Kya
“Kya, do you have a second?” Boulder asked with a worried expression.
When I nodded, he pulled me to the side and lowered his voice. “Did Christina say anything to you?
From a position in the kitchen, my eyes flew to Christina who already sat in the dining room, calmly talking with Pearl, Khan, and Archer.
“About what?” I asked.
“Something’s wrong and I don’t know what it is. She’s grumpy and she’s become really distant lately.” A ghost of pain flashed over his face. “I thought maybe you would know if something was bothering her.”
“She hasn’t mentioned anything,” I assured him.
Boulder shot a longing glance in his wife’s direction. “I think she’s getting tired of me.”
“I’m sure it’s nothing for you to worry about.” I deflected the subject and signaled that we’d better get back to the board meeting that was about to start.
“Magni is joining us from the East Coast,” Khan said and made a small nod to the hologram of his brother.
“Oh, hey.” I waved my hand at Magni and he raised his chin in reply.
“How are you doing, Kya? Is Finn taking his job seriously?”
“I’m safe and sound,” I told him with a smile. “How about you, are you doing a lot of talking?”
Magni gave an open-mouthed yawn. “It’s going to take a while to calm these fuckers down. Some of our countrymen believe we should have forced Pearl to follow our traditions. They feel cheated that they didn’t get a chance to win her in a tournament.”
“And now you’re giving them a chance to fight you instead?” I asked. “And how is that helping? Maybe what they need is for someone to educate them and make them understand that–”
Khan cut me off. “Why don’t we focus on the school business for tonight? I don’t remember asking you for advice on how to run my country.”
“Maybe you should,” Pearl said softly and gave her husband a smile.
“I want to know what the situation is with William,” Khan said, ignoring his wife’s provocation. “Will he be scarred from his burn wound?”
“There will be some scarring, but he has healed really well and even gained popularity because of all the sympathy from the kids and also because the fish skin on his hand made him look like a mutant,” Archer said.
“That’s good, and what about the division? Is it still boys against girls? Any more pranks?”
“We got it under control,” Archer declared.
“The thing that worries us the most,” I said, “is that the Nboys still look down on the children from the Motherlands. It’s like they lack fundamental respect, and I don’t know how to explain it except that they seem to think that male is better than female.”
Quiet glances were exchanged between the men in the room, and if I had been braver I would’ve called them out on it. Luckily, I didn’t have to; Pearl did it for me.
“That’s because boys here are raised to believe they are superior to women, isn’t that right?” she said in a calm voice. “Women don’t work, they don’t own property or have money, they aren’t asked for their opinions, and they certainly don’t hold any positions of power in this country.”
“I don’t need to ask you for your opinion,” Khan told her. “You give it to me freely all the time.” Even from my side of the table I could feel the playful energy between them.
“Anyway, as you all know by now, Christina and I thought it would be a good idea to bring all the children on a field trip to the Motherlands,” I said. “That way the boys can see how advanced we Motlanders are and hopefully gain some new perspective and respect.
“The Council has approved our plans and all we need to do now is come up with the exact dates and agree on the details.”
“This is fucking fantastic,” Magni exclaimed. “Maybe I can find Laura then.”
“Unfortunately, the Council’s invitation doesn’t include you,” Pearl said and bit her lip. “They still haven’t forgotten that you kidnapped Athena.”
“And even if they had, you still have to stay here and focus on the rebels. The situation is too volatile for you to leave now,” Khan added.
“I’m surprised the Council will allow this,” Boulder pondered out loud.
Pearl leaned forward, placing her elbows on the table. “It helps that my mother is the chairwoman and has been here to see the school and meet you men for herself, not to mention that Councilwoman Sheana Rene recognized an opportunity to see her daughters Rochelle and Shelly again.”
Boulder lifted a bottle of beer to his mouth, but just when he was about to drink, he stalled. “The more I think about it, the more surprised I am that she would volunteer her daughters for the experiment.”
“Actually, I spoke to Shelly about it,” I said. “And it turns out that it wasn’t Sheana’s idea. It was Shelly’s.”
“What do you mean?”
“Shelly heard her mother talking about it and she was intrigued by the possibility to become part of the project herself, but of course she was too old to be a student, so she convinced Rochelle that they should go together.”
“Why?” Archer asked. “What had her so intrigued? She’s fifteen, she should have been terrified.”
“Well, in case you haven’t noticed, Shelly isn’t exactly the typical fifteen-year-old.”
“I’ve noticed,” he said. “I mean I knew she was wicked smart, but apparently, she’s brave too, I guess.”
“When you, Finn, and Marco go to the Motherlands…” Pearl tapped her fingers on the table, looking straight at Archer. “You need to keep the boys calm and be good role models.”
Archer crossed his arms, and leaned back in his chair. “Define good role models.”
“You will limit your swearing and avoid all shouting and fighting in public.” Her tone was earnest. “There can be no outcries and no pointing fingers; you will act polite at all times.”
“Yeah, yeah, I think he got it,” Khan interjected and shot Archer a frown. “Basically, all Pearl is asking is for you, Finn, and Marco to whisper and be docile hermaphrodites.”
“Could you?” Pearl’s sugar-sweet smile went from Archer to Khan and then it spread into a grin.
After the meeting, we all walked outside and when the men got caught up in a conversation about the rebels on the east coast, I pulled Christina to the side. “You still haven’t told Boulder that you’re pregnant, have you?”
Her shoulders drew up and she tucked her elbows in with a downward dip of her lips. “I want to, but I told you I just want it to be perfect.”
“Okay, so what’s your plan?” I asked in a hushed voice and leaned my head closer to her.
“Well, I thought about having the children put up this big banner, but I dismissed that idea.” She spoke quickly with a strong sense of secrecy. “Then I thought about writing him a song, but I spent four hours trying and it turns out I’m horrible at rhyming. Then I thought maybe I could bake this elaborate cake with a baby doll hidden inside, like a hidden message, you know? But I haven’t been able to find any dolls here, so I had to order one from back home and it’ll take a few days before it gets here.”
My neck was burning and I turned to see Boulder looking in our direction with what looked like a mono-brow from all his frowning.
“Seriously, Ina, I can’t let you leave Boulder miserable for days, only to have you traumatize him by hiding a baby doll inside a cake.”
“I just want it to be perfect,” Christina repeated.
“Then let me help you.” I resolutely turned and waved Boulder over.
“Is everything all right?” he asked with a stiff posture that was so unlike him.
“Christina has something to tell you,” I announced and ignored her protests.
His Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat. “What is it, honey?” Boulder reached for her hand.
Christina narrowed her eyes at me and tightened her mouth, silently saying that she would never forgive me for screwing up her big plans of “perfection.”.
I widened my eyes at her, encouraging her to just get it out.
“You know how I have been a little short with you lately?” Christina started.
“Yeah, I noticed,” he said and held his breath.
“Well,” she drawled it out and slowly kicked at some gravel. “There’s something I’ve been trying to tell you for weeks.”
Boulder was going paler by the second.
“I’ve been trying to find the right time to tell you. And the right way,” she added.
“You’re fucking scaring me, babe.”
Christina pulled her hand back, and from the white marks on her fingers it was obvious that Boulder had been squeezing way too hard.
Finally, Christina lifted her gaze and locked eyes with him. “Since Kya already ruined the surprise I had planned for you, I’m just gonna come right out and say it.” She took a deep inhalation of air and breathed out the words: “I’m pregnant.”
“What?”
“I’m pregnant,” she repeated but unlike what I had expected, Boulder didn’t break into a happy grin.
“How long have you known?”
“A little over two weeks.”
“But you don’t want the child here, with me?” Boulder was starting to look a little crazed with the way his eyes were burning.
Christina tilted her head. “What are you talking about?”
“All the secrecy and your moodiness.” He went on in a long rant. “Why would you keep it a secret from me when you know my biggest wish is to have children with you? You’re leaving me, aren’t you?”
“No, I just wanted it to be perfect when I told you, and I’m not moody.” She lowered her eyebrows. “It’s just hormones.”
“Are you sure about this?”
“About staying with you or about being pregnant?” A smile grew on her face, and it was like Boulder blew out fifty pounds of worries when he exhaled deeply.
“How could you think I would leave you?” She chuckled and grinned when he picked her up in his arms, making her feet dangle above the ground.
“I’m really going to be a father?” His voice was full of awe and then he swung her around with a loud howl of joy.
I quickly stepped back to avoid being knocked down by her feet, swinging through the air.
“What’s happening?” Boulder’s euphoria was attracting the others and soon Pearl, Archer, and Khan had joined us.
“We’re going to have a baby,” Boulder boomed and rained kisses on Christina, who was laughing with her mouth open and eyes all moist.
When her eyes fell on me, I grinned back at my best friend. “Told you it would be perfect, didn’t I?”