When I was a little girl, the Earth exploded. I still remember the panic and fear as droves of humans ran for safety of the ships as the Drej attacked. Our ship was lucky to have made it out, not all the ships did. They were hit by the remnants of our once beautiful home, my parent's ship among them. I was only five years old at the time.
Fifteen years have passed since then and I barely remember what it was like to feel the soft grass beneath my feet, feel the wind in my hair, smell flowers and feel the heat or the cold of the seasons as they passed. They only reminder I had was from a book I had from my childhood that managed to survive the years. I grew up in one of the drifter colonies, because where else is there to be? Humans are considered the scum of the universe, fit only to work some of the worst jobs and drift around in rusty hunks of metal; an endangered species. There was safety in numbers, though the risk of the colonies being attacked by the Drej was high. There wasn't much else we could do. Our colony had been lucky so far.
It was here that I saw him. He was going from colony to colony, searching for a boy, the son of the man who built Titan, our last hope for humanity. He wasn't in our colony, but it didn't stop him from staying in our colony to rest and resupply. He was older to be sure, but he was still handsome. From what I had heard, he had been a military man on Earth, possibly National Guard.
I worked at the local eatery. Our food was good, despite the new and alien food we had to get used to and I was a fairly decent cook. He came to the eatery every time I worked there and watched me as I tended to customers. He was kind, though he didn't say much. On his last night, he followed me out after my shift was over and pulled me into a secluded corner.
Our lips met in a sloppy frenzy and hands roamed wherever. He stole my breath repeatedly and fire burned in my veins. He picked me up and carried me off to his ship and I went without protest. He pinned me up against the wall of his quarters, kissing me again and possibly bruising my back from pushing me so hard against the wall, but I didn't care. All I cared about was him and what he was making me feel. He held me up there for awhile, my legs wrapped around his hips, before he moved me over to his bed.
I had never seen a man with as many scars as he had, each one a reminder of what had been, what we had lost. Underneath the scars he was toned and muscular, probably from his years in the military. It was the first time I really got to look into his eyes up close. They were tired, desperate and a bit lonely. I reached up and cupped the side of his face, my fingers gently tracing the faint lines of age on his face. He sighed and closed his eyes, leaning into my touch.
"I'm not a gentle man." He warned me, his blue eyes staring into my green.
"It's ok." I replied.
"Don't expect anything more out of this."
"It's just mutual and basic need."
Which it was. When you're on the verge of extinction, your options tend to be rather limited when it comes to mating with the same species as you.
He ran his fingers down my sides, the skin of his hands rough against my skin.
"This your first time?"
"Yes…"
"I'll try to be gentle. Do you want this?"
"Yes."
"Alright."
He was gentle the first time then rough the other times we did it that night. I didn't care. He held me afterwards, my back to his chest as he traced up and down my arm.
"The name's Joseph Korso."
"Eve."
His chuckle rumbled in his chest and vibrated against my back. "Like from the Bible?"
I laughed softly. "Yep. My parents thought it was appropriate, what with the world ending and all."
"What happened to them?"
"We got separated when the Drej attacked. Their ship didn't make it out when Earth was destroyed. It got hit with a section of debris."
Korso's hand grasped my bicep slightly. "I'm sorry. So, you were on your own?"
"No. I had my grandparents, we ended up on the same ship and we lived here until they passed away a few years ago. Life hasn't been that bad, the Drej haven't found us. I help take care of people here, make sure they don't starve."
"How old were you when we lost Earth?"
"I was five. I still remember feeling the grass between my toes, the wind in my hair, the changes in seasons. I remember seeing the ocean and how peaceful it was. You never know how much you'll truly miss something until it's gone. What about you? What's your story?"
"I worked for the National Guard, helped protect the Titan Project. Some job I did. No one can find it." Korso grumbled. "Can't even find his kid."
"You will. Can the Titan... Can it really save humanity?" I turned in his grasp to look at him.
"If we can find it, it will." He brushed some of my red curls out of my face, letting his hand cup my smaller face.
"I'd like that."
"You have hope, huh?"
"Of course. Without hope, we just might as well die."
Korso didn't reply to that, merely held me tightly to his chest and rested his chin on the crown of my head.
The next morning after we dressed, Korso walked me back to the eatery. He kissed my cheek and turned to leave.
I watched him for a moment before turning to open up the shop.
"Hey Eve."
I turned and something silver flew through the air towards me. I caught it in my hands and looked at it. It was his dog tags. I looked up at him in confusion.
"Keep those safe for me and once we find Titan and save humanity, I'll be back for those... And you if you're still interested." Korso winked and walked away back to his ship.
I smiled and slipped the chain over my head. "You've got it Korso... Though I doubt there'll be anyone like you." Little did I know that Korso left me with something else other than his tags.
A few months later, Titan had been found and New Earth had been created and the Drej were destroyed. We left the colonies and built homes on New Earth. I met Cale, son of the man who created Titan and the one who saved us all. It was from him that I learned that Korso had sacrificed himself so Titan could do what it was meant to. I also found out Korso had been working for the Drej previously.
Did I regret spending a night with a traitor? No. Did I miss him? Yes. In the end he had helped make the dreams of so many people, including mine, come true. I never took off his tags, unable to part with them. They were the last reminder I had of him.
Now I could walk along the seashore, feeling the sand between my toes, feel the wind in my hair, hear the roar of the ocean. My house was set overlooking the sea, the grass waving in the wind was long and soft. It was quiet here, the only stars to be seen were in the night sky and the sun in the big blue sky.
I stood up on the hill like I usually did, watching the waves roll in and out. I settled a hand on my stomach, where it had grown to accommodate the growing life that rested there. I hadn't found out I was pregnant with Korso's child until some time after he left. I wondered if he would have been happy. Seems like the name my parents gave me was fitting.
"Hey Eve." A familiar voice called from behind me.
I turned and looked, the wind blowing my long hair into my face and obscuring my vision. I pushed it out of my way and laid eyes on the man I thought I'd never see again. "Korso?"
"I told you I'd be back for those tags. Though it appears I might be a little late in coming back for you." Korso joked as he limped his way up towards me, using a cane to help him.
He hadn't changed much, except for the scars now marring parts of his visible skin. It looked like lightning had pressed patterns into his skin. It made him look even more worn, but I couldn't bring myself to care. I was happy with the fact he was alive.
"No, you're not too late." I looked up at him as he finally made it to me, finally noticing he had almost a foot on me. "Remember that night we shared?"
His eyes widened slightly before his gaze dropped to the swell of stomach. "It's... Mine?"
I smiled. "Of course. I knew that the chance of us being anything more than a one night thing was slim, but after you... I didn't want anyone else."
His gaze grew soft as he rested a hand where our child grew.
"I know."
He looked up at me again.
"I know about your part with working with the Drej and sacrificing yourself to create this. And I'm not mad. It was your choice to make. But Cale said you died."
Korso smiled that half grin of his as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders. "It's going to take more than a few bolts of electricity to take me down."
I laughed. "Well, let's avoid that in the future."
"So that's where you live?" Korso gestured to my home.
"Yes, and there's room for another person... That is if you want to stay?"
He looked at me for a moment before leading me back towards what became our home.
I birthed twins in the later months, a boy we named Adam and a girl we named Evelyn.
Korso did take his tags back but melted them down into a pair of rings. We didn't have anything fancy, just a simple exchange of vows and promises.
Our lives were simple, but we were happy. We were finally home.