I was assigned to write a short story and I wasn't quite sure it would be this long. Once I got writing this story really took off and I wasn't able to explain as much as I would have liked to with the deadline coming to a close. I think, sometime soon, I'm going to edit this story and give it a much better resolution. Ultimately, this is probably the most thought-out story I've written. I've just never really written a plot twist like the one in this story before.
In this story, a simple spider turns out to be much more. Max, a twenty year old mechanic from Chicago, is left to house sit with his twin sister, Anna, while his parents take yet another vacation. But the day of their parents' departure turns into a day that no one on Earth will forget. Aliens, disguised as common animals and insects, invade Earth, searching for a cure to the terminal illness that has stricken their far away planet. The downfall? If you're not the cure, you're killed.
Midway through the story, Sophia admits that Max is the cure, but she has an even bigger problem. She has fallen in love with him. So she gives Max a choice: go to her home planet and live a new life, or die on Earth with his sister.
In this story, a simple spider turns out to be much more. Max, a twenty year old mechanic from Chicago, is left to house sit with his twin sister, Anna, while his parents take yet another vacation. But the day of their parents' departure turns into a day that no one on Earth will forget. Aliens, disguised as common animals and insects, invade Earth, searching for a cure to the terminal illness that has stricken their far away planet. The downfall? If you're not the cure, you're killed.
Midway through the story, Sophia admits that Max is the cure, but she has an even bigger problem. She has fallen in love with him. So she gives Max a choice: go to her home planet and live a new life, or die on Earth with his sister.
“Goodbye, children!” our mother called from the door in the kitchen which led to the attached garage. As I entered the room, I noticed luggage: bag upon bag, stacked on the floor, some on the kitchen island, three more stand next to the door.
“How long this time?” I asked. Mother shifted uneasily in her heels, switching her purse to her left hand.
“Oh, just a week or two,” my father said from behind me. “You’ll be fine.”
“Like always,” Anna now joined us. She hugged our parents then took her place next to me.
“No crazy parties,” my mother said as she kissed my cheek, making sure not to smudge her red lipstick. She was all doctored up; eyes, lips, cheeks. The works. Then again, when isn’t she wearing make up? From all the stories I’ve heard, she gave birth to Anna and me in her favorite evening gown and golden jewelry.
“And if you do have any, make sure you clean up before we get home,” Dad winked my way as he said this. He patted my shoulder, smoothed his suit, then began to move luggage to the car. After a few more goodbyes, Anna and I were alone.
Again.
This is nothing new for us, though. Our parents have been taking trips like this at least once every two or three months since Anna and I were old enough to walk. “Mommy and Daddy will be back soon. I promise,” they always said before leaving us at Nana's house. As we got older, though, they opted to leave us at home. I guess they figured all we needed was money for pizza and rental movies. Anna never has cared too much; I think she prefers it’s just her and I in the house. I, however, don’t trust our neighbors. Chicago isn’t the safest place for children, you know? Even at twenty, walking down the street at night gives me the willies.
A blood-curdling scream from upstairs startled me. “Max!” Anna wailed as I sprinted up the steps two at a time. When I reached the landing, I found my sister jumping up and down, still hollering, pointing into her room. “Kill it! Kill it!” she was saying over and over. I peered into the room- nothing.
“Anna,” I asked over her yelling, “what are you screaming about?” Her fit seized and she stepped forward, glaring, never taking her green orbs off the room- she was frightened. I followed her in; sunshine gleamed through the pink curtains, giving the room a bright, warm feeling. It is such a cozy room, so welcoming. It’s too bad Anna never has friends over. She looked around as I took a seat at her desk in the corner. With Anna mumbling to herself in the background, I ran my hand over the cherry colored wood. The desk that had once been mine, now covered in a dark, red, wood grain finish to match her dresser and bed frame, was given to Anna after the accident. There was another gut-wrenching scream as I watched her jump onto her bed. I still saw nothing, however.
“It’s right there!” she pointed toward her closest door, still hollering from atop her bed. As I squinted toward the folding doors, I found a strange, golden spider about as big as a tarantula; though, it wasn’t furry. An ominous glow seemed to be protruding from its sleek body- like an aura. It stared directly at me. It didn’t move, and neither did I. Anna was still panicking behind me as I moved toward the creature. “Max! What the hell are you doing?” she screamed as the usual bug climbed into my extended hand.
I had never seen such a thing like it. I’ve never liked spiders, but some reason, I was drawn to it from the moment I saw it; almost as if someone had wrapped a rope around my torso and were pulling me toward the lanky arachnid. “Such a strange thing,” I said. Although Anna was still terrified, she came down from her post to check the creature out, too.
“Disgusting!” she shivered then hurried out to the hall. Probably going to get cleaning fluid, now that her room has been contaminated.
“I am from the planet of Koahka, just outside the Nebulon Galaxy,” it said to me. Like something had shocked my hand, I immediately dropped the spider. It’s voice was almost robotic. “My name is Sophia.”
“How-” I stammered, dumbfounded. “How are you talking to me?” Okay, I’m officially crazy! Spiders can’t talk.
“No, you’re not crazy, Max.”
“How...how did you know my...my name? And...how did you know what I was thinking?” I backed away from the shining arachnid. This is not right!
“I’m not actually an arachnid, Max,” Sophia said as she spread her eight, stringy legs out over the rug. I could have sworn they just got longer, bigger. But that’s impossible! How? The whole room was then filled with a bright light so glorious I had to shield my eyes in fear of being blinded. The light dimmed slowly, bringing my sight back to me.
“Wha-” I gasped. There, where the exotic creature had been, stood a woman. Wearing nothing, not even hair to cover her bald head, she was entirely naked. Her body, sleek and long, had a strange glow to it, but it wasn’t just a glow. No, it was yellow. Sophia was glowing yellow!
Slowly she moved forward. Her legs were those of a faun, taking it’s first steps moments after birth. I froze still backed up against the wall. “I’m not going to hurt you,” Sophia said as she came closer and closer to me. “Hello, Max,” she said, touching my cheek so gently with her fingertips. The contact caused a heat to rush through my body, starting at my cheek and ending in my toes. I was on fire. Sophia stood, pressed up against me, staring so far into my eyes I’m sure she could see straight into my subconscious. Her eyes were big and bright, but there was something off about them. Wait, her iris’, they’re purple.
Just then, Anna waltz back into the room. She screamed, dropping all the bottles and scrubs in her arms then backed herself up to the wall farthest away from the weird creature.
“Anna!” I shoved past Sophia. “Anna, it’s okay.”
“But…” she looked faint. I grabbed her trembling body by the elbows and moved her to the bed. “Max,” her eyes looked in on my face. “What’s going on?”
“My people are dying, Max,” Sophia, now clothed and sitting in the living room with me, confessed. “We’ve come looking for a cure. There are many more of us. Thousands have come! But, still, we remain sick.”
I processed what I could, but I had one question that I needed an answer to. “How did you change like that?”
“Oh, Max, I can take any form that I can imagine. I have been living with you for over a week now, in the form of an arachnid. Something small and simple. Something that no one would find easily, or even look at twice,” she explained, her voice still robotic. “Yes, I know I sound like a robot. That is just my body getting used to this strange place.” Sophia stood then, walking toward the window, looking around like a child that has just moved into a new home. “Earth, such a strange place,” she said.
Months went by as the world outside was changing. The streets were barren, deserted; piles upon piles of sand covered everything. The ships had landed many weeks ago, bringing more of Sophia’s people. No television, no phone line, no power at all, not even cell signal. Sophia kept us inside for the most part, only allowing us out when she needed our help getting food- which wasn’t often.
“It’s not safe, Max,” she told me when I asked why we were hiding out. “The others...they’re not like me.” Sophia’s eyes lit up then. I’m not sure what it was. She touched my face, sending warm sparks through me. “I don’t trust them, Max. They-” she dropped her gaze and her hand.
Something came over me just then. I grabbed her face and brought it to mine. “Sophia, tell me. Please!” She broke away and walked to the window, now covered with boards and black plastic bags, blocking out the wasteland that once was my neighborhood.
Sophia turned with a concerned look then asked, “How are you taking it, Max?”
“Uh, fine, I guess.” She came closer to me when I shrugged. Honestly, it scares me to think about how well I am taking it; it’s as if this is nothing new to me, or that I’ve known Sophia all of my life, or...something.
“Max,” she sat beside me on the couch again, caressing my tense arm with her long, bony fingers. “You do realize why I’ve come, right?” I shook my head. I mean, I had an idea, but nothing was set in stone. “You, Max. I’ve come for you.”
I stood suddenly, pulling my limb from her grasp. “What? No! I have to go check on Anna.” I casually walked out of the room, knowing she’d be watching until I turned the corner. Once I was out of her view, I ran as fast as I could. I ran to Anna’s rooms.
She lay in bed, covered with the quilt that Nana had made her when we were born. “Anna?” I patted her cheek lightly. She was so clammy. “That can’t be good.” Her eyes were sunken in, like someone had given her a knuckle sandwich to each. She has always been skinny, but it’s gotten really bad within the past week. I’ll have to run to the drugstore.
“That won’t be necessary, Max,” Sophia said for the doorway, startling me. “Anna won’t be getting better.”
I narrowed my gaze to only her. “What are you talking about? And you know I hate when you do that whole mind reading thing.” I turned my attention back to my ill sister and pushed away the damp hair around her face.
“Oh, Max,” she said as she came closer to me. “I’m sorry. I wish it didn’t have to be like this. I really do.”
“Be like what? What the hell are you talking about, Sophia? It’s only the flu. She’s had it before; I know the symptoms.” I was enraged! She knows something that I don’t and she won’t even tell me. "Sophia, I swear you better tell me what's going on, right here, right now!"
She tried to sooth my back, but I swatted her hands away. "Max, calm down."
"Calm down, Sophia? You want me to calm down?" I stood abruptly, grabbed Sophia by the shoulders and plowed her into the wall. My whole body was hot and shaking; I could feel my blood boiling, gushing through my veins. "You want me to stay calm while we just sit there and watch my twin sister waste away like the rest of this damned planet. No!” I screamed in her face. “Now you better tell me what the hell is going on!” I let go of her and stormed out of the room.
How could she do this? She knows what’s going on and...and… God! Everything was starting to spin. I was blacking out with rage. My hands balled into fists. My sister. The only person I have left in this world, now that my parents are gone- God only knows where the hell they were when all this shit started; Fiji, the Bahamas, Paris. She can’t leave me. Not again. I won’t let her leave again. No. No! I have to protect her. Me. Only me. I’m all she has now, too. We have to stay together.
“Max,” Sophia cooed, appearing suddenly in front of me. “Max, please. You need to calm down.” I ignored her. This is all her fault anyways. “Max, it is not my fault. Please, calm down and I’ll explain everything.”
“Give me one good reason why I should ever listen to you again?”
“Because, Max, I’m in love with you, and I would never do anything to harm you. Or Anna, for the matter. You’ve both been so kind to me, and so patient.”
“Then what’s going on? Why is Anna sick and not me?” Sophia pushed me back, causing me to fall down onto the bottom step of the stairs.
“Max, we’ve passed our sickness onto your planet. I told you we were dying. I came here looking for a cure,” she paused, pacing back and forth, “and I’ve found it.”
“Found what?” I scratched the back of my neck nervously. Don’t say it; please, don’t say it.
Sophia kneeled in front of me, placing her hands on my cheeks, looking straight into my eyes as she spoke. “It’s you, Max. You’re the cure!” My world crashed down at that moment.
“No. No, that’s impossible. I’m a twenty year old mechanic from Chicago. I’m not special. There’s no way I could ever be the cure to anything. I’m nothing. I’m a nobody.”
Something changed in Sophia’s purple orbs; she looked upset, like she someone had just slammed her fingers in a door. “Max, how could you think something so horrid of yourself?” I shifted my gaze down to my own hands. I can’t look at her like that. I just can’t. Someone who once had so much courage and faith, now looked hopeless and lost. I can’t stand to see her like that...like this. “Maxwell, please, look at me.” I did as I was asked. “I must tell you now. I love you. From the moment you picked me up, I knew you were my mate. I also knew that you were the one to save my people, but it comes with a cost.” Sophia jumped up, holding back tears. She turned back to me.
“Sophia,” I said as I rose. “Tell me. What do I have to do to save my sister?” She froze. She did not turn, did not flinch, did not breathe. I touched her shoulder blades with the back of my knuckles, running them down the narrow, protruding bones, stopping to caress her waist. I buried my face in the back of her neck. “You’re so warm,” I whispered.
I felt her shake underneath me. “Max.” She paused for a long while. Neither of us spoke or moved. We stood there, wrapped in each other’s warmth. Time froze; it was just us. “I must show you something.” In one quick movement, Sophia twisted herself around, not breaking my embrace. Nose to nose, her right hand slid up to my face. She pressed her fingertips to my temple as she closed her eyes. “Do the same, Max. Close your eyes. Concentrate on a memory.”
I tried to remember for a second, but my mind was completely blank. As soon as my eyelids came down, I was transported to a whole different world. “Where...where are we?” I asked, my eyes still closed.
No answer.
Instead, a breeze picked up around my stiff body. A breeze so strong, it nearly knocked me over, and I’m not exactly light, either. The air was different; heavier, mustier, and much cooler. I stood in darkness, taking in all my surroundings. Something kept pinging against me- pebbles, maybe, or grains of something.
“Open your eyes, Max,” I heard from the sky. My eyes shot open at the sound of her voice. “Look around,” she said. It took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust to my surroundings. There was dirt and rebul everywhere. Globs of sand mixed with debris bounced off me. I did a full three-sixty, taking in everything. It was dark, and dusty, and chilly.
“Sophia?” I yelled. “Sophia! Where are you?” Again, she did not answer. “Sophia, where am I?” Frantically, I search; searched for Sophia, searched for Anna, searched for anything. It was all gone, all dead! “Sophia! Please! What are you trying to prove? What is this?” I dropped to the ground, exhausted. “I don’t understand!” I sobbed into my hands. Something changed as I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I was at home with Sophia in my arms. “What...what happened?”
“That was Earth, Max.”
No. I dropped my arms. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Yes, Max. That is what will become of Earth after we leave.” She moved into the living room, sitting in the blue, floral armchair next to my mother’s piano. “Come. Sit. I’ll explain now.” I did as she said, sitting on the floor in front of her feet.
“Max, you’re not infected because you are the cure. When my people arrived, the disease spread through your thin air. The human race is doomed, but us, my people, we have a chance. All because I found you.” Sophia reached forward to touch my cheek. “You can save us.”
“How?”
“I’m not totally sure yet. That is why I need to bring you back to Koahka with me, to run tests. I am assuming it will have something to do with extracting your blood and making a serum.”
I got up on my knees. Kneeling in front of her, I moved close to her face and spoke softly, “Okay, I’ll do it...on one condition.”
“Anything.”
“We bring Anna.”
“Max-”
“Here me out,” I cut her off. “We can run all the tests and lab shit that you want, but, when you find what you need, Anna gets the first dose.”
“But, Max, you don’t understa-”
“No, Sophia! You don’t understand!” I jumped up, crossing the room. I rest my arm on the side of our bookshelf, propping my head against my arm. “She’s the only person I have left.” I fought back tears. “I almost lost her once, I can’t, I won't go through that again.”
“Okay, Max. We’ll take her.” Sophia suddenly appeared in front of me, caressing my cheek. "It will be hard disguising both of you at the same time , but I'll do it. I'll try for you," she said as she tipped her head to the side. Slowly, she came closer. "I love you, Max," Sophia whispered against my lips. Something in me didn't feel right just then. I pulled away from her just in time for her say, " And if I can't have you all to myself then no one can."
A searing pain washed over me, causing me to drop to my knees. I yelled out in agony as the pain grew stronger. "What did you do to me?" I demanded. Sophia laughed hysterically as her blinding light filled the room- she was changing form. Her laughter turned into a hurricane whirling around me. The pain was so strong now; I was near blacking out. “Anna!” I called, though my voice had gone horse. “Anna-”
“How long this time?” I asked. Mother shifted uneasily in her heels, switching her purse to her left hand.
“Oh, just a week or two,” my father said from behind me. “You’ll be fine.”
“Like always,” Anna now joined us. She hugged our parents then took her place next to me.
“No crazy parties,” my mother said as she kissed my cheek, making sure not to smudge her red lipstick. She was all doctored up; eyes, lips, cheeks. The works. Then again, when isn’t she wearing make up? From all the stories I’ve heard, she gave birth to Anna and me in her favorite evening gown and golden jewelry.
“And if you do have any, make sure you clean up before we get home,” Dad winked my way as he said this. He patted my shoulder, smoothed his suit, then began to move luggage to the car. After a few more goodbyes, Anna and I were alone.
Again.
This is nothing new for us, though. Our parents have been taking trips like this at least once every two or three months since Anna and I were old enough to walk. “Mommy and Daddy will be back soon. I promise,” they always said before leaving us at Nana's house. As we got older, though, they opted to leave us at home. I guess they figured all we needed was money for pizza and rental movies. Anna never has cared too much; I think she prefers it’s just her and I in the house. I, however, don’t trust our neighbors. Chicago isn’t the safest place for children, you know? Even at twenty, walking down the street at night gives me the willies.
A blood-curdling scream from upstairs startled me. “Max!” Anna wailed as I sprinted up the steps two at a time. When I reached the landing, I found my sister jumping up and down, still hollering, pointing into her room. “Kill it! Kill it!” she was saying over and over. I peered into the room- nothing.
“Anna,” I asked over her yelling, “what are you screaming about?” Her fit seized and she stepped forward, glaring, never taking her green orbs off the room- she was frightened. I followed her in; sunshine gleamed through the pink curtains, giving the room a bright, warm feeling. It is such a cozy room, so welcoming. It’s too bad Anna never has friends over. She looked around as I took a seat at her desk in the corner. With Anna mumbling to herself in the background, I ran my hand over the cherry colored wood. The desk that had once been mine, now covered in a dark, red, wood grain finish to match her dresser and bed frame, was given to Anna after the accident. There was another gut-wrenching scream as I watched her jump onto her bed. I still saw nothing, however.
“It’s right there!” she pointed toward her closest door, still hollering from atop her bed. As I squinted toward the folding doors, I found a strange, golden spider about as big as a tarantula; though, it wasn’t furry. An ominous glow seemed to be protruding from its sleek body- like an aura. It stared directly at me. It didn’t move, and neither did I. Anna was still panicking behind me as I moved toward the creature. “Max! What the hell are you doing?” she screamed as the usual bug climbed into my extended hand.
I had never seen such a thing like it. I’ve never liked spiders, but some reason, I was drawn to it from the moment I saw it; almost as if someone had wrapped a rope around my torso and were pulling me toward the lanky arachnid. “Such a strange thing,” I said. Although Anna was still terrified, she came down from her post to check the creature out, too.
“Disgusting!” she shivered then hurried out to the hall. Probably going to get cleaning fluid, now that her room has been contaminated.
“I am from the planet of Koahka, just outside the Nebulon Galaxy,” it said to me. Like something had shocked my hand, I immediately dropped the spider. It’s voice was almost robotic. “My name is Sophia.”
“How-” I stammered, dumbfounded. “How are you talking to me?” Okay, I’m officially crazy! Spiders can’t talk.
“No, you’re not crazy, Max.”
“How...how did you know my...my name? And...how did you know what I was thinking?” I backed away from the shining arachnid. This is not right!
“I’m not actually an arachnid, Max,” Sophia said as she spread her eight, stringy legs out over the rug. I could have sworn they just got longer, bigger. But that’s impossible! How? The whole room was then filled with a bright light so glorious I had to shield my eyes in fear of being blinded. The light dimmed slowly, bringing my sight back to me.
“Wha-” I gasped. There, where the exotic creature had been, stood a woman. Wearing nothing, not even hair to cover her bald head, she was entirely naked. Her body, sleek and long, had a strange glow to it, but it wasn’t just a glow. No, it was yellow. Sophia was glowing yellow!
Slowly she moved forward. Her legs were those of a faun, taking it’s first steps moments after birth. I froze still backed up against the wall. “I’m not going to hurt you,” Sophia said as she came closer and closer to me. “Hello, Max,” she said, touching my cheek so gently with her fingertips. The contact caused a heat to rush through my body, starting at my cheek and ending in my toes. I was on fire. Sophia stood, pressed up against me, staring so far into my eyes I’m sure she could see straight into my subconscious. Her eyes were big and bright, but there was something off about them. Wait, her iris’, they’re purple.
Just then, Anna waltz back into the room. She screamed, dropping all the bottles and scrubs in her arms then backed herself up to the wall farthest away from the weird creature.
“Anna!” I shoved past Sophia. “Anna, it’s okay.”
“But…” she looked faint. I grabbed her trembling body by the elbows and moved her to the bed. “Max,” her eyes looked in on my face. “What’s going on?”
“My people are dying, Max,” Sophia, now clothed and sitting in the living room with me, confessed. “We’ve come looking for a cure. There are many more of us. Thousands have come! But, still, we remain sick.”
I processed what I could, but I had one question that I needed an answer to. “How did you change like that?”
“Oh, Max, I can take any form that I can imagine. I have been living with you for over a week now, in the form of an arachnid. Something small and simple. Something that no one would find easily, or even look at twice,” she explained, her voice still robotic. “Yes, I know I sound like a robot. That is just my body getting used to this strange place.” Sophia stood then, walking toward the window, looking around like a child that has just moved into a new home. “Earth, such a strange place,” she said.
Months went by as the world outside was changing. The streets were barren, deserted; piles upon piles of sand covered everything. The ships had landed many weeks ago, bringing more of Sophia’s people. No television, no phone line, no power at all, not even cell signal. Sophia kept us inside for the most part, only allowing us out when she needed our help getting food- which wasn’t often.
“It’s not safe, Max,” she told me when I asked why we were hiding out. “The others...they’re not like me.” Sophia’s eyes lit up then. I’m not sure what it was. She touched my face, sending warm sparks through me. “I don’t trust them, Max. They-” she dropped her gaze and her hand.
Something came over me just then. I grabbed her face and brought it to mine. “Sophia, tell me. Please!” She broke away and walked to the window, now covered with boards and black plastic bags, blocking out the wasteland that once was my neighborhood.
Sophia turned with a concerned look then asked, “How are you taking it, Max?”
“Uh, fine, I guess.” She came closer to me when I shrugged. Honestly, it scares me to think about how well I am taking it; it’s as if this is nothing new to me, or that I’ve known Sophia all of my life, or...something.
“Max,” she sat beside me on the couch again, caressing my tense arm with her long, bony fingers. “You do realize why I’ve come, right?” I shook my head. I mean, I had an idea, but nothing was set in stone. “You, Max. I’ve come for you.”
I stood suddenly, pulling my limb from her grasp. “What? No! I have to go check on Anna.” I casually walked out of the room, knowing she’d be watching until I turned the corner. Once I was out of her view, I ran as fast as I could. I ran to Anna’s rooms.
She lay in bed, covered with the quilt that Nana had made her when we were born. “Anna?” I patted her cheek lightly. She was so clammy. “That can’t be good.” Her eyes were sunken in, like someone had given her a knuckle sandwich to each. She has always been skinny, but it’s gotten really bad within the past week. I’ll have to run to the drugstore.
“That won’t be necessary, Max,” Sophia said for the doorway, startling me. “Anna won’t be getting better.”
I narrowed my gaze to only her. “What are you talking about? And you know I hate when you do that whole mind reading thing.” I turned my attention back to my ill sister and pushed away the damp hair around her face.
“Oh, Max,” she said as she came closer to me. “I’m sorry. I wish it didn’t have to be like this. I really do.”
“Be like what? What the hell are you talking about, Sophia? It’s only the flu. She’s had it before; I know the symptoms.” I was enraged! She knows something that I don’t and she won’t even tell me. "Sophia, I swear you better tell me what's going on, right here, right now!"
She tried to sooth my back, but I swatted her hands away. "Max, calm down."
"Calm down, Sophia? You want me to calm down?" I stood abruptly, grabbed Sophia by the shoulders and plowed her into the wall. My whole body was hot and shaking; I could feel my blood boiling, gushing through my veins. "You want me to stay calm while we just sit there and watch my twin sister waste away like the rest of this damned planet. No!” I screamed in her face. “Now you better tell me what the hell is going on!” I let go of her and stormed out of the room.
How could she do this? She knows what’s going on and...and… God! Everything was starting to spin. I was blacking out with rage. My hands balled into fists. My sister. The only person I have left in this world, now that my parents are gone- God only knows where the hell they were when all this shit started; Fiji, the Bahamas, Paris. She can’t leave me. Not again. I won’t let her leave again. No. No! I have to protect her. Me. Only me. I’m all she has now, too. We have to stay together.
“Max,” Sophia cooed, appearing suddenly in front of me. “Max, please. You need to calm down.” I ignored her. This is all her fault anyways. “Max, it is not my fault. Please, calm down and I’ll explain everything.”
“Give me one good reason why I should ever listen to you again?”
“Because, Max, I’m in love with you, and I would never do anything to harm you. Or Anna, for the matter. You’ve both been so kind to me, and so patient.”
“Then what’s going on? Why is Anna sick and not me?” Sophia pushed me back, causing me to fall down onto the bottom step of the stairs.
“Max, we’ve passed our sickness onto your planet. I told you we were dying. I came here looking for a cure,” she paused, pacing back and forth, “and I’ve found it.”
“Found what?” I scratched the back of my neck nervously. Don’t say it; please, don’t say it.
Sophia kneeled in front of me, placing her hands on my cheeks, looking straight into my eyes as she spoke. “It’s you, Max. You’re the cure!” My world crashed down at that moment.
“No. No, that’s impossible. I’m a twenty year old mechanic from Chicago. I’m not special. There’s no way I could ever be the cure to anything. I’m nothing. I’m a nobody.”
Something changed in Sophia’s purple orbs; she looked upset, like she someone had just slammed her fingers in a door. “Max, how could you think something so horrid of yourself?” I shifted my gaze down to my own hands. I can’t look at her like that. I just can’t. Someone who once had so much courage and faith, now looked hopeless and lost. I can’t stand to see her like that...like this. “Maxwell, please, look at me.” I did as I was asked. “I must tell you now. I love you. From the moment you picked me up, I knew you were my mate. I also knew that you were the one to save my people, but it comes with a cost.” Sophia jumped up, holding back tears. She turned back to me.
“Sophia,” I said as I rose. “Tell me. What do I have to do to save my sister?” She froze. She did not turn, did not flinch, did not breathe. I touched her shoulder blades with the back of my knuckles, running them down the narrow, protruding bones, stopping to caress her waist. I buried my face in the back of her neck. “You’re so warm,” I whispered.
I felt her shake underneath me. “Max.” She paused for a long while. Neither of us spoke or moved. We stood there, wrapped in each other’s warmth. Time froze; it was just us. “I must show you something.” In one quick movement, Sophia twisted herself around, not breaking my embrace. Nose to nose, her right hand slid up to my face. She pressed her fingertips to my temple as she closed her eyes. “Do the same, Max. Close your eyes. Concentrate on a memory.”
I tried to remember for a second, but my mind was completely blank. As soon as my eyelids came down, I was transported to a whole different world. “Where...where are we?” I asked, my eyes still closed.
No answer.
Instead, a breeze picked up around my stiff body. A breeze so strong, it nearly knocked me over, and I’m not exactly light, either. The air was different; heavier, mustier, and much cooler. I stood in darkness, taking in all my surroundings. Something kept pinging against me- pebbles, maybe, or grains of something.
“Open your eyes, Max,” I heard from the sky. My eyes shot open at the sound of her voice. “Look around,” she said. It took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust to my surroundings. There was dirt and rebul everywhere. Globs of sand mixed with debris bounced off me. I did a full three-sixty, taking in everything. It was dark, and dusty, and chilly.
“Sophia?” I yelled. “Sophia! Where are you?” Again, she did not answer. “Sophia, where am I?” Frantically, I search; searched for Sophia, searched for Anna, searched for anything. It was all gone, all dead! “Sophia! Please! What are you trying to prove? What is this?” I dropped to the ground, exhausted. “I don’t understand!” I sobbed into my hands. Something changed as I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I was at home with Sophia in my arms. “What...what happened?”
“That was Earth, Max.”
No. I dropped my arms. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Yes, Max. That is what will become of Earth after we leave.” She moved into the living room, sitting in the blue, floral armchair next to my mother’s piano. “Come. Sit. I’ll explain now.” I did as she said, sitting on the floor in front of her feet.
“Max, you’re not infected because you are the cure. When my people arrived, the disease spread through your thin air. The human race is doomed, but us, my people, we have a chance. All because I found you.” Sophia reached forward to touch my cheek. “You can save us.”
“How?”
“I’m not totally sure yet. That is why I need to bring you back to Koahka with me, to run tests. I am assuming it will have something to do with extracting your blood and making a serum.”
I got up on my knees. Kneeling in front of her, I moved close to her face and spoke softly, “Okay, I’ll do it...on one condition.”
“Anything.”
“We bring Anna.”
“Max-”
“Here me out,” I cut her off. “We can run all the tests and lab shit that you want, but, when you find what you need, Anna gets the first dose.”
“But, Max, you don’t understa-”
“No, Sophia! You don’t understand!” I jumped up, crossing the room. I rest my arm on the side of our bookshelf, propping my head against my arm. “She’s the only person I have left.” I fought back tears. “I almost lost her once, I can’t, I won't go through that again.”
“Okay, Max. We’ll take her.” Sophia suddenly appeared in front of me, caressing my cheek. "It will be hard disguising both of you at the same time , but I'll do it. I'll try for you," she said as she tipped her head to the side. Slowly, she came closer. "I love you, Max," Sophia whispered against my lips. Something in me didn't feel right just then. I pulled away from her just in time for her say, " And if I can't have you all to myself then no one can."
A searing pain washed over me, causing me to drop to my knees. I yelled out in agony as the pain grew stronger. "What did you do to me?" I demanded. Sophia laughed hysterically as her blinding light filled the room- she was changing form. Her laughter turned into a hurricane whirling around me. The pain was so strong now; I was near blacking out. “Anna!” I called, though my voice had gone horse. “Anna-”