Page 73 of Space for More

“If it’s a divine force, why would your Goddess pair a random human with you? I’m no one special. Whyme?”

“It’s random. Everything in the universe is random and we just do our best with our feeble minds to make sense of it. You can either let it upset you or you can embrace it. Trust me, I get it if you’reupset to be stuck with us. I felt the same way when I found out my mate was this stuck up jerk,” Mezli says, gesturing to Phelix.

He laughs, sounding so unrestrained and oddly delighted by her gibe. It’s this, rather than their words, that makes whatever remaining resistance I had to believing them melt away. A few days ago, he’d be snapping back and hardening his shell. When he doesn’t, when he enjoys her barbs, I realize both of them are relaxed and happy together, not in spite of my presence, butbecauseof it. They fit together because they haveme. Silly, naive, smart, inquisitive, supportive, empathetic me. I matter to them just as much as they do to me. I belong with them.

“You’re my mates?” My voice is filled with awe as I allow that truth to settle in my heart.

“We’re your mates. If you want, we can take a DNA sample and send it off to a mate finder, like our parents did for us. I bet you a million credits that it’ll confirm what we already know.”

“Neither of us have a million credits,” I say, laughing the idea off.

“Then we’ll bet a million of Phelix’s credits!” Mezli says, winking at him.

The romantic side of me wants to wave the offer off, but the scientist in me can’t resist. “I… I’d like that. Not because I don’t believe you. I just…want to be sure.”

They both smile in reassurance, not upset by my need to have confirmation.

“Wait. You have a million credits?” My mouth falls open as my brain processes that information. I knew Phelix is a noble and that he’s rich, but didn’t really consider the realities of that.

Phelix ducks his head and grimaces like that’s a bad thing. “Yes. I have more than that. Is that a problem?”

“Only if you go back to acting like a rich, entitled prick,” Mezlisays, but there’s no bite to her tone. “And oh, by the way, it’s not going to be a big issue since I, uh, promised a lot of credits to Hadrell for their help…”

Phelix’s brow quirks. “How much?”

“A lot,” Mezli says in an uncharacteristically nervous squeak.

He sighs, but doesn’t look the least bit upset with her. “Whatever it was, it was worth it. I’d give up all my money to keep my mates safe.”

My stomach flips at his mention of mates, but unlike before it’s from excitement instead of nerves.

Mezli snorts, dimming some of my arousal from his romantic words. “That’s sweet, but I give you one month max of living like me and Eden before you went crawling to your family for money.”

He scoffs right back at her, but then his expression turns serious. “I’m not enough of an asshole to pretend that money doesn’t make life vastly more simple. But it never made me happy. I’d willingly trade my wealth if it meant I could be with you two. If it meant I could stop being so…alone.”

The vulnerability and honesty of his words resonate deeply with me, and I can see they hit home with Mezli too. The three of us have felt alone in our own ways for so long. Phelix hardening his heart against the judgment of his peers and rejection from his mate, cutting himself off from others so he wouldn’t have to feel the pain of it again. Me, wasting away my youth on a planet made for those who have already lived full lives. And Mezli, surrounding herself with friends and lovers but never letting anyone see her true self. We’re all broken in our own ways, but together we can mend and become something beautiful.

Mezli wipes away a tear and pulls Phelix against her, wrapping her arms around him and holding him tight. I mold myself against his back, and she releases him to hold on to my arms instead,so he’s surrounded on both sides. We stay like this for a while, melting into the comfort of each other’s touch.

Eventually, Mezli lets out a soft chuckle. “Let’s avoid getting into any more trouble so you don’t have to give up more of your money. I miss not having to worry about making rent.”

Our exhaustionquickly catches up with us and we end up falling asleep on Mezli’s bed, squished together. When I wake up, my neck is stiff from my awkward position, but my heart is overwhelmingly full. The soft buzzing of my comm against my wrist wakes me, and I extricate myself from the tangle of limbs and head into the small living room to answer the vid comm.

The holo screen expands in front of me and my parents’ smiling faces appear.

“Hey sweetie! Hope we didn’t interrupt you during a lecture… Oh!”

My mom’s smile quickly morphs to curiosity, and she trails off as she looks past me to what’s behind me. I turn to see that my positioning gives my parents a clear view through the open door into the bedroom. Where there are two nexxit sleeping, and I’m dressed in a fluffy purple robe that is many sizes too small.

I squeak and move so my back is to the kitchen rather than the bedroom. “I’m good! Great! Just getting ready after uh, after a…”

“Late night?” Dad volunteers with a knowing eyebrow raise that makes me want to spontaneously combust from sheer embarrassment.

“Y-yeah. I…”You’re thirty years old, Eden. You don’t have to hide that you had sex from your parents like a naughty teen.“I met someone.”

“Two someones, from what I could see,” Dad adds and my mother can’t contain her snort of laughter.

“I’m so happy for you, Eden! As long as you were safe, we don’t judge how many aliens you ‘meet’” Mom uses air quotes on the word “meet” and winks.

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