Only Human (Themis Files, #3)(82)
—They can still do that. They’ll just use tanks or drop a buttload of bombs on each other. But we’ll be defenseless if some bad alien dudes decide to drop by.
—That’s what you’re worried about, Vincent? Evil little green men?
—Well, yeah.
—How long have we known each other?
—Counting the other Rose or not?
—I know you better than that, Vincent Couture. Why don’t you tell me what’s really bothering you?
—…
—You can tell me.
—What am I gonna do?
—What?
—I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. I…I tried being something else on Esat Ekt, but here…Here I’m the guy with the weird knees.
—Now you get to be something more.
—What about Eva? She’ll have a hard time giving that up, I’m sure.
—I thought you wanted her to have a normal life.
—She made it abundantly clear I had to reexamine my definition of normal. We both made compromises. By we, I mean mostly me.
—Eva’s nineteen, Vincent. She has her whole life ahead of her. There’s plenty of time for her to figure out what she wants to do. And you know they’ll offer you a job. The two of you have spent nine years on another world dealing with all kinds of aliens. They’ll have something for you to do at the EDC, even if it doesn’t involve a two-hundred-foot giant robot. If that’s not what you want to do, then do something else. Isn’t there anything you always wanted to do but never had the chance?
—Maybe. What will you do? They must have offered you a job. You’re the “emissary to the alien world.” You’re the friggin’ chosen one.
—I’m not sure anyone really trusts me after what I’ve done, but they offered me my old job back.
—Great! I’m happy for you.
—I said no.
—What? Why?
—Do I have to say it? Eva might not want a regular job, a regular life, but I do. Oh, Vincent, I really do. I want to go home and not worry about my day. I want to take a bath, read a book. I want to take a bath three times a day if I want to. I want…small things. I’ve had enough of the big ones.
—You’ll miss it.
—Yeah, I will. That doesn’t mean I’d be happy doing it. Maybe someday. Maybe I’ll come back, but for now, I need to take care of me. Just me.
—What will you do all day?
—Same thing I’ve been doing these past few weeks. I teach at the University of Chicago, mostly undergrads. It feels…good. Every time a student’s eyes light up when I talk about atomic weight, I feel…like I’ve accomplished something. Like maybe he or she’ll save the world someday.
—Fair enough. I’d say you’ve earned it. We’ll miss you, Rose. And let’s face it, if we’re ever in real trouble, we’ll get you whether you like it or not. I mean, we had this giant machine that could destroy entire cities, but we’ve never really done anything with it. It was always you, Rose. Just you. This is your movie. The rest of us are just extras in it.
FILE NO. 2367
INTERVIEW BETWEEN EVA REYES AND VINCENT COUTURE
Location: Themis Toy Store, Montreal, Canada —No, Dad! I’m not pretending to do things at the cash register just so you can film this.
—Come on! It’s our first day!
—Your first day, Dad. I told you a million times, I’m only doing this until I find something else.
—Fine. But you’ll love it so much, you’ll beg me not to hire someone.
—In your dreams. Some of us have grown up, you know. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life playing with dolls.
—Dolls! Do you know what you’re holding in your hand right now? That’s a vintage Leia in her Hoth outfit from something called The Vintage Collection. It’s a vintage remake of a vintage figure. Meta vintage. There are lessons about the universe, life constantly repeating itself, buried inside that thing. It’s 3.75 inches of wisdom, and before you roll your eyes at me, you should know I’ve seen you playing with the Walking Dead figures when you thought I wasn’t watching. I was watching, and I saw you playing with dolls, like you said.
—That’s different! It’s Daryl! I like Daryl.
—You didn’t think the little crossbow could fire, did you?
—No. That is pretty cool.
—There’s hope for you, Eva. There is hope.
—I wouldn’t count on it. I’ve been thinking— —Uh-oh…
—Maybe I could be a pilot.
—You mean join the army?
—What’s wrong with that?
—Nothing. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. I’d miss you, that’s all. They’d be lucky to have you.
—What do you think Kara would say?
—She’d say…She’d say that you should do whatever makes you happy. Go for it. Never give up. She’d be proud of you, you know.
—And you?
—Am I proud of you? Hell yeah! I was proud the minute I found out you existed.
—Would you be proud of me if I were in the army?
—Eva, it’s you I’m proud of, not your job or the uniform you wear. I’d be proud of you no matter what you do. I’d be real proud of you if you worked at the toy store with your dad.