After mentioning her name, Divona remained quiet ever since. She ate the energy bar as if it was the first piece of food she's had in a while. Michael was fascinated by her, but he didn't want to make things awkward by watching her eat and so he left her alone while he went in search for a clean set of clothes for her to wear. She was only covered by a simple blanket and it must have been quite uncomfortable and demeaning. He wanted to make her comfortable and welcome.

He headed over to his room which was just around the corner and scoured through the cupboards for something appropriate and clean. Problem was the washing machine broke down months ago and since then nothing had been very clean at all, at least not to his mother's standard. When he was younger she would always nag him to clean his room, to wash himself and to be presentable to other people, especially to girls, and it was only now that he regretted not listening to her. There was a girl in the building and the last thing he wanted was to gross her out by giving her an unclean and sweaty set of clothes. What to do.

He began to panic when he could not find anything at all. Some of his clothes were simply tossed into the cupboard, others scattered in random places around his room, in the corners, on other things, whether they were clean or not.

I'm such a pig…

what will she think of me?

He sighed in despair, realising he wasn't going to find anything at all. He paced up and down the room wondering exactly what to do next, knowing it would be rude and inappropriate to allow her to remain naked. He thought about a solution for a while until an idea came to mind. There was a 24 hour gas station only a few miles away, and perhaps from there he could get her something to wear.

Returning to the main room, he noticed Divona about half way done with the energy bar, still comfortably tucked up in the fuzzy yellow blanket he had given her, looking like someone who had just returned from a swim. When their eyes met Divona put the energy bar down beside her and got to her feet, dropping the blanket and standing in the nude before him. He blushed as he looked away out of respect.

"Why are you looking away?." Divona said, tilting her head in confusion.

"Because you're naked! It's…it's…inappropriate." he stuttered.

"You don't like the way I look?"

"No! of course I do! I mean, no i'm not like that. I mean, here, cover yourself, please." Michael said with his eyes still averted as he reached for the blanket and giving it over to her.

It took her a while but eventually Divona seemed to get the message and so she grabbed the blanket off him and proceeded to cover herself with it.

"I haven't had a girl here for a long time so unfortunately I have nothing at all for you. I'm going out for a bit to find you some supplies. We need to get you some clothes."

"Are you in possession of any more Joules?" Divona said, her voice smooth and in a slight monotone.

"Joules?"

"Yes. I am in need of energy.."

"You mean food? Oh, uh, I'll get you some food too. Stay here, okay? I'll be right back. Maybe ten minutes tops. Okay?" he said.

She stared at him like a lost child, but it appeared she understood what he meant. At least he hoped she did. He wondered if it was smart to leave her alone in this place, but there really was no choice. It's not like she was coming with him wearing only a blanket. She needed some clothes.

Michael walked over to the front entrance, grabbed the car keys across the key rack and moved to open the door, leaving her one last smile before leaving. He walked across the driveway and entered his pickup truck, but before he even put the keys in the ignition he collapsed his head across the steering wheel and sighed.

This whole situation is completely crazy...

What am I doing?

In the glove compartment was his Glock 9mm. It had only been used a couple times in the gun ranges with his college buddies from time to time but never did he imagine actually using it for self defence. Not until now. Divona certainly didn't appear to be a threat but that didn't mean there weren't others.

He drove across the dirt road until entering the smooth freeway. Along the way he took deep breaths as his mind became abuzz with a million thoughts. He refused to believe Divona was anything but human but there were some real questions that needed to be answered. His heart began to beat quickly in his chest. The possibility that he was housing an alien made him feel more than a little nervous to put it lightly.

He thought about this the whole way, right until he arrived at the gas station and parked his pickup in the allocated parking. Michael entered the store and walked up to the clerk behind the counter who's name he still wasn't sure of despite being a somewhat regular customer.

"Hey…do you, uh, sell womens clothing?" Michael said.

The clerk looked at him oddly, chewing gum as he sat on a short stool and half listened to the small radio on his desk.

"Does this look like a clothes department to you?"

"Look, I really need a set of clothes. It's an emergency. Please." Michael said, leaning over the bench.

"I don't have anything like that here."

"Damn, I'm really desperate. Do you know any place i can get some clothes? its an emergency."

No, but i'll tell you what, I can sell you something my wife owns, but i'll have to charge you a premium for it…"

"Your wife?"

"I live here budd. Wifey is sleeping out the back. Give me a hundred big ones and ill give you something she rarely ever wears."

"A hundred bucks for used clothes? you're killing me…"

"Take it or leave it budd. I'm trying to help you out."

Michael grudgingly reached for his wallet and counted exactly how much money he had. Luckily he had a little over that amount in cash, but never did he imagine it would be spent it on such ludicrous things. He handed the clerk over a hundred dollars in notes and then waited as he left to go out the back seemingly to go retrieve them.

In the meanwhile Michael paced around the store, looking for other supplies he thought Divona might want or need. He headed for the refrigerated section and grabbed two bottles of gatorade- a red and a blue one, as well as a box of pre packaged sandwiches. He returned to the counter and put them across the table as well as the money for what they were worth. He waited nervously for the rest of his merchandise to return. And then it finally did. The clerk returned with a neatly folded set of clothes, a white blouse and pants, looking completely brand new. He placed them in a plastic bag and handed it over to Michael.

"Here you go. Don't worry, they are relatively clean. I give you my guarantee." The clerk said as he passed it over to Michael who grabbed it awkwardly.

"Thanks. I'll take this stuff also. Keep the change." Michael said, stuffing the food and drinks in the bag.

"Come again, budd."

The drive back to the observatory was even more excruciating than leaving it. He wondered if Divona was making herself comfortable or she would even be there when he returned. For all he knew, she could have even been part of an elaborate plot to distract him while thieves stole some of the expensive equipment the place harboured. Of course none of it actually belonged to him, but if he had allowed for them to be stolen his life was as good as over.

He tried not to think too much about it but it became impossible. This was no ordinary Sunday night. The fact that he had just bought the clothes of another man's wife was proof of that.

When he returned he saw something that made him instantly freeze and stomach churn. The door to the observatory was wide open. He knew he shut it when he left. Panic set through him and he instantly reached into the glove compartment and pulled out his Glock 9mm. He wondered whether he should call the police or dare to investigate what was going on himself. Michael felt brave and with a final long breath he opened the car door while holding a gun in one hand and a shopping bag with the other. He moved slowly towards the building, taking light calculated steps . He held his gun straight in front of himself, ready to fire at any threat, but as he approached his legs felt heavier and arms begin to shake. He had never even been in a fight before let alone a potential firefight. He was terrified, not for himself or the place but for Divona.

Along the way he heard no odd noises, no scrambling or sounds of any kind of struggle, and upon closer inspection, there was nothing that seemed out of the ordinary. The door was open but there didn't appear to be anyone inside. He lowered his gun a little.

"Divona? Are you there?" Michael said nervously, noticing she was not on the couch in the living room where he had left her.

Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

Michael checked his room and the bathroom, but couldn't find her. He scratched his head and then headed over to the final place where she could be, down towards the work room that housed all the equipment including the telescope.

"Divona?"

And then he found her. She sat upon the observation chair looking through the eyeglass of the telescope with fascination. He could not help notice she was naked- again, and so he approached with an everted gaze, trying not to look at her rather attractive frame. He tucked his gun behind in his pants, and placed the shopping back with the supplies on his work table before moving around to give her the privacy.

"Did you open the front door by any chance?" his back turned. He could hear her as she walked over to the table.

"Yes, was I supposed to close it again? I am sorry Michael. I was curious what was outside but I didn't have the energy to explore it, so instead I decided to look at your equipment. Does everything here belong to you?"

"Uh. Yeah" He said in a white lie. It was pretty much his for all intents and purposes….

All of a sudden he felt quite silly for assuming all the negative things he did before. He knew in his gut that she was no threat and was happy to realise that was the case. There was a beautiful girl in his house, playing with his telescope. Instead of being afraid he should be thanking his lucky stars.

"I've brought you some clothes, I hope they are your size…please try them on." He said

"Thank you Michael."

As she dressed herself Michael waited patiently with his back turned. He could hear her dressing up.

"Michael, I request your assistance." She said.

He turned around slowly to see Divona half naked now with her back turned to him, struggling to pin up the bra. She wore only her panties and Michael couldn't help but admire the lovely curve across her back which was more beautiful than any heavenly body he's ever seen. He was totally in love.

He grew nervous as he grabbed the ends of the bra, inadvertently touching her soft skin. His hands were shaking a little.

"What do you call this item of clothing?" Divona said.

"A bra. You don't normally wear clothes like this?"

She shook her head. "No. This is new to me"

He finally managed to connect them and then instantly turned around to give her the privacy to continue to dress herself. For an apparent alien she sure seemed to take longer than he would expect to figure out human clothing. Surely it wasn't that complicated.

" Tell me when you're done so I can turn around,okay?" Michael said.

"Okay Michael."

When she was done she let him know and so he turned back around and was relieved to see the set of clothes in all the right places. She seemed quite indifferent about being dressed, and that made him wonder even more about her. The clothes were not exactly her size, but the fit wasn't that bad. Divona was average height, well for a girl, and was perhaps a little thinner than average.

"This bra doesn't fit me properly. I think it may be too big." She said.

"Well, you do have a slightly smaller frame. Not that that's a bad thing you look er, good." Michael said, and rather nervously at that. He wondered why girls always made him say the dumbest things. Luckily for him she didn't absorb what he said and seemed more interested in the sandwiches across the table instead.

"May I?" she asked him nicely.

"Of course, they are for you, all of them are for you…."

She seemed excited as she approached the table and unpacked the packaging skilfully with her delicate fingers. She then devoured the sandwiches greedily, at a pace that even impressed him. For years he was the undisputed champion in college for the only sport he was ever really good at, Competitive eating, but Divona seemed to give him a run for his money. Back in the day he could put down twelve hotdogs in five minutes and he had never seen a girl eat as fast as he could. The sandwiches were gone in mere seconds as it was clear she didn't even chew or properly taste the food before somehow swallowing it.

"Thank you. I feel energised."

"Well, er, no problem."

There was an awkward silence between them as a bundle of thoughts raced through his mind. There were so many questions he wanted to ask her but the way she was staring at him made any words difficult to let out. Her blue, near shoulder length hair was cut so perfectly at the ends that it seemed like a wig at first, but upon closer inspected it was indeed real. He had straightened his hair once before with a straightener, but he had never seen hair as straight as hers. Even her fringe appears to be cut with laser precision, going flat across her forehead with not a loose strand out of place.

And those eyes. They were the strangest part about her. Almost lifeless but so complex and detailed there had to be someone behind them. They were a deep blue, as was her lips. Clearly blue was her favourite colour. Her perfections put him on a massive tilt whether intentionally or not.

"I understand you took a risk in taking care of me. It shows you have a great deal of faith."

Michael scratched his head nervously. " Yeah well, you seemed like you needed help. I wouldn't want to leave you out there…"

"So i am going to return that trust and tell you my story. Unfortunately, it seems most of my memory has been erased, at least temporarily, so I won't be able to tell you very much."

"Erased? What do you mean? Are you a robot or something? Michael said, and immediately regretting his choice of words. He didn't wish to insult her or say the wrong things.

She smiled. "I am neither biological nor am I a synthetic. It would be impossible for your mind to comprehend. "

"Okay…so you're an…alien? an english speaking alien?" He said, boldly, and this time not regretting his words at all. He needed to know the answer to that one at least.

He was relieved to see her smile - again. This time it was different. Her lips curved at the ends more than usual. "Yes, Michael, I am an alien from the moon."

His eyes widened. "…Really?"

"No."

"Then why did you…"

"That was a joke."

Michael made an attempt at a laugh, but it ended up being pathetic and awkward. He felt like more of an ass. "I suppose if you were an alien you wouldn't be trying to make jokes. That was a uh, good one…you really got me…but if you're not an alien then what are you?"

"The truth is, I am so different to you that I may as well be a different species. I am not from this world. Not from this timeline."

"Timeline? So you're from the…future?"

"Yes."

Michael felt his heart beat in his chest from sheer excitement. What he heard from her sounded preposterous at face value but given all the peculiar things about her he was open to believing anything. She didn't seem like a liar. There was strangely something alien-like about her, even if she did appear to be human on some level.

"What timeline is this?" Divona said.

"…uh Twenty seventeen."

She looked at him confusingly. "Can you be a little more specific?"

"Well, er..January…"

She interrupted. " Please go up in units."

"...Two thousand and seventeen…AD?"

"Oh…" Divona said, her face shifting a little lower. Her facial expression didn't change but by the look in her eyes he could tell she was a little surprised. Or disappointed. Or both.

"Oh?"

"…I was hoping I didn't go back that far.…"

"So what year are you from…exactly?" Michael said, leaning against the table acting as casual as he could. His legs were shaking and his gut was twisted with excitement. Palms getting sweaty.

"In the future we have different measurements of time. But in your measurement it would be around one million AD."

Michael almost fell off the table when he heard that. If he wasn't leaning against it he would have looked like the biggest idiot.

"A…million…years?"

"That is the rounded off figure. Specifically Nine hundred seventy eight thousand, four hundred and twenty two years in the future."

Divona walked over to the telescope, continuing to inspect it and all it's panels and parts with almost surgical precision - clearly fascinated by it. Michael watched her with equal fascination. He still wanted to know so much more about her. So much about the future.

"Such vintage technology. It is amazing to see it with my own eyes…" Divona said, adjusting a nob as she looked in the eyeglass.

Michael put himself together and approached her near the telescope, eyeballing her like he never did to anything before. There was literally nothing in the universe more interesting to him than her at the moment. Not even the Super Bowl. There was someone actually from the future in his house. A scientific goldmine.

"So excuse me for asking, but why are you here..exactly? I mean, don't get me wrong, I think it's cool and all that you're here…but why?" Michael said.

"Cool? are you referring to me being of a low temperature? I do not understand the context."

"I guess in the future you must speak differently. Each era has it own slangs i suppose. I'm saying that I approve of you being here."

"I am glad to hear that. I am cool with you also."

"Everyone speaks english in the future?"

"We are fluent in all languages ever invented by our ancestors, oral, digital, quantum and more. Perhaps my memory loss is the cause of the gaps in knowledge. But if you wish to know why I am here, I am sorry to disappoint you. I do not know." Divona said, lowering her head in sadness.

"I guess time travel must have messed with your memory?" Michael said.

"No. There is another cause. It seems I am infected with a virus that is making me function at subpar levels. At the moment I am in the process of removing it from my system, but because my neural lace is not currently functioning, I am forced to do everything manually, which is really quite inconvenient."

"Neural lace? I've read that somewhere once..What exactly is a neural lace?" Michael said.

"It is an external computer system that works in parallel with my conscious mind. It normally does all the heavy processing that my mind could not do on its own. Not only did the virus separate the neural lace from me, but it also seems to have scrambled a lot of my more personal memories as well. "

"…So you have a computer built in your brain? Do you even have a brain? Sorry that came out wrong. You know what I mean though, right? I mean, this is all interesting..."

"Yes I do have a brain, though it is not biological, not like yours. It is of the same basic design and has been enhanced to work at a much greater capacity and speed. In the future, there is a debate on whether the brain should be replaced with a more efficient design, but I am from a faction that is very conservative, and we believe that there are some things that should not and must not change, even if that holds us back."

"What do you mean by that?" Michael said.

"You can replace a body part with a machine and still remain human, but what happens when you begin to tinker with the very way your mind works?" Divona said, looking at him strongly now. "That is a dangerous concept. The mind is the center of our reality and any modifications to it would threaten what it means to be human. That is a line my faction does not wish to cross. The neural lace connects our mind to a super intelligent AI but it does not allow it to control and take over, so we still remain in control of our thoughts. Do you understand?"

"…So you're a humanist I guess?" Michael said jokingly.

"I do believe that is what you call it in this time. It probably isn't a very big belief system yet."

"No, its more like a fringe concept i guess. The smartest AI in this time is no where near even cockroach level, which is quite embarrassing…Hey, So you said you have some kind of virus? Is it like, uh bad?"

"I am made from billions of small self replicating machines that all work together and share their bandwidth for the good of the whole. Each one contains a blueprint of my entire being, and it appears the virus has tampered with that blueprint. All the encrypted backups have been changed as well." Divona said.

"Wait you're made from small machines? like nano machines? So you are a robot? "

Divona smiled gently at him. He swore she seemed to enjoy his confusion but he could't be certain about it. "All life is made up of small machines. You are made from cells which are natural self replicating systems. Do you consider yourself a 'robot' because of it?"

"Point taken…" Michael said, feeling as dumb as ever. He was no biologist but he should have known that. " I had a cold a few years back and i was stuck in bed for a week…guess even in the future viruses still haven't been eradicated…can you delete it?"

"I am in the process of analysing it. I have never done a system scan manually without the help of the neural lace so it will take a while to even analyse the problem. In the meanwhile, is it possible for you to retrieve more joules? I need to keep my energy levels up. Even after the Joules you have given me, currently, my levels are still very low."

"Sure. I don't have anything here, but if you'd like we can go out and get something to eat…"

"I'd like that very much Michael." Divona said, happily.