Alien Romance: Interview with an Alien (Football Paranormal Invasion Abduction Alpha Sci-fi Romance) (Fantasy First New Adult Contact Science Fiction Mystery Sports Alien Short Stories) (69 page)

*****

Travis was nervous until the moment he saw her.

There was something about Jasmine. She brought out another side he’d never known about before. Travis thought of himself as this meek nobody, just working in IT and trying to get by. But with Jasmine, he could see so much more.

With Jasmine, he wanted to be someone different. But not too different from what he already was. He wanted to be someone better.

Yes, he thought that he did like her.

The sex had been amazing but he was just as excited about this date. He’d never taken anyone to the Veranda before. That was what they called their waterfront. You could walk along the pier and visit the shops and the night market. There were cafes and sometimes even street performers. It was just a nice place to hang out, and here he was with Jasmine.

They were strolling hand in hand.

Of course, Travis thought he might try to find something dangerous for them to do. But in the end, he decided to be more traditional. After all, that was more him. He didn’t want to change everything about himself just to please one person.

Travis looked over at Jasmine as they strolled. She seemed to be smiling.

“So tell me about yourself,” Travis said.

“Oh you know me,” Jasmine said. “I’m a badass bitch. I’m from Atlanta.”

Travis wrinkled his nose and shook his head. Jasmine stopped them in their tracks.

“Wait,” She said. “What was that look about? You don’t think I’m who I said I was?”

“No,” Travis said. “I just think that there’s more to you than that. I mean… you did organize an awesome party for the whole office.”

Jasmine paused for a moment. She seemed to be working her jaw and thinking. Then she started moving again.

“Come here,” she said. Travis followed her, puzzled, as she led him inside one of the stores.

A lot of the stores at the Veranda sold fancy, hand-crafted goods. This store was no different. It was a new age jewelry store with a lot of crystals.

“Hi,” Jasmine said, going up to the front. She pressed herself against the counter. The man behind the counter took notice. “Can you show me some of those bracelets that are supposed to help with pain?”

The man had a stash under the counter. He pulled the box up and started leafing through them with Jasmine. Travis watched her flirt and talk with the sales guy… at the same time, she pulled a bracelet off the rack right beside her. Then, right under the man’s nose, she pocketed the bracelet.

All the while, she was smiling and talking.

Travis wondered if he should say something. Was this some sort of test? But he didn’t interfere. He just stood there until she was done. Then Jasmine thanked him for showing her the bracelets.

They left.

Jasmine showed him the bracelet once they had walked away from the store as if he hadn’t noticed. The crystals glittered in the palm of her hand. It didn’t look that expensive but that didn’t mean she should have taken it.

“Still think that I have some secret past? Some buried deep down good side?” Jasmine said. “I am who I am.”

Travis shook his head. “No,” he said. Jasmine’s mouth dropped open. So he tried again. “No. I don’t believe it. I don’t believe that’s all you are.”

Jasmine slipped the bracelet on her wrist. She seemed to be thinking. She led him over to a bench and sat down. Travis sat down next to her. He didn’t say anything. He just waited.

Finally, Jasmine took a deep breath with a sigh. He looked down at her. She was still beautiful, but it was in a different way, under the moonlight, for some reason, she looked a little smaller, a little softer. Travis reached out and took her hand. He pressed his palm to hers. He laced his fingers between her own and gave her hand a squeeze.

She squeezed his hand back.

“Well,” Jasmine said, starting over again. “I grew up in Atlanta and… it was hard. I just... didn’t have that many people there for me, you know?”

She looked over at Travis. He knew that she wasn’t expecting to find much understanding but he really did know. He had been there when he was a kid. He didn’t grow up with his parents really around. He had to learn everything on his own.

“So I just had to do everything. I had to… get the things I needed. So I found the best way to do that was through attracting attention to myself,” Jasmine said, slowly. She took a deep breath again and Travis just waited. He wondered if she had said this to anyone else before.

“Good or bad,” Jasmine continued. “Just attention. I didn’t have anything. So I also became accustomed to taking the things I needed. That was all I had going for me, you know?”

Travis nodded again. He didn’t say anything. He was just there to listen.

“So I think that’s why…” Jasmine paused for a moment. “Nothing is given to you, you know. Even if it’s the most basic thing and you need it. So that’s kind of like… why I am the way that I am. Even if I know it’s not the best thing to do sometimes. I just do it. And… it’s not easy. It’s hard to find someone who wants to be close to me.”

Travis held his breath. He couldn’t believe she was so honest with him but he felt honored. She was looked away, towards the water. Travis gently grabbed her chin and turned her face so she would be looking at him again.

“Well, maybe it’s hard. But you’ve found someone. I want to be close to you.”

Jasmine stared at him. Travis looked back. He held her gaze for as long as it took. Then finally, Jasmine smiled. It was so beautiful on her, that smile. Her lips were thick and wonderful, her teeth straight and the smile seemed to reach all the way to the corner of her eyes, brightening up her face and filling it with life.

“I want to be close to you, too,” Jasmine said.

“Come on,” Travis stood up and offered his hands. “Let’s return that bracelet.”

Jasmine nodded as she slipped it off her wrist. Travis held her hand proudly as they walked back to the store. He distracted the man by asking some more question as Jasmine slipped the bracelet back where she found it.

Mission accomplished.

After that, they got some ice cream and laughed together. Standing there, in the slight wind coming off of the water, with ice cream on the corner of her lips, Travis decided to just go for it. He leaned in and gave her a sweet kiss.

It was like their first kiss. It was unlike anything they had ever shared before. Sweet, light, unhurried. Travis thought it might be his favorite kiss yet.

When he looked up, Cyrus was staring at them.

“Hey Travis,” he said. “Didn’t expect to see you here. Wow, you sure are taking your bet seriously. We said you only had to ask her out. You didn’t have to take her on a date. The bathroom thing, well, I thought that was just bonus.”

Travis stared at his friend. He wasn’t quite sure what to say.

Then Jasmine smashed her ice cream right in Travis’s face.

*****

Jasmine didn’t want to see him again.

The next day, she laid in bed, humiliated. The words kept running through her head. The one ugly word. A bet.

She should have known it was too good to be true.

Jasmine just felt awful. After pouring her heart to him, it turned out that everything he told her was a lie. That whole thing, from the moment he’d gotten on stage and asked her out, was something orchestrated by his cronies.

They were even laughing about how she had screwed him in the bathroom.

Jasmine didn’t think she could feel embarrassed like this. Normally, something like this wouldn’t even phase her.

But she had really liked him.

Wow. It was hard to admit to herself but it was true. She had really liked that loser.

And that was why she never let anyone get close to her.

Her phone was full of messages.

Jasmine, I’m sorry. It wasn’t like that. Please call me.

Jasmine, I’d really like to talk to you. Give me a chance to explain. Please.

Jasmine, I really want to get to know you. I have feelings for you. Please believe me. Call me back. Please. -T

Nope. She wasn’t going to fall for it again.

The next day at work Jasmine made sure no one was going to mess with her. She wore her hair long and wavy and green, like a mermaid. Her eye makeup matched, unapologetically green. Her outfit was army camo with dusty army boots. She marched through the halls like a sergeant.

She wasn’t going to let them see that they had broken her.

And they hadn’t. So she fell for one practical joke. That wasn’t going to happen again. She was going to have her guard up. Even higher than before. No one was getting over that wall. And they weren’t going to get to see the good side of her ever again.

“Move!” Jasmine screamed at someone who got in her way.

“Why don’t you get your head out of your ass and work?” Jasmine told her co-worker, who was taking too long with their assignment. She could feel everyone looking at her. She knew it was probably because Travis had told them everything. She could imagine him giggling with his friends in that obnoxious male way, 
“And then she told me that she didn’t have any family that was there for her? Isn’t that hilarious?”

And they would just laugh and laugh. Jasmine tore her report up at her desk.

It wasn’t good enough anyway.

When she looked up, Travis was standing there.

“Jasmine,” he said, in an urgent voice. “Can we talk?”

“No,” She said, simply. “I never want to talk to you again.”

“Please,” he said. “Let me explain myself. It’s not what it looks like. I really need a chance.”

Jasmine threw her stapler at him. He seemed to get the hint. He left.

Jasmine didn’t feel any better.

*****

After work, Jasmine went home, put on her sweats and opened a bottle of wine. There was no other choice but to drown her sorrows. She watched Netflix for a while and then grabbed her computer. As she was opening her email, something caught her eye. It said OPEN ME.

Jasmine opened the email.

Inside was a video. When she hit play, Jasmine saw Travis smiling into the camera.

“Hi,” he said. “You know, I could infect your computer with a virus and make you watch this. But I thought an email was easier so this was my first resort. Look, Jasmine, I never meant to hurt you. Things just got a little out of control. Everything I told you was true. I really liked everything that we shared. I won’t share what you told me with another soul, not unless I have your permission. Now… I have something else for you. I hope you can forgive me… for the bet but also for this… because this might be bad.”

He gave the camera a goofy smile. Jasmine found herself smiling back, unbidden. Then she watched as he grabbed a guitar.

He began to strum the guitar. He began to sing.

It was a song he had obviously written because it was about her. Jasmine sat back and listened. His voice wasn’t bad at all. It was rich and deeper than she expected, smooth and quietly sure of itself. The tempo of the song was slow, with a folk pop beat. He sang about this unusual girl he knew, different from the norm, who kept catching his eye. He wanted to catch hers back. He really cared about this girl.

She makes my heart skip a beat. That’s a feeling I cannot beat.

Jasmine smiled at the cheesy lyrics. They might not have been Shakespeare but it was more effort than a guy had ever put into her before. No one had ever tried to impress her like that. No one had ever tried to apologize.

Then all of a sudden the video cut out.

The song wasn’t over yet. Jasmine bit her lip, wishing she could hear the rest. Then she heard something outside her door, rustling on the porch. Jasmine paused for a moment. It was still there. She grabbed a bat and headed for the front door. Jasmine ripped the door open, bat in hand, ready to pounce.

But it was just Travis.

*****

He was carrying his guitar and he didn’t skip a beat. He continued the song right where it cut off in the video.

And if you give me a second chance, I promise, I won’t waste it. I won’t waste it.

He strummed his guitar and stared at her with serious eyes. The way he looked at her, she knew that he meant it.

Travis finished the song with one last strum. Then he looked at her. There was that patient smile. She smiled back.

“How did you know I was watching that video?” she asked.

“Well, I didn’t input a virus,” Travis said. “But I’m an IT guy. I can do a lot of things with my email.”

“That was the first time I saw a black guy playing the guitar,” Jasmine said.

“I’m full of surprises,” Travis said, with a smile.

“Tell me about that bet,” Jasmine said, sternly.

“It was really stupid,” Travis said. “I don’t even really remember. They said I needed to ask you out because I couldn’t fix the donuts. But actually, they didn’t know it was something I really wanted to do. It wasn’t punishment at all.”

“The donuts?” Jasmine asked, staring at him flatly.

Travis shuddered. “You don’t want to know.”

Jasmine laughed. He was right. She didn’t care at all.

“But even before that, I noticed you,” Travis said. “Every time you came to our floor and looked at me. I would just wonder about you, you know? You were a mystery before. But I thought you were way out of my league.”

Jasmine tried to stifle a laugh. He was right. She was out of his league. But that didn’t mean that they couldn’t have something wonderful together. That was something she was just discovering.

“So in a way, the bet was a good thing,” Travis said, thoughtfully. “The bet gave me an excuse to talk to you. It gave me a chance to be brave in a way I’ve never been brave before. So I’m glad about that. I never had the courage before. And… I really think we could have something great, Jasmine? What do you think?”

Jasmine looked at him for a long time. She nodded slowly. The thought of being just a bet was painful to her. But at the same time, he was right.

They could have something great.

“Look, Jasmine,” Travis said. “I’ve never felt this way before. I could just talk to you for hours. Hell, I could just look at you for hours. You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever known. You inspired me to write again. I haven’t written a song since college. That’s huge. I just want to walk around and hold your hand. I… want to learn from you. I… want to make love to you. I—”

Jasmine grabbed his face and looked deep into his eyes.

“Shut up,” she growled.

She kissed him, sealing her mouth over his just to shut him up for a moment. Of course, she wanted all of that too.

But for now, she wanted him to know that she was still a little bit bad.

THE END

Another bonus story is on the next page.