Chapter 3

Sophie

"Hey there, sweeties, it's me! Sophie! Coming to you with possibly the best episode of SophServe I've ever made. And today, we're live!"

Sophie whooped in excitement, stepping back from her camera. She beamed at the lens, imagining the millions of eyes on her right this second. All of them watching. Waiting. Cheering.

"If you're just joining us, welcome to the final video in my ‘Love on Live' subsegment of SophServe. We've been building up to this for weeks. If you don't know, my name is Sophie, and I'm the first human person to be matched through our sponsor, True Match, to a real, live alien! I haven't met my mate yet, so I don't know anything about him. You're going to be meeting him at the same time I do. And I am so excited! I think I'm going to puke."

She grimaced, putting a hand to her belly. Maybe she was playing it up a bit for the camera, but her reactions were all built on real, honest emotions. She took a fortifying breath before continuing with her planned intro.

"So, if this is the first time you're tuning into Love on Live, bit of a catch up to how we got here. I am currently on an alien transport vessel. We've just hooked up to my mate's spaceship, and we're going to be meeting him here. If you happen to be matched to an alien, like me, you can expect your transport vessel to bring you to Holotulle – hope I'm saying that right – which is the capital of the Coalition. Your mate will pick you up there. But before that, you have to go through the same immigration process I went through. The language imprint so you can talk to people, the health check to make sure you're okay and you don't need any pre-treatments or vaccinations for wherever you're going. They'll offer you birth control at that time, which I accepted, and you also get a handy little guide to introduce you to the species you're joining. It's pretty basic, but your mate will be able to take you through everything. If you have any questions on that, you can look back on my previous videos on the series to see the whole process.

"Anyway, that's where we are now! I've got a whole new language in my head. I've had a free checkup and got some minor work done. Look: No more crow's feet! And I also got free birth control, so that's awesome. If you were nervous about coming into space, the healthcare out here is top notch, so let that excite you. Anyway, I'm all prepped up and ready to meet my mate!

"But first! The winner of the dress poll. This is what you guys picked for me to wear. Did you guys vote white because it's a bridal color? I don't think it matters, because either way, it's a great pick. This dress is gorgeous!"

It really was. White, yes, but it was a short dress, with capped sleeves off the shoulders. She had accented it with a pretty, blue sash around her waist, tied so that the ends trailed on the side of the skirt. She paired it with a pair of embroidered wedges, also in white, and some simple, pretty silver and turquoise jewelry that sparkled at her wrists, ears, and neck.

It was a big occasion, she wanted to look the part, but she hadn't wanted to be too dressy. It was only their first date after all. She had put together five outfits, each fitting those parameters, then put it to her viewers to vote on which she should wear.

Of course, her romantic viewers picked the white one. She wasn't mad about it though. The pale color really made her bronze skin light up, and the contrast looked great on camera. Her hazel eyes popped just a bit thanks to the hint of blue around the waist, and her hair, of course, was styled up in her signature look.

Her hair naturally had a lot of volume. She used cream to enhance the effect, the ends curling down past her shoulders. Her bangs had been styled into a cute little, swirling curl that swept to the left side of her face. It kind of had a fifties vibe – very cutesy and princessy. She always had her hair done that way, it was part of her brand, but she had enhanced it with a blue hairband just behind that swirly bang curl, helping to accent the color of her eyes.

Cute and pretty and perfect. Her family – who were watching on their own, private live stream, had showered her in compliments when she showed them the finished look. Her mama had broken down in tears and demanded, in stuttered, blubbering Spanish, that if this worked out, Sophie had to come home at least once a year. Maybe more. She had to call her every month. Every day if she could.

Her family was a big one, a close one, but they had always been supportive of Sophie's need for independence. Even when she moved across the country from them. Even when she told them that she'd be following her mate into space, possibly for the rest of her life.

Their support and love might be distant, but it was unflagging and powerful. Sophie knew that, no matter how far from home she flew, she could always return. That endless familial love gave her the strength she needed to face this with only a little bit of fear.

She returned to the chat and smiled at all the fire and panting and heart emojis. The tons of supportive messages racing across the screen so fast, she could barely keep track. There were two chats, one for direct supporters who paid her a subscription every month for early access, and one for those that were regular subscribers that watched for free. The latter was, naturally, moving much faster.

"Thanks, sweeties," Sophie beamed at them. "And thanks again to my mods in both chats. You guys are the best. Don't forget to give the mods some love. Alright, so, we are down to just five minutes before the big meeting. If you've been hanging in through the pre-game stream, thanks so much. If you're just tuning in now that we've officially started, welcome. Love to see you all. I hope everyone has their favorite treat and they're enjoying them. I brought this!"

She reached past the camera and pulled back a box of expensive chocolate. It was handmade, amazingly delicious, and featured a variety of chocolate combinations to try – from the classic peanut butter, truffle, and fudge – to more specialty ones – like sea salt caramel, almond coconut, and spiced chocolate.

"I ordered this special for my mate," Sophie said, running her hand down the front. The logo of the company proudly on display. They weren't a sponsor for this, but everyone already knew that this place was her favorite chocolatier. "I got a bit of everything. I hope he likes it. I can't wait to eat cool alien desserts and show you guys! But I thought chocolate was really the best place to start him off for human treats."

She set the box down and smiled at her chat. "Okay. So, we have our cameras all set up in the meeting room. You guys are going to be there as I see and meet him for the first time. I have no idea what his species even is. That was kept totally secret from me. But you don't have to worry about that. If you find your match through True Mate, you are immediately given your match's contact information so you can communicate with them – exchange names, pics, etc. We're doing it this way so you guys can be part of it, but also because I trust True Match. I know that the matches they make are real and genuine, and this may be our first date, but it's going to lead to something more. So, make your appointment at True Match today, and let them find you the perfect person, or persons, so you can have your happily ever after too!"

Ad read out of the way, Sophie stepped back, bouncing on her heels.

"This is it! I'm going to go wait in the meeting room. He's going to come to me. There are cameras and mics in there, so you guys will be with me the whole way. But after the first meeting, the stream is going to end so he and I can have some private time. So, I just want to thank everyone now. This has been a crazy few weeks. I'm so happy I got to share it with you all. And I look forward to sharing even more going forward. Thanks for tuning into our Love on Live segment, and keep an eye out for my next post where I show you what it's like to live in space. Love you, sweeties! Thanks for everything, and I'll see you on the other side. This has been Sophie with SophServ, and I hope the rest of your day is sweet!"

Blowing them a kiss, Sophie scooped up her chocolate box and flounced from the room, leaving the camera behind. For the live event, she had someone else controlling the cameras. They were switching, even now, to a live stream of the room she was meeting her mate in.

This starship was huge. An enormous building, like a highrise in space. She had been taken off Earth on a shuttle that brought her to the embassy ship that circled Earth – it and two border ships were in charge of protecting Earth and humanity from outside threats. From there, she had gotten on a different ship that, over the course of a few days, had brought her to this ship.

This ship had already linked up with her mate's starship – he had his own! – so the meeting could take place here. After the meeting, Sophie would be joining her mate on his starship, and the two of them would blast off to new, unknown adventures.

She had no idea what was coming, but she was eager to find out.

And her viewers, her supporters, were going to be with her every step of the way. It had taken no small amount of maneuvering and effort to make this live happen. Doing a stream wouldn't really be feasible once she was off with her new mate. She'd be able to upload, but it would take longer due to the distance and the requirement of changing video formats from Coalition Standard to mp4 – though, thankfully, that wasn't something she had to do manually.

All Sophie had to do was record and post like normal. She had Jeanie's promise that she would be allowed to show her mating as true and honest as possible to the people of Earth. Even if it meant being the first person to cash in the money back, Earth back guarantee. Jeanie was that confident this would work out.

Sophie was maybe a bit more skeptical, but this was an adventure she wouldn't miss for anything. Even if the guy turned out to be some super gross alien who like oozed slime or smelled like skunk or who smacked when he chewed, this chance to be in space would be worth it.

Of course, her vlogs and videos back home would show if she was unhappy way before she decided to pull the plug, so the people back home would be able to judge for themselves. It would be weird to just end everything after all this build up.

But she wasn't going to worry about that. She was in space, she was going on the coolest adventure of her life, and she was meeting a guy that, theoretically, was going to love her and treat her better than anyone else in the universe.

If it all worked out, there really were no losses here.

The meeting room on the starship was a simple thing. She would call it a lounge, with seating along two walls, a table in the center with more chairs, and a cute, yellow plant in one corner. There were three cameras set up in two corners and one pointing at the door. Sophie waved high to them, beaming, as she set the box of chocolates on the table.

Then she turned, adjusted her skirt, her top, her hair. She fluttered her hands nervously, shifting her weight from foot to foot, and she waited.

It didn't take long.

Movement in the hallway outside, beyond the sliding door, made her stiffen. She licked her lips nervously. The door beeped, then whooshed open.

And there he was.

The male that stepped in was gorgeous, in an absolutely alien way.

His skin was such a pale blue, it bordered on white, while his hair was a deep, navy blue. The sharp contrast startled her. The long, thick locks, each about the size of her two of her fingers put together, were held back in a loose tie. And they were moving!

They weren't locks at all! He had tentacles on his head. They were as long as her hair, reaching, past his shoulders, with one of them out of the tie and framing his unusually shaped face.

He had two eyes, a nose, and a mouth, but there was something about the way that they were shaped that just wasn't human. His eyes were too big – golden brown, but more gold than brown, with a large, round pupil. He had no eyebrows, and his lashes weren't lashes. They weren't hairs, they were little barbs connected by webbing that winged off of his eyes. His nasal bridge didn't slope in, but stayed round and straight right to the slits that were his nostrils, over a pair of thin lips. But his cheekbones were high, and his jawline was strong, leading back to a pair of ears that were topped with fins, like his eyelashes.

Aquatic. He was definitely aquatic.

He stepped into the room, walking with his head high, strong and confident. His body was muscular, more broad and powerful than she would have expected from a swimmer. But maybe she just didn't have the right perspective considering how much taller he was than her. As he got closer, her head fell back, and she had to look up at the man.

Male.

Alien.

"Woah," she breathed, without really thinking. His brow, though hairless, still rose as he looked at her, an appreciative gleam in his strange eyes.

"Hello," he greeted in strangely accented English. She had gotten the Standard language imprinted in her head, and he had gotten English, so they could speak to each other. He chose English since they were on camera.

Sophie giggled, nervously pushing her hair behind her ear. He was gorgeous. "Hi."

"Funny?"

"What's funny?"

"You're laughing."

"Oh, I was?" She giggled again, belly tightening was nerves and excitement.

Her mate? Right? This was him? Her soul had chosen correctly because the whole merman on land vibe was doing wonderful things for her.

"I believe, at a first meeting, a handshake is the standard human greeting," he said in a deep, sonorous voice, reaching out a hand. And he had webs between his fingers! More than that, he had a fin right there on his forearm that was tipped with a hard, bony spike at the end.

"Right, yeah," Sophie gave him her hand, unsurprised by the electricity that sparked up her arm when he gently shook it. Not quite how it was supposed to be done, the movement was too smooth, more like a wave than a shake, but his skin was warm, and his grip was firm, and his fingers were long. All she could think about was having that hand on her body.

His clothes were simple. A pair of black pants that flared around his thick boots. They were tight on his thighs though and highlighted a wonderfully large bulge right there at his groin. His shirt was white, like hers, with three-quarter sleeves up past his forearm fins. It seemed to wrap around his torso, a ‘V' at the top showing off his smooth, hairless chest.

Simple, but the outfit was doing everything for him. Every line of his body was highlighted to its best, showing him off like he was ready for the runway.

"Can I have your name, pretty female?" He asked, tempting her like a fae of old.

And it was a trap she was happy to fall into. "Sophie. I'm Sophie."

"You are… more beautiful than I expected," he whispered, his voice low and appreciative.

She giggled breathlessly again, all her usual charm and ease completely gone as she looked into those golden, inhuman eyes. She had no idea she was into this, but now that she was confronted by it, her entire body tightened with need as all her hormones pointed directly at him like – yes, this is what we've been after the whole time.