Intermission - Brainstorming (Part 1).

It was a Saturday early in the morning, so not only did Diana not have to go to work, but there also weren’t many people in Maria’s shop. It was perfect for a little get together with the other girls, and they had just enough privacy at the back of the shop behind the folding screen.

Oliver, of course, was working like always, but this time Isabelle was with him again. The poor girl didn’t look too hot. Definitely not a morning person like her brother. Still, she’d just have to get used to it.

Diana was here today with the other girls to take on the important task their boyfriend presented to them: Brainstorming ideas for the house.

Alice had a notebook on the table and a pen in her hand, ready to jot down every idea no matter how silly.

“A swimming pool in the basement and we make it look like a cave!” Mila said.

“No,” was the unanimous answer. So yeah, maybe there was a threshold to silliness.

“That’s only half-dumb,” Sarah said. “Oliver said we could make requests without worries, right? I’m still not entirely comfortable with the idea, but I get where he’s coming from. So with that in mind… I want a pool.”

“Yeah, figured,” Grace said, nodding. “But what kind of pool?”

“Hopefully one with a heating system to use it during winter, too. That would also mean a roof if it’s not also indoors. The plot has plenty of space, so there’s no need to build it in a basement.”

Mila blushed and pouted. “It was a joke, okay? I saw a picture like that and just remembered it.”

“Okay, an indoor pool with a heating system,” Alice repeated as she wrote it down. “Yeah, your family throws plenty of pool parties. You’d feel pretty weird without one, wouldn’t you?”

“I mean… I wouldn’t DIE if I didn’t have one, okay? But if I have to ask for something…” Sarah sighed. “A pool and plenty of space to run around and play in. That’s all I’ll ask.”

“Won’t we have that huge pond in front of us, though?” Noelle asked. “Or is it not allowed to swim in it?”

“As far as I know there’s nothing prohibiting it,” Diana said, “but there are some fish in there, I believe. It’s also really muddy and full of growing plants, so…”

Noelle shuddered. “Mud and plants I wouldn’t mind, but fish… Okay, I get it.”

“And you, Noelle? What do you want the house to have?” Alice asked.

The redhead smiled shyly and fidgeted. “Maybe it’s too obvious, but… I’d like a game room. You know, a place where I can place all my consoles and where we can get together to play. M-Maybe I could stream from there, too.”

“Hmm, doesn’t seem fair to you to ask for a place to work,” Grace said.

“I agree,” Diana said. “It feels more like a room you need than a room you want.”

“N-No, I’d still ask for a game room even if I didn’t need it. I mean, I keep everything in my bedroom right now, but I think it would be better to have it all in a different room so we could all use it whenever, right?”

“Oh, wait, pause,” Alice said, frowning and butting the bottom of her pen against her lip. “That’s the question, isn’t it? Bedrooms.”

“Oh…” Mila’s eyes widened, and everyone else also understood the dilemma.

“Right,” Sarah said with a nod. “How are we going to sleep?”

“...”

No one had an answer, but Diana bet they all had ideas. She had her own, too. After all, in any normal relationship, the couple would just sleep together in a double bed. It was never something to question. But to this group, it was.

The first thing to come to Diana’s mind was the ridiculous idea of a ridiculously big bed in one bedroom that they would all share. However, she had to let go of that idea as soon as it came.

Even if they were all willing to share the same bed (which she, surprisingly, didn’t find particularly off putting), it would still be an absolute day to day nightmare.

“A night or two would be fine,” Grace said. “I mean, we’ve done it before and slept well.”

“But we’re not talking about sleeping after sex,” Alice said. “We’re talking day to day. Coming home after university, after work, likely at different hours sometimes.” She bit her lip. Alice herself didn’t like the points she was bringing up. “Not to mention the simple act of ‘sleeping beside Oliver’ would still be reserved for only two people.”

“And then there’s just personal space,” Sarah said. “Where to keep our stuff, or even just random things we want to have close.”

“What about… A single big bedroom but with separate beds?” Noelle suggested.

Grace shook her head. “We’ll still run into some of the same issues. If we happen to have different schedules, we’ll be bothering or waking each other up as we enter or leave the room.”

“...”

They all had the same idea, but none of them was happy with it. They all wanted that small, simple part of any normal relationship. Sleeping with your partner in the same room, in the same bed. To truly share your space and your life with the person you love. And yet it was easy to see that, for them, in this relationship…

Diana sighed. “Ours is not a normal relationship. I knew it from the start, and you girls have been encouraging it even before I came into the picture.” The younger girls all stiffened, yet they also all paid attention. “The mental connection, the pleasure, the companionship, the magic as a whole… There are aspects to it that we wouldn’t enjoy in normal circumstances. A relationship as different as ours is bound to have different ups and downs, and clearly sharing has never been a downside. I suppose we didn’t expect it, but apparently bedroom accommodations WILL be, however. We might have to look for some workarounds, but I think it’s clear we won’t be spending every night in the same room with him. Is that something you can accept?”

“...”

It was almost a rhetorical question. Almost. Diana knew they could accept it, even if their faces said they didn’t like it. Regardless, she asked it to **** them to accept the reality of the situation.

Seven people in one bed could be fun every once in a while, but it wasn’t practical. They wouldn’t be having sleepovers, they’d be living together. Diana didn’t like it, either. She also wanted to go to bed every night at his side. But was this enough to make her regret this relationship and crave a normal one?

Fuck no. Not by a long shot.

“We’ll have to take turns, then?” Mila asked.

“Scheduling nights to sleep with him is going to be awkward at first, but I think we’ll get used to it,” Alice said.

“That’ll mean seven bedrooms, at least. Maybe more,” Grace said.

“Let’s keep those on the smaller side,” Sarah suggested. “I know we’ll have space, but we’ll probably have to dedicate an entire floor to just bedrooms.”

“Yeah, I don’t mind,” Noelle said. “Also, let’s remember bathrooms.”

“Oh, right…” Alice nodded with lips pursed in thought. “Do you think two would be enough? On the bedroom floor, I mean.”

For a while, the conversation took a more pragmatic turn than originally intended, but Diana was happy to see them taking it seriously instead of throwing out silly ideas back and forth.

…

Hopefully Oliver wouldn’t mind.

Author's Note: Happy holidays everybody. Whether you celebrate today, tomorrow or ignore Christmas altogether, I hope you all find yourselves well and have a good time however you prefer. Take care everyone!

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