Authors: Liz Gruder
Starseed (33 page)
Toby hugged Melissa. “You are free from implants. And now, we are free too. Can we dance? Can we kiss?”
“Dude, chill,” Melissa said, stunned.
Everyone stood silent and awestruck, trying to assimilate what had just happened.
After a while, Melissa said to Toby, “I think I’m gonna teach you to cook.”
“What’s the first thing we will make?” Toby asked, gazing at Melissa as if she were the Queen of the Nile.
“Mmmm. Shrimp fettuccine. You sauté the shrimp in butter and garlic—”
“Oh!” Toby cried.
“What will we do now?” Kaila asked.
“We live,” Jordyn said. “They will come for us. I see now what they truly wanted and how they lied to us.” He drew her close. “I will fight to the ends of this Earth for you.”
“And I will fight for you,” Toby said to Melissa.
“Don’t dare say you’ll fight for me or I’ll hurl,” Pia said to Antonia.
“I love you, Jordyn,” Kaila whispered.
“Then, my darling, we have all the power on this earth.”
Kaila and Jordyn saw a thousand stars winking, hinting of secrets untold, of universes heretofore unimagined. Their warm bodies clung to the other, their minds dizzy with possibility.
Kaila wondered what the future held, paired with the sheer majesty and fragility of the human gift called love.
About the Author
A
s a youth, Liz Gruder saw a series of UFOs with her best friend while riding bikes. Ever since, she’s held a fascination for the stars. While growing up, she imagined being a mad scientist in a lab on a remote mountaintop. But in real life, she’s worked as a graphic designer, manager and executive creative director. She has degrees in English and Psychology from Tulane University, a nursing license, a RYT 200 yoga certification and is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Liz lives in New Orleans and is slowly fulfilling her bucket list: she’s been to the Egyptian pyramids and is now teaching yoga and writing speculative fiction.
Visit the author at: www.lizgruder.com