She indulged Porttown.

Glimmer stepped into a hair salon where a flamboyant man greeted her with sparkling makeup and dark pink hair. He smiles with straight white teeth that could blind. There are a few other hairstyles, too. And they smile and greet her as well, but it’s the man who takes the spotlight as he draws in Glimmer with flirtatious compliments, and a shower of praise for her appearance. “Unsure if I could make you look any better!”

His reaction to her entry makes Glimmer's stomach twist, unfamiliar with such genuine happiness. Neon Shroud had its types– cool hairdressers, smooth salesmen, and straight-to-the-point charmers. Mitch, however, was just gay in every way the word suggests.

Mitch washes her hair with product, rinses out the blue to show the normal dark brown it really was. Usually, quik-remove ruined hair for at least 48 hours, but whatever they used here didn’t just make it feel and smell good, but it **** the dyes out in minutes.

He cuts it next, mixing her new warm brown hair into a blunted bob, slightly with tinsel. The girls, surrounded, probably still in their teens, gasped and praised Glimmer with more compliments. She blushed, feeling a rush of confidence cascade over her.

They suggest stores to visit. “Threads of God” was mentioned once by one of the girls, and then became the topic of discussion. Glimmer thanked them and then walked to Threads of God.

Threads of God was busy. Countless rows of fabrics, skirts, blouses, sweaters, jeans, jackets, shoes, high heels, and even socks greeted her at different levels. The prices went from consumer level to 1% only.

Every staff member who was human offered suggestions and talked for minutes at a time about every article of clothing Glimmer asked about. Fishnets, stockings– garters. What was sexy, what was modest, what was best for theaters, parks, and parties. So much of her wardrobe was sent from Pink Hint, she almost forgot how much fun it was to shop at her own whim.

A handsome man helped her pick out most of her stuff, but it was a middle-aged woman who walked her through her lingerie section, picking white panties with red accents for the final details. She only got one outfit, and it cost as much as a hover tank. Complimentary Santa hats dropped in her bag, as well as a free pair of alpaca socks.

Glimmer went to several other stores, buying other comforts. Some candy there, some powdered drinks there, popcorn here, and then some hot chocolate nearby. She wanted to see the park, where an extensive array of lights was strung around trees. Moving decorations and even an ice rink filled with children and couples were inside. Already, it seemed she’d done too much without David, however, and she did not enter.

Night fell in Porttown at 4 PM. Snow did, too. Heavier now in the evening. It blanketed the town in unspoken beauty. She searched corners for new experiences and her “boyfriend.” She peeked into restaurant windows, bars, and lounges that had bouncers out front. There was one adult shop, hidden from the main street that she walked through as well. All that was there were dildos, butt plugs, lube, condoms, and leather whips, however. The only staff member there was an android. The night grew older, and the weather grew worse, blessing the city with an impressive glow.

Finally, she sat in the park, just at the edge, and started to eat one of her candies. She smiled and sucked on her lip, the corners of her eyes glossy from the park's lights. She bit into dark chocolate and blinked. The lights were pretty, and their shiny appearance intensified.

They were pretty.

She looked down, feeling the tear from her eyes drop on her thumb. They were pretty.

She ate more bites, then put it inside, and covered her face. “They are pretty,” she murmured, hoping that no one around her saw she was crying.

Glimmer had seen so much and had so much withheld in fear she’d experience these things alone. She was starting to cry harder. Then, as a snowball hit her hard from the side, her eyes flared in anger, and she shot up, searching for the culprit who’d just assaulted her.

There were dozens of kids, and a hundred more adults. Someone pointed at a blurry figure in black darting towards the skating rink. “Maybe they’re friends?” the person said. Glimmer stepped forward, but another voice made her halt.

“Glimmer?” The voice was all the same, but also wrong. Cold air dried her tears, and the chill already made her nose red. “When did you get here?”

She blinked and looked over her shoulder, seeing a face that she’d only seen in person once. Warm clothes bundled the man, jeans, sneakers that looked horrible for the snow, and a scarf covering a beard that had grown substantially since the first visit in Pink Heat.

Subtly, her heart pondered. Green eyes, less vibrant in real life than they were in her dream, still twinkled from the pulsing warm white around them. Hair, a little longer now, was messy, but clean-looking.

He stepped forward; his hands were gloved, but she still remembered what they felt like against her bare body, on her waist. He slipped slightly on a hard patch of ice, but caught himself at the exact second as he got closer; she was frozen. Scared.

“Glimmer?” David smiled, concern etched in the corners of his friendly gaze. “You changed your hair.”

Finally, she broke and charged him, hitting him with all her weight, augmented and not, and took them both to the ground. She held him and felt his warmth. Tears swam in her eyelids, and she didn’t blink until he laughed and hugged her back. “I almost didn’t recognize you.”

She didn’t pull away and look, despite every nerve in her neck pulling her away. She didn’t want him to see how **** she was to see him. She shut her eyes tightly and remembered what she saw before attacking him. This was another dream, she worried– perhaps asleep in the Lodge Royale.

Then he cooed. “Glimmer? How’s my girl doing?”

“I’m doing good,” she whispered, clinging harder. “I’m doing so good.”

Her face was wet, even though she thought the evidence of her emotion was tucked away. He saw the tears and frowned when he saw her again. “You don’t look good,” he picked bits of the snowball from her hair, flicking it off as he waited for her answer.

She shook her head, frowning before she sobbed. Her **** had vanished from her mind now. “I’ve missed you so much, David.”

David looked up at the crowd, getting a few worried glances, but a few understanding ones, too. Reunions were common here this time of year, and not all of them were giddy with bliss. Some, like this one, were emotional.

“Are you staying somewhere where we can talk?” David whispered, pushing the tears from her cheeks. “I can carry your bags while we find a place.”

“I have a suite,” she chuckled. “I have a suite for us. I bought it just this morning. For a week.”

“It’s probably better than my rent,” David laughed back, warming her. “Is it far?”

“No,” she watched David get him, and then took his hand when he offered it to stand. “We can go there now.”

It’s quiet for the most part; any comment she made about Porttown was a stuttering mess. The confidence she had instilled in her was left on the ground in the park. Too many times this month, she felt… “retarded.” As quoted from her at her apartment, and even Two-Trick. She hoped Two-Trick wouldn’t ruin this now.

Once inside the suite, David looked around. Whistling. “This is impressive… really, really, incredible.”

“Can you stay here?” she asked, kicking off her boots. “Please?”

“As long as the staff doesn’t kick me out.”

“What about your rent?”

“It’s covered for the month. A little luxury’s never killed anyone,” David watched Glimmer remove her boots and then went to take off his sneakers. He looked at the patio and exhaled. “Private hot tub?”

“For us,” she giggled, biting her lip as she watched him approach the large window with his hands on his hips. His coat was gone, revealing an average build, maybe showing slight gains at a gym or just labor… She wasn’t sure.

The shirt was black, which hugged him; a little demon's face was in the design. “DP,” was etched on either side of the face, grinning with tusks sticking out of its mouth, glaring at her. It was familiar, but not as much as she wished it was at that second.

She turned, revealing nothing on the front of the shirt. She can see the questions in his eyes that he doesn’t want to ask, and he sees the same in her eyes. The fireplace reignited in the moment they stepped in, and now crinkled. “You do look nice, Glimmer.”

“You look… different,” she responded.

He looks down. “Ouch.”

“No!” she shouts. “I- I mean it…different. In a good way. You’re more… manly now.”

He scratched the patchy beard. “This?”

“Everything,” she smiled, almost eye-fucking him. “You just look… good. Really good. Have you been working out?”

He shrugs. “Not enough for you to notice.”

They were almost the same weight, but without shoes, it was clear he was taller. Maybe 6 feet. Maybe 6’1. The more she stared, the better David became. “You’re really here then?” she whispered, stepping closer. “You knew who I was when you saw me.”

“Of course,” he said, grabbing her waist and pulling her in. “Of course I did. Why wouldn’t I?”

“Because… when I called you, you didn’t recognize my voice,”

“That scared you?” David said, kind of coldly. “You thought I’d forget you because I didn’t know your voice through that shit-box microphone?”

Her heart quickened at the tone of his voice. Warmth radiated from his smile, but something in his voice was hard. Despite herself, she found it…sexy. He continued. “I don’t know what you were used to calling me, but you sounded like a dolphin talking into a paper cup attached to a wire.”

“Stop it,” she giggled. David sees her laughing and chuckles before continuing.

“It was such a strange call to get. I really thought it was a prank rank call.”

“I’m sorry,” she bit her lip. “I’m sorry, baby…”

“Baby,” he echoed her pet name, lost in her eyes…