Chapter 26: CURTAINS

Sarah plopped down heavily on the couch. I pulled a wooden chair from the dinner table and sat down slightly to her left. She leaned forward first, resting both elbows on her thighs and tilting her head toward the ground with a heavy sigh. After a few silent seconds, she leaned back against the cushions.

"I know I’m being a total nuisance," she murmured. "But... I felt like I had no other choice."

"It’s totally fine. Really," I said. "Though, I honestly thought the man would be the one leaving the house when partners get into a fight. You know?"

"Hubert... isn’t exactly someone who does that." She gave a strained, awkward smile. "So, yeah. Here I am."

"Hmm."

A sharp, glowing notification cut into my vision.

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OPPORTUNITY DETECTED

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[SUGGESTED ACTION]

Talk about her drawings. The

indecent ones.

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COST: 20 Lust

EST. GAIN: ???

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I didn’t hesitate to spend the Lust. "So," I muttered, breaking the silence. "I didn’t know you drew those sort of... explicit things."

She cleared her throat quickly, a light blush touching her cheeks. "I... sometimes do. It’s just... I don’t know. A while ago, I thought I might try it out. And I just kept going."

"Honestly, I think you have a real talent. Not gonna lie," I said, keeping my voice entirely sincere. "I mean, those were some seriously high-quality drawings."

"No, they’re really not... but, thank you." She looked up, her eyes softening completely. "For... for being... um... for being there for me, Chance."

A soft chime sounded in my ear as the opportunity resolved, updating my balances with an easy ten EXP and ten SP.

We met eyes for a short, heavily charged moment. Then, she rubbed her face, trying to break the tension, and stood up. I watched her as she walked over to the small kitchenette and turned back toward me. She looked surprisingly determined now, less overwhelmed by sadness and more focused. Good for her, I suppose.

"Let me repay you by cooking something up," she offered. "I’m actually really good at that, if you can believe it."

I smiled self-deprecatingly. "My fridge is about as empty as my wallet right now. Sorry."

"Oh," she muttered, her shoulders dropping a bit. "Yeah... are you still giving all your spare money to your sister?"

"I... actually stopped doing that entirely," I said, letting a touch of firm resolve flavor my voice. "Yeah, she is my sister and all, but she was completely using me. I mean, I always knew she was using me deep down. But... guess I’ve finally had enough of it."

She nodded along, leaning her lower back against the kitchen counter and crossing her arms over her chest. "Good for you, Chance. Seriously. You didn’t deserve that kind of treatment from her anyway."

"Hmm. Thank you, Sarah."

She looked down at the floorboards, a soft, wistful sigh escaping her lips. "I just... I really wish my husband was more like you... understanding and easy-going."

That one simple sentence fired an instant shockwave of heat straight down to my crotch. Fucking hell. I didn’t even know I could get this violently aroused just by hearing a few targeted words. She was completely in my palm now. Right in my fucking palm. At this point, I was practically just playing with my prey before the slaughter.

Thank fuck for this system.

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TARGET: Sarah Angi

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[ RELATIONSHIP ]

> Partner: [Hubert]

> Loyalty: 11% [▼%4]

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[ SYSTEM SYNC ]

> Favor: 100% [!]

> Threat: None

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> GRIEVANCE LOG

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"Yeah," I muttered, clearing my throat as I looked at her. "I wish he just... cared about you."

She didn’t reply to that. The weight of the words hung in the air, and she simply pushed herself off the kitchen counter, walking quietly back into the living room to sit on the couch. Outside, the rain was becoming increasingly intense with each passing second, the heavy pattering against the glass getting louder as the silence inside the flat expanded.

"Think we should get some sleep," I said, breaking the quiet. "It’s been a tiring day, huh?"

She nodded weakly, looking down at her hands. "Yeah..."

"I’ll take the couch," I offered, gesturing to the cushions she was sitting on. "You can sleep in the bedroom."

"No, no. I can’t accept that," she said immediately, shaking her head. "I’ll take the couch. Please, Chance. I’m being enough of a nuisance as it is. There’s no need to kick yourself out of your own bed."

"Sarah, just..."

"We can share the bed." She peeked through the open doorway toward the bedroom and gave a small nod to herself. "I can take one side, you can take the other."

"It’s a single bed, Sarah. We really won’t fit."

"We can! Look at me, I’m small," she said with a soft chuckle, trying to lighten the mood. "I insist."

Well, I didn’t need the system to tell me to accept that deal. I gave her a seemingly reluctant, weak nod. I walked over and flicked off the living room lights, and we both moved toward the small bedroom.

Realistically, there was no way we’d easily fit on that mattress. But like she said, she was small, and I figured we could barely manage to lie down if we stayed completely still. Though, I had to admit, her suggesting we share the bed was a little unexpected. I fully thought she’d insist on the couch until the very end.

"I... brought my pajamas," she said shyly, clutching her backpack as we stood in the bedroom doorway. "Can I... change first?"

"Oh, sure." I took a step back into the dark hallway. "Pull the curtains while you’re at it, don’t forget that. And lock the door. Sometimes the latch doesn’t fully click in and it can drift open on its own."

"Yep." She nodded. "Thanks for letting me know."

"Hmm. Don’t forget the curtains."

"Yeah. Thank you."

As if I didn’t already take photos of you from that exact window.