"Well that was quite the surprise!" Nehrenne declared, as Coryn concluded his speech aboard The Playful Tiger. Carver was known to be a bit of a flirt, but of the two, Coryn Aster would have been the first to be expected of cheating. With more money than he could likely spend in his lifetime, he was the epitome of excess; whether men, alcohol, or other less legal pursuits, Coryn rarely restrained his impulses.

"This Carver person, was a man?" Michael was very curious to know.

"That's probably why he was never on your radar" said Nehrenne, "He was very good looking, if he'd had a pair of tits you'd have been all over him!" 

Her high-pitched laugh was echoed back to her by the group of women that Michael's presence had attracted. Nehrenne had brought along a straight guy to one of Coryn's parties, he was like a unicorn. 

Tibur watched them closely from across the deck.

"I'm out!" called Coryn, shaking his glass at the pretty young waiter and distracting him from Michael's business.

"Of course" said Tibur with a smile. 

As the boat gently swayed he found it hard to accurately pour the stream of champagne into the mouth of the glass. Mr Aster took Tibur's free hand and wrapped it around the stem, entwining their fingers to steady him.

Michael was ready to leap between them, but Nehrenne 'lost her footing' and grabbed hold of his arm before he had the chance.

"Thank you, Michael!" she said, "I knew those muscles of yours weren't only for show! I'll introduce you to Coryn later, but for now I need that strong arm of yours."

"I think Coryn may be a little busy tonight anyway..." said one of the guests, "With Carver gone he'll be looking for his replacement."

Michael's eyes were on Tibur, and Nehrenne's followed them.

"You don't think he's found one already do you..?" he asked her.

Nehrenne chuckled.

"Oh heavens, no! Carver was a journalist with an ivy league education. Whoever his next squeeze is, he'll have to top Carver's level by quite some distance; the older Coryn gets, the higher his standards have become."

Michael was beginning to feel relieved.

"The waiter's just a fun little appetizer..." she said with a smile, and much to his concern, "It's not like he's not being paid enough though."

Tibur had been politely smiling so much his cheeks were starting to hurt. It was clear that Mr Aster enjoyed the sound of his own voice, and when he wasn't engaged in conversation with his guests, he was regaling Tibur with tales that served to highlight his wealth.

"...and so I had to have yet another cellar built, just because I happened to get too competitive at the auction! The following month it was cigars, but at least there was room in my humidor for those!"  

Tibur was keeping a watchful eye on the level of his champagne bottle, preparing to run away and take a breath when it was empty. Sadly, he never got the chance. As soon as the last drop fell, another bottle was placed into his hands. It seemed that none of the other waiters were keen to take on Tibur's star role.

Halfway through the second bottle, Coryn announced that he needed to visit the restroom.

"I'll wait here for you to return" Tibur told him, thankful for the respite.

"And what if I get thirsty?!" cried Coryn, "Come on, come on... follow the leader!"

Tibur looked over at Michael, but the sight of Nehrenne's hand on his back was enough for him to abandon any hope that he might care where he went. Coryn beckoned him down the stairs and Tibur trailed behind him with the bottle of champagne.

Standing awkwardly in the doorway as Coryn racked up a line on the bathroom counter, Tibur was summoned inside with a shake of Mr Aster's glass. The room was small, Coryn only needed to reach across and the door was pulled shut.

"In case I accidentally let any squares on board..." Coryn said with a wink.

The equivalent cost of Tibur's pay for the evening was snorted up Coryn Aster's left nostril. He wiped his nose and unfastened his pants. Tibur held his breath, prepared to clock him with the champagne bottle if he needed to defend himself. There was no such cause for concern. Coryn got his dick out and pissed into the toilet; with no regard for the man standing beside him.

 When he was done washing his hands, he held them out to Tibur.

"Towel" he said simply.

Wedging the bottle under his arm, Tibur reached for the handtowel and tried to pass it to Coryn. When he didn't take it, Tibur understood that it was expected that he should dry his hands for him. Coryn was too busy staring at himself in the mirror.

Ready for the next round, Coryn Aster threw open the door with a bang, racing upstairs to the deck to continue his party. Tibur washed his hands before he followed him back out, wiping them on his pants and trying to remember the good money he was making.

Michael saw Tibur's reddened cheeks and frustrated expression as he returned to his post by Coryn's side. Like an idiot, he hadn't seen them leave. He would never have let them be alone together for so much as a minute. 

Nehrenne was clinging to him incessantly, the other women in their circle had realized early on that Michael had already been claimed. As Nehrenne kept feeding him alcohol in the hopes he'd forget about her age, she only served to make him bolder in his attempts to escape and reach Tibur.

"You haven't introduced me to the host yet" he pointed out, clutching the hand on his arm and dragging her towards him, her high heels clattering across the deck.

"Renne!" cried Coryn, "Finally you remembered whose party this is..! I thought for a second you'd only come for the free booze."

Nehrenne laughed nervously. Between Michael's sudden action and Coryn's catty greeting, her head was starting to spin. 

"Ryn!" she said, kissing his cheeks and releasing her grip on Michael's arm, "I know how busy you get at these things, it's only polite to wait until the host is at a loose end before trying to occupy his precious time! Since you seem to be free for the moment, let me introduce you to a friend of mine..."

Nehrenne looked around, but Michael was nowhere to be seen. Funnily enough, the pretty little waiter was missing too.

Michael dragged Tibur through the narrow, twisting corridors and pulled him into the first empty room he found. Taking the bottle from Tibur's hand, he slammed it on the nearest surface and began to check him all over. The hands tearing open his collar, examining his wrists and feeling his forehead were driving Tibur to distraction.

"What are you doing?!" he asked.

"I want to see if you're okay!" said Michael, "If that prick did anything to you when my back was turned..."

Tibur brushed him away.

"It's easy enough to turn your back with someone else's hands all over it" he said.

"I'm trying to let her down gently!" cried Michael in his defense, "It's not like I can flat out reject with all of her friends watching. I thought you of all people would appreciate my not being dick on this one. What about the boat prick? Where did he take you?!"

Tibur's cheeks were turning pink. He wouldn't look him in the eye.

"What did he do to you..?" asked Michael, his mood becoming dangerous.

With no answer from Tibur, he was ready to go and ask the boat prick himself. Rather than let things get out of control, Tibur held onto him.

"He didn't do anything!" he confessed. 

Michael thought otherwise, why else would Tibur have looked so shaken? 

"Fuck it..." said Tibur, resigned to tell the truth and keep some semblance of peace, "he took me to the restroom, okay? But all he did was have me stand there with his fucking champagne while he took a leak."

"He got his dick out with you in the room?!" Michael was outraged on Tibur's behalf. "Let me go talk to him about how to treat his staff with a little fucking respect!"

Tibur had to physically restrain him.

"Michael, he's high!" he explained, "He doesn't know what he's doing. Besides, I need the money..."

"Is this about the door again..?! This is what you're putting yourself through just to pay me back? Is it worth it, Tibur? You'd lower yourself to this but you won't even consider me an option?"

Michael was starting to talk nonsense again.

"You want to buy my virginity for a measly 6000 MD" said Tibur, "If I had to choose, I'd wipe Coryn Aster's ass rather than sell my own!"

"He's the alternative, is he?! How much is he offering you? 6000 too cheap? Add a zero if you want to! Fuck, Tibur! What more do I have to do?"

Tibur covered his face with his hands, his fingers tensing in frustration.

"What makes you think I'm about to trade my body for cash? Do you really think so little of me..?! That I'd think so little of myself? I know I'm poor... but I have my fucking dignity!"

His large and brilliant eyes were shaking.

"And this is dignified, is it?" asked Michael, "Following that prick around all night, wherever he chooses to take you? Every time he touched you I wanted to punch him in the fucking face!"

"How is it any different from what you've been doing?" Tibur responded without thinking, "Watching that woman draped all over you, I was ready to pour my champagne all over that ratty bird's nest she calls hair!"

"Of course it's different..." said Michael, "I feel that way because I like you. What about you Tibur? What's your excuse this time?"

His hand was already reaching for Tibur's waist.

"I just..." 

There was nowhere to hide from his feelings. Michael's fingers were stroking his back, his lips closing in, and all he could do was brace for impact.

A tidal wave of longing washed over him, swept on the current of Michael's powerful tongue. His body grew limp, his resistance weakened to the point where there was nothing left to do but surrender to the power of Michael's desire. They kissed fervently, embracing one another as though clinging on for life.

"What happened to the other one?" Coryn asked Kawen on the deck of The Playful Tiger.

This new waiter was a bit too muscular and stupid looking to hold his attention, not like the slim Tibur with his dark and intelligent eyes. They made him curious about how they looked when he was pleading.

"Bathroom break" said Kawen.

"It seems we're both waiting for our boy toys to return!" laughed Nehrenne. "It's not like I'll get to enjoy mine until we're back on dry land though..."

"Oh?" said Coryn, "Perhaps I'm in the mood for a little generosity..."

Nehrenne coyly leaned her head on his shoulder, ignoring the traces of white around his nostrils.

"How generous?" she asked him.

"Well I do have two staterooms..." he mused, "and I'll only need one to use with the pretty little waiter. Why don't I show you where I keep the spare?"

Cautiously stepping down the stairs in her high heels, no Michael to support her, Nehrenne followed Coryn below deck into the labyrinthine hallways. Kawen trudged behind with the obligatory champagne on stand-by.

"The one opposite is off limits" he said with a sniff, "But this one's fit for purpose..."

Opening the door, they found two men had already discovered its purpose. Tibur and Michael fell away from one another, catching their breath; their reddened mouths stretching into satisfied smiles.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing down here?!" cried Coryn.

Nehrenne and Kawen both stared at them in shock.

Michael took Tibur's hand in his own.

"Ryn, I think I'm hallucinating!" said Nehrenne, pressing her manicured fingers to her temple, and trying to make sense of Modesh's biggest playboy locking lips with another man.

Coryn Aster had seen enough, storming upstairs to deliver his order to the Captain; to steer the boat back to the dock as quickly as possible and have every last fucker disembark!

Only Kawen seemed amused by the whole affair, speaking to Tibur in his native Modeshi.

"What did he say?" asked Michael.

Tibur laughed.

"That he's never recommending me for another job again."

With a swift middle finger and a smile to his friend, Kawen closed the door to give them some privacy.