Feel Again by Fallon Sousa Page A

handed
the man his battered driver’s licence over the counter, trying not
to contaminate himself with rust and germs. “All set to go,” said
the man.
    Lionel was relieved. An few
hours later, freshly tanned, dark-haired, and blue-eyed, at least
for the time being, he was on his way back home to Carla’s
apartment. As he walked in, the gloominess of the sullen place was
lightened by the smell of freshly roasted food. When Carla and her
kids walked in just a few short minutes after Lionel got home, he
thanked his lucky stars that he did not get caught. If anyone back
here on Earth learned a single secret of Zebda, it would surely
mean their death. In fact, Lionel was not yet certain that he would
remain alive for long after escaping from planet Zebda. Samakri
would only be able to keep their secret for so long before Blekrin
would wonder what had happened, as he would soon become suspicious
of Samakri’s inability to appear alien, or, on Zebda,
“normal.”
    “Is
something bothering you,” Carla asked, sounding more concerned than
she normally would have. “You know, you can tell me. You don’t need
to keep everything a secret from me all the time. It’s okay to be
honest. We’re family. ”
    Lionel
could not believe what he had just heard. Carla, a woman who had
seldom cared for anyone, or, at least, according to what Lionel’s
assumptions were, was here, telling him that they were a family.
For the first time in his life, he knew that it was true. Or, at
least, it could be true if he wanted it to be true; if he allowed it to
happen. However, he could not stop thinking about Samakri. Was she
safe? Would they ever see each other again? He did not
know.
    That night, Lionel dreamed
of Samakri. He dreamed that he was back on planet Zebda. The evil
Nelvak was torturing him nearly to death, a Yalmax whip slapping
hard agaisnt his bleeding and burning flesh. And, then, he saw her.
She was a Zebdian again, with her magenta tresses flowing against
her back, down over her full chest and past her tiny waist. Her
yellow eyes were glowing with friendliness and human love, which
she expressed by pulling her brother off of Lionel. She then smiled
at him and took his hand in hers, and they walked out of the Haklar
and marphed to Earth where they both became human and lived happily
ever after.
    Lionel was more than
disappointed when he awoke at 3:14 A.M., his muscular body sweating
profusely against his plaid flannel bedsheets. It had been only a
dream. Lionel sighed. He wanted more than anything to see Samakri
again; to be with her again. Just then, one of Carla’s little ones,
a boy of three named George, walked into Lionel’s room.
    “Li’nel,”
he mumbled, toying with his little hands. “I ‘ad a bad dream,” he
added, looking wide-eyed and apparently quite frightened.
    Yeah,
kid, well, join the club, he thought. But
that was not what he said to the young child. “What’s the matter,
Georgie? What did you dream about?”
    “I dreamed that a pretty
girl with purple hair came to our house and she took you away from
us and brought you somewhere else and me and mommy never saw you
ever, ever, again.”
    A chill
ran up Lionel’s spine. Could the little boy, George, really have
dreamed of Samakri as well? Was it possible that they still had a
thought bond? Could Sam connect with Lionel while he was still on
Earth? He wanted to know. It isn’t
possible, though, he thought. Samakri can’t connect with me anymore
because she’s human now. But, could Lionel
connect with her?
    “Li’nel,” the boy said again, sucking his itty-bitty thumb
and drenching it in spit. Gross, Lionel
thought. “Can you get me somethin’ to eat.
I’m h’ngry.”
    “Sure,” Lionel replied,
although he did not really want to get up for the day just yet.
“What do you want me to make you?”
    “Pancakes, pwease,” George said, smiling his award-winning
and innocent smile up at Lionel.
    “Okay,
sure thing,” Lionel grumbled. They