In the end, this wasn't much different from the wheel I kept spinning from the start of elementary school. It all started with regular morning wake-ups. At first, having my sleep broken by the alarm clock wasn't such a bad thing. There was still time for play in life. But that ended in high school. Everything became serious. I slowly dug a tunnel through my years, always worrying about its durability. However, my anxious trepidation was of no help when the earthquakes of life started to wreak havoc.
Despite all my life experience, my general concern about everything has not disappeared. Even though both Dig and Pearl assured me a moment ago that worrying about my social awkwardness and its consequences is completely pointless, I still haven't gotten over what happened earlier. At first, I just ended up walking around in circles until I sat down at the bar to write this diary entry. Dig and Pearl stayed seated at my usual table in the corner of the café.
That corner offers the best view of Saturn and the entire café in general. I watch as Dig strokes Pearl. Something that commands respect from any ordinary mortal. But when you strip away all the cosmic mysticism, the scene becomes safely mundane. Dig and Pearl are like two members of a small family. And without realizing it, it's starting to feel like I've entered their inner circle.
I don’t understand any of the duo's current conversation, but Dig's vowel-filled speech tickles my ears. Pearl's murmurs bring a familiar and down-to-earth balance to the situation. Wurp does his job behind the bar counter, but the words remain private. A kind of thoughtfulness that only the Friips are capable of.
Pearl just isn't anyone's pet. The apparent inequality between the two collapses immediately when you see their true personalities behind the outer shells. And then, despite trying to control my thoughts, my throat starts to tighten. The feeling is familiar, but not safe. It signals shame about my previous lack of tact. Reliving the situation gets it out of my system. Only to relive it once again. Perfectly typical of me. I still feel guilty about my first encounter with Babaru. The small dent, which fortunately is healing well, is still somewhat visible on her side.
Dig is small in stature and youthful in appearance. I had sat opposite her, and Pearl was beside her on the table. Pearl joined in the discussion, washed her face from time to time, and just looked as dignified as a cat can look. Our conversation revolved around past events and anticipation of the future. But one particular thing kept popping up from the corner of my mind, nagging louder than the rest.
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"How old are you?" slipped out, looking Dig straight in the eye. In that moment, it was nothing but curiosity. And then, a few seconds later, the embarrassment settled in. My back went cold and sweaty. Passing through brane and the strange things I experienced in the other dimension had overloaded my capacity. The perfect situation for putting my foot in my mouth. When I'm tired, my head goes into error mode and my tongue no longer has any proper instructions for how to function.
The silence lasted only a heartbeat. But for me it felt like an eternity. Dig was just about to take a swig of vodka from her pint, but stopped midway. She looked at me with interest, as if pondering the situation. In retrospect, I think I saw something flash in her eyes; like a thought, "Is my friend in on this?" Pearl gave a deep, throaty meow. The two exchanged a glance. They smiled at each other with their eyes. All I managed to do was blurt out broken syllables full of consonants.
Dig began to smile. Pearl shifted into a more relaxed position. The only thing missing was popcorn. The cat meowed again. Definitely a laugh. Their eyes met again in brief, wordless conversation. "Nine hundred and sixty-three." Dig's vowel breeze carried Wurp's translation into my now-burning ears. Sweat rose on my neck, and my cheeks and forehead felt like they were on fire. Pearl stared at me with her blue eyes. Her gaze was not cold nor judgmental. Not the one the Queen gives. It held playful mischief. The tension inside me eased a little.
My anxious mind tried to convince me I was doomed, but Pearl's warm face saved me. And then Dig let out a laugh. A storm of vowels. Wurp was there, but laughter is universal. The sound Dig made slipped through my skull and tickled deep inside my pineal gland.
Here at this café, no one is anyone's pet. Anyone can be of any age. Everyone's history is different, and it doesn't define them. No one has asked about my background. I'm building a completely new life without caring about what I used to be. Dig knows where she picked me up. But that fact seems to have disappeared the moment she dragged my broken body onto her ship and carried me away.
Life's all about learning, and sometimes it feels like there's too much of it. Maybe that's a good thing, so it doesn't get boring. Looking back, the stuff that held my old life together wasn't that solid. It was more like a facade that was bound to collapse. Here, there's no fear of that. I have support on all sides. Cook is giving me a little breather before we travel to the edge of infinity to meet the Mumenos. Dig's ship is fueled up, so the anticipation is clearly in the air.
While waiting for the future and my blush to settle, I finish my bagel and drink the best coffee in this corner of the galaxy. So, until next time.
- Johnny