Aubyn took a change of clothes from the chest of drawers in his bedroom and set them on the bed. “I will try to answer your questions in the morning before I leave for work.”

“This is your room, right?” I asked.

“It is late, Zedikai.”

“Just answer.”

Aubyn sighed. “Yes, this is my bedroom, but I have no issue with you sleeping in here.”

“Where will you sleep?”

“In another bedroom.”

“With Mr S and Milan?” I asked to confirm although there seemed to be a third room at the very end of the hallway that I hadn’t seen anyone go into. “They got two beds in there?”

Aubyn tilted his head, looking at me suspiciously. “What are you getting at?”

I dropped my bag by the sofa and beckoned him closer. “I want to know what three housemates do at night in the same bed.” There was no way that they didn’t have something going on between the three of them.

“We sleep,” he answered, sitting on the bed.

I took the opportunity to move closer to him, placing my hands on his shoulders. “You know exactly what I mean. It’s weird. The three of you live here and while I was here the last time, you gave up your bed to go sleep with them, right?”

“Yes.”

“So, I’m starting to think that you won’t have sex with me because Milan is already offering,” I said, voicing my thoughts as I slipped into his lap to straddle him. “Is someone like him who you’re into? The boy-loli type?”

The friendly look he’d worn in the car and up until then melted from his face. It was replaced with the serious look he had worn the first night we met. “Please get off my lap, Zedikai. You smell like alcohol.”

“I find it hard to believe you’re not attracted to me.”

“Milan is like a younger brother to me. Yes, I have offered up my bed to you and do not mind sharing a bed with them because we are just that close. Not because of any other reason. The couch is no place for someone to sleep when there are other alternatives. And for the umpteenth time, Zedikai, I do not want your body.”

“Why not?” I demanded to know.

Aubyn seemed to be growing frustrated. Well, fuck, so was I. I wanted him to just give in for both our sakes. I had never wanted someone who blatantly shut me down before. Usually, if they didn’t want me, I didn’t bother with them anymore, which didn’t happen very often. However, Aubyn was simply refusing, knocking it without trying it.

When he took too long to respond, I said, “I was left unsatisfied earlier. I’m sure you can help me out with that”.

“So, you had sex with someone before meeting me?” Aubyn asked, eyebrows raised.

He didn’t look disgusted, but I was appalled at myself for even mentioning that at a time like this. Alcohol and I were never a good combination. “We’ve established that I’m a whore already, don’t you think? So, give in. I’ll make it worth it. I promise.”

Aubyn sighed and shook his head. “What you are offering me is a one-night stand where we spend twenty minutes humping each other to reach a climax and then call it a night. That is not in the least bit appealing. In fact, it sounds miserable. And before you say it, it will not matter how many rounds of this you offer, I will not take it.”

“Because you’re more of a relationship kind of person?” I asked, the word coming out with the amount of distaste I had for it. Honestly, I didn’t know what the hype was about.

“Yes. Even if it is not a romantic one, I prefer having an attachment with the person I choose to have sex with. Sex isn’t just fun for me or a way for me to… get off. I prefer to know my partner and their body inside and out so I can cater to their desires, and they can cater to mine.”

He made it sound so serious. But sex was just sex regardless of how it was done and who it was done with. The goal would always be the climax at the end. Knowing someone ‘inside and out’ would not matter. Relationships were bullshit anyways. A waste of time and effort. Why put a label on why you want to have sex with someone?

“I do not care much if you do not agree with me,” Aubyn continued, “but I would like for you to respect my preferences.” Aubyn tilted my chin up so I could look at him. “I am simply sharing my opinion with you. We are different people with different desires.”

I nodded slowly, getting off his lap. The rejection stung a bit, but I was more offended that he preferred to chase after some fairytale experience than get into bed with me.

“Good night,” I said when he was making his way out.

“Good night,” he replied, closing the door behind him.

He really must not want sex from me. On one hand, I felt safer staying at his place knowing he didn’t want me in that way. It made me sleep better because then the risk of him doing something perverted to me while I slept was lower. On the other hand, I wanted him. I wanted to know what his hands would feel like all over my body, but I didn’t know how worth it entering any kind of relationship with him would be.

I didn’t sleep as well as I had the first time I had spent the night. I blamed it on my curiosity. I wanted to know what Aubyn’s preferences in relationships were since he was so firm in passing me up for something that preposterous. I wanted to know what it entailed for him because a relationship just meant that two people had regular sex in my book. That would sum up Jeff and me and it didn’t seem all that great. Was it different for Aubyn?

I rolled over and groaned, thankful that I didn’t have a headache from the beers I’d guzzled. The sun was up already, and I ought to get out of bed and greet the day, but I didn’t want to. I wanted to go back to sleep, but the thought of Aubyn possibly being up already was trying to stifle that urge. For some reason, the likelihood of seeing him as soon as I left the room was motivation enough to make me want to get out of bed.

I patted my cheeks. I needed to snap out of it and pull myself together. There had been too many strange thoughts going through my mind lately. Enough to make me cry. I wasn’t a crier. Being emotional wasn’t my thing unless I was getting angry.

Throwing off the blanket, I stood from the bed. I hadn’t spread my bed back home in years, but since it was Aubyn’s bed, and I was a guest, I ought to be tidier. I spent the next few minutes straightening the bed. It didn’t look perfect, but it was better than leaving the sheets a crumpled mess.

By the time I started to fixate on my appearance, I realized I was doing too much prep work just to leave the room. Taking a deep breath, I grasped the doorknob, hoping that I wasn’t still locked in. I was still a stranger in his home, so I wouldn’t have been surprised if he had locked me in his room again for the night. The knob turned with ease, and I quietly opened the door. The doors I faced were closed and I couldn’t hear any noise coming from the living area, but I went to look. I didn’t know what time it was, but someone was bound to be awake.

The living room was empty, and so was the kitchen, so I went to get myself something to drink. I was about to pour myself a glass of water when Mr S came out, putting his hair up into a ponytail. At first, he looked surprised to see me, making me wonder if he hadn’t been told I was staying over.

“Good morning, Little Stray,” he greeted. “I had forgotten you were here.”

“Good morning,” I replied, downing the water. I wasn’t even offended. The name fit.

“I did not expect you to be up so early. Are you willing to make yourself useful while you are here, or will you just be a freeloader?”

I washed my glass when I was finished and put it to dry. “I don’t mind doing laundry again.” It was easy enough to handle. I didn’t grow up in the most functional household, so I was lost on how to accomplish a lot of household tasks. After having to wash and dry and fold and steam and hang Aubyn’s clothes that one night, I was sure to do a better job the second time.

“How about cooking?”

“I can prepare frozen pizza from the box instructions. That’s about all I can do,” I admitted. “Oh, and perfect toast.”

Mr S shook his head, clearly disappointed. “Pitiful. Well, you will learn today since the other two are occupied. Get your hair out of your face.”

I touched the messy bun I’d had my hair in for the past two days. It didn’t hold all my hair back and probably looked unsightly. I had chosen to grow out my hair, but I didn’t know how to care for what was the thick and frizzy mop on my head that was my hair. It stayed in a bun all day because that was the best I could do with it.

“Uhm… I-”

“Do you need a life coach?” he asked as he stepped closer to me. He sounded like a parent reprimanding his child. “May I touch your hair?”

“Yeah,” I answered.

I probably did need a life coach of some sort. When I moved out from under Peter, I’d need to get a job and take care of myself. That meant I couldn’t just have frozen pizzas every night. I’d need to learn to cook and clean and either cut my hair or learn how to care for it.

Mr S took the hair tie from my hair and put it up in a ponytail like it was no big deal. He did have longer hair than I did, so it didn’t surprise me that something that simple would come easy to him. “There. Wash your hands and we can get started on breakfast.”