Page 23 of Whisked Away By the Alien

“You’ll have to excuse them, Sten. We normally get along quite well.”

“My presence is upsetting your family rituals.” Sten looks toward the door to the house. I grab his arm to keep him from getting up, so he’ll know he’s wanted here.

Wanted… Iwanthim. That can’t be. I’ve only known him two days. And yet I’m struck by how warm and perfect holding his hand feels. How having him beside me makes the holiday complete.

Stenikov wraps his fingers around mine, making my stomach flutter and my heart soar. Despite how out of place he must feel among a bunch of humans, celebrating a holiday he never heard of, he seems genuinely happy to be here. I hope we can make him feel at home.

The room falls stone silent and I turn to see everyone, and I do meaneveryone, staring at me. Sten has this look of longing in his eyes that makes me want to press my lips against his, but my parents and bubbe have a completely other expression on their faces.

“What are you doing, Golda Rose Birnbaum?” Mom asks.

I look down to see my hand not only resting on his arm, but my wayward finger is lightly caressing him, back and forth. It’s an innocent touch, though hard to explain, especially when I didn’t realize I was doing it.

“I’m trying to keep him from leaving.”

“If he wants to leave, you shouldn’t stop him,” Bubbe says.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Ma. We don’t turn someone out when he’s hungry,” Mom comes to his defense. “Especially after he cooked all day.”

“You’re right,” Bubbe said. “Feed the giant blue margarita, then he can go.” She pushes the plate of latkes toward him. “Eat. There’s not an ounce of fat on you. You’re wasting away, Stenala.”

Stenala. Lovely… She’s yiddifying his name. “He’s not Jewish, Bubbe. At least I don’t think he is.” I turn to Sten. “Are you?” Never have I felt so stupid as the moment the words come out of my mouth.

“There’s an easy way to tell.” Bubbe’s eyes move down toward his crotch.

“Bubbe!”

“Ma!”

Hey, look, my Mom and I are on the same page for a change!

“Settle down and let’s eat.” Dad digs the serving fork into the sliced brisket and serves himself. He chuckles as he passes the platter. “You’ve been here since yesterday and you’re still alive, Stenikov. That’s a testament to your fortitude.”

Sten looks to me for guidance. A warmth spreads through me knowing he trusts me to save him from this den of lions that is my family. “He means you’ve survived the scrutiny of my mom and bubbe. It’s a joke. Mostly.”

“Ah, Earth humor.”

“You invited an alien into our home without telling me first, David.”

And we’re back to that subject….

“Hon, I told you he was coming to stay with us for the holiday. I simply didn’t give you his planet of origin. I vetted him through several sources, all of which assured me the family would be safe with him here. Safer than usual, in fact. It’s like having our own personal body guard for the week.”

“We don’t need a bodyguard.”

“That’s true, but he needed a place to stay while he learns about humans.” Dad spoons a heap of glistening, sugary red apple sauce onto his plate. “No one told me Golda would be here. Hi, sweetie.”

“Hi, Dad. I got a few days off at the last minute. There was some trouble at the warehouse. A few shipping containers went missing.”

“How do shipping containers go missing? They weigh five thousand pounds empty and close to fifty thousand at full capacity.”

“It’s not the containers so much as their contents. During a random inventory audit a few weeks ago, I discovered a discrepancy. The bills of lading listed four crates, but we couldn’t find them in the warehouse. There’s no trace of the missing items being received, stored, or shipped out. Someone’s stealing from the warehouse, or a shipper, maybe a few, are inflating the inventory at their end to charge us for product we don’t receive. Either way, someone’s counting on us not keeping accurate records.”

“You discovered the problem, Golda?” Dad asks.

“Yes. And I reported it to Mr. Kelly. That’s when he sent me home,afterquestioning my accounting methods. It’s not an error at my end. I triple checked. I have today and tomorrow off while they figure it out.”

“They?” Sten asks.

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