Page 8 of Alien in the Depths
“Come sit next to me,” Sofia whispered to Zaraq, leading him to a chair. He’d barely said two words since they’d arrived. “I’msorry. I know they’re a bit much…” She bit her lip. She hadn’t really thought of how intimidating it could be to meet her whole family.
Zaraq smiled and tugged on her ponytail. “They’re great. I just feel bad imposing.”
“Don’t be silly. I want you to get to know them,” Sofia replied with a shy smile. Carmen graciously sat down on her other side with Arccoo at the head of the table. Elena eventually dragged herself away from the waiter and plonked down next to Arccoo.
“I’ve taken the liberty of preordering some of our best dishes,” Arccoo said. “I hope that’s fine with everyone?” A chorus of yesses followed and he gestured to the waiter. Shortly after, the first course arrived with a melody of scents and a large bottle of Thryal wine.
Arccoo turned to Zaraq. “We’d better watch these three with the Thryal wine. Their tolerance is still building,” he said with a laugh.
Zaraq smiled. “More for us,” he replied, immediately earning three identical glares. He held his hands up in surrender, and everyone laughed. They all tucked in, and Elena turned to Zaraq.
“So, you’re Thryal, right? Or am I being ignorant in assuming that because of your skin?” She pulled a piece of bluish flatbread from a platter and popped a piece in her mouth. “Oh my god, that’s good.”
Zaraq laughed, grabbing a piece for himself. “Not at all. We’re quite unique with our glittering gray skin,” he said with a nod to Arccoo. “My parents were Thryal, yes.”
Sofia butted in. “His dad was a scholar. How cool is that? They traveled lots when he was young.”
“Oh, yeah? What kind of research did he do?” Arccoo asked.
Zaraq shifted uncomfortably. “A variety of things, really. He mostly focused on paranormal and supernatural events. That’s where I got my fascination from, even though I’m undecided on whether Sofia’s ghosts really exist.”
He winked at Sofia, who gave him a playful glare in response. They paused as the waiter removed their empty plates and brought an array of dishes for the main course. Sofia breathed in the delicious aromas. She was slowly getting used to the weird colors in Thryal food. It was worth it for the amazing culinary experience.
Carmen snorted as she dished up a serving for Arccoo. “You’d have thought differently if you’d been in our house with Arccoo around,” she said.
“Sofia told me a bit about that,” Zaraq said with a laugh. “Though I’m still confused as to how you were invisible?” His dark violet eyes focused on Arccoo.
Arccoo looked confused. “It’s basic light-emission tech,” he replied, frowning. “It’s part of the Thryal schooling system.”
Zaraq cleared his throat. “Oh, right, of course,” he stammered. “I guess I must have skipped that class.”
Sofia laughed. “Ooh, we have a rebel in our midst!”
Zaraq shot her a grateful smile and took a large bite of the meaty skewer-like dish. Sofia followed suit, her taste buds exploding with flavor.
It’s cute that he’s this nervous,she thought.
As they ate, Elena and Arccoo got involved in a detailed discussion of the serving tech of the restaurant. Sofia leaned closer to Zaraq.
“What’s this dish?” she asked, hoping to distract him.
He frowned. “I’m not sure. I think it’s tuddo?”
Arccoo looked up from his discussion with Elena. “Oh, it’s called strolli. The meat comes from an animal similar to a cow on Earth, and it’s cooked with local spices and vinegar.”
“Oh-kay, thank you…” Sofia said, frowning at Arccoo. Couldn’t he let Zaraq answer for himself?
Carmen picked up on the tension and leaned forward to change the subject. “So, Zaraq, Sofia told us you’ve done a lot of traveling for work. What do you do?”
Zaraq shifted again, and Sofia bit her lip. Was he really this uncomfortable around her family? This didn’t bode well.
“I, uh, I’m actually between jobs at the moment,” he answered evasively.
Carmen frowned. “What did you do before, then?”
Zaraq took a deep breath. “Mostly security work,” he replied.
Sofia kicked Carmen under the table. Carmen shot her a wide-eyed look, and Sofia frowned at her. Luckily, Elena jumped in.