The second meeting with NASA's administration was currently underway. The tension between Orion and Arabella had grown even stronger. The meeting was about to start soon. While waiting for the others, Orion stared at her motionlessly. It was a dreamy, thoughtful gaze. Realizing she was looking at him too, he gave her a soft smile.
It all felt like that first spark of infatuation — innocent and sincere — the kind you experience at the very beginning of a love story.
In that moment, it was as if that mischievous version of him, the one that drove her mad, didn't exist at all.
The room was now filled with beings who were part of the NASA project team. He shamelessly continued staring at her. He didn't care who was watching. Becoming aware that they weren't alone, he abruptly snapped out of his daydream. Then, he began to speak.
– Good afternoon. This meeting won't be too long, which is why I scheduled it before classes begin, while you're all still here. We're already expected to begin our first mission today.
He looked around at everyone present, then continued.
– We'll carry out the task right after today's lessons.
The beings looked at him curiously and gave him their full attention.
– We'll be deploying the smart satellite device – he paused briefly.
The beings started whispering among themselves. The most prominent whisper was, "Smart satellite?"
Felix asked firmly:
– What do you mean by smart?
– It means that through them, we'll be able to connect with NASA's research rooms on planet Earth – Orion replied.
– Are those the satellites she left for us? – one of the beings asked.
– Yes. Today, we need to figure out where to place them so we can establish a connection with the computers.
– What does that computer connection involve? – Liv chimed in, who had been sitting next to her, nudging her and smiling the whole time.
She remained silent, ignoring Liv's behavior. She still hadn't had the chance to tell her about this new chapter in their story.
– Installing programs, logging in, conducting investigations, and creating system requests – he answered, looking at her the entire time.
– And that's why I chose Arabella. She'll be helping me with it...
– Why Arabella again? – she interrupted, curious.
– Because Arabella understands this technology, just like I do.
– Are you sure that's the only reason? – she continued.
– Even if it weren't, we're here on a mission, and we shouldn't mix our private lives with our work – he replied sharply.
– Is that clear now?! – he added.
Liv just frowned at him, but he ignored it because his eyes remained fixed on Arabella.
– Any more questions?
– When will the next mission be? – one of the beings asked loudly.
– I don't know yet. The most important thing is that we manage to connect through the satellites and establish contact with NASA. Without that, we can't move forward with anything else.
A silence followed.
– Okay... If that's it then you can go, class is about to start – as soon as he said that, the creatures hurried toward the exit.
Arabella also started to follow them, but stopped because of the crowd at the door. Just as she was about to move again, Orion's sharp voice stopped her.
– Where are you going?
He began to approach her. She was still standing by the door. He reached her, closed the door, and pressed her against it. Then he locked it and looked her straight in the eyes.
– Are you really going to leave without kissing me? Do you realize I barely controlled myself just now because you were so damn irresistible, you brought me to ruin... You don't even know how much you affect me – he whispered softly.
– How so? – she teased him, her heart pounding wildly.
– Don't pretend you don't know! You will have to answer for your actions now – he continued to whisper.
He turned off the light in the classroom and then clung even closer to her. She could feel that he got hard when their bodies pressed together. She had already brought him to it without doing anything.
– What if I don't wantt – he interrupted her and rested his lips on hers and started kissing her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and surrendered to him. He put his hands on her bottom and held her tightly. In the meantime, she quietly whispered to him: – We have to go, the bell was about to ring.
And he just responded with one fierce kiss, after which he carried her and placed her on the nearest table. He continued to kiss her. The bell rang at that moment and the class they were supposed to be in began.
– Screw it! We are not going to this class!
– I think we should leave! – she said to provoke him.
– I'm not ready to leave this room in this state.
– What state?
– I think it's very clear to both of us!
– You think?! – she asked, and the next moment she found herself pinned on the table.
He lightly leaned over her and started kissing her again. And then, he slowly slid down to her neck and kissed it. After he finished kissing her neck, he reached under her shirt and kissed her stomach and breasts. She burned again under his touch. She began to let out soft moans.
– You need to be quieter, someone might hear us.
– You do this way too well – she whispered to him.
– I need you more and more, Orion – he smiled mischievously, and at that moment she took off his shirt and started kissing him.
Now they had completely forgotten about the classes and surrendered to those sweet passions.
After skipping the first class, they returned to reality and decided to attend the rest of the activities. Orion made an excuse for Arabella, saying she was working with him on the project.
***
Finishing the lessons, the team gathered together with Orion on a part of the planet Syrinx. Now, they all formed a circle around Orion.
– Since we're all here, we should start this mission. I've formed groups, and each group will place one satellite in a designated territory. I'll give you papers with information, and then we'll begin.
The creatures nodded, and he continued:
– Let's get distributed.
He began sorting them, then approached Arabella, who was standing with Liv.
– Felix, Liv, you and I are one group, – he said to her, then asked:
– Where is Felix?
– Over there! – Liv answered, and he called him to come over.
– Felix, you're with us! Now that that's settled, we can start – he addressed the others and started handing out the papers.
After finishing the distribution, he returned to his group.
– Can Arabella and I work together, and you and Felix? – Liv asked him immediately.
– Why? – he replied strictly.
– So we can hang out and have a conversation, just the two of us.
– We're here to work, not to slack off, – he scolded her.
– But you need to separate from her a bit too, – she teased him, and Arabella nudged her to stop.
– Fine, whatever. But you still have to work.
He smiled at her joke.
– We will! Just leave her be, – Arabella replied, calming Liv so she wouldn't start teasing him again.
She passed by him as if nothing had happened a few hours ago and headed to the assigned location with Liv. They agreed that the two of them would explore the place where the satellite was to be placed, then meet up to do it together. As soon as they moved away from the others, Liv started questioning her.
– Did something happen between you two?
– Why do you ask?
– Come on, don't pretend! Today, he looked at you completely differently during the meeting! He literally stared at you non-stop.
– How differently?
– Please stop with that, you know exactly what I mean. What's going on between you? – she pressed her.
– I'm not really sure. He admitted he's loved me from the very beginning and we kissed, and after all that, he took me to the Moon.
– That's it! I knew it! I knew it! – she started yelling like a maniac.
– Calm down, Liv – Arabella watched her outburst calmly.
– And you still aren't sure what you two are?
– Well, no?
– I think everything was pretty clear. You're officially a couple now!
– Come on, Liv...
– So what? That's it. You're in a relationship now.
– Don't be so sure.
– I have my reasons to be that sure. This was way too obvious and confirms a lot of things.
– Fine. Let's get back to our research work. We'll talk more about this later, just so you know.
After finishing their part, they only had to wait for Orion and Felix, who went to get cables and tools. While waiting, Arabella noticed something unusual in that spot. There was a medium-sized hole that had started to erode and release glowing particles into the space atmosphere. She approached and leaned over it to get a better look. She saw the particles more clearly. They were constantly flowing out of the planet's surface, forming something like a waterfall. She quickly called Liv, who ran over immediately.
– Look at this! – she said suspiciously.
– Wow! What is that? – Liv leaned even closer, peering into the hole in awe.
– Careful! – Arabella pulled her back so she wouldn't fall in, then continued.
– I don't know, but it doesn't seem like a good thing. It looks dangerous.
– It looks amazing.
Liv was still fascinated by the newly discovered phenomenon.
– It doesn't really seem that way to me.
– You worry too much. Here come Orion and Felix.
– Great. Call Orion over.
Following her command, Liv waved at them and they came over immediately.
– Look what I found.
– What is it? – he asked.
– I don't know, – she answered, and then he leaned over the hole to get a better look.
– It looks dangerous, – she added.
– Hmmm...
Orion was deep in thought and the hole seemed suspicious to him.
– Let's finish the job first.
He suddenly snapped out of his thoughts and headed toward the spot where they were to place the satellite. The others followed him, but Arabella stayed by the hole a little longer. Not finding anything new, she joined them in the work. They quickly installed the satellite and then moved on to setting up the cables. That was a bit harder because they had to be perfectly connected at one very specific spot. Together, they managed to get it done, and the first mission of the NASA project was partially completed.
***
– Come in.
Orion opened the door to his apartment and let her enter first.
– This place is already familiar to you, so feel free to make yourself comfortable.
– This is where I hit you for the first time.
Smiling at him, she stepped inside while he guided her.
– Come here – he pointed to the spot by his computer.
He brought her a chair and placed it next to his, so they could both sit at the desk. He connected some cables, and then they started installing and setting up various programs that would connect them with NASA. The task wasn't easy, as many errors kept popping up repeatedly. This was their first project without any tension between them, and they were having a great time. Alongside their work, they played a playlist and enjoyed it even more. Every now and then, they'd argue because Arabella would play the songs she liked. Often, she was caught softly humming and tapping her fingers to the rhythm.
– Shut up! You can't sing! – Orion teased her.
– Who said that?
– I did!
– That doesn't count!
– Well, it does!
– Not for me! Let me sing and enjoy listening to me!
– Alright, alright!
He leaned closer and whispered quietly:
– With pleasure, you sound better than the original version.
He smiled playfully, and she returned the smile happily. After that, they worked for another hour and a half, and then a miracle happened. After a total of four hours tuning all those programs, they succeeded. They connected with NASA and immediately clicked the option for a video call. They had to wait a few minutes to establish the connection with NASA and planet Earth. When they finally succeeded, they saw three creatures in front of the camera. Although the video quality wasn't great, they noticed that these were humans. Both of them had researched them extensively. They could see that the humans had a similar body shape to theirs, but their skin colors were completely different.
One man had light skin, another slightly darker, and the third had dark skin. They wore white suits and seemed very interesting to them.
– Hello! Can you hear us? – one of the men addressed them. He spoke quite quickly.
– We can hear you! – Orion shouted confidently, and Arabella immediately sat next to him, carefully following every detail of the video call.
– Great. Are you Orion?
– Yes! I'm Orion, nice to meet you.
He was very excited.
– I'm glad we managed to get in touch with you! I'm John, and these beside me are Paul and Kevin.
The other two men waved at them in greeting. Although the video quality was poor, they could see them.
– First of all, are you having any technical problems? – Paul asked.
– The video quality is low and unclear, but the sound is good.
– The important thing is that we can hear each other. Are you the leader of the planet?
– That's right! And beside me is the other leader! – Orion continued talking to them.
He mentioned Arabella as the second leader of the planet for the first time. That pleasantly surprised and delighted her. She felt significant. After introductions, including Arabella's, they entered into a longer conversation.
– To start, tell us about your way of life, rules, customs… – Kevin suggested curiously.
It was a fun and educational communication. They didn't only talk about themselves but also about other beings in space and their characteristics. They touched on the project, the tasks, and missions awaiting them in the near future.
– …Make sure to pass this on to the others – John said.
– Of course – Orion replied.
– We're really glad we managed to connect with you and get to know you a little better – John continued.
Then Kevin, full of energy, chimed in:
– Now we'll be able to talk often!
– Yes, we're looking forward to our next call!
– Then we'll hear from you at your team's group meeting!
– Yes! Thank you for this meeting!
They both shouted happily and in unison.
With that, the first task was completely finished.
Orion and Arabella sat for a long time on his couch, talking about their impressions from the video call. They were positive and extremely excited. After exchanging their thoughts, they went to watch the Tomodachi game in Orion's room.That's how Arabella ended up spending the whole night with Orion. Afterward, they fell into a deep sleep, cuddled up close to each other.