I wake to a world of pure white, bound to a table. Creatures with grey flesh surround me. Their beady black eyes light up with interest.

“Our specimen, she is awake,” the one to the right of me says.

“What?” I cry out. My arms try and wrestle from the restraints. A small beep sounds, and the restrains tighten. “Are you going to cut me open? Experiment on me?”

“No, we are not,” The one on my left says. “The restraints are for the sake of your protection. We know humans have an aggressive fight or flight response, so we had to keep yourself and other from getting hurt. All we want is the answer to a difficult question our species has been studying.”

I recheck my surroundings, see if there are hidden cameras or other people in the room. My heart decends, slows as I trust we are completely alone. “Alright, what do you want to know?”

The alien to my right gets out a clipboard. “What is love?” He asks.

I give them a confused stare, while the aliens wait with anticipation and hope for the answers that’ll provide for their research. My shoulders move up and down. “I don’t know.”

The scratching sound of a pen on paper is heard. I continue.

“I mean, it’s a very complex subject. There is so much to love and relationships, I don’t think I can fully describe it to you.”

The alien stops his writing. “That will not matter. Give us as much as you can.” He reaches out his hand to me. Wet, thick slime slides off his smooth skin onto mine. I want to wretch.

“Okay then, if you say so.”

I take a breath, and begin.

“Love is a connection that two people have for each other. It involves trust, communication, and most of all commitment. Loyalty is important as well. These things may sound easy, but because of how many people exist on Earth, it often can be difficult. Love isn’t promised to everyone in the world.”

“Why not?” The alien to my left asks. “Don’t humans have to love in order to procreate?”

I shake my head. “Many people do not want children. Not only is it expensive, but it takes a lot to raise one.”

“Oh, I see. Continue.”

My palms begins to sweat. “Uhm, well, you have to learn what you do and don’t like in a partner. In order for you to learn, you may have to experience some toxic boyfriends or girlfriends. And there are a lot of toxic people in the dating world, especially men. It’s ridiculous.”

“What do you mean by toxic? Do men spit acid on Earth?”

I chuckle. “No they don’t. They just have really bad qualities. For example, they may cheat a lot, or they’re lazy, or they’re manipulative. There’s a lot of things you have to look out for.”

The alien on the right stops taking notes. “Ok then! That’s all we need!”

“Wait, I’m not done yet.”

He puts the notebook down. “We have all the information we need. After you are sent back to Earth, you will forget about this interaction.”

And with the press of a button, I am awake in my bedroom. The purple night shirt I had on clings to my body in a cold sweat. My memory is darkness.

All I can find is a wet, sticky substance on my hand.