“I don’t think it works like that here.” Luka had mentioned that the idea of dating before being married was a bit strange and outdated. Normally, women would wait to interact with the men they wanted to marry until the ceremony. He’d told her that occasionally Tremantians would have casual sex, but usually only while waiting for the next ceremony or while they were taking a break due to childbirth or to see to their mental health.
“Do you have your eye on anyone?” Alice asked hopefully. Maybe having a handsome, attentive mate would help Vanessa the same way it’d helped Alice.
She shrugged, her bare shoulder looking thinner than Alice remembered. “They’re all handsome, but I’m just not interested in that.”
Alice studied her friend. There had to be more to the story than a fight to make Vanessa’s fire dwindle to such an alarming degree. Everyone Vanessa had talked to had patiently explained why she couldn’t return to Earth. When Luka had clarified it was a galaxy-wide law not to interfere with or contact Class 4 planets like Earth, Alice had lost a little hope as well. “Are you ready to tell me what happened with your sister? I know you got into a fight, and it’ll be really hard for her to not know what happened to you, but eventually she’ll move on. You said she had a husband, right? Are they happy together?”
Vanessa stared at her glass, nibbling on her lip, then downed the remaining liquid and plastered on a smile. “I’ll get over it. You don’t have to worry about me, Alice. I’m a big girl.”
Alice gave her a hard look, but she knew Vanessa wouldn’t budge on this. The girl liked to keep her feelings locked away and buried. She wondered if Vanessa had ever truly let anyone in.
“So tell me about you and Luka,” she said brightly.
Alice pinned her with a stern glare. “You’re changing the subject.”
Vanessa’s smile faded, and Alice could see the weariness in her eyes. She was letting Alice see it.
Vanessa sighed. “I need to change it, okay? Make me think about something else.”
“Fine. But you’ll have to let me in one day.” After Vanessa gave her a half-hearted nod, Alice told her about Luka and how she’d fallen for him.
“Well, why don’t you tell him?” Vanessa questioned with a little more pep. Maybe she did need a change of subject.
Alice’s mouth turned up in an embarrassed smile. “I don’t want to be the one to say it first.”
Vanessa started laughing. A genuine, hearty guffaw, bolstering Alice’s hope that her friend would eventually get through this.
“Where do you think we are, girlie?” she said with a raised brow. “In this city, the women pick their men out of a lineup and rule the roost. It’s a matriarchy! He probably doesn’t think he can say it first.”
Alice pondered this. “He’s made all the other first moves, though.”
“Yeah, to get you to like him and want to stay with him, but he was probably taught not to say stuff like that. I know the women are.” Vanessa propped her head in her hand. “We learned all about what the men have to do in school, but do you know what the women’s schooling is like? Malie told me, and it blew my mind.”
“No, what?” Alice asked, wracking her brain to recall what she’d learned about the women’s school. How come she’d never asked about it before?
“A lot of it is about shutting down feelings. They teach the women how to hide their emotions and not lead the men on by being too affectionate in marriages. Crap like that.”
“You must fit right in, then. I don’t know anyone who pushes their emotions down more than you,” Alice said sarcastically.
Vanessa rolled her eyes. “Hardy har. Anyway, do you know Malie?”
Alice tried to picture the Clecanian woman. “Uh, is she the one who has a pink buzzcut?”
“Yeah, exactly! Well, she said all the women are so excited about the humans coming here. She complained about how she’s tired of always acting like she doesn’t care. I think most of these girls try not to feel anything because they’re taught it’s their duty to have many partners, not one, but they’d kill to say I love you to someone.” Vanessa tilted her head at Alice and lifted the corner of her mouth. “I’m just saying, it seems kind of taboo for people to say that here. Maybe Luka thinks it’ll scare you off.”
Alice stared at the ceiling in thought. Maybe Vanessa was right. What if he never expected her to say it to him? He needs to know how I feel. Suddenly, the urge to see Luka suffocated her.
She stared at Vanessa, jaw slackened. “I—”
“Yeah, yeah. Get out of here. Thanks for the G and T.”
Alice dove on her friend, giving her a bear hug. “We’ll figure this out, I promise.” She grasped Vanessa’s face in her hands and forced her to look into her eyes. “Okay?”
“Okay.” Vanessa gave a tight nod, her eyes watery. She chuckled. “Now get out of here.”
Alice dashed to the door and walked purposefully toward the Temple exit. She needed to do two things. One: she had to ask Luka if he knew a way to help Vanessa, and two: she needed to tell him she loved him. It had to be done in that order, because she was sure that after she told him her feelings, she’d want to sequester them in a private room for many hours. Work first, play later.
Rounding the central building, she spotted Luka then bit her lip and grinned. He looked so cute, pacing around the entrance, hands clasped behind his back.
Now that she’d become comfortable with the platforms, she crossed
