Page 41 of Soren

"Um, yes sir! Sorry to bother you!"

"Damn right," I grumble, before digging my heels into Cali's flanks and picking up speed.

I need to get out of here. I need something to take my mind off of things. Off of her. Guess I'll do the same thing I always did before she came into the picture: find something to fight and let my fists do the talking.

JANIE’S HOSPITAL BED

LARA

Few things compare to the sheer bliss of holding a sleeping child. Especially one you haven't seen in far too long.

I hold a sleeping Iris on my chest while I sit next to Janie's hospital bed. She's also resting, and at last I have a moment of silence. Ever since I got the message that Janie was hurt, everything felt like a blur. A long, chaotic blur. And here I was, back on Earth with my sister and niece, like nothing ever happened.

Almost.

A few things were markedly different -- the rosy flush on Iris' cheeks, for one. Janie and Iris both looked more healthy and vibrant than I'd seen them in years. Even with Janie laid up with a broken leg, there's more color in her face than before. Her eyes are starting to carry that same zest for life that I grew up with. Little by little, they were both recovering, thanks to the food shipments and stipends from the ISA.

And it wasn't just the food, either -- Janie was going back to school online now, and was even able to afford advanced medical care for her leg. I shudder to think what might have happened otherwise...

I didn't realize just how much it would change our lives when I signed that contract and went up there.

Or how much it would change mine.

I place my free hand over my stomach, only barely starting to swell with child. I worry about carrying an alien pregnancy to term here on Earth, but doctors from the ISA are standing by in case I need anything.

There's one very important element I'm missing, though: Soren.

My heart aches for him every day that we're apart, but it wasn't really much of a choice, was it? I couldn't abandon my sister and niece. Not for the hottest, sweetest man (or alien) in the universe.

The sun sets and I lay Iris down in her small bed, then get up and stretch my legs. Walking across the room, I pull aside the curtains and stare out the hospital window, trying to catch a glimpse of the stars. I have no idea where he is, but looking up there makes me feel less alone. Like he can see me, somehow. Sense me.

I fiddle with the silver ring on my finger. It was the last thing he gave me before I had to leave. He'd asked me to marry him.

I'd said yes, hadn't I? Or did I get a chance to? It all happened so fast, and fears for Janie's safety soon took over any elation I may have had.

Slipping off the ring, I roll it around in my hand. Fine characters mark the inside of the ring in a language I can't understand. The translator doesn't work down here, and even if it did, I could only understand spoken voices. Not printed words.

I'll have to ask Soren what it means when I go back.

The thought comes without warning. I let out an involuntary gasp. When I go back. Was that even possible? When they off-boarded me, they gave me all kinds of paperwork and drugs to help readjust to Earth's atmosphere. It felt...weird, being back on Earth.

Familiar and unfamiliar all at the same time. And as I find myself staring up into space, my heart cries out where my voice cannot.

I miss him.

"Still looking for him?" Janie's voice startles me and I turn around to face her. She's awake, eyes half-lidded as she lays propped up on the inclined mattress.

"I -- " I try to retort, but it's no use. "How did you know?"

"I know my own sister. You miss him."

A lump forms in my throat. All I can do is nod. If I speak again, I don't know if I can hold back the tears.

"You didn't have to come all the way back, you know." Janie shifts to be further upright in bed. She takes a sip from the water bottle next to the bed and then checks the time. "I'll be fine."

I wince. "Come on, Janie. You and Iris...you're all I have left. I couldn't abandon you. Not like this."

Not like Iris' father, either.

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