Warning: There will be slight mention of some past trauma for Seto in this chapter. PG-16 rating here for sauciness.

Chapter 79:

Preferences

"No more!" Ana slammed her head down on Seto's table. They'd been studying for hours in his apartment, and she felt like her eyes were spinning to the point they were going to fall out of her head.

Seto continued calmly typing away on his tablet, but asked, "Do you need to go for a walk?"

Ana groaned. "No, I need to turn into a gelatinous blob and become one with the floor."

"That will be rather hard to get out of the carpet. Don't do that," Seto said seriously.

Ana peeked up at him and frowned. It had been three and a half months since their little make-out session in the tiny cabin on Christmas. Her sister's wedding passed without incident. Seto had to work during it much to Ana's relief. She didn't want to have her extended family asking her questions about him. Her entrance exam for college was approaching quickly and Ana felt her head was about to explode with all the last-minute studying. Their relationship had fallen into a comfortable pattern. She didn't know if it was the therapy Seto was receiving or the fact that she'd told him that she loved him, but he seemed more confident and relaxed lately. I didn't know Seto could get more confidant, but the fact that he's been relaxed is even more surprising.

She stared at him, taking in his shoulders. They'd broadened lately. He'd already been in good shape, but after months of training with her grandfather and her, his more teenage gangly form was going away. She could see his bicep muscles clearly through his sleeves and his defined chest through the front of his shirt. It's not fair that guys can put on muscle so quickly.

"Ana, if you're going to take a break, then fill this out." He picked up a form from a stack of papers and set it in front of her without looking up from his tablet. It was the counseling form for school about which college she wanted to go to. It honestly should have been turned in last year, but she'd delayed and kept coming up with excuses not to fill it out.

"More paperwork isn't a break." Ana glared down at the form. "Plus, at this point, there's no reason to fill this out for the school."

Seto finally stopped typing and looked up at her seriously. "I know that. I was trying to get you to fill it out since you keep dodging telling me where you want to go. I need to know so that I can start preparing for it."

She pushed the form to the side and looked away from him. Ever since Christmas, she'd been considering Domino University, but she didn't want to tell him that. They had one of the lowest acceptance rates in the country, but the best programing for really any program. If she told him where she wanted to go, she knew he'd pull strings to get her in despite her test scores. She didn't want that. If she was going to get in, she'd do it by her own volition. Ana lay down on the floor and closed her eyes.

"It doesn't really matter. I have to get a good test score first before I can even have choices," she dodged answering.

Seto sighed loudly. "You just don't want to tell me because you think I'll force your way in."

"Won't you?" She asked, but when he kept silent, she smiled knowingly. "Which is why I'm not telling you."

He growled but went back to typing. Ana opened her eyes, thinking about the expandable pillow in her bag, and considered getting it out when something caught her eye. There were a couple of books under Seto's bed. Ana's heart skipped a beat. She couldn't see what they were about, but there was only one reason she could think of why a teenage boy would hide something under his bed. She sat up slowly, her heart pounding loudly in her chest. She slowly wiped her hands on her pants. Calm down, maybe it's not what you think?

And glanced up at Seto as he continued to work on his tablet. What if it is what I think, though? She wasn't sure how she felt about Seto looking at pictures of other girls. I know we don't really do anything other than make out occasionally, but am I not enough? She quickly looked down as her eyes stung. Do I ask him?

"Ana?" There was concern in Seto's voice.

She blinked rapidly, but a few tears forced their way out.

"Ana, what's wrong?" The panic rose in his voice, so she finally looked up. She quickly wiped away the tears. He started to reach over to her, but stopped. "What did I do now?"

She laughed a little, but the laugh caught in her throat. "What…makes you think you did anything?"

He frowned deeply. "Well, usually when you're upset, eighty percent of the time it's because I messed up."

Ana wanted to laugh, but she couldn't. She took a deep breath and pointed to his bed. "What do you have under there?"

Seto tilted his head, confused, then looked over at his bed. His eyes widened in understanding. "Oh, those. They're books that my therapist gave me."

She blinked a few things. "Your therapist gave you those types of books?"

He looked back at her, puzzled, and raised an eyebrow. "Those?"

Ana blushed and looked at the floor. She didn't know how to explain. She glanced up when Seto moved. He leaned over and reached under his bed, retrieving the books. He placed them on the table and slid them across to her. She stared at them in surprise. One was a very ambiguous sex position book, and the other seemed to be a self-insert book. Her whole face burned in embarrassment when she realized that they weren't what she'd thought.

"You are free to look at them," Seto offered.

"I…I'm sorry," Ana apologized.

"For what?"

She glanced up at him, feeling guilty. "I thought they might be…um, books with explicit pictures of…people in them."

His brow furrowed as he seemed to process what she was saying. Finally, understanding seemed to click, and his voice came out rightfully irritated. "Wait, did you think I had porn under my bed?"

"I…considered it." Ana took a few deep breaths before explaining her thoughts. "I know it can be typical for some people to have it and since it was hidden under your bed, that's where my mind went to."

He took a deep breath to bring his voice to a normal level, but it was still agitated. "So, the reason you started crying is because you assumed I had porn under my bed?"

"Well…it was more because the thought that," Ana whispered the last part, "I might not be enough for you came to mind."

Seto's face contorted in disbelief for a moment. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. When he looked back up at her, his face was set with determination. "It may be normal for some people, but not me. I do not find any pleasure in those kinds of images. I had way too many creepy ass older women send me nudes of themselves growing up for me to find those images anything but irritating and disgusting."

Ana immediately felt guilty, and went to apologize, but Seto held up his hand, not finished.

"I have never once found myself sexually attracted to images or any other person until I fell for you. Never again think you're not enough for me, you're the only thing for me. So, if you do ever find any images under my bed, they're going to be of you." Seto and Ana both blushed at the same time. "Wait, that last part came out wrong."

Ana held up her hand, smiling and blushing at the same time. "Ok, I trust you. Let's stop there. Um, can I look at these books?"

"I said you could."

Ana picked up the sex position book and flipped through it. She found the section on kissing and making out. He'd highlighted some parts. "Oooooh. So, this is where you read about hickeys."

Seto growled, but Ana just laughed. Once she flipped through it, she picked up the other book. She immediately blushed when she opened the first page and found their names written in the hot scenario. Thankfully, the first few stories were more innocent than she expected. She closed it, afraid to move on.

"Um, can I ask why your therapist gave you these?"

Seto hesitated, but answered, "To find out my preferences and see what I'm personally ok with since any thought of sexual intimacy made my want to gag myself before."

Ana was feeling rather uncomfortable, but she was too curious not to ask, "Did it help?"

He grimaced but nodded. Ana held up the book and asked nervously, "Which stories did you like the best?"

His ears were turning pink as he looked away from her, not answering at first. "Chapters one thru four, chapters nine and ten, and chapter twenty-three."

She laughed nervously but opened the book. Chapters one through four were mostly make out sessions starting at sweet and reaching handsy. Looking at their names written in these stories made her uncomfortable and curious at the same time. She flipped to chapter nine and ten and nearly slammed the book shut. Skimming through it, she finally closed the book, her face on fire.

"I don't think I'm mentally prepared to know what's in chapter twenty-three." Ana mumbled, unable to meet Seto's gaze. She heard him laughing and glared up at him. "You seem fine with me reading about your favorite fantasies."

Seto's smile was tight. "No, not really. I'm extremely uncomfortable right now."

Ana wasn't sure she believed him, but she did notice that his neck had even turned bright pink. She poked the book, feeling shy. "I'm a little surprised, though, that you liked chapters nine and ten."

"Why?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Well, um, because they were…" Ana's face was on fire. She couldn't say it.

Seto smirked. "More about pleasuring you than myself?"

"That's one way to put it. Did you have any stories that you hated?" Ana asked curiously. She felt like she was learning a lot today.

Seto looked thoughtful. "I almost burned the book when I got to chapters seventeen and eighteen."

Ana flipped to where those chapters should have been but didn't find the pages. She looked at Seto, perplexed.

He shrugged. "I settled for just burning those chapters instead."

Now she was very curious. "What were they about?"

There was an awkward moment of silence as Seto seemed to be debating on answering her question. Finally, he sighed. "They were about tying you up and hurting you. After I read them, I felt like stabbing my hand with a dull butter knife a few times for putting our names in the stories."

"Uh, ow. Also, I'm glad you just burned the pages and did not inflict harm on yourself. So, no S and M then. I'm not a machinist, so that works for me." Ana laughed awkwardly. "I'm guessing you also burned any stories about me tying you up?"

Seto didn't respond. He just smiled and pointed to her homework. "I think you've stalled long enough."

Ana blinked rapidly. "Wait, do you want me too—"

Seto swiped the books back and flung them back under his bed. He smiled at her, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Study time."

"Do you—"

Seto went back to typing loudly and ignored her. Ana's heart was racing as she glared at him. How in the world am I supposed to concentrate now!