Alien Scrooge - Zara Zenia Page 0,46

house and talked about his time as a professor, reminding Egrix of his days training for the union. Bonnie invited him to look through old photo albums, claiming that she had been the family photographer when Cara was young, and she'd taken it over for her. His eyes sparkled as he learned about Cara's childhood and how different it was from his own. He and Cara enjoyed time together just sitting and talking on the back deck, admiring the beautiful view of the Big Sur landscape. Egrix felt relaxed and happy beyond any hope he could ever have imagined.

Dinner was a potluck of dishes from the night before which the family devoured happily while they talked together.

"How old did you say you were?" Dennis asked again in disbelief.

Egrix chuckled at the man's shocked expression. "I'm 146, which is pretty young as Daxians go."

Everyone at the table was shocked at the difference in lifespan, but no one could resist laughing at Dennis's dramatic overreaction to the news.

Through her laughter, Cara suddenly heard a scream coming from outside, morphing her face instantly to one of horror.

"What was that? Did someone scream?"

The whole family rushed outside to figure out what had happened. At the bottom edge of the yard the four could make out a familiar figure fallen on the ground. Oscar lay in the grass in shock, scooting fearfully away from holographic visions that seemed to be appearing from the ground all around him. He shrieked again, racing clumsily to his feet and beginning to sprint out of the yard. The family, who had stopped dead in their tracks upon seeing the horrible man in their yard, all looked at each other and laughed.

"What was that?" Bonnie said, wiping tears from her eyes after laughing so hard.

"I just programmed some visions to deter him from bothering you guys anymore. I understood from what Cara had mentioned, that the man was a wastrel. So I programed the holograms specifically for him. He heard voices telling him to get a job or he would meet an untimely fate and stuff like that."

Cara giggled. "Egrix, isn't that kind of mean?" Despite her claim though, she couldn't stop laughing.

"Mean or not, I don't think he'll be coming back."

"Here, here!" Dennis cried, herding the group of goofily chucking people back inside.

Egrix grabbed Cara's hand, squeezing it gently.

"Do you feel safer now?"

She smiled comfortably. "Yes, very. Thank you!"

"That incident is recorded. I can give it to you guys if you want to report him. If not, it's at least a funny home video that you can watch later on."

This Christmas, his first, had truly been something really special. The warmth of a family that Egrix didn't have experience with had been unparalleled. The joy of making other people happy, particularly the person he cared about most, was unprecedented. The kindness he felt from the people who had only just met him was genuinely priceless. It wasn't the type of thing he could explain in a report to the Spacing Guild, but it felt, somehow, like the most valuable resource the humans had to offer.

Epilogue

Cara stepped out of the cold shower, thankful for the refreshing chill the cool water droplets left on her skin. She ran her towel through her hair to soak up the water, looking at herself in the bathroom mirror. Today was a big day.

"Don't be nervous," she muttered to her reflection.

"What do you have to be nervous about," a deep voice called from outside the bathroom door.

Cara pulled the door open and glared up at the handsome alien face on the other side.

"Are you eavesdropping on me?" she asked with her hands on her hips and her eyebrow cocked.

Egrix intentionally ignored her question, noticeably running his eyes up and down her naked body.

Cara pouted at him, annoyed. "I have to get ready, Egrix," she insisted, trying to leave the bathroom past him. He put his body in her way, blocking her exit.

"Am I not allowed to eavesdrop on you?" he asked teasingly, leaning down so that their noses touched.

"Well not if you're going to pick on me for it." She frowned.

"But I meant what I said. You don't have anything to be nervous about." He snaked his arm around her waist. "You are beautiful, talented, intelligent, sophisticated, and strong." He planted a kiss on her skin for each word he said.

"Okay, yeah, sure," she spoke feverishly, diverting her gaze from the golden, cat-like eyes staring at her.

"Don't you believe me?" He sounded heartbroken, drawing her