Starhoppers

31 - New Beginnings

"Sophia!" I shouted, watching through narrowed eyes as my sister skipped around the kitchen table. "Put Bit down, please."

She groaned, heavy thunder rattling the window. Bit chirped sadly as she scooped him off of her head and set him carefully on the ground.

"Don't sound so upset," I murmured to the droid as he crawled up my leg and onto the countertop. "I'm still not sure how I'd fix you if you broke."

Bit tilted his head in response. My mother hummed curiously as she set a plate in the sink. "Couldn't you just take it to what's-his-name in town?"

"Jake," I sighed, shaking my head. "He doesn't know how to fix any droid built after the 40's."

"Some repairman he is," she muttered, shooing Sophia away as she poked playfully at Bit. "I can't imagine the robots would be that much different."

"You'd be surprised," I shrugged, glancing at Bit. He stared silently. "Don't worry about them, Bit. You look good for being born in 2038. The rusty look is distinguished."

"Come on, Sophia. Off to bed," my mother sighed, grabbing hold of her shoulders. "I won't ask you again."

Sophia whined, hanging against the kitchen doorway. "Can I have one more gummy first? Please?"

My mother smiled, scrubbing the plate. "If you're upstairs in twenty seconds, maybe."

Sophia wasted no time, darting into the hallway and up the stairs. "Good night, Zach!"

My mother sighed. "Be careful!"

"You should've given her thirty seconds," I laughed. "I've got the dishes, Mom. You go to bed."

"You sure? I don't mind doing them."

"I've got it," I said, gesturing her away. "You've got a delivery to make, anyway."

My mother rolled her eyes, unscrewing the jar of vitamins. "It's my mistake for even buying them. I'm going to end up overdosing her someday, I swear."

"At least they taste like oranges," I shrugged.

My mother's gaze burned into the side of my face as I scrubbed the plate. I stalled until I couldn't any longer. "What's up?"

She remained silent for a moment. "I heard you again last night," she murmured. "You were... louder than you've been in a while."

Blood drained from my cheeks. "Oh..."

"Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?"

I blinked, and the alien's bleeding face greeted me behind my eyelids. "I'm fine, Mom."

"You know, I talked to Anthony again when I was in town the other day," she said, my cheeks starting to burn. "One of his patients canceled his future sessions. I was thinking maybe-"

"I'm fine, Mom."

"Alright," she held up her hands. "Alright. I'm just worried about you, that's all. You don't have to go through whatever you're going through alone."

"I know," I sighed. "I'm sorry. I appreciate it. But I'm fine."

She nodded, rapping her knuckles gently on the doorframe. "I love you, Zach," she nearly whispered the words. "Get some sleep soon."