While James was away with Juliet, Rachel stayed at Miles' place. Like every other time they got together, no questions were asked, and no promises were made. They liked to hang out, and they either had sex or they didn't. There was the one time they had dinner together, and afterward Rachel said she was tired so Miles dropped her off at home and they said good night. The next day they decided, through spontaneous texting, to get together and ended up making out for an hour before retreating to Rachel's bedroom for the rest of the afternoon.

It was her last night in town, and Rachel laid on her side on Miles' couch, her feet in Miles' lap. It gave Miles deja vu. By the time the credits finished rolling, neither of them had made a move.

"Wanna play Mario Kart?" Miles asked.

Rachel turned her head and smiled at him. "Sure." she said.

"Wanna playyyy...cards?" Miles asked, even though Rachel already answered. She chuckled.

"Sure." she said again.

"Hide The Sausage?"

Rachel stared for a second, not sure she heard him right. After a moment she realized, of course he wouldsay something like that. Rachel laughed, and Miles smiled. The fact that she was entertained in the least by his antics made him feel very special. He looked at her feet in his lap, and very softly drew a line up the middle of one of her soles. Rachel was extremely ticklish, and he ran the risk of getting kicked in the face. She stopped just short of doing so, pulling the molested foot away from his fingers. He let his index finger hover near the other foot, long enough to make it tickle without even touching it. She kicked his hand lightly and returned both feet to his lap.

"You're mean." he said.

"You like it."

"For real though," he said. "Do you want to have sex?"

Rachel folded her arm so she could rest her head on it. She looked up at Miles.

"What, right now?" she asked.

Miles' eyebrows shot up, and he looked around like he was trying to think of a better time than right-this-very-second.

"I mean," he sputtered jokingly. "Whenever!"

Rachel watched it all with a grin. "Okay." she said.

Flabergasted sputtering gave way to a pleased smirk and nodding. "Alriiiight..." Miles said. Rachel had to look away from his face and laugh.

"Where's your bedroom?" she asked.

"Get offa' me and I'll show you."

James knew, in terms of energy level, that he was going to be destroyed the next day by this endless night with Juliet. He didn't feel tired yet, and he was sure they would see the sun come up before they were finished. The fever he had for her only got worse the more time they spent together, and the feeling was mutual. They'd been in the shower for god knows how long and she wouldn't stop rubbing her unbelievably soft body against his. And why would she ever stop, when his body felt so fucking good?

"James..." she murmured softly between slippery wet kisses. She hadn't meant to moan it like that. The water temperature was perfect.

"I know," he said, "We've been in here too long." It didn't stop him from lapping at the warm stream running down her neck.

"I don't want you to come to the airport." she said. She may as well have turned the water ice cold. The way she said it, she made it clear that her mind was made up, but she cared very much about what his reaction would be. James lifted his head.

"Why not?" he asked her, because they were naked and hugging and his guard was down and maybe he felt like he was giving up a little too much to be denied a proper goodbye.

James held her head in his hands, fingers tangled in her wet hair. The endless stream ran down her entire body, and she looked up at him with a sheepish, sad, happy, loving, grateful smile.

"I don't think I'll be able to get on the plane if you're there." Juliet confessed.

She was the sweetest thing he'd ever had in his life. He would do whatever she asked him to do.

Both naked in his bed, blankets pulled up because it was starting to get chilly, Miles and Rachel were resting in peaceful silence. Miles turned to look at Rachel and saw her eyes closed. She wasn't feeling particularly sleepy, but what she'd just done with Miles had definitely relaxed her.

"I'm glad you're not dying." said Miles.

Rachel's eyes opened, and her head shifted so she could look at him.

"Because I really like putting my penis in your vagina." he added.

Rachel smiled faintly. She could maintain the best poker face when she wanted to.

"Thank you, Miles."

"No but seriously. I really like you. You're super cool. I'll miss you when you're gone."

Rachel tsked, and her mouth formed a silent aww. "You're such a softy." she said aloud.

"I am." said Miles. "It's my dirty little secret. Please don't tell anyone."

"I won't." she said. "I'll miss you too."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I like having your penis in my vagina."

"That's really sweet, Rachel."

"Is it?"

"Yes. I'm truly touched."

"Nah..." Rachel reached down and cupped him, balls and all. "There, now you're truly touched."

"Ahh." Miles sighed, closing his eyes and smiling serenely. Rachel snorted and took her hand away. "Hey, that felt nice." Miles protested. He found her hand under the covers and placed it back where it had been. They chuckled, maintaining eye contact. It was funny at first. But then Rachel started stroking him, getting him hard again, and it felt a lot better.

"Oh no." she whispered playfully. "We're turning into James and Juliet."

Miles chuckled. His fingers reached out for her, returning the favor.

"Ooh, yeah." Rachel said, grinning. She lifted her leg and rested it on his hip, giving him better access. They continued for a while in silence.

"Is it weird that I'm really into your body, the way it is right now?" Miles asked in a quiet voice.

Rachel thought for a moment. "Would you still be into me if I gained weight?"

"Yeah, for sure. But it's like...it's not the super skinny part, it's that you're skinny because you're sick."

"...Yeah, that's a little fucked up." Rachel admitted, observing without judgment.

"Ah. I guess I'm a sick fuck."

"Mm. But we already knew that." Rachel assured him. She smiled. She didn't mind his kinks. He was honest about them, and always honest with her. They touched each other throughout the candid conversation.

"I'm gonna fatten you up before you leave." said Miles.

"You don't have very long." said Rachel. "Good luck."

"I need intravenous lard, stat."

Rachel found herself giggling.

"You'll have like, six chins when I'm done." Miles went on. "You'll fuse with the couch. It'll be great."

"And you'll still be into me." said Rachel, not a question but a statement.

"Definitely. My fetishes cross over all weight brackets."

Rachel fell into another bout of laughter. The sound made Miles smile.

"How can you laugh at all of my horrible, cruel jokes?" he asked.

"It's why you like me." she said.

Their hands moved faster - one, and then the other in reaction to the first. Rachel closed her eyes and let go of a deep, quiet sigh. She moaned softly, letting him know she wanted him to keep doing it just like that.

"I'll come again if you keep going..." she said.

Miles kept his sarcastic reply to himself and kept going. Rachel's body started rocking softly with the motion of his hand. He pressed harder and moved faster, listening to the sounds she made as her body built up to an orgasm. Judging by the length of it, it sounded like a good one. When it was over and she had her concentration back, her hand moved a little smoother. She stopped only to spit into her palm, and Miles groaned gratefully when her hand returned to his cock. When he was close, they pushed the covers off and she rolled onto her back. Miles positioned himself so she could aim over her stomach. He kept his eyes on her breasts, tried not to enjoy her bony ribs too much and ignored the small scars on her abdomen. Suddenly his hips jerked closer to her body, his eyes slipped closed and for a few seconds his mind went truly blank.

When it was over he opened his eyes. He'd made a mess of her stomach. Without needing to be asked he picked up an old t-shirt from the floor and helped clean it up. He had no energy left after that. The balled up tee got tossed back into its corner, and Miles collapsed onto the bed face down beside Rachel, who curled up in a similar state of sleepiness.

"What did you do to me?" Miles said into his pillow, an exaggerated slurring of his speech.

"Same thing you did to me." Rachel spoke around a yawn, still feeling the strong pulse between her legs.

"It wasn't bad, whatever it was. Not bad at all."

They were silent for a while after that, too sleepy to think much.

"What time do you have to be at the airport?" Miles asked suddenly, face still mashed against his pillow.

"Nine?" Rachel said. Her eyes were closed. "But I have to get Juliet first."

"Oh, right. And you'll want a shower and stuff?"

Rachel chuckled, and he remembered what he'd just done all over her stomach. Then Rachel sighed a melancholic sigh.

"We should set an alarm."

"Okay." Miles agreed, not moving an inch. After another minute, Rachel pressed her big toe into the side of his leg.

"Set it, set it." she said, poking him with her toe until he reacted.

"Okay, okay..." Miles forced himself up on his elbows and looked for the closest electronic device. With the last stores of brain power he had left, he set an alarm for Rachel and laid down on his side, facing her, phone still in his hand when he laid his arm over her waist.

Rachel picked Juliet up from the hotel the next morning - the same morning, really, since neither of them had gotten much sleep. Rachel noticed right away that James was not waiting there with Juliet.

"Everything okay?" Rachel asked.

"I asked him to stay behind." Juliet explained. "It'll just be easier this way."

Rachel's smile was sympathetic. "I'm proud of you." she told Juliet, for the big steps she was taking, and for the decisions she'd made. She was proud of James too, for standing by Juliet. She had a good feeling that everything would work out in the end. They weren't the first couple to do this, and they wouldn't be the last.

When they were seated on the plane, belts buckled and ready for take off, Juliet was consumed by thoughts of the commitments she'd made, to Mittelos and Miami and James back in LA. She knew Rachel was keeping a watchful eye on her the whole time. It was probably helping to distract her from her own stressful situation. Rachel didn't like to talk about her illness, and she didn't want to jinx her new treatment by worrying about it out loud. Juliet respected that, and kept a watchful eye on her as well.

"Are you excited?" Rachel asked.

Juliet took a moment to think about the question. "Yeah." she answered truthfully. "Are you?"

"Yeah." said Rachel. "These fuckers better cure me, that's all I'm saying."

Juliet giggled, which made Rachel happy. Cheering Juliet up had been her main goal. Juliet took Rachel's hand, since she knew her big sister really hated flying. They were going to get each other through this.

Miles wasn't sure what to expect when James got home. He knew his friend well, but there'd never been anyone quite like Juliet in James' life. He could only guess what James would be like now without her. They hadn't broken up, but they were separated now by a few thousand miles. Tough times for a couple attached at the hip.

The look on James' face when he came through the door was serious, but he wasn't angry. It was more like resolute.

I said I'd do it, so now I'm gonna do it. Love letters and phone sex, here I come.

"You want a beer, ol' buddy?" Miles offered, after he'd analyzed James' demeanor. "Bottle of whisky?"

James shook his head. It was nine in the morning and he'd gotten no sleep. "Bed." he said simply.

He wandered slowly toward his bedroom, looking a bit like a lost dog with nothing much to look forward to when he woke up.

He'll be fine. Miles thought to himself. He'd make sure of it.