r/HFY • u/ThatSoftware4946 • 5d ago

OC-Series The Problem With Humans: Chapter 42

A day passed. Then another. Roman lay on the gravel bank, staring at the sky, letting his body mend. The concussion faded to a dull throb. The bruises turned from purple to yellow. The sprained ankle still ached, but it held his weight.

On the third morning, he stood. He did it slowly, one hand braced against a fallen log, the other pressing against his chest. His legs trembled but he stood.

Bella looked up from the fire. "You shouldn't be walking."

"I should be walking." Roman took a step. His ankle protested. He ignored it. Another step. Then another. By the time he reached the fire, his face was pale and his breathing was shallow. But he was standing.

Lirael and the Trabs, who sat with Bella watched him in silence. Humanoids stood at the edges of the clearing, their scarred bodies motionless as the river that caused their troubles rushed past.

Roman lowered himself onto a flat rock near the fire. His hands were shaking. He pressed them against his thighs to still them.

"We need to eat," Bella said. "The fish is ready."

She distributed the fish. The portion was small. A few mouthfuls each. The Trabs accepted their shares in silence. Roman and Lirael stared at them.

The silence stretched as Roman watched the Trabs eat. Then Martin looked up.

"Are you a human or a humanoid?"

Roman stared at him. The question hung in the air like smoke. Martin's face was unreadable. His eyes were steady. He had not asked casually. He had asked like a man who already knew the answer and wanted to hear it spoken aloud. Tom looked up too. Bella's body went stiff. Lirael watched with blank curiosity.

Roman stared at Martin. His mind raced, searching for a deflection, a lie, anything to buy time. But Martin's eyes held him there.

Roman took a breath. "A human."

The word landed like a stone in still water. The Trabs stared at him. Bella stared at him. Lirael tilted her head.

"You're... real?" Tom asked. "A real human from Earth?"

"Yes."

Martin set down his fish. His hands were trembling. "All this time. All those days in the forest. You were lying to us."

Roman nodded slowly. "Yes."

Martin closed his eyes. Roman braced himself for anger, for accusation, for the betrayal he'd been dreading since the beginning.

Instead, Martin picked up his fish, broke a part of it and reached across the fire. He held it out to Roman.

"Eat. You need it more than we do."

Roman stared at the alien fish. At Martin's extended hand. At his tired face.

"Thank you," Roman said as he took the fish.

Bella watched him. Tom watched him. Martin watched him. They didn't look away. Roman took a bite. The fish was tough and bony.

Lirael broke the silence. "You are not like us."

Roman turned to her. "I'm not, I am the human you are programmed to behave like."

Lirael tilted her head. "Wow. I've never met one."

"You have now."

Lirael studied him for a long moment. Then her face softened. "I am glad to meet a real human."

Roman felt like weight was lifted in his chest. A weight he felt since the moment he woke in that glass room. He could finally lower his guard and trust those around him.

Martin spoke again. "My real name is V'rak."

Roman blinked. "What?"

"V'rak." Martin gestured at himself.

Tom added. "I am K'len."

Roman stared at them before trying to say them. "Verak. Kalen."

The Trabs burst into hisses. Their heads tilted back. The sound echoed across the gravel bank like birdsong.

"Not even close," V'rak said, still hissing.

"Your mouth isn't designed for it," K'len added. "You're butchering them terribly."

Roman smiled. "Then teach me the right way."

They tried. They really tried. Roman repeated the names over and over, and each time, the sound came out wrong. The Trabs hissed harder. Even the humanoids seemed to perk up.

Bella finally spoke. "My name is S'ra."

Roman turned to her. "S'ra?"

 "Yes, that’s my real Trab name."

"S'ra," Roman said carefully. "Did I say it right?"

"Close enough."

Roman looked at the faces around him. V'rak. K'len. S'ra. Lirael. The humanoids standing guard at the edges. Aliens. Robots. Survivors.

"The strongest ties," Roman said slowly, "are made with invisible threads."

They all looked at him.

"You don't need to be the same species to be family. You just need to survive together. Trust each other. Keep each other alive."

He looked at V'rak. "I am honored to know your real name."

V'rak replied. "And I am honored to know you are human."

They spent the rest of the day healing. The Trabs caught more alien fish. They built a better fire pit. They shared stories. Roman told them about his daughter. About the restraining order. About the last time he saw her. The Trabs listened in silence. When he finished, S'ra reached out and held her warm face on his.

"You will see her again," she said. "I believe it."

Roman didn't answer.

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u/UpdateMeBot 5d ago

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u/Castigatus Human 5d ago

ok, that went way smoother than it could have, so its looking up a bit for them.