Page 87 of What Makes an Alien a Dad?

Chapter 28

Maya

The illuminated stage stood out against the receding evening light in the park. Actors played out a funny scene among the holographic backdrop and props.

This was my eleventh date with Kear in the past thirteen days. Even on the evenings when either his work in the lab or my job-shadowing with Laihar kept us apart, we still made time to talk before going to bed.

“I love this actress,” I whispered to Kear as the audience laughed at a joke the female character made.

“Actor,” Kear corrected, also keeping his voice down for the sake of other people in the audience. “This is an all-male theater group, like most groups in Voran. Men play all female roles.”

The shortage of women affected all areas of life in Voran, but society had long learned to adapt.

“He’s very talented.”

“He is.”

Anika squirmed, waking up in her bassinet next to me. It was a weekend, and Kear and I had picked her up from the academy that morning.

It still amazed me that a newborn would be in an academy. But that was the Voranian way of life. Babies had aptitude tests the day they were born, which determined the best areas for their development. Like her dad, scans of Anika’s little brain showed a high potential for logic and analysis. She’d be raised as a scientist with an option to choose the area of her studies as she gets older.

Kear reached for his daughter, but I beat him to it.

“I’ve got her.” I took the baby out and cuddled her against my chest.

By the second date with her father, I gave up trying to stay away from her. Regardless of how things went between Kear and me, I couldn’t fight my fierce affection for the baby. I figured I could always love her, no matter how I felt about her father.

“Shhh, my sweet baby.” I nuzzled the soft fur on her head. Pearly gray, it would turn darker as she grew older. I wished to be a part of her life as it happened, witnessing all her firsts, from her first word, to her first step, to her first academic achievement of which, I was sure, she would have many.

The fresh night breeze brushed by my arms, sending a light shiver down my body.

“Come here.” Kear wrapped an arm around my shoulders.

He pulled me into his warmth, shielding me from the evening chill. I relaxed against his strong body. The baby calmed in my arms, tucked comfortably between us.

There was no better place I could imagine for myself. Not now, not ever.

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