Janika positioned the baby as safe as she could so the drive wouldn't jostle him around. Her makeshift baby carrier consisted of a plastic laundry basket with a pillow on the bottom and towels for blankets, Janika then put the seatbelt through the handles and secured it in place.

She hoped he would sleep long enough for her to go into the store and get his essentials.

As Janika parked, she worried. What if the baby woke up while she was shopping? Then her mind went to her car being stolen. This suddenly became very real. It made her feel like a million pounds of weight was placed on her shoulders, and she was now responsible for another life. An innocent baby that was dependent upon Janika to keep him safe. She'd never had to think about going into a store, and decided to leave him in the car. This brought on a new set of emotions, Janika felt like a bad 'mother' for leaving a child in the car. The risk of him being discovered was nauseating, what would happen to the baby she thought. He would be taken and treated like a lab rat, then discarded like trash when his usefulness was over. Anger washed over Janika and a fierce protectiveness took over.

Janika looked a the tiny bundle and willed him to sleep for a little while longer.

She grabbed a cart and headed straight for the baby section. The first item Janika went to was formula. She realized that there were a million to choose from and freaked out because she was totally unprepared for so many options.

Her hazel eyes scanned the shelves and landed on a box with ready to go bottles made specifically for newborns. With the most important item checked off her list, she grabbed diapers. That was way easier to figure out. Lastly came proper blankets and sleepers.

Janika paid the cashier and ran back to her vehicle. To her utter relief, the baby was still sleeping.

She called her freind Kelly to let her know she wouldn't be arriving until tomorrow, and searched for a hotel.

Janika didn't want to keep driving while she was so tired, plus she needed to see if the baby would eat. She also wanted to make sure he wasn't injured beyond almost freezing.

Luck was on her side and she found a Hampton inn. Janika became extremely itchy to get the baby cleaned and fed, it was driving her crazy thinking that he was in discomfort. After checking in Janika rushed to get his bottle ready, and lifted the tiny alien out of the basket.

He was so cute, her heart melted and she couldn't help but fall in love. Sure he wasn't a typical baby, but that was ok because Janika wasn't your typical woman. She liked different, and this little baby was just that. She gently touched his face. His skin was soft, and textured. The darker shades on him were slightly raised and when she ran her fingers over the patterns, they developed goosebumps.

Janika put the bottle to his mouth and rubbed the nipple on his gums, all of a sudden his little mandibles started to move. They would touch the bottles nipple and then move away from it. Finally Janika put a drop of the formula on her finger and tried to get him to taste it, and as soon as he realized it was food he started to nurse. She quickly swapped her finger for the bottle and he fed greedily.

Halfway through his eyelids started to flutter open. They were a fiery orange, with gold flecks around the iris. Janika was captivated, and it appeared that the baby was too. His eyes never left hers, a connection was being made. The world around them disappeared and she knew that her life now meant something, she would be his mother. With his belly full, Janika wanted to bathe him. He was filthy and was covered in some sort of bright green substance that made the dirt cling to him.

She stepped into the bathroom and put the shower on the hottest it would go. Janika wanted the room to fill with steam and warm up before she cleaned him in the sink.

While she waited, she held him close and rocked back and forth sang to him. The baby watched her as she smiled and told him that she would never leave his side.

Janika felt so sorry for the baby, how could anyone just leave him?

Now that the room was warm enough Janika placed towels in the sink to pad it so the baby wouldn't get hurt while she bathed him. When she lowered the small baby to the sink, he let out an ear piercing scream. Janika prayed no one could hear him and call to complain.

She lifted the baby to her body and gently shushed him.

He was scared, and the loss of physical contact with her made it worse. It took a few more times of her trying different ways, but she finally got him clean.

After he was dry and diapered, she wrapped him in a blanket.

Janika thought he would be ok long enough for her to change and get the bed folded down, but he was grasping onto her and every time she tried to put him down, he wailed.

With a little extra effort, she managed to hold the baby and at least get into bed. Her clothes stayed on, and she propped herself up with pillows and placed the baby on her chest and sang a lullaby. Before Janika knew it he was gripping at her shirt and moving his little head from side to side getting comfortable.

When he was sleeping, his tiny fingers flexed open and closed, and a strange noise was rumbling from him. It was like a cat's purr. As a matter of fact it was just like that, and as Janika looked down at his sweet face, his mandibles were moving slightly. He was content.

Janika never felt so scared and happy at the same time. Now that her little miracle was seemingly healthy and used to her now, what happened if he got sick or someone came looking for him. He certainly had a story to tell, and she'd be damned if anyone thought they were going to separate them.