Page 33 of The House of the Red Balconies

“You?” Chrestos’s eyebrows went up.

“No. Not … no. We’re not talking about me.”

“But don’t you think … don’t you need sex in order to, like, hold onto someone?”

“Um … no? People stay together even when they stop being able to have sex, and things like that.”

Although Hylas had planned to leave the talking entirely up to Zo, he had thought of something potentially useful to say.

“Do you … do you think he’s lying to you when he says he doesn’t really like it?” he ventured.

“No. I believe him. I do. I just don’t know, sometimes, what he’s getting from me, if it’s enough. You know, because I’ve got to keep him. I was always proud to have a patron, but now Mistress is going on about how we all have to have one, and I’ve got worried. If this house loses any more reputation, is he going to decide it isn’t worth coming to see me? If I was a girl, I’d try to get pregnant. Shit. I wish I could do that. Then even if he left me or died, I’d have a kid, like Theano does.”

“Chrestos,” Zo cut him off, “try to come back down to earth. You’re worried. Of course. This thing with Mistress has got us all worried.”

“I … love him.”

Zo nodded. “Yeah. You’ve known that for a long time.”

“Yeah. And I want him to be happy. If he wants to leave because of whatever—I’m gonna let him go. I’d hate it, but … ” He swiped at his nose; he had started to cry. “And if he wanted to take me away because this place has … because he thinks this place has gone to shit—I think … I’m pretty sure … I’d go.”

“You definitely should, Chrestos,” said Zo.

Hylas nodded encouragingly.

“You don’t owe the Red Balconies anything,” Zo went on. “We’re your friends, and that won’t change, but the place is just a place.”

“Yeah, but I love it here. I don’t want to leave. What would I do? Just sit in Themi’s house waiting for him while he’s away at sea? I’m sure as shit not going to sea with him. Themi wouldn’t want me to, but even if he did … ” He shook himself slightly. “Speaking of patrons—how’s it going with Timon, Zo?”

“Fine,” Zo said crisply.

It was something he and Hylas never talked about, though Hylas had assumed Zo discussed the progress of the affair—did you call it an affair?—with the other companions. He had a fleeting thought of getting up and finding an excuse to leave so that Zo and Chrestos could talk now. But actually it had been pretty clear that Zo had nothing more to say.

It was clear to Chrestos, too, and he was offended.

“Is that it? I just told you a big secret about my patron—seriously, if that ever got out, he’d be really embarrassed. Are you not going to reciprocate even a little bit?”

Zo shrugged, in a way that Hylas thought he would have found maddening if he had been Chrestos. “Timon’s not my patron yet. That’s … all there is to say.”

“He shouldn’t have to be embarrassed,” Hylas blurted, to change the subject. “Themistokles. He … it’s sad, that he would be embarrassed. Just because he doesn’t want sex? That’s not a bad way to be. It doesn’t hurt anyone.”

“Yeah?” Chrestos looked at him. “Everybody thinks you’re probably that way yourself. All the girls think that.”

“Chrestos, that’s not … ” Zo protested.

“I don’t know,” Hylas heard himself saying before he could think better of it. “I don’t know if I am or not.”

Chrestos gave him a sceptical look. “You don’t know if you like sex or not.”

Hylas nodded.

“Well … you’re on Tykanos, man. You should find out.”

After a moment, all three of them laughed.

CHAPTER 12

It was nearing the end of the year when Zo finally decided he would have to let Timon into his bed. The man had said something very unsubtle about wanting to “sample the goods” before making a commitment. He knew very well what was going on.