Everyone laughed and Rhaz relaxed once again.
“He’s very protective of Jax, isn’t he?” I leaned over and whispered in Tarak’s ear.
“He’s taken Jax on as a younger brother. He feels responsible for him.”
That was a little more vague than I’d hoped.
“Why can’t he talk? Was he born mute?”
Tarak shook his head. “I wish. The other dekes…” Tarak looked away searching for the right words. “They tried to ‘fix’ Jax and it didn’t work out too well.”
I could tell Tarak didn’t want to say more, so I left it at that.
“Hey Sarah,” Kayla began. “Were you homeschooled by chance? You give off those homeschooler vibes.”
Sarah looked down at the table as if she were embarrassed by the question. “Yeah, my family was pretty religious. My parents didn’t want any of us kids to pick up any bad ideas from public school.”
“I noticed you opted to wear a skirt and shirt. Were you allowed to wear pants at home?” Fatima asked.
“No,” Sarah shook her head. “It wasn’t considered something a good and pure woman would do.” Sarah’s eyes went big when she realized what she had said. “Not that you all aren’t good or pure because you’re wearing pants.”
“Haha!” Hai barked out a laugh. I hadn’t been pure for a very long time.
“Do you think you’ll keep wearing skirts?” Talia asked.
Sarah shrugged her shoulders. “I’m not sure. Everything feels a bit upside down right now.”
“That’s true,” Talia agreed.
Jax pointed to Sarah’s skirt and furrowed his brows while holding his hand by his shoulder at an angle. It looked like the shoulder shrug emoji but with just one hand out instead of two.
“That’s his way of asking for more information.” Rhaz informed us.
“Oh,” Sarah tucked her hair behind her ear and explained. “My religion believes that it’s the woman’s responsibility to cover her body so the men around her don’t lust after her.
Jax furrowed his brows again and shook his head in disagreement.
“Isn’t that the male’s job to keep his own lust under control?” Lumod asked.
“Not where I’m from.” Sarah whispered.
Seeing that she was uncomfortable with all the attention on her I changed the subject. “Did you say we’ll be staying in the storage cavern for the time being?”
Tarak nodded his head but then he got up and asked me to join him in his private cave.
“Is something wrong?” I asked as soon as he closed the curtain that served as his door.
“No, nothing’s wrong, I just wanted to ask you something.”
“Okay. What’s up?” Tarak looked incredibly nervous. His tail thumped the floor and he paced around the room.
“Will you stay with me tonight? In my cave? I’d like for you to stay with me, Gab-bae.”
“I’m sure you would.” I smirked at him.
“No, not for that,” he blushed a dark blue. “I feel hollow when you are not with me. You were only gone a short time in the bathing chamber and yet it felt like my soul had been ripped from my body. I do not wish to share furs with you so you may touch me, although I would welcome that. I wish to share furs with you so I can hold you. So I can make sure you are safe and taken care of. I just wish to be near you. I am a greedy male who wants all your smiles and to hear all your words and then when the day is over I want to feel all of you pressed against me under the furs.
“I know it is more than what an outcast like myself should ask for, but I yearn for you Gab-bae. I need you like fire needs air and like the trees need the sun. I want you with me, by my side, in the morning, at night, and every moment in between. Gab-bae, will you claim me as yours?”
