I sit and listen to my mother's story, not knowing what to make of it.

The two other refugees, that scientist couple, are supposed to be my uncle and aunt, who have recently started taking care of their son.

Just like my mother and I, they also have gray eyes and raven-black hair, but their hair lacks the subtle blue shimmer that ours has.

But even though I see no resemblance to my father… I cannot believe that we descend from an alien race.

At this moment, I cannot imagine that a single event from this night will dispel my doubts.

On the lawn directly below my window, hidden from the neighbor's house and the street by a thick hedge, stand my neighbor Nora and her boyfriend Andy, as they do almost every night. As always, they are arm in arm, tightly embraced and lost in passionate kisses.

Nora's father is very strict, so Andy can only give his girlfriend a goodbye kiss in this hidden spot under my window.

I have to laugh to myself.

They both know the procedure, but they still risk it again and again.

"Janine!" calls my mother. She thinks I should pack my things. Still, it's hard for me to believe that aliens are after us.

My mother watches me as I go to the bathroom with a bucket in hand.

I run to the sink and place my hands on the faucet lever. As a strong stream of water flows into the bucket, I talk to her.

"You act like all of this is happening because of you."

She is trembling all over. Tomorrow will be the first time I skip school, even though she has always made sure I am punctual and bring home good grades.

I look joyfully at the water, which continues to rise.

"What if this whole escape is just a waste of time?"

"It's better to leave than to be slaughtered," is her opinion.

I nod, sighing.

The bucket is finally full. This time, I am even kinder to the lovers. Only Andy on his motorcycle will get cold.

As I turn off the warm water, my mother smiles at me. "Can't you spare Nora just once?"

I shake my head. "I've told her so many times, but she won't listen."

My mother follows me as I lug the bucket of water upstairs.

"Poor Nora. What does her father say when she always comes home soaking wet?" Even she can't suppress a smile at this moment. I'm glad about that. Apparently, I've finally managed to distract her from her fear a bit.

"He pays me for the water," I laugh in response to my mother.

"And why don't your parents see any of that money?" she asks me.

"I have to work hard to carry the water upstairs, and I'm very expensive."

My mother stands in the doorway. She watches curiously as I look out the window.

Nora and Andy are still in the same spot as before.

"Is that priss home?" Andy asks.

"I haven't seen her in the last few days," Nora replies. There's no light on in our house. Everything looks completely deserted.

My ace up the sleeve.

I place the bucket on the windowsill and then pour the contents over the heads of the blissfully in-love couple.

"You bitch!" the girl shouts up at me.

"You know what, Nora?" Andy calls. "I've had enough!" He seems quite angry this time. Behind me, I hear my mother laughing. "If you don't sort things out with your father, we better forget it!" He shakes himself to get rid of at least some of the water on his body, but it doesn't help much. "I don't like showering outdoors."

"Are you satisfied now?" Nora yells at me.

I can hardly stop laughing.

"What does Nora's father pay you for all this?" Andy demands to know.

"I do it because it's fun," I reply, which is true. The money is just a nice bonus.

"Enough, Janine," he says in a clearly annoyed tone. "I saw Nora's father give you money with the words water fee the other day."

"Next time I'll insist on a bank transfer," I sigh. I glance at my mother. I'm visibly uncomfortable with the whole situation. "Fifty bucks," I admit quietly. Not only my mother looks at me in surprise.

"Okay," Andy says. "Nora, either you forgo this farewell or find someone who can pay the snake."

He's about to head to his motorcycle when suddenly a man dressed in black from head to toe steps in front of him.

The tight black suit reveals the man's muscles, and on his head, he wears something that looks like a helmet with a shiny silver visor.

He grabs Andy roughly by the arm. "You're coming with me, boy," the man says. I hide in my room so that I can still see out the window to watch what happens, but no one outside can see me.

"What's going on?" my mother asks. "Is Nora threatening you?"

She falls silent when she sees my pale face.

"Hey, let go of me, you jerk," Andy curses. He tries to break free from the man's grip.

One punch and the boy falls unconscious.

"Andy!" Nora screams. "Leave or I'll call the cops." Her voice trembles with fear.

I look to my mother for help. She stands in the doorway and has started trembling again.

The man shows little interest in the girl's threat.

Suddenly, another man dressed in black appears behind Nora. He knocks her unconscious.

"Can you tell me why we're also supposed to capture women?" the second man in black demands to know. "And everyone from the surrounding areas."

"Let me explain something to you," the first man says. "We are just warriors. We receive tasks, follow them, and don't ask questions." He sighs. "I overheard our commander's conversation with our lovely fury the other day. She said our ruler is looking for an old acquaintance."

I am almost speechless. I look at my mother in disbelief.

Internally, I pray that their conversation didn't reach Mum, but to my relief, the two men didn't speak loudly enough for her to hear. Now I have to admit that my mother is right. It's better to leave than to wait helplessly for death.

"Did they say anything?" my mother asks worriedly as I panic and close the window. I grab my suitcase to pack some of my things.

"No," I lie to her. But I can't look her in the eye with this lie. I don't want to tell her the truth either; it would only scare her more. "The fact that two men in black just kidnapped Nora and Andy is enough for me to think you might be right."

She is satisfied with my answer. I continue packing my things, but my parents notice that they have infected me with their fear.

Now, like my mother, I am trembling all over.

What do these people want from us when my mother was just a slave?

But still, I don't dare tell her about the men's conversation. Thinking about it makes my thoughts go wild.

 ⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

The next day, we sit silently in the kitchen, unable to have any conversation.

I'm afraid of saying something wrong. Something that would scare my parents even more about what's to come.

Nora's father visited us last night. He wanted to know if she met with Andy under my window that night.

My parents forbade me from talking about it.

Now he thinks she ran away or that Andy did something to her.

"You think this is all happening because of you," I bring up a topic that has been on my mind since last night.

My parents look at me questioningly.

"Janine," my mother says. She looks sadly at the tabletop.

"We'll see if everything turns out the way your mother thinks," my father says.

"It will happen!" Tears well up in her eyes.

"If those guys are after our family, then the question is why," I stick to the topic. "Mother said she was just a slave and my father a warrior. Or are they after my uncle and aunt?" I pause briefly. My parents look at me confused, then I add quietly, "I'm just trying to understand why this is happening."

"Janine, is there something you should tell us?" my mother demands to know. She looks at me angrily, and I inevitably look guiltily at the table.

I can no longer avoid the truth.

"Okay," I force myself to answer. I really don't want to panic them even more. "Those two guys from yesterday – those men in black – they said something."

My parents look at me expectantly. "What did they say?" my father demands to know.

I swallow.

"One of them asked why they should also capture women," I begin to explain. "The other responded that their ruler is looking for an old acquaintance."

I don't even need to look at my mother to know she has turned pale.

"I've thought about it and asked myself a question," I continue. "They say only young men and women have been kidnapped. If they are looking for you, why all this?" My parents seem little interested in my theory, but I continue speaking anyway. "Maybe they do this to scare you. Maybe it's all because they don't know where you live. And all this is happening only in the surrounding cities." I hastily add, "I mean the kidnapping of young women."

My mother looks uncertainly at the table. "If it's to scare me, then he's succeeded." She lets her head sink onto the table and begins to cry again.

"What I'm getting at is this," I continue. My father looks at me with interest. "You said that guy's father always did that. Destroyed cities and such." I pause briefly. "That he acted on the motto, 'whoever survives is lucky.'" My mother looks at me with tear-streaked eyes. Now she seems interested too. "Maybe it's all just to make you flee so they can ambush you."

"A nice theory, but we can't rely on that." My mother manages a smile that looks quite strained. "That guy would certainly not hesitate to destroy a planet."

I decide to leave it for now and ask her about it again later. I still believe we should stay here. Somehow I feel that my parents are making exactly the mistake this unknown guy is waiting for.

My parents don't want to see that.