"It's great," she said. "These last few months have been... great. But it's also just so... weird."
"Come on, you're killing me! Tell me more," came the order. Syl could just see her eyes sparkling back in California.
"I miss you, Brinny," she said.
"I miss you, too. Now really, tell me everything."
"Well, we finally moved into a bigger place than just his one-room boy-apartment. I have my own bedroom."
"Do you? That is weird."
"I know!"
"Well, do you always sleep in it?" she asked next. Syl flushed.
"No..."
"Ah," Brin laughed. "I see, so it's a psychological comfort thing. Krit's smarter than I thought. Last we talked you said you hated that waitress job. Did you quit?"
"Yeah. Krit bounces at a bar and he got me a job there last week."
"What, as another bouncer?"
"No." Syl laughed. "That would be a bit too conspicuous. As a bartender. It's about all I can get without my high school diploma, and it pays well. I've done it before."
"Yeah, that's all good. But you left out the best part. This means you and Krit get to work and play together."
"Brin!"
"I'm sorry, but I just can't get the adorable image of you guys out of my head."
"You mean the dirty image," Syl teased.
"I'm shocked that you would think that," Brin quipped back. "Shocked." They both laughed.
"How's Zane doing? I haven't talked to him in at least two weeks."
"He's good. He still misses you a lot. Not that I don't," Brin added quickly.
"Yeah, I feel bad about leaving so suddenly."
"Why did you, anyway? I just called like always and you weren't there. It took Zack weeks to call us and say you'd left, but he wouldn't tell us where you went. We were worried sick, you know." Syl grimaced with remorse.
"I'm really sorry, Brin. I just had some stuff to take care of."
"Don't worry about it," she said after a moment. "It's done. You had Krit and Syl stuff," her sister said solemnly, then laughed again. "Really, you two are so cute." Syl flushed.
"Thanks," she said dryly, but there was a blushing grin on her face.
"Zane says the four of us have to get together. So when are you going to live up to your promise to come and see me?"
"I was thinking soon. Like in a week or a couple of days."
"Bring Krit. We'll have a little get-together. Maybe Jondy will come. Tinga, if she can."
"Oh, yeah, Zack'll love that."
"We won't tell him," Brin answered. Syl smiled, wished it were that simple.
"Sounds like fun," she said. She heard a male voice in the background on Brin's end and waited.
"Sorry about that," her sister came back a moment later. "Greg and I are going out to dinner, so I really should say goodbye now."
"Okay, I should go too."
"Bye, Syl. See you next week."
"Definitely. Bye." Syl hung up, disentangled herself from the telephone cord, and left her bedroom in search of Krit. Their apartment wasn't huge, so it took her about two seconds to find him in the living room, watching television and reading a book. She knew he was absorbing both at the same time; the ability to easily multitask was a good advantage to being an X5. She walked up behind him and ran a hand along his arm in a greeting as she flopped onto the sofa beside him. He reached out a hand and entwined his fingers with hers as he read and the television blared. Syl smiled, leaned into his embrace, drooping her arm over his book. He laughed, reached down and swept the hair from her face, kissed her forehead. She found his lips with hers and the book fell from his hands, hitting the floor and closing.
"Syl," he murmured into her mouth. "You made me lose my place."
"Oh, I'm sorry," she said, pulling back, pouting. He winked at her.
"I know a way you can make it up to me."
"But I just got dressed," she complained.
"That was over an hour ago," he purred back, reaching his arms around her back, coaxing her closer as he pulled at her t-shirt. "You've been blabbing to Brin for at least that. You barely even let me say hello." Her shirt hit the floor and he kissed her again, his hands pulling at the clasp of her bra. She ran her own hands up his arms, over his chest, felt his heat through his thin shirt, pulled at the hem of it. She broke away from him long enough to pull it over his head and then found his full lips again with hers, hardly letting him breathe.
"I think," he murmured as his lips bathed her neck in kisses. "Brin is the best thing that's happened to our sex life." Syl pulled back a little, surprised. She laughed.
"What?"
"You always want to go at it right after you hang up with her," he said, wiggling his eyebrows at her. "Is there something you're not telling me?"
"Very funny," she said, rolling her eyes and giving him a little smack on the head before reaching down to pull off his shoes. "And you're the one who initiated this particular session, Krit."
"Oh, that's right." His sneakers clonked to the ground and he reached for her, settling her into his lap, kissing her again. After a minute or so Syl pulled back and looked at him.
"She makes me feel better," she told him. Krit struggled between his desire for her and wanting to make sure she knew he valued what she was saying. He nodded.
"That's good," he said. Syl wanted to say more, about how Brin was exactly everything Zack could never be, someone she could pour her feelings out to without worrying about how she felt or if she would blame herself for Syl's problems. As much as she loved Zack, it was hard to talk to him when he was always so guilty for everything that had ever happened to her. Brin was a relief- a comforting, wonderful relief. Brin was her emotional saviour. Now, smiling at Krit, she decided she would tell him all that later, or maybe not at all. He was looking absolutely tortured and adorable as hell trying not to show it. She laughed, leaned forward in his arms again, kissed him, let him tug off her jeans. His own pants were lost somewhere on the way to his bedroom and the rest of their clothes dropped to the floor before they tumbled into bed together.
"God, I love you, Syl," Krit murmured in her ear. She smiled, found his hand, squeezed it.
"I love you, too," she whispered back. Then she remembered her conversation with Brin and the plan to go back to California the next week; unfortunately, she always seemed to forget things like that and remembered them at the most awkward times, like now. "Krit?"
"Mmm?"
"Speaking of Brin-" she started. He glanced up at her, his dark eyes filled with surprise.
"Syl, not now," he said sweetly. "Talking about sisters during sex is kind of a turn-off."
"Right." She flushed. "Sorry. Remind me when we're done."
"Okay," he promised, kissing her tenderly before raising his head and smiling down at her. His hands were warm and soft against her skin, his breath ticklish, his eyes watching her with such love in them that she couldn't keep the fluttering out of her heart. Krit kissed her lips, her eyelids, her cheek, moved down against her neck and collar bones.
"Krit, wait. Get something first."
"I've got it," he said gently, pausing for a moment to show her. She nodded, a little sad that she had to worry about that. She was fairly certain that she couldn't get pregnant when she wasn't in heat, but she didn't want to risk it and she wasn't ready for them to try for another baby just yet.
"Brin," Syl said afterward, a smile on her face as Krit held her in his
arms. "She wants you to come to California when I go and see them. She wants to
have a little party."
"Just the three of us?"
"Nope, Zane too. And possibly Jondy and Tinga."
"Sounds great. I haven't seen Jondy in forever."
"I thought you'd be up for it." She pulled him close, rested her head against his bare chest, gave him a soft kiss. "Though Zack isn't going to be so pleased," she added, smirking.
"Why do you always listen to Zack?" he asked softly. She raised her eyes to him questioningly. "I mean, you never even protest." He smiled. "You should at least protest. I know he pisses you off as much as the rest of us sometimes." She smiled back a little, stroked her hands over his arms and chest in lazy circles. Her smile faded slightly but she tried not to show it.
"You have no idea who much I owe Zack," she said softly. "He helped me once, a long time ago. I was in a bad situation." Her heart leapt with fear as she considered for the first time telling him her secret, all of it.
"He's helped all of us," Krit answered, dropping a kiss to her bare shoulder. Syl frowned but he didn't see it with his head bowed. She sighed inwardly, the thought of sharing gone immediately. It wasn't worth the risk of him not understanding.
"Not like that," she answered simply.
"Don't cry," he murmured, his eyes concerned as he reached up to sweep away the tear that had slipped unbidden down her cheek. She shrugged.
"Anyway," she said uncomfortably. "That was a long time ago." Krit gazed at her for a moment, turned them so she could settle into his arms, their soft, warm bodies pressed together closely. After a long time she felt his chest heave in a slight sigh and he picked up her hand, kissing the backs of her fingers tenderly.
"Syl?"
"Hmm?"
"Want to go again?" he asked, his voice impish, trying to lighten the mood.
It worked. She raised her eyebrows at him, pulled back to smirk into his face,
knowing that he wasn't kidding. She was reminded again of possibly the best
advantage of an X5 boyfriend over a regular man. Syl grinned, wrapped her arms
around him, tipped his chin up. She sighed and kissed him and couldn't think of
anything better than this.
