Ch 2: New Knowledge
Bella's POV
I stand up and clear my plate. "I wonder what's up with how Mom reacted to the names Hocotate and Koppai. What do you think, Livvy?"
"Something about those planets... is important to her. And either she forgot to explain it to us, or she doesn't want us to know. At all," Olivia says. "At least, that's what I'm getting."
"We should talk to her," we say in unison. Then we head to our parents' room.
"Mom?" Olivia says.
"Yes, Livvy?"
"We have something to ask you," I say.
"When we were telling you about Hocotate and Koppai," Livvy starts.
"We could tell you were hiding something," I finish.
Mom takes a deep breath. "Girls, you know how our family isn't like any other? We never seem to fit in?"
Slowly, Livvy and I nod.
Mom continues, "We are not completely human."
Livvy's eyes widen, and I can see clearly that her science-smart brain is working hard to put together the puzzle pieces...
"Hocotate, Koppai..." she whispers. "We're from there, too, aren't we? We're... combinations of species." She uses that quiet voice people use in the movies when they find out something insane that ends up playing a key part in the plot. Makes me wonder what's going to happen now that we know our secret.
Mom nods. "Yes Livvy, that's why."
My brain is still trying to comprehend the fact that I am not completely human, when suddenly Livvy adds, "The one thing I don't get is why you didn't tell us until we were 13. We should have known this before today."
"I know," Mom sighs. "That's why I was hesitant to tell you. I knew you'd be confused and upset."
"Wait," I interrupt. "So, we didn't know until late, so you were trying to make it later?"
"She's got a point; that does sound ironic," Livvy comments.
"I don't know," Mom says sadly. "I guess I thought, maybe if I kept it from you, you never would have to find out. Just... You know now. Don't worry about it. You're part Hocotatian, part Koppaite, and part human."
Livvy shrugs. "Well, okay then." I can tell by the tone of her voice that Mom's reaction wasn't at all what she expected nor what she wanted. And honestly, I found myself feeling the same.
To break the awkward silence, I blurted out, "Is there a name for our type? You know, shorter than Hocotatian-Koppaite-human?"
"Well, they call us Intergalactics, since we're from three planets at once," Mom tells us.
"Inter-galactic?" Livvy asks.
"Hocotate and Koppai are outside of the galaxy Earth is in," Mom explains. "So sometimes, they'll call us Inters for short."
"Oh, I get it now. Intergalactic," Livvy announces. She smiles.
Wow, I think. I'm intergalactic. It makes me smile. I feel special and unique.