Chance meeting.

So… Not to brag, but carrying Noelle really wasn’t much of an issue at all. Even since Frey possessed me, my physical condition had changed drastically. It wasn’t just about aesthetics. Add my regular workouts and even that has improved since then. Noelle felt light on my back, and in fact, having her so close felt nice. The best part was that Noelle soon realized all this and began to feel better about it.

“Okay, now I’m kinda jealous…” Mila said, seeing Noelle clinging to me with a huge grin on her face. “Are you sure we can’t swap? Even for a little while?”

“Sorry, Mila. My ankle will break if I take another step,” Noelle said, giggling and resting her head against mine.

Alice chuckled and shook her head. “There’s always a bright side, I suppose. Enjoy it while it lasts.”

“Thanks. I will.” Noelle leaned in closer to my ear and whispered. “When we get to the resort, pick a time and place and you can do anything you want to me.”

I had done it with Alice a few hours earlier and with Diana not 20 minutes ago, and that STILL made my crotch tingle. “Only if I can carry you all the way there,” I told her.

“Nope.” She kissed the back of my neck. “I’ve already decided.”

“Speaking of,” Grace said, having clearly heard Noelle despite the whispering, “You made your move way sooner than I thought, Diana. I admit I didn’t realize what you’d done until you were both out of sight.”

“Ah, that’s right.” Sarah grimaced. “Probably didn’t feel great coming back from that to a crying Noelle, huh?”

Noelle’s grip on my shoulders tightened. “I’m… I’m sorry.”

Diana moved closer to us while we walked and gave Noelle a pat on the head. “It’s nothing. We were just glad it wasn’t something more serious. And thanks to your ever-reliable boyfriend we can continue our hike, right?”

“Right. Thank you.”

Still, Sarah did have a point there. Coming from that high and suddenly seeing Noelle crying was a hard fucking whiplash. Almost enough to make one afraid to ever look away from them.

We kept walking while going upriver, and during a moment where none of us had anything to say we managed to notice the sounds of multiple birds high up in the trees. That along with the breeze moving the branches and the water flowing down the river really gave me a sense of… peace. I took a deep breath, taking it all in, losing myself in nature.

And then a loud, booming voice coming from behind us startled me so much I very nearly dropped Noelle.

“What? That can’t be! Oliver, my boy!”

I turned around with eyes wide open. “Mr. Carlos?”

Indeed it was. He was just a bit behind us, taking the right turn in the path that likely made him notice me despite Noelle being on my back. He was not alone, either. A woman shorter than him walked beside him. Her skin, while dark, was lighter than Mr. Carlos’, and her long black hair and soft features made it clear who their daughter resembled most. And speaking of, Fernanda herself was walking behind her mountain of a father as if hiding.

“Who’s that?” Noelle asked me.

“A gym acquaintance,” I told them.

God, this was going to be so damn awkward. Noelle was also getting a little restless behind me, and the others also straightened up more.

“Hahaha! I never expected to see you here, my boy! Ah, but…” His brow furrowed in worry when he noticed me carrying Noelle. “Did something happen to the young woman?”

I smiled at him. “She twisted her ankle, but it’s not serious. We didn’t want to stop and call the resort, so…” I shrugged.

“My, what a gentleman,” the lady said, chuckling. “So you’re Oliver. Carlos talks a lot about you, you know? And I also hear you’ve been helping our daughter at work. Ah, and speaking of, you’re not going to say hi, Fern?”

Fernanda flinched behind her dad before stepping out of his shadow.

“S-Sorry. Um… Hello.”

Like I’ve said before, Fernanda wears her emotions on her sleeves. The ways she pursed her lips and couldn’t maintain eye contact, the ways she shifted in place, the way she rubbed her arm like she didn’t know what to do with her hands. The girl was utterly embarrassed, mortified even, and I don’t fucking blame her. Last time the girls saw her she had mistakenly played a video clip of mine in the coffee shop and they humorously dubbed her a stalker. In her place I would probably be hiding in a bush. Not to mention…

I briefly glanced at my girlfriends and noticed that every single one of them was checking her out, studying her… appraising her. I had to cough loudly once to make them stop.

“Haha, to think we’d pick the same place to come on vacation. Ah, but forgive me, this is my wife, Isidora,” Mr. Carlos said, introducing us.

…And now I’d have to reciprocate, wouldn’t I? Well… Mr. Carlos already knew I had multiple girlfriends. He’d made me cough it up already. He just didn’t know… how many.

“It was something of a graduation gift. Mr. Carlos, these are my girlfriends. Noelle, Milana, Grace, Sarah, Alice and Diana.”

The girls all waved and greeted Mr. Carlos and Mrs. Isidora, and in a way it’s funny that neither of them batted an eye at the number of girls, but rather were more… intrigued by one of them in particular. The odd one out age-wise, Diana. Her frozen expression didn’t show it, but I knew those looks made her very uncomfortable. In fact, she was so focused on worrying about what the two might be thinking that she missed the third set of eyes looking at her.

Fernanda’s eyes were wide open and her jaw dropped the moment I listed Diana as one of my girlfriends. Poor girl could use some lessons on hiding her emotions, but I still think it’s pretty endearing.

Patreon.