Rivers of Orion

how they’re holdin’ up. Not entirely sure what to get Orin or Eridani for the holidays, but I’d wager Aurora’s got ideas. She always picks just the right gifts for everyone. He turned the music up loud enough to drown out the argument that had escalated to yelling and empty threats. Much better.
Fluidly pitching forward as she moved, Paradisum passed a dozen moored service vessels. Airlocks and walkways linked each of them to the upper ring. Exterior lamps shone brightly above every door and socket, creating a sea of dull green gradients. After Paradisum had completed her maneuver—with her top hatch now parallel to the upper ring—station docking clamps engaged. The sound rang through the vessel.
“Here we are,” said the captain with a relieved grin.
“That took long enough,” said Judge.
Overhead, a sealed passage engaged the tug’s main airlock, and minutes passed in awkward silence as air rushed through the vents. At last, the external hatch indicator flashed, “ENGAGED.” The captain climbed the rungs to the interior hatch and threw it open.
While Judge and the captain figured out who was responsible for which reports, Oliver removed his earphones, coiled them around his fingers and stuffed them into his jumpsuit. He unhooked his harness, stood up, and took a moment to feel the pull of the station’s centrifugal gravity. As soon as he felt stable, he took up his duffle bag, stretched, and crossed the deck to the exit hatch. “See you guys in two weeks.”
“See you, Ollie,” said the captain.
“Enjoy the break,” said Judge.
Oliver nodded and exited the vessel. He soon traveled a dull white passage, hardly aware of the viewports that offered an unfettered starlight vista. He fished his phone from his duffle bag, put his headphones back on, and dialed.
After a moment, a woman answered, and her projected hologram blossomed into view. “Aurora Webb,” her label read. She stood tall, with dark-and-white hair tied back in a sensible ponytail.
“Hey, Little Lady,” he intoned, his voice smooth and deep.
Her eyes lit up. “Hey, Cowboy.”
“I miss you.”
“You’d better get your butt home, then.”
He laughed. “What about the rest of me?”
“It can come, too.” She smiled tenderly. “Where are you?”
“Just docked.”
She nodded. “About three hours out, then?”
“If the shuttles are runnin’ on time. I’ll call again when I’m planet-side.”
Beaming now, she said, “I can’t wait!”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too. Come home!”
His mustache shifted over half a smile. “Be there before you know it.” With a wistful sigh, Oliver ended the call and crossed into the main ring. A thoroughfare arched upward in both directions, covered in cinematic one-sheets, fast food ads, and political posters. Slipping between the scattered masses, he soon reached the commons, where he exchanged greetings with a familiar coffee shop barista.
He paid for a cup of piping hot medium roast and eased down on a comfortable stool, seated before a high table. Gingerly, he sipped and let his thoughts wander. The quiet murmuring of the space station echoed around him. He daydreamed of Aurora, and he imagined a dozen places they might visit during his leave.
In time, he got back to his feet and glanced along the footpath leading to the shuttle terminals. He tossed his cup into a waste basket and caught sight of a young woman approaching swiftly. Briefly making eye contact, she brightened and waved her fingertips. “You look like you know your way around here,” she said. Waist-length, blue-black hair tumbled across her dark brown eyes.
Oliver pointed toward the nearest information kiosk. “See that young man over there? It’s his job to answer questions.”
“Yeah, but you look a lot friendlier.” She gestured toward him. “What’s with the jumpsuit?”
“Fresh off a prison ship.”
“Ha. Your jumpsuit’s blue, not orange,” she said.
Oliver’s mustache shifted over an exaggerated smirk. “Oh, now I get it.”
“Get, uh, get what?”
“Now I know why everyone in the yard was pokin’ fun.”
She tried to follow. “Wait, what?”
Leaning in close, eyes narrow, he said, “Miss, I’m color blind.”
“You’re color blind.” With an uneasy laugh, she said, “I didn’t know.”
Chuckling to himself, he stood straight and regarded her evenly. “Just havin’ a little fun. Truth be told, I navigate for the colonial recyc fleet.”
She looked genuinely impressed. “That sounds exceptionally interesting.”
“It’s not, but it pays the bills.” He nodded her way. “Ollie’s my name.”
“I’m Amaya Nikuya, but you can call me Frostshadow.” She flashed her badge.
“You’re a binary.”
Her eyes brightened. “I am!”
“Now that sounds intrestin’.”
With a whimsical laugh, she said, “It pays the bills! Did you come from New Falkirk? I’m dying to visit! I hear it’s so green, you can’t even believe how green it is.”
“Wouldn’t know.” Oliver sipped and inserted the stopper. “Been there a hundred times, and never got farther than the space station.”
She moved in closer, grazing his hand as she retrieved a splash stick of her own. Leaning forward on the table, she gazed at him. “What’s it look like from space?”
He winced and pulled away. “Got big plans for that?”
“Excuse me?”
With a nod, he indicated the stopper. “You got no coffee, and you never ordered one. You come all this way for the free plugs?”
“No, I—”
“You can stop right there. Been around long enough to know people what look like you only flirt with people what look like me for one of two reasons: you’re sellin’ sex, or you want somethin’ you can’t get for yourself. Since you’re a binary, I highly doubt it’s the latter.”
She blushed. “Maybe you just caught my eye.”
“Only one set of eyes I care to catch.” He tapped his gold wedding band. “I’d sooner cut out my own heart than break hers, so maybe you should just move along.”
“Oh, uh,” she stammered. “Sorry to bother you.”
“It’s no bother.” After another sip, he excused himself, headed for the shuttle terminals.
Immediately, her expression hardened, and she followed him at a distance.
Dim light trickled along the boarding passage, and a cold gust blasted Oliver as he embarked. Alone for the moment, he took a seat near the back. He checked his phone for the time. Pausing to