COSMIC

12 - Space Oddity

Panic coursed through my body. The casual tone of his words startled me before I could even comprehend what he was saying. Suddenly, the man who I had assumed was a salesman was threatening everything that had recently become my life. His voice sounded friendly but I knew better than to fall for that. Even if he was nice and genuine, a tinge of anger built up inside of me. How dare he demand to know about my personal alien experience.

Grasping the phone tighter to my ear, I stepped outside onto the porch. Even though I wanted to know how he heard about David, I wasn't about to let him know anything.

But then I noticed my silence. I hadn't said anything for only a few seconds, but it was enough to create an awkward moment. I feared that alone would give everything away.

"Um, I think you have the wrong person," I said with a small laugh.

"Well, you're Jamie Miller, right? I heard it was you that had some alien encounter in the forest. Do you remember anything? It is possible they may have wiped your memories. Did you go unconscious-suffer from a concussion, perhaps? Sometimes people wake up in strange places but don't remember getting there."

I laughed nervously again. "Look-I think you have the wrong person. Nothing like that happened to me."

"Oh, that's good. So far most of our recorded encounters involve unconsciousness, but it sounds like yours was different. I'd really like to hear about it."

"Hey, I'm sorry," I said, impatience beginning to seep into my voice, "but I don't know who you are."

"It's okay," Joey interrupted. "You can trust me. All I want is the story. I know something happened to you."

"How?"

"Friend of a friend-says he knows a guy named Kyle."

I froze, fear once again taking control. Now I felt like I was walking on eggshells, as I realized this Joey may have had more on me than I realized. He had already gotten information from me with one sentence. I couldn't imagine what he could pull out of me next.

Then I remembered the plan we had decided on in the forest. "Oh," I began. "Yeah, I know Kyle. But we were just playing a joke on him. There was nothing about aliens. It was just a prank."

"Are you sure? What I heard sounded a lot like a real experience."

"Yes, I think I'm pretty sure," I replied sarcastically. "You're mistaken about the alien stuff."

"Hey, it's okay. Getting past the denial is always the first step. I know how it is to have an alien encounter."

"Do you?" I replied flatly, placing a hand on my hip.

"Yes, and it takes a lot of courage to share it with others. But you can talk to me. If you want, we can meet up somewhere privately-"

"Whoa," I laughed nervously again. "I don't have to meet you or tell you anything. Sorry, but I have to go."

"Wait," he shouted. "You don't have to lie about it."

"Yeah, I do," I blurted out, clasping a hand over my mouth the next moment. "Uh, it was nice talking to you."

Joey began to shout a desperate response again, but I swung open the door and hung up before I gave him a chance.

I puffed out a breath loudly, leaning against the counter as if I had just run a mile. Though the conversation was brief, it was enough to make my stomach flip, especially since I had probably blown our cover. Why did I have to panic?

"What was that?" came my mom's voice, startling me out of my thoughts. "Are you okay?"

I wiped my sweaty palms on my shorts, as I turned to face her standing in the kitchen. "Yeah," I said. "I'm fine. That was just..."