The Spirit of Lust (Ch. 181 - 190)

[Summary: Oliver Brooks is a high school senior with a crippling case of social anxiety to the point he freezes up and can't even talk to people. One day he gets possessed by a Spirit of Lust, a being that feeds on the energy produced by sex. Unaware of this, Oliver finds that his body has changed overnight, there are these three women that seem attracted to him and he has become a monster in bed despite having no experience. All this doesn't change the fact that he is still a very socially anxious young man, however.]

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Chapter 181: Night at home.

I returned home at about 11:30 pm. Considering my sister was still out at Thomas' party, one could say I was home rather early, but I had stuff to do on Saturday mornings.

I opened the door, and before I could close it, I heard something rather shocking from the living room.

"Okay, but don't tell your dad, you hear?"

Was... Was that my mother speaking in a baby voice? I closed the door and went to check. What greeted me was the sight of my mother on the couch with Cake on her lap. The kitten was very obviously chewing something.

"You're giving her extra snacks!" I said in an accusatory tone.

Mom grimaced at Cake. "We got busted."

There wasn't an ounce of guilt in Cake's expression as she just kept joyfully chewing on whatever it was my mom gave her.

"You and Isabelle just can't say no to her, can you?"

"She kept screaming at me in her adorable little voice," Mom argued, chuckling and scratching Cake around the neck. "Besides, it's fine when I do it."

I crossed my arms. "What? How come?"

"If you're her dad, I'm her grandma. It's okay for grandmas to spoil the grandkids."

"Why do people keep saying I'm her dad? She's a pet, not a kid." I went up to them and sat down next to mom. The TV was on, playing a gardening tutorial video that mom wasn't paying any attention to anymore.

"Of course we're just playing, dear. Don't take it so literally. But aren't you the one raising her? Sure, Isabelle is helping, but she's the type to see her scratching the sofa and let her because she's so cute."

"I'm just... trying to avoid having a cat that's a nuisance to the house."

"And that's good. I may not like this couch very much, but I'll like it even less if she starts leaving scratch marks all over it."

Surprisingly, Cake stayed with mom, even when I started watching the TV with them. I half expected her to jump to me and start screaming for more treats. The cat was kind of... entranced by the moving images, and while curled on mom's lap, she watched the TV with calm interest.

"Work, school, the gym, your social life..." Mom suddenly said. "You're putting a lot of effort into everything. I'm really proud, you know? You're growing really quickly."

I smiled wryly. "Catching up on all the growing I missed in these past few years."

"It's been, what, almost three months now, I think? I almost expected you to be losing steam already. I'm pleasantly surprised."

"It's... hard, yeah," I admitted with a nod. "Work is nerve-wracking, studying is not fun, the gym is tiring, and having a social life is complicated and exhausting. But every time I think I want to go back to the way things were before, I remember all I have now, and I can't bring myself to stop. Work gives me money to do the things I want. Thanks to the gym I feel better physically. Putting effort in school will help me in the future, I hope. And... It's good to have friends to talk to."

Mom's proud grin was then replaced by a teasing smirk. "And more than friends in some cases, I believe?"

I flinched. "What?"

"Those girls you hang out with," mom said. "Are you sure they're just friends?"

I felt a chill down my back, my mind making assumptions. Did... Did she know? Why was she talking in plural?

"I d-don't know what you mean," I said, looking away. My face was heating up. I think the fact that I was coming back from five hours of sex with those three wasn't helping me.

"They're all really cute, and they clearly like having you around. You're a handsome young man, Oliver. Is there anything between you and one of them? Who?"

I almost let out a sigh of relief. Mom didn't know anything, it was just the natural curiosity of a mother whose son was surrounded by sexy girls.

It... gave me an idea, an opportunity, even, to let a bit of the truth out. Just a bit to test the waters. It would require some... omission of information, perhaps even a bit of lying, and that made me hesitate the most. But something pushed me to try.

"It's... complicated," I said, looking down at my knees. "It would be simpler if we could just be friends, but..."

That wasn't a lie. Things would be simpler if we were nothing more than friends. But simpler didn't mean better.

Mom's eyes widened. "Don't tell me... D-Do you... No, do they... Do the three have..." she swallowed "a crush on you?"

I bit my lip before I spoke. "M-Maybe."

Now THAT was more of a lie. Old insecurities aside, I couldn't deny that the girls were into me. I knew that. Things wouldn't be how they were if they didn't.

Mom sighed. "Maybe the family curse affects men in the opposite way than it does women. I sort of hope so, at least."

Wait, what? "Family curse?"

Mom chuckled. "Just something your grandma used to say. She claimed the women of our family were cursed to have bad, short-lasting relationships only. Her own father passed away when she was young, her husband was a deadbeat and so is your aunt's. My husband passed away rather soon, too, and none of my relationships before him were very good. As far as I know, your sister has had pretty bad luck when it comes to boys, as well."

"... And you believe it's a curse?" I asked skeptically.

"I want to say no," she laughed. "But the pattern holds, so who can say? But here my son is breaking the hearts of three different ladies, maybe more. I don't know if that's lucky or not. I... wish I could give you good advice regarding relationships, but the truth is I just got lucky with your father. For a few years, at least." Mom let out a nostalgic sigh. "He was a good man. Too good, maybe, for a bad girl like me."

"You?" I raised an eyebrow. "A bad girl?"

"Why do you think I warn you so much about bad company? Your grandma, your aunt and I used to live in a really bad neighborhood. My sister was scared, but I used to hang out with terrible people. Guys and girls prone to violence, drinking, drug use, and a few petty crimes..." She grimaced. "Better to be one of them than a victim, I thought." She then frowned at me. "I didn't do drugs, mind you, and I never hurt anybody... that badly. A slap here and there, dumb fights, but after a while acting tough was enough to get the job done. I... drank a fair bit. Smoked, too." She let out a humorless chuckle. "I used to act tough, dressed in leather jackets and rode a motorcycle. That's probably the only thing I enjoyed back then. I still miss my bike. Whatever the case, they bought the act and respected me enough not to mess with me or my sister. That was always the objective.

"Years later, your grandma hits it big betting on horses. Like, really big. 'Lucky at cards, unlucky in love' she used to quote. It applied to horses, too, apparently. First thing we did was move out of that neighborhood. She then sent us to college. Once we had the most important things taken care of, she bet on horses again and won once more." Mom shook her head with a big smile. "That's the money that's paying for your, your sister and your cousin's education."

"I knew that last part, but... I didn't know you used to be... like that," I said, softly.

"Of course you didn't. It's not a time I recall fondly, nor a story I enjoy telling." Maybe sensing my mom's declining mood, Cake began to rub herself on her. Mom smiled and started petting her. "It's why it makes me so happy to see you working hard. I started a bit too late, and it made everything so much harder down the line."

I swallowed. "I'll work even harder from now on."

"Relax, dear." Mom chuckled. " I'd like you and your sister to be good, responsible people. I just want you to be happy, okay?"

I smiled. "You deserve to be happy, too, you know? You work too hard for us."

I think mom was shocked for a moment. She blinked at me before she returned the smile. "You're too young to be worrying about your mother. Leave that for when I'm old."

"So you're young now?" I teased.

Mom put her fingertips on the top of her chest and smiled proudly. "8 years in my prime and counting."

It got a laugh out of both of us, but I knew she was being serious. And I 100% believed it.

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

Chapter 182: Before leaving.

I was getting ready to leave that Sunday morning. I was getting dressed after my shower when I heard something interesting coming from my sister's bedroom.

"You are a stupid idiot," Isabelle said in a tired, lightly exasperated tone.

After getting dressed, I went to check what that was about. Her door was open and I saw her looking up. I followed her gaze and saw Cake, on top of Isabelle's rather tall closet, meowing down at her.

"What happened?" I asked her.

"She keeps jumping up there," my sister said, pointing at the cat, "but she doesn't know how to get down by herself. I let her down and she jumps again! Guess how many times this has happened?"

"... Three?"

"Four!"

I looked up at Cake. She was walking on top of the closet, around the edges, looking down at the floor and at us. "You're a stupid idiot," I told the cat.

She meowed back.

"When did she even grow enough to be jumping so high?" Isabelle put to words what I was also wondering. Her desk was next to the closet, so if she jumped from there it was possible, but still.

It had been nearly a month since we adopted Cake. She was still very clearly a kitten, but she was growing quickly. She was taller and longer, nimbler too, yet it was the kind of thing we only noticed once we compared her to older pictures.

Isabelle sighed. "Anyway... You're going out now, right?"

"Hm? Ah, yeah."

She looked me up and down and scowled. "You're not... going out like that, are you?"

"Hm? What's wrong with this?" I asked, looking down at myself.

I was wearing some black jogging pants because they were comfortable, a plain white long sleeve t-shirt and a gray windbreaker over it. Everything was clean, and I picked it for comfort, mostly, and I didn't think I looked ridiculous.

"That's something you'd wear to go buy something at the store, not to go out with...!" Isabelle stopped herself short, then corrected her sentence. "Not to a big event full of other people, Oliver."

"It's fine, isn't it? I don't need to dress to impress."

There was another reason I picked that outfit. I DIDN'T want to dress to impress. I didn't want to make this... special.

I was going to get together with Noelle, not one of my girlfriends. It felt wrong dressing up like I was going out on a date, even if that had been my first instinct.

"... Maybe," Isabelle accepted, "but that doesn't mean you can just dress like you put on whatever you found lying around. You're meeting a friend. It's disrespectful."

I flinched. Isabelle had a point. Maybe I was so worried about not making this a date that I went completely in the opposite direction.

"Come on. I'll help you out."

"W-What?"

Isabelle walked out of her room. As I was following her, Cake screamed at us.

"You stay there for a while if you like it so much!" Isabelle told her.

She then went directly into my room and opened my closet. "I'm not letting my brother go out looking like he doesn't care about his appearance."

"Okay, okay. I get it. I can choose my own outfit, Isabelle."

I was completely ignored. From the hanging rack, she took out my new peacoat, the one I bought when I was out shopping with the girls. "Since when did you have this? It's perfect!"

She stepped closer to me with the coat in hand. She put it in front of me to see how I would look, then looked up at my face. That was when we both realized something.

"Eh?"

"W-Wha...?"

Isabelle... was looking up at me. Slightly, but she had to turn her head up to meet my eyes.

"Did you... grow taller?" she asked, mouth half-hanging in shock.

"M-Maybe it's the shoes?" I said, afraid. Not afraid that I was taller, but afraid of getting excited over nothing. I took off my shoes, and they didn't make a noticeable difference. Isabelle still had to look up.

I think we were both in shock. For as long as we could remember, we'd been the exact same height. Mom said our father wasn't very tall, so maybe we wouldn't be, either. It bothered me, but I thought I'd made my peace with it. I thought.

This small, but noticeable growth sprout was... exciting. Maybe I wouldn't be a 1.65m tall guy forever! Maybe... maybe I could at least reach 1.70! Was that asking too much?

"You really are changing, aren't you?" Isabelle said with a wry smile.

"It's... It's just a couple of centimeters at best," I said.

"Do you think you would've gone to an event full of people before?"

"..." I swallowed. "No, I wouldn't have. Not that it doesn't make me nervous."

"Thomas, Milana, Grace, Sarah, Benjamin, Kevin... Noelle and Alice, Lena and Amanda, too. You couldn't even speak in front of others before, but now you have more friends than some people I know."

"... Quantity is not what's important," I said.

"So they're just acquaintances to you?"

"Of course not!"

"See?" Isabelle chuckled. "I think I'm the one who's lagging behind this time."

"It's not a competition, Isabelle."

"I suppose. It just... makes me feel awkward. Inadequate." She grimaced, then spoke in a nearly inaudible voice. "Was it like this for you, too?"

"..." I opened my mouth to answer, but Isabelle suddenly pushed my coat into my hands.

"Put that on, you hear? And change your pants, too. It's cold outside, so wear a sweater or something."

With that, Isabelle walked out of my room.

I sat down on my bed with a wry smile of my own.

"Doesn't feel nice, does it?"

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Chapter 183: An outing with Noelle.

I arrived at the venue at the agreed-upon time. It was 11:05 am, which meant I'd been waiting for five minutes. At the very least, there was no question that I was in the right place. Lots of people around, though less than I expected. Most were around my age or older.

The event was being held at a public indoor stadium, though I had yet to go in. I saw people carrying their arcade sticks or leverless controllers (I had mine in my backpack, just in case there were available consoles and TVs for everyone to play). I saw people wearing t-shirts with video game characters on them. I even saw some cosplayers, two of which were absolutely mind-blowingly good.

I stood close to yet away from the entrance to the stadium, watching my phone just in case I got a message. I was half-expecting Noelle to text me saying something had come up and she wouldn't be able to make it. At first I thought that would be for the best, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized I'd be really disappointed.

It was as I was considering texting her myself to ask where she was that she arrived. She came running and stopped in front of me, panting and red-faced.

"I'm so sorry!" Noelle said. "The bus was stuck in traffic and...!"

I smiled. "It's only been ten minutes. It's fine."

"No, I should've texted you..." she insisted. "I hate when people are late, so to think I made you wait..."

I think seeing her so nervous helped ME relax. Funny how things work.

"My sister probably drives you nuts, then," I joked.

Noelle started laughing. "Yes she does! Why is she always ten or fifteen minutes late? I don't get it."

"If it's early in the morning, she has a hard time waking up even after she's out of bed. If not, she'll usually forget something after leaving the house and has to go back and get it." Then I frowned. "Not that I'm making excuses for her."

Noelle giggled. "Alice is always scolding her for it, but it doesn't seem to stick."

I rolled my eyes. "I wish her the best of luck."

We laughed together at my sister's expense. Considering none of this was false, I didn't feel bad about it. She'd earned it, and I would always say it to her face, so it wasn't like I was talking behind her back.

"Well, I'm sorry I'm late," she said.

"Not a problem. I was looking around and there are even some cosplayers. I wasn't expecting that."

"Oh! Really?" Excitedly, Noelle started looking around herself. I had to look away for a second.

When she smiled like that, it was impossible for me not to think she was incredibly cute. Not only that, but the way she was dressed... God, this is so embarrassing to admit, but it pushed some buttons. Tight blue jeans, a tight fitting black turtleneck sweater and a brown duffle coat.

I've said it before, but Noelle has an outstanding figure. I remember Thomas mentioning that her being as short as she was was a turnoff, but to me it was neat to be noticeably taller than someone my age, even if it was by a few centimeters.

I should NOT be thinking about this.

"Sh-Shall we go inside now?"

"Ah! Yes! The schedule said a band should be playing on stage soon."

The inside of the stadium was not at all what I expected. Honestly, I didn't have high expectations for this. It was a local tournament, so I thought it would be hastily put together with whatever they could find, but I was completely wrong. This was... of professional quality.

There was a large carpet over the court to protect it. There were lines of tables with several TVs and console setups, enough to have about 20 matches playing at once. There was a stage setup at one of the ends of the court, where the tech crew were getting everything ready for a band to play. Drums, amps, microphones...

There were more people here than outside, obviously, but not enough that it was too much trouble to walk. There was enough space.

"This is actually the second day," Noelle explained to me. "Most people in the tournament lost yesterday, and the ones who come to watch will probably come in the afternoon for the finals."

Made sense.

At the outer edges of the court were stands selling all sorts of merchandise, and that was where Noelle and I were first drawn to. Everything from video game-themed posters and keychains to T-shirts and candy imported from Japan. Noelle was particularly interested in the latter.

"But why?" I asked her. "Those are just potato chips, but with everything written in Japanese. Twice as expensive as normal chips, too."

"But these are soy sauce and mayo flavored," she explained, already buying a bag. "And look at that. Have you ever drank coffee from a can?"

"From a can? That's..." Curiosity got the better of me, so I bought one of those, wincing at the price. I opened it, tried it... "It's... coffee," I said, surprised. "It's cold, black, sugarless coffee."

Noelle snickered. "And what were you expecting?"

"I... don't know," I answered, still a little stumped and eyeing the can. It had 'BLACK' written in all capitals along its length. "I was expecting black coffee, but it's so... exactly that that it's kind of anti-climactic?"

"Right!? I felt exactly the same!" Noelle said excitedly. "The mocha and cappuccino are waaay better."

I eyed those in the stand. "I should've bought one of those." I still drank the sugarless black coffee because I paid for it, dammit.

We walked around some more, looking at the figurines and t-shirts being sold. We recognized the characters in most of them, and we started to get an idea of what games the other enjoyed.

"You play MMOs?" I asked her.

"A couple, yeah," she admitted shyly. "One's an old-school grindfest, the other I play mainly for the story."

"MMOs have a story?" I asked with genuine curiosity.

"XIV does. I like it a lot. You don't play any?"

"... Not a fan of online games in general. I don't like having to deal with people yelling in the chat or through a mic. Also, I don't want to pay a monthly sub for a game. I mostly stick to RPGs and fighting games."

"I can understand that. I think the games I love the most are the cozy farming games."

"Oh, I like those, too!" Woah. Got a little excited there. Calm down. I cleared my throat before continuing. "They're pretty relaxing."

"Right?" Noelle giggled. "Which ones do you play?"

We sat near the upper gallery seats and continued talking like that for a long while without realizing it. Turns out we'd played a lot of the same games. I hadn't shared an interest in games with someone since Isabelle and I were little kids, but now she'd moved away from games.

There was an announcement over the speakers that 'Top 32' of the tournament would be starting soon, so we went down to watch some matches happening. Crowds were forming behind the players, people cheered, winners shouted in excitement. The atmosphere was overwhelming, but in a good way.

We watched the band play. It all consisted of video game songs which I was surprised to see Noelle recognize. I suppose I shouldn't have been, considering Isabelle said Noelle had lots of consoles.

Sadly, I didn't enjoy the performance as much as I hoped. There were a couple of sound issues, and their drummer and bassist sounded slightly out of sync. If anything here wasn't of professional quality, it was them, but I wasn't going to criticize them more than that.

Playing an instrument on your own is one thing. Playing in a band is a different kind of beast. Huge props to those guys for standing on a stage and sounding as good as they did. I knew I couldn't do it.

"Um... it's about lunch time," Noelle said. "Sh-Should we... find a place to eat?"

"Yes. I'm getting hungry. What should we eat?"

"How about... sushi?"

I blinked. "I've never tried sushi."

Noelle's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yeah."

"Would you like to?"

"You know what? Sure."

With that decided, we stepped out of the venue to find a good place to eat.

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Chapter 184: A conversation over sushi.

"So... you've never used chopsticks before?" Noelle asked me.

"Never," I answered. Nevertheless, I tried.

Sushi places are pretty common, it turns out. We didn't have to look hard to find at least three, so we went into the one that looked the cleanest.

It was a bit embarrassing to have Noelle watch me struggle with the chopsticks. I tried grabbing one of the rolls, but I just couldn't do it.

"Just use your hands," she told me with a reassuring smile. "I don't mind."

"... Sorry." I gave up. I grabbed one of the rolls, dipped it in soy sauce and tried it.

"How is it?" Noelle asked.

I swallowed. "Good. Slightly bland, but I guess that's what the soy sauce is for. Still, not bad at all."

She giggled. "I like it a lot. I don't know what it is, but the light flavors agree with me."

We were out on the back terrace at a table for two. We placed a single order with a plethora of different sushi rolls to try. Noelle said she liked them all, so I could have whichever I wanted.

I cleaned my hands with a napkin, and while I was doing that, Noelle caught me by surprise.

"H-Hey, Oliver? Thanks for coming with me today." She was looking down at the table, yet she smiled with red cheeks. "I... probably wouldn't have come if I'd been alone."

I felt my own chest tightening. "... Same here. I didn't know this was happening, but I wouldn't have come even if I did." I smiled. "But this has been fun. I'm glad I came. Thank you for inviting me."

"Can I say something? I'm... surprised you're talking so much today." Her face turned to horror the moment the words left her. "Oh my God! I'm so sorry! That sounded much worse than I thought!"

Much to my surprise as well as hers, I started laughing. "I AM talking more, aren't I?" I shook my head. "Sorry. I probably looked like an anti-social creep to you."

"No! That's not...!"

"It's fine," I said, smiling wryly. "That's probably how a lot of people see me. I've been told that to my face, even. That doesn't mean I like it, or that I'm okay with it. That's why... I'm trying to change. Sorry if it ever seemed like I was ignoring you. I was... too afraid to speak."

"Afraid?"

I nodded. "Afraid to get laughed at, afraid to be a bother. Afraid of everyone. I know it sounds pathetic, but I couldn't help it."

Noelle fervently shook her head. "It's not pathetic. I... I get it. I know how it is."

"Really? You don't seem afraid of speaking to people."

"It's... gotten better recently, but I still get nervous in front of strangers." She let out a self-deprecating chuckle. "Sometimes I avoid going to stores or restaurants because I don't want to interact with cashiers and waiters."

Ugh. That hit close to home.

"But... I tried something recently," she continued. "I did it out of curiosity and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. After that, I feel like talking to people is not that big a deal."

"Can I ask what that something was?"

"..." Noelle pursed her lips and looked down at her knees. She was struggling.

"No, forget it. I'm not going to push you to tell me. Don't worry."

"S-Sorry, it's just... I'm not comfortable telling anyone yet." Her cheeks went bright red again. She looked straight at me with an intense gaze. "Oh, but it's nothing... weird, okay? Nothing like...!"

I lightly tilted my head. "Like what?"

"N-Never mind."

Only in hindsight did I realize that Noelle thought I might believe she was doing something... naughty. That didn't even cross my mind at the time, though.

"I think I can understand what that's like. I mean, realizing that talking is not that big a deal," I continued the previous topic. "You can never stop people from judging you over what you say and what you do, but... Taking chances can be worth it."

"Taking chances?"

I smiled. "If I hadn't said yes when the basketball coach asked me to take over as team manager for a few days last semester, I wouldn't have met Thomas. If I hadn't gone to his birthday party some months ago, I wouldn't have met Mila, Grace and Sarah. If I hadn't asked, I wouldn't have a job now. It's all because I... dared to do something."

It was still shocking to think how much my life had changed in such a short time, and it was even more overwhelming to think how long I still had to go. There was so much more I had to improve on, lots of challenges that still awaited. Going through university, earning my own livelihood, maybe... maybe starting a family one day. Some of these things were further off than others, but they would come.

Then I caught what I was doing. Talking too much about myself wasn't something I enjoyed, and I had the feeling most people dislike it when others do it.

"Sorry," I said, trying to laugh it off. "That was a bit much."

Why did I go on like that? It was strange, but... I felt like Noelle was really easy to talk to, like she understood. Still...

"No, no. I... I think you're right. You don't experience new things by saying no to everything. That's what my parents always tell me, but it can be really scary."

"Right?"

"..." Noelle pursed her lips and started fidgeting. "Oliver?"

"Hm?"

"C-Can you keep a secret?"

I grimaced lightly. "I can. I can promise that. But... are you sure you want to tell me?"

"I... want to tell someone. I've wanted to for a while, but it's... embarrassing."

"You haven't told Isabelle or Alice?"

Noelle shook her head.

"Why?"

"It's... somehow more embarrassing to tell people who know you better. It's like, they have this image of you that could get distorted if they knew I..."

Noelle swallowed as she stared down at the table.

"If you want to get it out, I promise not to tell anyone. Not to my sister or any of my friends."

"..." Noelle let out a long sigh. She looked at me with red cheeks and finally revealed her secret. "I'm... a video game streamer."

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

Chapter 185: A secret is revealed.

"A... A video game streamer?" I echoed, jaw half-hanging.

Noelle nodded slowly with a meek and nervous smile.

I felt my body chilling, and I had to bet my face was going pale.

"H-How!?" I asked. "How do you do it?"

"Eh?" Noelle seemed a little startled.

"I... I've been thinking about uploading my guitar covers to the internet, but I've never dared! But you go live to play games? That's... amazing..." I praised, toning down my own excitement by the end.

Noelle blushed deeply. "It's really not. I don't use a webcam. I use a V-Tuber avatar. I also go by a fake name and change the pitch of my voice so no one will recognize me."

I raised an eyebrow, making Noelle flinch. "That's really smart," I told her.

She blinked. "Y-You think so?"

"Yeah. I watch more video essays than streams, so I don't know a lot about it, but I always imagine that it must be tough to be well known. How many viewers do you have?"

Noelle smiled. "It depends on the game, but enough that I got a partnership with the platform. I average around 100 to 150 viewers for random streams, and around 300 for the more popular games."

From 100 to 300? Certainly not up there with the most well known streamers, but averaging 5000 people was the exception, not the rule. A hundred people was already an insane number. A hundred people watching you?

I laughed nervously. "Makes me feel tense just thinking about it. How do you handle it?"

"It was SO awkward at first!" she told me with an excited smile. "I didn't know what to talk about, and I kept thinking that nobody would watch. Very few people did at the beginning, too. But then I realized... 'Hey, I'm playing a video game. Might as well talk about the video game.' I started going on and on about the things I liked about the game, or criticizing the things I didn't like. Slowly, more people started watching. I bet plenty of them watch because of the jiggle physics of my avatar, though." She giggled.

I laughed. "Hey, whatever brings them in, right? If you were boring to watch, no amount of jiggling would make them stay."

"You think so?"

"Of course. People aren't lacking for streamers to watch, nor when it comes to V-Tubers, either. Yet people are choosing to watch you, right? That means something."

Noelle pursed her lips to stop her smile from widening. Her eyes were getting watery, too. I'm not as dense as I was before, so I understood she was happy to hear someone say that.

"Thank you. I don't think it's that big a deal, though. People are just killing time..."

"Most ways of entertainment are meant to kill time," I told her. "I mean, it's not like I'm getting much out of playing 100 long hour RPGs, right? And it's not like everyone's gonna have life-changing experiences from watching the latest superhero movie."

She giggled. "I suppose."

"But more importantly, this is what helped you start talking more, isn't it?" She nodded. "Then even if no one was watching, it'd still be worth it, right?"

She swallowed. "Yeah. Yeah, it would be. I've grown comfortable doing it. It's fun and... even rewarding. At one point, I started talking about other things and I mentioned I liked building plastic model kits."

"Oh? Aren't those kinda difficult to build?"

"Not at all. Well, it depends on the kit and manufacturer, but most of the time they're pretty simple. My... My chat started asking me about the kits I built, so that led me to... start a channel for it. I make videos reviewing model kits. You know, letting people know if they're good and worth the price."

"Seriously? You do that, too?" I chuckled. "Are you sure you're not lying to me when you say you don't like talking to strangers?"

"I'm not lying!" she insisted, laughing. "I know it's weird, okay? But doing stuff like this, thinking that none of my audience know me, is a huge weight off my shoulders. If... If people at school knew, it'd be a different story."

"I don't think Isabelle and Alice would think ill of you if they knew."

"..." Noelle swallowed. "Sometimes I think so too, but... The possibility that they'd find it weird... scares me. Alice doesn't understand video games at all, and she barely uses social media or the like. Isabelle sometimes tells me I should go out more with other people instead of playing so many games, too. Sometimes... I think they wouldn't approve of me being a streamer."

When friendships are hard to come by, you're more scared of losing them. It would be easy to tell her 'To hell with what they think.' I could almost hear Sarah saying something like that. But to Noelle, Isabelle and Alice were important friends she didn't want to risk losing. I could understand that oh so very well.

"Isabelle could stand to party less often and be in the house more to do her chores," I told her. "Mom bought her a camera because she was really into photography at one point, then never touched the thing again. She has a bike that she doesn't use anymore. I can't say much about Alice, but you've heard Grace teasing her over stuff, too, right?"

"Y-Yes?"

"The other day Thomas was giving me crap because, apparently, I always need to have the last word." I chuckled. "But he also tends to get me into a headlock to tease me, and I find that really annoying."

I sighed and rubbed the back of my neck. "I'm far from an authority, so really take my words with a fistful of salt, but I think real friendships last not because of the things you share, but despite the things you don't. If you can accept the things you find annoying in someone and still enjoy being with them, then... I think it's fair to call each other friends."

Noelle looked at me with wide eyes, and that made me extremely self-conscious. "Dammit, what am I even saying?" I shook my head. "I've had that thought in my mind for a while and I just blurted it out. Sorry, I didn't mean to tell you how to act or anything, I just..."

See what happens when you get too comfortable, Oliver? You start getting preachy! God dammit! I need to watch out for that. The last thing I want is to act like I know better than others.

"You might have a point." Noelle giggled. "I tell Alice that she's too hard on social media all the time. It's like she hates it."

... She might have a reason for that.

"Still, I... don't know if I'm ready to tell them. I'll think about it."

"Again, I'm not pushing you to do it, okay? Not even suggesting it. But I do think that they won't stop being friends with you just because you stream games. At least, I know Isabelle won't. Hell, she'll probably think it's really cool."

"I... I hope so. Thank you, Oliver. I'm glad I got to talk about this with someone."

I smiled. "Anytime."

"Would... Would it be okay if we got together again some other time? Y-You know, just to hang out?"

Dammit. Dammit. Dammit. Dammit. Dammit. DAMMIT!

I wanted to!

Have you been paying attention!? She's so easy to talk to! Even with my girlfriends, it took me way too long to be able to talk to them freely, and even then I can't really talk about stuff like this with them.

That's it. I just want to make a new friend, one I can talk to about games. There's nothing wrong with that, right? Noelle and I can simply be friends.

"Yeah. I'd like that."

I had the faintest feeling I was lying to myself.

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

Chapter 186: Why can't I?

When we got back to the venue after lunch, it was much the same as before. We watched the tournament all the way to the finals, then parted ways at the bus stop. Well, I took a bus, Noelle took a cab.

I got home at about 9:00 pm. Early, but a good hour for a Sunday. After having a short chat with mom, I went up to my room. I could hear Isabelle playing with Cake in hers.

I sank on my desk chair and turned on my computer out of habit. While it booted up, I tried to rest my mind from the day's exhaustion. My body was fine. I didn't feel that tired from walking around all day, but being surrounded by so many people was stressful.

The thing is... I don't want to make a big deal out of this, because it wasn't, but in the afternoon... a lot of guys approached Noelle. That in itself is not a bad thing, I suppose, but the way in which they did...

See, it's coming across LIKE THAT what I've always aimed to avoid. Being pushy, inappropriate, not getting the hint that she's politely saying she doesn't want to talk.

At first I didn't want to interfere. There was no reason for me to. If she wanted to talk to anyone, it was up to her. But when the second guy was suggesting (for the third time) that they go get something to eat, I had to step in. Noelle looked at me as if asking for help, so I went up to them, told Noelle that a new match was starting and we used that as an excuse to get away. And after that...

Ugh. You know what? It doesn't matter. It was awkward, stressful, but it didn't escalate to anything, so it's better to just forget about it. Other than that, we had a great time.

"Right, I have to add her as a friend..." I muttered.

Add her not to any social media page, but to my PC games account.

"Yuria..." I muttered as I typed.

She gave me the name of the account she used for streaming. I don't know if it's the only account she has, she trusts me, or it's less of a hassle for her or something, but it felt strange. She was trying to keep it all a secret, right? Of course, I'd be dead before I revealed this to anyone, but I still thought she shouldn't trust me so easily.

Noelle, a streamer. I still can't get over it. It's wild. I couldn't do it. To be socially anxious and still live stream yourself playing games and trying to do commentary for hundreds of people, all permanently recorded on the internet... Crap, I was starting to feel nervous in Noelle's stead. What's wrong with me?

Curiosity got the better of me and I ended up searching her videos typing her name. The search showed many of the videos she told me about, those about her reviewing plastic model kits. Robot figures, spaceships and others... But the one that caught my attention was the very first result, one that had nothing to do with model kits.

The video was titled 'Yuria gently shoots down a simp.'

A part of me didn't want to watch it... But another was too curious, so I clicked on it. It was... a surreal experience.

The video started with Noelle's white-haired avatar, Yuria, telling a story that to anyone else would be just an anecdote, but to me it sounded very, very obviously as her telling of how she and Alice found Cake and brought her over to our house.

Setting aside the fact that Yuria and her chat were... talking about me, I had to wonder: If Noelle spoke about stuff like this more often, she'd get caught in no time.

The video zoomed in on the chat messages of one person who went by YuriaSIMP01.

-YuriaSIMP01: Her brother?

-YuriaSIMP01: Your heart melted? So you like this guy?

-YuriaSIMP01: Yuria, are you seeing somebody?

{YuriaSIMP01 has donated $50 with the following message}: MARRY ME YURIA!!!

I winced hard.

God, Noelle had to deal with stuff like this even online? I think I would understand if she told him off or completely ignored him. Hell, with a donation, I bet plenty of other streamers would let the guy keep going. Yet Noelle's answer was...

"I'm sorry, but I'm going to disable donations from now on. I set them up because people kept asking me to do it, saying they wanted to support me, but I'm not doing this for the money. I'm really sorry, but I need to make this clear, everyone. I'm not here to make money off of people's emotions. I stream because I like it, not because I need it. I'm sorry to sound so harsh, but if... God, this is awkward to say. I... don't want people simping over me. I don't need that drama. I'm not seeing anyone right now, I don't have a boyfriend, but I might at some point. I'd rather not lead anyone on, give anyone any sort of false hope. We're just streamer and audience, not friends. I don't think that's better or worse, just different, with its own set of boundaries."

My respect for her rose even higher, and it was already pretty high up. She handled the situation as best as she could, and her chat seemed to agree with me as they praised her for it.

I almost went down the rabbit hole after four more videos, three of which were clips of her playing and one was a review of a robot model kit. What made me stop was that watching them... made my chest sting.

I looked at my guitar in the corner of my room, neatly in its stand.

Why couldn't I dare to try something similar?

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

Chapter 187: Intermission - Phone interrogation.

Oliver would just NOT give her the answers she wanted, no matter how much she tried interrogating him.

When Isabelle first went into his room, she caught him quickly closing a window in his computer, which was amusingly suspicious.

"Knock before you enter," he grumbled.

"What were you watching?" Isabelle teased.

"Porn," he answered.

"Ha Ha," Isabelle laughed humorlessly. So he wasn't watching porn, but also something he didn't want to show her. Suspicioooous!

"So? How did it go?" Isabelle asked him.

"It was fun."

"What did you guys do?"

"We watched the tournament. Pretty exciting stuff."

"Did you guys... talk?"

"Hm? Of course."

"What did you talk about?"

"Stuff. I tried sushi, by the way. I liked it, but I think mom would hate it, so don't expect us to be having it for dinner in this house."

"Dammit!"

Of course, Isabelle's reasoning was flawed from the start. To get the answers she wanted, she had to go to a different source. And so, she left Cake in her brother's room, grabbed her phone and went outside, to the backyard.

It was nearly 10:00 pm. It was dark and really cold, enough that she could see her breath in front of her. Generally speaking, Isabelle preferred the cold over heat, but liked her summer outfits more.

She gave the other party a call, and she answered fairly quickly.

"Isabelle? What is it?" Noelle asked innocently.

"Hey. How are you?"

"A little tired, but well." Noelle giggled. "I walked a lot today."

"So I heard. It's why I'm calling, really. Oliver won't say much, so I got a little worried that it might have been awkward for you two."

"Oh, far from it!" Noelle laughed. She really had a cute laugh. "We had a great time. I got him to try sushi and he said he liked it."

Huh. Well, good to know both stories seem to align.

"Are you sure he wasn't a bother? I'm the one who suggested you go together, so I feel responsible..."

"No, not in the slightest," Noelle insisted. "In fact... we talked a lot, far more than I thought we would. It's so weird, you know? I've known him for at least a couple of years through you, yet only now am I REALLY getting to know him."

Ooooh, that sounded interesting.

"So... you guys hit it off?"

"N-Not like that, okay?" Noelle began to sound flustered. Poor girl couldn't even hide her feelings through the phone. "It's just... I always had this image of him as someone overly serious and hard to approach, but that was completely wrong. No, wait. Not... COMPLETELY wrong."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"... I got hit on like four times today, you see," Noelle started.

"Ugh." Isabelle couldn't help the groan that escaped her.

Out of Alice, Noelle and her, Noelle was the one who got hit on the most. It was easy to know why. Alice kind of gave off an aura that she had no time for relationships, and she told as much to people who asked, and Isabelle easily told off guys she wasn't interested in. Noelle, however, on top of being cute as a button and having a very alluring figure, was... an easy target, as much as Isabelle hated referring to her friend like that.

She wasn't an easy target in that she would go out with anyone who asked, but in that she was too kind and gentle to tell idiots to fuck off. Most guys were smart and decent enough to understand that when Noelle said she was busy, she meant she wasn't interested. Those weren't a problem. But then there are the few, not-very-decent idiots who keep pushing just because they think that if they keep asking they'll eventually get a yes. Worst are the creeps who have no idea how to approach a girl, stand too close, smile too widely and for too long and stare too intently. Since Noelle is so short, guys probably see her as less intimidating to approach, and thus more of them tried.

"The first didn't bother me, but the ones after him were..."

"Don't hold it back, girl. You don't need to be nice to everyone."

"They were creepy." Noelle said it like she regretted calling them that. "They smelled bad, too, and kept insisting even after I told them I was with a friend."

"Seriously, some people!"

"I ended up looking to Oliver for help."

"Oh? And did he help?"

"It was SO strange. The moment he walked up to them, it was like they were afraid of him and left immediately."

"Hah?" People afraid of Oliver? Of her brother Oliver? The guy who wouldn't harm a fly and 100% looked the part?

"It was like... He just glared and they all backed off. Well, one tried to start something, but a guard came up and threw him out."

"I can't picture Oliver picking a fight with anyone..."

"Neither can I. After it, Oliver always acted like it was no big deal. It was like..."

"Like...?"

"No, no. Forget that."

"Come on, tell me!" Isabelle laughed. "It's my brother, Noelle."

"It's... Ugh, it was like he didn't want to let it bother me."

Isabelle could clearly imagine her friend blushing on the other side of the phone.

"That's likely," Isabelle confirmed. "He's like that. He hates seeing people uncomfortable. So this didn't escalate into anything, right?"

"Of course not!"

"I meant with the creeps, Noelle," Isabelle clarified with a smirk.

"O-Oh. W-Well, that too! Rather, that's what I meant! Ugh."

"God, you're the cutest!" Isabelle laughed. "Okay, I'm done teasing you. Let's talk more tomorrow."

"Sure..."

"Good night, Noelle."

"Good night."

Well, that was an interesting conversation. Her brother intimidating other guys? It was no secret some people saw him as hard to approach, but intimidating? Though he had bulked up a bit... But he was so short for a guy... But he seemed to be having a growth-sprout...

Ugh. She HAD to stop thinking about Oliver so much. He didn't need her worrying about him, and he probably didn't want her to, anyway.

Regardless, if things went well for her in the next week, she wouldn't have time to worry about him.

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

Chapter 188: An unforeseen issue leads to another secret.

It was that time of the month when we, as family, would have a little trip to the supermarket to buy most of the groceries and take the chance to make it a bit of an event. That usually meant we'd stop to eat somewhere together. This time, however, my dear sister wasn't with us as she had been charged with a very important task, one I was unable to fulfill. What is that, you may ask? Well, it's simple: socializing Cake.

You see, I take the responsibility of having a cat very seriously. I feed it, brush it, try to train it, all of that. One thing I realized fairly late, however, is that cats also have a very obvious need to socialize with other cats as kittens, lest they end up becoming aggressive when they see others as adults.

Let me give you a list of people I know and I'm comfortable talking to: Mila, Grace, Sarah, Thomas, Noelle, Alice, Kevin, Ben, and Lena. Maybe Amanda, but she flirts too much for comfort, though at this point I thought she just did it because I was getting better at brushing her advances aside. Anyway, do you know what all these people have in common? Exactly. None of them have cats.

The solution? Isabelle and I asked Thomas if he knew anyone who had cats, and he said a classmate of his did. Isabelle talked to her at school, told her our issue and now she's at her new friend's house with Cake.

People fear what they don't understand, and social butterflies scare the shit out of me.

Anyway, that meant it was just mom and I shopping this time. The supermarket was uneventful and boring. You ever go to a huge supermarket where lots of people shop but they only have one or two registers open? Yeah, we had to wait for like 20 minutes.

Dinner was nice. We ate at a Chinese restaurant, where I decided to keep practicing the use of chopsticks.

"You've never cared for chopsticks and always used a fork," Mom said. "Why start now?"

"... I ate sushi the other day and they only had chopsticks. I couldn't pick the rolls up, so I had to use my hands. It was... kind of embarrassing."

Mom laughed. "I see. Well, let me show you how it's done."

After eating with mom and having a nice, calm chat, we were ready to go pick up Isabelle and go home. However, our car had other plans.

As we were on the road, I heard mom go "Oh no..."

"What is it?" I asked.

"The engine is overheating," she said and pointed to a red light on the dashboard. She grimaced. "I thought there was something odd about the car the other day, but it seems I postponed it for too long."

"Is it serious?"

"It can be." Mom slowed down, pulled to the side of the road and started typing something on her phone. After she connected the map on it to the car's screen, I saw what she'd been looking for: a repair shop.

"Send a message to your sister, please. Tell her we'll be late so she should take a cab home."

Isabelle had Cake in her kennel, so taking a cab shouldn't be an issue. I typed as we waited for the engine to cool down for a bit. After it did, we headed for the nearest repair shop, just five minutes away from our current location.

The place was practically a huge warehouse, maybe two if the one beside it also belonged to them. Nothing fancy other than ads for oil, car parts, services and the big sign at the top of the main gate that I only noticed because I liked the name. It read "Knights of the Wheel."

We parked outside and went in. The floor was slick and gray and blue metal pillars supported the high ceiling. Walls were filled with tools, three other cars were being worked on already by mechanics, but a fourth one caught my eye.

It was just sitting there with its hood up, but... it looked really cool. I know a bit more about cars now than I did back then, but I had played a few racing games with licensed car manufacturers and models, so I recognized this car. A hot yellow sporty body shining with a perfect polish, a matching spoiler on the back, two doors, and even the old-school pop-up headlights... I don't normally get excited by cars, but seeing a real life RX-7 made me a little giddy. It definitely stood out.

"Nice car, huh?" Knowing instinctively I was the one being addressed, I tensed up and looked away from the car and towards the person talking to me.

A man who looked to be around his 30s, give or take a couple years. Sharp features, a bit of a stubble, curly blonde hair in a mess. He was dressed in a blue coverall, stained black with oil and dirt. He was wiping his hands with a piece of cloth.

"S-Sorry for staring," I suddenly said.

"Don't apologize!" The man laughed. "Cars like those are meant to be stared at. I bet my lil' sis would be flattered."

I blinked. "That car belongs to your sister?"

"Yeah, it's her baby. She works on it at least one day a week, if not more." The man had to forcefully get rid of his goofy smile and replace it with a more professional one. He turned to my mom. "Sorry about that. The name's Alex Knight. Welcome to my shop. What can we do for you, ma'am?"

"My engine seems to be having problems. It was overheating just ten minutes ago, so I decided to bring it in as soon as possible."

I had to do a double take. Thankfully Mr. Alex was busy talking to mom, so he didn't notice me staring. His eyes, his eyebrows, and maybe even his mouth a bit... Not to mention that last name.

I looked back at the RX-7 in disbelief. I had to be wrong. There was no way. It had to be a coincidence, or another sister... but no, because as soon as my eyes went back to the car, I saw Alice Knight, dressed in a stained, blue coverall, staring back at me with her jaw hanging in shock.

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

Chapter 189: A talk with Alice.

It was kind of funny seeing the confusion and panic in someone else's face, though I didn't quite understand why Alice would feel that way at all. The amusement became unease as she started walking up to me with a large ratchet in her hand.

"Ah, there she is," Mr. Alex said, grinning. "That's my sister, Alice."

"Oh! Alice!" Mom smiled and waved at the student council president. "This is your brother's shop? Why didn't you tell us he had one?"

"Hm? You know her?" Mr. Alex asked.

Alice sighed and put on a smile. "Hello ma'am, hello Oliver. Alex, Ms. Holly is my friend's mom, and Oliver her twin brother."

"Oooh, I see. Then let me see to your car myself, ma'am, as an apology for having you deal with this little handful," Mr. Alex said, pointing a thumb towards Alice, who looked comically unamused.

Mom laughed. "Not at all. She's a very responsible girl. It's always a joy having her at our house."

"So you behave at other people's houses, huh?"

"I behave everywhere, unlike you!" Alice poked her brother on the ribs with the ratchet in her hands. "Now go take a look at their car! You're making them wait!"

"Yes, yes." Mr. Alex laughed, then addressed my mom. "Bring the car in, ma'am."

Mr. Alex and my mom went to see the car while I stayed alone with Alice in front of me. Given the small scowl on her face, the tension on her shoulders and the blush on her cheeks, I had the feeling she wasn't pleased I'd seen her like this.

"So... you work here?" I asked.

Alice sighed again, loosening some of the tension. She looked towards her car. "Not exactly. I help whenever I can, and my brother pays me by letting me use his shop to work on my car or giving me discounts on parts I need."

"That's an amazing car. An RX-7, right? FD?"

Her attitude did a complete 180. Her eyes widened, brightened and she had a huge, goofy smile that was similar to her brother's. "You know it?"

I smiled back, but rubbed the back of my neck nervously. "It's a very iconic car. Sorry to say I don't know much, only what I've learned from playing racing games."

"I see." She chuckled. "But you even got the model right, so you already know more than people who think they know. Come, let me show it to you."

I followed an excited Alice back to her car, trying every hard to continue avoiding the thought that, somehow, she looked incredibly hot in that tight-fitting coverall.

"Do you know what makes the RX-7 so special?" she asked me with a grin.

"... Its looks?" I offered.

Alice shook her head. "It's the engine. This one is one of the few cars that successfully make use of a wankel engine, also known as a rotary engine, and lovingly nicknamed the dorito engine due to the triangle shape of the rotor."

"Ah, I think I've heard that before."

Alice smiled, but a hand on it and looked down at the exposed engine. "I've had this car since I was 14, you know?"

My eyes widened. "Since 14?"

"It was a gift from my brother and my dad. On my birthday, they told me to go outside to see my gift. What I saw was a beat up, rusty piece of junk one could barely call a car. My dad said that if I wanted a car by the time I was 18, I would have to fix it myself."

I blinked and my jaw fell. "... And you did."

Alice pulled down the hood and leaned lightly against the front of her car. "Can I ask you a favor?"

"Hm? Sure."

"Can you please..." she grimaced and swallowed, "not tell anyone about this?"

"Not tell anyone?"

Alice nodded. "Not even Isabelle and Noelle."

"Wait, they don't know?"

Alice swallowed and her lip quivered. "The only ones who know are Mila, Grace and Sarah."

My own confusion aside... "I can promise not to tell anyone." I looked back to where mom was. "And I'm confident I can convince mom to keep this to herself, too."

Alice smiled wryly. "Thanks."

"But... why? Why keep it a secret?"

Alice looked away. "It's... complicated."

"You don't think... they'll think less of you for this, right?"

Alice flinched. "It's... part of it, but not entirely." She sighed. "I guess I deserve this. I know your big secret, so it's only right you found out about mine."

Every muscle of my body tensed for half a second before I gave in to my fate. Alice chuckled at that.

"How's it going, then? From what I hear, you're treating my friends well, but how are they treating you?"

"So they really did tell you..." I felt my cheeks burning. "I had a feeling, but..."

"Sorry. We still tell each other everything. I've kept the secret, though."

"... Thank you."

Alice chuckled again. "You know, if someone had to find out about this, I'm glad it was you."

"Why?"

"Mila, Grace and Sarah trust you. If so, I can trust you too. It's why I didn't say anything when you and Noelle agreed to go to that event together."

"That was...!"

"I know." Alice smiled reassuringly. "The two of you could stand to broaden your social circle, so I was happy. Still... Don't play with her feelings, okay?"

Silently, I nodded.

"..." Alice looked back at her car with some hesitation. "Oliver?"

"Yes?"

"Would you... come with me to an event this Saturday night?"

That was completely unexpected. "An event?"

Alice bit her lip. "See, the real reason I keep this a secret is that... I don't just work on my car. I race in it."

My eyes could've been popping out for all I know. "Y-You mean... Street racing!?" I asked in hushed tones.

Alice nodded slowly. "I always go with my brother, you see. Always. And this Saturday some people from another town are coming for a meet. We were both looking forward to it, but... My brother's wife is sick, so he says he's gonna have to skip this one. Going alone... I'm not sure I want to do it, so I wasn't going to go, either, but..."

"But you really want to go," I guessed.

Alice nodded again. "It's fun seeing other cars who've had so much work put into them and see how they perform in a race. Racing against cars I've never seen before... The thought excites me, so I really don't want to miss this."

"Stupid question but... Isn't this... Illegal?"

"Technically, yes..." Alice grimaced. "Which is why I can't let the school find out. It's harmless, though! Well, to anyone who isn't racing..." She sighed. "Do you know the new tunnel they made a couple of years ago for the road out of town? The one crossing the mountain?"

"I think so."

"Since they made that, the old mountain pass is practically abandoned. No one uses it, much less at night. That's where we always gather so we don't involve other people. We also don't bet or anything. We just race for fun... and bragging rights."

That got a chuckle out of me and a smile from Alice.

"But why ask me to go with you? I don't know anything about cars."

Alice lifted three fingers. "Three reasons. 1) You're the only person I can realistically ask. I don't want to go alone, and I'd rather not ask Mila, Grace or Sarah. You're the only other person I've told about this. 2) It... has to be a guy. There aren't many other girls at these meets, so the guys can get a little... too friendly. Since I go with my brother, it's never a problem. Alone, though? You can see why I don't want to ask the girls. And 3) I want to know you more."

"Huh?"

Alice giggled. "I've known you for a while, Oliver, but we've never spoken much until now. Then all of a sudden the girls call me and tell me they are all dating you at the same time. Not just that, but Noelle was telling me how much fun she had the other day. How can I not be curious about you?"

"I hope it's just curiosity and not suspicion," I joked.

"Should I be suspicious of something?" she teased.

"No."

"Good. So... what do you say? You'll get to ride this car with me down the mountain. It's better than any rollercoaster you've ever been on."

I had to admit, that did sound tempting.

I looked back towards mom again. "Saturday night, right? I'll have to ask my mom. Sadly, that's non-negotiable. Either she knows what I'm up to or I lose her trust."

Alice nodded. "That's fair. Tell her I invited you to a car meet and that I'll drive you home."

"Okay. I'll get back to you soon."

"Thank you."

Well... This wasn't where I saw my day going, but maybe it was for the best.

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

Chapter 190: Honest desires.

It started with the image of Noelle sitting next to me on a couch. She rested her head on my shoulder, eyes closed and a satisfied smile crossing her cute lips. A warm, comfortable feeling filled my chest and made me get an arm around her waist. Noelle looked up at me with half-closed eyes, and my own lips were drawn to hers.

I found her tongue and wrapped mine around it. The soft, languid moan she let out was an exquisite sound. She put her hand on my chest and lightly pulled on my shirt as she enjoyed my attentions.

"I love you..." she whispered between kisses, and the warm feeling in my chest only got stronger.

I suddenly felt a kiss on the back of my neck, yet I wasn't startled. I turned to see Alice there, sitting at my other side. I got an arm around her waist, too, and pulled her into a kiss.

Alice was more proactive, holding my head and kissing me back with more intensity. She moaned less, but her breathing was heavier and the wet sounds of our tongues and lips were every bit as arousing.

"I love you..." she whispered as well. It made my heart race.

"Oliver." Noelle's voice drew my attention back to her, and I saw her lifting her shirt to show me her large, bare breasts. With a shy smile and burning cheeks, she said, "You can play with them."

My breath caught for a moment, and I felt my own face heating up. I leaned down and began kissing her cleavage. Her boobs were soft and supple, and Noelle even guided one of her nipples into my mouth. She giggled in between gasps as she also played with my hair.

"Mine are here, too, you know?"

When I turned to look, I saw that Alice had also pulled up her shirt and let her breasts free. I was pulled in by the magnetic force in that heavenly valley. I burrowed my face in her chest, kissed and licked her tits.

The moment I became aware of my erection was the same moment I felt two hands grasping it. Free of my pants, my dick stood tall and with Alice and Noelle both gently stroking it in a synched rhythm.

Alice kissed my cheek and nibbled my earlobe. "Relax. Enjoy this."

Noelle kissed my shoulder and licked my neck. "We'll do this whenever you want."

"I love you so much..." Alice whispered closely.

"More than you know..." Noelle echoed.

I felt my orgasm rising with the beat of my heart. But when I came, it felt... hollow, empty.

I blinked several times, and in the last one I noticed I was in my bedroom, sitting at the edge of my bed, staring back at a grinning, ghostly figure.

"I finally found your weakness. I can't believe it took me this long to figure out," Frey said. "It's my fault, really. You basically spelled it out to me, but I kept thinking that tempting you with pure sex would eventually work. I should know to work with the river current instead of against it by now..."

I groaned and hid my face in my hands as a wave of shame came over me.

I let my guard down.

It had been so long since Frey tried to tempt me with sex dreams that I'd forgotten about them. Then, without warning, she hit me with one that fucking hurt.

Alice and Noelle, two girls I was growing more and more interested in. But not only that, Frey just had to fill the dream with this sense of... rightness and comfort, the sense of reciprocal care and affection. For those short moments, I saw nothing wrong with what I was doing, completely forgot that I... I already had three girls who gave me that very same feeling in real life.

"Please, Frey... I don't want to hurt them," I pleaded. I felt weak, tired. I had no arguments to use against her. She'd caught me.

"Listen to me you dense idiot! You won't hurt them! They want this! And you want it more than anyone!" Frey was more exasperated than angry. "Your girls already want you to fuck others, believe me! I've been trying to tell this to your awake self, but you're so scared of losing them that you're putting up all these barriers! It's so frustrating! And these two girls? Alice and Noelle? The latter one would likely let you fuck her if you just asked, and the former is fighting off her feelings out of nothing but respect for her friends."

"Wait, what?" I asked, eyebrows rising.

"What I said. It's so dumb, too. This girl Alice is starting to like you, but since you're dating her friends, she's denying it to herself, and all the while those very friends want you to take her to cloud 9. She's good at denying her feelings, too, but I bet a single kiss would make her drop all her barriers. And Noelle? The crush she has on you is so strong it even dwarfs the infatuation your girlfriends felt when things first started."

"This... This is crazy, Frey. I can't..."

"You can!" Frey pumped both fists. "Oliver, there are people out there who get away with more and without any supernatural aid, just because they exude confidence. The world is big. There are guys out there seeing three or four girls at the same time, with consent, simply because they believe they can. But you, Oliver? You have something even better. You have me! Use me! Take advantage of what I can give you! I understand that you don't want to hurt anyone, I do. So keep that in mind, you will even if I didn't tell you. But you need to look at this in a different light. What if you're not hurting them, but rather making MORE girls happy?"

"!!!" My heart skipped a beat. I instinctively fought that statement, if only to not believe it so easily.

I understood it was more of Frey saying things to make me play along. My own insecurities said that wasn't even possible. Me? Make girls happy? Ridiculous! I was the one receiving everything! I was the one being made happy! I couldn't get greedy and ruin everything. I couldn't!

I thought I understood. But I don't think I ever heard Frey more exasperated. It was like she was tired of playing mind games, tired of trying roundabout ways of getting me to do what she wanted.

"..." I swallowed. "You've been influencing them to accept this."

"That's still bugging you? Kid, do you even understand what suggestions are? It's not mind control. Not even close. I told you I can't do that, even if I wanted to. Suggestions only plant an idea in someone's mind, but a person willful enough can easily resist them. For example, if it were up to me, you'd be fucking your sister already."

"Frey! What the fuck!?"

"But you resisted my suggestions, remember? It's clear you didn't want it! Now, do you think Mila, Grace and Sarah are so mentally weak that they'd fall for a few whispers?"

"... No." Those girls are stronger than I'll ever be.

"I planted the idea of sharing you, but they haven't resisted it. Not because they can't, but because they don't want to."

"..." I bit my lip. "How are you so sure Alice and Noelle want this?" I asked hesitantly.

"Because thanks to all the sex you've been having, I am now strong and healthy," Frey said proudly and with a hand on her chest. "You know I was always capable of some weak form of mind-reading, but all the sex these few months has made me a little stronger. I can read more now, see things clearer and in people not tied to you by a sex link. All you need, Oliver, is to trust me a bit more and let me tell you what I can see. The reason your 'sixth sense' only works sometimes is because you still don't fully trust me. And yeah, I get it, a scary ghost woman possessed you and is talking you into doing weird crap in the real world. Hard to trust. But believe me, all I want is for you to have lots of sex, to fulfill those fetishes and wishes you're too innocent to admit. I don't want nor need you to hurt anyone. If you want to do things in a way where everyone is happy, we can find a way to accommodate. But please, work with me! I want to grow, I want to become stronger, I want to reach my potential! I've been watching you, kid, and I'm really starting to believe you're the best candidate to help me. It's been over three months and those three girls are STILL head-over-heels for you. Sex alone can't do that."

I grimaced and bit my lip. "Frey... It's true I want many girlfriends." It was difficult to admit this out loud. "Spending so much time alone made me wish for impossible things. It was harmless, I thought, so long as I kept it to myself. But to really do it is... wrong."

"Says who?" Frey asked. "Having many partners is wrong, yes, when you do it behind their backs and when you don't have the means to keep everyone satisfied. Of course, that means sexually, emotionally, and maybe even economically. With my help, you don't have to go behind their backs and you can most definitely keep tons of women sexually satisfied, I guarantee it. The way you are, I'm confident you can keep them emotionally satisfied. Now, economically... I hear the adult industry is very profitable."

That last thing got a small chuckle out of me, at least.

"I don't want to hurt anyone, Frey."

"We can work it out. You just need to trust that my powers exist to bring pleasure, not pain."

This was likely the most earnest Frey had even been with me. At least, I believed so. Was she still manipulating me or was she really being honest? For better or worse, I chose to believe the latter.

"Okay. I'll... try to cooperate more."