Page 45 of Accidentally Abducted

And now I'm sitting on my apartment floor, jealous of a relationship that never happened between my ex-boyfriend and an alien from another world.

My life has become truly bizarre.

The thought makes me physically ill.

I crawl back to the couch and retrieve the communicator from where I'd stashed it alongside the gemstones. The smooth surface is cool against my palm, its faint vibration the only indication that it's more than just a stone. I cradle it in both hands, closing my eyes, trying to reach through whatever cosmic distance separates me from Zeph.

The empathic bond is so faint now, I can barely sense it. Just a whisper of connection, a ghost of the vivid link we shared. I focus on it anyway, pouring everything I am into that tenuous thread, willing Zeph to feel me across the stars.

I'm here. I miss you. I can't stop thinking about you.

For a moment, just a moment, I think I feel something. A flicker of response, a pulse that might be an echo of Zeph's bioluminescence. My heart leaps, and I press the communicator closer, straining to sense anything more definite.

Then it's gone, and I'm alone again, clutching a piece of alien technology and trying not to cry.

With shaking hands, I place the communicator back on the coffee table and open my laptop again. But instead of real estate listings, I pull up a job search site. Not because I'm ready to move on, but because I need to survive in the meantime. Because if, when, Zeph comes back, I want to have a life worth sharing with him.

I type "psychology jobs" into the search bar, staring at the results. Three days with Zeph taught me more about connection and understanding than three years of college classes. Maybe it's time to use that knowledge for something other than making lattes.

My phone buzzes with a text, and I glance at it, expecting another concerned message from a friend or a final passive-aggressive note from my former boss. Instead, it's from Derek.

Forgot to mention - got selected for some international fitness ambassador program. Flying out next week for initial meetings. Pretty mysterious but they mentioned "compatibility testing" which sounds like genetic stuff. Could be big! Just wanted to share good news with someone. Take care man.

I stare at the message, blood turning to ice in my veins. International fitness ambassador program. Compatibility testing. It can't be a coincidence.

They're still coming for Derek.

The aliens, the Nereidans, are moving forward with their program. With their original target.

I grab the communicator again, no longer caring about protocols or emergencies or whatever rules Zeph said it had.This is an emergency. They're going to take Derek, put him through the same assessment Zeph and I experienced. Create another connection like ours.

The thought of Zeph with Derek, Zeph showing Derek the cleansing pools, teaching him about Nereidan culture, his beautiful bioluminescence responding to Derek's touch, it's physically painful. Not because I have any lingering feelings for Derek, but because what Zeph and I shared felt so singular, so perfect. The idea that it could be replicated, that Zeph might form that bond with someone else...

My thumb finds the activation spot, pressing down hard. I don't know how it works, don't know if there are codes or procedures. I just pour everything I'm feeling into it, panic, jealousy, desperation, love.

Don't take him. Come back for me instead. It's supposed to be me. Please.

The stone warms in my hand, vibrating more intensely, and for a breathless moment I think it's working. I think Zeph is answering. I think the universe is finally giving us a break.

Then the communicator goes dark and silent, a useless lump of alien metal in my palm.

I curl around it, drawing my knees to my chest, and let the tears come. Not just for the lost connection, but for the reality I can no longer escape.

Whatever Zeph and I shared, whatever we built in those three days, it wasn't enough to change the course of events. The program continues. The assessments continue.

Life continues, relentlessly, without even the courtesy of a pause to acknowledge that everything is different now.

I should text Derek back. I should warn him, tell him not to go, make up some excuse about these programs being scams. But what would I say? How would I explain what I know without sounding completely insane?

Besides, who am I to deny him the experience that changed my life? Maybe he'll form his own connection. Maybe he'll find his own version of what Zeph and I had.

The thought hollows me out, leaving nothing but a shell of who I was before the blue light came.

Three days. Three days that rewrote everything I thought I knew about the universe, about connection, about love.

Three days that ended far too soon.

With numb fingers, I type a response to Derek.

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