Page 46 of I'm Not Your Pet

Only a few crewmates were present when we reached the mess hall that our residence was assigned to. The tall sloping ceilings were high enough to accommodate Huu-goh and I together, as I made my way toward the cooling units to begin preparing our food.

Atop my shoulders, Huu-goh was quiet. Knowing him, he was cataloging the details of everything he saw so he could jot them down in his journal later. It was nearly full. Maybe all the way full—and I made a mental note to buy him a new one at our final stop before heading home.

We were still far away—this was the longest stretch of continuous space travel we’d embarked on since Huu-goh had moved in with me.

“Captain,” Ushuu’s familiar scratchy voice echoed from behind me. I paused, twisting around to greet him. It wasimpossible for the ice to fill my limbs again when Huu-goh was stroking my fin.

“Ushuu,” I responded, smiling at him fondly. He crossed the distance between us, his spots pink with affection.

Ushuu smiled at me in the way he had since I was a boy. Like even though I was fully grown now and had been manning this ship for over a decade, I was still the fresh-spotted recruit he’d snuck sweets to under the table.

When he called me ‘captain’ it almost felt like an inside joke. Like I was playing dress-up. He was the only person other than Mala who knew where I had come from—and how hard I’d worked to be here.

Instead of feeling humiliated, it always made me warm all over.

Because for just a moment, I could let go of who I’d become and be little Roark again.

Ushuu was the only crewmate left from the original team that had manned The Dreamer when I had first been recruited. I’d been fatherless for far longer than I’d known Ushuu. But if I’d had one still, I would’ve hoped he would be as level-headed and soft-spoken as Ushuu was. His surface was a lovely pale gray, and paired with the white lab coat he insisted on wearing—to set him aside from the crew—it lent him a demure, but odd air.

Most Sahrks did not wear clothing on their upper bodies. In fact, clothing on the lower body was a new invention. It limited our access to our limbs and made transforming difficult if not impossible. Plus, it made our surface struggle to breathe—and that was uncomfortable.

Ushuu somehow managed to defy all logic, however.

“Is this the huu-man?” Ushuu asked in our tongue, clearly delighted as he reached out to grasp Huu-goh’s bare toes. “He is wonderful! I have never seen one up close like this. Look how delightful his little feet are. Five toes! Whatever for?!”

Huu-goh jerked his feet back, his delightful toes wriggling away from Ushuu’s fingers. I growled in warning, tendrils shooting up to wrap protectively around Huu-goh’s legs without conscious thought. He wiggled his toes inside their grasp, and the sensation tickled in a way that had me calming.

“Mine,” I snapped, keeping my voice even, though I was sure my spots betrayed me. Immediately, I regretted the action—as Ushuu’s eyes widened and he glanced between me and Huu-goh again, like he was seeing something that he hadn’t before.

“Apologies,” he replied, tone soft. “It won’t happen again.”

Huu-goh made a soothing sound as he stroked my fin. I purred back at him, taking comfort from his touch. Ushuu was quiet as he began to prepare his own food. Still feeling a bit dazed by my own brash reaction, I turned toward the coolers and began arranging breakfast for Huu-goh and me. My movements were more jerky than normal, but soon enough, his tiny hands on my fin and their gentle stroking accomplished what Huu-goh had set out to do. I was back to my usually unruffled self, pulse no longer thrumming.

I owed Huu-goh an apology.

I should have moved faster.

I should’ve anticipated Ushuu’s curiosity. He and Huu-goh were far more alike than I’d realized before that moment. Maybe Ushuu needed a leash of his own. The thought almost made me laugh, but then I sobered—realizing suddenly what a ridiculous idea that was.

To chain Ushuu?

Even if it was to keep him out of trouble.

The double standard felt like a slap to the face and the weight of Huu-goh’s leash around my wrist suddenly felt impossibly heavy. Tomorrow. When I brought him out tomorrow I’d take him without the chain, my own fears be damned.

The thought of that alone made me feel shaky and frightened—but I forced the feeling aside. It would do me no good here. Not now, when we were supposed to be eating. And I was supposed to be showing Huu-goh around the helm, and introducing him to Ushuu for the first time.

When I checked on Huu-goh his eyes were dancing, and the flicker of fear I’d seen inside them had melted away. He observed Ushuu with as much wonder as he’d taken in the hallways and the cafeteria. Dark intelligent eyes flickered with interest as the older Sahrk made his way toward the tables that lined the back hall, his plate of bambuu piled high.

If Huu-goh was not bothered, then I would choose not to be also.

I would follow his lead.

Huu-goh’s leash dangled from my wrist as I finished plating our food and made a beeline for the spot beside Ushuu. I kept my distance for the moment, making sure there was one chair between us so that Huu-goh would not feel intimidated.

Taking a deep breath, I placed both plates on the table and retrieved Huu-goh from his perch on my shoulders. With a gentle nudge, I arranged him on the chair to my left, away from Ushuu, charmed all over again when Huu-goh smiled up at me.

Huu-goh was a small reassuring weight against my side as I diced his food into tiny huu-man-sized bites. When I slid him his plate and a fork, he said his precious “thank yew” again. Charmed like always, I admired how tiny but regal he looked dutifully grabbing the Sahrk-sized fork. It looked huge in his grip, but he didn’t seem to mind, his brow furrowed in determination as he speared a piece of bambuu and brought it to his lips.

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