Gaia

Eli tried not to fidget in his tux. He held a flute of champagne in his hand but wasn't actually drinking it. He just didn't know what else to do with his hands. Jeremiah stopped by for a while to chat, but quickly got sidetracked by all the beautiful women in skin tight dresses and went off in search of a dance partner. Eli rolled his eyes, abandoning the still untouched champagne on a tray carried by one of the glittering androids.

He noticed a few women shooting coy smiles in his direction, Renee among them. She was wearing s black dress and was clearly trying to catch his eye but all he could think was that she must never wear any other color. He thought she was going to approach him but another man swooped in to ask her to dance and Eli edged closer to the outer rim of the room.

That's when he spotted Mari sitting at a table, all by herself. Her arms were crossed and she was staring at the tabletop. Eli knew he should probably leave her be and focus on keeping an eye on his security staff. But he felt a tug of sympathy and concern, and found his feet carrying him to her table without his permission. As soon as he got closer he could see that her shoulders were hunched and she looked like she was fighting the urge to cry. He pulled out a chair and sat next to her.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing," she mumbled, not meeting his gaze.

"Why are you about to cry, then?"

"I'm not," she said, turning her face away. He could see the flush creeping up her neck and recognized the look of humiliation.

"Marilyn," he said calmly. "Who was mean to you?"

The question seemed to catch her completely off guard and she actually did turn to look at him now.

"No one was mean to me," she replied and he gave her a pointed look.

"Haven't we established that you're a bad liar?" He quirked an eyebrow. "What happened?"

She dropped her gaze, playing with the fabric of her blue skirt. "I...literally ran into Ella Stellar," she said quietly. Eli's jaw clenched slightly. It figured. He didn't really need to know any more than that but Mari continued in a quiet mumble.

"She said I needed mods, and some other stuff."

"You don't need any mods," he said without thinking. Mari paused in picking at her dress and looked up at him. He cleared his throat, feeling suddenly awkward. "Wait here. I'll get you something to drink."

He stood and went in search of a new champagne glass, this time finding one with strawberries in it. In his way back to the table he was intercepted by none other than Ella Stellar herself.

"Eli," she purred. "It's so nice to see you again. I'm glad you could make it."

"It's my job to be here," he replied stiffly. She reached out to touch his arm, giving him a sultry smile.

"I was hoping to maybe snag a dance with you," she said. "I'm really liking this classic tuxedo look on you."

He stared back at her, expression unwavering. Over her shoulder, he could see Mari at her table, seeming like she was trying to disappear into her seat, cheeks red. Without really knowing why, he found himself stepping out of Ella's reach. He made it a point to make his voice a little louder than it really needed to be as he answered her.

"Perhaps some other time, Miss Stellar. I was actually about to ask this lovely woman to dance." He sidestepped her and went straight to Mari, who looked up at him with a stunned expression, like she couldn't believe this was happening. She accepted the glass of champagne he handed her. Eli stood there watching her, waiting patiently for her reply. He still had a view of Ella, and the smile had been wiped from her face.

"I'd love to dance with you," Mari murmured, taking his offered hand almost shyly. Ella's lips were pressed into a thin, angry line.

"I do apologize, Miss Stellar," Eli said, leading Mari out into the thick of the dancers.

"Why did you do that?" Mari asked as he rested a hand on her waist. She sneaked a glance toward Ella, who was sweeping off with her nose in the air.

"I told you, she's vain. I find her to be a most unpleasant woman, and she has no right to look down on people like she does."

"You're from the Ground and she sure seemed interested in you," Mari remarked.

"I look good in a tux, apparently," he replied blandly. Her lips twitched up in a faint smile. Progress. He didn't know why he felt so compelled to make her smile, but she had wanted so badly to come to the party and meet Ella, and Eli thought she deserved to have fun instead of being ridiculed. He moved her all around the floor, pointing out important people at the party and telling her jokes about them or doing silly impersonations until he had her laughing.

"Come on, I have something to show you," he said, leading her away from the thick of the party. They went down a curving hallway and up a short flight of steps and he brought her to the Sky Deck. Through the haze of lights it was usually difficult to see the stars in Gaia, even from this high up. But it was still remarkable to peer up through the completely clear dome of a ceiling and see an endless expanse of night sky overhead. The dome was currently closed and Mari looked puzzled as he told her to wait in the center of the room.

"Eli, what are you-"

"Just wait," he instructed. He flipped the lever into the ON position and Mari looked up as the thick shutter on the dome began to roll back. It was like watching a flower bloom and Mari gasped as the sky came into view. The Sky Deck was even higher than the top floor penthouses, above the lights and the smog. It was so high it almost felt like you could reach out and touch the stars that you could actually see.

"It's amazing," Mari breathed. "I never even knew this was here. I never knew the sky could look like that."

Eli came to stand next to her, looking up. "I think of all the things I've seen up here, this has to be one of the best," he said. "See that, right there? It's the Cancer constellation. The crab."

He leaned down slightly, bringing his eye level even with hers and pointing.

"Yeah, I can see it," she said softly, nodding eagerly. He caught a whiff of a delicate floral scent when she moved and he realized how close he was standing to her. He straightened, his stomach doing an odd lurch. Mari kept looking up, spinning in circles to try and take it all in. She tripped, laughing, and Eli caught her before she could fall.

"Do you really think I'm lovely?" she asked and Eli almost dropped her.

"Ah-what?" he asked.

"You told Ella you were going to dance with me and that I was lovely." She smoothed her dress, seeming self-conscious. "Ella said I looked like I was from the Ground."

"Ella Stellar is so modified she barely counts as human anymore," Eli said dismissively. "You are from the Ground, so you look real."

"Is that a good thing?"

"Of course it's a good thing. Forget Ella, she just doesn't like competition."

Mari laughed. "Yeah, right. Like I could ever compete with her."

"I noticed a lot of guys looking at you when we got there."

"Because I obviously don't belong there, probably."

"Because you look beautiful," Eli said and then cursed himself. His mouth seemed to have lost all good sense. Mari blushed, peering up at him through her lashes.

"You really think so?" She smoothed her dress again. Apparently Eli's brain had taken the night off and his mouth was free to do whatever it wanted.

"Of course I think so," he said, his voice quiet and serious. She smiled a little, her face turning pinker.

"It's getting late," he said, trying to change the subject.

"Please, can we just stay a little longer?" She looked up at him imploringly and he couldn't do anything but agree. They stayed on the Sky Deck for almost another hour before he noticed her eyes starting to droop.

"You should go home and go to bed," he said, placing a hand lightly on her back to guide her out into the hall after he'd shut the dome again. She seemed tired but happy as they walked back through the halls and he hoped her night had ended better than it started. Eli walked her all the way to her own front door.

"Thanks for letting me go to the party," she said sleepily, lifting her her face and kissing his cheek.

"You're welcome. Now get some sleep." He took her shoulders and gently ushered her through the door. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and made his way home, still able to smell a trace of her perfume.