[Spirit of Lust 2] Chapters 647 & 648.

Chapter 647: Eric’s girlfriend.

Turns out this girl, Maya, is actually pretty chatty. We didn’t have to do much to get her to tell us about herself, and after she started talking, all I had to do was confirm whether or not she was telling the truth or if there was something she was hiding.

“Yeah, I’m a sophomore in university,” Maya told us after Mila asked. “Majoring in business, sadly.”

“Not your first choice?” Mila asked her.

“My parents’ first choice.”

Noelle grimaced. “I’m in that boat, too.”

“Sucks, doesn’t it?” Despite her words, Maya kept a cheerful attitude. “Still, not like I had a path for myself, so I’m just going along for now. Enjoying my freedom while it lasts. Other than that, I have plenty of freedom. It’s fun.”

“Are you living on your own?” I asked her, trying to get in the conversation.

“I’m renting a place with my cousin.”

So far, all true. I was confident I was reading her right. Then, without shame, Mila asked the important questions.

“So… Am I getting this right? Are you two dating?” Mila grinned teasingly, eyeing both Maya and Eric.

Eric tensed up, and it was easy to understand why. The dude didn’t even know if they were officially dating. Would Maya confirm or deny it?

“Yeah, we’ve been going out for… Is it three months already?” she asked Eric, looking at him for confirmation.

Eric nodded. “Y-Yeah, three months.”

“Well, look at you, my guy…” Mila laughed and gave him a thumbs up. “So? How’d you meet?”

“Oh, you know, just a dating app. We matched because of our taste in music.”

Noelle chuckled. “Dating apps work?”

“Yeah, I didn’t believe it would, either, but…” Maya smiled. “I think we hit it off really quickly. Eric is an amazing drummer, too.”

I saw Eric blush. I set down my drink and nodded in agreement. “He is. He’s very consistent and has very solid rudiments.”

Eric had to do a double take after hearing me say that. “A-Are you serious?”

I nodded again. “Yeah.”

“Right, you guys were in the music club together. What do you play, Oliver?” Maya asked me.

“Guitar.” And I was learning bass and ocarina, but I had to avoid drawing the conversation to myself. “Do you play any instruments?”

Maya laughed. “No, no! I tried when I was younger, but it was too hard and I didn’t have the patience for it. I still think it’s the coolest thing, though.”

“What do you do for fun? Beside listening to music, I mean,” Mila asked.

“Oh, I play VTM with some friends, like, every week, if possible.”

“VTM?” Mila asked.

“Wait, that vampire table top game?” Noelle asked.

Maya beamed. “Oh, you know it?”

“Um… I’ve played a video game based on it,” Noelle said. “I don’t know if I could play the TTRPG, though.”

“What’s with all these acronyms? I don’t get it,” Mila said, pouting.

“Table Top Role Playing Games,” I told her. “Kind of like board games but with a lot more freedom to do whatever you want.”

“The grown up way to play pretend, basically,” Maya said, laughing.

I think that’s when it hit Eric in the head. “W-Wait, is that what you do when you..- go out with your friends?”

“Hm? Oh, yeah. Didn’t I tell you? Oh wow, I think I didn’t. Sorry I didn’t invite you, but we’ve had that group for like a year, so…”

“N-No, no. I get it, don’t worry.”

“...”

“...”

“...”

Mila, Noelle and I looked at each other. Or more like they looked at me to confirm what they had just guessed. And yeah, that pretty much gave us the answer we’d been looking for.

Maya was telling the truth. When she went out with her own group of friends, she was getting together to play a table top RPG. I felt fairly confident that, if something of sexual or romantic nature was happening during those gatherings, I would’ve felt it when she mentioned it. The lingering emotions of sexual encounters are strong enough to remain in the subconscious for a while, though I’d learn that later. At that moment, I just felt confident she wasn’t doing anything behind Eric’s back. Especially because…

Well, I wouldn’t call it love or even infatuation, but she did like him a lot. There was admiration in her voice when she spoke of him playing drums, and she thought about him when she said she thought playing instruments was cool. Safe to say, most of it was just Eric’s insecurities, which again, I don’t really blame him for. But considering how easily she told him what she was doing with her friends… Yeah, the guy needed to learn to talk to her more.

Also, regarding Eric himself, it seemed pretty obvious even without having to read his feelings, but he was more focused on Maya than anyone else. Whatever it was he felt for Noelle was gone, and I’d bet they weren’t even that strong to begin with, but I’m not about to pass judgment on people’s feelings.

At one point, Maya had to go to the restroom and Mila and Noelle took the opportunity to go with her. By then I'd already been made privy to the secret of women going to the restroom together, so I didn’t have to speculate that Mila was trying to get more info out of Maya.

That meant I was left alone with Eric, and I took the chance to tell him everything I had noticed.

“So… You’re saying she’s not cheating on me? How are you so sure?” Eric asked me. “You’ve talked to her for like 15 minutes.”

“You can either believe me or not, but I have my methods and I have no reason to lie to you. Besides, all I said was that nothing she said was a lie and that she genuinely seems to like you. Her gatherings with her friends are just as she said, get-togethers to play table top games. She told you so herself. You need to talk to her more.”

“Easy for you to say. If you fuck up with one of your girlfriends you have like five more in reserve…”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “Eric, you’re lucky I sympathize with you because if not I would fucking break your nose for saying that.” Eric flinched. “I know you don’t want to screw up, I know this means a lot to you, but you can’t treat her like a thing you own and are afraid to lose so you’d rather keep it under lock. I’m not saying this because I have six girlfriends, I’m saying this because I have six friends to whom I could ask questions about this kind of stuff.”

Eric groaned and rubbed his face. “Sorry, sorry. I didn’t mean that. It’s just… I don’t want to lose her.”

“...” I felt like there were plenty of things I could say to that, but this was all stuff he had to understand for himself. Telling him more, especially coming from the guy in a weird yet stable relationship, would only make everything worse. “Well, I promised I’d help, and this is as much as I can do. She’s telling you the truth, and if you still doubt her after that, then that’s your choice.”

“...”

I got a text in the middle of that. Sarah, Grace and Alice were on their way to the mall, and a moment later the girls came back. We finished up our drinks and Eric and Maya excused themselves and went on their way.

This is one of those awkward moments that just doesn’t wrap up neatly, is it? Eric at least texted later.

-Eric: Hey, thanks. Really. And… I’m sorry for what I said.

Might have not been great, but I still don’t regret it.

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

Chapter 648: Conclusions?

Now alone again with Mila and Noelle, I started by thanking Mila for carrying most of that conversation.

“It wasn’t really my intention,” Mila said, giggling. “I was just curious.”

“You social creatures scare me,” Noelle said, echoing one of my eternal thoughts.

“So? What do you think?” I asked them.

“I thought she’d be more withdrawn, but she’s surprisingly outgoing,” Mila said. “I can kind of understand why Eric would feel insecure. She’s cute and pretty forward.

“She did ask us if either of us was your girlfriend,” Noelle said. “But I think it was more out of curiosity than… interest in you.”

“I’m offended,” I said flatly.

“I think she actually likes him, though,” Mila continued. “I got her to open up a bit and she said she’s still not super sure about him but that they’re hitting it off really well.”

I nodded. “I got that impression, too. She didn’t lie about anything, and I didn’t feel like she was doing anything behind his back.”

“And you really tell that much?” Noelle asked me.

“Mmm… Yeah, I believe I can. After working two nights at the bar, I think I can tell more clearly when someone has had sex or has those kinds of thoughts in their minds.”

“After just two nights?” Mila asked.

“I know how it sounds, but feeling the energy of that place was eye-opening.”

“What did Eric say about it?”

“He’s still skeptical, which is understandable when all I can really do is say ‘trust me, bro.’ He’s still afraid of losing her. Which leads me to…” I turned to look at Noelle. “I know you’re uncomfortable around him, but for what it’s worth, he doesn’t have feelings for you anymore.”

“Thank god,” Noelle said, giggling. “It’d be awful if he was seeing someone else and still liking another girl.”

“Uh…”

Mila laughed. “Yeah, it would be so scummy!”

“Who would do such a thing?”

“...” I sighed. “So I’m taking a vow of celibacy tomorrow… OW!” I flinched, feeling a quick, sharp pain in my head that was almost like getting my brain flicked.

“W-What happened?” Noelle asked.

“...I think Frey didn’t like my joke.”

“It’s still weird to remember that you’re… possessed, you know?” Mila said. “I usually forget about it, but then you mention her and I’m, like, ‘oh, right, Frey.’ Are we being rude by not acknowledging her?”

“Nah, don’t worry. She’s happy to be in the background. We’ve talked about it.”

“...You talk to her a lot? What’s she like?” Noelle asked.

“Kind of like an annoying and weirdly quirky older sister,” I told them. “She worries, she chides me, she teases me… We only talk in my dreams, though.”

“Does she say much about us?” Mila asked.

“She loves you all, both for obvious reasons and for some not so obvious.”

“Still remember when we talked to her with the ouija board,” Noelle said. “She really does care about you, huh?”

I chuckled. “I really owe her a lot, so I’m trying to do everything I can to help her with what she wants.”

“And what DOES she want?” Mila asked. “Maybe we can help, too.”

“She basically wants to become stronger. She says she’s very weak for a spirit, which I find ridiculous considering all she can do.”

“Right!?” Noelle asked. “If that’s weak, then what can strong spirits do!?”

“I don’t even want to think about it,” I said. “But yeah, she wants to experiment more with magic, learn more about runes and create stronger effects. She… also wants to push me to do kinkier stuff.”

“Oh? Maybe we CAN help after all,” Mila said, grinning sultrily.

“Let’s see, what’s your opinion on orgies?” I asked her.

Mila and Noelle both blinked, their smiles falling.

“When you say orgies…?” Noelle asked.

“Yeah, not the kind we have amongst ourselves, but something with other people. Other men, even.”

“I’m not letting other guys touch me, Oliver,” Mila immediately said.

“Yeah, I think that’s out of the question for us,” Noelle agreed.

I nodded. “I wouldn’t want that, either, and I said as much to Frey, so… She suggested something like… an orgy, but everyone stays with their own partners.”

“Ah. See, now that’s more reasonable,” Mila said, nodding.

“Yes, but even so…” Noelle grimaced. “It would be weird.”

“Oh, believe me, I know,” I told her. “It’s why I told her I’d think about it. She’s not that pushy, though. She’s very adamant in saying that, in order for any kind of sex to be good, everyone has to be into it. Otherwise it’s a waste and doesn’t produce good energy for her to feed on.”

“...were those three talking about orgies?” we heard a couple of guys whisper as they walked past our table.

“...”

The three of us shared another look.

“Have we learned NOTHING?” Noelle asked.

“I thought we were keeping a low profile…” I muttered.

Anyway, the stuff with Eric was over. I did what I promised I would, the rest was up to him. We waited a bit longer until Grace, Sarah and Alice arrived at the mall then went to meet them. We would’ve loved to have Diana with us, but she had another night shift to get ready for. She’d be free Mondays and Tuesdays.

When we found the three girls, I greeted Grace and Alice with a kiss, but Sarah actually gave me a strong hug. She rested her head on my shoulder and let out a heavy sigh.

I wrapped my arms around her and stroked her back, frowning worriedly. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just… My siblings are starting to realize I’m leaving the house in one or two months. Cole understood and was being all moody about it, but now Robert and Violet understand it and were crying before I left.”

“Oh, no…” Noelle muttered.

“Yeah, those kids love you,” I said. “And I’m the one taking you away from them.”

“Relax, I was gonna have to move out for university regardless,” Sarah said, kissing my cheek. “It’s just… Seeing them cry like that hurts. When they’re throwing tantrums I’ll smack them, but this…”

“It’s different.”

“Yeah.”

“...” I couldn’t just let that be. Sarah’s family was very important to her. “Let’s take them to the theme park.”

Sarah blinked, then slowly smiled at me. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah. You, me and them.”

“That sounds like a good idea to me,” Alice said. “It’ll help them realize that they’re not losing a sister, they're getting an older brother.”

“Okay,” Sarah said, sighing contently and hugging me tightly again. “Let’s do that.”

It’s hard to explain how powerful I feel when I manage to make one of the girls actually feel better, when I can ease their worries if only a little bit. But words are cheap. Now I had to deliver on them.