Page 15 of So I Married an Alien
I shake my head.“I’ve always lived with artificial light.We have ultraviolet, of course, in order to survive.But never real sunshine.”
“We should go for a walk in the park!”She leads me by the arm down the paved pathway that runs alongside the asphalt street.“If you’ve never seen trees up close before, I bet you would like it.”
This is an exciting idea.I could get close to the trees, perhaps even touch them.I want to know more about these big, leafy plants.
“Oh, yes.I would enjoy this.”
Amara comes to an abrupt stop at the edge of the sidewalk, but I try to continue.
“We have to wait,” she says, keeping me from going any farther.“See that light?”She raises her hand and points at a lit symbol across the street.“That means stop.After a while, it changes into a little green man, and then you can go.”
“Green man?”
Cars pass by quickly, and I think how silly it is they still have ground vehicles when they can prove so hazardous to pedestrians.OnNew Dro’thar II,all vehicles travel on a separate raised level, while pedestrians remain on the floor so there is never any risk of being hit.
I have learned yet another rule of this world.Don’t get hit by a car.Wait for the green man.
“The traffic lights are the same way,” Amara says as we wait.“Red means stop, green means it’s safe to go.”
“And yellow?”I ask, pointing at one of the lights as it changes.
“Um… it’s like, stop if you can, but don’t slam on your brakes.Unless someone’s right behind you, then I usually go through it.But you have to kiss your hand and slap the roof so the cops don’t pull you over.”
Driving sounds complicated.Her world is dangerous.
Then the red hand vanishes, replaced by a green walking figure.
“So we can walk now?”I ask, and Amara beams.
“You’ve got it.”
As we go, Amara and I cover many more essential subjects, such as walking on the right side of the sidewalk, when a small, four-legged creature steps out in front of me.
I’ve never seen anything like it, and I nearly jump out of my skin.
“What is that?”I ask Amara in a hoarse voice.The furry animal is, thank goodness, held back by a restraint, but the moment it sees me it lets out a terrible, sharp sound that blasts my eardrums.
I leap back, startled, right into a bush.
“Sorry,” says the woman trying to keep a hold on the animal.“He’s never seen an alien before.”
I find I’m holding onto Amara’s arm rather tightly as we leave it behind, me leading us at a quick clip down the street.
“It’s okay,” Amara says, patting me.“That was just a dog.Have you never seen a pet before?”
“Never.”
Most of our food is arthropod protein, from insects raised in containers on higher levels of the ship.We certainly do not have animals aspets.You could keep a cricket in a box, I suppose, but one of your friends would probably sneak it as a snack.
“Well, dogs are mostly harmless.You shouldn’t pet one without asking first, though.I never pet dogs I see on the street just to be safe.”
“Just to be safe?”I glance back at the animal warily.It raises one leg and urinates on a tree.“Safe from what?”
“Dogs can bite.I mean, most animals do, but they usually won’t bother you unless you bother them.”
“Earth animals… bite?”This is a disturbing thought.Especially when one is simply out and about on a leash.
“Not all of them.A bird could peck you.Which probably hurts, but not that bad?”Amara contemplates this.“I think it would hurt if they pecked you in the eye, like in that one movie.”
