10

"Then why did you lie? You said that you had no family!"

"You would refuse to communicate with me, that's why I lied."

...Gee! Not only am I a teen, but I'm also sitting in an alien ship in the middle of the night in a dark forest with a married man!

Unpleasant thoughts and the most important question began to swirl in my head:

…For what?…

…Why did he agree to meet me in person?

…An alien who has seen and tried a lot of things…

"Are you in shock again?" - Airu asked carefully. - "I won't do anything bad to you."

"Why are you... cheating on your wife?" - I flared up indignantly.

"Am I cheating? How? I'm not even touching you! Just talking!"

"But I..." my words just ended.

"What? Tell!"

"I would fall in love with you," - this phrase fell out of me rather out of despair and misunderstanding.

"Well... let it... What are the problems? I don't mind... Fall in love with me!"

"Wha-at!? — I drawled with dissatisfaction. - "And why do you need this? This type of entertainment is to make girls from Terra fall in love with you?"

"You understood everything wrong... Relationships are not entertainment for me... I follow my heart when new feelings arise and believe me, this does not happen often..."

"But... you're already married!"

"Hmm... so what? Can't fall in love anymore? What do you think? We've been married for over a hundred years... neither of us are committed forever.

"So you're getting a divorce?"

"Not yet... we support each other, but we are both in search for a long time... This is normal! This happens to many couples... and in our society polyamory is not condemned."

"Open relationship?" - I was frozen in prostration. — "What is the average life expectancy of a Pleiadian?"

"About a thousand years... it could be more, but the same shell gets boring... I want to change the situation and be born again in another star system... For a change... It's a ordinary thing...

"What!? Ordinary?"

"Death doesn't exist... baby! You just forgot about it..."

...Such a statement is quite hard to comprehend... with my earthly thinking, imbued with modern culture and religious attitudes. An amazing thought struck me at that moment: people generally do not have a correct idea how the Universe works. There are a lot of lies and cover-ups all around. Not only do aliens live longer than us mortals, but they also choose where to spend their next lives... just on a whim! The unbearable lightness of being, indeed! If everyone would not be as afraid of death as these long-lived creatures, the way of life on Earth would be different...

"If it were up to me... I could easily get by with the shell that I have now, but it's so unfair that human life on Earth is limited to only a hundred years of life, and the body ages so disgustingly! And you, Pleiadians, have such a awesome life! And with such a stunning appearance! How did this happen?"

"You can't explain it in a few words!" - Airu answered mockingly. - "If you want to live in my homeland, then undoubtedly your life will lengthen significantly... in a young body. And your knowledge of science will be limitless."

"What if I really want to? Is this possible?"

"With me... yes!"

"What... is this a marriage proposal?" — my face turned red and I covered my cheeks with my palms, as if trying to extinguish them.

Airu did not answer directly, continuing to look piercingly into my eyes, and only after a couple of minutes he said at length:

"I'm ready to devote time to developing our relationship... maybe I'll disappoint you after a few dates... Or something else will happen... It's impossible to control feelings... It's hard to imagine where everything will lead..."

... Between us... there is an abyss in everything: age gap, genetic difference and God knows what else... not everything is clear yet... How can you even live with an alien much older in an unfamiliar environment? Be married to him? How does it feel?…

"Will we still have dates?" - I expressed surprise.

"If you wish."

"And what are we going to do together?"

"Eating ice cream, as you suggested earlier... talking, riding on my ship. Whatever you want."

"What about my parents? Should I tell them that I'm dating an adult alien?"

"I guess... no, otherwise they won't let you out of the house. For them you are still a child."

"Then... How will we meet?"

"At night... when everyone is sleeping!" — Airu said intriguingly.

Fatty goosebumps ran down my spine... At night? How dangerous and blood-stirring this is!

"Will you show me your planet? Your house?"

"Somehow... It all depends on the development of our relationship, on your feelings for me. I realized that you like me, and if it's mutual, what will stop us from finding happiness?"

"Happiness for a hundred years?"

"Why a hundred? It could be longer..."

"Have you ever met couples whose relationships can last for centuries?"

"Of course... there are such persons... For true love, millions of years are not the limit."

…What? Millions of years... How is it even possible to think in such categories?…

"You are quite an ancient creature, Taura... you just don't remember anything about yourself," - Airu said.

"And you? Do you really know something about me that I have forgotten?"

"I know something, but not much... I recently found out about you."