ra sat on the couch watching Ro pace near the window.
Her chest hurt.
Not from the drain.
From sothing worse.
The realization that she had just given permission for the guy she was falling for to fuck other girls.
Less than forty-eight hours.
That was how long she had known Ro.
One day and a handful of orgasms that rewired her entire nervous system.
And now she was sitting here playing relationship counselor for his ability-stealing sex life.
Red flags did not even begin to cover it.
This was a fucking parade.
With fireworks.
And a marching band spelling out "BAD IDEA" in formation.
She should leave.
Pack up her duffel bag.
Walk out.
Block his number.
Pretend this never happened.
Except she could still feel him inside her.
The stretch.
The fullness.
The way he looked at her like she was the only person in the room.
Those eyes.
Grey and green.
Mismatched and perfect.
The way they focused on her face when he kissed down her body.
Fuck.
She was getting wet just thinking about it.
"ra?"
Ro stopped pacing.
Turned to look at her.
She snapped back to reality.
"What."
"You okay? You look. I don’t know. Distant."
"I’m fine. Just thinking."
"About?"
"About how this is insane and I should probably run."
He smiled.
Not smug.
Sothing softer.
"You’re not going to run."
"How do you know?"
"Because you already made your choice. And you don’t strike as soone who second-guesses herself."
ra wanted to argue.
Tell him he was wrong.
That she absolutely second-guessed herself all the ti.
But he was not wrong about this.
She had made her choice.
The mont she kissed him in that storage room.
The mont she let him inside her last night.
The mont she agreed to help him figure out how to sleep with other girls without losing his mind.
"You’re annoyingly perceptive."
"I know."
She leaned back into the couch.
Crossed her arms.
"Okay. So. Strategy. If you need high intimacy contact to keep abilities, you need to be smart about who you target."
"Target makes it sound predatory."
"It is predatory. You’re hunting abilities."
He sat down next to her.
Close enough that their thighs touched.
"I’m not hunting. I’m. Building connections."
"Right. Connections that require you to get naked."
"Yeah."
ra sighed.
Uncrossed her arms.
"Fine. Let’s think about this logically. You need girls with strong abilities. Girls who are willing. Girls who won’t report you to the NEA afterward."
"That last part is important."
"No shit. Which ans you need soone who either likes you already or has sothing to gain from the arrangent."
Ro nodded.
Listening.
Actually listening.
"School girls are accessible," ra continued. "But their abilities are still developing. You’d get weaker versions of whatever they have."
"True."
"Pro heroines would be better. Mature abilities. Fully developed. Higher output."
Ro laughed. "You think I can just walk up to a pro heroine and ask her to sleep with so I can steal her power?"
"You got Titan’s number."
"Titan is different."
"How."
"She’s. I don’t know. Professionally friendly. That doesn’t an she wants to fuck an eighteen year old freshman."
ra raised an eyebrow.
"You sure about that? Because the way she looked at you on the news footage seed pretty interested."
"Looking is not the sa as doing."
"True. But you won’t know unless you try."
Ro shook his head.
"Even if she was interested. Gigantification doesn’t fit my aesthetic."
ra stared at him.
"Your aesthetic."
"Yeah."
"You’re being picky about which superpowers to steal through sex."
"I’m being strategic."
"You’re being ridiculous."
Ro grinned.
Leaned back.
"Maybe. But I need abilities that work together. That complent each other. Random powers don’t help ."
ra wanted to punch him.
He was not wrong.
But the casual confidence was infuriating.
"Fine. So no Titan. What about school?"
"What about it?"
"You have hero training Friday afternoon. With the costus."
"Yeah. Joint session with Class 1-A and 1-C."
"Perfect. Scout there. See who stands out. Who has abilities worth copying."
Ro looked at her.
Sothing unreadable in his expression.
"This is surreal."
"What is."
"You. Helping plan which girls to sleep with."
"Yeah well. Soone has to manage this ss."
"Manage?"
ra stood.
Walked toward the kitchen.
Needed space.
Distance.
"You need a system. Otherwise you’re just going to fuck your way through the entire academy with no direction."
"That’s not the plan."
"Then what is the plan, Ro?"
She turned.
Faced him.
"Because from where I’m standing it looks like you’re winging it. And winging it gets you caught. Or worse."
Ro stood too.
Followed her into the kitchen.
Leaned against the counter.
"I don’t have a complete plan yet. But I know it’s not just about collecting abilities. The drain works better when the connection is real."
"So you need girls who actually like you."
"Yeah."
"That shouldn’t be hard. You’re rich. Hot. Mysterious. Every girl at Coastline probably already has a crush on you."
"Not every girl."
"Close enough."
Ro crossed his arms.
Studied her face.
"You’re really okay with this."
It was not a question.
More like disbelief.
ra leaned back against the counter opposite him.
"I’m not okay with it. But I’m doing it anyway."
"Why."
"Because the alternative is losing you completely. And I’m not ready for that."
The words hung between them.
Raw.
Honest.
ra hated how vulnerable they made her sound.
But they were true.
Ro closed the distance.
Stood in front of her.
Hands on either side of the counter.
Caging her in.
"You’re not going to lose ."
"You don’t know that."
"I do. Because I’m choosing to co back. Every ti."
ra looked up at him.
Those stupid perfect eyes.
Grey and green.
Focused entirely on her.
"You better."
He smiled.
Leaned down.
Kissed her.
Soft at first.
Then deeper.
His tongue sliding against hers.
The drain opened.
Warm and electric.
Flowing between them like a circuit completing.
ra’s hands found his chest.
Slid up to his shoulders.
Pulled him closer.
Ro’s hands moved to her waist.
Lifted her onto the counter.
Stepped between her legs.
The kiss never broke.
Just intensified.
His mouth moved to her neck.
Found the spot below her ear that made her gasp.
Bit down gently.
"Ro."
"Mm."
"We should. We should talk more about the plan."
"Later."
His hands slid up her thighs.
Under her skirt.
Fingers hooking into the waistband of her panties.
"I thought you wanted to strategize."
"I do. But I also want this."
ra’s head tilted back.
Her tail wrapped around his waist.
Pulled him flush against her.
She could feel him hard through his pants.
Pressing against her.
Making her core ache.
"You’re terrible at staying on task."
"You’re not stopping ."
"No. I’m not."
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