Kitsune Boyfriend: Oriharu (special preview)

Oriharu snickers. “You call him Mr. Artie?” He shakes his head. “Sorry, he’s my brother so I can’t help but find it silly.”

“I call a lot of the others around here like that.” I fiddle with a piece of paper, twisting it around and distracting myself with it. “It’s just polite.”

“While you’re here, you’re family. No need with formalities.” Oriharu stretches out his legs and sighs in comfort.

“What made you leave then?” I ask.

Oriharu is quiet for a long pause before he closes his eyes and takes in a deep breath. “I’ve always been here,” he answers. “I grew up watching this carnival become what it is. When I was little, it was nothing more than a few tents held together by some dreams. Back then, when my Dad joined, he almost left because Mr. Faire wasn’t sure he wanted to add animals to the act.” He opens his eyes and looks up to the top of the tent.

“Back then, Artie and I had no human form and we were too young to hold a Glamour. We would have been a risk to the carnival. But Dad insisted, so Mr. Faire made an exception. Then as I grew up, even though we traveled the world, I had never seen it. In Japan, I came across my own kind and well…” He stops for a moment and stands up. He walks over to the stage, where he adjusts a bulb near the front.

“You don’t have to continue,” I speak up. “If it’s hard for you, that is.”

“I feel bad for leaving my family,” Oriharu grumbles. “I didn’t want them to stop calling me Ollie.” He frowns and turns back towards me. “Artie couldn’t say his R’s, so everyone called me Ollie.” He chuckles softly then places his hand over his jaw. He rubs his jawline then drops his hand back down to his side. “I thought I belonged somewhere else.”

I rise and go over to him. “I came out to my folks,” I start. “And they kicked me out. You have some idea of where home is. I never did.”

Oriharu looks up at me and he places his hand on my arm. “You belong here. You know that now, don’t you?”

I smile and drop my head. “Maybe I do. I don’t know. Once Bron gets back on her feet-”

“She’ll need you just as much. She won’t want to run this place alone once the babies come.” Oriharu’s fingers slip down my arm and he takes hold of my hand. “We won’t make you leave. We wouldn’t even ask that.”

I squeeze hold of his hand, still stunned by how soft his skin is. “Thanks,” I whisper.