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Amena hummed, a little, under her breath as she headed in the direction of one of her favorite food shops.
Originally, her going to Starchy Foods had been a joke at SecUnit’s expense - it was offended by the name for some reason. But after actually going a few times, it turned out she liked what they made. So she actually went to Starchy Foods a lot.
When it was around, it drove SecUnit nuts, which was added reason to go. And she always made sure to tell it when she was going. Or that she’d gone.
She was seeing how long it took for SecUnit to actually swear at her about it.
She’d so far gotten eye rolls, scowls, and a variety of irritated noises, but no swearing.
Grinning a little, Amena started composing a message to it, making sure to include plenty of information and current affairs - that she knew it barely cared about - before she closed with “and of course I went to Starchy Foods again. I know you miss it while you’re gone!” She would send it once she’d gotten home after dinner.
It would take ages to get a message back, but she was sure that it would be worth it.
Coming around the curve at the end of the Translateral Bypass, she caught sight of a couple standing to one side, mostly hidden by some of the potted greenery.
It wasn’t that unusual a sight. There were spots like this around the station, where couples could sometimes have a tiny bit of privacy for cuddling or something similar.
She almost walked right past them, absently thinking about what she was planning on ordering to eat. And then she heard him say something, some compliment or other, that she didn’t quite catch.
But she remembered that voice, and that tone of voice.
Slowing a few steps past the potted shrubs, she glanced back and, sure enough, there he was.
She scowled a little.
Talking to someone who looked even younger than Amena.
She hadn’t really been sure if she wanted to or planned to say anything to him but-
Carefully wiping the scowl off of her face she turned and headed back toward them.
The girl, who was leaning back against the wall behind her, noticed Amena first. She straightened up away from the wall, peering at her hesitantly.
Catching the motion, and the direction of her stare, he finally turned to look at her.
He wasn’t very aware of things going on around him.
And he didn’t even recognize her at first.
Which could have hurt. Or at least been offensive.
But she realized that it just pissed her off.
She flashed him a bright and cheerful smile. “Hello, Marne.” She hoped she sounded friendly, and not as hostile as she felt. “I didn’t know you were on station now. I thought you said you were planning to stay on the planet for a while, once you finished out the school year.”
He stared at her blankly, like he was racking his brains to remember her. She could practically see the processors steaming.
She glanced over at the girl, who looked distinctly uncomfortable now, and then back to Marne.
Who didn’t look uncomfortable enough.
“Oh. Hey. Uh…”
“Amena,” she helped him out, since he was obviously struggling. “We met at the big planetary festival last year.”
“Oh,” he said nodding and making an expression of feigned recognition. “Right.”
She smiled sweetly at him. “You also met my second mom’s security consultant.”
“Right,” he said, continuing to nod agreeably. Then the words penetrated his brain and he went still like a prey animal catching the scent of a predator, in a nature documentary. “Right,” he repeated. And this time his tone of voice was entirely different.
Yeah, I thought so, fucker.
She might have spent too much time around ART and SecUnit, before she came home.
Marne was glancing around, warily.
“Oh, my friend isn’t here,” she said, easily, waving her hand a little. “I mean I could send a message. Maybe a five minute wait if you want-”
“No,” he blurted urgently, already stepping away from the girl. “No that’s- I’ve gotta go, um… yeah, I was heading back to the planet tonight anyway and… uh…”
She took a step closer to him as he backed up, still smiling. “Maybe you should make friends with people closer to your own age,” Amena offered, pleasantly. “I wouldn’t want anyone involved with security to get the wrong idea.”
He went an awkward shade of pale, stammered some kind of agreement, and went bolting down the Bypass.
Amena didn’t laugh after him. But she wanted to. A lot.
She turned to the girl who was glaring at her, arms wrapped around her own waist, and grimaced a little. “Yeah, I get it,” she answered the glare. She’d been so mad at SecUnit.
“I don’t know how old he said he was,” she continued. “He told me he was turning eighteen soon. That was last year.”
The other girl blinked in surprise.
Amena sighed, and grimaced again. “He’s actually twenty six.”
She’d asked her second mom’s friend Gurathin to find him, and tell her how old he was. He hadn’t asked her why, but he had gotten her the info.
And then he’d told her to get in touch with him if she ever needed to talk about anything.
She wasn’t going to tell SecUnit that Gurathin was being nice to her. It would probably just be annoyed.
Wait, maybe she should.
Across from her, the girl stiffened slightly and made a startled sound. “He- what?!”
Amena bit her lip and glanced away for a moment. “Yeah. He’s… a creep. I’m sorry. I…” She nodded toward the Starchy Foods. “Do you want to grab a snack? I was on my way to eat, before I recognized him. My treat?”
Biting her lip the girl pressed a hand to her stomach like she was kind of queasy. “Uh… I don’t… maybe a tea?”
Amena gave her a small smile, and shoved her hands into her pockets. “They have a really good minty citrus. And their honey ginger isn’t bad either.”
The younger girl hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah, thanks.”
As they walked across to the restaurant to get in line, she was hunching in on herself slightly, staring at the path under her feet.
Once got into line to order, Amena nudged her gently with one elbow. “It’s okay,” she said gently, her eyes on the menu. “I do understand.”
Biting her lip, the girl glanced over and Amena turned a little, to give her a sincere smile.
“Sacha,” she said, suddenly. Then blushed and made a face and turned to stare at the menu. “My name. Is Sacha.”
Amena curbed a grin into a smile. “I’m Amena.”