“Hey, how are you feeling?” the human said, and Gem rolled several eyes.
“I’m fine. Now spill!”
“Gem,” Oliver said firmly, and Gem pouted.
“I’m okay, really. Yesterday was literally the worst day of my life. I felt like I was going to die. I kind of wanted to die. But I survived,” he said as he shifted his position, scooting closer to Rusty for some reason. “Today’s been better. I’m still tired, like a hangover that won’t end. But I’m good, I promise.”
Rusty pressed into the armrest of the couch, but Gem continued to scooch until his socked toebeans slipped under Rusty’s thigh. The Araknis hugged his knees to his chest and angled the phone so Rusty could hear better, and Rusty grudgingly relaxed into the couch.
“I’m so sorry that happened,” Oliver was saying, and Gem exhaled heavily.
“I don’t remember most of it, which is honestly the scariest part,” Gem admitted, before he grinned teasingly and knocked Rusty’s arm with one hand. “Well, Rus being nice to me might have been the scariest part.”
Rusty flipped him off, and he stuck out his dark tongue before he sobered and admitted, “But yeah, it’s… fucked up. I feel like an idiot. I didn’t even notice he’d done something to my drink. Then everything was bright and spinning and… Asshole motherfucker. If I see him again, I’m going to rip out every feather individually and stuff them down his throat until he chokes.”
“I’ll help,” Oliver offered, and Rusty pantomimed cocking a gun, making Gem chuckle.
“Thanks,” he said to Oliver, but he also reached out to squeeze Rusty’s wrist. “But what would really make me feel better is to hear every dirty detail of your weekend.”
Rolling his eyes, Rusty pulled out his phone and scrolled through his Rosheen account notifications. He replied to a few comments and liked several more as Gem and Oliver chatted about his sex marathon weekend with Liel.
When Oliver confirmed that Liel had not topped, Gem hummed thoughtfully. “Okay, well, this friend of mine bottomed for a Gymnot once, and what they don’t have in hard thrusting power, they certainly make up for in targeted sucking stimulation. The suction cup at the end of their dicks is… oh my gods.”
To punctuate his claim, Gem made what Rusty feared was his cum-face as he made several sexual gestures. Rusty grimaced, and Gem winked obnoxiously. Then Rusty snorted a laugh, and Gem waggled his tongue.
“Is the friend you, Gem?” Oliver asked.
“Of course the friend is me. Get your head out of your ass, Oliver, and keep up!” Gem gave Rusty a significant look, as if to say,Can you believe this guy?
Snickering under his breath, Rusty shook his head and focused back on his phone as Gem interrogated Oliver further. At some point, he admitted that he would have fucked Oliver had the human been up for it—which Rustyalready knew—and Oliver replied with a dry, “What a shame I’ll never experience it.”
“I know you’re being sarcastic, but itisa shame,” Gem said as he twisted a dark curl around an equally dark finger. “Mostly for you. Because my ass changes lives.”
“You’re so full of shit,” Rusty whispered.
Gem covered the phone receiver as he hissed, “We’re not having this argument again. I would literally destroy your dick and alter your reality forever. Get over it.”
“Who’s that?” Oliver asked, and Gem removed his hand to respond, to tell Oliver that Rusty was here.
Rusty thought of Oliver’s knowing smile and teasing in the train station Friday, and panic gripped his chest. Oliver couldn’t know that Rusty brought Gem soup. He’d think… things. Oh gods, what if heassumedthings. And then maybe he’d tell people the things he’d misconstrued, and then they’d all believe things that just weren’t true, and—
Before Gem could respond, Rusty waved his hands desperately and shook his head. Gem frowned in confusion, then said, “No one. Nothing. It was…”
Gem splayed several hands as if to ask,What’s your problem?
Rusty pantomimed more forcefully, and Gem rolled his eyes and said, “The wind.”
“The wind spoke words to you?” Oliver said.
With an aggravated look at Rusty, Gem threw up a few hands and said, “The wind speaks to everyone, Oliver. It’s nature. Try communing with it sometime!”
“But you spoke back.”
“Communing,” Gem repeated, glaring at Rusty as the Pyclon carefully stood up. “It requires, you know… collaboration.”
“Why are you being weird?” Oliver accused.
“I’mnot being weird,” Gem said, speaking more to Rusty than to Oliver. “You’rebeing weird.”
