I had absolutely no idea how to handle this situation, yet Simon seemed determined to get an answer. Deep down I knew that he had to be told the truth, and it needed to be done sooner rather than later. This was not a problem that would simply go away or lessen with time. Quite the opposite, in fact.
But I was terrified. I could even feel my body trembling slightly from the terrible anticipation of what I knew I must do. I had only just met this boy mere minutes ago, and here I was about to hurt him so very deeply that it would change his life forever. It was at that moment that I made a decision. No matter what happened, no matter how badly he took the news, I swore I would do everything I possibly could to help him endure it. He would not be alone.
I knelt down in front of the boy and spoke as calmly as my nerves would allow: "Simon. Your parents are dead. Their ship was destroyed."
I paused, waiting for his reaction. I could see that his eyes were watery, but he didn't start crying. He just stood there, unmoving.
So I pressed on: "Isaac and I found your stasis pod floating in space. We brought you onto our ship and woke you up."
Nothing. Simon might as well have been a statue. Not knowing what else to do I reached out and placed a hand on his hip, but just as I made contact there was a sudden zap of static electricity! I quickly jerked my hand away in surprise, almost cursing at the sudden pain. Simon also recoiled and took a step away.
"Sorry!" I offered feebly. I shook my hand and flexed my fingers.
"Your mother left a message for you" I said, trying a different approach. I knew that he would need to see the holovid as well. Maybe seeing her face again and hearing her voice would help him to better comprehend what had happened.
I stood up and walked to the terminal. I was keenly aware of each step as if time had slowed to a crawl. Simon turned to watch me, but he made no move to follow. I held out my hand to beckon him closer. Eventually, he grudgingly walked around the pod and came to a stop a couple meters away. Good enough.
Swiping through the menus, I played the holovid once more. His mother's face appeared in the air as she gave her final message to her son. This time my attention was directed more toward Simon, glancing between the vid and his face, but something his mother said struck me. She had uploaded details of his implants into the computer; maybe he would never need them, but they were there in case he did. She had also started to say something else before being interrupted: What happened to you in the... What had she been about to say? In the accident, in the ship, or what? Had Simon been injured, and did he have some kind of medical condition? If that was the case then it was all the more reason to upgrade the ship's medical bay.
Distracted in thought, I realized too late that Simon was crying. The video came to an end, and his mother's face disappeared. The boy just stood in place, shaking with silent sobs. Seeing him in such a state broke my heart. No kid deserved to have go through something like this.
I approached him cautiously, intending to embrace him in a hug, but an arc of electricity suddenly extended between us. This time the shock was so unexpected and intense that it knocked me onto my ass!
"Mother fucker!" I shouted in pain. It was probably not the best choice of words, given the situation, but I had just been struck by a miniature bolt of lightning! A person is allowed to say whatever fucked-up shit they want after being struck by lightning. It's a rule. I guessed that the pod must be releasing an excess buildup of static electricity for some reason.
I quickly began uttering another apology to Simon, but his expression gave me pause. It wasn't sadness that was making him shake--it was rage! His little hands were balled into fists, and his sweet innocent face was contorted in anger.
"I hate them so much!" he screamed. I watched in complete disbelief as another much larger arc of electricity stretched between Simon and the cargo bay floor! It moved up the side of his leg, then onto his torso before dissipating, followed quickly by a second arc that leaped from his elbow to the edge of the stasis pod.
I sat on the floor in stunned silence. Unlike me, Simon appeared unharmed by the electricity. His hair was standing up wildly in a static halo around his head, but he didn't react in pain as the arcs coursed along his body. My brain was having trouble processing everything that was happening.
"Why?" I asked warily as I lifted myself up into a crouch. "What did your parents do to you, Simon?"
For a brief moment, Simon's expression shifted to one of confusion. He starred at me as he tried to make sense of my question. "Not my parents. The vorlans. They..."
Simon's words trailed off as he began crying more forcefully. His little stuffed otter fell to the ground as the boy buried his face in his hands.
Electricity be damned. I moved forward and wrapped my arms around the crying boy. I didn't feel another shock, but I was too determined at this point to care if I got zapped or not. Simon dropped his hands, then hugged me back more fiercely than I was expecting, almost toppling us both to the floor.
We held the embrace for a long time. Eventually his crying slowed, and I could feel his trembling starting to subside. I wanted to say something to soothe him, but everything I thought of somehow seemed wrong and hollow. Finally, I recalled what Isaac had said just before we had opened the pod: We're Simon's family now.
"Simon. We're here for you," I whispered gently. "Me and Isaac. You're not alone."
"That's right," Isaac added, his voice sympathetic but a bit too loud for the tenderness of the moment.
Simon pulled away slightly in surprise but still held his arms around my neck. His cheeks were red and wet with tears. His hair was still a bit wild, though much of the static had faded. I used my hand in a vain attempt to smooth it down, but it jumped right back up.
"Your hair is acting crazy," I joked, offering a slight smile.
He reached up to feel it, giggling at the effect. I knew that his pain and grief were only temporarily forgotten, but I seized upon the opportunity to help him focus on something else.
"Simon, would you like for me to show you around the ship?"
He nodded his approval. I stood up but kept hold of one of his hands. His tiny fingers felt so small and delicate, but his grip was quite firm. With my other hand I reached down and picked up his stuffed otter. The cute little creature had dark brown fur with a tan underbelly, two black beaded eyes, and a curved tail. I passed it back to Simon, who hugged it tightly against his chest.
As we walked to the door of the cargo bay my thoughts were swirling around like a whirlpool. What or who were vorlans, and why did Simon hate them? I had never heard the name before, but that didn't mean much. There were far too many aliens, pirate and mercenary groups, colonies, governments, and corporations to keep track of out here in the deep. Then there was this whole ordeal with the electrical surges. I had thought that maybe the pod was causing them, but now I suspected that it was actually Simon himself. It didn't seem to have hurt him, but how could that even be possible? Maybe it had something to do with his implants?
There were just so many questions. I knew I would find out the answers eventually, but now wasn't the time. Instead, I needed to focus on helping Simon. Letting him see that this is a safe place and that he's cared for--dare I say, loved? It was a silly notion to even consider, as I had only just met him. But deep down in my core, I knew I did love him. It may have only been the first seed of love, but given time I knew it would grow. It was even listed right there in my job description after all: boy lover.
I first led him to the galley to see if he was hungry or thirsty. I really didn't know too much about stasis pods or the aftereffects of waking up from one. Stasis chambers and pods were relics of space travel long before my time and the discovery of the astral drive, so I had never used one myself. Some ships still relied on them for escape capsules in emergencies, as was the case with Simon, but most modern ships like the Lightning Bolt had shuttles or pods with limited astral capabilities.
The ship's galley wasn't very big. It was more like an enlarged alcove off the corridor than its own separate room. It had an island bar with two stools, a booth with a table and two padded benches, a couple of foodvac dispensers, and a recycler. A door between the island and the booth led to a storage cabinet for excess food packs and other supplies.
We stopped in front of the foodvacs. Two holo menus appeared in front of us at our respective eye levels. "Would you like something to eat or drink?" I asked hopefully.
I didn't know about Simon, but I was famished and very thirsty. I had never really been much of a crier, not even as a kid. But after all the tears that were shed from today's events, I didn't think my body had any fluids left. I demonstrated to Simon how to swipe through the menu. He let go of my hand and did the same. I selected a bowl of akassi noodles and a large glass of water for myself. Simon seemed to be having trouble making up his mind. I successfully convinced him to skip his initial choice of spiced dorthon bites. He eventually settled instead on a plate of hothy sticks, which were more of a dessert food, but he'd probably enjoy them. Simon also selected water for his drink.
The menus disappeared and we watched through the glass as the foodvacs grabbed our selections, opened their vacuum packs with muffled pops, heated my noodles, flash-froze his hothy sticks, and deposited them into our bowls. I carried them to the booth and returned for our drinks and utensils. As I turned back I noticed Simon squeezing his groin with his free hand.
"I'm sorry buddy," I said in apology. "I wasn't thinking. I bet you have to pee so bad you're about to explode." Six years without using the bathroom was a pretty long damn time. I guess I was also wrong about my fluid levels because I suddenly realized that I too had to go pretty badly.
Leaving Isaac the otter behind in the booth, I quickly led Simon to my cabin, activated the lights, and pointed to the toilet. "I'll be right outside."
"No," he said hastily, as he grabbed my arm. "Don't leave."
"Alright," I reassured him. "I'll stay right here."
Simon clearly had other plans though, as he dragged me over to the toiled before letting go of my arm. I must admit that I was extremely tempted to sneak a peak at his penis as he began to pee. However, I wanted to respect his privacy, and so I starred at the opposite wall until he was finished.
"My turn," I said, taking his place.
I was actually curious about what he would do as our positions were reversed. I pulled out my penis, but my excitement about having a potential audience made it difficult to concentrate. When things finally began flowing I glanced to my left and saw that Simon was watching me intently. He wasn't trying to be sneaky about it either. The boy's Medusa-like stare was causing my penis to start to grow hard as stone, so I quickly finished up, shook off the last few drops, and put it away. I flashed a nervous smile at Simon, which he returned, but neither of us said anything.
I could see that a few drops of urine had made a wet spot on the front of Simon's shorts, which reminded me that I needed to have some new clothes fabricated for him to wear. Or not. I certainly wouldn't object if he wanted to live as a nudist while onboard the ship. I did that sometimes myself, and I usually slept naked. I wondered how his presence would affect my habits. I was wondering about a lot of things to tell the truth. Where would he sleep? How would he occupy his time? Would Isaac and I be enough to keep him company? And then, suddenly, I remembered his cat!
"Simon, buddy?" I said with a worried laugh. "I think we may have forgotten something in your pod."
He looked thoughtful for a moment, before yelling in a high boyish squeal: "Josie!"
"What's a Josie?" asked Isaac curiously.
Once again, Isaac's disembodied voice startled Simon. "She's my pet cat!"
Our food forgotten, we hurried back to the cargo bay. Along the way, Isaac noted that he hadn't detected any movement since our departure beyond that of the drone. This dreaded news caused my heart to drop down to around the level of my balls. I swear, if the universe saw fit to kill this boy's cat today in addition to all of the other horrible shit he was going through, then I'd up and move to a different one!
Sure enough, when we reached the pod the poor cat was still curled up as if asleep, but she wasn't breathing. "I'm so sorry Simon."
Simon reached down and carefully lifted Josie into his arms. "It's okay. She just needs a recharge."
I breathed a heavy sigh of relief as I realized that Josie was a robot. I had Simon carry her over to my workbench and place her on the charging pad. A few seconds later Josie the cat was resurrected with a full charge and began her new life by extending her front paws forward, arching her back, and giving a huge yawn as she stretched. She was a cute little thing too, with solid black fur and yellow eyes, plus the stereotypical hey-look-at-me asshole that all cats seemed to possess. She was now proudly displaying that particular feature to me while Simon was busy petting her and nuzzling her face, all the while purring loudly.
We returned to the galley to discover that my noodles were cold and his hothy sticks had partially dissolved into piles of goopy pudding. We tossed them into the recycler and made new selections. This time Simon copied my meal. He really seemed to enjoy the green akassi noodles as much as I did, which were salty and very chewy.
With our appetites sated and thirsts quenched, we continued touring the ship. The Lightning Bolt was fairly large, especially for just one or two people. It had originally been designed as a military vessel for the Krenthor Alliance and was actually meant to accommodate a larger crew of around ten beings. Captain Arrador had always used the crew barracks for additional storage, and now so did I. The ship's upper deck housed all of the living areas and most of the various rooms. The lower engineering deck contained the ship's astral drive, reactor, shield generator, and machinery needed to maintain life support.
Isaac provided a humorous commentary as we toured each of the rooms, mostly detailing various mishaps and stories that had happened to me at each location. "This was where Kyle nearly lost a finger", and "this is the room where Kyle had explosive diarrhea after eating too much spiced dorthon", and the always popular "here's where Kyle got cornered and had to mate with an albino khoroat." Now, in my defense regarding the khoroat: the little bastard had stowed away in one of the supply crates, it saw me organizing inventory while I just happened to be in the nude, I have rather pale skin, albino khoroats are turned on by pale skin, and no matter what Isaac claims there was no penetration. It's a bit sad to admit this, but that was the closest I've come to a sexual encounter since my teenage years.
During the tour Simon didn't say a lot. He asked some questions and Isaac got him to laugh a few times, albeit briefly, but otherwise he seemed solemn. Given the horrible shitstorm of a day he was having, who could blame him? He did seem excited by a few of the rooms though, especially the lounge with its assortment of hologames, and the antigravity room, nicknamed because I kept its gravity plates disabled and had covered all of its surfaces with padding, which made it idea for recreation and physical activities. It had once been a gym and training room during the ship's military days, and it was by far the largest room on the ship besides the cargo bay.
The Lightning Bolt had one large crew bathroom that was located in the center of the ship with entrances from both the port and starboard corridors. While it had multiple urinals, stalls, and sinks, it only had one big communal shower. The two officer cabins, including my cabin and that of the late captain, each had their own toilets, sinks, and showers. However, I tended to use the shower in the crew bathroom because it was much more spacious. I wondered what Simon would prefer, but from how he had reacted in my cabin while peeing, I got the impression that he wasn't overly concerned with privacy.
Josie followed us through the ship, except for the antigravity room, which she absolutely refused to enter. Overall, I thought she seemed convincingly catlike. It made me wonder that if a robotic animal could be designed to appear so real, what about an android boy? I had actually fantasized about that before, specifically of incorporating Isaac's programming into one, but androids were even rarer in this sector than humans. Plus, in alliance territory, where I was originally from, androids and even advanced AIs like Isaac were highly restricted or even illegal. You couldn't just walk into a shop and buy an android boy for all of you emotional and sexual needs. And trying to build one myself was out of the question. I was great with coding and software but merely adequate with the hardware side of things.
Eventually, Isaac informed me that the drones had completed gathering the tridinum and as much of the remaining salvage as the ship could store. "Do you want them to continue working on the hull plates?"
"Oh, good thinking Isaac. Let's keep one of the drones on guard duty, maybe two if you think we can spare it. I figure we'll stay here tonight to allow the others to patch the hull."
"Okie Dokie boss," he replied.
It had been a very, very long day. I was completely exhausted, and although Simon had been asleep for six years I figured he probably felt the same from all of the emotional stress he'd been forced to endure. I decided it would be best to have him sleep in my cabin so I could keep an eye on him. I borrowed Marcus' old mattress and bedding from his cabin and placed them on the floor next to my bed. I had left his cabin virtually untouched since he had died, though the ship's maintenance bots still kept it clean.
I went through my standard bedtime routine and had Simon do the same. I tried peeing first while Simon was distracted by Josie, but upon hearing my splashing he came over to investigate. I decided to let him watch, then when it was his turn I figured fair's fair as I watched him pee. His beautiful penis looked about how I had imagined it, except for its long tapered foreskin. He pulled back the skin and exposed the reddish tip underneath as he peed. I was utterly entranced. After a moment he tilted his head up to stare up at me, smiling slightly, before looking back down to finish his business. Again, nothing was said, though it did make me wonder. He clearly liked looking at my penis, and he didn't seem to mind that I had looked at his. Interesting.
Next, we went to the sink and each took one of the bubble pellets from the dispenser. He had never used one before, so I placed a pellet on my tongue to show him how it instantly began dissolving into lots of miniature bubbles. I then closed my mouth and swished the bubbles around as they cleaned my teeth, gums, and tongue. After a moment I leaned my head back and gargled before spitting the bubbles and saliva into the sink. Simon tried to mimic what I had demonstrated, but his swishing was a bit too vigorous and he spilled some of the bubbles down onto his shirt.
"Sorry," he tried to say, but that only caused him to dribble more.
"It's no big deal," I chuckled reassuringly. "You can sleep without your shirt tonight, and we'll fabricate you some new clothes tomorrow."
I had him raise his arms, then I carefully lifted his shirt while allowing a couple of the fingers on each of my hands to slide delicately along his tender skin and ribs. This made him giggle, which again caused him to spill more bubbles. I then had him spit the remaining bubbles into the sink before using his shirt to wipe up the rest.
Simon walked back to his spot on the floor, picked up his stuffed otter and turned to look at me. For several long moments I starred back, admiring his gorgeous, nearly naked nine-year-old body. It took every bit of willpower I had to look away before it got too weird.
I quickly undressed, taking off all of my clothes except for my underwear so as to match Simon's attire. We both climbed into our respective beds, and I looked down as Josie climbed on top of Simon, turned in place a couple of times, then began kneading the covers above his belly while purring.
"She's a really neat cat," I said appraisingly. I was still quite astounded by her realism, and also a bit jealous of her current position and activity.
Simon only nodded.
I was about to turn off the lights, but I thought that maybe just dimming them instead would be better to help Simon feel more comfortable in the unfamiliar surroundings. "Lights, 20 percent."
"Goodnight boys," said Isaac softly. I felt Simon jerk slightly in response to the sudden sound.
I said goodnight, as did Simon, then I laid back and starred at the ceiling.
This had been a keystone day. That was a concept I had invented and thought about from time to time over the years. There seemed to be keystone moments in a person's life, where a choice or fate or the universe itself decided it was time to change everything. Sometimes you could make the choice yourself, like when I had decided to accept Captain Arrador's offer to join him on this ship. And then sometimes, you were just blindsided by an event that you could never have predicted. That is what had happened today, not only for me but for Simon as well. Our lives would now be very different from what they had been only yesterday.
I had never dreamed that I would be in a situation like this. And as a dreamer, that was saying something. I was 33, and I had spent my entire adult life exploring the stars. As a boy lover, I had always figured that I was doomed to be alone, and I had even embraced that destiny. Now, it seemed that was not to be the case after all. However, what kind of arrangement and relationship would this prove to be? Would I become Simon's dad, his caring and dashingly-handsome older brother, his friend, or a hodgepodge of all three? And then there were all of the unanswered questions about his family, their ship, Simon's implants, and the weird situation with the electricity in the cargo bay. I just couldn't manage to wrap my head around everything that had happened.
Just then, my thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of Simon's soft whimpering. He was crying.
I rolled over and could see his little body trembling in the dimmed light. I wanted desperately to be able to say something that would help him, to ease his mind, to calm his fears, to show him that he was loved. But the right words just wouldn't come. Instead, I lowered my arm, found Simon's tiny hand, ignored the mild static shock I received, and held it gently with my own until we both fell asleep.