Page 24 of MeK

“Iwas in the kitchen at first, butIwasn’t much help, so they transferred me out withJames, and so far,I’menjoying that way more thanIthoughtIwould.”

Inod for him to proceed as the line moves on.Kirahands him a plate, andInotice it has just a little bit extra on it. “Thankyou,Ms.Kira,” he says, pausing when she smiles at him. “Ifeel likeI’mexperiencing a sense of déjà vu or something every timeyou smile.IswearI’veseen you before, even thoughIknowIhaven’t.”

Hersmile falters for a moment, andIwatch as she turns, blinking away the sudden tears in her eyes. “MaybeIjust have one of those faces.”Ican tell she’s forcing those words out.

Rickyshakes his head, a rare smile gracing his face as he laughs. “That’sdefinitely not the case, as the only other womanI’veever known with all that beautiful hair was my great-grandmother, several times removed.Asa kid, probably around four or five,Iloved watching old home movies, and the first timeIsaw her on screen,Itold my dadIwas going to grow up one day and marry her.Iwas instantly in love.Hetold me ifIever found a woman like that, good luck because they were rare.Irecalled his words of wisdom whenIwas lucky enough to find and marry myGinger.Anyway,Ididn’t mean to dump that unneeded information on you, andI’msorry,Lacie, for holding up the line, but thanks for the extra taters,Ms.Kira.”

Whenshe watches him walk away,Ifeel as ifI’veintruded on something deeper thanIcan comprehend, especially as she gazes longingly at him as he strolls off. “HeyKira, you okay?”

Myvoice draws her attention back to me, and instantly she plasters a fake smile on her face asIsee her forcefully battling her emotions. “Hi,Laciedear.Howwas your first day in the fields?”Ilet her change the subject because the pain in her eyes is evident.There’sa storyI’dlove to know more about.

“Itwas good.Shockingly,Ienjoyed it tremendously, even though my knees are a bit sore from crawling around on the ground.”

“That’swonderful,Lace.Iwas worried whenDaRfirst told me about poorDawn.Neitherof us knew what to do, so if you hadn’t taken the position,DaRwas going to keep asking around.Ifelt so sorry for her today andIswear that child is allergic to herself.Shesneezed so much thatIsent her back up toANDI.Allthis nature seems to be tearing her apart from the inside out.Ohhh, beforeIforget to tell you,ItalkedDaRinto having a small celebration of sorts once everyone decides on a name for this new world, and we’re going to have it on the beach.So, when you get back, you need to see about getting a bathing suit ordered for you andBriar.Alanahas been updating the clothing replicator onANDI, so you should have a few options.”

“Thatsounds awesome,Kira!ButIhate that you had to take one for the team.I’msure theCommanderwas hard to convince.”Iwink at her suggestively.

“Stopit, you ornery thing.Getgoing before your food gets cold, andIsawBriarsit down toward the back if you’re looking for her.”

Walkingaround with my plate, it doesn’t take long to spotBriarsitting near the large pink guy who is much too close to her, grinning widely.Iplop down in front of her and motion to the big guy beside her when he looks away for a moment.Ablush instantly colors her cheeks, and she shrugs her shoulders.Ihave to bite the inside of my lip to keep from laughing.Thefact that she’s smitten is written all over her face.

“Didyou guys have a busy day,Briar?”

“Wedid.Weplayed the game, ‘guess what’s in the box,’ for the majority of it, butIthink we’re just about on the winning team.”

IwatchMeKlook around before sitting down at the table across from us … alone, and it only takes me a second to decide to pick up my plate and head his way.Briarwatches me, curious about whereI’mgoing, especially in the middle of our conversation.MeKglances up at me whenIsit down across from him, then returns to the food on his plate.Ididn’t think this all the way through whenIdecided to join him when no one else did, and nowIhave no idea what to say.

“How’sthe house building going?”

“SlowerthanIwould prefer.”

Ok,Ican tell getting a whole conversation out of him is going to be like pulling teeth. “Areyou enjoying the food?”

“Itis acceptable.”

Pushingmy half-eaten plate away,Ilean forward, suddenly weary from the day and my lack of sleep.WhenIlook up, he’s staring at me.

“Whyare you not consuming more sustenance?”

“Oh, it’s good and all,Ijust seem to have become suddenly over tired.”

BeforeIcan blink,MeKis on my side of the table, pulling me into his massive arms and heading toward the back of the tent where the medical center is located.

“Whatin the hell are you doing,MeK?Putme down.”

“Youare unwell and need to be seen by a physician immediately.”

“MeK, stop.You’recausing a scene.There’snothing wrong with me,I’mjust tired.Ihaven’t been sleeping well, that’s all.”

“Thatis a reasonable reason to seek out professional help, especially now that you have taken on such a physical job.”

God,Ifeel like crawling under a rock as every head in the room is looking straight at us.Withina few steps,Irealize there’s no escaping his massive arms, soIrelax and decide to ride this out.Whenmy head bumps against his shoulder,Ihave to stop myself from sniffing him since he smells like the woods, and his arms feel like rods of hot steel surrounding me.Whenmy mind finally catches up with who’s holding me,Iglance up at his solemn face and wonder what is going on beneath that tough exterior he portrays for everyone else to see.Fora person … alien who portrays such structure and obedience, why doIsuddenly feel all of that is an act?Whydedicate your life to rebuilding and advancing the worlds around you if all you want to do is remain separate from them all?He’sa puzzleIfearI’llnever gather all the pieces to.

Vedecemust have heard his heavy footsteps approaching because she steps out from behind one of the sheets she has hung up, andIcan see the questions written all over her face when she sees me pressed tightly against him.Beforeshe can say anything,MeKpushes past her, leans over one of the makeshift medical beds, and gently lays me down.

“MistressLaciecannot rest and is not eating as much as she will need to maintain her perfect form with the new physical conditions that have been placed upon her.”Thenhe turns and simply walks away, leaving both of us staring after him.

Layingmy head back,Ibang it off the soft pillow several times, only to hearVedecelaugh as she looks down at me.

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