AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“So, what type of vibe are you thinking for your apartment?” asked Elara. I’d since learned that she was Draven’s mate, which apparently explained why her tracery matched his. I was too nervous to pry and ask many more questions.
“Oh, I don’t know… I haven’t given it much thought.”
“Really? Did you and Jalik not talk about it at all?” asked Lila, a woman with blue tracery mirroring Laux’s.
“No, there isn’t much that we’ve talked about lately,” I responded. Before I knew it, even more flowed from my mouth. “Decorating an apartment isn’t really something many Vinduthi discuss with their booty call.”
The women all looked a little taken aback for a moment. But I didn’t care. It felt good to say out loud. That was what it felt like Jalik considered me, just a booty call.
But then they all laughed.
“Yeah, that sounds like Jalik.” Lila chuckled.
“Don’t stop now,” Alyssa, a woman with Sakkar’s orange tracery, said as she placed a reassuring hand on mine. “You’re around friendly ears. We’ve all dealt with the early days of a relationship with a Vinduthi. It can be rough to do it alone. Vent it all out.”
“Well, I guess I get it to a degree. It’s not like we said ‘I love you’ or anything. We’ve only known each other for a few days.” Fuck, it felt so good to say it all out loud. “It’s fine for it to just be physical. I get it. That’s okay.”
“But is it?” asked Claire. Her dark red tracery, like Thelev’s, made her look absolutely gorgeous, and I couldn’t help but wonder how I’d look with Jalik’s gray on me. “Is it fine? Is it okay?”
“I don’t know,” I continued, throwing my hands up in the air. “It felt like we were getting closer and closer. Making real strides with each other. Then suddenly, he moved me out and down the hall. Far enough away so he doesn’t have to deal with me all the time. But close enough that he can still fuck me when his urges call for it.”
I sat down on an ugly chair adorned with the scales of some creature from a far-off world. I placed my head in my hands. The girls all stood around me, patting my back comfortingly.
“I guess I just thought there was something there,” I added. “But maybe there never was. For Jalik, it was all just physical, and I have to accept that.”
“Do you think you can accept that?” asked Elara. “Can you just have a strictly physical relationship with him?”
“I like him, I do. But… I don’t think I can survive being just a girl who lives down the hall that’s down to fuck when he’s bored. I think I need there to be more.”
“We’re all in happy relationships with our Vinduthi,” said Lila. “But it wasn’t always the smoothest road to get where we are. I think we’ve all been somewhere similar to where you find yourself.”
“What did you do? How did you survive?”
“You have to figure that out on your own. And it’ll be hard, I’m sorry. Vinduthi aren’t the best at expressing their more… soft and kind emotions.”
All the women laughed at that. I’d only known Jalik for a few days, and even I could tell that was the understatement of the millennia.
“This life isn’t for everyone,” Alyssa added. “You have to decide for yourself if it’s worth fighting for. Pushing through some bullshit to get somewhere better.”
Was Jalik worth pushing forward for? Was he worth hoping one day we’d get to be more? Or should I just cut my losses now and call it off completely?
JALIK
Another day. Another fight. Another match.
Ryrik’s fist found my face before my brain could repeat the mantra. I hit the deck a half second later, blood pooling from the cut to my lip.
Another day. Another fight.
His next punch met me in the breadbasket. I braced myself for the blow, breathing into the punch to absorb the energy.
Another match.
I let him uppercut me, sending my jaw back in a wave as I relaxed into the punch. The motion threw my head back, winding my spine in reverse. Ryrik stood breathless, ripping the gloves off his hands.
“Enough!” he said, throwing me a towel. “This is crazy.”
“Don’t stop,” I said, throwing the gloves back to his face. “I told you. Tonight’s opponent has a notorious thrash uppercut. If he breaks the line, I won’t be able to stop him.”
