Page 47 of Swipe Right for Stardust

I squinted at the landscape, trying to see what he saw. “Like... there!” I pointed to a series of ice pillars that formed and reformed in a repeating sequence. “We could use that as a marker.”

“Excellent observation, Vanessa.”

My chest swelled at his praise. I felt more confident than ever, standing beside him as an equal partner. But a nagging thought crept in: what would happen to us after the race? Could whatever was growing between us survive beyond this crazy adventure?

“Ready to make our first steps?” Zarnak asked, offering his hand.

I took it, pushing my worries aside. “Let’s do this.”

We moved carefully across the icy terrain, staying close together. The ground shifted, forcing us to adjust our balance constantly. I gripped Zarnak’s hand tightly.

“Watch out!” he called suddenly, pulling me back as a crevasse opened up right in front of us.

I peered into the depths of the icy chasm. “That was close.”

Zarnak’s eyes narrowed in concentration. “The ice formations... if we time it right, we can use them as a bridge.”

I nodded, studying the shifting patterns. “Okay, on my mark. Three... two... one... now!”

We leapt forward together, landing on a thick sheet of ice that had just formed. It started to crack beneath our feet, but we were already moving, jumping to the next formation. In perfect sync, we bounded from one icy platform to another until we reached the other side of the crevasse.

As we caught our breath on solid ground, a sharp chirp came from my pack. Taffy’s tentacle emerged, pointing urgently to our left.

“What is it, little guy?” I asked, following its gesture.

Just then, a massive icicle crashed down exactly where we would have been standing if we’d continued straight ahead.

“Good call, Taffy,” Zarnak said, patting the creature gently.

I looked at our unlikely little team – the alien scientist, the stowaway creature, and me, the Earthling who’d never left her planet before this crazy adventure.

The wind picked up, swirling snow around us in dizzying patterns. Within moments, visibility dropped to almost nothing. The world became a blur of white, disorienting and vast.

“Zarnak?” I called out, my voice muffled by the howling gale.

“I’m here,” he responded, his hand finding mine in the whiteout. “Stay close.”

I gripped his hand tightly, my anchor in this swirling chaos. We inched forward, the crunching of snow the only indication we were moving at all.

“How are we going to navigate this?” I shouted over the wind.

“We’ll have to rely on our other senses,” Zarnak replied. “Feel the ground beneath us, listen for changes in the wind.”

I nodded, then realized he probably couldn’t see me. “Got it. I trust you.”

As we trudged through the blinding snow, I pressed against Zarnak’s side. The intimacy of our position wasn’t lost on me, nor was the comfort I found in his presence. My mind drifted to our time in the cave, to the connection we’d forged.

The word “mate” floated through my thoughts, unbidden. I nearly stumbled at the implications. Was that what we were becoming? What did that mean for my life, my plans?

“Careful,” Zarnak murmured, steadying me.

“Thanks,” I replied, my heart racing. “I was just... thinking.”

“About?”

I hesitated. “Us. This. Everything.”

He was quiet. “I’ve been thinking too.”

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