Safe Words and Unsafe Thoughts

Nash just let it hang there, the silence stretching, awkward, electric. Not for too long, just long enough for the air to go sharp with it.

Behind them, the court was swallowed up by the dark. The artificial daylight blinked out.

Down here, night meant the whole place turned into this mess of shadows and neon glow, voices buzzing like a club at 3 a.m., heat bouncing off chrome rails. 

The air reeked of sweat, grease, cheap food, and, honestly, a little bit of desperation. Maybe lust, too, if you're feeling poetic.

He turned, casual on the outside, but working overtime in his head.

Okay, don't push. Don't spook them. Don't make it weird.

"You two ever been to Parallax Heights?"

Lina raised an eyebrow. Sarra blinked.

"The hotel?"

Nash nodded. 

"Penthouse spa suites. Rainfall showers. Red-light sauna. We should celebrate right."

Lina smirked immediately. 

"You trying to wine and dine me, Blaze?"

"I just dunked on seventeen straight matches," he said, deadpan. "You deserve a soak. Maybe a view."

[TRIGGER ATTEMPT: Public Attention + Dirty Compliment – Target: Lina][LINA GOSS — Affection +2%, Lust +3%]

Sarra shifted beside her. Not backing off, not leaning in.

Nash turned to her, softened the angle.

"You've never been, have you?"

"I... no," she admitted. "That place is expensive."

Lina snorted. 

"Hella expensive," she added, folding her arms. Then she cut her eyes at Nash with a grin. "But apparently not expensive enough to keep you out."

"You know me. Tonight, it's comped," Nash said. "VIP treatment. I figured... we could go. Relax. Together."

Sarra hesitated. Her fingers curled tighter in her sleeves. She wasn't rejecting him, but she wasn't saying yes either.

You're losing her. Think... I know, make it safe.

"You don't have to stay long," he added, voice a notch lower. "Just long enough to feel like you mattered tonight. You earned that much."

[TRIGGER ATTEMPT: Gentle Praise + Emotional Safety – Target: Sarra][SARRA IVES — Trust +3%, Affection +2%]

Still not a yes.

Lina cut in, this low, throaty laugh slipping out like she was just barely playing nice.

"'Together,'" she echoed, grinning like a cat, "You say it like you're not already imagining two girls, half-naked in towels, just waiting for you to make a move."

Nash didn't even flinch.

"Honestly? I'm seeing you, flinging bubbles in my face and calling it foreplay, while Sarra's over there trying to actually enjoy the sauna like a sane person."

Lina licked her lips, eyes glinting, totally into this little game.

"Watch it, Blaze. That's dangerously close to you acting like you could handle both of us. But hey, we both know what you're really like."

He just shot her a lazy grin. 

"Bring it on," he said, voice all heat and honey.

Sarra looked down again, face red, but she didn't move away.

"That's all it is?" Sarra asked.

"Unless you want more," he said, letting the silence between his words stretch just long enough. "If not... it's just a warm place to unwind. And you don't have to share it with strangers. Just us. Safe."

[TRIGGER ATTEMPT: Subtle Inclusion + Reassurance – Target: Sarra][SARRA IVES — Trust +2%, Lust +1%]

The air got thick.

Careful. She's hovering. Lina's amused, but Sarra's folding in. Can't push too hard.

Lina stepped in again, swinging the momentum. She elbowed Sarra lightly.

"C'mon, it's just a hotel. Guy's offering free luxury. You know how rare that is down here?"

Sarra offered a small smile but still hesitated. Nash caught it, that micro-step back. The moment about to slip.

Then Lina turned to him. 

"Or... screw it. Me and you can go. She looks wiped. We'll get the first rinse."

Shit.

Nash kept his face calm, voice even.

"I wouldn't feel right without both of you. Not tonight. You both made this streak possible. I don't want to celebrate halfway."

[TRIGGER ATTEMPT: Bond Inclusion + Earned Praise – Target: Both][LINA GOSS — Lust +4%, Trust +2%][SARRA IVES — Affection +3%, Trust +3%]

Lina cocked her head, a little amused. 

"You really want both of us there that bad?"

Nash met her eyes. 

"I like symmetry."

Lina snorted, clearly entertained. 

"You bold as hell, Blaze. Trying to talk both of us into the same bed without breaking a sweat."

"Trying," Nash said. "Key word."

He turned back to Sarra, tone dropping softer again.

"You know how crazy Lina is, just come. You don't have to do anything. Just be there. Share a good moment with people who saw you shine tonight. That's all."

Sarra stared at him.

Then finally, she nodded.

Barely.

But it was enough.

Lina bumped his hip again, then let her hand slide just a little lower and gave his ass a playful slap, subtle, but unmistakable.

"Damn, you fumbled that for a minute. Thought you were gonna lose."

She leaned close, voice low and thick with tease.

"Congrats though. You passed the hardest part. Now comes the real hardest part... staying the hardest part."

She winked, all fire and challenge.

Nash let out a slow breath he didn't realize he was holding.

"Not my cleanest game," he admitted. "But the score still counts."

[QUEST UPDATED – Trial of Temptation: THREEFOLD FLAME]

Progress: 12%

→ Sarra Lust: 34%

→ Affection & Trust Conditions Stable

Time passed fastly. Zayela stomped through the lower district, arms loaded down with plastic bags, fingers practically welded to the handles.

Her footsteps bounced around the empty stone hallway.

The fake sun dipped out like an hour back, so now it was just those crummy strip lights above, buzzing away like a mosquito that won't die. 

Neon signs everywhere, glitching between broken English and whatever local slang counted as a language now, ramen, cybernetic mods, girls for hire. Real classy.

She glanced at the bags, soft fabrics, colors that looked like they belonged in some expensive dream. 

Way too many clothes. Way too much cash gone. Her stomach did a nervous backflip.

What the hell was I thinking?

She felt the heat crawl up her cheeks, half from the embarrassment, half from the weight of the purchase. 

She hadn't bought clothes like this in years. Not since she'd had... started working for both of them.

Her fingers tightened around the bag straps.

"He better like them," she muttered, then flinched at her own voice.

A pause.

Then a sharp shake of her head.

"No. No, no, no. That's not what this is. These are just... comfortable. Functional. It's hot in this house. People sweat."

But even she didn't buy that. She could still feel the thrill in her spine when she'd picked out the intense red and black ones. The one that hugged.

She exhaled hard, tried to focus.

Dinner.

Right. Dinner. He liked fried things. Meat. Protein. She could cook, she could at least do that. Maybe make it smell like something real. She adjusted her bags and started mentally listing ingredients when...

Ding.

A chime cut through the haze.

She stopped walking.

Slid her hand into her chest, reached past the sweat and the lace, and pulled out the burner phone tucked neatly in the curve of her bra.

One message.

From: Nash.

"Not coming home tonight. I got you a room at Mira Hotel, suite 804. It's clean. Food included. They know your name. Just show your ID. Sleep well."

Her heart kicked once, then again.

Mira Hotel. That was... that was the good one. The one with the quiet elevators and real mattresses.

She stared at the message, blinked a few times.

No emojis. No winks. Just instructions.

Something tugged at her throat.

She glanced down at the bags digging into her arms. Yeah, they were heavy, but for a split second, she didn't feel like an idiot for dragging them around. 

Parallax Heights sat high above the rest of the district, perched like a crown atop layers of glass and steel. 

Lit signage wrapped the building in soft purples and shifting neon golds, a constant shimmer against the night. 

Security bots rolled by in silence, scanning faces with blue halos. A chrome arch curved over the entrance, spelling out the hotel name in understated platinum glyphs. 

It wasn't the kind of place you passed through by accident.

Lina slowed to a stop the second they hit the marble-floored lobby. Her lips parted.

"Okay. Damn."

Sarra stood beside her, clutching her sleeve, eyes wide. Her voice came out small.

"This is... nice. Really nice."

Nash didn't say anything, just smiled and walked past them. He looked right at home. 

Suits nodded at him like he belonged, even though he was still in street clothes. The front desk clerk didn't flinch when he gave his name, just handed over the card key with a bow.

They rode up in a silent glass elevator, watching the city fall away beneath their feet. Sarra hugged herself, clearly overwhelmed. Lina leaned on the mirror, looking smug.

"So this is where you bring your groupies, huh?"

"Only the ones who win with me," Nash said.

[TRIGGER: Public Attention + Possessive Tease → Lina Goss: Lust +2%, Trust +2%]

Their suite was on the 29th floor. Twin double beds, velvet-backed chairs, floor-to-ceiling windows showing the whole skyline. 

Dim smart lighting painted everything in warm orange hues. In the corner, a wine fridge. The bathroom had a rainfall shower that looked like it could fit all three of them.

Lina dropped onto a bed with a satisfied sigh.

Sarra, meanwhile, didn't sit.

"Nash... this has to be crazy expensive. We didn't need this much."

He turned to her, voice quieting.

"It's not about needing. I don't have many friends. Not ones I trust. You both were there today. You made it better. This, it's just me saying thanks. So let me."

[TRIGGER: Gentle Praise + Emotional Safety → Sarra Ives: Affection +3%, Trust +3%]

She softened. Her shoulders relaxed, and a smile peeked out.

"You're... not what I expected. For a guy who breaks ankles for a living."

"You expected more flex, less care?"

"Pretty much. Still, just make sure you're not getting used, alright? You're kind, Nash. That's rare."

Before he could answer, something wet slapped him in the face.

He blinked. A twisted black tank top clung to his cheek like a dead jellyfish.

Lina stood near the fridge, holding a wine bottle in one hand, totally topless except for her sports bra.

"Are we seriously gonna keep making eyes and having emotional breakthroughs, or can we start the damn party?"

She tilted the bottle.

"Red or white?"

Nash peeled the cloth off his face, grinning with a slow burn.

A single vein popped on his temple.

"Alright, you little exhibitionist... Red."

[TRIGGER: Mutual Physical Tease → Lina Goss: Lust +3%, Affection +2%]