Due to the stress and uncertainty that had encompassed Marcus, he had fallen asleep in Luna's embrace.
Luna quietly held Marcus, running her small fingers through his curly hair. As she held him, her mind wandered back to Medina, and the goals she had for humanity. Luna wondered if maybe they were overstepping their boundaries, that humans should be left alone.
But that would most certainly doom them to a fate of annihilation. Gellionion would snuff them out the same as it did with the ancient ones. Luna, despite her earlier distaste towards humans, found herself enamored with Marcus, and by extension humanity as a whole.
They were complicated and diverse, each person a flower that blossomed into something wholly unique and different. While this led to some terrible things, it also made them boundless.
An ambition the ancient ones certainly lacked.
"Oh Marcus," Luna said softly as she buried her face in his hair. "Help me understand, why are you so afraid, so fearful of what you could become, of what your future holds."
Just as Luna was about to open up to the sleeping Marcus, there was a knock on the door. Curious as to who it was, Luna called out. "Who is it?" She asked.
"It's me, Kira." The voice answered from the other side. "Can I come in?"
Luna's eyes fell hollow for a moment before she eventually sighed. She gently laid Marcus onto the floor, then approached the door with soft footsteps.
Opening the door, Luna was greeted by Kira. Who was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, which looked to have been Marcus'. "Hey cutie, has Marcus come back yet?" She asked with a smile.
Luna looked back to Marcus, who was peacefully sleeping on the floor. She then looked back at Kira. "He has." She began, "But, can you leave him alone right now, he's already stressed about him cheating Kinsely with you."
Kira frowned as she crossed her arms. "Well, I can relieve that stress, like I did this morning." She said with a small smirk.
Luna hesitantly nodded. "I get that, I do, but Marcus is REALLY stressed right now," Luna emphasized.
Kira gently shook her head as she pushed past Luna. "Sorry to be rude Luna." She said softly, "But I know what I'm doing."
Luna fell silent as she watched Kira approach Marcus. She felt a faint sense of helplessness as she she Kira kneeling beside him, placing his tired face in her hands.
She studied Marcus briefly for a moment, before narrowing her eyes. "No, this was not stress I caused." Kira said sternly, "Marcus looks completely lost." She continued, "like the steering wheel was ripped from his car."
Luna dropped her head, "is it bad?" She asked softly.
Kira nodded. "Mhmm." She gently began stroking the top of Marcus' head as she placed it in her lap. "It's like his whole world was collapsed, and covered with a thin veil." Kira then sighed, "Did you tell him the truth? About our plan?"
"What plan?" Luna asked, tensing up as she hid a hand behind her back, slowly forming a silver blade. Luna couldn't risk someone like Kira knowing about Medina, not yet…
"About forcing Marcus to cheat on Kinsley with me, did you tell him about it?" Kira asked, turning to look back at Luna with a curious expression.
"O-oh," Luna stammered as she pulled her hand from her back. "No, I-I didn't but you should know Marcus intends on staying with Kinsley, he hopes you'll get bored of him and leave," Luna explained.
Kira softly giggled as she looked down at Marcus. "I'm guessing Kinsley told him about how short my previous relationships were." She says with a soft smile, "If I'm honest, I did get around."
Luna frowned at the implication of what she was saying. "So you're a woman of the streets?" She asked semi-angrily, "Do you have any diseases, do you even love Marcus or…"
Kira gave Luna a cold glare, "How could you say that?" She asked, her voice trembling slightly.
"How many men huh?" Luna asked as she crossed her arms, "I can't believe I didn't ask this before."
Kira's expression softened. "That doesn't matter, the past can't be changed, so why bring it up?" She asked, her tone defensive. "I love Marcus, and my past won't change that."
"How many?" Luna asked again.
"Look, I was young and curious." Kira explained, "I wasn't dating for love, I was looking for excitement and to satisfy my curiosity." She then looked down at Marcus, who slept peacefully in her lap. "But I feel different about him, he's a broken man but I can fix that, and when he's better, I'll be the woman he deserves, that's all that matters."
"How. Many?" Luna asked once more, her tone more aggressive.
"It doesn't ma–"
"How many!" Luna shouted, her outburst of anger causing Marcus to stir in Kira's lap, before falling asleep again. Luna hurriedly covered her mouth, a tense silence falling down on Kinsley's dorm.
Luna stared at Kira with eyes like daggers but remained silent.
Kira's expression turned somber as she tightly held Marcus. "Thirty." She said softly, "It's thirty…"
Luna's eyes widened upon the revelation. "H-how?" She stammered in disbelief, "H-how have you…"
"Men and women." Kira said softly, "In all possible scenarios and positions, I wanted to try it all." Her eyes began to well with tears, "but, it was never for love, she explained, not like what I feel for Marcus."
Luna shook her head slowly. "So what are you?" She asked, "Are you straight or what?"
Kira sighed. "I'm straight, I like men." She replied, "But I don't know, I at least wanted to try different things."
Luna frowned. "So, are you going after Marcus because he's…"
"No!" Kira said firmly, answering before Luna could finish. "That has nothing to do with it, if anything I was more interested in his powers than… that." Kira explained, "But more than that I love Marcus for who he is." Kira sighed deeply as she looked up at the ceiling. "I know it's hard to believe, but it's true."
"It's not fair to Marcus." Luna responded, "If you get thirty people, then so should Marcus." She replied.
"Why, not much changes from one person to the next." Kira answered, "It's all just a temporary escape from reality."
"How convenient." Luna said with an irritated look, "You sleep around out of curiosity, but for Marcus it's only a temporary escape?"
"If Marcus wants to sleep with other women then he can, I won't stop him." Kira answered, "But I just want him to come home to me every night."
Luna opened her mouth to respond but was suddenly startled by a knock on the door. "Luna, Marcus, I'm back!" Kinsley said from the other side.
Luna and Kira quickly exchanged glances, before Kira gave a quick nod. Luna then turned to unlock and open the door.
Standing at the door, Kinsley looked to be excited until her gaze fell upon Marcus' head in Kira's lap. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Kinsley asked coldly, apparently the two slowly.
Kira smiled softly. "Marcus was a little under the weather, so Luna got me to take care of him for a bit." She explained.
Kinsley narrowed her eyes as she looked at Luna, "is that true?" She asked, pointing a finger towards Kira.
Luna nodded. "Yes, I would've gotten you, but you're watching film." She answered.
Kinsley sighed as she shook her head. She then grabbed Kira's shoulder and moved her aside. "You should've gotten me anyway." Kinsley said as she took Marcus's face in her hands, "Marcus is more important to me than a day at practice."
As Kinsley examined Marcus, Kira made her way beside Luna.
"Marcus, wake up," Kinsley said as she gently tapped his cheek. "I'm back," Kinsley said softly.
Marcus slowly stirred awake from Kinsley's constant tapping. His head was throbbing in pain and his disorientation was strong. "Who?" Marcus asked as he opened his eyes.
Marcus' mind was blank for a split second, as he stared at the woman before him a smile crossed his lip.
Kinsley smiled as Marcus' eyes locked with her upon awakening. "Hey babe, are you okay?" She asked softly, her voice holding a hint of worry.
This moment of bliss didn't last long, however, as he was immediately hit was a truckload of memories and information.
The cheating, Medina, and everything in between.
Marcus hurriedly recoiled out of Kinsley's grasp as he stumbled to his feet.
"M-Marcus!" Kinsley stammered as she rose after him. Marcus collapsed on Kinsley's bed as he tried to avoid her.
Luna and Kira watched the entire scene in curious silence.
"Move Kinsley," Marcus finally said, reaching his hands out to keep her at a distance. "Don't touch me."
"What?!" Kinsley said in confusion, startled by his sudden reaction. "what's going on, why can't I touch you?"
Marcus, the mind was a whirlwind of emotions and her touch could possibly mitigate that, but the guilt of him cheating on her wouldn't let him enjoy her embrace, it hurt him too much.
"Please, just stay back," Marcus said softly, his arms still outstretched. The room fell into a tense silence as the three women started at Marcus.
Marcus meanwhile, took a moment to catch his breath and process his next move.
What did he want to do next?
In all honesty, Marcus was still reeling from Luna's earlier revelations. The idea that there was a higher power in deep space was truly terrifying, but his immediate situation wasn't better. Here he sat in a room with his girlfriend, the girl he cheated on her with, and the angel of some space god.
Marcus took a deep breath as he kept his arms out.
He remembered the last time he felt this overwhelmed when Kira had ambushed him and made her move. He went to the gym after that, and it helped him process what happened.
Maybe it could work again?
"I… I need to go to the gym." Marcus said as he kept his gaze on the floor, not daring to look any woman in the eye. "Is it open?"
Kinsley and Kira hesitantly nodded in unison. "Y-yeah, it should be, why?" Kinsley asked, slowly growing closer to Marcus.
"I need to clear my mind on a lot of things." He explained. "Please."
Kinsley's expression softened as she sighed deeply. "Alright, you can go…" she moved away from Marcus. "But will you talk to me afterward?"
Marcus hurriedly nodded as he rose from the bed, averting his gaze from everyone around him. He quickly made his way towards the door, then slipped out without a word.
The sounds of his rushed footsteps echoed loudly down the corridor.
After he left, Kinsley looked over to Kira with narrowed eyes. Kira looked back at her with an unreadable expression. "Kira," Kinsley said coldly, her voice firm and strained. "Did you do something to my boyfriend?"
Kira shook her head. "No, I was just checking on him, why do you ask?"
Kinsley quietly stared at her. "I don't mean now, I mean earlier, yesterday, the day before yesterday…"
Kira raised an eyebrow. "Uhm no, nothing besides the occasional workout session, but even then I kept my distance."
Kinsley frowned as she turned her attention to Luna. "Does this have anything to do with his job?" She asked, "Was the anomaly he fought dangerous or anything?"
Luna nodded. "Yes, he has a really tough battle, one he almost lost. So he's a little shaken up." Luna lied, yet her poker face was strong.
Kinsley sighed, tightly gripping the sheets of her bed. "If either of you are lying to me, it will not be pretty, do you understand?"
The room was filled with a palpable tension, each woman filled with thoughts and feelings that revolved around Marcus and each other. Kinsley's eyes darted between Kira and Luna, searching for any dishonesty.
Luna, maintaining her calm and collected demeanor, knew if Kinsley found out anything, it was Marcus who'd face the most backlash.
Kira meanwhile had her part to play as well. She had secured a basic relationship with Marcus this morning, but she needed to maintain her perfect web of lies and deception until she truly secured Marcus.
"He's just stressed, Kinsley." Kira said in a caring tone, "There's no secret plot, he's just a man who's overwhelmed, and you need to respect that."
Kinsley's expression softened as she leaned back on her bed. "I know." She said in a worried tone, "I'm just scared of losing him, that he doesn't want to talk to me anymore." Kinsley then raised a hand to her face. "I just… I need to be alone."