[Spirit of Lust 2] Chapters 688, 689 & 690. (Patreon)

Chapter 688: A request.

That woke me up faster than a bucket of cold water. It made me remember what had happened just yesterday on my birthday. I had practically confessed to Fernanda after the girls sent her to talk to me with their approval

Side note, but… confessions are really awkward, and I mean sudden confessions like this one. You’re basically throwing all your feelings at an unsuspecting someone. It’s no wonder Fernanda was so taken aback. Well, that and all the extra information. It really wasn’t a great way to do things, but I’ve been thinking that we would’ve remained stuck where we were if not for that.

Grace walked into the bedroom wearing nothing but a loose T-shirt. Wait, that was one of mine! A plain red T-shirt. When did…? Ah. I think the girls raided my drawer one day and they each took a T-shirt. I didn’t expect it to be so loose on her, considering her chest, but I HAD changed my shirts a few times already since I’d grown taller when my arms and shoulders got bigger. She sat down on the edge of the bed and handed me my phone.

“Did you read it?” I asked her.

“Of course not,” Grace said. “I don’t know your unlock password.”

“Oh, so you would’ve read it if you had known it?” Alice asked.

“Maybe…”

At least she’s honest.

“It’s 3030,” I told them as I unlocked my phone to prove it. They sat there looking at me like I was insane. “What?”

“You’re really giving us access to your phone?” Noelle asked.

“Oh, like you don’t have access to my thoughts and emotions already,” I told them.

“Yeah, good point,” Diana said. “I’ll write down my password for you later.”

“Same, at this point it’s more convenient that way,” Alice said. “That’s for later, though. What did Fernanda say?”

“She said…” The moment I read the text, my blood froze. “Um… Her dad wants to talk to me.”

They all winced. “Her dad? You don’t think… Maybe she told him about your powers?” Noelle asked.

“It’s possible,” Grace said. “They are apparently pretty close.”

“No, she didn’t. I asked her to keep it a secret,” I told them.

“And you don’t doubt she’ll keep it?” Diana asked.

“Nope.”

Alice chuckled. “Then she must’ve just told her dad you confessed.”

And like the doting parent he is, Mr. Carlos wants to talk to me, likely because he is justifiably concerned about his daughter entering a polyamorous relationship. Dammit, somehow I’m more nervous about talking to Mr. Carlos than Fernanda. I respect the man a lot, so the last thing I want is for him to think I could hurt his daughter. Though… all things considered, it’s not impossible.

It’s something that always worries me, to be honest. Frey and I have a permanent spell in place to subtly alter general perception around this relationship and have people see it as normal, or at least not too out of the ordinary. It’s undoubtedly convenient, but when I start thinking that the girls’ families only accept this because of that spell… It terrifies me and fills me with guilt.

Grace poked me on the forehead and frowned at me. “You’re thinking unnecessary things again.”

“I wouldn’t call them unnecessary at all,” I argued.

“Relax, her father likes you already, doesn’t he?” Alice asked. “I bet he just wants to talk and understand what's happening.”

I nodded. That sounded like the Mr. Carlos I knew. I let out a sigh and read Fernanda’s text again.

-Fernanda: So… About yesterday… My dad said he wants to talk to you. Would that be okay? It’s all good if you can’t.

Did that imply he wanted to talk today? It was no use wondering, so I replied and asked.

-Oliver: Tell Mr. Carlos I’m available whenever he can.

-Fernanda: Would this afternoon be okay? He says he’ll treat you to lunch.

-Oliver: Sure. Tell him to send me the location. I’ll be there.

“It seems he wants me to have lunch with him,” I told the girls.

“Then we better start getting ready to leave. It’s almost 10:00 AM,” Grace said.

“Wait, is it? I thought it was like 7:00 or 8:00 am,” I said, actually checking the time on my phone. But like Grace said, it was 9:47 AM.

“We went to bed at like 4:00 am, I think,” Noelle said.

“And here we wanted to laze around in bed for a while longer,” Alice lamented with a small sigh.

So it wasn’t just me.

“Well… The house should be ready really soon, right?” Noelle asked.

I nodded. “Yeah, in a few days. A week at most,” I told them.

Grace sighed with a nervous smile. “We’re actually doing this, huh?”

“We better, or I’ll be living alone with my cat in a house too big for me.”

“That house is too big for any one person, really,” Diana said.

It felt weird to be in the middle of possibly starting yet another new relationship just as I was about to move in with other girls… but that was how things were turning out and I’d have to do my best to see it all through.

************

Chapter 689: But before, a talk with mom.

I took a shower at Diana’s house and changed my clothes when I got to mine. I put on blue jeans and a button-up green shirt, afraid to look either too formal or too casual. I… also left the portrait Fernanda made for me on the bed. I would have found a good place to hang it, but like I said, I’d be moving out soon.

It was still some time before I had to leave when I heard the knock on my door, too soft and polite to be my sister. It was obviously mom.

“Yes? Come in,” I said.

Mom opened the door and Cake took the chance to slip in with her. The cat jumped on my desk while mom stood under the door frame smiling wryly at me. It worried me a little.

“Wh-What is it?” I asked her.

“For starters, I’m sad that the time for you to move out is so close, but that’s only related to what I actually want to talk about. Can I sit down?”

“Sure.” I offered her my desk chair and I sat down on my bed. Cake jumped on mom’s lap. “What is it?”

Mom sighed heavily. “I’m sorry. I’m going to put you on a difficult position here, but I wouldn’t do it unless I had to.”

I got even more worried, but I nodded. “I know. What happened?”

“Remember that last year I was traveling every other weekend to go see your aunt and your cousin?”

Admittedly, I only remembered now that she was bringing it up. Too many things were happening at the time, and since mom told me everything was okay, I put it off my mind.

If I remember correctly, my aunt was divorcing her husband and mom was there for support and to make sure the guy didn’t try anything funny.

“Yeah, I remember. Did something happen to them?”

“Nothing serious, but… The business my sister was starting didn’t work out. She can’t continue paying rent where they are living now.” Mom sighed. “I’ve been helping where I can and we’ve been discussing things. And well… This is hard for me to ask.”

I think I understood. “You’re thinking of offering them to come live here since I’m moving out?” I asked.

Mom smiled wryly. “It would only be your aunt. Your cousin needs to stay close to her university and she has a friend she can share an apartment with.”

Yeah, her education expenses, much like Isabelle’s and mine, should be covered, at least. Thanks again, grandma.

“...” An idea crossed my mind. One I’ll admit I wasn’t very comfortable with but wouldn’t forgive myself for if I didn’t bring it up. “There are plenty of spare rooms in the new house. She could…”

“No. That won’t be necessary,” mom said, stopping me immediately. “You’re about to start a new life with the people you love. I won’t ask you to receive your aunt there and neither would she. No, what I wanted to ask is if you’d let me offer her this room. I hate the thought of taking from you your place to return to, but…”

I won’t lie and say the idea didn’t bother me. I mean, it was my room. Despite moving out, I think I still believed in the corner of my mind I’d be able to come back whenever I wanted, maybe even stay over for a night or two. Clearly that was mom’s intention, too. But with these circumstances…

I shook my head and smiled at my mother. “It’s fine, mom. Do it. Having the space to help family and not doing it out of sentimentality would just be wrong. Besides I think I’ll feel better knowing your sister is here with you. I’ve been feeling guilty about leaving you and Isabelle alone.”

Mom smiled at me with tears threatening her eyes. She moved closer, chair and all, and gave me a hug.

“God, you’ve grown so much… I'm so, so proud of you, dear.”

I hugged her back. “I’ve just been very, very lucky.”

Meeting Frey, meeting the girls, hell, even meeting Thomas and the guys… So many people have helped me grow. I’ve been blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life, my family included. 

“You have,” she confirmed. “And it’s good that you’re aware of it. But people don’t grow with luck. No, luck stagnates growth. You’ve taken advantage of the opportunities you’ve found and even made opportunities for yourself. Always remember that and be proud of yourself.”

When she said that, I realized something. Leaving the house and letting my aunt take my bedroom… It was like when they started building the new lab in the old music room at school. It was taking away my place to go back to, leaving me no choice but to move forward, and it was scary. Absolutely so. But… So far, it seemed to work for me.

“You’ll go visit us, right?” I asked her. “I have a pool. And I’ll make us lunch.”

“You had me at the pool.”

We laughed despite the fact both of us were close to crying. You really never know how life will turn out. For the longest time, both mom and I believed I’d be the one living with her until I was, like, I don’t know, 40.

“Oh, and… um… Since you’re here already, maybe I should tell you?”

Mom raised an eyebrow. “Tell me what?”

“So… Remember Fernanda? The Brazilian girl who went to my birthday yesterday? She works at the coffee shop with Isabelle.”

“Oh my GOD, Oliver! You’re seeing six women and you’re STILL not satisfied!?”

“That’s not what I meant! Or well, um… it kind of was. I mean that we talked yesterday and… now her dad wants to talk to me. I’m going to meet him later. I know him already, actually. I met him at the gym last year.”

Mom sighed heavily. “At least you’re doing things properly. What did the other girls say?”

“It was mostly their idea and they’re pushing the hardest for it.”

“Alright, that’s it.” Mom stood up. “Oliver, I love you and I’m immensely proud of you, but I don’t think we should talk so much about THAT part of your private life.”

“Oh, so you can ask Diana for details, but when I tell you it’s weird?”

“Yes.”

Okay, fair. I didn’t want to talk about it, either.

************

Chapter 690: A talk with Carlos Santos.

So here’s another random thought for you. Using the van to go out on quick errands or travel alone felt weird. It was like wasting space or something. Like using a huge amp when you just want to tune a guitar. But this was my one and only vehicle and it was perfect for us since it let us travel as a group without having to take two or three cars. It was ever so slightly tempting to have a smaller car as well, but THAT would be a real waste. It would get no use beyond situations like these.

But yeah, that’s what I was thinking about as I drove my van to meet Mr. Carlos. The location he sent me was a family restaurant in the area close to his house. I remembered driving past it when I took Fernanda to her house.

I parked, mentally prepared myself and went in. Mr. Carlos was already waiting at a table for two with an empty cup of espresso in front of him. He saw me, smiled and raised his hand.

“Oliver, my boy, over here.” He didn’t yell, but his usual, booming voice still drew attention to him. Still, he seemed in a good mood so that was a good sign, right?

He stood up and shook my hand when I walked up to him. “Before anything else, let me say happy birthday, my boy. I hope you all had a good time.”

I smiled. “We did, sir. Thank you.”

“Now, sit down. Come on, let’s order. Today is my cheat day and I’m craving pasta.”

Mr. Carlos didn’t only seem in a good mood. He almost seemed excited.

The place had hamburgers on the menu and I hadn’t had one in a while, so I ordered that. It was when the waiter left that Mr. Carlos turned serious. Well, kind of.

“I’m really sorry to call you like this all of a sudden, Oliver. Fern seemed distracted this morning at breakfast, more than usual, I mean, so I asked if there was something wrong. She didn’t give me details, but she said you two talked and that, well, you told her you like her.”

“That’s true,” I said with a small, awkward smile while rubbing the back of my neck. “It was an awkward conversation. I’m well aware that my situation is… uniquely complicated. It wasn’t my intention to trouble her, but it seems I did. I’m sorry.”

“Please, my boy, don’t apologize! I did not ask you to meet me to demand explanations of you. In fact, I think I was hoping for this in some ways.”

I smiled wryly. “Sir, I… I’m seeing six other women already. I know I confessed to her, but with how complicated things are I don’t expect her to…”

“Son, you’re putting on the band-aid before the cut happens,” Mr. Carlos told me. “I’m not here to judge you or your situation. What happens between you is up to you all to decide, Fern included, of course. I believe you’ve been honest with her, so now it’s up to her to decide what to do.” Yeah, I was maybe a little TOO honest. “If anything, I’m hoping that knowing we talked can reassure her a little bit,” he said with a chuckle.

“Her?” I asked.

“I admit it was a shock for us to learn you were seeing multiple women, but it was plain to see that that relationship is built on trust. It’s up to my daughter to decide if that’s something she wants to be a part of or not.”

“Then… What do you mean when you say you’re here to reassure her?”

Mr. Carlos chuckled. “I’d like her to know that she at least has my approval. I believe you’re a good man, Oliver. I trust you’d do well by my girl.”

I grimaced. “With all due respect, sir… Can you really make that call? I mean, it’s true I’d try my hardest, but am I really the type of person you think I am?”

Our food arrived in the middle of that, giving a short pause to our conversation. I wasn’t feeling very hungry, but Mr. Carlos spun some spaghetti on his fork, gently blew on it and ate it. He wiped his mouth with a napkin and looked at me straight.

“Oliver, I am a professional bodybuilder. I’ve lived a good part of my life inside a gym, meeting all sorts of people. You can learn a lot about a person inside the gym, you know? Their work ethics, their values, their goals… I’ve seen some obsess over the perfect body, I’ve seen personalities do complete 180s after achieving goals, I’ve seen countless people quit, I’ve seen hardworking people believe themselves better than others… You, however, Oliver, remind me of some of my best friends.”

He… didn’t elaborate there and I’m kind of glad he didn’t. After that talk with mom… It’s not that I’m not proud of myself, but hearing people praise me is still too weird. Still, I finally let myself relax a bit after that.

I let out a sigh and smiled. “Your approval means a lot to me, sir. Really. I promise to do well by Fernanda… should she come back with a favorable answer,” I said with a chuckle.

“Hah! You’ve been doing that even before all this, my boy. But really, I do hope things work out. She’s been a lot happier lately, and I don’t doubt you’ve had a lot to do with it.”

I shook my head. “No. Grace, Sarah and Diana have been supporting her a lot more than I have.”

“Then I want to believe she’d be in good hands.”

After that we ate in a bit of a hurry. Mr. Carlos had plenty of errands to run and lunch was the only time he could meet me. 

All in all, this took some weight off my shoulders, but not all. I couldn’t help but wonder if Mr. Carlos would react differently if he knew about the supernatural part of all this.