Copyright © 2020 Kaizer Wolf

 

Innocent Devil's Harem | Chapter 16-4: My Girlfriend and Sexy Housemate Agreeing to Share

I sighed, deciding to elaborate more on reasons why I might transform. “Being afraid, anxious, angry, or anything else similar can have that effect. I’ve always avoided horror movies, since the startle can make it happen too.”

“Oh Kai,” Serenity whispered. “I’m so sorry.”

I looked at her in confusion. “Why?” I wondered seriously.

She sighed. “I just wished I’d known. I mean, I’m not really into horror movies either, but just everything makes so much sense now, and I just wish I’d known,” she repeated.

I sighed, deciding to change the subject as I glanced up at the clock, seeing it was already past nine. “So when do you want to leave for the bank?”

Serenity mimicked my sigh. “Umm, well, I guess whenever. Preferably before ten. Gabriella can wear one of my shirts,” she added. “But you need to change yours Kai.”

I glanced down, realizing I still had a little visible blood on mine.

“Right,” I agreed, wondering if I should hop in the shower too.

Nick chimed in then, seeming somber again. “Well, I suppose I should get going if that’s the case.” He paused, focusing on Serenity. “Maybe let me know how it goes tonight?”

“Sure,” she offered. “Might have to let you know when I see you on Monday though.”

“Okay yeah, that’s fine,” he agreed, looking depressed as hell, and not doing a very good job of hiding it.

Honestly, I kind of felt bad for him, but this was my lifelong friend we were talking about, who I’d loved since forever, and they’d literally just met a day or two ago at most. And even if they’d known each other longer, she was still my best friend.

Who I was infatuated with and wanted for myself…but who might not feel the same way, probably because of the age gap and us having to live together for so long.

Dammit.

If only.

Taking a deep breath, I spoke up. “Well, I think I’m going to jump in the shower,” I commented. I then focused on Nick. “Thanks, by the way. For everything. Sorry to be rude to you last night. I was just really upset.”

“Nah, man, it’s fine. Someone kidnapped Serenity. You had plenty of reason to be upset.” He grimaced. “I’m just really bothered by who was responsible. Like, I’ve been thinking about it, and I kind of wonder if the first guy might have been involved too.”

Gabriella and I immediately exchanged a glance, before I looked at my housemate as well.

“You know,” Gabriella began slowly, still looking at me, but sounding like she was talking to Nick. “When we went to the mall yesterday, this really big dude came over to us and almost seemed like he was intentionally trying to provoke Kai. Even grabbed my arm when Kai didn’t initially say anything.” She began directing her words at me. “And then you said he looked accomplished, right?”

I nodded. “Yeah, he seemed triumphant, like he’d achieved his goal.”

“Oh really?” Nick said in surprise, reaching up to scratch his chin. “So what happened?”

“Umm, I sort of showed him my eyes,” I admitted. “Scared him off.”

Nick slowly inclined his chin, seeming pensive. “Then, I really hate to admit this, but it’s possible all of this was orchestrated by the man you killed last night.”

My eyes widened in shock, as I focused on Gabriella again. “Including her kidnapping?” I asked seriously, talking to him while I focused on her.

“Yeah, unfortunately,” he replied. “I, umm…” He cleared his throat. “Well, I’d already made the connection that Serenity was on all the cases, and while I had everything encrypted, the guy was a genius. I hate to admit it, but I feel like I might have led him right to you. Which means he might have went for Gabriella to try to draw you out.”

“So,” I began hesitantly, trying to understand what he was implying, since obviously Gabriella and I hadn’t been dating a couple of days ago. “You think that he targeted Serenity’s best friend simply because she had a connection to the cases.”

He nodded. “Doubtful he thought it was you specifically at that point, instead just assuming that she might know the Impaler. But after you saved Gabriella, he might have hired someone to provoke you at the mall, to see how you’d react.” He frowned. “The only question is, was the man just making a random guess, or did he have reason to suspect it was you?” he wondered, the question sounding rhetorical.

Holy shit, Nick sincerely was smart!

Because the man from last night did have reason to believe it was me, after he sent a second serial killer after us, only for that fake-cop to ‘disappear’ after coming over to my house…when Serenity was at work too.

But then, that just meant that the man – who I noticed Nick was intentionally avoiding referring to him as his biological father – had been keeping an eye on us somehow from a distance.

After all, the guy would have had to be keeping some kind of surveillance to know when we left the house, as well as knowing which mall we ended up going to.

Honestly, I was glad he was dead, but realizing this had all been an orchestrated crime made me paranoid now.

“You do think it’s really over, right?” I wondered seriously. “Like, do you think that guy from last night was calling all the shots? Or do you think there might be more danger?”

Serenity and Gabriella both looked at me in alarm, before focusing on Nick at the same time.

He didn’t seem phased, scratching his chin as he sincerely considered it. “I think it’s a pretty low chance there are more people involved. Probably a good idea to still lock your doors at night of course, but I’d be sincerely shocked to discover this whole thing wasn’t all him.”

Serenity spoke up. “Well, we always lock our doors,” she commented.

He looked at her in surprise. “Oh, yeah, I just meant that as a figure of speech. Like, still be vigilant, but probably don’t worry too much.”

“Oh, right,” she said with a nod. She then sighed. “Well, we should probably get ready to leave. Doubtful that traffic will be a problem, but I don’t want to risk getting to the bank too late.”

Nick nodded in understanding, pushing his seat back to stand up, not looking nearly so glum now. “Sure. I guess I’ll see you on Monday then.”

“Yep,” my friend said enthusiastically. “It’ll be nice to get back into a more normal routine after such an eventful couple of days. Hopefully the next few cases I’m assigned aren’t so stressful.”

He laughed at that. “Isn’t it always stressful?”

She shrugged. “I’ve gotten pretty immune to most things. It’s only the really horrible stuff that gets to me.”

He nodded again in understanding, focusing on me as he took a step closer and held out his hand. “Alright. Well, Kai, it was nice meeting you, and thanks again for saving my little sister all those years ago. Sorry that it’s culminated into this mess, but I’m glad everyone got through it in one piece.”

“Sure,” I agreed, shaking his hand. “And I’ll probably stop getting involved in those kinds of incidents, so that the case doesn’t get reopened.”

He grimaced. “Yeah, that’s probably best. Hard to ask that of you, when both my little sister and Gabriella here wouldn’t be alive without your intervention, but I really don’t think it’s a good idea to draw any more attention to yourself. The fact that you exist raises a ton of questions about our world, including what else might exist out there.”

I nodded in agreement, not responding verbally.

“Well, anyway, see you later everyone,” he added in general, as he continued past me and headed out the door.

“Bye,” Gabriella and Serenity both chimed in sync.

We then all sighed once he was gone, all of us glancing at each other.

Gabriella was the one to break the silence, speaking to my housemate. “So, I know about the kiss,” she announced abruptly. “And it doesn’t bother me. I know you really love Kai, and I’m sorry for getting in between you two. I really hope we can work something out.”

Needless to say, my friend’s face turned bright red.

And I was dark gray now, as well.

Serenity seemed to be struggling to respond, when I felt dread creep into my chest from what I heard outside.

Because a moment later, there was a knock on the door, only for Nick to open it and pop his head in.

“Sorry, forgot something,” he mumbled, dashing into the living room and then rushing back to the door. He then paused when he focused on Serenity, only to look at me since I obviously was transformed. “Everything good?” he wondered.

I couldn’t look at him.

My housemate cleared her throat. “Umm, yeah. We’re good. Just trying to figure out how to deal with the issue that was brought up at dinner last night,” she hedged.

Nick likely assumed she was referring to the can of worms he’d opened by prompting Gabriella to admit she and I had fucked.

“Oh,” he said hesitantly. “Sorry,” he added. “I’ll leave you guys to it then.”

And with that, he quickly made his way back out the door.

“Good save,” Gabriella whispered. “I wasn’t sure what to tell him.”

Serenity shook her head, taking a deep breath. “Umm, why don’t we just focus on going to the bank for now, and then later we’ll try to figure the rest out. I’m…” She paused, sucking in another deep breath. “I’m not really sure how I feel about everything that’s happened.”

I felt ashamed again. “I need to tell you something,” I blurted out.

Serenity looked at me in surprise. “Okay?”

“Gabriella thinks I might have hypnotic eyes or something. Which means it was my fault.” My shoulders dropped more, focusing on her chin since I couldn’t bring myself to meet her gaze. “And I’m really sorry.”

Serenity frowned at that, her brow furrowed. “Yeah, if that’s true, then I could see that being a factor,” she agreed.

I looked at her in surprise, prompting her face to flush red.

“I just mean,” she tried to continue. “That I’m not sure I would have had the nerve to do it like that,” she explained, only for her face to grow brighter red when she realized what she’d said.

“Wait, you mean…” My voice trailed off, because I honestly couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

Serenity shook her head, groaning as she leaned her face into her hands, her elbows on the table. “Kai, this is so wrong. We shouldn’t even be discussing this.”

“Why is it wrong?” Gabriella asked seriously. “You love him, don’t you? And he’s an adult. So there’s nothing wrong with it.”

Serenity looked at her in surprise. “Well, I’m supposed to take care of him, and I’m legally responsible for his finances…”

“Yeah, but it’s not like you’re his guardian,” Gabriella corrected. “And even if you were his guardian, it automatically ends when he turns eighteen, right?”

Serenity frowned at that, before nodding. “Technically yes. And yes. The lady who was serving as his guardian had her last visit a couple weeks ago on his birthday.”

“And you probably would have ended up with him anyway, right? Since you’re basically best friends?” She paused. “Did becoming responsible for his finances suddenly mean you couldn’t eventually marry him? Did the court make you give that possibility up, in order to take care of him?”

Serenity’s frown deepened. “Well, no. Technically…” She paused, looking embarrassed. “Well, there are a lot of reasons why someone might become another person’s guardian or conservator, with the person’s age only being one of those reasons, since even an adult can have a legal guardian. Like, technically a husband can be the legal guardian of his wife, and vice versa.”

“Which means,” Gabriella continued emphatically. “There’s nothing wrong with your interest in him, especially since he’s an adult now and his guardianship has ended, correct?”

Serenity’s face looked even more embarrassed for a few seconds, before she frowned again. “This really doesn’t bother you?”

Gabriella’s expression became more sympathetic. “Well, as I’ve already explained to Kai a few times now, I feel like I’m the one stealing him from you, not the other way around. And I feel bad about that. I don’t want it to ruin our friendship.”

“Gabriella,” she said hesitantly. “It wouldn’t…” Her voice trailed off, possibly because disagreeing would be a lie, at least to some extent.

“I saw how devastated you were last night at dinner,” Gabriella added quietly.

My housemate grimaced and looked away again.

“So can we work this out?” my fiancé continued almost in a whisper.

Serenity finally looked over at me.

I was still transformed, but no way in hell was I horny right now. If anything, I was the most nervous I’d ever been, afraid to even hope that this was really going to turn out well.

“Kai,” my lifelong friend said quietly. “What do you want?”

I again couldn’t believe what I was hearing. My heart was pounding in my throat now, making it feel like I couldn’t speak, but at the same time I felt like I had to answer.

“I can’t live without you,” I whispered. “And I can’t handle you being with someone else. It…” I sucked in a deep breath, glancing away. “Just the idea that you might end up finally dating was really devastating.” I focused back on her. “And I’m really sorry that I made you feel that way,” I added.

She gave me a small reassuring smile. “It’s alright. I mean, yes it really sucked finding out. Especially like that.” She paused to sigh, glancing at Gabriella. “But I knew she was perfect for you.”

“You’re perfect for me too,” I whispered.

Serenity looked at me again for a second, before looking away, her expression unreadable, almost pensive. “Well, let’s get ready to go to the bank, and then when we get back, we can talk about this more.”

“That’s fine,” Gabriella chimed back in. “But just so we’re all on the same page, we’re sharing Kai, right?”

Serenity’s face flushed bright red again, before she glanced at me and then away.

“Umm, yeah.” She paused. “I guess we are.”

 

Copyright © 2020 Kaizer Wolf