AnimeCon Harem 8: Feeling Overwhelmed (Patreon)

Brian was almost grateful for the girls’ sudden interruption—he hadn’t realized just how dangerously close to climaxing he’d been. An excuse to disengage helped support the illusion of stamina, of a staying power he didn’t honestly feel at all when actually making love to Kelly—it felt like he’d been a hair-trigger away from uncontrollably spurting her full of thick gouts of seed from the moment they started.

Kelly was too fucking sexy, and each glance at her exquisite features spurred him on even more. Her brilliant red hair, the lovely line of her neck, that healthy jiggle of that pair of breasts that looked so positively massive on her relatively slender figure. She was a wet dream, an impossibly sumptuous sight to drink in, a heady cocktail of desire exacerbating the already endorphin-fueled sex session that had Brian feeling like he was on the ropes and nearly tapping out from the get-go.

Which probably wouldn’t have impressed Kelly too much, after only… wait, just how long were we even at it for? Minutes? Hours? Brian thought. Hard to say. It’s probably feeling extra intense for me ‘cause I’m coming off of a... many-month dry spell, yeah. But, still… like, HOLY FUCK.

Brian’s first instinct at being caught in the act was still guilt and embarrassment, of course. Emily and Stephanie both wore awkward smiles as they hopped inside and closed the door behind them, but neither seemed the least bit upset at his and Kelly’s indiscretions. Everyone’s whole situation was incredibly ambiguous, and with Kelly blowing him in front of everyone earlier, it was almost like there was some sort of unspoken sharing agreement up in the air.

“W-we’re back!” Stephanie announced sheepishly. The seemingly-innocent pink-haired girl looked visibly torn between bashfully looking away from the sordid scene and stealing eager glances their way.

Her shy adoration hit his weak spots in ways even the temptation of Kelly’s incredibly seductive body couldn’t hope to rival. When it came to Stephanie, it was like he didn’t have any subconscious defenses at all, she was so open and easy to read that he trusted her without compunction. He watched her with interest, seeing her curiosity win out and those blue eyes finally glaze over with raw, fervent lust at the sight of his and Kelly’s naked bodies intertwined. She nibbled on her lip without stepping any closer, as if unsure of what to say.

There’s Kelly, and then Stephanie, Brian’s mind started to go blank at the sheer absurdity of it all. Now, there’s also Emily… what have I gotten myself into?

The way Emily’s adorable dark doe-eyes were half-hidden behind the shaggy dark bangs of her pixie-cut lent a certain nervous energy to the cheeky grin she wore. She was positively dazzling even with her Akane Kurokawa costume in disarray, and something about her posture, the way she was presenting herself had subtly changed, become more alluring somehow. Some last final barrier between them and naked intimacy was falling away, and Brian found himself feeling just as anxious about it as she looked.

Definitely need to start clearing all of this up, though. Everyone’s… status, Brian thought, gingerly pulling himself out of Kelly with an audible wet noise and moving to sit on the edge of the bed beside her.

“Ohhhh, Briannn…” Kelly complained in a mumble, weakly swatting a hand towards him. “Don’t stooop!”

His actual feelings towards Kelly couldn’t be any more complicated. Over the course of the weekend, he’d categorized Kelly’s supposed interest in him as one part idle attraction, one part impersonal need for gratification, and three parts her stubbornly trying to prove her ideology over his as a point of pride. He knew Kelly was the manipulative type, so after the whole Chloe mess, it’d been easy for him to fend her off, remain on guard and naturally recalcitrant to her flirtation. Right up until the story of her careening mess of a life ended up fiercely arousing his protective instinct, that is.

The sex just now felt right, though. Perfect. It was intense not for the physicality of it or even the pleasure—there was this surreal emotional connection that formed between him and this strikingly beautiful girl that he’d never anticipated. How much of it was his own wishful thinking—didn’t his actions still fly right in the face of how he was determined not to have a casual hook-up? Brian was almost afraid to think too much on it. Maybe after a certain point getting so turned on and worked up over it, he just stopped really caring and latched onto anything that was ‘enough’ to reasonably justify things to himself.

Which would... make me pretty disappointed in myself, Brian thought. They’re really not making it easy, though—look, they’re totally checking me out, they’re practically salivating.

Unfortunately, that didn’t make anything less conflicting for him. On some basic, primitive level it was hard not to tie in this perceived sexual prowess with some level of self-worth and accomplishment, especially after that rough break-up… but, there were niggling slivers of self-doubt and discomfort all the same. He tried to numb himself to their hungry stares with an uneasy laugh, slipping off the condom he was still wearing and tossing it into the room’s little wastebasket.

“Oh hey well, um! No, don’t stop on our account or anything!” Emily let out an awkward noise somewhere between a laugh and a snort. “Um. You want me and Steph to, uh, give you some privacy? We can go hang out by the pool for a little bit?”

When his semi-secret crush on Emily had been suddenly and unexpectedly unearthed, it revealed all the uncertain emotions he’d buried way back in high school, and they weren’t feelings that could be casually brushed aside. Stephanie definitely held a key to his heart, and Kelly was fiddling with the lock in a suspicious way, but Emily had long since had a place there within. She was right there with him through the darkest, most difficult times of his life, and in his mind, her position was almost inviolable, closer even than family. So much so that he’d never dared to ruin everything by acting on that crush he’d had back then.

“No no—don’t go,” Kelly shook her head, lazily gesturing them forward. “C’mon in, join us. What happened, Steph?”

Never even imagined I could feel this torn—I take back every gripe I ever made about anime harem protagonists and them being as dense as neutron stars, Brian thought to himself with a wry smile, glancing from girl to girl. They’re not dense, they’re just struggling to cope, to keep up with everything. Ordinary relationships are already too damned complex, this is gonna be... metaphysical trigonometry, or something.

Overwhelmed was an understatement—this wasn’t some straightforward crossroad of choices, this was a dizzying six-way intersection. Road signs were ambiguous, the other drivers were unexpectedly aggressive, and he wasn’t even sure which lane he was in anymore, let alone where he was heading. There was so much going on all jumbled up in his head now that he doubted even a dozen long morning runs would be enough for him to unpack it all and sort it out. A huge part of him feared he’d someday look back on this convention weekend as some sort of monumental fuckup of poor decisions; him being led around by his dick, unable to keep a clear head.

Chloe’s the only one making all of this simple, Brian thought ruefully. Never thought I’d appreciate her going to extremes and burning bridges to this extent. This is all… this is crazy. Right? Involved with three girls at once? Simultaneously?

“It, um…” Stephanie shared a nervous glance with Emily, avoiding Kelly’s gaze and fidgeting in place. “You were right, Kelly. I shouldn’t have gone.”

“We were all just talking, and Chloe all the sudden flips the fuck out!” Emily exclaimed with an animated expression. “She starts like, wailing on Steph outta fuckin’ nowhere, actually hitting her, so I tackle her down, and—”

“She what?” Brian interjected, forgetting his own nakedness and rising up off of the bed in anger.

“Steph, come here, let me take a look,” Kelly abruptly sat up as well, her eyes flashing dangerously. “She actually fucking hit you?”

“Umm,” Stephanie brushed pink tufts of shoulder-length hair out of the way on one side to show them her cheek. “Yes, I mean—a bit. It was scary, but Emily was all over her right away, and—”

“Oh, yeah! Man, I was all like, bam bam bam bam!” Emily punched out a flurry of excited fists in demonstration. “Woomph, bam, pow! It was fuckin’ awesome, I’ve never really even fought with anyone besides my little sister—”

“Rebecca heard Chloe scream,” Stephanie continued, “she was… in the shower helping Megan, but she rushed out and broke them up. Rebecca’s really amazing!”

“And then!” Emily froze, flashing Stephanie a look. “Oh wait, that part’s still a secret. Right?”

“Um, um, Emily got hurt too!” Stephanie quickly added. “Chloe, she, she scratched up Emily’s arm, before Rebecca could separate them.”

“Come over here by the light and let me take a look,” Brian said, guiding Stephanie over towards the vanity beside the bathroom and flicking on the brighter light there above the sink and mirror. “Both of you.”

“Mine’s not even bad all,” Emily followed the two over. “Just scratches. Elbow to the face I got here was way worse. Oh! Rebecca ran out wearing just a towel and about ended up flashing everyone out in the hallway over there! You shoulda seen it.”

“I knew something like this would happen,” Kelly growled, slowly climbing up off the bed and joining them by the mirror. “This is why I told you not to go, Steph.”

“You were right,” Stephanie smiled up at her as Brian inspected her cheek. “I knew you were. It’s just… something I had to experience for myself anyways.”

Cold, dark anger stilled Brian’s veins as he examined her— like the elbow to the face Emily’d taken earlier, the side of Stephanie’s cheekbone was red and enflamed where she’d been hit. The quiet girl flinched a bit as he tenderly traced fingers along her head—her ear was red and from where Steph was feeling sensitive she’d gotten knocked pretty hard alongside the head.

Should have been there with her, Brian admonished himself. Instead I was here, fooling around with Kelly. God damn. Shouldn’t have let her go with them, I should’ve known something might happen.

“Emily, you’re still mostly dressed—run out and fill the ice bucket real fast?” Kelly asked.

“On it, Red Leader!” Emily snapped a salute so eagerly that the edge of her hand bounced off of her forehead. “Ow.”

“Red Leader?” Kelly scowled at the enthusiastic little Latina that was hurrying for the door.

“Yeah,” Emily grinned, twisting the doorknob. “I mean—I feel bad, I didn’t actually think we’d uh, be interrupting anything. You guys can, um, keep going at it. Don’t you worry ‘bout us!”

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” Kelly swiped the room’s ice bucket off of the vanity countertop and waggled it.

“Uh,” Emily gave them a sheepish grin, turning back from the door. “Totally woulda remembered soon as I got to the machine! Sorry, not normally like this. Brian’s, uh… he distracted me.”

“Yeah, right,” Brian laughed, already almost comfortable with being in front of them all in the buff. “You’ve always been like this.”

“Well, you’ve—you’ve always distracted me!” Emily retorted with a blush, catching the bucket as Kelly tossed it to her and then scrambling out the door.

“Cute,” Kelly rolled her eyes. “She’s gonna be a part of all this tonight, too?”

“Part of what?” Brian asked, arching an eyebrow as he ran one of the clean washcloths under cool water in the sink.

“All the sex tonight, duh,” Kelly retorted as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “You didn’t even cum yet.”

“I came earlier, remember?” Brian brushed it off. “Not a big deal.”

“I-I think she should be a part of this. A part of… us,” Stephanie leapt to Emily’s defense. “She’s serious about Brian. I really like her.”

“You guys realize I can’t actually have three girlfriends at once, right?” Brian chuckled, gently pressing the washcloth to Stephanie’s cheek. “Could barely even handle having just one.”

“Chloe was... wildly deficient, as a girlfriend,” Kelly smirked. “We’re going to be very good to you, love. Like, you have opportunity with Stephanie, effort with me, and then Emily is… um. Emily’s the idiot? Comic relief?”

“She’s not an idiot,” Brian rebuked her softly. “She’s jus’, y’know, playing around. Emily gets like that the more nervous she is, it’s... how she deals with stuff.”

“What, by being goofy?” Kelly snorted.

“You can come off as a little intimidating,” Brian laughed. “Before people get to know you. And this whole night’s been… insane.”

“Not tryin’ to freak her out, or anything!” Kelly griped. “Even gave her my key when I ran into her earlier.”

“She really did tackle Chloe to the floor the moment she started hitting me,” Stephanie insisted, reaching up to place her hand over where Brian was holding the damp cloth to her face. “If she hadn’t been there—I don’t know what would have happened.”

“Alright, alright,” Kelly held up her hands defensively. “Geez. I’m just sayin.’”

“We should... talk about how this is going to work,” Brian said. “Between all of us.”

“Well, I’m gonna be stayin’ at your apartment,” Kelly said. “So, seems to me like I’m gettin’ full custody of Brian, and Steph and Emmy’ll get visitation rights every other weekend, or something. Aren’t you still in school, Steph? Do you even live close to him?”

“I can drop out,” Stephanie said without hesitation.

“Whoa, whoa, no,” Brian frowned, shaking his head. “You’re not dropping out of college just for me.”

“I can drop out, or transfer somewhere closer, or—or anything,” Stephanie decided with a smile. “It’s not a priority, anymore.”

“Yeah, uh—whoa there, Steph,” Kelly shook her head. “You don’t say stuff like that, even if you’re thinkin’ it. Guys spook with talk like that.”

“I appreciate that you have very strong feelings right now, Stephanie,” Brian said. “But, I don’t want you making any sudden decisions about your whole future just because of me. What are you going to school for?”

“I have a library support staff certification,” Stephanie gave them a helpless shrug. “I’ve been working towards Library Assistant—the associate’s degree—that would probably open up more opportunities, but… I don’t even think I need it. There’s demand for library technicians everywhere.”

“There is?” Kelly sounded doubtful.

“Almost all facilities across the country switched from analog to digital indexing in the mid 2000s, but that first digital system is already considered terribly dated,” Stephanie explained. “Most localities want to set up their own unique new systems—it has to do with how individual libraries apply for government grants—but, they don’t have all the training or know-how. That’s where I would come in.”

“So, you’re basically saying you can work anywhere?” Kelly tapped her lip, imagining the possibilities.

“Well, yes,” Stephanie explained. “But, more than that—it isn’t important to me. At all. Not like this is. Everything before this weekend, my life was—it felt like I was just going through the motions, following some… I don’t know, some path of least resistance. I didn’t feel alive, then.”

“Let’s start from what you actually want, then,” Brian offered. “And figure out where we go from there.”

“I want you,” Stephanie answered without hesitation, gazing up at Brian with wonder in her eyes.

“You know I want you too, Steph,” Brian said, slipping his hands around her shoulders.

“Well… show me,” Stephanie said, and a mischievous, daring smile appeared on her cute features.

Surprised, Brian arched an eyebrow at her and let out a mirthful laugh.

Think we’ve been a bad influence on her, Brian thought, leaning in to give her a kiss. He meant it to be a simple, chaste kiss to prove his sincerity, but before he knew it, his tongue was slipping past her lips and playing alongside hers, and he heard her make a tiny thrilled noise. Or… damn, maybe they’ve been a bad influence on me?

The erection that had begun to subside when worrying over how Stephanie’d been hurt throbbed to life again, and he felt Stephanie give a jolt of surprise as it stood up enough to touch against her arm. With hesitant excitement, she reached out and took it in her delicate hand.

Oh, wow. Uhm.

“Mmph!” Stephanie let out a cute noise as Brian roughly grabbed the plush curvature of her butt and lifted her up to sit her on the sink’s countertop. She didn’t stop returning his kiss though, and as he tried to disengage and pull away she leaned forward after him and locked lips with him again, licking and nibbling his lips with wanton need.

“Ice machines are loud!” Emily called out as she reentered the room. “Scared me half to—hey, don’t start without me, you bozos!”

Brian felt Stephanie smile through their kiss, but neither of them stopped.

“Oh, are you joining in?” Kelly teased, stepping in close to Brian’s side and pressing her naked breasts against him as she wrapped her arms around him.

“Uhhh, I mean is—is it cool if I do?” Emily’s voice wavered. “Here’s the ice, it’s uh. Extra icy.”

“Don’t bully Emily,” Brian grinned as Stephanie finally released him, and he slipped an arm around Kelly’s waist. “That’s my job.”

“That’s all you ever do! You big bully!” Emily joked. The bucket that came with the room had a flimsy plastic liner, and she tugged it out, dumping half her haul back into the bucket, and then tied off the bag into a fist-sized portion of ice for them to use. “Stupid... stupid sexy Brian, with your good looks and all your sexy womens all draped over you!”

“C’mon, up you go—let’s take a look,” Brian scooped the petite girl off her feet and sat Emily up on the vanity next to Stephanie. She was even lighter than Stephanie, probably just a hair over ninety pounds, and wore a shy, somewhat flustered smile as he situated her.

“O-okay,” Emily agreed, quickly tugging her costume yukata back into proper place.

“Hmm, who gets the bag of ice, and who’ll have to make do with just kisses and good intentions?” Kelly asked, hefting the bag.

“I-I don’t need any ice,” Emily blurted out with a grin. “Mine’s like, not even that bad.”

“Ice for both of them,” Brian insisted reprovingly, hesitating only for a moment. “Steph—here, we’d better take that off so we don’t get it wet.”

“Um, okay…” Blushing brightly, Stephanie fidgeted cutely in place as Kelly unhooked an overall strap on one side, while Brian unbuckled the other.

They let the apron front of the garment fall down into her lap, and then Brian’s hand crept beneath the shy girl’s shirt to feel smooth, perfect skin. He undressed her slowly, pulling the shirt up with tantalizing leisure so that he could appreciate every pale inch of her that was revealed. Kelly assisted, leaning behind to undo Stephanie’s bra as the girl obediently lifted her arms so that he could pull the shirt up and over her head.

“Holy shit,” they heard Emily whisper to herself, apparently incredulous at being a part of this entire situation.

Stephanie’s pale breasts were small but lovely, with slightly puffy nipples standing out that mesmerized Brian for a moment. In no time at all, he was carefully palming them into his hands—they felt incredibly, impossibly soft—and Brian didn’t realize he’d started making out with her again until they were already losing themselves, spiraling away from reality in the blissful exchange of a deep, open-mouthed kiss.

“Ah, sorry, hah,” Brian apologized with a guilty look. “Didn’t mean to—um. Hah, it’s like I couldn’t even help myself.”

“Don’t be sorry!” Stephanie laughed, wearing a delighted smile that lit up the entire room. Her unguarded breasts, small but enticing teacup shapes, bounced ever so slightly with her laughter.

“Don’t be?” Brian asked.

“...It’s my favorite,” Stephanie confided. “I love it when it’s, uh, when I can make you lose control, it’s—it’s the best feeling ever.”

“We’ve definitely been a terrible influence on you,” Brian chuckled. “I was worried you would be more, I don’t know. Frightened, or feeling shy, or…”

“Nope!” Stephanie swept her beaming smile across each of them. “How can I be? When you’re all here with me, I mean. I’ve never felt more… safe.”

“You were literally taking punches like, half an hour ago,” Emily pointed out with a wince. “Soaking up hits to the face. And now you feel more safe then ever? Stephie… are you alright?”

“It wasn’t scary!” Stephanie proclaimed with a proud grin. “It would have been just the worst if it’d happened when I was alone. But, you were there with me. Having someone there with me that would stand up for me, it was… it’s amazing, it’s completely different. It would have been even more amazing if Brian had been there himself.”

“I would’ve ended up doing something… regrettable, to Chloe,” Brian said with a hint of menace. “I’m goddamned furious just imagining it all.”

“Not me!” Kelly chimed in cheerfully. “Wouldn’t have regretted anything, an’ I woulda fucked her up good. Still might, if I see her again.”

“You see?” Stephanie beamed with a contented smile. “How can I be scared—of anything? For me, this is like, this is like Christmas. Like the best Christmas ever, and I have so many presents, and when I open up the first one it turns out to be a whole ‘nother Christmas inside. it’s just—amazing.”

Overjoyed, Brian found himself leaning in to share another one of those incredible kisses.

“Hey—I’m here too, you know!” Emily’s impetuous voice sounded out.

Pausing, Brian instead lifted up the bag of ice and tenderly placed it to cup against Stephanie’s blushing cheek. He couldn’t help but chuckle at seeing his longtime friend Emily kicking impatient legs from where he’d sat her on the countertop. By comparison, even this flushed and flustered Stephanie sitting beside her was the very picture of graceful poise.

“Emly,” Brian shook his head. “You’re such a brat.”

“No, you!” Emily retorted indignantly, still was wearing her impish grin. “What’s a girl gotta do to get some attention around here?! Geez!”

“Hard for me to believe you’re actually serious about any of this,” Brian gave her a wry smile. “Half-expecting you to suddenly be all, ‘I totally got you! You shoulda seen your face, you thought I was actually serious, Nahahaha!’”

“Yeah, well I am serious!” Emily teased. “Probably, maybe, I think. So, there! And, I totally don’t laugh like that at all! Doofus. You laugh like that.”

“You’re serious? You’re the only one here still all dressed,” Brian pointed out.

“I, uh,” Emily’s facade slipped for a moment and he caught her fearful glance towards Kelly, who was still nestled up naked against Brian. “No way. You’ll make fun of me! I don’t have tits, I’ve got like, l’il mosquito bites. Even Stephanie has bigger boobs than I do!”

“Well, I’m already naked,” Brian chuckled. “You can make fun of me all you like, if you want.”

“That’s totally different, you look... amazing,” Emily pouted, letting her gaze sweep down his nude figure again as she protectively held her yukata closed. “Jerk.”

“I’m sure you look perfect and amazing, Emily—wait, are you calling me shallow?” Brian countered. “Saying I’ll only like you if you look certain ways?”

“I don’t know!” Emily griped playfully. “Are you shallow?”

“Briannn,” Kelly nuzzled in close to whisper in his ear, pausing for a moment to tug his earlobe with her teeth and pinch it between her lips. “Talking ‘bout it isn’t gonna get either of you anywhere. Just fuckin’ take her—don’t ask, don’t dance around things with words. Can’t you see what she’s been waiting for all this time?”

“Emily—is that what you want?” Brian asked.

“Ummm,” Emily laughed in a shy way, unable to meet his eyes. “I don’t not want that, I guess…?”

“See?” Kelly planted a smug kiss on his neck and then smacked her lips, suckling on the sensitive skin there.

“Yeah! Get her, Brian!” Stephanie teased with a giggle, prompting looks of surprise from everyone. “Wh-what?”

Expectant tension filled the air as Brian stepped over from Stephanie to stand in front of Emily. His longtime friend looked more timid and fidgety than he’d ever seen her, and somehow that heightened the reality of this moment. She was trying to still her slightly shaking hands by gripping tightly onto the fabric of her costume, and her face was frozen in terrified smile, eyes darting around as though she didn’t know where to look.

“W-wait,” Emily blurted out. “Can you, um, Brian, can you promise me something first?”

“What is it?” Brian stopped in place.

“Um,” She blushed, too embarrassed to continue.

“What is it?” Brian gently prodded her.

“Okay. I’ve always had certain… ideas, about how things might go,” Emily stammered out. “My first time. Things with—things with you, um, fantasies? Certain ways that would make it the most perfectest, and why, annnnd…”

“Wait, what do you mean, your first time?” Brian teased. “You’re not exactly a virgin, Emmie.”

“Yeah,” Emily forced out a laugh. “I kinda… am, though? Exactly?”

“What?” Brian looked at her in disbelief. “What about you and Josh?”

“Hah, well, about that,” Emily winced. “We never… actually… had sex. Kinda?”

“You two never had sex?” Brian asked. “That’s not what you told everyone.”

“He, um, he got to second base!” Emily admitted. “Annnd then I freaked out, a bit. But, second base is practically sex? It’s in the same... ball park… general area?”

“Hoo-boy,” Kelly rolled her eyes and let out a heavy sigh. “S’gonna be a long night. Steph, you wanna go make out while these two work through and figure out how fucked they are?”

“I think they’re doing great,” Stephanie smiled, letting Kelly guide her off of the counter and to her feet. She carefully lifted and adjusted their makeshift ice pack, reapplying it further back along her jawline.

“Sorry, Emily,” Brian felt flummoxed at the suprise reveal. “I didn’t know—err. Never even thought to doubt you back when you said all that.”

“I know. And, I appreciate that,” Emily said quickly. “My fault. I just—peer pressure and all that yadda yadda. Y’know? Moving on—”

“We don’t have to do anything that makes you feel uncomfo—”

“No—shuddup, lemme finish!” Emily insisted. “I want it. Tonight. It’s just, I want it in a certain way? If that’s okay?”

“Okay,” Brian agreed immediately. “Yeah. If you’re sure that’s what you want, I’ll be real gentle.”

“Hah,” Emily let out an embarrassed laugh. “That’s, um. Actually like, the opposite of what I want.”

“Ooh—I take it back,” Kelly remarked with interest, turning back towards them. “Little girl wants her cherry popped all rough and tumble?”

“I-I it’s not weird, or anything like that!” Emily said in a fluster. “Just. Look, Brian. You know me, and I know you, and… you’re always so careful. Had to watch while you tiptoed all around always treating Chloe like she was made outta glass, and it… that, uh. Kinda put me off?”

“Put you off?” Brian was surprised.

“Yeah, I mean— I don’t want you to be… restrained, our first time. Well, or ever, haha. Holding anything back, or, or being careful with me, or trying to be gentle. I mean, it’s me. It’s you. Me and you, y’know? I just, I want it all, want all the real you you keep bottled up and hidden away. Like, if you wanna grab me, don’t hold back at all, wondering if it’s gonna be okay. If you want to bite me, don’t be fuckin’ shy with your teeth. I want it to be… so real, so… just us? The real us?”

This wasn’t the flustered, anxious Emily speaking anymore—this was Emily pouring out her real feelings, that rare somber Emily from back when they used to talk on the phone late into the night about their private issues. He’d always been aware of how much he missed this side of her, these serious moments, but the moment still hit him hard all the same.

“I see how you keep everything, everyone at this safe distance,” Emily went on. “I don’t want that, not between us. I want you to—no, I need you to really let go, to let it all out if it’s gonna be, um. Our first time doin’ it. If-if that’s okay, I mean?”

“I know exactly what you mean,” Stephanie spoke up, stepping forward to take hold of Emily’s hand in a show of support. “You want the Brian that can’t hold himself back anymore.”

“Yes!” Emily let out a small sigh of relief, squeezing Stephanie’s hand in appreciation. “Yes. So much yes, exactly that.”

“That all sounds… really dangerous,” Brian said carefully. “Almost impossible?”

“I mean, I can wait for it,” Emily started. “If you don’t think we’re, um, ready for—”

“No, not impossible, just… almost impossible?” Brian said. “If it’s you, I can do that. I think. I just… I don’t know if I want to, if I want you to see me like that. You’re my Emily, I don’t want to show you my bad, kinda dark sides?”

“It’s all I’ve ever wanted, though,” Emily nervously wet her lips. “I’ll, um, I’ll show you mine if you show me yours?”

“Fuuuuck,” Brian laughed, shaking his head. “Emily. Sometimes, it’s like you’re always gonna be the one who can talk me into anything.”

“Yeah?” Emily brightened.

“But, um,” Brian tried to still himself and keep his calm. He’d never been so hesitant and so eager to burst into motion all at the same time, and his heart was pounding like crazy in a flurry of adrenal excitement. “So long as we have like, a safety word, or something. Like, if things get a little scary, we both stop right away, okay?”

“Deal,” Emily agreed right away. “Not gonna use it, though. Like, even if you smack me around, even if you hit me and leave me all bruised and fucking bloody— it’ll still be perfect, ‘cause it’s you.”

“I don’t think things’d ever go that far,” Brian scowled. “Jesus, Emmie. Just how violent do you think I am?”

“I don’t know?” Emily playfully shrugged. “But, however much you actually are, that’s what I want. I want you to lay it all on me, I want the real you. No holding back.”

“Steph and I’ll step in if it looks like things are getting too out of hand,” Kelly proposed, looking a little too pleased with Emily’s decisions. “As your... impartial third party, here. You guys can cut loose all you want. I even have the perfect safety words for you guys to use! Somethin’ you’d never accidentally say.”

“Sure,” Brian nodded, taking a step back to give Emily room to hop down from the counter. “So… how do we want to do this?”

“Do you need a, um… protection?” Stephanie suggested, setting aside the bag of ice so she could fish out a condom packet from the pocket of her overalls. It was the same exact brand as the one Kelly had used earlier, leaving little doubt as to who the girl had gotten it from.

“...Nah, no,” Emily refused, waving it off. “No rubber. Guys feel it less when they’re wearing them, right?”

“Uhhhh, Emily…” Brian warned.

“Raw sex. I want it bareback,” Emily decided, with a little more enthusiasm than he’d expected. “I want you lettin’ out all your stuff inside me, I wanna feel it. I’m on the pill, anyways guys, chill out.”

“Bein’ on the pill’s only like, ninety-nine percent protection, though,” Brian cautioned. “There’s that one percent chance…”

“Gotcha covered,” Emily said, undaunted. “I’ll raise ‘em as if they were my own—‘cause, yeah, y’know, they would be. If it’s a boy, I’ll name him Zero, and if it’s a girl, she’ll be Titania.”

“Emily….” Brian saw Kelly facepalm out of the corner of his eye.

Stephanie turned with outstretched arm to insistently offer the condom packet from Emily towards Brian instead, struggling to hold in her own laughter.

“I’m kiddinggg, geez,” Emily scoffed. “No, not about the condom, Steph, put that away. I’m not gonna get pregnant. That’s like, not even on the table for discussion right now. I’ll go out and grab a morning-after pill or something, if you want.”

“Think I’ve got a couple Sure Choice tablets in my purse for emergencies,” Kelly assured them. “I mean, fuck. Anything to keep her from having kids. Jesus Christ.”

“Thank you, Kelly,” Emily growled. “Titania Darkness Rivera’s gonna grow up to be a badass with or without your help, hmph!”

“Just thinking ‘bout the bigger picture,” Kelly said cheerfully. “Probably not gonna be a problem anyways—you know Steph and I are gonna slurp and suck all that spunk right outta you, right? Stephanie dearest, Brian’s about to fix us some Crème de la Emilie to go to town on! Bet even his sloppy seconds’ll taste fucking amazing and have us turnin’ crazy colors.”

“Ummm,” Emily hesitated, throwing the other girls a look. “That’s… this whole ‘nother weird thing, yeah, huh? We can talk about that sorta stuff… later. After. Y’know what, maybe I won’t even care, at that point?”

Still topless, Stephanie didn’t have anything to say in response to either of them, but the pink-haired girl wore a shy, thoughtful smile as she nibbled on the edge of the condom packet.

“Alright, alright,” Emily huffed, bouncing back and forth on the balls of her feet as though she was psyching herself up for a fight. “Come at me, bro. I’m ready for whatever, whenever you are.”

“Okay, you two. Either of you think things are goin’ too far—just say the magic words, and everything stops,” Kelly told them with a satisfied smile. “Your safety words for tonight are: ‘Chloe was right.’”

“Jesus Christ. That’s just fucking evil.”

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