Satisfied

(Tuesday Afternoon, August 27th)

"Am I in trouble?" Carlos questions.

"Should you be?" Fairy Godmother asks.

His blue eyes shift. "No."

"Alright."

She straightens the papers on her desk, and he divulges, "I don't make a habit of manufacturing poison." Her eyebrows raise. "Especially not on school grounds."

"I'm glad to hear that." She takes a breath. "We're not here about that vending machine you broke into either."

"It stole my money," Carlos defends. "I only took what belonged to me."

"Which is the only reason you're not getting in trouble for it." She continues, "We're here because Jane's worried about you."

"Worried?" Carlos inquires.

"She thinks you're sick," she clarifies. "Said you've been moody and, uh, that you've been hungrier than usual."

"I'm not a carnivore," Carlos denies.

"You said you're still waiting for the test results."

"No," he draws out. "I got a voicemail. They didn't say I have it."

"So, you're not a carnivore?"

"No." He frowns. "I'm a scavenger."

"A scavenger?" she repeats.

"I don't know who started it." His eyes shift. "I'll eat just about anything."

"So, your hunger has just been your regular snacking?"

"Maybe it feels more intense," Carlos confesses. "Ever since I got back from Agrabah I've felt… I don't know how to describe it." His eyes lower. "It's just so aggravating. Everyone walks around, thinking they're better than me, just because they can eat a meal and then get on with the rest of their day."

"Is that what upsets you?" she questions. "The amount of time you spend scavenging?"

"Every day everyone's just throwing their food in the trash and then grabbing something better, never thinking that someone could have needed it." He faces her. "But it doesn't matter if I eat everything that falls into my hands. I'm never satisfied."

She clasps her hands on the desk. "That must be hard for you."

"It's something you learn to live with." Carlos contemplates, "I don't think about how hungry I am when I'm eating. It's just hard when no one else has to."


"Natalie. What are you watching?" Beth asks.

"Nothing," her roommate answers. "This news segment has replaced every ad."

Beth frowns as she steps towards the couch and sees her parents on the TV. Her mother says, "We won't turn you in. Just come to the funeral. We all deserve a day to grieve."

"It just repeats over and over," she complains. "Three adds run every movie break. It's starting to get annoying."

"Who died?" She hums in question, and Beth meets her green eyes. "They said there was a funeral. Who died?"

"Their servant Mrs. Potts," she answers, and Beth's eyes lower. "Something wrong?"

"Do you really believe them?" Beth questions. "That they won't send Ben to the feeding clinic if he shows up?"

Natalie's eyes widen. "You have some nerve naming the king without his title."

"Do you think they would send him or not?" she asserts.

Her roommate returns her attention to the movie. "They wouldn't be very good parents if they didn't."

"You think so?"

"Anyone who can stand by and let their children die doesn't love them," she opinionates. "They don't deserve to be parents."

"And parents who use love to excuse their abuse?" Beth inquires, and Natalie turns back to her. "What do you think of them?"

She frowns at her. "I think they believe they love you, but if they're hurting you more than they're helping you, that love doesn't mean anything." Beth nods. "Why?"

"Just trying to figure some stuff out. Thank you."


"Jane."

She turns around. "Oh. Hey Carlos."

"You talked to Fairy Godmother about me?" he stresses.

"I was worried. She's my mother." He takes a deep breath. "Who else was I supposed go to about you?"

"Your friends. My friends," he emphases. "You think that on the Isle we ever went to our fucking parents for help?"

"My mom's always been there for me."

"I don't care," Carlos's voice raises. "I don't need the headmistress ordering me to the office every day to check in on my sanity."

"Carlos."

"No," he interrupts. "I just got back from spending a month in a place where I'm allergic to their main source of protein. You think I'm sick? Of course, I'm going to look sick."

"Your mood's really bad too," she adds.

"I was just raped," Carlos shouts. "By someone who was supposed to be my friend. Of course, I'm upset."

"Carlos."

He hears the voice from behind him, sees Aziz, and then turns back to Jane. "You know what? I'm not okay, but after everything I've been through, I'm allowed not to be. And I am sick. I'm sick of everyone trying to make me feel better. And I'm tired. I'm tired of this societal idea that if you're not happy, then something has to be wrong with you. I'm okay. Despite everything, I'm still here. What gets me through is having people who care, but instead of listening to what I need, you're trying to change me."

"I'm not trying to change you." She reaches for him, and he folds his arms. "You've been through a lot. Whatever you need, I want to help you."

"I don't want to," Carlos furiously whispers. "And this isn't me rejecting help. Dwelling on things doesn't help me. Why do I have to talk now? Why do I have to be okay right now? I don't even have the words, and you're cornering me about it."

"But trauma needs to be talked about."

"No, it doesn't," Carlos exasperates. "You know what we say on the Isle? It sucks. We agree that what happened sucked, and then we move on. We give people space to process things. We don't make them talk about it if they don't want to."

She frowns. "I'm just trying to help."

"You're not helping me." Carlos's eyes widen. "You're interrogating me."

"I'm not—"

"He's not from here." Aziz steps forward. "He's saying it's an interrogation, because to him it is. You need to respect the culture he comes from."

She starts to tear up. "How am I supposed to help him if I can't ask how he's doing?"

"He just told you," Aziz answers. "You give him space. You're there when he's ready to talk, but he's allowed to say as much or as little as he needs to." Jane fails to speak, and Aziz turns towards Carlos. "I was going to ask you if you wanted to join me in afternoon prayer."

"Yeah." Carlos sighs. "I could go for some yoga right now."

"Isn't that insensitive?" Jane questions. "Praying to God, when he doesn't believe?"

"I don't make him say the words," Aziz says. "God knows what his intentions are. If the motions help relax him, that's fine. I just like having the company. Most of my friends are so awkward about me having a different religion that they wouldn't join me at all, even if we worship the same God. Carlos doesn't have that bias. He's open to anything. It's nice."


Carlos lays back on the mat and takes a deep breath. Aziz rolls his mat up. "Relaxed?"

"Tired. Hungry. Tired," Carlos lists, as he closes his eyes. "I smell pepper."

"Pepper?" Aziz cracks a smile.

Carlos pats the carpet. "Lay down."

"I don't think so."

Carlos takes his hand. "Please." Aziz takes a moment before lying beside him. "Thank you." He pulls Aziz's hand closer, and the pepper scent strengthens.

He frowns. "I'm here for you."

"You want to know," Carlos recognizes.

"I'd like to know who," Aziz unsurely says.

"Chad," Carlos murmurs. "He said he wanted to talk." A minute passes, Aziz opens his mouth, and Carlos voices. "I'm cold."

"I have a blanket." Aziz stands up to grab it from his bed, and he moves it over Carlos.

He sits back down, and Carlos tightens the blanket around him, murmuring, "Pepper."

Aziz hears the noise. "Your stomach's growling."

"Ignore it," Carlos requests.

"I can grab you a snack."

"No." He reaches for him again. "I want you here." He deeply breathes. "You're the only one who isn't afraid of me."

"There's no way your friends are scared of you," Aziz doubts.

"Evie is," Carlos admits. "Maybe it's just because she's anorexic. Me eating random trash all the time disgusts her."

"There's a big difference between disgust and fear."

"I used to eat cats," Carlos reminds him. "You should be both." He tightens his grip on the blanket. "How can you stand me?"

"You didn't eat any of our cats," Aziz points out. "As much as you wanted to."

"I keep thinking about those cookies."

"Cookies?"

"Evie makes cookies. They're in the fridge."

"Do you want me to get them?"

Carlos takes a breath. "Yeah. Sure." Aziz stands up, and Carlos informs, "It's in the carnivore's fridge. There's, uh, iron supplementation in it."

Aziz frowns. "I'll be back." He steps out of the dorm and takes out his phone.

"Prince Aziz," Charming answers. "I'm sorry, but Chad's grounded. Can I give him a message for you?"

He strides down the hall. "Yeah. I'd like him to explain what he did to Carlos."

"Oh. Um." King Charming hums. "That's a very complicated matter."

"How is raping someone complicated?" Aziz argues.

"Look. Chad's been through a lot this summer, and he's in a very vulnerable mindset right now. He's not making the best decisions."

He pushes open the kitchen doors. "Are you seriously defending him?"

"I already told Carlos he has the right to press charges," Charming comments. "If you want to know why Chad did what he did, you're going to have to ask him yourself."

"That's why I'm calling," Aziz disbelieves.

"I'm sorry, but he's grounded," Charming repeats. "You're going to have to find a time during school hours to ask him."

The call ends, and Aziz gapes at his phone. "Unbelievable." He moves his phone into his pocket and then opens the fridge; however, the only contents are a package of lunchmeat, a couple pounds of ground hamburgers, a half-gallon of blood. It's no wonder carnivores are always so ornery. "No cookies." He opens the regular fridge, and he's introduced to a packed fridge with an array of food and drink. Humans have it good. "Still no cookies."

Aziz makes his way up to the girls' dorms and then knocks on the designated room. Evie opens the door and smiles. "Hey."

"Hey." He offers his hand. "I'm Aziz."

She crosses her arms. "I know who you are."

"Oh." He drops his arm to his side. "Good."

"You're the guy who convinced Carlos that it's a good idea to make a girl fall in love with him just so that he can tell her he doesn't feel the same way."

"I didn't tell him to do that."

"You didn't have to," she asserts. "He's fallen so hard that he's willing to hurt himself and anyone else he has to just so that you'll give him a chance."

Aziz falters. "I care about Carlos."

"No, you don't," she argues. "If you cared, you'd set him straight. You'd tell him he has no chance with you, but you don't. Because, you think if Ben can repeal the homosexuality law, then you already have a fish caught in your net. But Ben's gone, and it's going to take more than one royal to convince the council that sexuality isn't a one-way street." Aziz's eyes lower, and she shakes her head. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

"Carlos was asking about your cookies." He meets her dark brown eyes. "I didn't see them in the fridge."

Evie settles. "I gave them away. Carlos said he didn't want it."

"And you didn't think he'd change his mind?" Aziz points out, "His stomach growls all the time. He has a crazy appetite."

"Well, yeah," Evie agrees, "but I wanted to respect his decision not to eat it."

Aziz frowns. "I feel like I'm missing a detail."

"The carnivore's fridge wasn't stocked, yet." He waits for her to continue. "The cookies Carlos was talking about uses animal blood as an ingredient. Since the fridge wasn't stocked, I got a blood bag from the nurse's office. Carlos said he wasn't going to eat something made from human blood. It felt like he meant it."

"Be honest with me." Aziz hesitates, "Is Carlos a carnivore?"

"Carnivores are picky." Evie shakes her head. "Carlos will eat anything."

"But he needs meat?" Aziz asks again.

Evie shrugs. "He'll eat it if it's been in the fridge for a month."

Aziz cringes. "He must get sick from that."

"Actually, no." Evie's eyebrows raise. "He's a true scavenger. Nothing makes him sick."

Aziz takes a breath. "Carlos is resting in my room right now, waiting for the cookies. What do I do?"

"Offer yourself up as an appetizer?" Evie's smile slips. "No. I know. Bad joke. I'll have another batch ready in an hour."


When Aziz rests his back against the bedframe, Carlos comments, "I don't see cookies."

"Evie's making more." He tiredly says, "Carlos. We need to have a talk." Carlos sits up, and Aziz turns towards him. "A couple talks, actually."

"What about?"

"First things first." Aziz faces him. "Don't date a girl just for me. If you don't think you can make it work, don't make a girl fall for you."

Carlos frowns. "A part of me wants to make it work."

"But?" Aziz prompts.

"But I've never been attracted to a girl." Carlos sighs. "As much as I'd like to not break the law, I don't think I can have a romantic relationship with a girl. That's why I picked Jane. If we're friends, maybe it can become something more. But she knows I've never been in a relationship with a girl. It's making it harder for her to understand what I'm trying to say."

"So, you're not hoping to sabotage your relationship to give me doubts on having a relationship with a nice, devout girl?"

Carlos's frown deepens. "I admit that it would be a fairytale if a dark, handsome prince fell for me, but I want you to be happy. If you think following God's law and having an arranged marriage will make you happy, I'm not going to get in your way. But if you see me struggle and change your mind, at least my failed attempt to date a girl would have some good come out of it. But, yeah, I want to at least try, because I can't imagine getting sent back to the Isle over something so stupid. I deserve it to myself to try out the heterosexual lifestyle."

Aziz examines his expression. "That left a bad taste in your mouth."

"Sexuality isn't a lifestyle." Carlos cringes. "I've just heard so many people call homosexuality a lifestyle since I got here, I thought I'd try to say it."

"No." Aziz comments, "If sexuality were a lifestyle, being straight would be easier."

"You've never liked a girl?" Carlos questions.

Aziz shakes his head. "I, uh, told my dad about it."

Carlos's blue eyes widen. "Really?"

"He said not to act on it." He eyes the floorboards. "Because you're bound to get caught the more times you do something."

"I'm sorry."

"If I shut you out, don't take it personally." Aziz confesses. "Now that I'm not starving myself, I have a sex drive. And some weeks are harder than others."

Carlos nods, and after a minute, he breaks the silence, "What was the second thing?"

"Right." Aziz looks back up. "I understand that you haven't been tested, but I have some questions and I'd like some honest answers."

Carlos takes a deep breath. "Alright."

"The cookies Evie made last time had human blood in them."

"That's not a question."

"Evie gave it away, because you said you weren't willing to have human blood." Aziz questions, "What made you change your mind?"

"I get cravings."

"For human blood?"

"A lot of things." Carlos runs a hand over his hair. "But yeah. Sometimes." He lowers his eyes. "I keep thinking if I just had one taste, I'd know it's not that good and I'd stop wanting it."

"If you don't dislike the taste of animal blood," Aziz says, "you probably wouldn't dislike the taste of human blood. The only difference is the morality of it." Carlos's eyes scan him. "Do you think about drinking my blood?"

"You smell like pepper." Carlos shakily breathes, placing his hands on Aziz's shoulders.

Aziz places his hands on top of Carlos's. "Settle down and talk to me."

"My teeth hurt."

Aziz forces one of the hands off his shoulder. "Evie's making cookies." He feels him shake. "Carlos?"

"I want you."

"Carlos."

"Just one taste." Carlos's eyes widen. "I'll pay you back with a blowjob."

Aziz raises an eyebrow. "A blowjob?"

Carlos unsurely asks, "Are Muslims not allowed blowjobs?"

"We're not allowed to masturbate." He slowly explains, "Oral sex is encouraged, because husbands finish earlier than their wives."

"I thought you did female circumcision."

"There's different types," Aziz informs. "The acceptable one is commonly known as the Sunnah circumcision, which cuts off the same kind of skin as with male circumcision. It has health benefits like preventing odor. The one you're thinking of is done by extremists so that the women will have an easier time staying virginal until marriage. My parents outlawed it because of the physical dangers and psychological harm." He stares past him. "Carlos?"

His eyes move away from Aziz's neck. "Sorry. I wasn't listening."

He hears Carlos's stomach growl again. "I'm not letting you sell your body for food, especially after what Chad did to you."

"A tablespoon of blood doesn't amount to food."

"Is that all you want?" Aziz questions. "A tablespoon?" His pupils dilate. "Carlos?" He pushes him back onto the floor and moves on top of him. He seems tense but unsure. "Carlos." His face speeds forward; however, instead of biting the neck, he sucks the lips. Aziz closes his eyes, kissing back; however, his lips bare against the cold air, and he feels the warmth on his neck. The grinding causes his heart to pick up pace, and Carlos nips his neck. "Ah." He feels the tickle and releases a breath. Carlos opens his mouth, a bang erupts from the door, and Aziz rolls him over before rushing to the door. He opens it and catches his breath. "Hey."

"Hey, yourself." Her dark eyes scan him, as she smirks. "Have fun?"

"What?"

She points to his neck. "Is that a hicky?"

"No." Aziz rubs it. "Carlos was trying to eat me."

She nods to his pants. "And that?"

His eyes follow hers to the dark spot, and he asserts, "Premature ejaculation is a very natural thing."

"How premature are we talking about?" He keeps silent, and she laughs. "You have like zero experience, don't you?"

He looks away. "I have to stay pure."

"For marriage," Evie acknowledges. "But how are you supposed to consummate it if you can't even hold it in long enough for intercourse?"

"You know, shaming someone for not having sex is still sex shaming." Her smile widens, and he takes the plate. "Thank you for the cookies." Aziz shuts the door, and once he turns around, Carlos appears before him. "You have cookies." Carlos presses him against the door, moves into his neck, and Aziz pushes him away. "We can't do this."

"But you said a tablespoon was okay."

Aziz gapes. "You didn't give me a chance to say anything."

"I'll make it worth your while." Carlos falls to his knees and reaches for Aziz's buckle.

Aziz moves his foot up to Carlos's chest and nails him to the floor. "I don't consent! You hear me?" Carlos tiredly lays on the floor, and he takes his foot off him. "Sorry. I just can't do this—whatever this is—with you."

Carlos reaches for the cookies before turning over on the floor. "That's fine." He bites into the sweet, soft tissue. "I prefer food that doesn't talk back, anyways."

Aziz moves to grab the blanket from the floor, and he lays it over Carlos before sitting next to him. "I really am sorry. You thought I was the only one who wasn't afraid of you, and here I am, getting all defensive."

Carlos pleads, "Don't leave me."

"I promise to be here," Aziz agrees. "And I'll never hurt you."