Shiloh did, too. He was so proud that all the guys trusted him with their hair. And while Cree didn’t cut his hair, he would let Shiloh practice his braiding skills, which was way more than he deserved.
But Ever, he changed his hair like other people changed underwear. Right now, he had a silver mullet based on a haircut of one of his favorite K-pop idols. He’d begged Shiloh for three days before giving in. He liked to complain, but, really, it was good practice.
“You are a gorgeous little fae creature. You’d look good with any haircut.” He looked up. “Oh, bus is here. See you online tomorrow night. Love you.”
“Love you, too. Have fun with your sexcapades. And congrats again. Levi is gonna flip out.”
Shiloh ended the call, got on the bus, and fell into the first empty seat before texting Mal his good news. He replied with a dancing hamster sticker, which was as close to congratulations as Mal was likely to get. He was teaching preschoolers hip-hop dancing, so Shiloh tried to cut him some slack. Adults thought Mal was terrifying, but kids adored him. And he adored them, too.
The job was perfect for him.
Shiloh’s normal life was working out pretty well. He had classes during the day and worked as a barista a couple of nights a week to help pay bills. Mal had laughed and said a barista was such a ‘main character’ job. Shiloh didn’t know what that meant, but it seemed like he meant it in a nice way, so he had said thank you.
Shiloh hadn’t planned on cosmetology school. He’d never had any deep-seated ambitions to get an education. He’d never dared to dream of an actual career. But cosmetology was proving to be more fun than he imagined and even if it wasn’t a forever job, it was something he would happily do eight hours a day if he had to.
The goal was to afford a bigger place for the four of them. If they could find a three or even four-bedroom place, then Nico and Mal wouldn’t have to share a bed anymore. Of course, then one of them might have to admit that their relationship was weirdly intimate and possessive for besties.
But that wasn’t any of Shiloh’s business.
If they could get a four-bedroom place, then they could have a room for streaming. Nico, Levi, and now even Mal streamed online. Nico and Levi playedPaladin, while Mal was big on some sniper game. Shiloh didn’t understand it, but according to the others, Mal was terrifyingly good at…well, everything.
Every Thursday, Shiloh and Ever playedStardew Valleyand ate candy, talked about boys and K-pop and life. The boys had taunted them about their silly farm game and their cotton candy aesthetic. But they stopped laughing when Ever’s and Shiloh’s follower count had surpassed the rest of them combined. Turned out a lot of stressed out people preferred their cotton candy aesthetic to the stress of guys yelling and shooting at each other.
Friday night was date night. Sometimes alone, sometimes with Arsen and Ever. Whenever both couples went out together, they tried to do something Ever had never done before. After a few dates, Shiloh realized most of Ever’s firsts were his as well. He really had been a prisoner in his own home. A home Mal and Shiloh were now barred from.
Mercer dropped Mal’s charges just as quickly as promised and indicted Micah soon after, freezing all his assets. When he was nowhere to be found, the authorities decided he’d just skipped town and declared him a fugitive.
Levi quit the convenience store for good. Enzo had helped him get a job at his mother’s restaurant, which was conveniently only about a block from their current apartment. He waited tables a few nights a week. The job was great, but Enzo’s mama had decided she was their mama, too. She considered them orphans. She doted on them both, never let them pay, sent them home with leftovers, always gave Levi the best tables, and insisted they have dinner with her every Sunday.
Shiloh loved her. Levi did, too. But he grumbled about it because she liked to yell at him a lot and give him advice he didn’t ask for. Why did Enzo get Levi a job? Because Seven made him. How did Seven do that? That was unclear, but many people had their guesses. Seven had left Enzo’s office that day seething, but he’d also had Enzo’s business card. Three weeks later, Seven was working for Enzo and cursing his name every single day. Maybe a little too loudly.
Shiloh stared out the window, leg bouncing, as he pondered what kind of present Levi had gotten for him. They’d already done lingerie, which had been a hell yes from Levi but a meh from Shiloh. Lace was itchy. They’d done light impact play. A very enthusiastic yes from both.
Each week, one of them got to pick something off the bucket list but they didn’t have to tell the other. It brought an element of surprise to it. And, sometimes, a little bit of chaos. Levi had thrown his back out when they’d tried something out of the Kama Sutra. They’d also almost died when they slipped while Levi was fucking Shiloh up against the wall of the shower. Their pride had been hurt more than anything.
They’d also almost got arrested having sex in the park. They’d had to use Jericho’s name to get out of that one. They’d also tried to have sex in a car but Shiloh had gotten a horrible cramp in his leg and then his hair got caught in the seatbelt and they’d spent thirty minutes trying to untangle it, which was a temporary mood killer.
Now, he really wanted Levi to fuck him bent over the hood. Way less chance of cramping.
The bus came to a stop and he hopped out, waving to the driver. Shiloh made the short walk down the block to their building, then bounded up the front steps, ignoring the way his stomach dipped, remembering Naomi’s confrontation. She’d disappeared that night and never resurfaced. Sometimes, Levi cried because he was sure she was dead. Other times, he cried because he was sure she wasn’t.
It never got any easier.
He keyed open the door, then dropped his bag. “I’m home.”
“Hey, Dimples,” Levi called from the bedroom.
“Bye, doodlebug,” Nico said, coming out of his bedroom, stuffing his wallet in his back pocket. “I gotta go pick up your brother and then we’re going to the arcade.”
“How grown up of you,” Shiloh said with a tight smile.
Nico scoffed. “Yeah, sorry we’re not having our scheduled sex night like you two losers.”
“So, are you saying you fuck my brother unscheduled?” Shiloh asked, scrunching up his face.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Nico countered.
Shiloh shuddered. “God, no. Not even a little.”
