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Siblings - The Series

Episode Two

© 2015 Carlos Penguin

Victoria Fox - Editor Extraordinaire

After the mid morning brunch with her brother and aunt, Elise made her way to the apartment of Kiana and her mother.

It was such a a stark revelation that she had no idea About Kiana's past, despite having been her friend since grade three. How was she handling it and staying sane all these years? It must have been a burden far beyond what someone of her nineteen years should have had to bear, alone.

Sure, she saw a councillor in elementary, but understandings change as one gets older. Details hidden then would have emerged into tormentous nightmares. It is little wonder she had no interest in dating anyone. To have been raped at six? By her own brother? Then hearing his murder in the next room? Those were the things of novels and movies that she preferred not to watch. And here her best friend experienced it.

Elise went to buzz to be let in the main door, but an exiting elderly gentleman held the door for her and tipped his hat. She took the stairs to the third floor, her anxiety building with each step. Arriving at the floor, she rounded the corner in the hall and went to knock, but the door was open a little bit. She poked her head in.

"Hello?" She called and looked into the living room.

There she saw Kiana sitting, her hands between her knees and head bowed. Her mother was beside her, rubbing her back. "Are you sure you want to do this?" She asked her daughter, who nodded silently.

Her mother got up and motioned for Elise to enter. "I'll leave you two alone." She said and went down the hallway into her room and closed the door.

Elise removed her coat and wiped her feet. She sat down beside the little squirrel. "I'm here." She said and gave her a one-armed hug.

Kiana lifted her head and said barely above a whisper, "I've been wondering what to say or how to say it. So I'll start at the beginning."

Elise would remain beside her, listening intently, empathetically, for the next four hours.

--

Ethan spent the afternoon pondering his aunts words, his feelings about the situation and Elise. He also pondered his sisters feelings. What could he do that was best for her? He decided that was something they'd have to discuss together.

"Maybe getting a little place of our own would be the best? At least mom and dad wouldn't find out and if she started dating someone else, well, I could just move." He said aloud like he did when pondering difficult math problems in school.

He picked up a real estate paper and hopped a bus for home.

When he arrived, his parents were having a relaxing day. Mom was crocheting beside dad as they watched a movie. Ethan just smiled and exchanged a nod with his dad so as to not interrupt them.

Going upstairs, he checked out on the Internet some of the places available for rent in town that were advertised in the paper he picked up.

Most were aimed at families and definitely out of his and his sisters price range. But checking a link from a link, he ran across one not too far from his dads store that looked old, small, but it was inexpensive. He forwarded the listing to his sister's email and sent her a text.

Ethan: If you're interested, check your email for a little apartment.

Elise was just wrapping up the meeting with Kiana when she received the text.

"Is it important?" Kiana asked.

"Noting that can't wait." Elise said. "Just an option our auntie gave us when we were at brunch."

"What is it?" Kiana was curious.

"That Ethan and I get our own place. It would probably be the best option to keep our parents from finding out."

Kiana looked confused, "Why don't you two just stop... sleeping with each other?"

Elise smiled. "Because I want to, besides it's got a little more complicated than that. Besides that, canine females when they become sexually active will crave sex every few weeks until they're pregnant or until they pass into infertility."

"I never knew that!" Kiana said. "So, it's like going in heat, like a feral?"

"Something like that." She replied. "Our species back in cave-creature times had a high mortality rate. So we evolved this way to keep birth rates high." She put on her coat. "If I recall correctly from phylogenomics, your species solved the problem by having as many as twelve births at one time."

Kiana rolled her eyes, "Thankfully that's down to five, naturally and with medical help, two or three." She looked very appreciatively at her friend and hugged her. "Thank you for listening to me."

"I'm happy to. That's what friends do." Elise said as she held her friend. "And you call me any time day or night if you're having a rough patch."

"I will." Kiana said as they broke embrace. "And.... please tell Ethan I wasn't snubbing him because I didn't like him. I did. I still do." She thought for a moment. "You... can share with him why. Not everything, but the basics."

"He'll be grateful." Elise said and left.

*knock, knock*

"Come in." Ethan replied to the knock on his door.

His dad entered. "Hey buddy, didn't mean to ignore ya as you came home."

"No worries dad. I didn't want to interrupt your movie."

His dad looked at his computer screen. If Ethan was looking at anything 'naughty', he would close his browser before inviting someone in. This time he didn't.

"What'cha lookin' at there?" His dad asked.

"Independence!" He smiled.

"Ah, get a job and already lookin' to move out? Heh, it's not that simple, but let's see what you found."

Ethan turned his monitor to his dad so he could see the little apartment.

"Hrm, a bedroom plus a den, kitchen and living in one room. Not bad. But $600 per month, that won't leave you anything to pay bills, let alone eat the way you do."

"If Elise goes in it with me, should be quite doable." Ethan said as his dad raised an eyebrow.

"Well, that's all well and fine short term. Having lived for twenty years together, you won't have to get used to each other like you would a friend for a room mate. But what about privacy? I'm sure you'll want to bring a lady home and Elise will want to entertain a suitor."

"We're going to discuss that." Ethan got creative. "I want her to be as comfortable with the idea as I would be."

His dad patted his son's shoulder. "You've turned into a compassionate young man towards her. I'm proud of you." He said with a smile and left his room.

--

Monday had passed and it was well into Tuesday. Elise was working at her desk, reconciling accounts for billing when a wave of heat flashed over her body and a gnawing inside her belly began. "Oh gods, not now!" She whispered to herself as the sensation caused her to drop her pencil.

"Qu'est que c'est?" Cerise asked, looking up from her desk. "Ees you be OK?"

"Sorry, didn't mean to disturb you." Elise said and picking up her pencil, went back to her work.

Cerise sniffed the air. "You are having ze fires, non? Do you haves your kit?"

"No!" Elise snapped. "Well, I forgot it at home." She lied.

"Tsk, tsk." Cerise shook her head. "From ze pheromone, you haves them bad. You ees ready for ze uncomfortable day?"

Elise face-palmed and growled. It was going to be an uncomfortable day. Then it struck her - if a fellow canine senses can pick them up, so will her parents. She went into a cold sweat. "I have to use the washroom. Be right back."

Cerise giggled, "Zat will not cure ze fires. But to each zere owns."

Elise looked at Cerise with an open mouth and blushed profusely.

She closed the washroom door and pulled out her phone.

Elise: I have a problem! The fires hit hard. Can't go home.

The reply came but a few moments later.

Ethan: Stay late. I'll make an excuse to as well.

She gave a sigh of relief.

She sat back down at her desk, feeling a little less anxious.

"Zat will carry you through ze day? Tres bien!" Cerise giggled.

Elise headed her desk. "Has anyone ever told you that you're SO inappropriate?"

Cerise gave a pouty expression, "Anglos, too many hangup."

Five thirty came and Cerise got her coat. "You are not leaving?"

Elise sighed, "Just want to finish this account and I can start tomorrow fresh."

"Good plan!" Cerise smiled. "Au revoir!" And left, locking the main door behind her.

"Another good day, guys!" Ethan's dad said to him and Terrance.

"Uh dad, I'm going to stay a bit. There's a discrepancy I'd like to clear up on the linoleum before heading off." Ethan said.

His dad winked, "Shuuuuure you are son. And don't use all the fuel in the lift truck zooming around and don't smash into anything." He laughed and began lowering the loading dock door, stepping out just before it closed.

He took off his gloves, hardhat and hearing protectors and opened the door to the front office. Elise was waiting in the doorway.

"Hey.." He smiled. "Ready to... MMPH!" Ethan had his mouth stuffed with his sister's tongue as she threw her arms around him, digging her manicured nails into his back, hard.

"Oh gods, I need you!" She said, filled with passion.

Her pheromones filled Ethan's sinuses and they tore at each others clothes.

His sister never wore panties and when he pulled her skirt down, her pussy and inside of her thighs were soaking wet. He lapped at the sweet juices vigorously as Elise pulled at his ears almost painfully, like she was trying to get his entire head inside of her.

She whimpered and grunted like a feral, panting at the pleasure burning betwixt her thighs. Her brother stood up and spun her around, pushing her not so gently over a pallet of tiles that was beside them.

She lifted her tail high enough that it curled over her back. She let out a "YIP!" As he forcefully pushed himself inside of her barely-over-a-month-since-being-a-virgin pussy and began ramming her.

She had absolutely no complaints. The intensity of her fires required an equally intense solution to calm them. She felt his balls slapping against the back of her thighs and spread open her legs to feel them beating at her pussy lips as if administering punishment.

She felt her brother's body tense and he cried out in a loud moan as the inside of her pussy filled with a warm, tingling sensation that triggered a mountain of an orgasm of her own. Her claws ripped and tore at the plastic wrapping encasing the tiling she lay on. She growled a long, feral groan of satisfaction.

He lay down on top of her, pinning her to the tiles, his teeth clenched on her shoulder as he increased his speed again and in a few moments, she felt him swell and pulse inside of her with a second climax. After which, he released his toothy grip, collapsing on top of her, panting.

Several minutes passed before they spoke. "Ethan, can you get up? I can hardly breathe."

He immediately stood up and slipping out of her, there was an audible splash on the cement floor as his admirable ejaculate flowed out of her.

"Oh God, are you OK." He said with concern. "I don't know what came over me!"

She looked over her shoulder at him, face filled with relief and satisfaction. "Nature came over you."

Elise propped herself up, leaning forward on the pallet, another viscous volume of semen running out from her crotch, adding to the large wet spot on the floor.

"Gods, you cum like a horse!" She chuckled. "My canid girlfriends tell tales of their boyfriends losing control like that from their fires."

He placed his arms around her, kissing her neck and shoulder. "I never want to hurt you."

She reached back and stroked his cheek while placing her other hand over his around her waist. "You didn't. You made me feel so good, my love."

After holding each other for a while, they looked around. "I better get a mop." Ethan chuckled, running his fingers through his hair, looking amazed at the mess they made.

Elise's legs from foot to crotch were sticky and matted with their encounter. "Dad really needs to put a shower in this place. This will take a while with paper towel and squeeze soap."

Eight thirty the next morning, everyone showed up for work to be open by nine. The siblings dad had been there a half hour earlier while his son and daughter caught the bus.

"Ethan..." His dad called, annoyed. "Do you know how the plastic on this tile pallet got all shredded? It's being picked up today."

Ethan's mind began to buzz with possible explanations. He just shrugged, "Maybe we caught something on it and just didn't notice?"

His dad shrugged. "Well, we can't send it out like this. Get it on the wrapping turntable and re-wrap it, please."

"Will do, dad!" Ethan smiled, relieved and hopped on the lift truck to move it.

"Good morning!" Cerise smiled at Elise as she came in. Elise greeted and smiled in return.

"You are ze sunny today. Good to see." Cerise said cheerfully.

"Yep, got home, found my kit. I'm fine." Elise lied.

"Oh, okay." Cerise said as if she didn't believe her. Elise changed the subject.

Dan Barber of Grayson Floors came in that day to place a large order.

"You has ze new contract?" Cerise said happily.

"We do, indeed!" Dan said with a smile. "New development on the other side of town."

Cerise gasped, "Zat ees BEEG! So happy for you."

"It is." Dan said. "And I would like to celebrate." He looked over at Elise. "Would perhaps the new lady care to join me tonight for dinner?"

Elise's eyes went wide. She blushed and smiled. "I... well..."

"She cannot." Cerise interrupted sharply. "Ze new girl? Elle ees ze owner's daughter and has work to do mister!"

"Oh." Dan said and frowned. "I wouldn't want to interfere with anything important." He handed his requisition to be filled, signed the paperwork on the account and tipping his hat, left.

Elise looked annoyed at Cerise. "Why did you say that?"

Cerise sat next to Elise. "Zat Dan ees a married man."

Elise gave a gasp.

"You have something on ze go yourself, non?"

Elise's eyes went wide. "What makes you say that?"

Cerise looked around and leaned forward and spoke in a quieter voice. "After I tease you forgetting ze kit, I leaves mine in my desk. I come back last night to get eet."

"Wha... what did you hear?" Elise gulped.

"Enough." Cerise shrugged. "Where I am from, ees not uncommon for family to help ze family out. You have ze good brother. Be nice to him feelings, oui?"

Cerise returned to her desk. Elise was dealing with the thought of yet another person knowing of their incestuous affair.

"Please, don't..." Elise began but was cut off.

"Say anything?" Cerise gave a laugh. "I would not think to do so."

Elise nodded. "I wouldn't have cheated on Ethan."

Cerise raised an eyebrow, "I said ze same thing of my boyfriend. Dan ees.... very seducing. If French veexen has no chance to resist, Anglo would not have ze hope."

They worked quiet for a while. "Thank you." Elise said.

"I am happy to help you avoid my mistake." Cerise gave a melancholic expression. "I did not deserve his love after zat. I tell ze truth. He leave."

Elise got up from her chair and went over to Cerise's desk. Leaning over she gave her a hug. "We all have hard lessons to learn."

"You are ze very loving person. Fox that get you will be ze lucky." Cerise said, returning the hug.

On the bus going home, Elise told Ethan the story. Ethan did feel a pang of jealousy.

"Well, auntie did say that one day we'll go our own ways. You'll want to have a family and so will I." Ethan admitted.

Elise took his hand and squeezed it. "But until then, we do have each other."

He smiled, "And it's very special. I'm going to enjoy every minute of it."

Forgetting where they were, in a very public place on that bus, the young lovers kissed.

--

"This is the bathroom. No tub, just a shower stall." The real estate agent said.

Ethan turned the taps on the sink and the cold tap came off in his hand.

"Uhhhh, yeah. The superintendent said he'll get to that before you move in." The elderly weasel of an agent frowned in embarrassment.

Elise tried the taps in the shower, to which nothing happened for a moment. She stepped in, "Hrm. Will he fix... EEEEEEEEEEE!" The shower came on full blast, soaking her.

Ethan and the agent laughed.

The agent coughed and straightened up, "That works, as you can see. The apartment's been empty for a bit, so it took the water time to get here."

Elise removed her toque and shook her head. Then she squeezed the water out of her toque and scarf.

"People are looking for rentals this time of year. This weeks cold snap made vacancy rates drop below half a percent." The agent quoted some facts while flipping through papers. "If you don't take it today, it will probably be gone tomorrow."

"What do you think?" Ethan asked his sister.

Wiping her face off with some dusty paper towel someone left in the bathroom that made her sneeze, "Well, this is all we can afford."

"Wonderful!" The agent smiled, opening a folder. "If I can just get you two to sign here."

The siblings signed and smiled at each other.

"Congratulations on your next step to independence." The agent said. "I'll get that Super in here to finish fixing the tap and heat and you can pick up the keys at my office on the 31st of the month."

Ethan and Elise were elated. Their very first apartment and their first, hopefully only move from home. However, when they told their parents the news, they weren't into sharing the excitement.

"You two did what?" Their dad bellowed. "You said you were going to look at the place, not sign a year long lease right away!"

"But dad, he said it could've been gone tomorrow..." Ethan protested.

"High pressure marketing. BUY NOW! Pay with your soul later."

Ethan threw up his hands in frustration and went upstairs.

"I thought you'd be happy for us." Elise said sadly.

"I just wish I could have been there, pumpkin. For all I know, you two signed your way into poverty." Her dad said, trying to explain. "Let me see the agreement."

Elise looked blankly.

"You kids didn't even get a copy of the agreement? Go, go to your room!"

Elise ran upstairs, sniffling.

"Honey, I agree with you totally. But weren't you a little hard on them?" Their mom said.

"Hard? Will the courts be any less hard on them when they can't pay for something they got suckered into on top of the apartment lease?" He said.

"Now you won't let that happen and you know it." She put her arms around him. "Remember when we got our first place?"

"Don't remind me!" He said. "We spent more fumigating the bugs and rats than on the rent!"

"Well?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Ah, you're right. I'll go apologize after we all calm down." He admitted and she kissed him appreciatively.

"Hey Al." Ethan said to his friend on Skype.

Al had been Ethan's friend since grade nine. A tall, wiry coyote of very laid back style. He talked and moved slow, as was the norm for being raised in the heat of the deep south. But when he transferred to the high school, the students thought him handicapped and avoided him. All except for Ethan, who knew from his skills at online gaming that he was quick of mind before they met in person.

"Hey Ethan! So how's apartment hunting going?" His friend replied.

"Too good. We got a place. Dad freaked out."

"Uh-oh." Al's smile disappeared. "So, you need help moving sooner rather than later?"

"Yep! Uncle Rick will provide the truck and some muscle. We should be able to do this in an afternoon."

"Sounds good. Just give me a shout when you know the time and day."

"Will do, Al. Thanks!" Ethan said and ended the conversation.

Ethan knocked on his sisters door. "It's me." She opened it while wiping a tear.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Dad's upset now that we didn't get a copy of the agreement."

Ethan scratched his head. "Yeah, I guess that was a pretty stupid thing, huh?"

They discussed how they were going to do the layout and what furniture they'd need. "And you get the small bedroom." Ethan winked.

Elise gave him a shove. "No, we'll do it up as if it was yours and I'll put a nice, Victorian covered bed in MY bedroom."

"Nah-uh!" Ethan replied with a smirk. "I'll get you another little pink bed all covered with plushies and put it in the den."

Elise's jaw dropped. "I had that when I was ten!"

Their dad knocked on the half-open door. The laughing stopped and they turned, expecting to be in more trouble.

"Hey you two, I want to apologize." He began and made amends with his children.

"And to make sure everything is on the up-and-up, I'll have the company lawyer pick up a copy of that agreement and have a look over it." He finished the conversation.

"Thanks, dad!" They said appreciatively.

"Now get some rest early. We got work tomorrow." He said as he left the room and closed the door behind him.

"See, it'll work out." Ethan smiled back at his elated sister.

They both listened for him to finish going down the stairs and they gave each other a long kiss.

"G'night. Love you." Ethan whispered and left for his room.

The next day at the store, a tall, well dressed wolf walked in.

"Good morning!" Elise said, going to the front counter. "How may we be of help to you today?"

"You must be Elise." The wolf said and offered his hand. "Gerard Appleby, your company lawyer."

Elise's hand and wrist fit in the lawyer's hand as he gently shook. Cerise paged Mark and Ethan to the front office.

"It's a good thing you called me Mark..." The lawyer said, "The real estate agent was a huckster. The agreement was between your kids and him, not the building owner."

"What else did you find?" The dad asked.

"I contacted the building owner and the rate is actually $450 per month. The agent was skimming a hundred and fifty a month off the top. Plus, there is no lease, it's a month-by-month contract." The lawyer said.

"Well, I'm so glad that you got involved!" Their dad said appreciatively. "So can you get my kids out of the original agreement?"

"Already did, Mark." The lawyer opened his briefcase and pulled out three copies of paper and placed one in front of each of them. "This is the real agreement, if you want to look it over and if you think it's OK, get your kids to sign. I explained to the real estate agent that if he tore up the one they originally signed right there in front of me, I wouldn't call the police. But I already called the Real Estate Board and he'll be losing his license within the next 48 hours. And they're going to review every deal he's made in the last ten years."

Gerard and Mark laughed.

After a quick read, their dad indicated that it was OK to sign the contract. The Lawyer took the signed copies and using the copier, made each of them a copy.

"I'll get these to the building owner. He's ordered the Superintendent to do a really good job and I will drop off the keys here on the 31st."

"Thank you, Gerard!" Their dad said, shaking his hand. "Just bill me any extra fee for this."

The lawyer waved his hand and shook his head. "I have kids their age too, Mark. This one's on the house." And he left.

Dad looked at the two of them, but words need not have been spoken. They both bowed their heads shamefully.

"See ya in the back in a few minutes, Ethan." He said as he returned to work.

"We sure learned a lesson there, huh." Elise said, embarrassed.

Ethan gave a long sigh. "Yeah, that was close." He smiled, "But we have a lot more money to ourselves, now." He returned to work.

"We must have ze housewarming, non?" Cerise said, happy for them.

"Well, we can't afford a party right away." Elise said truthfully.

"Nonsense!" Cerise waved her hand, "The idea of ze housewarming ees to get ze stuff for ze house." She moved beside Elise. "What do ze young lovers need, hmm?"

Elise gave a chortle, "Heh, everything."

--

The end of the month came upon them quickly. As Ethan figured, their meagre possessions were moved in an afternoon.

"Well, this ain't gonna do!" Uncle Rick said as he looked around a basically bare apartment. "Jus' you two hol' on and unpack. I'm gonna go get you something."

"You don't have to, Uncle." Elise said, grateful for his help.

"Poppycock. Back in a bit." He said and left.

"Well." Ethan said looking around. "Want to help me get your bed into the den?"

Elise put her hands on her hips and gave him a look, "My bed is NOT the one going in the den, mister."

Ethan put his arms around her and smiled, "Fine. But if YOUR bed goes in the master bedroom, we get to sleep in that one, right?"

"Mm-hmm" Elise agreed and put her arms around him, giving a romantic smile.

"And you remember what we did to your sheets and mattress the last time, right?" Ethan grinned.

The smile disappeared from Elise's face and she raised an eyebrow. "Fine, you win."

With a sigh of defeat, she helped her brother move her belongings into the den.

A couple of hours passed and not only Uncle Rick returned, but Aunt Eugenia was with him. After warm greetings, Eugenia had several bags of groceries to load up their fridge and pantry.

Uncle Rick brought up several boxes, of which belonged to a brand new dining table set.

"Oh my God, Uncle Rick, you didn't have to." Ethan said, amazed.

"Yer welcome, kiddo. Now help me put this thing together." Rick said.

In forty-five minutes, they had a beautiful dining table that expanded to seat six people. Not only that, Rick had bought them six matching chairs.

"When you aren't feeding the family on holidays, you got someplace to park it in the living room and stare at the walls." He laughed. "I got an old TV you can have."

"Looks like we'll never stop thanking you, Uncle." Ethan gave him a rare hug and Elise gave him a kiss.

"Mom will deliver some pots, pans, dishes and cutlery tomorrow. So it looks like a pizza night." Elise said. "Want to stick around?"

"Thanks, but can't do that. Your Aunt doesn't want your old Uncle eating a lot of fat." He said.

"And I don't need any more fat, either, dear." Eugenia said.

"Aw, c'mon... it all goes to your boobs or hips anyway, beautiful." Rick smiled and gave Aunt Eugenia a slap on her rear, making her blush.

They left and the siblings put Ethan's room together. Ethan fretted that the Internet wouldn't arrive until next week.

"Ha... ha... ha!" Elise said mockingly, always using her phone to communicate with the outside world.

Ethan tackled her down onto the bed and tickled her until she squealed. "My little tickle-tums."

She laid on her back and he beside her on his side. "Well, this is it." She said.

"Um-hmm." He agreed and ran his hand over her belly and up over her breasts, stroking her cheek. "I've been so looking forward to this."

"So have I." She whispered, putting her arms around him. Giving themselves to the moment, their lips touched and the night worked its magic.

They never got their pizza that night, but they finally did get to lay in each others arms until morning.

Between the housewarming party and some savings set aside they thought would have gone on rent, they built up the old apartment into a cozy little home. They entertained friends and family and Kiana even stayed over for a weekend.

With Elise's kindness, patience and Ethan's demonstrating at how even an unusual relationship can be happy, Kiana was able to deal with her bottled up pain and face her challenges step-by-step.

"You both have been so kind." She said appreciatively. "Can I impose on you some more?"

"Anything, sweetie." Elise said as her brother nodded with a smile.

"You know how I've wanted to seek out my father. Will you two be there with me, for me?" She asked humbly.

"Absolutely!" Ethan said. "Do you know where he is?"

Kiana shook her head. "I think it's time I begin looking, though. Mom said she won't help, so I'm on my own."

Elise put her hand on Kiana's arm. "Honey, you're never alone. We will both see you through this, as long as you want."

The three of them were embracing in a group hug when a knock at the door came. Ethan went to answer it.

"Oh, hey Al!" Ethan said as he held the door for his friend.

"Hey dude." He replied in his laid-back style and held up a bag with a long, skinny box. "I brought that thing you wanted me to pick up later, but I was on the way over and it was ready. You owe me a twenty."

"Uhhhh...." Ethan looked back over his shoulder at his sister who was still talking to Kiana. "It's kind of a surprise." He thought of a surreptitious way he could hide the box without being seen.

He whispered to Al, "Shove it in my dresser drawer. You'll find my wallet in there, too. Take a twenty."

Al slipped away towards the bedroom unnoticed as Ethan rejoined the girls.

Kiana left five minutes later with Al behind her.

"I'm so happy everything is going well for her." Elise said. "She was worried that she'd need to see a psychiatrist."

Ethan rubbed his chin, "Und vat vill be ze tings you are here for today. Ooop! Time's up! Hundred dollars, please!"

Elise laughed.

"I got something for ya." Ethan smiled.

Elise looked at him sultry, "Oh yeah, what?"

He raised his finger for her to wait a moment and went to the bedroom. He came out with the box and opened it to reveal a half dozen small, red roses.

"Ohhh, they're beautiful!" She said, admiring them.

Ethan stroked her face, "Tiny, delicate and lovely. I thought of you when I saw them."

"You are just so sweet." Elise said and gave him a kiss.

"I better get these in a vase before they wilt." She said and went into the kitchen.

Discovering they didn't have a vase, she improvised.

"Not... as romantic. But they'll be happy." She and Ethan chuckled as they looked at the roses in the centre of the dining room table.... in a 40oz plastic refillable corner-store cup.

Before bed time, Elise was in the living room doing some reading on her e-Book and listening to music as Ethan was finishing a gaming session. He was ready to pull off his headset when Al messaged him privately.

Al: Hey man, you tapping that cute squirrel?

Ethan: Ha! I wanted to, but no.

Al:???

Al: Whose frills and lace were those in your drawer?

Al: And a vibrator?

Al: And flowers?

Ethan realized that maybe, having his friend go in his drawer might not have been the best idea. He panicked for an answer.

Ethan: I have fetishes.

Al:.....

Al: Sure. What's her name

Ethan laughed. Then scratched his head. "Ohhh, God. Now what?" He mumbled to himself out loud. "Last thing I need is my best friend to find out about me and Elise."

Al: Dude, DUDE!

Ethan: What, WHAT?

Al: Your mic is on.

To say that Ethan's heart sank, would have been an understatement.

Al: I need to process this.

(user went offline)

Ethan went into the other room and plopped down on the couch and put his head in his hands.

"Did your clan lose the battle?" Elise pulled her ear bud and asked with a smirk.

"Oh, worse than that." Ethan said despondent.

"What's wrong?" Elise asked, straightening up, feeling something was wrong.

Ethan explained everything.

She looked at him, expressionless for a moment.

"What... what are we going to do?" She asked with trepidation in her voice.

"I.... don't know." He replied. "I'll try and talk to him, tomorrow."