With Gara once again missing in action, Andrea took it upon herself to teach her former class rather than cancel it—a bold move for which she had expected Marian to bite her head off. Her mother hadn't said anything when she walked by and saw the class, though.

Andrea should have been happy. She should have been thrilled that Marian had made a bad call with Gara, and now the unreliable so-called perfect teacher was nowhere to be found, so Andrea had to rush in to save the day. Andrea should have been happy, but she wasn't. She felt down. She felt crushed from the inside out, and she couldn't say why.

She suffered through the class.

Mixed feelings came and went about not going into the office that morning. She couldn't face Tanner. It was rare that Andrea got turned down, but to offer something like that—to offer herself like that—and to not even be looked at when the rejection came made her feel like scum.

Of course that would be the English he understood.

So even though the class looked rambunctious, Andrea went in. Now she had to figure out how she was going to go through the rest of the year without dwelling on things. She had to live it down. She didn't have a choice.

She thought of Gara while she taught, and it distracted her. She had to admit to herself that she was jealous of the woman: her size, her grace, her talent, her confidence. She'd thought that the woman couldn't be any more perfect. The drug addiction knocked her down to mortal status. But Gara had an E, and that dragged her back up to god status again. She had an E, a gorgeous one.

Andrea wondered what it took to be able to get an E with such devotion, one who was devoted enough to touch her without trouble. But not just touch Gara, by the looks of it; the smaller woman had seemed to be in heat when she approached that room the night before. Andrea couldn't imagine what Gara had done to bewitch an E into staying.

When something sailed across the room, Andrea awoke from her daydream long enough to see who had thrown it. It was one of the older students. Andrea saw no reason to even comment. She was going to ignore it, but she was taken aback by a gruff voice.

She recognized the language. It was the dialect of the lower levels, one of the poorest areas in the Colony. It was well-known in the common areas, while upper-crust teens had taken to it in an attempt to sound cool. Andrea had never had any luck with learning it. When Andrea looked up to see Tanner in the back of the room, staring daggers at the boy he scolded, her heart stopped.

The boy didn't respond to Tanner at first, but he did stand up and mutter a soft apology to Andrea.

Andrea was too stunned to move as her eyes scanned the room. What's going on? Is this some sort of a drill or something?

She was confused by Tanner's presence but thrilled by it as well. Tanner knew Andrea's weakness: attention. Maybe the bald E wasn't aware of the power he wielded, but by paying any attention, he was causing a strong reaction that Andrea was desperate to counteract.

From that moment on the class was incredibly easy.

Tanner remained after everyone had left. Andrea's heart skipped a beat. Cheeks burning with flattery and then embarrassment as she thought of the night before, she waited. She kept her head hung as she busied herself at her desk, gathering the same diskettes again and again.

The gentle tap on her shoulder made her body feel warm. She turned to Tanner with a smile, but that smile faded when she saw the E's serious look.

Tanner cleared his throat. "Gestern—yesterday...."

Just the sound of that thick accent made the corners of Andrea's mouth curve upward, but when she heard nothing further, she decided to be serious as well.

After consulting a diskette, Tanner tried again. "No office today. Why?" He looked into Andrea's eyes, wearing an expression that reflected worry.

"Well, I...I had to cover for Gara. So I decided to skip it. I didn't mean to offend you or cause you any worry. I...."

They stared at each other until Tanner focused on the diskette in his hands again. He typed in some words and sighed.

"Scheisse," he muttered under his breath. Eventually, the E abandoned the diskette and said, "About before...about Gestern...."

"Yesterday?" Andrea stepped forward, her breath catching when Tanner nodded. This was it. The whole world vibrated with her anticipation. "Yes?"

Tanner took a deep breath and opened his mouth, but when a voice filled the room, it was not his. It was that of the System.

"Warning: E-related incident. Saturation level high."

At the next tremor, Andrea realized it wasn't just her after all; the entire compound shook, then stilled, then shook again.

"Midge..." Tanner said, and raced out.

As soon as they reached the door to Tanner's room and opened it, the earth quaked yet again. Midge's next attempt at vomiting caused a tremor so strong that Gara lost her footing when she stood to approach her E.

Tanner rushed to Midge's side but didn't touch the man. Maybe it was something to do with the earthquakes, or maybe it was Tanner's panic, but Andrea could hear the thoughts when the dud E spoke.

"What's wrong?"

Midge's hair had grown considerably in a short time, and it hung past his shoulders as he struggled with all his might to throw up without success.

"His seed!" Midge cried out in anguish. "More than...." He heaved again, and the lights flashed. "More than one! More than one."

Tanner looked them over. Their state of undress left Midge with his trousers undone and Gara nude; it was obvious they had been intimate.

When Tanner looked into Gara's eyes, Andrea could still hear Tanner's thoughts as the E asked, "Multiple partners ejaculated into you before you came here?"

Gara's color deepened, but she sat her knees to her chest as her posture wilted.

With a sigh, Tanner raised his right hand and flicked his wrist for a knife to unfold.

"Midge!" Queen called from the doorway; he'd just arrived, short of breath.

Tanner looked back at Queen and sighed in relief. He made a fast job of explaining the situation, but instead of stepping in to help, Queen stepped back, dreading entering at all.

With a groan, Tanner looked past Queen to Andrea. "I need you. Come. Bitte."

The next quake caused several people to fall over. Andrea approached and crouched down beside Tanner, who looked at Midge's twisting body. To Andrea's awe and disbelief, Tanner interlocked their fingers. Andrea needed time to process what the hell that might mean, but the moment was shattered by a guttural cry when Tanner brought the knife down into Midge's chest and dragged it down the middle.

Instead of blood gushing from the opening, a pale light rolled to the surface. Just before it exploded, Tanner dragged Andrea close, using his own broad body to shield her.

Queen entered after the bang faded to silence. He took the knife out, and the wound closed again. He waited, and when Midge was breathing on his own, his body whole, Queen looked from his twin to the naked woman crouched beside him, sobbing in fright and despair.

Still shielded under Tanner's heavy body, Andrea watched them. Queen regarded Gara as if she were subhuman in his eyes. "You. You good-for-nothing waste of flesh." He crouched to meet the small woman's gaze. "Why can't you rich assholes just gaw-ro die?"

Midge reached out to hold Queen's shoulder, a gesture that took a considerable amount of energy. "You do not talk," he wheezed. "To de woman ah love like dat. Nobody touches my Gara." He fell forward and landed with a thud.

Gara let out a whimper as she tried to approach, but Queen shoved her back.

"Don't you touch him!" Queen barked. He turned to Tanner and pleaded, "Help me move him. We have to get him into the void."

Tanner rose, seemingly unaware of the fact that he was still holding Andrea close. He realized it a moment later and let go.

He held Midge under the left arm, Queen took him under the right, and together they hefted him up and walked to the wall...and kept walking. The surface liquefied just as they reached it.

And then they were gone.

***

Andrea had never seen anyone cry so much in all her life. She envied it because she didn't know if she had that many tears left in her. Gara was inconsolable, and she refused to leave Tanner's room. Even when London came, with his broad shoulders and authoritative bark to get up, nothing happened.

Without a doubt it was a day Andrea would never forget. She felt weak and filthy, sick with herself as she watched London punch Gara again and again in an effort to get her to stand or leave the room.

Andrea said nothing, did nothing—only stood there and watched.

Gara's savior came from an unlikely source. "Get your goddamn hands off her, idiot."

Marian. Andrea backed away and dissolved into the crowd the best she could when her mother caught sight of the situation and approached the bleeding woman.

"She's our teacher! How the hell is she going to be presentable to clients like this? You stupid, stupid idiot."

London's mouth hung open as he struggled to find the right thing to say. "I'm sorry. It's just....I thought—"

"No, you didn't gaw-ro think. And now we have to get her fixed up. That's coming out of your salary. Do you understand?"

Marian guided Gara up. Andrea expected the smaller woman to protest, maybe even demand to stay right there until Midge came back. Gara took one look at Marian's cold eyes, however, and lost all power. She allowed Andrea's mother to help her to her feet but glanced at London. Andrea knew why. The mean scowl on London's face was indicative of just how much suffering Gara was in for after it was all over.

Tanner and Queen came back the next morning with Kobal, apologizing for everything that had happened. Midge wasn't supposed to be there, much less tamper with a worker. Kobal assured them his people would handle all repairs.

Yada, yada, yada.

Gara seemed flawless as ever a week later. She'd started hanging out in Andrea's room at nights, cowering there until morning.

Andrea thought she was crazy. "Are you serious?"

"Of course. It's been nearly a week. I haven't been with anyone at all. If I...if I could just get to see him, you know, we...." Gara flopped down on the floor. "I just don't wanna waste this chance."

With a weak frown, Andrea shook her head. "The sex can't be that good."

"You're out of your gaw-ro mind. I'd kill my own grandmother for that gaw-ro sex. Trust me. Hell, I'd kick a baby."

They were both silent and then laughed. Andrea didn't want to like the woman-pixie. As she stared down at her from the large bed, she tried to hate her all over again, but her heart wasn't in it.

"That's pretty gawed up."

"I'm just saying." Gara closed her eyes with a sigh. "It's not just the sex, it's...it's Midge. I love that big lug. I love him so much. Before, when I used to say that word, I just...I just said it. Now it's like it's pouring out of me."

"It must be something, him having a twin."

"Don't be so sure," Gara muttered. "It's torture sometimes; seeing that face spewing all that shit at you. That Queenie—hell, I can't say I like him even slightly. So it's weird being in love with his brother. And when I say I love Midge, I'm talking 'romance novel double suicide in a gesture of love' love Midge."

Andrea nodded. "Then take him for a lover."

"We tried. We...we really tried. He swore he'd try to make it work. Before I got hitched, we were fine. We'd go at it constantly. When the time came for me to secure my title, I...I'm an only child, I had to. I had to marry into money. So I did. I got stuck with stuffy old London, and Midge didn't like to make love anymore, especially after I'd been with the hubby, but we didn't have much of a choice. I started trying to...to flush traces of London out beforehand, if you know what I mean." At the nod again, Gara looked to her own bare feet and brought her knees up to her chest. "Sometimes we've had a few hiccups. But that's the drawback with an E lover. They can't really be lovers, you know? The whole touch thing."

When Gara was quiet, Andrea tried to urge her on. "You okay?"

"Did you hear him?" Gara stared at the floor, her voice a mutter. "The way he talks. It...it's choppy."

"Yeah, I thought it was cute that he had an accent while Queen doesn't."

"It's not an accent," Gara said, "it's damage. Like what happened with Tanner, but worse. If Tanner can heal, it'll come back. Midge can talk, but...it hasn't gotten better. I tried to help."

Andrea sat up. "Help? I thought only E's could heal."

"No. Assists can. Assists can heal their E's. I'm the strongest thing to heal him right now. Negative energy hurts, but positive energy is just as powerful." Gara looked up from the ground and forced a smile. "And what's more positive than my love for him?"

With no answer to give, Andrea wore a weak smile of her own.

"And it didn't work," Gara lamented. "He didn't always sound like that. He won't tell me if I'm the cause, but I think that's why Queen hates me. Sure, the green wonder didn't like me much before, but now it's like he fully wants me in the grave. So I think maybe I caused that damage."

"Why would your E's speech have anything to do with you?" Andrea asked.

After moistening her lips, Gara coughed. "The...the mate sharing thing. E info is hard to find—"

Andrea snorted. "Understatement."

"Yeah. We're supposed to get the info from our E's directly, but...."

"But?"

"But I have a title to pass on. He has no title, and I can't marry him. Hell, even a business like this wouldn't accept a teacher without some standing from a strong title or family. Just to teach here, you'd have to be a noble. Which is dumb because the E's here are more than capable. But they can only be 'assistants,' you know?" Andrea offered a nod, but Gara didn't look up from the floor. "When I heard that Tan was here, I figured one of the twins wouldn't be far behind. I came running."

"One of the twins?" Andrea wrinkled her brow. "Why are they always with Tanner?" She mused, "Bodyguards?"

"Basically." Gara looked up at her and shrugged. "An E is still an E. Some people might gang up, figure he's an easy catch. The twins are strong, physically and in power. Besides...." She smiled, finally. "Would you try to go up against Queenie?"

Andrea laughed. "Hell no. It's kinda funny; he's really handsome when he doesn't talk."

"Yeah, but after he does, I bet it makes all your interest shrink down to nothing, huh?"

After considering her words, Andrea raised her eyebrows. "You've got a point. So you're lucky you got the nice one."

"Yeah." Gara whispered, "I got the nice one." She didn't say anything for a moment and then let out a soft laugh. "But do I have him? I feel like I'm hurting him just by being alive. I know the mate sharing thing, as he calls it, is the biggest problem, but there's not much I can do about that. I just can't find any info about it. He has to tell me. From the start he figured we wouldn't last. So he gave me the bare minimum."

"You can't just ask someone? Like...like the medical section or something?"

"No. Nobody. I've searched; E info is locked down tight." Gara paused to consider it. "I know it's not the touch that's the problem for E's; it's the numbing of it. And not just skin-to-skin touch either, but DNA, too." She raised her right hand and pulled the sleeve back to reveal the Colony branding tattoo.

There were various tattoos with different functions, but all indicated a contract of sorts. Most people couldn't recognize the type of tattoo by sight alone, but Andrea knew Gara's tattoo must be her marriage contract with London.

"Midge made this. He did a good job making it look like a real Colony one. He begged me not to get London's real tattoo. Since it uses his DNA in the ink, we'd never—and he said with a definitive never—be able to have sex again. I didn't believe him, but I'm glad I kept this one."

Andrea nodded, at a loss for any other response. "But you're twenty-six now. You have to have a valid one before reaching twenty-one. Getting tossed Topside is no joke. If they find out—"

"They won't find out." Gara's glare turned cold. "Right?"

At first silent, Andrea nodded again. "Right."

Gara looked around the dimly lit room. "What's with you and all these weird posters?" Andrea's lack of response made the smaller woman frown. "If you don't wanna talk about it, you don't have to."

"I don't wanna talk about it."

"Okay," Gara said. "In that case, help me figure out how to get Midge back here so we can at least get one mind-blowingly good romp in before I'm rendered useless to him."

"Now you're just being greedy," Andrea teased. "You had two days in that room."

"We didn't do anything. He sat on the floor, me on his lap, and we just kept caressing and touching each other. As he puts it, we were just like a couple of smitten imps. Besides, Midge wouldn't touch me when I'm gone."

"Gone? You mean high?" Andrea regretted her words as soon as she said them because Gara colored. She tried to change the subject. "Well, I'm all out of ideas for getting an E. As you can see, I'm still E-less despite my many days willing it to happen."

Gara looked pensive. "It's a lot of pressure. Not all that glitters is platinum. You should remember that."

"I'm not looking for platinum; I'm looking for an E."

The smaller woman lowered her gaze. "Can I give you some free advice? Let this E thing go."

Andrea blinked herself awake, sure that she hadn't heard right. "What?"

"Let it go. Don't go after an E. There's no happy ending involved. You just suffer." Her big brown eyes looked up at Andrea. "You suffer; the E suffers. It's best to leave it."

The words surprised Andrea to the point that speech failed her.

"Listen, the...getting gone," Gara continued. "It's kinda like getting gone. It's surreal, being with an E, but even getting high doesn't feel as good. But you have to consider where this leads and where it ends. You have a title to secure, too, right? So once the romp with the E's said and done, what happens to you? What happens to that E? They only sync once, so as much as I'm craving him, I know he's craving me. There's no finality to it. It's like a wound that can't close. The way...."

Gaze low, Gara stared at her feet as she muttered against her knees, "The way Tanner had to cut into him, I wish I was the one under that knife. His body was trying to numb that extra DNA, and it collected in his chest. If Tanner hadn't...." She paused, her voice quivering as she choked out, "If Tanner hadn't helped, I don't know what would have happened if that energy had just stayed pent up inside him. And despite that, despite all that, I still want to be with him." She looked up at Andrea again. "This isn't something we should mess with. I can't help it now, but it's not too late for you. If you want my advice, leave it."

Andrea thought that was hypocritical of Gara to say. As true as it might have been, her words of discouragement dampened because she was craving her E despite everything she'd said.

Gara loved Midge; that much Andrea was sure of. And that storybook love was the problem, not the E. With that in mind, Andrea ignored the warning. She was looking to get a wish; love wasn't even an afterthought.

Hands stretched above her head, Gara laid back and said, "A week is the longest dry spell I've had in a long time. I can't believe my luck. That head-stomping was the best favor London ever did me."