Chapter Text
I was protesting with a friend when I saw a smaller alien staring at me. I assumed by its size it was a baby so I didn’t really think too much of it. I did feel bad though- I mean the district really isn’t a place for a child to be living. I eventually caved and slipped away from my friend and the rest of the crowd, making sure no MNU agents were watching and crouching down by the fence. Surely there couldn’t be any harm in just talking to the little guy right? He wandered over to where I was by the fence after a moment, still just staring at me. I smiled and gave him a small wave. He waved back at me- kind of at least, I don’t think he understood what the gesture was exactly. He finally spoke to me, and I did my best to decipher his clicks with what I knew of their language.
“Dad told me not to talk to humans.” Huh. Well that’s reasonable. Also nice to know he wasn’t completely alone in the district. I sat down and smoothed out my pants, linking one of my hands through the fence.
“Well I’m sure he’s just trying to keep you safe yea? Wouldn’t want you getting hurt.” I started fidgeting with one of my bracelets, studying the tiny alien. I’d never actually seen one of them up close before- no matter how much research I did I couldn’t find any good pictures either. But now being close to one I felt even worse for their current conditions. This child’s eyes were full of hope and wonder, all while being squared away in what was basically just a junkyard. I noticed him staring at my bracelet I was fidgeting with when I came back to reality. I took it off, pushing it through the fence so he could grab it.
“Do you like it? I made it myself. You can have it if you want.” I didn’t receive a verbal response but he did take it from me, seeming to inspect it. From what I could tell he seemed pretty happy with it, but I guess I also wasn’t the best at reading people. Or aliens. “You wear it on your wrist, it’s like a human decoration but for your body. I like to play with it though- it holds up pretty well.” I watched as he nodded, doing his best to maneuver it onto his wrist. I felt bad for laughing but I did- I mean it was kinda funny. He got it eventually though looking back at me. “Yea like that. You’re a funny little guy.”
I decided to sit with the small alien for a while longer. I mean what’s the harm in it? He was very talkative for someone not even meant to be speaking with humans, but I couldn’t blame him. He was curious. He asked a lot of questions- why I had metal in my face, why the humans I was with were angry, what our signs said. I tried explaining it to him as simply as I could since I didn’t want to confuse him, but he took all of my answers and still wanted to know more.
Eventually I had to leave of course so I told him so. His response did surprise me a bit-
“Will you come back?”
I hadn’t really thought that far in I guess. I guess I could come back, I mean surely there’s no harm in it right? Just keeping the little guy company when I go out to protest. Maybe I could even start to learn more about the aliens! I could freshen up on their language too…yea, I could come back.
“Yea. I’ll be back.” I waved goodbye at him before I stood to leave, even though I still don’t think he understood what it meant.
On the walk home that night I kept thinking about the interaction I’d had. Obviously it was my first time actually speaking with one of the aliens- I’d studied them for years, but I’d never had the courage to actually speak to one. They were fascinating, the way they moved and interacted was so intriguing to me. I truly wanted to know more about their anatomy- I didn’t quite understand how the body could support itself on what seemed to be such a thin frame. Where were their organs? Did they have organs like us? It would make sense if their bodily functions were completely different.
As I unlocked the door to my apartment I came to the conclusion that I would finally sneak into the district. I’d thought about it for years of course- but the interaction I’d had today had pushed me into a final decision. I could finally get more input on their daily interactions, how the inner workings of the district looked without human intervention. Or I guess with minimal human intervention for periods of time. I lie down on my bed and think about everything. I sound like a madman, but I’m ok with that.