Young Writers Society

'preposterous impossibility'
exclaimed the foreign man;
escorted was his daughter
to it's wagon, hand in hand.

looking down his pointed nose
and baring rounded teeth,
dancing with the flailing limbs
on his second pair of feet.

exhorting unsort blasphemy
to consort with her kind;
mixing with a outer race
was for sure a federal crime.

listen to him did she not
but rather she let jest,
that at her age and in these times
father does not know best.

not to hope she heeds his call
and decides to turn her back;
a tragedy for me to be
deprived a tasty snack.

"Carl, darling, don't you want to dance?" Sarah greeted me at the door, all dolled up like she was auditioning for a Disney princess movie, complete with big updo and poufy blue gown. It was a far cry from her usual skin tight T-shirt and jeans, but she looked incredible. Absolutely radiant.

"Sweetie, you look amazing! Where did you get that gown?"

"Oh Carl, Mr. Zeke brought it! He even brought a matching outfit for you!" She pointed to an old-fashioned suit hung in the laundry closet. "He says he'll be coming for dinner tonight! I've been cooking all day!" The aroma of ham permeated the house. I looked in the kitchen. There was enough food for a five course meal.

It had been a while since we'd spoken of Mr. Zeke. Two years ago, she claimed an alien had come to visit her while I was gone at work. Of course, she insisted that she had not just seen him, but felt his reptilian skin and even rode in his yellow spaceship.

That's when I called Dr. Snyder, supposedly the best psychiatrist in town. I had to practically drag Sarah to his office, but he managed to charm her into talking to him.

"And why does this Mr. Zeke talk to you?" I heard Dr. Snyder ask through the door.

"Well, he thinks I'm beautiful, more than any female he’s met in the galaxy. And more interesting than most, too.”

"Mmhmm. And does anything in particular trigger Mr. Zeke's arrival?"

"Well, he can only come at night, but Carl's been at work late so often that..." I stepped away from the door. Is this what I'd done to myself, working every night and leaving no time for us? Had my late hours driven her crazy?

Dr. Snyder couldn't come up with a diagnosis for Sarah. No drugs, no other symptoms of mental illness. He prescribed her a small amount of antipsychotics. She claimed she took them, but still Mr. Zeke came, until one day when she said he had to go, but he promised to return someday.

For months, Sarah and I lived together. Her symptoms disappeared and she stopped even pretending to take the medicine. I realized I had been working too hard, so I bought us this nice old country house so we could get away on the weekends. She loved it, and I never heard her speak of Mr. Zeke again. Until now.

I heard a loud crash out near the woods.

“He’s here!” She screamed in joy. Had she ever been so happy to see me? Seeing the yellow space car thing, exactly as she’d described it, I wondered if we were now both hallucinating.

She opened the door and a purple lizard-skinned alien entered donning a mustard yellow spacesuit. I presume his species is colorblind. Underneath his helmet, his orange eyes gleamed like this whole visit was a game that he was about to win. My Sarah embraced him like he was an old friend.

“Oh Mr. Zeke, I knew you’d come back.”

“Of course, my dear Sarah. I swore I wouldn’t leave you behind.” His English was excellent, if with an odd accent. “And…is this Carl? Still?” He didn’t bother hiding his contempt.

“We worked things out, Mr. Zeke. Things are better now.”

“Very well then. But I refuse to dine with him if he is dressed like that. Is that how you welcome your guests on Earth these days?”

I looked down to see just what was so offensive. I was just wearing a polo and jeans. Nothing wrong with that. I don’t exactly have an alien-entertaining outfit handy.

“Mr. Carl, you’ll see that I have provided a more gentlemanly ensemble with Sarah’s gift. It would be most gracious of you to wear it so we can enjoy Sarah’s lovely dinner.”

“Oh Carl, can you please? You’d look so handsome.” I didn’t like this one bit, but I’d do anything for Sarah.

I went upstairs and put on all the pieces of the strange outfit. As I was getting all of the gazillion buttons together, I heard snippets of my Sarah talking to this intruder. Words like “interesting proposition” “only a few years”. This can’t be good, I thought.

In a few minutes, I finally finished assembling the costume, only to hear the door slam. Panicking, I ran to the balcony. There she was, my Sarah, arm in arm with this…this creature. And worst of all, they seemed to be heading toward his spaceship.

“Sarah! What are you doing?” I shouted. She looked back at me, brow furrowed. She was about to say something, but then Mr. Zeke stepped in.

“I asked her to accompany me on my next mission. She said yes. Now don’t worry, Mr. Carl. I will take good care of her. Rest assured she will be the happiest she’s ever been.”

“Sarah, are you crazy? You can’t just take off and leave everyone like that! What about your family? What about us?”

“We’re stopping by my mother’s house before I leave. It’ll only be a couple years, not forever. And don’t worry, you’ll find someone. Maybe she’ll even take the stupid pills.”

“Sarah, I’m sorry. I just wanted to help you. How could I know it was all real?”

“You could’ve trusted me. That’s what partners do, right, Mr. Zeke?” Mr. Zeke nodded.

And with that, the spaceship took my love away. Now, I can only watch the stars in the sky and wonder which one of those twinkling lights is her.