Page 24 of Kien's Kindred

“I didn’t think I would make it,” she said in a hoarse voice. “I overestimated how long I could hold my breath now. Junior high was a long time ago.”

He ran a hand across her back again. He could feel the tremors of her straining muscles. “You did it. The hard part is over.”

When the water was at his knees, he allowed her to slide from his grasp to stand. She leaned over, bracing her hands on her knees and coughed. After making sure she was fine, Kien went to the console that controlled the set of doors separating them from the rest of the ship. He input his code again and initiated the sequence that would wake upHalo Oneand bring the oxygen and temperature online.

“It’s going to take a while for the ship to regain a comfortable temperature. It’ll be cold when we get in there. So, we’ll need to change into dry clothes right away, otherwise you’ll be in danger of getting hyperthermia.”

He turned to glance at her to make sure she understood. She nodded even as her teeth chattered, and her lips turned blue. She was already experiencing the side effects of hyperthermia.

As soon as the water drained, he opened the door. A blast of cold air hit them. Without the life support systems online, the temperature of the ship had dropped to the lake’s temperature.

Kien pulled her firmly inside and let the chamber door shut behind them. He opened her bag first, retrieving her backpack. She tried to help him, but her hands shook, and she couldn’t firmly grasp anything. Kien pushed her hands aside and grabbed a rolled-up set of clothes that she had.

He encouraged her to lean on him while he helped her into sweatpants and thick socks. He pulled a t-shirt then a sweatshirt over her wet hair. After he put her coat on and zipped it for her, he donned his dry clothes.

Nisha tried to pick up her bag, but she couldn’t grasp it with shaking hands. Kien scooped her into his arms.

“M-m-my b-bag.”

“I’ll come back for it,” he said as he carried her through the narrow hallway of the ship. “I’m taking you to my room. It’s a much smaller space. It’ll warm up there quicker.”

The ship was set to warm up the bridge and the living quarters first. When he got to his room, he pulled back the blanket on his bed and laid her inside. While she melted, going deeper under the cover, he initiated the heating mechanism under his mattress.

Space was cold. While they had systems in place that kept their core body temperatures at an optimal level, each bed was equipped with a heating mechanism under it. The same system also controlled the temperature of the floor in his room.

Nisha pulled back the blanket. “You need to get in too.”

Kien paused. While he’d spent the last few nights wishing she would invite him into her bed, he wasn’t prepared for the actual action. He paused for seconds longer. His brain volleyed between panic and happiness at the same time. His chest tightened and his stomach flipped topsy-turvy.

“C-come on. P-please. I n-need the extra body heat.”

At hearing her stutter, he knew what he had to do. Kien slipped into the bed next to her. Nisha immediately curled next to him and let out a deep sigh.

“So warm.”

Chapter Nine