Raine

I don't get why everyone seems to like Xen immediately. It's been 90 muns since we met and DG and Leela are already all over him. To Leela, everything Xen says is funny. To DG, everything is cute from Xen's boxy smile to the way he holds his Laeetuni utensils. It’s not that I dislike Xen. I just have really strong reservations about having a new band member and all the changes that have come with it. And I haven’t yet found a reason to trust him.

At times, I feel eyes on me. When I look up, Xen is jerking his head in some other direction. I want to ask if he has something to say, but I can’t imagine it coming out in a way that doesn’t make me sound like a vich.

Leela nudges my arm. “Raine, join the conversation!”

“What are you talking about?”

“Vont said, tomorrow, we’re all getting makeovers. We’re talking about what changes would look best.”

I look at Xen. His dark hair goes well with his fair, olive-toned skin. His eyebrows are full, though not as bushy as Vont’s jungle. Other than that, he’s pretty plain. Examining him, I lean my chin on my hand and elbow on the table.

He squirms under my stare. What’s his problem? Cutting him some slack, I move my eyes away. Something is off about Xen and I’ll eventually figure out what it is.

Shrugging my shoulders, I rest my elbow on the table and my cheek on my hand. "You already look perfect to me," I say to Leela and DG.

Leela smirks and narrows her eyes. "Thank you, sweetcakes. Though… I feel like you might just be talking about yourself."

I ignore her second comment. "I think the makeovers are superfluous. But I know how much Jo'lanae loves her visuals." My comment is paired with an eye roll.

"Come on, Raine, you know you're the face of the group. Don't pretend like you don't use it to your advantage."

I lift my head. "Well, obviously. Regardless of how I feel, it'd be stupid not to and every public figure does it."

DG tilts his head towards me. "Good point," then takes pops a chunk of gorbil meat into his mouth.

"Pass me the snoutfish," I tell Leela even though the serving plate is closest to Xen. He passes it to her and she gives the plate to me.

"We all do it," DG continues. "Leela uses her legs, I use my abs…" His eyes turn to Xen who tenses under his gaze. "You're cute for a kid—"

"I-I'm eighteen."

"But have you got the sex appeal?!" He reaches for the hem of Xen's shirt. Xen's hands go flying down to cover himself up.

Leela scoffs. "DG. That's sexual harassment."

"Is not. We're all family," he says but releases his grip on the fabric. Xen relaxes.

Family? We just met this guy.

"We've each got to have a visual point," DG says then looks at Xen. "I'll see you shirtless eventually. We're all living under the same roof, after all."

***

Why I didn’t realize before, I don’t know. Maybe on a subconscious level, I thought Leela would move into the room with me and the boys could room together. When I left the room this morning, there was one bed---mine---in the center of the small room. But now, my bed is pushed against the side wall and there’s a second bed on the opposite side. An Earthian suitcase sits on top.

“Vont! Vont!” Spinning around, I march to where Vont is in the common room, bumping into Xen (who was apparently hovering behind me) on the way. “Why is his stuff in my room?”

Vont pinches the bridge of his nose. “Raine, don’t be difficult.”

“Leela!” I call and she steps out of the room she shares with DG. “Why aren’t you---”

“Suns, no,” she says before I can finish. “You are way too particular to room with.”

Xen steps forward. “Sorry, what?”

DG pats his shoulder. “It’s your sacrifice as our new member.”

“What?”

DG pulls Xen closer and turns around to audibly whisper, “Raine is a control freak and the only reason we can love Raine so much is because we don’t have to room with him.”

“Sacrifice…” Xen mutters.

Running back to my room, I take another look. “Vont, is this why you told me to clean?! So you could move all my stuff?!”

“You should’ve cleaned your room, anyway,” he says. “I’m leaving now.” He takes a moment to point at DG and DG points back at him.

Xen follows me into the bedroom then takes a seat on his bed. “Um… sorry you had to give up your room.”

I run my foot along a board in the floor. “See this board? Don’t cross it. Not you, not a single possession of yours, not even a sock.”

His eyes get bigger as if he’s surprised.

“What?”

He shifts his gaze. “Uh… no… nothing…”

Letting out a sigh, I grab my pajamas and head for the bathroom to shower. Then I halt, remembering something else I need to tell him. “Do you have any bad sleeping habits?”

“No.”

Part of me is relieved because he won’t keep me up. The other part of me is disappointed that I’ll be the only one. “Sometimes I talk in my sleep,” I admit, glancing at the floor. “No matter what I say… just ignore me.”

Xen blinks slowly. “Okay.”

Four of us are sharing one bathroom and Xen is the last one to shower. By the time he comes back in, I’m in bed already, pretending to be asleep.

Quietly, he turns off the light and climbs into his bed.

My phone lights up beside my head and I take a look at the new message. It’s from DG.

‘Don’t be a vich pleeeeeease. We’re all in this together, okay? Don’t forget our dream.’

Taking a deep breath, I know DG is right. Xen isn’t to blame for any of this. He’s just some hapless soul from Earth who grabbed at an opportunity. Jo’lanae is the only one who deserves my anger. But it’s a fact that Xen’s composing will make our music better. It’s okay. I just have to suck it up. And maybe, one day, he will feel like family.