I’d never looked forward to a party so little, but I didn’t see any way out of attending. It was in honor of the technical staff, at least that’s what the message on the datanet said. Karnac’s honor, really, but still, I should be there when they celebrated my department.
“What do you think?” I asked Glitch. The mirror in my room was too small to get a good look at my outfit, and he was the only one who’s opinion I’d trust.
I didn’t trust my judgement — I’d been back and forth on the outfit ever since I spent the maker credits to have it printed. It belonged on someone with more self-confidence than me, someone who knew they looked good in it.
Black with a subtle pattern, more a texture than a color, it emphasized my figure without showing off. Was it too low cut, though? Too short?
A thousand memories of people I’d thought of as friends mocking my fashion choices cried out that it was wrong, somehow. I shoved them aside to look at Glitch.
The hologram cat looked me up and down, purred, and rubbed up against me before dissolving into static and reappearing on my bookshelf. A bright green tick-mark appeared with him, glowing above his head, and an audio clip of applause played. I passed the Glitch test. It was enough reassurance to let me relax.
As nice as warmth was, I’d enjoyed the cold and the way it forced us all to wear layers. The fixed heating let us dress up again, and that wouldn’t be optional for events like this. I’d never enjoyed that kind of thing.
Okay, a little lie there: I enjoyed dressing up for the right person. There just wasn’t anyone here I wanted to impress that way.
Glitch watched me, his static-filled eyes amused, an impish smile on his lips. All in my mind, obviously — he couldn’t read my thoughts. Still, I blushed, heat spreading across my cheeks.
“I am not interested in Karnac,” I protested. Glitch’s smile didn’t change, he just cocked his head to one side. I grabbed a book and threw it at him, the much-annotated air recycler manual passing through the hologram with no effect. “Oh, shut up.”
Glitch licked a paw, looked back at me, and disintegrated. Only his smile and eyes remained, and then even they faded.
I laughed, shaking my head. “How very Cheshire Cat of you, Glitch. I swear, sometimes I’m sure you’re putting this all on.”
One last look in the mirror, one last round of doubts, and it was time to go. Stepping out of my room, I heard the music playing in the commons, someone singing badly over the lyrics. Great. We’d skipped straight to the karaoke part of the evening.
My heels clanged on the metal floor, making me wince self-consciously. I almost turned around and changed back into t-shirt and jeans. Each time I paused, though, the image of Karnac flashed before my eyes, and somehow gave me the strength to carry on.
The ridiculous welcome banner hung on one side of the commons, and I winced to see it. I spoke no Prytheen, not even the scattered handful of words most colonists had picked up since the Crash, but the sloppy lettering made me itch. I wondered what Karnac thought about it.
Opposite hung a newer banner: “Thanks for the heat, Karnac.” My fingers flexed, face darkening — fair enough if the crew wanted to single him out for praise, he had gotten it done. But they hadn’t even asked me to contribute. That stung.
Other than the two banners, the commons looked the same as ever. Ratty, patched seating, mismatched tables, an empty area optimistically referred to as a dance floor. The low lighting might have been for the party or a result of more issues with the power supply — I’d only know if I checked my jobs list.
Music played through the speakers; someone’s playlist of songs brought from Earth. The current one was pleasant enough, though the lyrics were unintelligible. The public announcement speakers were cheap, and not designed to play music.
I was the last of the station personnel to arrive, it looked like. Everyone else gathered with their friends, chatting over the music or drinking. Their hologram companions buzzed around the room, chasing each other and giving the party a playful look.
“Molly, you made it!” Michiko pounced before I got two steps into the room. She had the bouncy enthusiasm that always clung to her while drunk, and her arms were around me before I knew she was there. Her rainbow-maned pony clip-clopped up to Glitch and headbutted him, inviting him to play. “Love the dress! It suits you!”
She nearly knocked me over with her hug, giggling and swinging me around, and I couldn’t help smiling. Michiko sober was a dry loner, but a few drinks in and fun Michiko came out to play.
“You look great too,” I said, though I hadn’t gotten a look at her outfit. I didn’t need to; Michiko always looked stunning, on air or off. I almost felt sorry for the guys, being trapped in close quarters with someone so attractive and so unavailable.
Heat spread over my cheeks again. I wouldn’t know anything about that, would I?
As though my thought summoned him, Karnac stepped into view. My breath caught and I stared.
His long coat flowing almost like a cape, Karnac surveyed the room as though it was his domain. Long dark hair pulled back into a ponytail, chest and scars on display, he looked every bit the pirate king. Every bit the sexy space warrior, come to snatch me away.
He’s a Prytheen, I reminded myself. Yes, he’s a pirate, but not the sexy fictional kind. The real, murderous kind. So keep away.
Reason didn’t stop my body reacting to his appearance, a tingle spreading through me and a sigh escaping my lips. I might have put Karnac off limits, but my body rejected that decision with every hormone it could throw at me.
Michiko giggled and relaxed her hug, looking around to see what had caught my attention. “Ooh, juicy. So you’re interested in our newest arrival too? I don’t see the appeal myself.”
“There might be a reason for that,” I said, smiling. Michiko spent as much time as she could on the comms to her wife in the colony proper, and I’d never been able to imagine her interested in anyone else.
“Yeah, yeah, fine,” she said, elbowing me in the ribs. “You may mock, but at least I’m not throwing myself at the aliens like some people.”
“I am not throwing myself at him,” I said, aware that I was protesting too much. “Or anyone else.”
Taking a step back, Michiko looked me up and down.
“Sure you’re not,” she said with a shake of her head. “That’s why you’re showing more skin than ever. You’re even wearing heels for heaven’s sake.”
I bit back an unkind response. I hadn’t picked this outfit for Karnac… had I?
“You’ll have to work fast, though,” she carried on while I was still trying to think of a reply. “Allison’s already working on him.”
And there she was, appearing next the Karnac like a vampire from an old horror vid. Her arm linked with his, she pulled him towards a table laden with refreshments.
My mouth twisted. He deserves better.
“I didn’t dress up for him,” I said, not sure how much of a lie that was. “I just thought it would be nice to have some fun.”
“That’s the spirit,” Michiko grinned up at me. “C’mon, let’s enjoy the party. Let’s dance.”
Fun Michiko can be an experience, and I didn’t waste energy on futile resistance as she dragged me onto the abandoned dance floor. I did catch Alf’s eye and mouth ‘help me’ but he just grinned and went back to feeding his holographic parrot. Everyone was on the receiving end of Michiko sometimes; I didn’t blame him for not wanting to get involved.