This was something I came up with last year and thankfully I sat down and wrote it. :) I really liked the idea and obviously I wanted to share it with you. So ta da! I hope you like it as much as I did!

My pretty Unicorns! My treat to you, *holds hands out*

[IMPORTANT NOTE #1] This book was written nearly a decade ago. Do keep in mind that yesterday's idea of romance is today's idea of "what-the-heckery is this?". This book was written during a time when bully-heroes, extreme angst, hot and cold behaviour etc, was how the genre of romance mostly represented itself. We did not know then that this was toxic and with time we have learnt what we consider healthy and what's not. And that time is now, versus ten years ago when this book was written (#disclaimernumero2). This book caters to the romance readers of that time because that was what romance was then. (#disclaimernumero3). Definitely go ahead if you want a distraction and a roller coaster. However, today's idea of romance is very different, so if you're looking for that do NOT go into this book. You will be upset and disappointed.

[NOTE #2] Chapter 6 ends abruptly. I'm sorry about that. There was some issue and it seemed to have deleted a good chunk of that chapter. I've tried many ways to retrieve it but it wasn't possible and because it was typed directly into the app I couldn't do anything about it either. Apologies and I hope you enjoy the book anyway! Happy reading.

ALIENUS! --------------------------------------------------------------------

None of us thought it would really happen.

But it did.

And when it did. We were not ready.

We were always kept in the dark. We never knew what was happening. We were kept in tightly sealed cells with little rations and lots of company. We hadn't seen the sun in...I'd lost count of the days. We didn't know if it was day or not because of the artificial light, that was usually always on, except inside our cabins.

When I was younger, way younger, I remember houses, gardens, smiling neighbours, laughter, colours, life.

But sometimes I wonder if they're just my imagination from the movies I'd sometime see with my father. If it's just a wish for a life I would have had...

If earth hadn't started dying.

The air didn't have a lot of oxygen left anymore. The soil couldn't provide any nutrition to plants and plants died. The ozone layer was something of the past.

The oxygen we breathed now was manufactured inside the cells we were forced to live in.

We were the last left in a large population. I'm not saying that we're the very last. I'm saying we're part of the last remaining. We went from a few billion to a few thousands in a matter of days. Any rations we had now was in the form of pills and water was so rare that it was a treasure so we consumed it in meager portions.

My dad and me.

We were all that was left of our family. I've never remembered my mother. She died just after I was born. All I had left of her were the stories dad sometimes told me, a snowflake necklace and...my name.

Amour.

Dad told me she named me that and that he didn't mind calling his daughter love.

I remember my grandparents though. But...with their age, they never made it. I've seen every single person in these cells lose a loved one. I've seen every single one of them cry. Just as they've seen me. In a way everyone here was my family. We were all we had left, because we didn't know when we'd be alone tomorrow and need help.

Anybody could die.

Anybody could have the...disease.

No matter how many researches and how many scientists tried to solve the problem of what the disease was, why it came and if and how it spread or how to cure it, it remained a mystery to them.

So we slowly died.

We start to bleed from our tongues, then our haemoglobin drops, then there isn't enough oxygen in our blood for us to survive.

Helpless deaths.

We had all resigned ourselves to dying at anytime. It hurt less than having hope.

I was sitting in the common dining area and watching a little girl as she asked her mother about flowers and trees and waterfalls and her mother tried her best to explain.

A small smile tipped my lips up at the child's innocence and curiosity. It wouldn't be long before she found out about the disease. About death. And all that morbidity could be seen weighing her down. Her shoulders would hunch, her eyes would always look down, and when she looked up, fear could be seen taking root at her heart.

This is how we all lived.

Scared. Resigned. Hopeless.

So we treasure every moment we had with one another. Laughed whenever we could. But we didn't hide from the truth.

Just as the girl started to whine that her mother wasn't describing things properly, a loud static noise filled the room and all of us straightened in surprise. Even the little girl went silent, like she understood that that noise meant something important.

My eyes widened when the President's image flickered on in the large screen in front of us. These screens were positioned everywhere, so that no matter where we were stationed, we would be able to see.

The President looked nothing like he used to. He used to be a broad shouldered man brimming with energy, an amazing orator who laughed a lot and made everyone feel at ease.

He was now thin, frail looking, wrinkles spreading across his forehead. His eyes looked bleak but this time there was a sort of light gleaming in them. I took a deep breath as hope, terrible terrible hope, filled my heart and spread through me, warming me inside out.

Surprisingly, the President didn't start his speech with acknowledgements. He went straight to the heart of the subject.

"We have made contact with the C'Riel," his voice stuttered over the word, like he was unsure of how to pronounce it, "They are extra terrestrial beings who live on the planet they call Xe'Krein. Their living conditions are very similar to ours. They breathe oxygen and require water, they are similar to us in physical stature as well. They are sending help."

At this point all of us were astounded. We knew that the Government, or at least what was remaining of it, was on the lookout for life on another planet for survival, but we didn't think it would come through. Like I said, we hadn't had any hope.

Some of the people around me were quietly crying.

We were going to be saved.

"But..." the President started and something twisted in my gut, "We must be wary of them. We do not know them and they do not know us. Our living conditions may not be ideal," he says, but leans forward, "But we will live."

He went on to give details about how their spaceship will be here to transport us to their planet.

He ended the speech with a "Be warned, they may look like us, speak like us and behave like us. But please be cautionary. Follow every instruction they give you if you wish to survive."

With that the screen turned off. The last few lines made me wonder what the catch was.

Why save us? What was their benefit from all this?

Silence prevailed for a few seconds, before everyone started cheering. Cries were heard everywhere and buzzes of joy spilled through and even the guards who usually stopped any sort of chaos, stood back, a relieved smile on their lips.

That's as far as they'd express, I thought grinning.

"Red!" A familiar voice shouted and I turned around with a beaming smile. Only one person called me red.

"Ren!" I laughed, as he gave me a warm hug.

He leaned back with a beaming grin.

"I swear I can find you even if I was on another galaxy." He joked, tugging on the strands of my hair that were resting over my shoulder.

I rolled my eyes and pushed my hair back, away from my face. My hair was the kind of red that made you stare wondering what hair dye I had used. But I swear to God, it was natural. It was the kind of red that was a little lighter than blood. Like a dark sunset. My eyes however were green, but people are usually too busy staring at my hair to notice my eyes.

Oh well.

"You're just jealous," I stated, pointing to his brown hair that curled around his ears, but his short hair at the top showed off his proud forehead. His hazel eyes smiled at me and I returned it.

"We're going to live." He said, his voice low but filled with the kind of happiness that came when hope bloomed in hearts.

"We are Ren, we really are." I said.

"Where's your dad?" He asked looking around me, in search of my father.

I shrugged, "He's probably in the library." I said.

"Let's go find him." Ren said, grinning.

I rolled my eyes but followed him.

"I'm pretty sure you and my father are more fond of each other than you are of me." I said, as Ren lead me by my hand towards the library.

Ren didn't reply but I knew he was smiling. In many ways we're all he has. He didn't have anyone to call family. I remembered Ren when he was younger. He lived with his grandparents on the same street we lived. He never found out where his parents were. He was too young to ask. Sadly he lost his grandparents before he could think of asking.

My father took him in and we'd been family since.

Walking through the corridors that led to the library, Ren looked around for my father.

I nodded towards our right, "There he is." I said, having caught sight of my father's hair, so much similar to mine, but shorter. Much much shorter.

Ren rolled his eyes, "You're a giraffe." He said.

I threw him an incredulous look, "I'm an inch shorter than you."

Ren threw me an are-you-serious look, as we walked towards my father, "Other girls our age barely reach my shoulder. You come up to my ears." He said.

I rolled my eyes, "So I'm a little tall." I said, shrugging.

Ren snorted as we reached my father who turned to give us a wide smile.

"Giraffe," Ren muttered again under his breath but I ignored him.

Both of us were enveloped in a hug from my father. I sighed into his hug, feeling tons lighter than I usually felt.

We would live. We would survive. We would make it out of this hell we were living in. Every single mistake we'd made, every bit of Earth that we'd corrupted, had Earth retaliating brutally in a fit of terrible anger. In the end, she didn't want us to live on her.

It saddened me, to think that we'd pushed her so hard, she didn't want us anymore. It was a stupid thought, but that didn't stop me from having it.

"Amour," dad said and I looked up at him. He smiled down at me, but I could see a strain in the emotion.

"Dad?" I said, even as I felt Ren move closer in worry.

My father, his tired but wary grey eyes met both of ours and cleared.

He shook his head, "Nothing," he said, smiling. Then he clapped his hands together.

"Guess we should pack our things," he said, carrying a large bundle of books, directing me and Ren to carry the others lying scattered on the table. Ren and I looked at each other and sighed.

We followed my father, watching as he smiled and spoke to practically everyone on the way to our cabin. Ren and I looked at each other, both of us knowing that dad was thinking something but not sharing it. And it worried us.

Ren shrugged, as if to say, 'Well what can we do about it?'

I agreed. Dad would deny anything up and down until he was ready to divulge his thoughts on his own.

We went to my cabin after dropping dad at his along with his many many books.

I dropped on my bed with a sigh and Ren joined me. We looked up at the grey ceiling our thoughts wandering places our bodies couldn't go.

"What are you thinking about?" Ren asked, turning his head to look at me.

I met his gaze and felt myself sober down from the temporary high of the news our President had given us.

"We don't know how bad this is going to be." I whispered, looking back up at the ceiling.

"Well," Ren said, a smile in his voice, "We don't know how good it's going to be either."

A kind of happiness bloomed in my stomach at the thought that I wouldn't have to count my days or the number of days my dad or friends or the children lived.

I snorted, "You're an annoying optimist." I said, "Stop sprinkling it every where."

Something white and not exactly soft whacked onto my face. I sat up with my mouth open.

"You did not just-!" I spluttered.

Another slap of the pillow on my face and Ren was cracking up.

"How mature." I said, ducking from the next blow only because he was laughing and wasn't aiming.

I pulled the pillow from his hand and jumped on him, pressing the pillow to his face and trying to smother him.

"You're going to kill me." He gasped.

I rolled my eyes, "You're still talking. Trust me, you're alive."

Light lit the room up and both of us turned towards the door that had opened. Lars, one of guards assigned to cabin duty was staring at us with an unamused look.

Ren straightened himself and I crossed my arms. They can think what they wanted about me and Ren, we knew the truth and that's all mattered.

"The ship arrives tomorrow at dawn. We are only allowed to take clothes with us. Pack. Be ready. If you're not, we will leave you."

He slammed the door as soon as the last syllable was uttered.

"I have always wondered why he was employed," Ren said.

I looked to him, waiting for the punch line.

"It's definitely his sparkling personality." Ren concluded.

I laughed.

--- -- - Sooooo? Whatcha think? ❤️ Hope you love! Also, the hero is coming in the next chapter. :D! Fire-eyes and ish.

Also, the updates will be slow. My main examinations are coming up. :) So I'll update if I can.

Comment and let me know what you think. Vote if you think this is going to be BADASS. And also if you think Unicorns exist. ❤️

EDIT A lovely lady, @pgprashanti made that cover!! Thank you so much love!