[Spirit of Lust 2] Chapters 197 & 198. (Patreon)

Chapter 197: Thoughts at work.

I could easily pinpoint the day things changed. My body was the most obvious sign. I had noticed the strange things I was capable of since then, but for some reason I didn’t treat them with the importance I should’ve. Something about them had a faint air of normalcy, like it was only natural that I could do these things despite realizing they were strange and even supernatural. I never expected this to affect people around me, though.

What Mila, Grace and Sarah told me during lunch hour still circled my head, and that wasn’t good.

“Hey, wake up!” Maria snapped her fingers in front of my face, and I suddenly remembered I had to finish washing the dishes and go back to sweeping the entrance to the coffee shop.

“Sorry! Sorry!”

“Are you feeling well today?” She asked me, hands on her hips. “You don’t normally take this long to wash a few dishes.”

“I’ve been having headaches today,” I said to excuse myself. “It’s been a weird day.”

“Don’t overwork yourself, okay? You go to the gym right before work, don’t you? And you were studying for your midterms not that long ago. It’s good to have things to do, but too much can be damaging.”

I smiled. “Funnily enough, all that is much simpler and easier than other things I have to deal with.” Lifting weights was simple, studying was straightforward, working was fulfilling, but people? People were far more difficult.

Maria grinned. “I suppose a boy in your situation has it hard, huh? Girls giving you trouble?”

“I wouldn’t call it trouble. Just… A lot to think about.”

“Can’t you go to your friend for some advice? Thomas, right? He looks like he’s popular with the ladies.”

I had to try hard to keep myself from smirking, and instead kept a small smile. “He’s single right now,” I told her.

“Single? A guy like him? That’s a surprise.”

“Right? And he always tells me he’s glad he’s not in my shoes.”

Maria laughed. “I bet. Boy, school was such a blast. I miss it. Are you having fun in school, Oliver?”

“Now I am,” I told her, putting away the last of the plates. “The first three years weren’t nearly as good.”

“You’ll be going to university?”

I nodded. “If all goes well, yes.”

“That’s fun, too. A lot of freedom, meeting new people, experiencing new things, broadening your horizons… Aaah, I’m so jealous!”

I chuckled. “If you keep reminiscing about old times I’ll have no choice but to really call you Ms. Maria.”

“Shut it!” She puffed her cheeks in a pout. It didn’t look that out of place on her, despite her age, which I learned was 26. She pointed a finger to the front door. “Now go sweep the front entrance, slacker!”

“Yes, yes.”

I took the broom and went outside, trying hard to hold a laugh.

Work had become a lot easier with time and experience. There was still the unpredictable variable of customers, but at least I was learning to do everything better bit by bit. I was confident I could even prepare coffee quickly enough and without spilling anything, but the thought of actually having to prepare a customer’s order still made me a little afraid to tell Maria I could handle it. Things like sweeping, though, and washing dishes and even waiting on tables was much smoother.

Really, with things as complicated as they were getting, I was looking forward to my work days. It was a short escape from it all, a bit of time I didn’t have to think about what my lovely girlfriends wanted me to do.

…

Or that was what I hoped would happen.

We were having a slow, slow day. We only had two tables occupied, and Maria was more than capable of taking care of it on her own. That left me with all the menial tasks that left too much time to space out to think about… stuff.

Things were now crystal clear between the girls and I. For a few different reasons, they were not opposed to / wanted me to sleep with other girls. Sleep as in ‘have sex with’, if it wasn’t clear enough.

Let me be honest with you here. While this sounds like every man’s dream, with me certainly not being an exception, it wouldn’t have been something I would’ve said yes to if not for a single reason.

Noelle Summers.

The world is full of attractive women, sure, but how often do you feel like you click with someone the moment you have a simple conversation? How often do you feel like you click with someone AND they are ridiculously cute and hot?

Despite what our first encounter might make you believe, I didn’t feel a click with Mila, Grace and Sarah the moment we started talking. I spent the first WEEK panicking to my very core, not understanding what the fuck was going on, remember? With Noelle, though… I thought it was going to be awkward, but we ended up having a lot of fun.

…

I had a crush on her, and in that talk with the girls, they practically forced me to accept it. If not for that, I would’ve buried those feelings deep down until they were forgotten.

I feel like I have to say this, despite it being very obvious to me. My feelings for Mila, Grace and Sarah have not diminished in the slightest. If anything, I love them even more. It’s just that… I can’t deny that the idea of being with someone new is exciting, more now that I know they encourage it.

So yeah, I said okay to this because I wanted to date Noelle. But you’re probably thinking, ‘Oliver, what about Alice? You said you liked her!’ And yes, I do like Alice. She’s smart, competent, a top class beauty, and apparently a huge badass who rebuilt her own car and participates in street races with it. I just hadn’t felt that click yet, and that… worried me a bit.

The girls were encouraging me to go after Noelle, yes, but they seemed to be more interested in Alice and I hooking up. I mean, of course they were. She’s one of their best friends, so they probably trusted her far more than Noelle.

I didn’t want to force anything, though, and that’s what worried me. I didn’t want to… sleep with one of my girlfriends’ best friends just for the sake of it. I felt like it’d be a disappointment for us all. I was going with her to the car meet on Saturday, though, so… I supposed we’d see how that went.

Finally, there was one more issue that concerned me. A very simple, yet important one. See, Mila, Grace and Sarah were okay with me sleeping with other girls. They WANTED to share me. That’s cool and all, but… What about these other girls?

Would Alice want to be with me? She knew I’m dating her friends already. What about Noelle? She didn’t even know I was seeing other girls. She would undoubtedly hate me if I tried to do anything before I even told her I had three girlfriends. And if I told her, she was also likely to not want anything with me.

What a fucking mess.

Well, the girls said to leave that part to them, so… I’ll just have to trust them on this. I just hope this doesn’t end in any sort of fight.

If there was a supernatural being responsible for all the weird shit happening to us, then I prayed it also helped us make this work.

************

Chapter 198: Intermission - An issue of trust (part 1).

“I’ve given your proposal some serious thought, Ms. Knight,” the principal told her.

“Which one, sir?” Alice asked.

“The one to bring back the talent show.”

Alice was called to the principal’s office after classes were over. Right now, students were either leaving school grounds or staying for their club activities. The student council itself didn’t have a meeting, but Alice was asked to stay to discuss some matters with the principal.

“And what is your opinion, sir?” Alice asked, keeping her expectations and personal interests in check.

“I talked about it with some of the teachers, and even asked the opinion of some friends of mine who work at a TV station. They all seem to agree that the talent show is a good idea, and we might be able to get it broadcast on television. If not live, then at least a long report in the news.”

“And the budget, sir?”

The principal sighed. “There’s some, but with the new lab expenses…” He shook his head. “If we can manage to make it student-run, however, the budget we do have can go to give them all the materials they need instead of hiring sound technicians or stage crew.”

Alice superseded her own sigh. “I bring it up to the rest of the council and then to the class presidents in next week’s meeting.”

“Thank you, Ms. Knight. I do hope this goes well.”

“As do I, sir. Was there anything else?”

“No. You may leave. Be safe on your way home.”

“Thank you.”

With a short bow, Alice left the principal’s office. Once far away enough, she let herself let out a sound that was half a sigh, half a groan.

Stingy old fart. Alice had seen the numbers. There was enough money to hire staff to make sure the event went smoothly. The principal was just hoping the students themselves would take care of it so he could claim in interviews that his school was just that good, all the while keeping his money. He wanted to have his cake and eat it, too, basically.

Nevertheless, it was a chance to have something interesting done in this dull school. Something that wasn’t a damn spelling contest for once. Alice knew clubs and individual students were eager to show what they could do, and they well damn deserved the chance. Life wasn’t all academics. It just wasn’t.

She caught herself scowling, but thankfully there was no one in the hallway with her. She let out another sigh, this one to compose herself more than to let out frustrations.

“Now then…” To take care of something that turned her stomach far more than dealing with the old fart. “Please tell me they’re not mad…”

Alice walked up the stairs to the rooftop and opened the door. Sarah was leaning against the chain link fence, Mila was looking down into the court where the soccer team was practicing, and Grace was looking at her phone.

Alice’s stomach twisted again.

“What’s this sudden summon for?” she asked with a weak chuckle. “Am I in trouble?”

That none of them answered with a witty comeback was worrying. Just the other day they had no issues with her inviting their boyfriend to the car meet this Saturday. Now Alice had the feeling they had changed their minds. But…

“We just want to have a serious talk, Alice,” Grace said, pocketing her phone. “One we should’ve had a long time ago.”

Grace and Sarah had the same serious expression, while Mila looked more hesitant. It wasn’t a surprise. The former two were always more willing to bring out difficult topics if they thought it was necessary.

“Okay.” Alice shrugged lightly. “What’s this about?”

“When is it enough?” Sarah asked.

“Ah?”

“You made it to student council president already. You have your ticket,” Grace said. “How much longer are you playing the part of a serious, earnest student?”

Alice tensed up. “Are you sure you should be asking that, Grace? You of all people?”

Grace shrugged easily. “I play the part for the teachers so they can’t say anything when I cut loose every once in a while. I have my fun whenever I can. But you?”

“Alice…” Mila grimaced as she looked at her. “It’s clearer now that we’re seeing you more often. It’s like you’ve closed yourself off to everyone.”

“Fuck the presidency,” Sarah said, nearly spat. “We never should’ve left you alone. We fucked that one up.”

Alice’s hands began to tremble, so she crossed her arms and held her elbows to hide it. “What are you talking about? I haven’t closed myself.”

“Your friends, Isabelle and Noelle,” Grace continued. “Why don’t they know that you’re a mechanic and street racer?”

“That’s… You know why.”

Grace nodded. “We do.”

“You don’t trust them, do you?” Mila’s pained, sad face hurt far more than Grace’s stern tone.

Alice felt her heart twisting.

“Aren’t they your closest friends now?” Sarah asked her. “But from what we’ve seen, you don’t act much differently with them than you do with anyone else. Did you tell them you were dating that college guy for a while? Do you tell them stupid jokes? Do you watch horror movies with them and hide under a blanket?”

“I…” Alice’s mouth went dry.

“We really screwed up,” Grace said, biting her own lip so hard Alice thought she was gonna draw blood. “Why did we ever think staying away was good for you?”

“I’m… I’m trying to fix that, okay?” Alice said, looking away from them. She kept holding her elbows, but now she felt more like she was holding herself. Her lip quivered. “I’m trying to fix…”

Of course they knew. These girls always knew.

Alice used to be a really naive girl. Her mother always told her that, so long as one approached people with honesty and kindness, they would reciprocate. Life taught her her mother was wrong. It taught her people took advantage of honesty and kindness.

When she was younger, she believed the sweet words of someone like that. It led to a terrible two months, which almost became something even worse if her friends hadn’t intervened. She still shivered at the memories, sometimes even woke up in a cold sweat from nightmares.

Since then, and without realizing it… Alice had been keeping people at a distance. And then her three closest friends decided to stay away from her, mostly. It was for her sake, she knew. For the sake of something she had to do. For the sake of something she didn’t even truly want, but couldn’t bring herself to tell them that.

Alice suddenly felt Mila hugging her tightly, as strongly as she could manage.

“M-Mila?”

“You should’ve just told us!” Mila cried. “You should’ve just told us you were lonely!”

Alice’s lip quivered. She hugged Mila back and let out a humorless chuckle. “I… I wanted to stop relying on you for everything. I wanted to be as strong as you are.”

“The presidency,” Grace said. “It’s because of your dad, isn’t it?”

Of course she’d figure it out! Grace was just amazing. Alice still couldn’t measure up.

“Yeah.” She didn’t need to say any more. Tears threatened her eyes, so she closed her eyes, but with them came a sense of relief. “I’m sorry. If I was stronger, if I was… better…!”

She felt a light, painless flick on her forehead. Sarah was there, and her friend then planted a light kiss on the top of her head.

“You’re strong. You’re the best. You just need to be you.”

No. Alice was weak. She tried and played the part, but it was never enough. Still… It was reassuring to hear Sarah say that.