Curious, Zef strained their hearing in hopes of picking up the other side of the conversation, but whoever Tad was speaking to—or about—was too far away. In the end, they folded the pleats in their skirt one way, then the other as they waited for Tad to address them.
The sound of a door clanging preceded Tad’s voice. “Okay, I’m here. What’s the crisis?”
Well, now that they had her undivided attention, they were unsure where to start. So they went with the obvious basis for their current state of anxiety.
“You know Bryce?”
“The human who’s been living with you for the last seven months? Yeah, I’ve heard of him,” she said dryly.
“Yes, that is the Bryce I mean. Well, it appears I have unknowingly and unwittingly seduced him against my will. Was it the capris I wore last week? They showed my ankles, but I wanted to be adventurous and try something new. I see now I should not have risked it. I will dispose of them immediately.” The line was silent so long Zef checked the screen to make sure they had not been disconnected. “Are you still there?”
“You called me about capris?”
“No, I called about Bryce because he likes me,” they said mournfully.
“Like… romantic-styles?”
Zef nodded even though she could not see them. “Yes, romantic-styles. At least, I believe so. He did not specify, but it was heavily implied. He”—they almost did not admit it aloud; it was so scandalous, but they knew Tad would not judge them—“touched my mouth with his thumb.”
“Kinky,” she purred. “Did you suck on it?”
They literally gagged, making the Anura laugh.
“I’m just fucking with you, Zef. Calm down,” she said around her chuckles. “So, he likes you. And?”
“And? What do you mean,and? That is theallof it.” Seriously, why was she not understanding the severity of the situation? It was like she was purposefully being obtuse. “Bryce likes me!”
“Yeah, I knew that ages ago.”
They gasped in betrayal. “You did? Why did you not tellme?”
“Would you have believed me if I had?” she asked, and Zef faltered.
“Well, probably not, but that is not the point.”
“Figured you’d only believe it if it actually came from him. And I was right, like I always am.”
They could picture her crossing her arms smugly over her chest, and they scowled. “Be that as it may, what am I supposed to do now?”
“Do you have to do something?”
“Do I not?”
She released a noncommittal humming noise. “You don’t got to do anything you don’t want. He can feel however he wants, but that’s not on you.”
Surprisingly, that brought some relief. “I suppose, but I cannot ignore it.”
“What did you say when he told you?”
They winced. “I may have ran away and hid in my room.”
Tad sighed. “That tracks.”
“He looked very sad,” they admitted, remembering the crestfallen expression on Bryce’s face, the way he begged for Zef not to walk away. “I feel bad about that, but I was… upset and frightened.”
Tone chilling, she asked, “Did he hurt you, Zef? Did he try anything? ’Cause I will fuck him up if he put a hand on you.”
Technically, he had grabbed Zef’s wrist, but that was not what Tad meant. “No, he would never do that. He is kind and gentle, and he has always respected my boundaries. I was, perhaps, overreacting.”
