We sat there like that for a while. Her in my lap. trying not to wince every ti she shifted weight. The drain cycling slowly between us.
This was nice.
Quiet. Comfortable. No imdiate crisis requiring attention.
My phone buzzed.
I checked it expecting the delivery confirmation.
Instead found a ssage from Noel.
We need to establish protocols for Monday’s conversation.
I’ve prepared seventeen questions requiring honest answers.
Attached is a preliminary outline of topics to be discussed.
I opened the attachnt. Found a three page docunt. Single spaced. Color coded.
"Jesus Christ."
ra looked over my shoulder. "Is that Noel?"
"Yeah."
"She made a presentation about interrogating you?"
"Apparently."
"That’s kind of hot actually."
"How is that hot?"
"The dedication. The organization. The barely contained fury underneath all that professionalism." She kissed my neck. "Very sexy."
"Your definition of sexy needs work."
"My definition is perfect."
The shower turned off. Cheon would be out in a minute. Perfectly dried and organized because that’s how she did everything.
I typed back to Noel.
ok. see you monday
Short. Simple. Non-committal.
She responded imdiately.
That’s insufficient. I need confirmation that you’ll answer honestly.
yeah i will
How can I verify that?
you can’t. you just have to trust
The dots appeared. Stayed there a long ti.
Fine. Monday. 4pm. Conference room 2-B. Don’t be late.
wouldn’t dream of it
I locked my phone. Dropped it on the couch.
ra was grinning. "She’s going to murder you Monday."
"Probably."
"You’re not worried?"
"I won today. I’ll worry about Monday on Monday."
"That’s terrible planning."
"It’s realistic planning."
Cheon erged from the bathroom. Hair damp. Wearing one of my shirts and nothing else. The hem fell to mid-thigh on her.
My brain stopped working properly.
She walked to the bedroom. Pulled clothes from the dresser. Disappeared back into the bathroom to change.
ra watched watching Cheon. "You’re staring."
"She’s wearing my shirt."
"So?"
"So that’s my shirt. On her body. Which she just showered. While wet. And now everything slls like her soap."
"You’re such a guy."
"You say that like it’s a bad thing."
"It’s predictable."
"Predictable works."
Cheon ca back out wearing actual clothes. Dark grey sweats and a white tank top. Still looked incredible sohow.
She sat on the couch next to . "Your turn."
"Don’t use all the hot water."
"I used appropriate amounts."
I stood up. Winced. Ribs hated movent.
Walked to the bathroom. Stripped down. Examined the damage in the mirror.
Bruises covered my torso. Dark purple spreading across my ribs. Smaller ones on my arms and legs. Scratch marks down my back from where ra’s nails had dug in last night.
I looked like I’d been in a war.
Technically I had been.
Just different kinds of battles.
The shower helped. Hot water loosened tight muscles. Washed away dried sweat and arena dust.
I stayed in longer than necessary. Let my mind drift.
Tomorrow Aurora would show up. Want answers about the drain. About what happened when I held her hand.
I couldn’t lie. Not completely. She’d know.
But I couldn’t tell her everything either. Not about the system. Not about the quest. Not about needing to build a harem to survive.
That conversation would go poorly.
So I’d tell her enough. About the drain. About copying abilities through intimacy. About how it reacted to her without my permission.
She’d probably freak out.
Ask if I was using it on purpose.
If ra and Cheon knew.
If she was in danger.
All reasonable questions.
All complicated answers.
I turned off the water. Dried off. Wrapped the towel around my waist and walked out.
Found both girls on the couch. ra’s head in Cheon’s lap. Cheon’s fingers running through ra’s black hair.
They looked comfortable.
Like they’d been friends for years instead of days.
"Food here yet?" I asked.
"Ten more minutes," Cheon said.
I got dressed. Black sweats. Grey shirt. Comfortable clothes for a comfortable evening.
The doorbell rang right on ti.
I grabbed the delivery. Tipped extra because the guy had climbed forty floors. Brought everything to the kitchen.
We ate on the couch. Pizza and breadsticks and soda. Nothing fancy. Nothing complicated.
ra told stories about her match. How she’d opened gates to redirect projectiles back at her opponents. How one guy had thrown a fireball through her portal and hit himself in the face.
Cheon described their strategy. How Nolan absorbed damage while Aurora provided covering fire. How they’d won in under eight minutes.
I listened. Ate. Felt the day’s tension slowly bleed out.
This was good.
This was exactly what I needed.
My phone buzzed one more ti.
Aurora again.
i’m nervous about tomorrow
why?
because you make nervous
and i don’t know why
I stared at those words. Read them three tis.
She was being honest. More honest than she’d been during coffee yesterday.
That ant sothing.
I typed back.
don’t be nervous
we’ll just talk
nothing scary
promise
The dots appeared. Disappeared. Appeared again.
okay. see you tomorrow
yeah. see you tomorrow
I locked my phone. Set it face down on the coffee table.
ra noticed. "Everything good?"
"Yeah. Everything’s good."
"You sure? You’ve got that face."
"What face?"
"The one where you’re thinking too hard about sothing."
"I’m always thinking."
"Exactly. It’s exhausting."
Cheon’s hand found mine. Squeezed once. "Aurora will be fine. You’ll explain things. She’ll either accept it or she won’t. But either way you tried."
"That’s surprisingly optimistic coming from you."
"I have my monts."
We finished eating. Cleaned up. Moved to the bedroom.
ra stripped imdiately. Climbed under the covers naked because clothes were apparently optional in her world.
Cheon changed into actual pajamas. Blue silk shorts and matching top that she’d bought yesterday.
I got in the middle. Both of them pressed against my sides.
"Ribs," I said when ra tried to roll on top of .
"Fine. I’ll be good."
"You’re never good."
"True. But I’ll try."
Cheon’s head found my shoulder. "Thank you for today."
"For what?"
"For trusting your team. For not trying to do everything alone."
"Had good people watching my back."
"We did okay."
"Better than okay Panda."
She smiled. Closed her eyes.
ra’s tail wrapped around my leg. Her hand rested on my chest. Right over my heart.
"Tomorrow’s going to be complicated," she said.
"Yeah."
"You ready for it?"
"No."
"Good. Honesty."
"Always."
She kissed my shoulder. "We’ve got you. Whatever happens."
"I know."
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