'Did he just.....?' Tessa was still in complete shock by what had happened and her cheeks turned redder and redder by the minutes.
'And he did it like it was something normal for him to do.'
'Moreover he didn't sound flustered by what he had done.'
'So doesn't that mean he doesn't see me as a woman?' Tessa thought and her heart clenched in fear.
Because....
Wasn't that the most scariest thing for a woman?
Not being seen for her feminine charm.
This was the thought that spiraled around the gorgeous lady's mind because Tessa knew she was certainly beautiful, so shouldn't Drake be treating her more like a woman by holding hands and possibly kissing...
"Hey, what's wrong? You coming or not?" Drake's words pulled Tessa out of her naughty fantasies as she swiftly made her way into the shuttle.
Upon stepping into the shuttle, Drake noticed the interior lights flickering on automatically.
There were also white-paneled walls with soft blue lights, running under the floor grates.
It wasn't much but it was cozy enough to stay in.
And so, Drake and Tessa walked deeper until they passed a young man working along with them.
His name was Eric Venn, and currently, Eric was already double checking his engineering kit before noticing both Drake and Tessa heading closer to him.
"Hey Drake, I heard you like em young." Eric teased as he swiftly winked at him but Drake simply rolled his eyes with a smile.
"Haha..... very funny." Drake brushed Eric's words off, cause he was used to Eric teasing words by now.
However, it doesn't mean Tessa was underage.
She was currently 24 and that made her the youngest member in the crew, so Eric simply used that line to make fun of Drake.
"Anyways, on a more serious note." Eric harrumph softly. "Did you remember to pack your anti-alien repellent?" Eric asked as he held up a small sprayer that was labeled as 'Herbal Scent Shield'.
"I don't even want to know what that is."
"It's for space bugs. Plus, it's also useful against nosy crew members." Eric slowly muttered the final part of his words so that a certain someone wouldn't hear him.
"I heard that." Tessa frowned cutely and Eric crackled before turning toward Drake.
"Trust me man, you'll love it "
But Tessa scoffed loudly before Drake could say anything. "Yeah right. Don't let him fool you Drake. He once sprayed himself with that thing before going on a date two weeks ago because he thought it made him smell more "masculine"."
"And it worked?" Drake asked.
"Yep." Eric replied proudly but Tessa replied at the same time as well.
"Nope. She left him after ten minutes."
"Well duh, that's because she couldn't handle my masculinity." Eric gestured at his slim body but Drake shook his head with a smile.
Just like Tessa, Eric had become a close friend of his, since they became crew members a few months ago.
And right now, Drake wouldn't have it any other way.
Leaving that aside for now, the trio moved towards their assigned seats, and then Drake spotted someone already sitting and waiting for them.
It was Dr. Alaric Rami.
Alaric noticed the trio stepping closer to have their seats and he simply nodded at them, barely even acknowledging their presence.
Seeing this, Tessa scoffed softly before sitting close to Drake and whispering so that only him would hear. "Silent as always."
"Well, you should be used to it by now." Drake whispered back.
"True, but shouldn't he socialize more?"
"Unlike us, he's a scientist, so he prefers to keep to himself."
Tessa huffed but didn't remark any further.
Instead, she strapped herself in, just like everyone else and then the cabin hissed as the pressure sealed and the lights dimmed.
Looking outside, the sky remained calm but Drake steeled his mind for what they were about to do.
"Breathe," He whispered to himself. "This is what you trained for. It's what you wanted and there's no room for being afraid right now. So just breathe and relax." He reminded himself but Drake didn't notice Tessa watching him with a smile on her lips.
Moments later, the shuttle rumbled as it broke through the upper atmosphere.
Drake's head thudded softly against the seat cushion with each shake and his stomach churned a bit, but it wasn't only from the turbulence.
It was also because of the thought he had about their main destination.
And it was none other than a planet called Gehenna.
Little was known about this planet, but so far, all they know about Gehenna was that it was an uncharted world beyond safe travel routes.
There's currently no permanent human colonies residing there, but there's been speculation that it could very much be suitable for humans to live in.
After all, the world humanity knew as home was slowly dying, so it only made sense for them to find a suitable replacement to call home before their beloved planet completely gets destroyed.
While still in motion, Eric noticed Drake's current expression and he couldn't help but tease. "Dude, you look like you're about to hurl. You sure you're okay, man?"
"Yeah, I am. Thanks for the concern." Drake gave him a thumbs up without opening his eyes.
"Well, I'm just saying, if you throw up near me, I'm spraying you with Smart Fresh."
Smartfresh was an agricultural product used to preserve both fruits and vegetables, so it definitely wasn't going to be used to make Drake smell clean after puking.
"You'll be arrested for murder if you spray it on me." Drake retorted back and Eric laughed without saying more.
Meanwhile, Tessa remained silent, simply listening to what the two men were discussing about.
She could have joined in the conversation, but she decided not to.
Hours passed, and they finally made it to orbit.
Then they got transferred to the long-range ship that would drop them into Gehenna's orbit in two weeks.
Two weeks was a lot of time, so it was more than enough for Drake and the crew to prepare for their journey to Gehenna.
Later that night, Drake sat by himself at the observation deck, staring out at the stars.
He was holding the small blue crystal again but before he knew it, Drake suddenly felt a bucket of foam falling over his head.