Zef watched every move his hand made, but to his utter delight, they didn’t move away. They didn’t even flinch.
Chapter eight
Checking for Ticks
Bryce
The next weekend, Brycefound himself traveling to Lust with Zef. He carried two garment bags as they shouldered a duffel with their shoes and make-up. The club where they performed was already filling with patrons, but they bypassed the line out front and entered through a back door off the alley.
“Is it okay that I’m back here?” Bryce asked as Zef led him through the backstage area.
“Of course,” they said with a brief backward glance over their shoulder. “You are with me.”
The backstage was cramped, most of the space taken up by a hulking Orc powdering his—her?—face. She wasn’t fully dressed up yet, but whatever hair she might have had was covered by a nude cap. For her wig, Bryce assumed.
She tracked Zef and Bryce in the mirror reflection, eyes alight with interest. “Well, well, well, look what thebulgridgedragged in.” Spinning inher chair, she crossed one thick leg over the other. “Another human, Zef? You’re full of surprises.”
“This is Bryce,” Zef said. “My roommate.”
“Nice to meet you, ma’am,” Bryce said, and the Orc tittered.
“Ooh, that accent. A real country gentleman.” She pressed a large hand daintily to her chest. “I’m Teri, but once I’m on that stage, I’m The Madame.”
“I’m Bryce all the time,” he said, and Zef’s wings buzzed in amusement. “Um, I’m looking forward to seeing the show.”
“We have a good one planned. The Araknis is always a crowd-pleaser.” Teri’s smile tightened. “Well, when he isn’t giving lap dances to the audience, at least.”
Lap dances? Honestly, that didn’t surprise him.
“Don’t slander my name, Teri,” Gem barked as a door to what Bryce assumed was a bathroom swung open, revealing him in nothing but a short robe and a silk wrap on his head. “I’m a classy bitch.”
Teri hummed noncommittally as she spun back around to face her vanity. Gem made a face at her before waving at Bryce with a top hand. “Hi, Bryce. Is that my dress?”
Nodding, Bryce held both garment bags out so Gem could unzip them and find which was his. He took the white dress with a squeal and scampered to the vanity where Zef was setting up their supplies.
“If the silk wrap works, can you style my hair like those old-timey Hollywood actresses? That wavy look?” he asked Zef, and the Mantodea nodded.
“I can try.”
“Thanks, Zef. You’re the best.”
Several other drag queens flitted around in various stages of undress. Most of them ignored Bryce as he hovered behind Zef’s chair, doing hisbest to stay out of the way. Some eyed him suspiciously while a few others chatted—or flirted—with him.
Toni arrived a half hour later with Jude trailing behind him, and it officially became too crowded. Bryce took the opportunity to follow Jude out into the bar area so they could claim their seats near the front of the stage. Using their jackets, they saved a few chairs, then sat down in a crescent moon-shaped booth.
“It’s getting busy,” Bryce observed as available seating became hard to find.
“Yeah, The Madame is a seasoned queen, and Zef has become a staple too. The crowd gets bigger every time we come,” Jude said as he sipped at his drink.
“You come to every show?”
“Pretty much. As long as I’m in the Pentagram, I come watch. The Madame likes me, so I tend to get free shots as long as I do them off her tits,” he said with a smirk, and Bryce snorted. “How has the move been, by the way? Adjusting okay?”
Tracing patterns into the condensation on his glass, Bryce nodded. “Yeah, it’s been okay. I’m really liking my classes, and I made a few friends at school.” Okay, sofriendswas a strong word, but there were a few people he regularly partnered with that were cool, even if they never hung out outside of classes. “I miss my family a lot. I wasn’t expecting that.”
“At least you have a family to miss,” Jude said flippantly, and Bryce wasn’t sure how to respond to that. Thankfully, Jude seemed to notice and expounded. “I don’t talk to my parents. They weren’t okay with the whole trans-thing.”
“That sucks,” Bryce said, and Jude shrugged.
