Fear of Firecrackers: An Apocalyptic Fairytale, #8

By Serena Walken

When a hero sees his father die as a boy, he conquers his phobia by returning to Earth each year for Independence Day. Although he can only visit once a year, he finds himself something more important than Earth Fireworks. A woman that makes him hiccup bubbles.

Alicia was raised on Earth which willingly rejects the modern day technology of outer space. She falls for an alien hero she met as her best friend's innocent cousin. With the strict rules that must be followed between Earth and the colonies, each year she gets bolder to be with him. Especially as she starts hiccuping bubbles.

With only one day permitted to see each other a year, will they figure out a way to end up together?

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Serena Walken
• Release date: Jul 2, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201097219

Serena Walken

Serena Walken likes to write fantasy, sometimes whimsical or sometimes dark. She lives in Kansas with her wonderful daughter. She enjoys writing stories for a more broad-based audience and it's usually romantic but not always. https://www.patreon.com/serenawalken is where you can find more exclusive books and writing of hers. You can also find her on several other sites like Tumblr, Wattpad, Webnovel, and more writing for free and for paid.

Book preview

Fear and Firecrackers (Fourth of July Romance)

An Apocalyptic Fairytale

Copyright 2024 Serena Walken. Previously published under Serena Spacey.

All rights reserved.

These books are works of fiction. Names, characters, places, and events are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Introduction

~ALICIA~

At the age of nine, I was getting a little freedom from the tiny backyard explosions. We would be watching the fireworks display, and I was given permission to go visit with my best friend Candace for a little while. Her family was only a few vehicles away.

That’s when I first saw him. He wore jeans and a yellow muscle shirt. His hair was wild, the result of the July winds that night. He wasn’t muscular, just a kid like me, but he had a strange scar along his nose. He was lying on top of the hood with his arms behind his head.

This is my cousin, Candace said as she gestured to him. Hey, scoot over, we want to see too. Candace pushed me towards the car, and I got on the hood. Candace sat on the top of the car while I laid side by side next to her friend.

Hey, he said. Good to meet you, Alicia. Happy Birthday.

I looked at him. Candace obviously told him about me, but she didn’t give me his name. I waited a second since she was just on top, but she was too distracted, and I didn’t want to be rude. Uh, thanks, Mister Fourth of July.

He laughed, unoffended. All three of us watched the fireworks that night. I didn’t say another word to him until it was time to go. I hopped off the hood, joining Candace on the ground. I gave her a gentle hug goodbye and promised to see her in school tomorrow. For Mister Fourth of July, I gave him a wave, and he gave a slight nod of his head. Then I guess for a joke, he blew a bubble out of his mouth. I chuckled and so did he.

It was a onetime thing, and I didn’t expect to see him again. He should have been one of those strangers you get to know for a night, but never recall.

~Mister Fourth of July~

I was just hanging’ out with my cousin Candace’s weird car at the fairground when I saw her again from last year. Alicia Alamillo. Girls weren’t my life yet, back then. I felt something the first time I met her, but I thought it was in my head. I was too young for what I had been feeling, so I ignored it and barely talked to her that year. This time, I felt that same weird connection again. I didn’t know what it was until I became older. All I knew at that moment was I wanted to know her better.  She was wearing a pink T-shirt, some pink flowered flip flops, a headband and a pair of bike shorts. It wasn’t anything special, but I don’t know. 

Then again, she was an Earthling. An exotic type, born on the origin planet many had come from. The first time I came had been only as a type of vacation with my parents. Originally a small ancient holiday, the Fourth of July was chosen as the day Earth expanded into living in its first colony. From there came more colonies, then planets, and then moving into other galaxies.

Very few of the original people still existed. The ones that were a hundred percent Earthling, no other kind of DNA inside of them. They only existed on Earth. At first, I thought that was what triggered my reactions.

When I told my parents I somehow had a bubble come out of my mouth around her, they knew. They had already set up my cousin Candace’s family to host me one day, once a year. To celebrate.

That’s because they knew what I hadn’t. Bubbles meant I’d already found someone I liked. It turns out that some of my ancestors had problems finding suitable companions. They were often paired off because they didn't get along affectionately with others often.

When a pair did work, they usually blew bubbles because of their loving hormones. It's strange, I know, I thought so too but my dad explained it was just nature balancing out production with power.

Normally if that happened at a young age, action would be taken right away to make sure the two stayed together for the best chances of understanding that love when they grew older.

Earth was a neutral zone. Villains couldn’t invade, and heroes couldn’t invade it. So, my family already knew it was risky to say anything else about it. They only hoped that as I grew up and kept attending the festivities, that one day the Earthling would also like me back.

They kept that secret from everyone though.

Including me back then.

Chapter One: Twelve

EARTH

~Mister Fourth of July~

Candace jumped straight up to the top of the car. She jumped too hard and got criticized by her mom on the inside of the car.

Come on over, Alicia, Candace called to her friend. She wanted her to sit up at the top, but I hoped she didn’t go.

Instead, she hopped on the hood and laid down beside me.  That will hurt my neck, you should come down here.

Whatever, Candace complained. Lay next to Mister Fourth of July then.

I looked up towards Candace. Your friend’s just got taste, Candace. The hood is better. I held out my hand to her. Hey, Alicia, was it? She accepted my handshake and broke into a smile. The curves of her mouth showed some dimples. Just like that, I was glad I came.

Hey again, Mister Fourth of July, she said to me. Yep, I still had the nickname.

So, Alicia, Candace tells me that you want to be an artist, I asked her. What kind?

Computer design.

Oh, cool. Computers are cool. That’s cool. I rubbed my head and realized I wasn’t coming off as good as I had wanted.

Oh so cool, Candace teased me making it worse. It’s all cool. Everything’s cool. Fireworks are cool.

Shut up Candace, I warned her.

The rest of the night, we didn’t talk to each other much. When the fireworks were over, her family arrived with their car beside ours. Alicia gave a brief wave to me as she hopped down off the hood.

See you next year, I said, trying to beat out the occasional nod I gave her last year.

I watched as her mom chuckled from their car. He seems particularly nice. It’s quite warm out here, isn’t it? Let’s go home, and maybe your cheeks will stop glowing red.

Mom, Alicia whined. I didn’t blame her. I was kind of blushing too, but I didn’t have anyone pointing it out.

After they had left, Candace shouldered me. You were blushing too.

Well, I thought I didn’t have anyone to point it out.

Colony: A111111: First!

I was eating my breakfast, getting ready to go down for Earth for the Fourth of July. It was the only time we could come down. Well, I mean technically, we got to visit one day a year on Earth. Earth was very . . . Earth-centric? Centuries ago, some people believed that as people of Earth moved out and among the stars, found new species to exchange technology with, and expand that Earthlings would be phased out. Therefore, a bunch of people signed and willed themselves to stay and keep themselves traditionally ‘pure’. They didn’t use any of the new technology that came from other worlds or colonies. Instead, their government tended to mix older decades around, depending on their exact area. Alicia was from the original thirteen colonies of America’s Ancient area, so that dictated what rubric they used. Aunt Cheryl’s car for instance, was a retro 1980 style, the clothes were more of a 1960’s style, and I think the language was 1990 slang? Shoot, I hope that was right. Mom made me study Earth’s strange culture extensively since part of the family was from