William allowed his gaze to wander as he leaned deeper into the sofa, just out of Adathan’s sight. From what he could see, Adathan’s smile appeared to be genuine, which was concerning. Adathan should be scared shitless right now, yet he seemed to be thrilled to be here with him.
Adathan tucked his hair behind his ear, directing William’s attention to how thick and shiny it was. The skin on his face was pale and velvety, like he’d never been out in the sun before. It reminded William of smooth, unglazed porcelain. Combined with the dimples in his rosy cheeks and the freckles on the bridge of his button nose, he looked like a precious collectible doll.
William’s eyes widened as he reached for his phone.
? William:Do they have a gender?
He’d assumed Adathan was a man because of his flat chest, but what if she was a woman? What if they were nonbinary or even genderless? Had William been misgendering Adathan all this time?
? Oliver:Yes. There’s an entire chapter about their genders and reproductive organs.
? William:WTF
? Oliver:Yeah. To be honest, I skimmed it. :(
? Oliver:Why are you asking?
? William:I have no idea what Adathan’s gender is. I assumed he was a guy, but now I’m not sure
? Oliver:You can’t tell from their appearance?
? William:Not really, hold on
“Hey, Adathan. Do you mind if I take a picture of you?”
Adathan looked over their shoulder. “Of course not!” they said, their toes wiggling as they chewed on a caramelized pecan. They turned to face him, their stunning smile making William feel like a piece of shit as he opened his photo app.
Having a secret conversation with Oliver behind Adathan’s back felt wrong, but misgendering them felt even worse. Adathan had already been stripped of their identity. William at least wanted to get this right.
He tapped the screen to take a picture and forwarded it to Oliver.
“Do you want me to take my clothes off, William?”
William nearly choked. “W-what? No!”
Adathan’s smile fell. “I’m sorry. It wasn’t my intention to make you uncomfortable.”
“Don’t apologize,” William said, his stomach twisting at the implications of Adathan’s casual offer to bare themselves.
How had it not crossed his mind that Serviteurs were used as sex slaves? He was such an idiot.
William’s blood boiled as he thought of what Adathan had been through during their so-called training. How young had they been when it all began? How often had they been hurt, humiliated, reduced to a flesh-and-bone sex doll?
“I’m not likethem,” William said, his anger spilling over. “I’ll never ask you to undress—or to touch me—or to let me touch you. You hear me?”
Adathan cocked their head. “Is it because I’m a male, William?”
“W—No! I don’t care about your gender.”Guess that’s settled.“I mean, it doesn’t matter whether you’re amanor awoman. You’re perfect the way you are.”
Adathan’s smile shone bright again. “Thank you, William! You’re very kind.” His gaze fell on William’s barely eaten skewer. “Are you satiated? Would you like me to clear the table?”
“No. I just eat slowly,” William mumbled. He took a bite and washed it down with a gulp of beer. He had to stay calm, but it wasn’t easy with how fucked up all of this was.
“I sent your picture to a close friend, by the way,” William said. “He’s a great guy. He won’t do anything shady with it.”
“He must be a really kind person if he’s your friend,” Adathan remarked as he took a drink of his own beverage. His toes remained perfectly still.
“Hey, wanna try mine?” William said as he handed Adathan his beer.
