The sun was to our left, so we didn’t have to stare directly into it to enjoy the colors filling the evening sky. The rockers creaked softly, enough to be noticed but not so loud as to be irritating. The chickens contentedly clucked. Birds chirped in the distant trees. Every so often the wind brushed its coolness over us. I couldn’t recall when I’d felt this content.

            “Cecily, may I ask you a question?” Eva spoke, breaking the mood.

            “Sure.”

            “Why did you help me?”

            I knew she’d ask sooner or later. “Because I know what it’s like to be an outsider, although my circumstances weren’t as severe as yours.”

            “What did you do? How did you handle it?”

            I grinned at her. “I refused to go to college like my parents demanded. I went to a technical school to learn management instead. At the same time, I started working as a cashier at my local ValuSav.”

            “Why didn’t you want to go to a regular college?”

            “Why go four years to earn a degree I could get in two? Besides, I was having to pay for my classes, not them. My job at the store helped with that.”

            She saw my reasoning. “Smart. So you worked your way up through the ranks,” Eva concluded.

            “Yep. And every time I got promoted, I asked for a transfer. That way I always got to see new places and new faces and all. Nobody knew me or my history.”

            “What about your parents? I’d think they’d be proud of how much you’ve accomplished,” she remarked.

            “I don’t know. Maybe. They died in a car crash eight years ago.”

            Her face fell. “I’m sorry.”

            “Don’t be. I needed to get away from them. Let’s just say I didn’t grow up in the most loving environment.”

            “Do you have any brothers or sisters?”

            “Nope. Not only was I an only child, I was also adopted.” Seeing her expression deepen into sorrow, I tried to make light of it. “Nobody believed me, either, when I tried to tell them what was going on.”

            “Then you believe my baby has an alien father?” She looked and sounded so hopeful, I could almost believe her.

            Almost.