You Don't Belong Here

Chapter Eighty Five

"Do I understand correctly? Instead of addressing you by your given name, the natives of this planet refer to you as 'Sam'?" Brielle nodded in confirmation of Dhadtoudi's question. "Explain this."

"As far as the government knows, I'm dead; so I needed a new identity to be able to reunite with everyday society. A good friend of mine is a pro at falsifying legal documents and IDs, and he owed me a favor. Samantha is the name I use when dealing with normal people, and they use 'Sam' as a nickname. I guess it's a show of affection that lets us know we're close, and it's also a shorter, faster way of getting my attention."

Dhadtoudi's expression was one that she had come to recognize long ago: annoyed skepticism. "Illogical. All of it."

Brielle waved her hand dismissively through the air as she shrugged a bit for added effect. "You'll understand one day. Hey, you know what you need?" She didn't wait for Dhadtoudi to respond. "Girls' night out. You're too uptight all the time; it's not healthy for you. I'm taking you out tonight and you're going to learn how to relax and have fun."

"I know how to have fun." Brielle raised a skeptical eyebrow at the taller woman. "I am a skilled hunter."

"You need to learn how to have fun without killing stuff. I'll make some phone calls and we'll meet up with some of my friends for some bar-hopping."

"What is this 'bar-hopping'?"

"You go to one bar, have some drinks and dance, then leave and go to another one. You do that over and over until you're drunk off your ass and then stumble back to a hotel room to sleep before waking up with the worst hangover of your life."

"Will there be others of your kind there as well?"

"Well yeah, of course. Depending on which ones we go to, there could be a hundred or so people. But they'll be drunk, and playful, and wanting to dance with you. It'll be fun."

Dhadtoudi was the one to look skeptical now. "And you expect me to kill none of them?"

Brielle pursed her lips as she tight on this for a moment. "You're right. We'll try a movie instead."

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"This is not what I had anticipated..." Dhadtoudi sounded more than a little irked as four other females approached their position in front of the cinema theater. The former scientist had made it seem as though they would be pursuing this venture without the annoyance of unknowing pyode-amedha guests. She visibly shuddered as one focused their attention on Dhadtoudi, and she responded by folding her arms over her chest in a guarded manner...though the tight shirt and leather jacket Brielle had insisted she wear greatly restricted the action.

"Hey Sam! Is this your new roommate?" The tallest of the women asked as she smiled at the ever-stern Dhadtoudi. It took everything she had to keep from staring at the scars that decorated her face like she'd been mauled by an animal, but her companions weren't so strong willed.

Brielle smiled as she moved to embrace the new arrivals. "Brittney..! Dhadtoudi, these are my coworkers: Brittney, Heather, and Angela. Everyone, this is Dhadtoudi. She's new in town and she hasn't quite got a social network going just yet."

"Well it's so nice to meet you...D-dot..." the one known as Angela was struggling with the pronunciation. Brielle - or rather "Sam" - eased the tension by suggesting that they just refer to her as "D". Dhadtoudi did not approve of this but now was not the time nor the place to correct such disrespect. Human customs were different than what she was used to, after all.

Brielle conversed with her friends for a bit longer before finally suggesting they purchase tickets to the movie so as to have plenty of seating options to choose from.

We shall see how this ends...

Dhadtoudi struggled to keep the "resting bitch face", as Brielle so often called it, in check as the others giggled and gossiped amongst themselves. Oh what she wouldn't give to be back with her mate and offspring.