ night out, maybe.” Little Anus would die. That hypocrite didn’t allow drinking. Neptune’s job was to stay at his place quietly cleaning, waiting for him to arrive for the mandatory blow job. She laughed about this but not out loud. Reba would think she’d lost it.
Grinning, Reba told her a girls’ night out would be more than welcome.
“It will work out. You’ll love them, and I have no doubt they will adore you. I’ll be ready for that night out any night of the week.”
“I’ll call them when I get out of here, today. I’ll let you know what happens.”
The day’s shift ended with sixty-two Earth dollars in tips and the hope of a new home that didn’t float and wouldn’t make her space sick.
She wasted no time in following up on Reba’s lead. Waiting for the bus in temperamental November Earth air, she dialed the number Reba had given her.
“Hello,” a soft, feminine voice answered.
Neptune’s heart jumped. “Hello, my name is Neptune Star. I’m a friend and co-worker of Reba Green. She told me you have a room for rent and gave me your number. Is the room still available?”
“Yes, it is. Um, when do you want to come and look at it? Of course, we would like to meet you. When is good for you?”
“I just got off work. I’m at the shelter in Escape and I can’t leave tonight or I won’t have a place to sleep, but I’m off tomorrow.”
“Sounds good. Why don’t I make something for lunch and we can eat and talk? You can tell us a little about yourself and see the house as well.”
Her hopes quickly building, she responded, “Sounds great to me. What time should I be there?”
“We usually eat lunch around eleven-thirty or noon.”
“Okay, I’ll be there at eleven-thirty then. Thank you!”
Smiling, she walked inside the shelter and waited to be searched. It was something every resident had to go through when they showed up for a bed. She was used to it. She didn’t like it; she was always worried about someone discovering that third tit, but rules are rules. And safety was the most important thing here. She was grateful for that. Nobody cares about extra body parts. They’ll just think you’re deformed. It’s not like they know where you’re from. Besides, alien liberation is a real thing on Earth – not just a code they’re working on.
That night she rested in bed and stared at the mattress above her. She listened to the soft snores coming from the top and thought about the next day. She imagined having her own bed and room to sleep in again. A kitchen too and one much homier than the commercial one she’d wasted so much time in. A kitchen where she could cook her own food and maybe a television to watch without forty others talking around her. She thought about how simple pleasures could mean so much. Before she fell asleep she prayed for Goddess to help her.
“Universe, GG, if it’s your will, please make my meeting with Sue and Raymond work out tomorrow. Please, make this be a good thing all around. Don’t let them freak out if they find out. Aliens are people too. Make them understand,” she whispered out loud, hoping her bunk mate wouldn’t overhear and think she’d lost it.
Turning onto her side, she closed her eyes. Tired from a hard day’s work and the stress of life, she quickly fell asleep until her nightmares woke her up. This time, they were so real she couldn’t return to sleep. She’d seen Little Anus’s eyes, bloodshot and full of lust and anger. She could smell the alcohol on his breath, even in the dream, as he screamed obscenities at her. She could see him reach for and tear her blouse from her before throwing her to the ground. Even sitting up in bed, it was like it was still happening, as if she was watching it happen to someone else even... And then, his form merged into Rim Job Remus’s.