Page 19 of Star-Born Anomaly
He did the same with the other, all the while keeping his awareness of Doctor Wynn Lambdin open.
Once he had fastened his pants, he pulled his shirt over his head. A softersomethingwashed toward him, more comforting than not.
He picked up his jacket and laid it over the edge of the compartment next to her outerwear, then slid his feet into his boots. He left his gloves where they lay beside the long weapon at the bottom of the compartment.
While his back was turned, Doctor Wynn Lambdin shifted a little, pushing off the wall in small increments.
He refocused on her with a tilt of his head.
She froze, her breaths accelerating, echoed by the quick rise and fall of her chest.
That more toxic, abrasive,somethingpulsed toward him.
She stood that way for a very long time, one foot braced forward, the other back. Then she shifted, transferring her weight to her front foot.
Perhaps she thought that if she moved slowly, he would not notice.
That would not be possible.
Since coming to this place, he had noticed everything about her.
How she was both so similar and so foreign.
How she drew him, but thatsomethingpushed him away.
His mind reached into the memories of the past, where he did not tread often, searching for the thing that would explain thesomethingthat changed so steadily on the heels of her actions.
Emotions. That was what kept washing over him, distracting him in unpredictable ways.
He had experienced many unnamed emotions since he had arrived, most sharp and stinging, but others soft and giving.
Those were the ones he liked best.
Her kindness.She had braved the elements to assist him when this world had waged its battle against his natural defenses. She had shouldered his weight despite the strain to her body.
Her apology. The pain he had experienced affected her, though she was not the cause.
Her sadness. She had thought she could not help him, though she did so anyway.
There was more sadness, but something deeper that welled upward in a continuous flood.
It weighed her down, and that made him…feelas well. And he was not sure what to think about that.
Beneath her skin and bones, her heart beat a quick rhythm in her chest, almost frantic. It was unlike those he was used to spending time with, their steady presence similar to his own.
Thunder cracked above him. It startled her enough to jump, though the lightning and rain had been constant since the sun rose.
The sun.Another oddity.
This was the closest he’d been to the star in a long time.
While in space above the planet, it had bombarded him with unhelpful radiation, but it had been breath-catching to see up close. More so than he would have thought.
He turned his head to track its progress through the clouds, noting how much time had passed since he had lain inside the automated life pod that had brought him here.
As soon as his focus shifted, Doctor Wynn Lambdin darted through the kitchen to the living area, light and quiet on her feet.
He tipped his head, his gaze focusing in her direction.
