Date

First date and last date, they both knew it within five minutes, so both hid behind their phones.

As is usually the case, young Alice had no idea she was sitting with an alien. His concealed identity, however, was very safe, especially these days. The talk continued despite their screens.

Alice resumed her point. "Yeah, I'd like to be in love. Just don't want to get lost, or lose myself with someone, ya know, Garth?" "Well, no.", he said plainly. "How do you lose yourself? Wherever you would go, there you are."  His factory logic came with a hollow expression and monotone words.

"Well, I suppose." Her sudden discomfort made her toes curl with caution. "It's what people say. You lose your own life, your independence.", she clarified. "You don't want love to disrupt control on your life and future?", he pressed again for her answer.

"No. Yes. That's right. You really do understand me, Garth. I like that." The secret alien, untrained by proper social appropriations, reacted honestly, with candor.

"Don't like it too much, Gail. Stay single. You don't understand your own human love. It's never safe. It disrupts. Changes everything from before. Two people depart most willingly to their new life. There's no straddling, there's no boutique love. Better wait until you understand all this, if ever."

Bad enough to be challenged, corrected then cancelled by an alien, it's only better she didn't know, as is usually the case, especially these strange days.