I wondered what kind of berries I would be picking as I walked.
The plant life on Ealra was like nothing I had ever seen before, so while I pictured tiny red or black berries, I knew the ones on Ealra were probably the size of my fist and bright blue or something along those lines. Nothing was ever as it seemed here, so I tried to think beyond my limited knowledge. Thinking of my work helped keep my mind occupied from Ezah.
I shivered just thinking of him.
I had no experience with what I was feeling when it came to him, so I didn’t have the slightest idea what to do about it. Not that I could do anything about it even if I wanted to. During our conversation last night, after he healed me from what was likely the most embarrassing thing to have ever happened to me, he made it clear that friendship was the motive for his recent pop-ups in my life. I had never considered what would become of my new-found crush, simply because I was trying to figure out how I felt about having one for the first time.
Ezah’s stance, however, made it a little easier to understand.
I was attracted to him, but it would remain an unrequited attraction. When I awoke that morning, I decided that just because I had a crush didn’t mean anything had to happen. Nuni explained that she had crushes on a bunch of the males within the Maji, even some mated ones. She said they were harmless, and no one could help who they were attracted to. To think I was experiencing something normal, something a lot of women dealt with was kind of riveting.
The only problem I had was that it wouldn’t be a passing crush like the ones Nuni had had. Ezah and I had come to an agreement on being friends. Through me, he would learn about human women. Through him, I guess I would learn what it was like to have an interest in someone—romantic or sexual, maybe even both. I didn’t have to be with Ezah to learn new things. I honestly didn’t think I could cope with having a male such as him anyway. He was just so … much.
Being friends was probably the best decision for us. Even that was daunting for me.
On my journey to the transport point, I realised I mistimed the departure slot and missed the transport to Sector Two altogether. I was worried I would get in trouble if I stopped a passing male and told him I missed my transport so I decided to simply walk.
On my way to find Sector Two, I passed by an open training yard. When I walked by, six of the dozen males stopped what they were doing so they could watch me move by. As usual, they only wore their loose-fitted trousers cuffed at the ends. So many bare, muscular torsos on display at once for my eyes to see was seconds away from triggering a sensory overload. More of the males stopped to look my way, and my gut clenched.
The attention was something I hated, so I averted my eyes to the ground as I walked passed so none of them would think any eye contact was an invitation to approach me. I wasn’t wearing the flashy, revealing outfits that were the normal dress attire within Royal City, so I knew it wasn’t my outfit receiving so many stares. It was simply because I was a female. Ealra, at one time, had so few of them, so I understood the fascination by the Maji males.
I’d stare at men, too, if I hardly ever saw them growing up.
A cool breeze flowed through the fabric of my clothing and cooled my skin. It was a very hot day, but the cool, moist, clean air made it feel good to be outside. You slowly suffocated outside on Earth. Your lungs burned when you inhaled and your body was constantly coated in sweat. There was never any relief, not like there was on Ealra.
I was heading out to do fieldwork for the day, so I had on loose-fitted trousers and a fitted top that exposed only some of my midriff and lower back. My arms were bare up to my shoulders, but I applied cream to protect my skin from the sun’s rays. I rarely burned, not like Nuni did, but I didn’t want to test that theory today. I brushed some dust from my clothing as I walked. The colour of my outfit was rose gold. I thought it looked far too beautiful to wear to work, but this was the standard attire, so I went with it.
I walked for what felt like ages when I came across a female who was walking up a lone path leading from a part of Royal City that I had never been to before.