Page 18 of Swipe Right for Stardust

I shook my head, marveling at her ability to find humor in such an embarrassing situation. “That’s quite the adventure,” I said. “Though I must admit, I’m not entirely familiar with human dating customs. Is it common for first encounters to end in property damage?”

Vanessa’s laughter redoubled. “God, I hope not! Though come to think of it, a lot of my first dates have ended in some kind of disaster. Maybe I’m cursed.”

“Well,” I said, feeling a sudden surge of boldness, “perhaps this show will break that curse.”

Vanessa’s laughter faded, replaced by a soft smile that made my heart race. “Maybe it will,” she said quietly.

We fell into a comfortable silence, both turning to gaze out at the stars once more. I found myself calculating every point where our bodies almost touched - our knees mere centimeters apart, our hands resting close together on the armrests.

I wanted to reach out, to bridge that small gap between us. But uncertainty held me back. What if I was misreading the situation? What if my alien physiology repulsed her?

As if sensing my inner turmoil, Vanessa spoke again. “You know, Zarnak, I’m really glad we got paired up for this show.”

I turned to look at her, finding sincerity in her gaze. “As am I,” I said softly. “You’re... not what I expected when I agreed to participate in this experiment.”

“Oh?” Vanessa raised an eyebrow. “And what did you expect?”

I considered my words carefully. “I’m not sure, exactly. But certainly not someone so... captivating.”

The moment the word left my mouth, I wondered if I’d overstepped. But Vanessa’s smile only grew wider, a faint blush coloring her cheeks.

“Captivating, huh?” she said. “You’re pretty captivating yourself, Doc.”

A flicker of movement caught my eye, drawing my attention to a nearby holographic clock. The glowing numbers floated in the air, a stark reminder that our evening was coming to an end. A pang of regret shot through me.

“It’s getting late,” I said, reluctantly breaking the comfortable silence that had settled between us.

Vanessa followed my gaze, her eyebrows rising in surprise. “Oh wow, I didn’t realize how much time had passed.”

I nodded, feeling the weight of tomorrow’s challenge pressing down on us. “We should probably get some rest before the race.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Vanessa agreed, though I detected a note of disappointment in her voice that mirrored my own feelings.

We stood, our movements slow and hesitant. The soft rustle of her clothing, the subtle scent of her hair - every little detail seemed magnified.

We stepped into the corridor, our footsteps echoing in the quiet space. Other contestants passed us, their hushed conversations drifting by.

“I can’t believe you ate that thing! It was still moving!”

“Well, how else was I supposed to impress her? You saw those mandibles...”

A few steps later, another exchange caught my ear.

“Do you think they’ll make us swim? I didn’t pack a bathing suit.”

“Honey, with some of these guys, I don’t think that’ll be a problem.”

I glanced at Vanessa, wondering if she’d overheard the same comments. Her slight smirk told me she had.

As we neared her quarters, a growing nervousness settled in my stomach. I studied her more intently, noticing things I’d overlooked before. The graceful way she moved, the curve of her neck, the slight furrow of concentration between her brows as she navigated the unfamiliar corridors.

I’d encountered humans before, of course, but I’d never really looked at them. Why hadn’t I studied them more closely? There was so much I didn’t know, so much complexity I’d never considered.

We reached Vanessa’s door far too quickly for my liking. We both stopped, turning to face each other.

I shifted my weight, uncertain of the proper protocol in this situation. Among my own people, a formal bow would suffice, but that felt too cold, too distant for what we’d shared this evening.

Vanessa looked up at me, her lips parted slightly as if she wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words. I felt my heart rate increase, my body humming with an unfamiliar energy.

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