Chapter 33: Nowhere and Never

I've just put Jeffrey back in bed and kissed him goodnight for the third time. He's in a playful mood tonight, but this time I deliver an ultimatum to him. "If you aren't asleep when your mother gets home, we'll both be in trouble. Goodnight Jeffrey." I turn the light out and stand in the doorway. I'm not letting him get up again.

Okay, I think he's asleep this time. That's when the doorbell dings. It's Mom, Dad, and Tia, and it's late. What are they doing here at this time? "Is everything all right?"

Mom carefully looks me over and asks, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?"

"That I'm going to be a grandmother."

"What! Don't tell me Terry got some girl pregnant."

"Not Terry—you! You should have told me you were pregnant."

"I'm not pregnant!"

"You're not? Oh … well then, I don't understand why there was such a rush for you to get married. I have the church and Reverend Dawson all set, two weeks from tomorrow. I've arranged a rush job on printing the invitations, but I've already called all our relatives in case the invitations aren't printed in time to get them mailed. We can just hand them out at the ceremony. Emil Marcanto has agreed to cater the reception. He did the catering for Ellen Hamilton's daughter's wedding."

"Mother—slow down! I'm not getting married."

"What? You have to. It's all arranged."

"Who am I supposed to marry?"

Mom is too flustered to answer, so Dad answers, "Zack, of course—just this afternoon he asked me for permission to marry my daughter, and I gave him my permission."

"Well, he hasn't asked me! This afternoon he informed me he intended to accept a wife. When I asked who he was going to accept, he said he had me in mind, but he didn't ask me, and I never said I would marry him."

Mom has to sit down before she falls down. I rush to get a glass of water to her.

Dad suggests, "She might need something stronger than that."

When Mom gets her heart going again and her breathing back to normal, she flatly states, "Tessa, you're getting married. I'm not calling everyone back and telling them the wedding is off."

"Mom, this isn't the dark ages. You can't marry me off just by making the arrangements. I have a say in this matter. You and Zack may think I don't, but I do!"

Dad tries to smooth things over, but I won't be smoothed. I already have my back up, and I'm not marrying anyone simply because my mother has made all the arrangements.

"Zack didn't ask me if I would marry him. He merely informed me that I could select where and when the ceremony would take place. Well, the where is nowhere, and the when is never!"

Dad suggests a cooling off period, and that's where we leave it. Just as Mom steps out the door, she stops and asks, "Tessa, are you in love with Zack?"

"I'm not going to answer that. Goodnight, Mom. Goodnight, Dad. Goodnight, Tia."

Saturday Morning

I am getting ready to go have breakfast at the homeless shelter. Actually, I will be one of the servers, a task beneath my status as a Warrior, but I am now in the human race.

Someone is at my door. "Mr. Tiarafiano, you are up early this morning."

"I have something important to speak to you about. Did you ask Tessa to marry you?"

"No—I merely informed her that I had chosen her to be my partner in life—my wife."

"I think you need to ask her to marry you."

"She is female. We do not ask, we tell them what to do."

"I don't know what century you're from, or where you were raised, but that isn't how it's done in this day and age, especially not in the United States of America."

"Ah—so—I still have a great deal to learn."

"Tessa has always been independent. She doesn't like to be told what to do. You have to be diplomatic with her."

"I thought I was diplomatic."

"Evidently not diplomatic enough because she says she isn't going to marry you."

I am shocked. A female is attempting to refuse a Terrokian Warrior. It is unprecedented. She cannot refuse.

"Tiffany has already made most of the arrangements, and now she finds out the wedding is off."

"I have an appointment this morning, but I will speak to Tessa this afternoon. I must not have made my intention clear to her. I will straighten her out and correct any misconception she may have fathomed from my statement of intent. You may inform Mrs. Tiarafiano that the marriage ceremony is still on."

"Zack, don't try to straighten Tessa out, and don't try to tell her she has to do something. You have to ask her."

"I must be going, but you may rest assured, I will clarify my position with Tessa."

"A word to the wise—if Tessa gets her back up, it's best to back away, give her time to chill, and then approach her from a different angle."

His word to the wise must have been intended for someone else. I did not understand any of it.

My menial servitude task at the shelter went well, and I also assisted with the clean-up after the meal. A Terrokian Warrior is capable of anything, even lowering his status. After lunch, I will straighten out Tessa.

Her car is parked at the Clarksdale Arms, but no one answers the door of her apartment. I fathom she has gone somewhere with Susan and Jeffrey. The delay in getting her straightened out is irritating. I also agreed to help Don Brown with some work at the shelter, which means I will be unable to speak with Tessa until much later.

Much Later

"Tessa, I require a private discussion with you."

"Good evening, Zack. I'll see if I can fit you into my busy schedule."

She is being contentious. I will not let her attitude affect me.

Susan says, "Hello, Mr. Taylor. Jeffrey, aren't you going to say Hi to Mr. Taylor?"

"Hi, Mr. Taylor."

Ah—this is what they call etiquette. "Hello, Jeffrey. Hello, Susan. May I assist in carrying some of your purchases for you?"

After everything is carried in, Tessa accompanies me down the steps and outside, so we may have a private discussion. She does not seem cooperative, but I do not believe her back is up. I am certain that is a figure of speech, but if her back begins to rise, I will back away and allow her to chill.

"Tessa, I would like to explain something. A Terrokian Warrior does not ask a female to do something. It is more commonly stated as a request or an intention to have her comply with a certain course of action. The female understands this, and she complies."

"What if she doesn't want to comply?"

"She does so anyway—or else she is punished, and then she is forced to comply."

"What if she still doesn't go along with it?"

"In that instance, she is de-activated."

"You mean—zzzzzzip—(making a cut throat sign)—off with her head?"

"Yes—and now that you are clear on that, I would like to refer back to our discussion yesterday afternoon. Your father has advised me that it would have been better if I had asked you, rather than informing you that I was accepting you as my wife. Therefore, Tessa Tiarafiano, will you become my wife—my partner in life?"

"Well—I—uh—now that you've made it clear to me—yes, I'll accept you as my husband. I certainly don't want to lose my head."

"Very good." She steps in against me and places her arms around me. It is an embrace, so I play my part accordingly. I am very pleased. It is good that Mr. Tiarafiano gave me his word to the wise. I have a firm grasp on Tessa's back, and it is not up, nor is it arched in the manner of an angry cat, as Don Brown explained the expression implies.

A Few Weeks Later

The honeymoon in Hawaii was wonderful—and exhausting. We stayed at the Miramar at Waikiki. Our room was nice. From our little balcony, we could see the beach and, looking left, a view of Diamond Head.

The Miramar laid out a fabulous spread for their complimentary breakfast buffet. It included all kinds of fresh fruit, especially pineapple; all the traditional breakfast items, and a lot of things I would consider non-traditional, some of which I had never seen before. They even had navy beans for breakfast.

Zack and I used the breakfast for a brunch and supplemented it with an afternoon snack, usually at the Patisserie, where we had coffee and a treat. Zack limited himself to coffee, nothing sweet. I was his treat. When we wanted a casual evening meal (actually, everything in Hawaii is casual), we went to Perry's Smorgy.

We spent some time on the beach. Terrokian skin doesn't sunburn, but I do. Zack simply retained his golden glow. We did all the traditional tourist things like shopping in the International Market, visiting the Arizona Memorial, going to the Paradise Cove Luau, the Don Ho Show, and we took the Circle Island Bus Tour with our driver/guide, Cousin Chuck.

The bus tour stopped at several places of interest, but while it was moving, I was sleeping. Honeymooning with a Terrokian Warrior is exhausting. I think Zack is trying to make up for all his missed rotations, and he has a lot more stamina than I have. I also slept on the plane, all the way home.

Several Years Later

Being married to a Warrior Class Prince from outer space is quite an adventure, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Zack maintains his low profile at Tasker, refusing to accept any individual credit, or patents, in his name, but Tasker has prospered from his designs, and Zack is very well paid. We live comfortably, and no one knows I'm married to an extraterrestrial. Uncle Bob may suspect, but he's never asked for confirmation.

I don't have to worry about Zack getting interested in another woman. The only time he appears to notice another woman is if we see an extremely tall, overweight one. He looks—and I punch him to distract him, but I'm not worried. Now if a 7 foot, 400 pound woman comes along, I might get worried.

Of course Zack and I have an occasional disagreement; after all, he isn't human, so we see things differently. He's much more intelligent than I am, but he never talks down to me, and he lacks the human perspective, which I'm able to provide. I've learned that it's best to go along with anything he suggests. I'll end up having to do it anyway, so it's best not to resist. After all—he's the prince, and he's Warrior Class.

We've only had one serious confrontation. It started when I asked, "Why did you come to Earth?"

"My ship malfunctioned, and I was unable to return to Terrok. I had to splash down on this planet."

"But why were you here in the first place?"

"I was on a classified search mission."

"Don't try to be evasive. You know it just piques my curiosity. I'm your partner in life. Nothing is classified between us. Now tell me about your mission."

"Very well—as you know, the Terrokian Empire has a very low birthrate and a shortage of females. We are headed toward extinction. I was searching for intelligent life forms compatible with Terrokians, specifically female life forms that could be inducted into our Campus Class."

"You're no better than the Lavaunge,"

"You have insulted me!"

His scans flare brightly.

"I'm sorry—I didn't mean that. It's just that—I'm sorry. May I please be excused?"

"Yes."

Zack slept in the spare bedroom for the next two nights, and we didn't speak to each other, not a word, not even, "Pass the hot sauce." I suppose it's up to me to break the impasse. I do it by fixing him a cup of tea, hot, Earl Grey, and carefully setting it down in front of him without sloshing any out.

"Thank you, Tessa."

"I love you, Zack."

Thus ends our one serious confrontation. He didn't say, "I love you, too." He never has said it to me, still claiming that love is foreign to him, but I think he loves me in his own way. I hope he does.

Zack likes to go up on our porch roof, lie on his back, and look up at the stars. Sometimes I grab a pillow, climb up, and lie beside him. I'm not sure if he prefers to be alone or not. I still can't read him very well, but he always knows what I'm thinking. I know he longs to be up there. After all, he is a space traveler-an explorer-and I'm sure he misses it.

One night I work up the courage to ask, "Do you miss it—being out there, I mean?"

"Yes, I do."

He still won't make a false statement.

"However, If my ship had not failed and stranded me on this planet, I would never have been able to lie here with you. I would miss that more than anything else."

I'm stunned! He may think love is foreign to him, but a statement like that means "I love you" in any language.

Oh, that reminds me—I didn't agree to marry Zack just to keep my head attached. I was in love with him, but I didn't want to be. But, he's a real prince, and a warrior, and he's an extraterrestrial being. The prospect of becoming his wife was rather frightening. Good thing I don't scare so easily.

Where No (Earth)Woman Has Gone Before

One morning during the seventh year of our marriage, while I was in the bathroom upchucking again with some kind of virus, I realized I hadn't had a period lately. Oh my God, I'm pregnant! We never thought it would happen. Zack and I aren't the same species, and the Terrokian birth rate is so low that we never took any precautions. To say that we were concerned is a major understatement. We agonized over the decision to abort or not. I have a being growing inside me, conceived by a union between a human and a Terrokian. Who knows what this thing is?

My first ultrasound was unreadable. The doctor expected to see a human fetus, but it didn't look like anything she'd ever seen before, and we couldn't tell her that Zack was an extraterrestrial. Zack had no idea what a Terrokian fetus was supposed to look like. He's Warrior Class, not Medical Class. I was scared to death, and Zack was concerned.

The next ultrasound was better. It looked more like a baby, but the image still wasn't clear enough to tell much of anything. At least it didn't have two heads.

What if it's a female child? That's a frightening prospect. The survival rate for Terrokian female babies is only thirty-something percent, and if she does survive, what am I going to do with a 7 foot 400 pound daughter? Of course, I'll have a few years to learn to deal with it before she gets to be that size, but how big will she be when she's ready to be born? Too large to come naturally out of me, I'm sure.

I'll spare you the details of my worry and agony over this birth. My mind was considerably eased when it was confirmed I was going to have a male child, and he appeared to be a normal human.

The actual birth was smooth and normal, so the doctor and my mother said—but it didn't seem very smooth to me! We now have a little human-looking baby, who just happens to have a tiny birthmark on each cheek—scans—and they turn red when he's upset. I'm the mother of a Warrior Class baby. I named him Zackarious-not quite a junior because Zack's name is officially Zachary here on Earth. I wonder if Earth can handle another Terrokian passing for human?

The End

AN: I just wanted to take a minute to say "thanks" to everyone who has followed Zack and Tessa's story. I hope you had a few laughs along the way. I will begin posting a new story next week. I hope you will check out "It's Only Make Believe."