Ordo Noctis

Chapter 18

After I finished, all three Romanos' mouths were open in shock.

"You were part of a secret agency?" Mr. Romano asked, staring at me.

"You're fluent in thirteen languages?" Mrs. Romano asked, staring at her son.

"You should write a book," Mars said in a stricken tone. I rolled my eyes.

"I'm serious!" He protested. "You are such a good storyteller. Your vocabulary... dramatic pauses... narration... you could make a career out of that!"

I looked at him skeptically. "I've been training for fourteen years in fifteen important subjects that most people will never learn, and you think I'm going to waste my life writing books?! ...No offense, Mrs. Romano."

"None taken, dear." She laughed. "Sometimes I question my choice of occupation as well."

"Anyways," Mars shrugged. "That's... basically it."

His parents shook their heads. "That's insane," Mr. Romano said. His wife agreed.

"Well, what's your plan for after this?" Mrs. Romano asked. "Do you... have a mission or something?"

Mars and I looked at each other.

"We... haven't thought that far forward yet."

"Well, you're welcome to stay with us, if you'd like," Mr. Romano replied. "We'd love to continue to get to know our son. And, Star, if you want, you're invited to stay too."

I smiled at the kind offer. "That's very nice of you. I still have to meet my family, but I'll definitely think about it. I think... I think I'd like to follow Mars, wherever he decides to stay."

Mars glanced at me. "Really?"

I shrugged. "Of course. I mean, you're the only person in this world that I know and trust."

He smiled. "That means a lot."

I looked down at my hands in my lap.

"Well, thank you for your hospitality," Mars told his parents. "We're going to go and see Star's family now. I'll come back afterwards."

"Mars, you don't have to come with me," I told him. "You should stay and keep talking with your parents."

But he shook his head stubbornly. "You came with me to meet mine, so I'm doing the same."

I appreciated his gesture a lot more than I let on.

"Well, good luck!" Mrs. Romano told us. "And thank you so very much for finding us. I'm so grateful that we were able to meet someone we never imagined we'd see again."