Page 79 of Across The Stars
“So?” I said. “I noticed none of you really look old. How do you know everyone’s age?”
“It’s the crown. They change shape as we age. Our fili changes color, too.”
“Your fili?”
“Hair. Although, it’s not really hair. They’re thin strands, all mildly sensitive. An extra-sensory feature, which is why none of us have short ‘hair.’ If we cut it, we feel it and it limits our awareness of our surroundings.”
“Wow.” I leaned in closer, lowering my voice. “Did it hurt when I pulled it?”
He smirked, his eyes sultry. “In the best way.”
I could barely keep from smiling at that. “Ok, so? How old do your head things say you are?”
“Physically?”
I raised a brow. “Is there a difference?”
“I’ve been alive for ninety-seven cycles. Approximately eighty-five Earth years.”
“That young, huh?” I said nervously, realizing I was dating someone old enough to be my grandfather.
“I’ve only been awake for forty-three of those years,” he clarified.
“What’s that mean?”
“It means that after the Thinning, men and women at a peak sexual age were asked to volunteer for stasis to preserve us all in case we were needed for genetic purposes. I was pulled out of stasis fourteen years ago when things started getting serious with humans. I was needed more for military purposes than scientific ones, however.” His tone dropped a little. “As in my paetal had the least chance of recovering. I was—I am—expendable, so I was placed in a position where I’d be useful. A position that males with a higher chance of producing would not be allowed to take.”
“And then you surged,” I said, feeling sympathetic to his history.
Once the woman had taken my blood, she used some kind of scanner that emitted a blue light and moved it all over my body, staring at the readings on the back of the device as she did. Whileshe was still doing that, Vahko and the other woman exchanged more words and then he got up from his seat and headed for the door.
“Where are you going?” I asked.
He turned back to me. “They need a sample of…” he trailed off, gesturing at his crotch with his hand.
“They need you to jizz in a cup,” I said with a quick nod. “Got it.”
He gave me a tight smile before he left, but it was odd and stiff, leaving me a little frazzled.
I laid back in my chair as the other woman continued her tests, taking my blood pressure, heart rate, and a few other things like any doctor would. Finally, she tapped my shoulder and said something I didn’t understand. I sat up and hopped out of the chair, watching her slip the blood sample and a few other things into a silver canister. Once she closed it, it beeped and she turned to me.
“Will all be sent to Valer,” she said in a heavy accent that sounded like something out of a Dracula movie.
“You speak English?”
She shrugged. “Small.”
I nodded as she gestured for the door and stepped out into the hall to see Vahko returning from another room. He gave me a reassuring smile and reached out for my hand. I gave it to him gladly, walking with him back to the building’s entrance. While we left, the woman who’d tended to me caught Vahko and the two exchanged words. I listened, but I couldn’t even begin to understand any of their speech. Although, even if I didn’t know what they were saying, I could see a shift in Vahko’s demeanor and I wasn’t fond of it. I wanted him smirking again, not frowning and deep in thought.
“That was fast,” I said as he turned back to me. “The private part of your exam, I mean.”
When Vahko chuckled, I was so caught off guard by the handsome sound that I almost stopped walking. I really liked his laugh. I wanted more of it in my future and not just into the week. Into the month. Maybe the year. Maybe longer…
When we got outside, we jumped back into the hover craft and Vahko selected a destination.
“So?” I said. “How long do we have to wait for the test results?”
“I don’t know. Our job is done, though. They have what they need. Now I can focus on you.”
