After getting back to the motel, they watched some videos on the large-screen. When it was bedtime, he said,
“If you're willing, I'll take you to my ship in a few days when my Leave is over.
”I'll have our ship's doctor check you out, make sure you're not dehydrated, check on your ankle and other injuries, things like that.
“Aredhiel, we'll sleep in the bed here platonically. We'll both be able to stretch out.
”I'll be a perfect gentleman.“, he said.
”Alright.“, Aredhiel replied. She then went into the bathroom to shower.
Once back in the room, she got into bed. She wore a sleeveless flowered purple nightgown that came mid-calf.
”That shower felt SO good!“, Aredhiel exclaimed.
After turning off the lights, Azhem climbed into bed, clad only in sleep pants.
”I hope you don't mind, but I don't like sleeping with a shirt on. I'll put one on if you'd be more comfortable.“, he said.
”No, you're alright like that.“, she replied softly.
”Move over towards the center. That way you won't fall out if you turn over like you would if you were sleeping close to the edge.“, he told her.
”Alright. This bed is so comfortable! I haven't slept in a bed in weeks.“, she said.
”Really? That's interesting.“, Azhem replied as he put his arm around Aredhiel and held her close.
”I thought you said you were going to be a gentleman.“, Aredhiel said.
”I am being a gentleman. I'm simply keeping you from falling out of bed, and I'm keeping you nice and warm. I promise you, your virtue is perfectly safe with me.
”Goodnight, Aredhiel.“, Azhem replied, smiling ever-so-slightly.
”Goodnight, Azhem.“, Aredhiel said.
They lay there for a few minutes, unable to sleep.
”Azhem, will your wife be upset that we're sharing a bed?“, Aredhiel asked.
”Not at all. I'm divorced. Have been for 10 years now. We had four kids.
“I begged her not to leave, told her over and over how much I loved her, the night she handed me the divorce papers.
”I did everything I could to make her stay, but she didn't love me anymore. She'd found someone else. I begged her to let me have the kids, or at least see them regularly.
”She took our kids, filed a Restraining Order on me, and I haven't seen them since. I can't even look for them without violating the Restraining Order. I've no idea where they are or if they're even alive.
“In my culture, when a person signs divorce papers, the divorce is final. The other spouse's signature isn't needed.
”Unless other arrangements have been made before papers are filed, the one being divorced automatically loses all their parental rights.
”She filed, so she automatically got the kids. I've got four kids, but I have no kids, if that makes any sense.”, Azhem replied.
“I'm sorry. I didn't know. What she did to you and your kids was absolutely horrible and unconscionable!”, Aredhiel said.
“Thank you. What about you? Are you married?”, Azhem asked.
“No. I'm widowed. My husband died two years ago. We didn't have kids, although we were trying to.
”Azhem, are you a dragon?“, Aredhiel asked, turning over to face him. He smiled ever-so-slightly.
”No, not exactly. My ancestors were. I'm reptilian, though. I can't handle cold very well. What about you? You're awfully petite for an elf.“, he said.
It was now Aredhiel's turn to smile ever-so-slightly.
”My ancestors were elves. We do have similarities to them but, for the most part, we're not true elves. We're not immortal. We don't live in homes built up high in trees.
”I wish you could see my home, Azhem. It's as beautiful as what I've seen of Sauria.“, she replied.
”You should see Fyrah, my home planet. It's even more beautiful than Sauria!“, he said.
He then snuggled her even closer and told her all about his home planet before they both drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, she woke up before Azhem and looked at him. His snoring had woken her up. He was a LOUD snorer!
She'd heard about his kind, but had never met one before. She thought he was very handsome. As vicious as Azhem was with the mutants, he was the exact opposite with her.
She knew he'd saved her life, and felt she owed him a debt.
Eventually he woke up and they looked at each other.
He couldn't resist. He leaned over and tenderly kissed her. The kiss lasted several seconds. He then said,
”I hope I didn't frighten you. I'm not going to hurt you.“
She tenderly caressed his cheek and kissed him. He returned her kiss, then they kissed passionately for a few minutes.
Afterwards, he went into the bathroom and showered. Aredhiel dressed while he was in there.
“Today I thought we'd go shopping. What do you think?”, he asked after he came out of the bathroom.
He was shirtless and wearing a pair of denim pants.
“That sounds good.”, she replied.
He finished getting dressed, putting on a gray tshirt. After breakfast at a local diner, they flew to a local megamart.
They went to the hair accessories aisle. She picked out some hair ties and fashionable barrettes.
Aredhiel also bought two lipglosses, eyeshadows and mascara. A worker in that department told them to follow her to the makeup counter.
She gave Aredhiel several samples of skincare products, makeup, and perfumes. She gave Azhem men's cologne samples as well. They both thanked her.
Next they went to the grocery section and picked out several snacks plus fudge, donuts, and drinks.
After paying their bill, they stopped for lunch. They ordered sandwiches along with small bags of chips and carbonated drinks.
They dropped off their purchases at their motel room, then relaxed abit before going out for dinner.
For dinner, they went to a restaurant with cuisine from the planet Earth's past. They chose what had been known centuries earlier as carnitas suizo and steak burrito suizo, plus tacos. Azhem had ale for his beverage and Aredhiel ordered a margarita.
They enjoyed their meal so much they ordered another carnita, burrito and tacos to go.
As they neared their motel on their flight back, he stopped at a coffeeshop and picked up iced coffees. He was a coffeeholic and found out she loved it as well.
After returning to their motel, they brought the burritos and coffees in. Azhem locked the pod as well.
They spent the remainder of the evening relaxing, snacking and watching videos.
The next day they decided to go to a local museum, the Museum of Intergalactic Science. They spent hours there perusing the exhibits, most of which were interactive.
A video presentation and exhibit about the beginnings of intergalactic space travel by several Empires and Federations was extremely interesting.
Exhibits about different alien cultures intrigued them as well.
Before they left they bought souvenirs, especially tshirts, hats, pictorial discs, and the like. They also took pictures and videos of themselves and each other by the exhibits throughout the day. He sent several of them to his best friend, Conh, who lived on Fyrah, one of the planets in the Empire. Fyrah was also Azhem's home planet.
For dinner they went to his favorite restaurant. It served hefty helpings of Ulzuix and Saurian food. He ordered a porter steak cooked medium rare with a spicy salsa-like topping. His steak came with a bowl of spicy beef soup, salad, mashed potatoes and a spicy vegetable blend. His beverage was a light ale.
Aredhiel had a porter steak cooked well with a salad, mild beef soup, mashed potatoes and corn. Her beverage was sangrila, a sangria with a touch of tequila in it.
For dessert, Azhem had the mile-high chocolate cake and she had the mile-high carrot cake. They also split a bowl of ice cream.
The next day they decided to go to an outdoor food and craft fair.
“I need to get a few things for my cabin while we're there.”, Azhem said.
They thoroughly enjoyed themselves there. Each bought quite abit. Aredhiel bought handcrafted jewelry, wall hangings, as well as several scented candles.
Azhem bought wall hangings as well as scented candles. They snacked often and drank lemon sugar water, known centuries earlier on Earth as lemonade, throughout the day. They drank alot of iced coffee and iced tea as well.
That evening, they relaxed and ordered zappi delivery for dinner.
The next day, it was time for Azhem to return to the ship.
“Are you sure it'll be alright to bring me there? I'm not an Ulzuix, you know.”, she said.
“Absolutely, Aredhiel. Everything's been arranged.”, he replied, smiling.
“You've been so kind to me, Azhem. I just don't want to get you into trouble.”, said Aredhiel, standing on her tip-toes and giving him a chaste kiss on the cheek.
“My Commander's personally given me his approval. He's looking quite forward to meeting you. He's never met an Aezkhean elf before. We've never had any dealings with your kind.”, replied Azhem, smiling broadly.
“I truly don't know what I'd have done without you, Azhem! You're my hero!”, she said, giving him a tender hug; a hug which he very happily reciprocated.
They loaded up the pod and flew to the terminal to turn it in and return to the ship in a shuttle with other crewmembers.
As Aredhiel and Azhem boarded the shuttle, iced coffees and bags of purchases in hand, the crewmembers looked at her with intense curiosity and interest.
They were extremely polite to her. They teased Azhem about his “retail therapy”, their name for his mega-shopping.
“Really Azhem? Did you leave anything on the planet for others to buy?”, one man asked.
“Attention Saurian shoppers! The planet will be restocked shortly! We appreciate your patience as the planet recovers from Colonel Azhem on Leave!”, another man joked.
Azhem just laughed it off. He loved shopping. He was a shopaholic, and wasn't the least bit ashamed of it!
Like their Commander, Azhem's fellow crewmembers had never met an Aezkhean, especially an Aezkhean elf, the ancient name Ulzuix had given the kind of Aezkhean she was.
As Azhem had told her the day they'd met, Ulzuix thought her kind was extinct or, at the very least, the stuff of legend.
154Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC96BdPyLcb
