Page 58 of I Think I’m in Love with an Alien

This time, we all shout, “Yeah!”

“Perfect. Now I know you’re awake. First question! What’s the name of Lando Calrissian’s ship?”

I ring my dinner bell immediately. Poppy and Tad are ringing theirs too. More bells are heard after.

“Misfit Toys were first. Your answer?”

“The Millennium Falcon!” I shout.

“Oooh, so sad. That’s incorrect!” The quizmaster calls on someone else.

“Lady Luck!”

“That’s the response we were looking for!”

I mutter beneath my breath. “That was a trick question.”

According to forum discussions, Lando never should have relinquished the Millennium Falcon to Han, and then there was the question of cheating in that sabacc game. But I guess this trivia contest wants straightforward answers only.

Poppy pats my arm, leaning over to whisper, “I was gonna say that too.”

It’s like I’ve jinxed us, however. We don’t win a bell ring after that, and other teams go up on the board like lightning while we’ve yet to score a point. I sigh quietly.

“Time for a bonus round!” The quizmaster’s eyes gleam beneath an alien-antenna headband. “In which episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation does Data first use contractions?”

“Ugh, I’ve never even watched TNG,” Tad mutters.

“Come on,” Poppy whispers, nudging me. “You’re the Trekkie among us.”

Fortunately, the other teams seem just as confused. And that’s because there’s a whole thing about contractions, and the question itself is another trick. I ring the bell.

“Misfit Toys, trying to redeem themselves.”

“Data uses contractions in ‘Encounter at Farpoint,’ the pilot episode. But the episode that focuses on contractions is ‘Datalore.’”

“Correct on both counts!” The quizmaster points at us with an exaggerated flourish. “You’re on the board at last, Misfit Toys.”

There are a few more questions, but I don’t know anything about Blake’s 7 or Babylon 5. Neither do Tad and Poppy. The oldest team takes a significant lead.

“This is age discrimination,” Tad complains.

Poppy grins. “Ah, let the olds have it.”

The final scores are tallied, and I laugh. We’re second to last, a couple of points ahead of the team that spent half the contest arguing whether Han or Greedo shot first.

“Yikes,” Tad says. “I need a drink.”

“Hey, at least we beat the ‘Greedo’s Revenge’ squad.” Poppy gives a thumbs-up to the guys who are desperately trying to make eye contact with her.

“Meh, I play for fun, not for glory,” I say then.

“Oh thank God.” Poppy feigns relief. “My ex was such a sore loser. I had to stop teaming with her. Just before we broke up, she went off on me hard-core when we lost at Scattergories at board game night.”

“Ugh.” None of my exes were that competitive, and they dumped me for reasons that I privately think are bullshit—because they counted on me “growing up” and ceasing to be who I am.

Tad offers a shrug. “Something, something, the friends we made along the way?”

I grin. “Exactly. I’m so glad we’re doing this.”