Page 84 of Between Earth and Eternity
He purses his lips. “Mr. Mannox has a lot on his mind. Sometimes even I don’t understand his actions, and I’ve known him for a long time.”
I shake my head in annoyance, even if I am curious. “Doesn’t that get old?”
Bex fights back a smile as he pushes the button for the door to slide open. “Let’s just say there’s a lot more to Vallen Mannox than you might think.”
Can somebody walk me home?
To pearly gates
The universe becomes a wave
And crashes down
“The Walk Home,” Young The Giant
It was only a matter of time before I caught an illness, and when a virus found me, it hit with a vengeance. Unfortunately, since Ori and I room together, she had to stay in quarantine with me. I tried confine myself to my room, but shewouldn't hear of it and ended up contracting the same thing, which only made our quarantine period longer.
Now, on day ten, I think we’re both ready to break out of this germ-infested prison.
“Someone from Medical will be by this afternoon to check on us,” Ori says, reading a message off our home console.
“Good. Hopefully they’ll give us the all clear.” I lie across the couch, flipping through the channels absentmindedly.
“So, are you ever going to tell me what happened that night you stayed at Vallen’s?” she asks hopefully. We’re both starved of entertainment.
“I told you. I stayed the night, and the next morning, he made it obvious he wanted me to leave. That’s it.” The tangled weave of secrets I’m holding from her are hard to keep track of, so I’ve left everything to the bare minimum.
With me and my mouth, spilling my own as well as others’ could easily happen, so I won’t take any chances.
“I don’t believe you.” She sighs, joining me on the couch. It’s large enough for both of us to stretch out, especially when she sits on the opposite end, our toes barely touching in the middle.
“And I don’t believe that nothing happened with Bex,” I tease. “He really didn’t say a word? Just got you away from Slade and dropped you off here?” I rest my chin on my hand and give her an amused look.
“I said he didn’t saya lot. When Vallen got you out, we all stood in awe for a moment. Then Slade screamed at everyone to go away, obviously embarrassed.”
I wish I could have enjoyed that scene more.
“After that, Bex reassured me Vallen would take care of you, and I don’t know, it felt like he really meant it, so I didn’t question him. Then he made sure I was okay and walked me back to the suite.” It doesn’t go unnoticed that her cheeks blush slightly when she said his name. “Now”—she crosses her legs—“give me a play-by-play. He rescues you, which was so epic by the way, and then what?”
Her enthusiasm is always entertaining.
“He took me to his suite to calm down, then I fell asleep. The next day, I woke up and left.”
“Ugh! Come on! I’m so bored.” She throws a pillow at me, and I chuckle.
“Okay, fine. I snooped around his room.”
Ori’s gasp makes me jump. “Sorry.” She covers her mouth. “I knew it. I just knew you were leaving so much out.”
“Anyway, as you would expect, it was outrageous.” I fill her in on all the amenities, including his bedroom, and she excitedly kicks her feet the whole time. “Then Bex caught me just before Vallen got there and he very sweetly covered for me.”
Sheawwsloudly. “I am still dying to know if Laz and him are a thing.”
I am too, to be honest. It’d be nice to get an answer to literally anything happening on this ship, even if it is a forbidden romance—which, in normal circumstances, may be at the top of the list, but not when humanity’s future is a big fat question mark.
“Also,” I say, and she leans in, “when Vallen came back to the room, he had a cut under his eye.” Ori covers her mouth like this is the greatest story she’s ever heard. “Turns out, it was—”
I pause. It suddenly feels intrusive to share. I get the feeling Vallen meant the confession only for me. Why he told me, I have no idea. Maybe he didn’t mean to. Ori wouldn’t tell a soul if I asked her not to, but I want to keep his proclamation for myself.
