Friday was not the easiest day. I was hungover, and Sophie’s bed was not as comfortable as my own. But after a shower and some coffee, I made it to the lecture fine and caught up on my required reading.
Dinner that evening was a beef stew Oliver had made, and my headache kept me from participating much in the conversation.
After dinner, Ethan declared a house meeting. I let out a groan, but moved to the couch with everyone else.
“Halloween is approaching, and in this home we have a tradition,” Ethan started.
A few of the others answered in unison.
“Halloween party!”
Okay. I had apparently stumbled onto something important.
“Past years we’ve done video games, horror, superheroes, sci-fi. The house did GTA for video games, Scream for horror, Gotham for superheroes.”
Ethan pulled out his phone.
“This year’s options are: SPACE!, 90s sitcoms, and Tarantino movies.”
That immediately started a lot of small conversations around the room.
“Why are you saying space like that?” I asked.
“In honor of Tim Curry,” Ethan said.
Dev immediately understood.
“I’m escaping to the one place that hasn’t been corrupted by capitalism… SPACE!”
“Exactly.” Ethan pointed at Dev.
“Tarantino movies are more fruitful, though,” Oliver countered.
“Yeah, it narrows things down, but still allows for some diversity,” Dev agreed.
“Yeah, SPACE! is all over the place. We could do Tim Curry movies?” Noah said.
“If we do that, we’ll have a million Dr. Frank-N-Furters. And we are not doing Rocky Horror as the theme,” Ethan countered.
“Fine. Then Tarantino is the best one,” Noah agreed.
“I’d like 90s sitcoms,” Mateo said, and a round of boos erupted from the other guys.
“Fine. Tarantino, I guess,” Mateo relented.
“Okay, all agreed on Tarantino as our theme. Now we pick the apartment focus,” Ethan continued.
“Reservoir Dogs would be perfect for us. We could do all the Misters.”
“And Lillian is what?”
Oliver looked at me.
“Shocked Woman?”
“Fuck you,” I said.
“So not Reservoir Dogs,” Ethan interrupted.
“The Hateful Eight is too much work. Period costumes aren’t easy,” Dev said.
“Same goes for Django Unchained and Inglourious Basterds,” Noah agreed.
“The only sane options are Pulp Fiction or Kill Bill,” Dev continued.
“Pulp Fiction,” Mateo said.
“Pulp Fiction,” Dev agreed.
“Pulp Fiction.” Noah nodded.
“I guess we’re doing Pulp Fiction,” Ethan said.
He looked down at his phone and tapped something out.
“I’ve shared the work doc with you all. Fill in your costumes by tomorrow, and put ideas for props and decorations on the second tab. We’ll sort out the workload tomorrow.”
Mateo leaned over and whispered, “Ethan takes Halloween super seriously.”
I nodded. “He seems very dedicated to pulling this off.”
“It’s a source of pride. Our place is known for having the best Halloween party at Hunter. Ethan doesn’t want to lose the bragging rights.”
“Gonna be a lot of people here, then?”
“We had an almost full house last time. So, like, fifty people maybe?”
“Wow. That’s gonna be a big party.”
After some more clarification on budget and invite rules, they put Pulp Fiction on the TV. I decided I did not need a movie refresh and retired to my room before Jules took a tasty piece of the Big Kahuna Burger.
I did a review of Mateo’s cleaning and decided he had done a decent job. I sat down and started working on my Art History paper, which was due in a few months. I had gotten approval for the topic. Now I just needed to write it.
Women After Dark: The Transition from Passive Subject to Active Participant in Late Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Nightlife Painting
I was planning to use paintings of cafés, bars, dance halls, and other nightlife spaces to track how women shifted from being decorative subjects in the scene to active participants in it, and how that changed the way female identity was represented.
I kept writing till way past midnight and decided to have a shower before heading to bed. I grabbed some clothes and a towel and saw something crumpled between my dresser and the wall.
I pulled it out.
A pair of panties. Mine.
And someone had used them as a cum rag.
That fucking guy.
I clenched my hand around the panties, walked straight across the hall and knocked on Mateo’s door.
Nothing.
I knocked harder.
“Mateo,” I whispered, trying not to wake anyone.
There was movement inside, followed by a muffled complaint before the door opened.
“Lillian? What—”
I pushed past him into his room, and he stumbled back.
Closing the door behind me, I threw the panties in his face.
“What the fuck is this?”
He caught them, looked down at his hands and bit his lip.
“Well?” I pushed.
“I cleaned everything. I found those under your bed.”
“And you decided you could use them as a cum rag?”
“I was planning on cleaning them, but I forgot.” He looked down at the floor, clearly ashamed of himself.
“I unlock you for one night, and this is what I get?”
“You gave me a night of freedom,” he corrected.
“That word is doing a lot of heavy lifting. Using my panties as a cum rag is usually not part of anyone’s freedom charter.”
“I’m sorry I used your property, but it had been a really long time since I’d had an orgasm. And I’m not having sex, so I… needed some release.”
I gave him a look.
“Is that my problem? You keep coming back, you agreed to all of this. Hell, you begged for it.”
Mateo nodded.
“I did, and I do, but I need some release as well.”
I gave him a long look.
“In compensation for the panties, you sign up for Pulp Fiction as the Gimp.”
He looked uncomfortable at that.
“It’s on theme, Mateo. And if you do it, I’ll fuck you as a special reward at the end of the night.”
His head snapped up, his expression suddenly hopeful.
“Really?”
“Yes. But I expect the full Gimp suit, and if you’re going to do it, you commit to the role all night.”
He nodded.
“Of course. I promise to be good.”
“Well, good boys get rewards.”
I moved toward the door.
“Oh, and clean those. I don’t want to see any stains from your actions on them when you return them.”
I left him and got my shower. When I returned to my room, I checked the work doc and saw that everyone had filled in their costumes.
- Ethan: Jules
- Noah: Vincent
- Oliver: Winston Wolfe
- Dev: Butch
- Mateo: The Gimp
I filled in my own slot.
- Lillian: Mia Wallace
The second tab had tasks for the party: making the briefcase, printing Big Kahuna Burger cup covers and burger wrappers, buying booze, decorations, music, and more.
Dev had already grabbed music. Printing the Big Kahuna Burger stuff looked easy enough, so I grabbed that before anyone else signed up.
I closed my laptop and went to bed.
Saturday morning brought another “Halloween Standup,” where Ethan announced how things were progressing.
He read out all the costumes. Noah snorted when Ethan said Mateo had picked the Gimp, but no one else seemed to pay it much attention.
“We have our core crew, but if you have a plus-one attending, please ask if they want to match our theme. We still have openings for Marsellus Wallace, Fabienne, Pumpkin and Honey Bunny, and even minor roles like Lance, Captain Koons, Zed, or Maynard.”
“I’ll get Sophie for Fabienne,” Dev said.
“Cool. I’ll add her to the roster, then. Anyone else bringing a plus-one, get confirmation if you can.”
I had breakfast and headed out to find my wig and do the printing. Someone had attached a PDF to the printing task with everything we needed already sized for printing: burger wrappers, cup sleeves in several sizes, and a few other bits.
I headed to the print shop first. They told me it would take a while because they had run out of the paper they needed and had to get more from another store. I said that was no problem and agreed to come back at four to pick everything up.
I then headed to Broadway Wig Company. I wanted something decent for the black bob I needed for my costume.
The shop was rather cramped, but I made my way to the front desk.
There was a woman in front of me who was enormous.
Not fat. Just huge.
She had to be six-three, maybe taller, and the shop suddenly felt much smaller with her standing in it.
“The color is right,” she was saying to the woman behind the counter. “But I need it cut to about here.”
She held a hand just below her shoulders.
“If I take that much off, am I going to lose the shape?”
The owner picked up the wig and turned it around.
“Not if you layer it again afterward. You’ll want to thin the lower section first, then cut. Otherwise it’ll go blunt.”
“And the red?”
“Leave that section longer until the end. Style around it.”
The giant woman nodded like she was mentally taking notes.
Eventually, she paid for two wigs and squeezed past me toward the door.
“Sorry,” she said. “I am not the right size for this place.”
I flattened myself against a display.
“Sure, no problem.”
She left.
I stepped up to the counter.
“Mia Wallace bob.”
The owner nodded immediately.
“Easy.”
The days leading up to Halloween went fast. With my task done, I watched the slow construction of the briefcase. Oliver and Noah worked on getting LED lights into it and rigging it so it would slowly light up as you opened it.
Mateo sent me two Gimp suit rental options, and I told him to get the second one. It had the right openings that I wanted for him.
When the thirty-first arrived, the apartment had been converted into a low-budget version of the Pulp Fiction universe.
Posters and movie stills covered the walls. Big Kahuna Burger wrappers and bags were stacked in the kitchen, along with cup sleeves somebody had printed in four different sizes. A glowing briefcase sat on the coffee table, and a crooked Jack Rabbit Slim’s sign hung over the entrance to the living room.
It wasn’t professional, but with the lights turned down and the soundtrack playing, it worked.
I was standing in the middle of the living room looking at all of it when I felt someone come up behind me.
Noah’s voice was quiet against my ear.
“We’re alone in the apartment.”
I didn’t turn around. “Since when?”
“Ethan left for the store. Mateo’s still at work. Oliver said he was going to grab more ice, but that was twenty minutes ago. Dev and Sophie aren’t back yet.”
His hand settled on my hip.
“Your room.”
I went.
He shut the door behind us. I went over to my bed and sat down. He undressed as he walked over. He was only half hard when I opened my mouth, but that changed quickly once he pushed in.
I kept it wet and slow. The way he liked it when we had time. One hand on his thigh, the other cupping his balls. It didn’t take long before he was fully hard.
After a minute, he leaned over, opened the drawer of my nightstand, and took out my lube.
He didn’t bother with more talking. He moved me onto my hands and knees, put some lube on my ass, and worked two fingers into me until I was rocking back against his hand while still sucking him off.
Then he wiped his hand on my thigh, lay back, and looked at me.
“Sit on it. Reverse. And cross your legs.”
I hesitated for half a second.
He raised an eyebrow.
I climbed on, reached back, lined him up, and sank down. The stretch was sharp enough that I had to stop halfway and breathe before taking the rest. Once I was seated, he reached around, took my ankles, and crossed them in front of me until my thighs pressed tightly together.
The position changed everything. Every small movement dragged against places that hadn’t felt nearly as sensitive a moment ago.
“Fuck,” I whispered.
“Stay like that.”
He held my hips and started moving under me in short, controlled thrusts. I braced my hands on his thighs and let him set the pace. The position left me open and restrained at the same time. I was dripping onto him and still felt stretched thin.
We’d been at it maybe five minutes when there was a knock.
The door opened a crack.
Oliver stuck his head in.
“Lillian, do you know where the—”
He stopped.
His eyes went from my face to where I was sitting on Noah, then down to my crossed legs and Noah’s hands gripping my hips.
Noah didn’t even slow down.
“Come in,” he said. “Close the door.”
Oliver stepped inside and shut it. Then he just stood there like he wasn’t sure the invitation was real.
Noah reached around, uncrossed my legs, and spread them wide, deliberately giving Oliver a better view.
“You want in?”
Oliver’s throat worked. He looked at me.
“Do you… want that?”
I was still full of Noah, breathing hard, my face hot.
I nodded and opened my legs a little wider.
Oliver held my eyes for another second. Then he started undressing. Jacket. Shirt. Belt. Pants. No hesitation now. Just efficient. When he was naked, he climbed onto the bed, knelt between my spread thighs, and looked down at where Noah was already inside me.
I reached down, took his cock, and guided him to my pussy.
He pushed in slow.
The combined stretch punched the air out of my lungs. Too much. I could feel the pressure of them against each other through the thin wall between them. Noah stayed completely still while Oliver worked his way in, inch by inch. By the time Oliver’s hips met mine, I was shaking between them.
I’d never had two guys at the same time. If someone was fucking one hole, the most I’d ever had in the other was a finger.
I dug my fingers into Oliver’s shoulders and concentrated on breathing.
Oliver leaned in and kissed me. I kissed him back, messy and open-mouthed, while trying to adjust to both of them at once. Noah stayed still underneath me while Oliver started moving in short, careful thrusts. Even that felt enormous with Noah filling the space behind him.
It was too much. Not in the good way that tipped over into coming. I was just full. Stretched almost past the point where it felt good. Every shift of Oliver’s hips changed the pressure between them and sent sparks up my spine that never quite caught fire. I was wet and shaking and still nowhere close.
Noah’s hands tightened on my hips.
“Fuck!”
Noah came first. I felt him pulse inside me, his hips jerking up against mine as a low sound escaped his throat. He held me there for a few more seconds, breathing hard against my back, then eased out carefully.
The sudden loss of pressure in my ass made me gasp.
Noah rolled out from under me and reached for his clothes. He didn’t say anything. He just pulled his pants on, glanced once at Oliver and me still tangled on the bed, and left. The door clicked shut behind him.
Oliver was still inside me.
He looked down at my face, then slowly pulled out and shifted me onto my back. Missionary. Simple. I hooked one leg over his hip. He pushed back into my pussy in one smooth stroke and settled into a deeper, steadier rhythm. The kind that should have gotten me there.
It didn’t.
I stayed right on the edge. Close enough to ache. Not close enough to fall. Every time I thought I might tip over, the feeling slipped sideways and disappeared, leaving me clutching at his shoulders instead.
Oliver didn’t seem to notice. Or maybe he did and just kept going. His breathing got rougher and his thrusts shorter. He buried his face against my neck when he came, hips locked against mine.
We stayed like that for a minute. Sweaty. Quiet.
He eventually pulled out, rolled onto his side, and looked at me.
I stared at the ceiling and tried not to think about how empty I felt.
“Okay, Oliver, that was nice, but I gotta shower. Please leave.”
Oliver dressed and left while I watched him from the bed.
If I had sex with Dev, I’d have collected the entire crew. And I was pretty sure Sophie would be down with it if I promised to eat her out as well.
Fuck, what was I saying?
I was confused. I hadn’t come from any of that. I had been so close. Had I had too much sex? Was I broken?
Fuck it. I had to shower. Problems later.
I took a long shower, and after getting dressed, decided I needed some fresh air. This whole day felt off, and a walk would get me back to normal.
I walked for a long time, stopped at a bagel place, and walked some more after lunch. My thoughts kept circling around several things that had been nipping at my heels.
I was still pursuing Ethan, but I knew that wasn’t really going anywhere. I could have sex with every one of his friends and he would be fine with that. And if I wanted a boyfriend, I couldn’t really lie to myself about what that meant either.
I didn’t know what I wanted from Ethan anymore.
School was gnawing at me too. I was doing fine. My classes were easy. I got good grades on tests.
But I wasn’t feeling it.
I thought I would have some sort of growth, some self-realization, from learning and becoming more knowledgeable about all this stuff. But no such luck.
I was sure I could finish several years of this without too much effort, but to what end?
I didn’t want to be a journalist. I didn’t really want any other profession either. I needed a job to feed myself and stay alive, but a career wasn’t what I wanted from life.
Why was I getting a degree then?
I looked at the time. I needed to get back. While the day had been a bit of a bummer, at least I had a fun party to look forward to. Also, alcohol was a good way to treat inside wounds.
By the time I got back to the apartment, the party had already started in small ways.
Music was playing, and food was being prepared in the kitchen. I stepped into my room and changed into Mia Wallace.
I had painted my toenails red and decided to go with the no-socks version of her look. I had a pair of very minimal, nude-colored slippers that left my toes exposed, so I wouldn’t wreck my feet while still looking mostly barefoot.
I walked back into the kitchen and found Mateo in his Gimp suit, frying burgers. Several were already laid out on the counter in the Big Kahuna Burger wrappers I had printed.
I picked one up. “These are for eating, right?”
Mateo nodded.
I took a bite and closed my eyes, doing my best Jules impression.
“Mmm! That is a tasty burger!”
I patted Mateo on the shoulder, then lowered my voice.
“Good boy.”
I sat down at the kitchen table to eat my burger, and Mateo brought over a milkshake with a straw.
I nodded my thanks and took a sip.
Vanilla.
Probably at least five dollars’ worth of ingredients.
As I ate, more people started arriving. They were friends of the other guys, judging by the way Noah and Oliver greeted them.
We now had a few Reservoir Dogs characters, along with Max Cherry from Jackie Brown.
Then Ethan walked in, arm in arm with Jackie Brown. Or at least, a woman dressed as Jackie Brown.
What the shit.
She was talking to Oliver and Noah like she already knew them.
My mind was trying to line up several big things at once.
Did Noah know Ethan had a girl? Maybe a girlfriend?
Was I the side chick who needed to be hidden from Jackie Brown?
Did she know she and Ethan weren’t exclusive?
Did she know about me?
All those thoughts and more slid away when I saw Dev stand up and walk over to someone dressed as Gogo from Kill Bill. She even had a small plastic meteor hammer.
“I thought you were dressing up as Fabienne? To match my Butch?”
“I said I would think about it. Not that I would do it.”
Oh shit. That was Sophie. I recognized the voice.
Good makeup, I guess.
And then I saw the Bride walk in.
Fuck. It was Ava.
This day just kept compounding.
“But you coordinated with Ava? But not your boyfriend?”
“I’m not a French girl, Dev. Let me pick my own costumes.”
“I’m not a white dude, but that didn’t stop me.”
“No, it did not,” Sophie said, then walked away from him.
Ava caught my eye, gave me a look that clearly asked what was that?, and came over to sit beside me.
“Hello, Ava. Nice costume.”
“Thank you.”
“How’ve you been since last time, I guess?”
“Oh, fine. I think we ruined Sophie’s relationship, though.”
I drew in a deep breath.
“You didn’t say anything, right?”
Ava gave me a sideways look. “You think I would?”
“I don’t know you, Ava, so I don’t really know what you would do. But today has been a cascade of awful surprises. If Dev finds out I fucked his girlfriend and they break up because of it, that would really be the cherry on top.”
“Well, I haven’t said anything. But Sophie has been spending a lot less time with Dev, and she decided on this costume after he asked her to be Fabienne.”
“So she wanted a fight. Great. Just fucking great.”
“I’m sure it’ll be all right.”
“If I get dragged down, I’m taking you with me, Ava. Be on guard.”
Mateo appeared beside me with a beer. I took it from him without acknowledging him.
“Do you know who that woman is?” I pointed toward Jackie Brown.
“Who, Dahlia? Yeah. She and Ethan have been going out for, like… years.”
“Motherfucker…”
Ava looked at me.
“You interested in Ethan?”
“No. No, I am not.”
I took another drink of my beer, stood up, and walked over to Dahlia.
“Hi. I’m Lillian. I wanted to introduce myself.”
“Ah, Lillian. I’ve heard so much about you!”
“All bad, I hope.” I smiled.
“That you’re studying art history, that you moved in about a month ago, and that pretty much everyone here likes you.”
“Then you have me at a disadvantage. No one has told me about you.”
“I’m Dahlia, Me and Ethan go way back. We were high school sweethearts. We’ve been doing long distance for a while now.”
“That must be difficult.”
“Sometimes. But we’ve always been exclusive. Neither of us wanted to mess with what we already had. I’m up at MIT, but I’ll be wrapping up my master’s this summer and moving back to New York.”
“Moving in here, then?”
“Yeah. I used to live here. I did a year at Hunter before I got into MIT, so I know all the old-timers. Noah, Oliver, Mateo. Dev moved in when I left, though, so I only know him from visits.”
“I guess we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other, then?”
“Almost certainly. Good to see some more feminine energy in this place. Very masculine. I hope you keep these guys in their place.”
I looked around the room at Noah, Mateo, and Oliver, laughing and drinking together.
“I try…”
Dahlia laughed.
“They’re a rowdy bunch.”
“Are you staying here over Christmas?”
“I think so. I’m planning to do family for Thanksgiving, so I probably won’t go back twice.”
“Then we should totally hang. I’ll be staying here with Ethan for the holidays. We can do Christmas together.”
“That sounds great.”
I lied.
This woman was wonderful. I could totally see why Ethan would want to date her.
What the fuck was he doing with me, though?
Ethan joined us.
“Ethan, you never said Lillian was such a sweet girl. I love her already. Great pick for a roommate.”
He shrugged.
“She pays rent on time and keeps her room clean. That makes her better than most people.”
Dahlia gave him a light slap on the arm.
“And she tells me you never mentioned me. Are you trying to keep me a secret?”
“It just never came up.”
I looked at Ethan.
“Yeah. It’s true. We never really talked about whether he was dating anyone.”
I finished my beer and held up the empty bottle before heading toward the drinks.
“Let me help you with that. I can make you a proper drink,” Ethan said.
We moved over to the alcohol station. Ethan grabbed a glass and started mixing something.
“Sooo, about Dahlia.”
“Yeah, tell me, Ethan. What about Dahlia?”
“In retrospect, I guess I should have told you.”
“Yeah. Might have been a good idea to inform me about your long-term girlfriend before deciding to fuck me.”
“Shhh… Not so loud.”
“I’ll play dumb tonight, but don’t think I’ve forgotten about this.”
He finished my drink. I took it and left him there.
I went into the hallway to get some quiet and found Sophie and Dev arguing.
I rolled my eyes, looked back into the main room, and saw Ethan had already rejoined Dahlia.
Fine.
I might as well hang out here.
“Well, Dev, I don’t really care about that.”
“But you knew I cared. Why are you doing all this, Sophie? You’ve been weird the last two weeks. Are you trying to break up with me?”
Sophie let out a sigh, glanced at me, then looked back at Dev.
“No. I’ve been thinking a lot about the long term. Where we’re going and why.”
“And I’m not part of that future?”
“You are… but maybe I need more.”
She looked at me again, then back at Dev.
Oh no. I am not gonna third-leg your relationship.
I quickly stepped back into the living room.
I swayed a little on the turn. Ethan must have put an extra dose of the hard stuff in my drink, because it was definitely working.
Looking across the room, I realized how many people had actually shown up. The place was pretty packed.
I spotted Ava dancing with a few people. She saw me and waved me over.
Fuck it. Ava might not have been my first choice of people to hang out with, but she was clearly into me.
I glanced back toward Ethan and Dahlia.
Might as well have some fun.
Dev had gone through most of the Tarantino movies and pulled out everything iconic. I joined Ava for Little Green Bag, then stayed with her through the Green Hornet Theme.
I think we danced for a solid hour before I decided I needed a drink.
Ava came with me and grabbed a beer.
“Are you allowed to drink that?” I asked.
“You a cop?” Ava replied.
“True.”
I took a sip of my beer.
“You seem to like dancing,” Ava said.
“Yeah. I wish I went clubbing more.”
“When was the last time you went?”
I smiled at that.
“Leah brought me and my friend to this secret underground club in the middle of nowhere a few months back. It was fucking rad. Real Blade/Matrix vibe.”
Ava looked at me.
“That sounds awesome.”
“It was. Place was insane.”
“You should go out more, then.”
“I would need some higher-level connections to get into clubs like that.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, Leah was connected. If she was here, she would have been dressed as O-Ren Ishii for sure. And she most likely would have had the sword from the movie.”
Ava looked down at her plastic sword.
“Impressive lady?”
“Very.”
“Didn’t invite her?”
“We had… a falling out. I’m not mad at her or anything. I just needed some distance. Also, I assume she’s at a much fancier Halloween party.”
“This is the best Halloween party at Hunter. It’s really hard to outperform this one.”
I laughed.
“Oh, she would find something fancier. I’m certain.”
I finished my beer and looked at Ava.
“Wanna dance some more?”
She chugged the rest of her beer and put the bottle down on the table.
“Sure.”
Urge Overkill’s Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon started playing as we headed back to the dance floor.
We stayed there for most of the evening. I saw Ethan and Dahlia leave together, and at some point I stopped seeing Sophie or Dev either.
Eventually, Ava said she needed to go to the bathroom, and I ended up near the kitchen.
Mateo was there, and he was clearly trying to tell me something.
“You behaved all night?”
He nodded.
“You want your prize?”
He nodded faster.
Fine. I’d been having a pretty shitty day. I guess I could take some of it out on Mateo.
“Fine. Follow me.”
He followed a little behind me, like I had told him to. Never too close.
We weren’t together.
I entered my room and left the door ajar. He came in a few seconds later.
He shut the door and came over to me. I took off my pants and underwear, keeping my top on.
“I got something for you.”
He looked very excited. Or as excited as someone in a full latex suit could look.
I pulled out a recent purchase.
When I went looking for my wig, I had decided Mateo should get to fuck. Just not me.
So I bought him a GlideThrust Prostate Massager. Remote-controlled, suction-mounted, and able to stay exactly where I put it.
I showed it to Mateo.
“You said you needed some release because I keep you caged so much. I think I found a middle ground.”
I placed it on the floor, turned it on, and tested the remote. The top moved steadily back and forth.
Then I opened the back of his suit, followed by the front.
“Cage a bit tight?”
He nodded.
“It’s gonna get a lot tighter.”
I opened my nightstand drawer and handed him the lube.
“Never forget, I am nice to you.”
He nodded again.
He got down on his knees and started lubing up the vibrator. I sat down on the bed with my back against the wall and my legs spread.
I made sure there was just enough space between us that he couldn’t touch me, but could see me very clearly.
He turned around to face me, then slowly lowered himself onto the vibrator.
“It’s in place?”
He nodded.
I turned the speed up to one. Mateo shifted his weight, then settled himself again.
“Nice.”
I started playing with myself.
There was a knock at the door, and it opened before I could answer. Ava stuck her head inside.
“Where did you…”
She stopped halfway through the question and just stared at the scene.
Me, half-naked on the bed. Mateo kneeling in front of me dressed as the Gimp.
Well, I was already too far down the hole for this. Might as well go the whole way.
“Come inside, Ava. Close the door and lock it, please.”
She stepped inside, closed the door, and locked it.
I gave her an approving nod.
She came over and sat on my bed, looking at Mateo.
“Don’t worry about him,” I said.
“What’s that thing on his dick?”
“A cage. Chastity cage, chastity lock, whatever. It stops him from getting properly hard.”
“Does it hurt?”
I looked over at Mateo.
“Does it hurt?”
He shook his head.
“Just a bit tight?”
He nodded.
“See? He’s fine.”
“But why is he wearing it?”
“Because he’s a bad boy. And bad boys need to be caged until they can prove they’re good boys.”
She looked at me.
“This is kinda weird.”
“Sure. But you want in?”
“…Yes?”
“Gonna have to lose the jumpsuit, I’m afraid.”
She looked down at her costume and unzipped it.
Underneath, she was wearing a matching lace bra and panties.
“Expecting to get laid tonight, Ava?”
“Hoping.”
I smiled.
She dropped the bra, then pushed her panties down and stepped out of them before climbing onto the bed between my legs.
I kissed her and started playing with her tits.
I was still wearing my white shirt and wig, so she didn’t have nearly as much access to me.
Ava didn’t seem to mind. She kissed down my stomach, pushed my shirt up just enough, and kept going until she slid off the edge of the bed between my legs.
Her mouth found me.
She wasn’t practiced, but she was hungry, and that made up for a lot. Every time something worked, she did more of it.
Mateo was still exactly where I had left him. Locked, suited, watching.
I looked at the picture the three of us made and almost laughed.
“Mateo.”
He lifted his head.
“Unzip the hood. Eat her out.”
I pulled Ava farther down the bed until her hips were close enough for Mateo to reach her. He hesitated for half a second, then did exactly what I told him.
Ava looked up at me when she realized what was happening.
I smiled.
Then Mateo put his mouth on her, and whatever question had been on her face disappeared.
I picked up the remote and turned the vibrator up to three.
Mateo’s hands hit the floor.
I smiled and kept my voice even.
“It turns off when I come. By then, I want Ava to have come too. If you haven’t come by then, that’s your loss. And if you come too fast…” I shrugged. “It won’t stop. So you’d better get used to it.”
Ava lost the rhythm when Mateo started on her, then hurried to correct herself.
Mateo kept his attention on her.
I leaned back on my hands and watched them.
Ava’s tongue got less careful. She started rocking back against Mateo, losing track of what she was doing to me whenever he distracted her.
I tugged her hair.
She immediately corrected herself.
Mateo had managed to settle into it.
I turned the remote up another notch.
That ruined whatever composure he had found.
Ava came first.
She stopped what she was doing to me entirely and dropped her forehead against my thigh.
He didn’t stop.
I hadn’t told him he could.
I threaded my fingers into Ava’s hair and guided her back where I wanted her.
“Don’t stop. You’re not done.”
She looked up at me for a second, then went back to work.
Messier now. Less coordinated. Still good enough.
Mateo’s attention finally started slipping from Ava.
“Keep going.”
He immediately refocused on her.
Good.
I was close.
Not because of skill. Because of the picture. Because I was the one holding the remote.
Mateo obeyed. Ava followed.
When I came, I kept my eyes open.
Ava was still where I wanted her. Mateo was still following orders.
Then I thumbed the remote and killed the toy.
Silence for a second. Just breathing.
Mateo looked at the remote in my hand.
I smiled.
I let go of Ava’s hair.
“Good enough.”
I moved back against the wall and patted the bed beside me.
Ava climbed up without being asked twice.
I looked at Mateo.
Apparently, being caged hadn’t stopped him getting his release after all.
“You should clean that up,” I told him.
Mateo immediately started cleaning.
I turned my attention back to Ava.
“You liked that?”
She smiled and nodded.
“Very much. Great end to the night.”
“You want to stay the night?”
“Can I?”
“If you grab me a bottle of water from the fridge.”
She looked down at her naked body.
“Uh…”
“You can use my bathrobe or get back into your jumpsuit. I’m not gonna force you to walk naked back into the party.”
She let out a breath.
“I was worried there for a second.”
“Would you have done it?”
She looked down at the floor.
I smiled.
“It’s fine. You don’t need to answer. Just get the water.”
As Ava got up, Mateo stood too.
I looked over at the floor. Wet, but clean.
“Wash your ‘release tool’ in the sink, put it back in the drawer, then leave.”
By the time Ava returned, Mateo had finished and was heading out. She gave me the bottle, locked the door, and climbed into bed.
She snuggled against me, tucked into my left arm.
“You’ve been doing this with Sophie?” I asked.
“Only twice since you left. She says it’s not the same.”
“She gonna break up with Dev?”
“Don’t know. Feels like you came into our home and gave us crack, and now all we have is sugar.”
Ava yawned and closed her eyes. I turned off the lights, but I wasn’t sleepy yet. I started drinking the water. I knew I’d wake up with a huge headache if I didn’t finish the entire bottle.
I picked up my phone and started scrolling Instagram. Ava had already fallen asleep and was snoring softly against me.
At least I wasn’t broken. Whatever had happened with Noah and Oliver had just been weird.
I can’t believe I let this happen. And with fucking Ava.
It’s cradle robbery. Half my age plus seven…
I did the math.
Nineteen and a half.
Fuck, I am way off.
I went back to scrolling through Halloween pictures from parties around the world.
A slutty nurse. Three Barbies. Someone whose costume I didn’t understand but had apparently required six hundred hours of work.
Then Instagram started showing me the serious people.
Elaborate makeup. Cosplayers. A woman transforming herself into a fucking dragon.
Then I landed on a carousel from Heidi Klum’s Halloween party, where apparently everyone had a professional photographer following them around.
I swiped through the carousel.
Frankenstein. Some woman covered in blood. A guy in a costume that looked like it had an actual engine in it.
Four women in matching black-and-gold demon costumes.
Next.
A Jack Skellington costume.
I stopped.
Swiped back.
Wait.
I pinched the picture open.
Is that…
The picture was a wide shot of a K-Pop band, but off to one side were two people walking arm in arm in Kill la Kill cosplay.
And… fuck.
It was Leah and Mia.
Mia was holding Leah’s arm, laughing at something Leah had said.
She looked so happy.
She was at the most exclusive Halloween party on the planet. Where else would Leah bring her?
I looked down at Ava, asleep against me.
That hollow feeling came back.
Fuck.
I thought I had fixed that.
I locked my phone and hugged Ava tighter.
She smiled in her sleep and made a small sound.
I bit my lip, trying not to cry.