Attraction (Alexis PoV)

Victoria changed into something less distracting while I guided Chloe to the couch. I gave her a glass of water to drink before heading back to change. I had a few things lying around since I spent a fair amount of time here.

I felt loads better in sweats and a loose t-shirt as I checked back in on Chloe. Before I could say anything, Victoria took her back to her room saying she’d find something for her to wear. I doubted there would be much for her considering how tall Victoria was compared to Chloe. Plopping down on the couch, I let out a breath. I was exhausted. Keeping an eye on Chloe had been more work than I thought it would be. The girl had energy and had her share of fans looking to get close even with Victoria dancing with us. Still, I’d had a lot of fun tonight. Even more shocking was how I felt… satisfied… with how the night was ending. Usually nights like this ended up with me getting railed by some hot stud. Maybe two. A night with friends was… nice. Relaxing almost.

I was gathering a few things to settle in for the night. Pillows, blankets, that sort of thing. The couch folded out into a bed, but I’d probably just crash with Victoria and leave the couch to Chloe since Ezra wasn’t here.

Chloe came out of Victoria’s room and I did a double take. The shirt she wore didn’t fit in the best of ways. The oversized t-shirt hung languidly on her small frame. One shoulder dipped low, revealing a flash of smooth skin and the delicate curve of her collarbone. The neckline dipped generously, teasing a glimpse of what resided underneath. When I finally managed to rip my eyes off her, I found Victoria suppressing a laugh.

That bitch.

She was blushing as she took a seat next to me, pulling up at her t-shirt. I knew damn well Victoria had something that fit better.

But I sure as hell wasn’t going to say anything. Sometimes you had to enjoy the scenery.

Conversation was on the lighter side of things. I knew the other two were as tired as I was, but it seemed none of us wanted the night to end.

“No shit? You go to that swanky place downtown?”

Chloe nodded. “On scholarship. Got a lottery slot, so Mom and I moved here. I could have lived in the dorms since they were included, but Mom wanted to be close.” Her head dipped as she continued. “It’s been… tough. But I’m glad she came with me. Until I met Jake, I was kinda a loner.”

That surprised Victoria. “What? That is surprising.”

Chloe smiled, but said nothing. I felt my throat tighten, remembering her breaking down on the video call. How she confessed she was exchanging sex for money. I hadn’t known what to say then, and I still didn’t. The whole thing never came up—mostly because Jake was always there with us. A part of me felt like I should bring it up again, give her a chance to vent. I… wanted to be a good friend, even if I didn’t know what exactly that looked like. Sure, I was friends with Victoria and Ezra, but that was different. Maybe it was because she and I were lovers before we became friends, or that Victoria had Ezra to lean on for the heavy stuff. I always knew she was there for me, but… there was always that distance. Distance I undoubtedly created and maintained.

Not so with Chloe. Even if I didn’t know how to be a great friend, I still wanted to try.

I tried to think of a way to steer the conversation away from this topic, but Chloe pressed on. “My Gift is euphoria. I suppose it is pretty powerful, but the important things to know about it is that my Gift is semi-active, and a portion of it can be transferred to another person.”

Victoria gave a low whistle. “Damn. Not only do you get the good stuff, you can share it too? That’s one hell of a Gift.” Her smile fade when she realized she was the only one.

“It is.” Chloe took a breath. “Which is why I sell it.”

She was silent. Victoria wasn’t an idiot and knew where this was going. It was probably why she took longer to say anything. When she did speak, there was no judgment in her tone, just curiosity. “So... is this like an escort type thing?”

She looked down as her fingers played with the hem of her borrowed shirt. “Less escort and more prostitute. Can’t be sure what my trigger is, but sex and orgasm is a sure way to do it. Turns out rich guys will pay good money for a day or so euphoria high.”

“I see.” There was a slight pause. “Euphoria, huh? The sex must be phenomenal then.”

Chloe was picking up on the lack of judgment and revulsion, responding to Victoria’s warm smile with one of her own. “You want to know what’s funny? I had no idea what sex felt like, actual sex. From my first time on, my Gift has always been a part of it. To me, it’s always been just one massive flood of euphoria that completely overwhelms me.” Her expression shifted to fondness. ‘That is, until Jake. He’s the first—and only—guy I’ve ever been with where my Gift didn’t completely overwhelm me.” Seeing we were both staring at her, I watched her cheeks flush.

“How was it?” No idea why I asked that. Was none of my business, but the words came out before I could stop myself.

A playful grin appeared as she looked between Victoria and myself. “Honestly?” Both of us leaned forward. “It sucks.” I frowned, but Victoria was cracking up. Chloe continued over the sounds of my laughing friend. “No, but seriously. It was special, and I loved every second of it, but yeah… Regular sex sucks. Like, no contest. Not even in the same league.”

“Okay, now you’re just bragging,” Victoria said after calming.

She blushed. It was cute.

Fuck. Why did she have to be so damn adorable? And why did she have to be dating Jake? This whole thing must have been some cosmic punishment. The only two people I’d ever felt something kinda-sorta romantic towards were already in a relationship. With each other.

Seriously. Fuck me.

Though, I suppose it was proper punishment for fucking up Natalie’s life.

Her eyes shifted to me and my heart skipped a beat. “It’s fine... right?” she asked, looking between us. “I’m not making you guys uncomfortable, am I?”

“Why would we be uncomfortable?” Victoria asked, doing a great job of keeping her expression neutral.

“I mean, this is usually the part where everyone goes ‘ew, gross’ and—”

I cut her off. “You are seriously worried we are going to judge you because you are willing to get paid for sex?”

Victoria snorted. “Please. Considering how often Alexis gets fucked, I’m surprised she doesn’t charge a fee.”

“Fuck off.” I threw a pillow at her which she caught. “Like you’re any better,” I said with a grin as she stuck out her tongue at me. Turning back to Chloe, I found her staring at me with those beautiful hazel eyes, that brilliant smile lighting up my world. “You are my friend. Something like that isn’t going to change that.” I reached out to rest my hand on hers, giving a light squeeze.

God damn that fucking smile. Fuck these feelings!

Chloe didn’t move her hand, using her free one to brush hair from her face as she looked from Victoria to me. Her body language was shy as she spoke like she was sharing some great secret. As if this was more embarrassing than sharing that she sold her Gift for money. “This is the first time I’ve had female friends in... uh, well... years. Not really sure how I’m supposed to act or what topics are okay. Really don’t want to fuck this up.”

I gave her a smile that felt more natural than it had any right to be. “Like this,” I said with a teasing grin. “Be yourself. Don’t worry too much about offending us. I assure you, Vicky here has probably done worse.”

“And I promise to keep Alexis on a short leash,” Victoria said with a grin. “She has the tendency of pouncing on people.”

My head turned as I gave Victoria an annoyed look. She responded with an innocent one. Yeah right. I wasn’t falling for that for a second. This bitch was just as bad as me.

Chloe burst out laughing. “Okay!” She looked between us, her expression softening into something akin to relief. “Thanks, guys.”

The conversation veered off after that. It was nice, all things considered. We spent a fair amount of time talking about college of all things. Not exactly something I was interested in, but it was always fun talking with Chloe. She seemed interested in the experience, trying to figure out if the college track was right for her. Another hour passed and I was shocked at how normal things were. I wasn’t just learning more about Chloe, but Victoria as well. It made me realize just how singular our friendship was. Despite our years of friendship, much our relationship revolved around sex. We talked, but it was never... like this.

Victoria yawned. “Ahh, I’m getting tired. You two have fun. I’m going to bed.” She got up and stretched her long limbs before giving us a warm smile. “If you need anything, I’ll be in my room.” She disappeared down the hall, leaving us alone.

It took Chloe a moment to realize she was alone with me before turning away, pulling on the hem of her oversized shirt. She was trying to cover her thighs and not doing a great job. Fuck she was cute. And she looked good in that shirt—not that Victoria’s clothes ever left much to the imagination anyway. If she wasn’t Jake’s girlfriend—

What? I didn’t date, or commit, or do any of that crap. I was the kind of woman who fucked whoever I wanted to fuck and that was that. I was content with my life. I liked this setup. I could sleep with whoever I wanted, and I always had someone to count on if I needed someone to spend the night with. People like me didn’t end up in relationships. Chloe and I would have some fun...

That didn’t feel right. Not right at all. I wanted to sleep with Chloe, I mean, who wouldn’t? She was gorgeous, and cute, and sexy, and kind, and caring, and funny, and a joy to be around—

The idea of us having a relationship like the one I had with Victoria felt... wrong. It wasn’t about just wanting to have sex with Chloe. It was something more. Something... I had no idea. Fuck! All this was so confusing. The amount of brainpower this shit was burning and for what? None of it mattered. She was with Jake. She was happy with Jake. And... I wanted her to be happy more than I wanted to fuck her.

That was new. Was that Natalie’s influence or something else? Did I even care at this point?

“So...” Chloe said, filling the awkward silence. “I guess I’ll take the couch?”

“Not... Not really tired yet,” I lied.

She smiled. No. Don’t. Not like that. I can’t—

“Same.” She had no idea how hot she looked in that shirt. The way her body language had shifted since Victoria left. The atmosphere between us had changed too. The friendly comradery was gone, replaced with... something else. This charged atmosphere never existed before. “Ah, Victoria mentioned something about your Gift earlier.”

“Uh, yeah. Nothing as nice as yours.”

“May I ask what it is?”

“It’s a deviant Gift.” Her mouth made the cutest ‘O’ as surprise lit up her face.

“Aren’t those super rare?”

“Maybe? Then again, I’m sure Jake has one too.”

“Right. His Gift is... special.”

I found I didn’t want to talk about Jake. Not right now. “Mine is an offshoot of empathy. Instead of sensing emotions, I... connect? It’s like a bridge, connecting two people together. Not just emotions though, but thoughts and memories as well.”

Her eyes were wide, sparkling with interest as she leaned forward. “That’s incredible.” She seemed to realize she had gotten rather close, face turning red as she sat back on the couch. She took a breath, hands clasping her knees as she looked me in the eye. “So, you can read thoughts?”

“Er, I guess?” I said, looking away. “It’s like there are steps. First level is just surface emotions.”

“Like Jake.”

“Possibly. It’s really faint though. Only one or two dominant ones are shared. Second level is where thoughts come into play. Again, it’s faint. Each step beyond that, the feelings and thoughts become clearer. Go deep enough, things get weird. The distance between me and the other person get murky. Memories appear as if they are my own. It gets harder to separate what I’m feeling and what they are feeling.”

“That sounds—”

“Awful,” I finished for her. “I used to think it was great, but it... it fucked up Natalie. We went too deep. It... really fucked her up.”

She reached over to grab my hand, a soft smile on her face. “It wasn’t your fault.”

I looked down at our joined hands. The touch felt nice. “Maybe not, but it is still my Gift that caused it.”

Chloe was silent for a moment, hand not leaving mine. “Could we—”

“No,” I said with a bit too much ****, heart racing. I couldn’t. Not with Chloe. Not with how...

She looked away, hand going with her. “O-okay.’

No. Don’t make that kind of expression. I didn’t mean it like that—

“I don’t want to hurt you.” That was a lie. I was afraid. Terrified, really. Not just of what I felt, but of what she felt. Towards me. Us. It was better to not know. To pretend that everything was fine. Things were better this way.

Time to be honest with myself: I didn’t want to hurt when she ultimately rejected me.

...

But what if she didn’t?

Oh god, was that worse? It felt worse.

“It’s fine,” she said with a small smile. “I was just—” She blinked, surprise filling me, both my own reaction and hers as my Gift connected us. The shock of that caused me to jerk back, severing the connection. How had that happened? It was natural to reject it the first time. Both Natalie and Victoria struggled with it even with experience with it. I didn’t actually expect to connect with her.

“Was that?” She looked at me expectantly.

“S-sorry. I just—”

Her smile was large and warm and blinding, and it made me feel like a fucking idiot. “Try again? Wasn’t expecting it,” she said, scooting closer. I did, feeling the thinnest of connections. I felt her surprise and awe at my Gift, her excitement at being able to experience it firsthand.

A step deeper. She felt fortunate to be close enough to experience this with me. The joy of friendship filled her mind. Friendship. She thought of me as a friend. Of course. What was I expecting? She was with Jake. Happy with Jake.

Another step as she accepted me.

Chloe’s expression shifted. The amazement and excitement faded as our eyes met. No. This was too deep. I needed to pull back before she—

My heart thundered against my chest. My breathing grew shallow. My mouth dried as I found it hard to tear my eyes from hers. How beautiful they were. How beautiful she was. Not just her appearance, but... her. All of her. I’d never felt this way with anyone before. It terrified me because I shouldn’t feel this way. She was a friend. Nothing more. I was with Jake—

That wasn’t me. These feelings were mine, but also not.

Oh my god. Chloe—

Our lips met and the connection surged. My world was enveloped in a storm of emotions, hers and mine mingling into an overwhelming rush that made me feel lightheaded, dizzy, like I was floating in the air.

I kissed her again, hand against her cheek as I leaned into her. Fear mixed with desire. This wasn’t just me. She was kissing me back, hand grabbing the front of my shirt like she never wanted to let go.

I wanted to kiss her deeper. To lose myself in her taste, her scent, her touch...

She was back against the couch, me atop her as I straddled her hips. Our kisses became **** and frenzied as I inhaled the smell of perfume and sweat, hands on either side of her head, pinning her in place as I pressed my body against hers, not wanting any space between us. I wanted her. Wanted her more than anyone.

Her hand was on the small of my back, fingers gripping at the fabric of my shirt. Her touch caused my back to arch in response as I felt her pull me against her. Her desire mirrored mine, wanting this more than anything.

Jake.

I pulled away, snapping the connection. The whiplash caused us both to groan in pain as our minds adjusted to the separation. Breathing heavy, we looked at each other in a mix of horror and lingering lust.

What had I done? I nearly...

“Alexis...”

I pulled away. Fuck. I was doing it again. Ruining everything with my presence. Chloe and Jake had a good thing. I felt how much she loved him. Yet she desired me. That hadn’t been a lie. She craved... whatever the fuck this was. But she loved Jake. Needed him. The pain of wanting me but loving him...

Or was it more than desire that drove her?

“I’m sorry,” I said, scrambling off her.

“Alexis!”

I flew off the couch, moving to Victoria’s bedroom. I paused, looking back at Chloe. She was sitting up, pulling at that god damn oversized shirt. She looked as lost as I felt. Scared. I was doing it again. Running away like a coward. Fuck! I couldn’t. Couldn’t face her. Not now.

Sorry, Chloe. I’m so, so sorry.

Turning, I retreated into Victoria’s room, closing the door behind me.