Chapter 8

Arccoo

Returning to the party, Arccoo moved with more relaxed ease than he had since arriving on Earth. Although he had a queen at his side, there was no ceremony to his strides. He was just a man walking with the woman who had claimed his heart. It was as soothing as a cool tonic after hours spent in blazing heat.

Over the music, he caught slivers of conversation. It seemed his theatrics while invisible had left an impact. No one could quite figure out how it happened, but all of them were excited to come back next year. Carmen must have heard it, too. More than once, she beamed up at him with unblemished joy. He had exceeded her expectations. The pride he felt was almost enough to bandage over the hurt beginning to unfurl across his chest.

I won’t be here next year , he thought.

Carmen handed him a drink. “To you, my prince.”

He bowed before replying. “Accepted with gratitude.” He emptied the glass in one go. The gentle sting was a welcome distraction from the truth of his situation. “Let’s have another,” he suggested.

With a giggle, Carmen pulled a second drink from the table and held it out for him. Again, he consumed the entirety of its contents. It would take the rest of the night to drown the sorrow he was starting to grapple with. Instead, he vowed to enjoy himself as much as possible.

The couple met up with an exhausted Sofia. “My legs feel like gelatin,” she said. “I haven’t danced this much since middle school. Where have you two been?”

Arccoo sensed a wave of tension from Carmen. Lying to a family member was never easy. He knew that with resolute certainty. So he spoke up first to save her from the potential embarrassment.

“Everywhere,” he said. “I find human celebratory rituals strange and enticing. We toured the mansion so I could take in as much of it as possible. Some of your dance moves are… unique, to say the least.”

Sofia’s smile consumed her face. “There’s nobody quite like us Earthlings!”

Elena came roboting up to them. “Happy Halloween, mofos,” she said in a stilted mechanical voice. “I am having a great time.” She dangled her right arm at a stiff ninety-degree angle and swung it back and forth, making servo noises with her mouth.

“I see you’ve finally evolved into your final form,” Sofia said. “A computer!”

The four of them laughed, and for a time, the dread of leaving was locked away in the deepest corner of Arccoo’s mind.

They danced, jumping with the beat, sliding with the rhythm, and lip syncing to the chorus. Even Arccoo was able to pick up on the melody to most songs and recall when it repeated, so he was able to join in the mock-singing. If suspicious eyes were on him, onlookers subconsciously picking up that something was different about him, he didn’t notice. At no point did his skin prickle with self-consciousness. Not once did he see a face studying at him out of the corner of his eye. He was free and in the moment.

He smiled when a song inspired Carmen and her sisters to cheer and refer to themselves as Winifred, Sarah, and Mary, who he learned was a trio of witches from a classic Earth story. Then Sofia fled to the restroom and Elena went to refuel on snacks. Once they were enveloped by the crowd, Carmen wrapped her arms around Arccoo’s shoulders and claimed his lower lip between hers. Holding her close, they stood still in the middle of the Halloween ball, tasting one another.

Before her sisters could return, Carmen took Arccoo’s hand, and they snuck away to a side room housing nothing but boxes. As the door shut behind them, Arccoo latched on to the back of Carmen’s legs and lifted her off of her feet. Picking up on his intentions, she wrapped her legs around his waist, hooking her feet together in the back.

Without looking, he walked her across the room, their mouths never parting, and pressed her against the wall. Carmen moaned before gasping in his ear. He kissed a trail along her cheek, to her earlobe, and down the side of her neck.

“Bite me,” she whispered.

He sank his teeth gently into the side of her neck and felt her shudder.

Just then, the door swung open with a loud clatter.

Startled, both Carmen and Arccoo looked to find two drunk pirates sloppily fondling each other as they collapsed on one of the cardboard towers.

“Shall we find another spot?” Arccoo asked, prepared to continue if she said no. Based on the level of inebriation on display, he doubted the strange pirate lovers would have noticed anyone else in the room.

“Probably,” Carmen said, lowering her legs and drifting down the wall.

This time, he took her hand and guided her to the closet beneath the stairs. It blended into the wall so effectively that he was certain no one would wander in. The space, however, was musty and cramped. As badly as he craved her, the closet wasn’t the right place. It felt desperate and disrespectful.

Exiting the cramped spot, Arccoo noticed how out of breath Carmen was becoming. All these bodies sucking in incalculable amounts of oxygen followed by far too much carbon dioxide must have been making her lightheaded.

“How about some fresh air?” he suggested.

Carmen nodded, and they fled the mansion together.

The chilly fall air hit Arccoo the very second they stepped out of the front door. Drawing in a slow, deep breath, he brought his attention to the cool oxygen filling his lungs and imagined he was exhaling all of the anxiety that came with this intense attraction to Carmen. It all was carried away on the breeze, scattered through the air like dust particles discarded by a passing comet.

“It’s so nice out,” Carmen said, breathing deeply as well. “This is Hollowbrook at its best.”

“I have to admit to there being a certain tranquility to the place at night,” Arccoo said, taking in their surroundings. The moonlight turned the grass to cobalt, like a dreamy sea. The night scent was crisp and clean, clearing much of the fog that had been swirling around his head.

“Can we look at the stars?” Carmen asked wistfully. “They’re so vibrant this time of year.”

“Lead the way,” Arccoo said.

Carmen took him around the front of the house to the side garden. Lined with tall shrubs that blocked the sidewalk and road beyond, the area felt secluded from the rest of the world. Not even the thumping bass of the dozens of micro-speakers carried this far.

She let go of his hand and skipped a few feet ahead. When there was enough distance between them to do so, Carmen spread her arms to their full wingspan and twirled, her face smiling up at the cosmos. Her hair flowed behind her, turning her into an ethereal sprite. Watching her made Arccoo’s knees weak.

“Look!” she called, stopping her twirling to point up. “It’s the Big Dipper!”

“The what?” Arccoo asked, walking up next to her. He followed her finger to see the twinkling vastness above.

“Do you see those four stars there that form an arched line?” Carmen traced the area of space she was referring to.

Arccoo closed one eye and saw the line. “Yes,” he told her.

“Now follow this,” Carmen instructed. “That fourth star is part of another four that form an oblong rectangle. See?”

Watching her movement made the image she was describing come into view. Arccoo smiled, realizing he could now clearly see what she was talking about. “It looks like a scoop of some kind,” he told her.

“Exactly!” she exclaimed. “Back in the day, like really far back before we had indoor plumbing, people used big spoons to scoop up water for drinking and cooking and stuff. Centuries ago, people looked up and saw those stars and named it the Big Dipper because it reminded them of the drinking spoons.”

“Marvelous,” Arccoo said. “You archive your history in the stars.” During his limited time here, he had assumed human beings were so concerned with moving forward that they left their traditions behind. Knowing that their history was just as much a part of their identity as it was for his people made him feel even closer to her.

Without thinking, he put his arm around her. She folded into the nook below his arm and placed a hand on his chest. They fit together like reunited pottery pieces.

“Do you have constellations?” Carmen asked.

“I believe so,” Arccoo answered. “We call them star idols. There is Tyrrup the serpent who was said to have carved all of the rivers and valleys of the universe by slithering across each planet with his mighty form.” He smirked at the memory of imagining that the story was a literal truth rather than myth.

“Then there’s Pa-Brell,” he said.

“What’s that?” Carmen asked, her voice low and peaceful.

“Pa-Brell was the mother and father of love in one entity—man, woman, and neither. It used to be believed that mated souls were woven from the tapestry of Pa-Brell’s robes. They wander life alone, seeking their other half. When they meet, their souls are stitched back together, making Pa-Brell smile.”

Carmen stroked the front of Arccoo’s costume with a slow, gentle motion. “That’s beautiful,” she said.

Words formed in the prince’s mouth. For the briefest of moments, he considered swallowing them for all time. Once spoken, they could not be taken back, and he risked damning them both to a life of loneliness.

“I think Pa-Brell is smiling on us now,” he said, his voice solemn. He had never confessed to loving someone before. Duty aside, he always assumed there would be one person in all the universe who would make him feel like romance was possible. Even if he would eventually marry for convenience, there had to be another soul out there who would make him whole. Until now, no one had lived up to that expectation.

But Carmen did.

He removed his arm and stepped away, his gaze on the ground. This wasn’t right. Admitting his love could only put his people in more danger. The idea of parting from Carmen was becoming more unfathomable with every breath. His heart was teetering on the edge of responsibility and free will. One trip in the wrong direction could result in the end of his species or his spiritual death.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I shouldn’t be saying these things to you.”

“Why?” Carmen asked. “I feel the same way.”

Arccoo sighed. “I know. If you didn’t, this might be easier. I feel as though I am being punished or tested for some long-forgotten crime.” He shook his head. “No. That’s not right.”

He took a breath. “I’m hurting you. An innocent woman who has done nothing but make a tired prince feel like he finally had his own identity.”

“Do you have any idea how special you make me feel?” Carmen asked. Her tone was consoling, not confrontational.

“After what I’ve been through, I thought the only person who could love me was me and my sisters. I hated the way I looked. I didn’t think I deserved to be desired. I was preparing to spend my life alone.”

He felt her hand fold into his.

“Then you looked at me,” she said. “Then you kissed me. I was yours from that very moment.”

She paused. They stood in silence.

“We both knew this couldn’t be forever,” Carmen continued. “It isn’t like you’re abandoning me in the middle of the night. Trust me, a lot of guys down here would have seen me as a quick lay and run for the hills before the sun came up. You stayed.”

“For now,” Arccoo countered. “When the sentry ship arrives, I have to leave. There’s no way around it. I wish it wasn’t so, but it is.”

“But it’s for an important cause,” Carmen reminded him. “It’s not like you’re leaving to avoid commitment. How could I expect you to stay here when the lives of so many are on the line. Do you think I’m that selfish?”

Arccoo turned on his heel. “No,” he said. He took her face in his hands. “I am not accusing you of anything. I blame myself for this. Hurting you will be my fault.”

“You haven’t hurt me yet,” Carmen said. “Quite the opposite, actually.”

He smiled. There was that optimism he so admired.

They kissed. It wasn’t a starving, passionate prelude to sex. This was a pure expression of understanding between them. As their mutual warmth collided, Arccoo envisioned a life spent with her. He saw them living in the mansion, aging side by side. The life he imagined was a happy one, but it ended the same as all the others, in death.

Even if we could be together , it wouldn’t be forever , he realized. A day will come when we have to say goodbye.

For eons, lives were spent together with both parties knowing that the ending of their story would be a devastating one, and they still agreed to embark on their final journeys together. Human marriages even mentioned this by reminding the couple that death will part them. All romances were doomed.

“I don’t know when the sentry ship will come,” he told Carmen. “Until then, I swear to make every moment with you as precious as a lifetime. You are my mated soul. Our story may end sooner than others, but I would be a damn fool to deny myself the pleasure of reuniting with my other half among the star idols. Including the Big Dipper.”

Carmen laughed through her nose and he smiled.

He felt her shiver. “Would you like to go back inside?” he asked.

“In a minute,” Carmen answered. “Let’s stay like this a little longer.”

“Of course,” Arccoo replied. He held her in his arms and returned his eyes to the stars. There appeared to be a new star that was moderately brighter than the others.

It could have been a satellite, an asteroid, or a ship coming to take him home. He would find out eventually. Until then, he would push it out of his thoughts.