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Aja slumped down on a bed, Eli entering the room behind her. He shut the door and turned to her. “That was… boring.”
She groaned. It was more than boring. These royal meetings were terrible. She did not like negotiating. The meetings were long and she was impatient. They exhausted her.
But as the queen of Akiridion-5, they were mandatory. As much as she despised formal meetings, she would do anything for her people, and she was glad her friend was there with her.
She covered her face with her blue hands, laying her lower pair on her stomach, and closed her eyes for a moment, taking deep breaths. Eli had joined her as the earthly ambassador for the planet. She appreciated him coming along. Things would have been much more difficult without someone to assist her, and she enjoyed his company in general.
Eli’s phone buzzed in his pocket. It was Krel. He excitedly picked up. He went to sit on the bed beside Aja, their legs crossed as they got comfortable. He placed the phone in front of the headboard so both of them could be seen. The top half of Krel’s face was shown.
Krel called them almost every day. Aja missed her brother and wanted to be beside him every day, but calling is the closest they can be right now. He did not join them to go back to Akiridion-5. He stayed on earth. It was his new home, he made new friends and has a found family. He hoped to make his mark on the mudball.
“Krel!” She exclaimed.
They began a conversation, chatting about the most random things. Eli was a bit closer with Krel than he was with Aja. He was always excited to talk to his best friend. Aja thought he might have a little crush on Krel, but she stayed quiet about it.
Krel laughed over the phone, but with a tinge of pain tied into his voice. “I miss you guys. How was your day?”
Aja sighed. “Boring. As usual.” Her accent was laced with her soft voice. “It’s worth it, I hope. Eli here is helping out plenty. He’s a very hard worker.”
Eli rubbed his neck and blushed at the compliment. “I try my best.” He looked back up at the phone, Krel’s entire face now showing as he tried to prop his device up. “What about you, Krel? Have you done anything interesting today?”
“Hmm, not really. Steve and I are planning another sleepover tomorrow, but the most productive thing I probably did today was practice the guitar.”
Silence fell as they sat still. Life was currently difficult, and the trio was not very happy. There was not much enjoyment. Krel tried to lighten the mood. “I learned how to play a new song, though. There are even lyrics I can sing.”
Aja and Eli’s eyes lit up. Krel had a beautiful singing voice. His deep voice mixed with his thick accent could make someone feel so soft. It could lull someone to sleep or help them to loosen up and relax. He didn’t sing too often, he was very insecure about his voice, but his friends always reassured him that his voice was amazing and soothing to listen to.
They continued to chat for some time before finally ending the call so that Krel could go to bed.
Aja lay down curled up on the bed and stared blankly at the wall, heart suddenly empty. Eli spoke up, “What if… what if we give Earth a visit?”
She didn’t respond for a few seconds. “How would we do that?”
“Well, Krel’s wormhole should be charged by now. We could use it as a two-way trip because we don’t have as many people to transport this time.” She thought for a moment. He had a point. It was possible.
“That’s… not a bad idea, actually.” She sat up and brought her knees under her chin, wrapping her arms around them. “But I want to be able to surprise Krel. We can organize to talk to some of our friends so we could do it without him finding out. Zadra could look over Akiridion-5 while we’re gone”
Eli grinned. They had a plan.
-
For the next few days, they had contacted Toby and Steve to plan the specifics. Krel had no idea. No matter how bad Steve was at keeping secrets, he managed to keep his mouth shut.
Aja and Eli stood in front of the portal. Aja held out her fist and initiated a fist bump. “Ready?”
He nodded. They went through, closing their eyes at the blinding lights.
They found themselves in Arcadia Oaks once again.
Toby and Steve ran at them and engulfed them in a big hug. The four of them began laughing before they peeled away from each other. After they took a minute to catch up, Toby mentioned that Krel was back at his house.
Toby and Steve had told him they had a surprise, so they left him at Toby’s house. He had only groaned and agreed. Krel was not a fan of surprises, but nothing interesting happened anymore.
They made sure to close the portal and began walking to Toby’s house. Aja transformed back into her human form, which she was very ecstatic about. She missed it. She and Steve caught up, arms wrapped around each other’s shoulders as they called each other their pet names. Toby and Eli looked away, gagging. They were sweet and all, but it was too much sometimes.
Once they reached their destination, Toby and Steve went inside to get Krel. Aja and Eli stood outside a distance away from the front door, waiting.
Eli avoided her gaze, staring at a nearby tree, “Do you think… do you think he’ll be excited to see us?”
Aja smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder, his eyes finally meeting hers, “Of course. We’re his family. He’ll be excited.” He returned the smile and took a deep breath and looked back to where Krel would eventually appear.
Aja grinned knowingly. Yeah, Eli definitely had a crush on Krel. This would be interesting.
The front door opened. Steve held his hands in front of Krel’s eyes to shield his view, and Toby stood beside them. “How much longer do we have to walk? My legs are tired.”
Toby snickered, “Krel, we’ve barely left the house.” He could feel Krel’s eye roll from a mile away.
They walked him closer to Aja and Eli. Then Steve took his arms away. Krel’s eyes were still closed.
Aja excitedly bit her lip, “You can open your eyes now, you knucklehead.”
His eyes shot open at his sister’s voice. “Aja?” His eyes wandered to Eli. “Eli?”
He stood there, mouth wide open, rapidly blinking to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. His eyes began to glisten as tears lined the rim of his eyes.
Krel lunged at Aja and Eli and tightly wrapped his arms around them.
He let go and turned to Aja, sobbing and laughing. He squeezed her so tight it felt like she would burst. But it didn’t hurt, and she didn’t mind. She never would. She wrapped an arm around him, resting her cheek on the top of his head as she pet his hair with her other hand and closed her eyes. “I missed you, little brother.”
They stood there holding onto each other for some time. Aja pulled away and left a gentle peck on his forehead, holding it for a few moments. She missed him.
Krel looked at Eli for a moment, then suddenly wrapped his arms around him too. Eli immediately reciprocated, holding onto him just as tightly.
Eli buried his head in the crook of Krel’s neck, and Krel held a hand on the back of his head. Eli’s glasses fogged as he began to get teary. He missed Krel. So much. And now he could finally see him again. He tightened his grip on Krel, who squeezed him back just as much. They pulled away after a moment.
Krel wiped his tears with the back of his hand and went back into the house, Aja and Eli following.
The kids were not satisfied with how their current life was going, but as long as they had each other, it would get better and they would get through it together.