Didn't See That Coming [Sci Fi AU]

*Grim puts on a helmet, buckles his seatbelt, and braces himself for impact.*

***

You don’t remember much about the trip to Peg’s. Fiona drove as Elsie hugged you and stroked your hair and poured her love into you. You hadn’t expected to break down like this but now that it had begun you couldn’t stop it. Whatever was pouring out of you was so much bigger than Allison. Her harsh words and sudden rejection of you was the impetus but for this outpouring but not the source. Deep down you knew that you never truly loved her, that this split had always been an inevitability. No, this hurt cut to the core of who you were. By the time you reach Peg’s Elsie’s kindness and softness and patient understanding had at least stopped the uncontrolled sobbing. Even after all the terrible things you had said to your sweet little sister tonight she was still right there to catch when you had fallen. Perhaps it was a weakness in her but you were grateful for her unconditional love now.

Once at Peg’s Elsie, who had a key, lets the three of you in. After a frightful startle your mom and aunt, who were sitting at the dining room table chatting over a couple of glasses of wine, relax when they see that it was family suddenly intruding on their space. Your cousin Chloe sat in the living room without a stitch of clothes on her spindly body. In her left hand was a tablet playing one of those ‘cock hero’ videos while her right hand fapped along to the beat. Quietly you note how much smaller her penis was than your sisters, still bigger than yours but only by an inch or so, though on her scrawny figure it still appeared huge. She doesn’t miss a stroke when she sees the three of you enter, she just greets you happily and carries on jerking. If anything she was glad for the audience.

When your mother sees the way your sisters flanked you and the way Elsie held you her eyes go wide and in an instant she is on her feet hurrying toward you with her arms outstretched. She pulls you into a big, smothering hug and gives your head at least a dozen kisses.

“What happened? What’s wrong?” She pets your hair and holds you tight. “What’s the matter baby?”

“I had a bad night.” You say. “I’m okay.”

Fiona lays a hand on your back. “He’s not okay.”

“Allison broke up with him.” El says.

“I’ll be your girlfriend Jesse!” Chloe chirps.

“Chloe.” Her mother warns. “Shush now darlin.”

“Sorry.”

“Ohhhh!” Your mother hugs you even tighter. “My poor boy!”

The group of you make your way to the table. As you are seated Peg reaches across to give your hand a supportive squeeze, your Mom sits right against you to your right. As Elsie puts on a kettle Fiona takes her seat and takes charge, catching the elders up on what happened that night. You sit and listen, a bit relieved to not have to recount it yourself while also deeply touched by the care in the way your big sister told it. She might be a bitch, but she did love you in her own way.

“Peg.” She says at last. “I want you to tell Jesse the truth.”

“The truth?”

“The truth. About us. About this family.”

“Um.” Peg looks at your Mom, each of them squirm uncomfortably.

“Jesse is feeling urges. He thinks there’s something wrong with him.” Fiona says. “Tell him he’s okay. Tell him about our mutation. Tell him how he’s got it too. Tell him everything.”

“Uhhh…about that…”

“Damn it! I know you guys wanted him to be ‘normal’, but he’s been in the dark for too long. Tell him he's not 'wrong'. That he IS normal, for us.”

“He deserves to know.” Elsie backs up her sister.

“Yes.” Peggy sighs. “He certainly does. And…so do you.”

“Me?” Fiona’s brows furrow. “What? What are you talking about?”

“Don’t be angry.” Mom says. “We just found out ourselves last week.”

Fiona bristles, clearly not taking her mother’s advice. “What are you talking about Peg? You’ve been hiding something!? This fucking family!”

“I haven’t been hiding it.” Peg says, her smooth tone placating. “I had to do tests. I had to confirm it.”

“Confirm what?”

“Chloe baby.” Mom says. “You better come out here too.”

“Hold on…mmm…hold on….hmmm…NNNGHHHH!” All you could see was the top of Chloe’s head trembling above the back of the sofa as she busts her nut. “Whooo! Ten minutes, fifty two seconds. My best ever! YES!”

“Atta girl sweetie.” Your mother says proudly. “Come along. We gotta talk now.”

As an impatient Fiona stews Chloe cleans herself up then she and Elsie join you around the big table.

Aunt Peg looks around at you, her eyes lingering for a few seconds on each of your faces, then takes a deep breath and says. “We’re not mutants. We’re…aliens.”

Stunned silence fills the room.

“WHAT!?” Fiona shatters that silence. “What in the fu…”

“Just listen.” Peg holds her hands up. “Okay.” She had every ear in the house, some more skeptical than others. “Grandma was not a genetic abnormality, she was a refugee. A refugee from a very, VERY long way away. On a life craft she escaped some great space battle.”

“Space battle? Pfff. Cut this shit Peg.”

Your aunt continues. “After tumbling through a wormhole in a **** bid for survival she found herself in an unfamiliar region with Earth as the nearest habitable planet in range. She crash landed. She only survived thanks to the kindness of the man who found her. They soon fell in love.”

“Grandpa?” You whisper.

“That’s right baby.” Your mother strokes your hair. “Turns out Grandma and Grandpa aren’t in Vietnam like we thought.”

“You’re getting ahead of things Helen.” Peg says. “As it was explained to us we come from a race of beings from the far side of our galaxy. A race who has spread over a vast area of many stars and many worlds.”

“What the fuck is in your wine tonight?”

Peg chuckles. “Trust me Fiona. When Mom called and told me…I was already starting to look into homes. But…it pans out. It connects all of the dots of my research. It was the missing piece of the puzzle. You can believe it or not but it’s the truth.”

You and your sisters and cousin look back and forth between each other. Was Peggy and Helen taking you for a ride? It wouldn’t be like them but…this was impossible!

Peg continues. “Our race has six subgroups.” She motions to Fiona. “The warrior. Aggressive, dominant, with an insatiable will for power, prestige, and control.” She looks to Chloe. “The worker. The majority, the masses, those who work and play without a care for the larger picture. They keep the empires running.”

“Empires?”

Without addressing the question your aunt looks to your mom. “The breeder. The mothers, carers, and nurturers.” She lays a hand on her own chest. “The sage. The intelligencia and scientists of the species.” Reaching across she takes Elsie’s hand. “The priestess. Loyal, wise, pure of heart, their counsel is valued by all.” She then looks to you, as do all the others. “And finally…the prince. A vestigial remnant of evolution yet our people’s most precious treasure.”

“Vestigial?”

“How it was told to me, the females of our race evolved beyond the need for males. Their purpose was taken up by the different types of females. In response the males evolved. There was no longer an impetus for physical competition with other males. Instead they evolved to compete in a different way, to be even prettier and more desirable to a female eye. For genetic reasons their numbers dwindled even as their societal value rose until, today, they sit at the center of everything. Not as ruler, not as ****, not as prize, but a bit of all three. For men like you Jesse long, bloody wars have been waged, peace has been brokered, fortunes have been made and lost, and empires have risen and fallen. If we were out there we would enjoy status simply for having a male in our family. For the women of our race there is no greater thing than the love of our males.” She says. “It is no wonder you feel so out of place here Jesse. You were born to be loved. Every cell, every gene, every fiber of your being is craving the adulation of a mistress or harem.”

“Harem!?”

“Listen everyone.” Your mom says. “This doesn’t change anything. We’re still a family and we still…”

“Doesn’t change anything?” Fiona gasps. “This changes…EVERYTHING! There’s more of us out there?”

“Billions more.” Peg says. “Just a long way away. They don’t even know about Earth.”

“And it’s a good thing too.” Mom says. “If they ever found out there was an untapped source of males…”

“Human males wouldn’t be the same, you’ve all felt that special draw Jesse has, but…yeah.” Peg nods. “It would be bad for Earth. Very bad.”

“This is crazy. Actually crazy.” Your big sister stands up, hands on head, and begins to pace. “What the fuck!? What the fuck!”

“We’re…aliens?” Elsie whispers. “Really?”

“I can still hardly believe it myself.” Mom says.

You just sit there speechless.

“Wow.” Chloe sits back and laughs. “Didn’t see that coming.”