Believer

Almost as soon as her foot had healed she brought him into town. Why not? Revaz wasn't doing any real harm by being there, and by the time the event rolled around Victoria was quite convinced that his supposed 'mission' was to study human beings. She just wasn't positive on why.

The moment they appeared at the front of the local bookstore every gossip and prying eye in sight was flapping their gums. Most of the adults smiled at her sympathetically in a way that suggested they were glad to see her out and about with a boy...finally. The teenagers closer to her age had a different approach. Boys of every sort narrowed their eyes at Revaz, sensing an outsider, though unaware of just how much of an outsider he truly was.

The girls on the other hand, where completely intrigued. Girls that she had known from school, who used to treat Victoria with the same indifference that she treated them suddenly approached her with beaming smiles like they were best pals. Cynthia Parker, one of her old 'study buddies' whom had accused her of cheating off of her during biology. Susan Reid, the local Pastors only daughter. Even some of the girls Victoria knew so little that she could not name them. They were all her 'friends' now. With Revaz standing besides her, with his bland expression and his passive demure, Victoria was the most popular girl in town.

It was actually quite overwhelming to her. She had expected to become mad, or perhaps even offended by the behaviour, but it was so blatant that there was a hidden intention behind her 'friends' greetings that she could do nothing. They asked about her newly found male companion vigorously, desperate to know who he was, where he came from, why he was here. Revaz was impeccable and answering the questions for her, placing his hand upon her shoulder to reassure her that everything was okay. He could handle this one.

The last place she showed him was the town hall; the only structure that didn't look completely battered by the dust and heat. They sat of the pale white steps together, admiring the large fountain that had recently been placed out in front of the building. It was nothing special, but it did add a little scenery that was otherwise missing from that little community.

By the time the day was over almost everyone in town had heard about the strange boy seen walking around with her. On the way back to her home Victoria inwardly dreaded all the gossip that must have been buzzing around.

Revaz lived in the barn still though she could not figure out why. Being from such an advanced species capable of creating fast traveling airships and holograms Victoria imagined that Revaz could have probably created money somehow. Or in the very least stolen it. Living in a barn seemed low class, and every time she left him there her mind flashed with images of all the things he could have been doing in there.

In spite of her reluctance to have an alien guest on her fathers property Victoria forced herself to be a friendly host. She visited Revaz once every other day. Sometimes to bring him food. Other times it was so she could have someone to rant and rave to. He was a good listener. And though his blunt and honest answers sometimes upset Victoria she had begun to enjoy his company. She even managed to wrestle up a spare pillow and blanket, to keep him from having to sleep in the itchy hayloft all night.

The only bad thing about all of it was how frightening her dreams suddenly became. It almost made her miss the naive ones of tender kisses, the harmless dreams were greatly missed, especially after she started waking up in the middle of the night with her bedsheets soaked in sweat after suffering through a long night of haunting images of their naked bodies entwined together. She managed to conceal the nighttime disruptions from her father, but there were times that she feared Revaz might have suspected her. She started feeling a tingling sensation between her thighs when she thought about him, espically when she was laying in bed alone at night.

As far as anyone else knew however, Revaz and Victoria were a happy little couple. She even spent the night with him once. Having lied to her father to make up for her absence during the morning Victoria came crawling into the hayloft just an hour before sunset. She recalled the times during her childhood that she used to hide up there from her parents. It was the closest thing she'd had to treehouse growing up. She still remembered the time she broke her arm trying to jump from the top of the loft to the ground.

Victoria had told herself she was doing it to get away from the house. After all with her father and his friends coming and going by morning and night it was understandable that she would have felt just a little overwhelmed. But then sneaking into the barn not even 200 yards from the house made very little sense.

He was waiting for her on the other end of the loft with his legs dandling over the wooden ledge. He looked happy to see her. It seemed like ever since he was discovered in her bedroom by Victoria's meddling father Revaz had become much more expressive. For a being that hadn't seemed to do anything other than stare off into space beforehand it was a dramatic change.

She sat beside him in silence, sliding the backpack she had brought with her aside so that neither of them would trip over it. For a long time all they did was sit there, listening to the wind rustling outside and watching moths that were fluttering about the roof of the barn. Then after awhile, the quiet became too much. She was the first to shatter it, turning to face him with an air of curiosity. A question had suddenly popped into her mind.

“Revaz...do you ever feel homesick when you are out here by yourself?”

He shrugged, still gazing up at the ceiling. “Sometimes. I do miss the comfort and security of being around my own species.”

“Oh..” She sighed, twirling a loose strand of hair around her fingers anxiously. “You don't have anyone family that you miss? You mother and father? Siblings?”

“I was an only child and my parents passed away during my adolescent years.” Revaz shrugged, disturbingly unflinching in spite of having confessed what could have easily been the most depressing aspect of himself that Victoria knew.

“I'm sorry about your parents...” She murmured, shifting uncomfortably. It was almost embarrassing for Victoria, knowing she had spent weeks whining and complaining about her father to a man who probably couldn't even remember what it was like to have one. Compared to Revaz, she was spoiled.

“You should not be feeling so sad. They died a long time ago.” He insisted without her uttering a word. It was strange, but Victoria was comforted by the idea that he always knew exactly how she felt. There were times when it frightened her still of course, and she was still angry at him whenever he ventured into her thoughts when she was thinking of something private or embarrassing, but moments like this, when she couldn't dream of being able to express herself verbally, the 'talent' was useful.

“Do you like the town?” She whispered as she hugged her knees against her chest.

“Yes. It is an interesting experience going there. Human beings operate more dramatically in societies than my kind does. It's fascinating.” Revaz was watching her again. It was just out of the corner of his eye but she could still notice it.

“I'm glad you like it.” Victoria peered over the edge of the hayloft. The floor bellow was just as dusty as ever. Over the years rain and heat had truly done a lot of damage to that old place. Some of the floorboards were so old they were beginning to rot. She tried to concentrate of them. In her mind she kept straining to keep her focus on the floorboards. But every time she tried too hard her mind suddenly drifted to Revaz and her heart would race in fear he might be reading her thoughts still.

“You are enamoured with me.” He spoke after a long pause of awkward silence between them. Victoria felt her face go red. It burned like someone had reached out and slapped her silly.

“I...like you I guess.” She finally admitted. To keep herself from having to look him in the eye while she was saying it she began to needlessly pick at knot that had gathered in her hair. She was wrestling with it for a long time. It made her feel better about the fact that Revaz was now watching her with an intensity that could melt steel. Still, she was caught off guard when he took her by the hands, gingerly forcing her to stop. His grip was strong, but not harmful. The kind of assertive hold that a parent might have had over their child.

“Then I like you as well.” He murmured, kissing her across the forehead as though to confirm this claim of his. When his lips touched her skin Victoria felt a whimper build up in the back of her throat. Her body was turning against her. In her head she thought 'Good, we are best friends then', but her skin crawled with a sensation that could only be desire.

“I think I really like you.” She whispered, pressing her arms tightly against her chest in a vain attempt to control the emotions swirling around inside of her. Revaz seemed to know what was wrong, though neither of them said anything about it. Instead he cradled her head in his hands, soothing her with a gentle murmur of 'It's okay'. His fingers were so long they practically encased her entire skull. She felt trapped, but it didn't feel frightening at all, it felt safe.

“Do you trust me Victoria?” He questioned her, as though the answer were a matter of life or death for them both. The question made her insides feel all knotted up. She would have whimpered had it not been for the fact that she had bitten down on her tongue. The tingling sensation was back. The same one that had haunted her during the night. A mewl gurgled in the back of her throat as she nodded her head, unable to find the nerve to say anything else.

She thought of the first time they met, and how cruel she had been to him for days afterwards. Her heart filled with self-loathing. Revaz had been so patient, and even now she rewarded him with her insufferable complaints or moping. If he'd left in the middle of the night she would not have blamed him. What sane person would stay?

Closing her eyes Victoria awaited a kiss. She found herself yearning for it now that he was so close. It sent shivers down her spine when Revaz completely bypassed her waiting mouth and kissed her fiercely on the neck. The sensation that she felt was almost electric. With his teeth gently nibbling into the delicate curve of her neck Victoria had nothing else to do but gasp.

Her entire body seemed to welcome him now, as though they were old friends. Even the simplest brush of his hands across her back made her tremble. Even when his kisses began to wander she did not reject them, allowing him to unfasten the front of her blouse. He was careful, and his hands were steady, working each button patiently. He did not tug at the garment. Nor did he make any attempts to wrestle it free from her body. Revaz was instead, the very image of gentleness, sliding her blouse down either one of her shoulders when at last he finished.

Victoria was surprised when he did not make any attempt to remove her bra. A part of her was glad too as she felt very anxious over the idea of being exposed to him. The thought of being naked in front of a man still made her squirm.

Instead he traced his fingers down her stomach, smoothing the front of her skirt and picking some of the hay that had stuck to it. She watched him expectantly, unable to conceal her quivering. She knew already that something was going to happen between them. It was the fact that she didn't exactly know what that emotionally rattled her.

“You are..beautiful Victoria.” Closing her eyes again, Victoria listened to him speak. His hand hand slipped beneath the hem of her skirt by now, and she could feel him stroking the top of her knee. “You're so young. So...pure.” As he spoke his fingertips reached upwards. He showed little restraint now, pressing against the outside of her panties and teasing along the edges of them.

“W-w-wait!” Victoria squirmed at first, having realized the extent of what was going on and what Revaz planned to do to her. Though undeniably a virgin in every right, she was not so naive that she did not know all the forms of intimacy. She did after all, attend a public high school where girls were not private with their various stories.

He placed his free hand beneath her chin, soothing her with a gentle cooing noise. “It will not hurt you. You have my word.”

Victoria didn't believe him one bit, but she didn't have the nerve to tell him so. Instead she bought time. Fumbling for one of the blankets she had brought him so that she could rest herself on top of it. A wooly blanket. Even one as scratchy as that, was still more comfort than having straw poking and jab every inch of your back.

He guided her down onto it, smoothing his hand over the fabric as though to inspect it for any flaws. Victoria trembled beneath him, whimpering as he gently pulled her skirt up, exposing more of her body to him. She wanted to cry. Or scream. Or do something. But she couldn't. It felt so good that she didn't want it to stop. Even though she was convinced it would bring her agony she allowed it without a fight, turning her head away when she felt his fingers wrap around the edge of her panties.

“Look at me.” Revaz gasped. His breathing had gotten heavier as though he were filled with the same anticipation. When Victoria looked up, she saw him carefully watching her, studying her expression as he slowly began to tug them down. He was just as careful as he had been with her blouse, mindful not to tear the fragile garment. Victoria felt her heart skip a beat when her panties were completely removed. It frightened her. She could hear the sounds of her own sniffling, unable to bottle up the emotions that were battling inside of her.

Hearing Revaz murmur to her, in a tone that rippled with genuine concern was a comforting thing to Victoria. She heard him trying to shush her, beckoning her to be quiet and promising that everything would be okay. And though she wanted to believe him, and imagined that some of what he was was true she could not bring herself to stop. She cried and cried until her eyes were red and stinging. She wept softly. Like a child after a cruel punishment. The kind of cry that a person only ever does when they realize their own defeat.

One hand now drifted across her stomach, smoothing the tender flash until her whimpering had all but muted. She felt the other hand between her legs, stroking the fragile part of her body that made her a woman. The only part of her that was still alien to Victoria. It took every ounce of her self restraint not to scream with he slipped two fingers inside of her, completely catching her off guard.

“Don't be afraid of me.” She heard his voice. It crackled through the eerie silence that seemed to have engulfed the barn, reaching out to her with only the slightest hint of desperation.

He went slowly at first, mindful of her insecurity as childish as it might have been. With only two fingers inside of her Victoria felt so full. Her body disturbed her, for though her mind screamed words of resentment her body embraced the situation. Every time Revaz pumped in and out of her it sent waves of pleasure flickering up her stomach. The faster he went, the stronger the feelings were until she felt like she was going to explode altogether.

“Revaz, it-it feels strange.” Victoria flailed blindly, embarrassed by the soft moaning sounds she made. He was not hurting her, but she still felt like something was wrong. Though a part of her welcomed the intense pleasure that seemed to be racing wildly through her body Victoria could not help but feel the slightest bit of disgust when she sat up and noticed that his fingers were now coated with a clear, slimy substance.

All the while Victoria was engulfed by her emotions Revaz never said a thing to her. He didn't get angry at her, or tell her what to do. However, the more her pleasure increased the harder his breathing seemed to become. He sounded as though someone were suffocating him, and though nearly crippled by the sensations building up inside of her the sound of his struggled breathes sent waves of panic through her.

Struggling with her own desire to keep going, Victoria sat up, clasping her hands on either side of his face. His expression was pained, as though something were mentally tormenting him. It was the only time she had ever seen him so upset before. Panic set it, though when she tried to ask what was wrong he growled at her, silencing her before she even got the chance to speak.

“Your...emotions are so strong.” He explained reaching towards the front of his shirt with trembling hands. “Your fear, your pleasure; I can hear all of it. Every single thing that you feel.” Victoria barely understood what he was trying to say. He mumbled it so softly that it was hard for her to hear, and when she parted her lips in an attempt to speak once more, she was met by a surprise when one of the appendages that had disturbed her in the past shot out and plunged itself into her mouth. She tried to scream, but it gargled the noise, preventing all but the most feeble noises from escaping her throat.

Everything happened so quickly after that. She remembered him plunging his fingers back inside of her, and the desperate noises she tried to make as the tentacle writhed inside of her throat. Her orgasm was the only thing that made it all stop. Though it had never happened to her before, Victoria was not scared by the sensation. As her body tensed and a surge of pleasure flooded every inch of her body the end of the tentacle seemed to explode, coating the inside of her throat with a salty substance much like the one her own body produced.

Then it was all over, and she had collapsed onto the blanket beneath her. Revaz said nothing afterwards, though he did curl up beside her, draping his arm loosely arm her body as though shielding her from an unseen threat. Victoria, slightly embarrassed with herself and everything that had happened, simply closed her eyes and went to sleep.

She returned to the house the next morning after rearranging her clothes and trying her best to smooth out the knots in her hair. He father did not notice a thing. Revaz left her a bouquet of white roses on her dresser that evening. She accepted them without hesitating, taking them as a sort of 'apology' that Revaz was unable to express in person. When the roses wilted, and their petals dried up and fell off, she collected them, keeping them in a small jewelry box that she hid under her bed.

After that night their relationship became entirely different. Though nothing else sexual occurred between them Revaz seemed more expressive around her. He learned more about Victoria than even her parents knew, including her fear of clowns, her love of anything beautifully crafted, and her favourite foods.

Though Victoria answered every question as honestly as she could she found that Revaz was not always the same way. Months went by, and though she questioned the unearthly being on the status of his 'mission' he never seemed to answer. By that time they had created an illusion of being a 'couple' in the eyes of the entire town and her father. It took awhile for her to get used to it, but Victoria found herself enjoying having something to kiss and hold hands with. Even if that someone wasn't from earth.The only thing that kept her from becoming completely attached was the constant reminder that Revaz was not human, and that Victoria had never supported the idea of an alien like him existing.

After a month the problems began. It was shortly after the temperature cooled and Victoria had begun to wear long sleeved shirts again. One night while she was busy cooking herself some dinner in the kitchen her father appeared, with a concerned expression on his face that she hadn't seen in years.

“Victoria...where exactly does that Revaz boy live?” He asked her while scratching his head. She prayed that he wouldn't notice her shoulders seize up as she was peeling carrots. “I've been talking to some folks around town and nobody there knows where he lives. In fact some of them have never even heard of him before!”

“Well he...um...” She chewed on her lip anxiously. In a way she had been waiting for this to happen. Victoria could have only kept up the charade for so long before somebody noticed. “He lives on the very outskirts of town. His family doesn't like socializing very much. They're very private.” She decided after a moment of thought. Her father was not familiar with every hermit living out in the woods after all.

The answer seemed to please him, but it left Victoria completely shaken up. Abandoning her half-finished dinner she snuck out the front door after she was certain he had gone back to watching TV and headed for the barn.

She ran so quickly that by the time she reached the front doors her heart felt like it was going to burst out of her chest. Staggering inside she clung onto the rusted door handle, feeling the wave of exhaustion that quickly set in. “Revaz!” She called out desperately, searching through the hayloft for any sign of the extra terrestrial.
“Yes?” He appeared behind her of course with his arms tucked behind his back and a concerned expression on his face.

She didn't know how to explain everything to him without falling all over her own words. She struggled with the entire story, rambling for several moments as the realization of how gigantic their lie had become revealed itself in her thoughts. “You can't stay here anymore. People are beginning to suspect you! It's only a matter of time!”

“I will leave when I have the desire to leave.” He said with a shake of his head, calmly acknowledging the situation but not panicking over it the way Victoria was. “And right now I have no interest in leaving.”

“If you don't leave they might find out who you are and capture you!” Victoria winced as images of government agents storming the barn haunted her thoughts. She placed her hands across her head, sighing deeply in frustration. “It's not a joke anymore Revaz. You have to leave.”

“I do not want to...”

She could hear him when he suddenly approached her, stepping so close that they were nearly touching. On a normal day Victoria might have been fine with this at this point in their relationship. But with the stress surging through her everything made her self conscious and uneasy.

“Please Revaz. Even if those freaks never find out you're an alien they'll find out you're not from around here eventually and cook up some strange excuse for why you're here. I don't want you being chased around by a mob of inbred hicks!”

“No Victoria. I am staying. Whether you want me here or not, I'm staying. I cannot leave until my mission is done-”

At this point Victoria erupted, shoving him as hard as she could in some pitiful attempt to scare Revaz. “Then why don't you just finish the stupid thing, huh?!” She cried, angry at herself for lashing out at him, but even angrier at the fact that Revaz had made her forget what an annoying creep he was for a few months. Even with all their bonding, he was still the dry, humourless husk of a creature he'd been when they first met.

“Are you sure that you want me to?” He asked her as though the question were eluding to some dark and menacing secret.

“Yes! Go ahead. Finish your stupid 'mission'. Whatever it takes for you to get lost.” She hissed back at him, fuming with pent up anger. Her whole body felt like it was going to engulf in flames any minute now. Stranger still was the fact that Victoria did not even care.

“Are you sure?” He tilted his head off to one side, craning it as though trying to imitate an owl. “This is a very serious matter Victoria.” In her mind she imagined him stealing something. Perhaps some objects in her house to take back to his home planet with him. Would an alien actually need to be sent on a mission to steal things?

“Go ahead.” She whispered, nodding her head as though to confirm her request. After months of hiding the fact that there was an alien living in her fathers barn, all she wanted was to be rid of him. As much as she would miss the companionship, the stress of lieing about him, espically to the people she knew, was taking its toll.

No sooner that she had finished her nod Revaz lifted up his shirt, holding it so that the lower half of his torso was exposed to the musty barn air. Two tentacles crawled out from his skin as though he were made from silly putty, crawling along the ground and wrapping themselves around Victoria. She tried to scream, but the constricting drained all of the air out of her lungs, turning her lips blue and causing her to gasp for the simplest breath's.

Revaz heaved quietly, making a face like a man who had eaten too much and was bracing to spill some of the contents of his meal out onto the floor. He grunted and groaned, slinking towards her as the tentacles bound her tightly to place she had been standing during the initial 'attack'.

She tried to squirm away from him when he pulled her head beneath his, fearing that out of some disgusting quirk, Revaz was about to throw up on her. He pressed his fingertips against either side of her mouth, squeezing down on it until she had unwillingly parted them.

Victoria could not budge an inch from where she was standing. She was forced to watch, and listen in horror as Revaz oozed a thick, slimy substance from his mouth. He held her steadily, forcing it to drizzle into her opened mouth and down the back of her throat. She could feel herself swallowing some of it and quivered with disgust. It was bright green, and smelled strongly like burnt sugar.

He did not stop for a good five minutes, all the while watching her with a studious look in his eyes as though he expected some sort of miracle to be happening. When he was finished he wiped his mouth clean with the back of his hand and released her.

She collapsed onto the floor, struggling for air and disgusted by the foul taste the substance had left in her mouth. “What did you do to me?” She wailed as her insides suddenly began to burn. It started out dull but then the pain began to surge throughout her body, crippling her with the intense pain. Laying on the wooden floor, Victoria could do nothing but writhe in agony. She felt as though someone were burning her from the inside out, like she might just burst into flames at any moment.

All the while she was crying and sobbing Revaz did nothing but watch her. She saw him crouch down a safe distance away, watching her with a concerned but passive expression. The pain grew so intense Victoria could feel herself blacking out. The last thing she remembered was rolling over onto her back and noticing that the barn had filled with an intense glowing light. Then everything went black.