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Love Addict's RPG Vol 2 Ch. 78

Here it finally is! As I've said, this took longer despite my ongoing recovery because I basically scrapped the entire chapter's progress halfway through and rewrote it. That and it's a huge 6.4k word chapter. I'm very happy with the direction it took and think there's a ton of great character beats in this one, being funny yet serious- but not too serious. It does mean I have to somewhat recontextualize a few things in the outline but it should be very easy to do. I'm thinking I'll cut Zoe's planned POV mini chapter since it doesn't make much sense anymore but might replace it with a very funny Rebecca one. We'll still keep Mia's walk though.

---

The living room's mood shifted enough that even Rebecca noticed. Heaviness hung in the air, and she didn't like it one bit. Everyone was so quiet, leaving her with no idea what might be going on in everyone's heads.

Should she say something or follow their lead and keep her mouth shut? Usually, she would've gone with the latter. That was just how she was, but Rebecca shared Oliver's opinion and believed today was amazing. Rebecca didn't want this to end. She wanted to keep playing with her friends- for everyone to keep smiling, rolling dice, and laughing at each other's jokes regardless of whether or not she understood them.

Someone had to do something about all the negativity, so why not her?

"That's great, Zoe!" Rebecca clasped her hands together and forced a smile. "I, uh, I bet that's a big load off your mind, huh?"

Zoe's eyes ping-ponged between the phone in her hands and Rebecca. "Yeah. Um. Something like that, I guess...?"

"Hey! This just means you can start playing 40th Space Reich: Kommandant Khronicles even sooner, right?"

"Uh-huh,"

"Remember that I really wanna be there when you stream it, so, um... make sure you tell me ahead of time whenever you think you can slot it in!"

"Will do," Zoe idly nodded.

"Um..." Rebecca felt a lump in her throat. She tried pushing more words out, but it wasn't working. Nothing was.

Lowering her head, Rebecca sunk into her cushiony seat as her big buck teeth chewed on her lower lip. It wasn't as good as chewing her nails, but she wouldn't allow herself to sink that low around other people.

She sighed, thinking, At least I tried...

Oliver and Mia exchanged worried glances, uncertain of how to proceed. This unexpected curveball was more than a little demoralizing. Just when it looked like they were getting through to Zoe, boom, plot twist. Talk about annoying- like losing a boss battle and realizing your last save was way back at the dungeon's entrance a few hours ago.

Then again, the two realized they might automatically be assuming the worst. Zoe expressed her desire to change and stream less. Did they really lose all their progress, or was this just a speed bump? They wouldn't know unless they talked it out.

Knowing the situation called for delicacy and not passive-aggressive barbs, Mia nudged Oliver's knee, signaling him to take the lead.

"So," he thumped his hands on the table, catching Zoe's attention. "What now?"

Startled, she almost dropped her phone. "Wha- shit, dude! Chill. I'll be done in a second. I'm just... going through all the comments I've been getting, that's all. Once I'm finished up, we can, um... keep playing."

"Are you sure? You seem... really distracted, and I think I speak for all of us when I say I'm a little worried."

"Uh-" Zoe looked up from her endless drip feed of dopamine and false love to see how her friends looked at her. Their concerns tore into her from all sides, guilt kicking her ass and kicking it hard. For a split second, her eyes fluttered back down to her phone. Things were simpler there. Easier.

But it wasn't real.

Zoe took a deep breath, turned off the display, and shoved her phone into her pocket.

"I'm good now," she sighed, meeting Oliver's gaze. "Appreciate the concern and all that, but really. It's cool. Won't lie and say I ain't on pins and fuckin' needles because of this, but I'm not gonna dip out on you guys. I do need to figure out what'll happen next, but that can wait until we've played another round."

The heavy atmosphere choking everyone somewhat lessened upon hearing her intentions, but Mia wasn't totally convinced. Pessimism dragged her down, no matter how much she wanted to believe.

"...You still plan on changing up your streaming schedule, sí? For the better?"

Even though the phone in her pocket was silent, it wouldn't stop calling Zoe's name. A bead of sweat dripped down her brow as her hand twitched, inching closer until she stopped herself through sheer willpower. She was burning through what little she had and fast.

"Y-Yeah. I am. I mean, I want to, for sure, but... gah, no- I'm tripping all over myself here. I still stand by everything I said. It's just-"

"You're terminally online?" Oliver suggested.

"Pretty fuckin' much... it's... hard for me to commit to anything when my brain is being pulled in two different directions, y'know?"

"Boy, I wish I didn't, but yeah. I do."

"So... what? This mean your answer's that you can't give me one?"

"Mia, I..."

"Her answer is that she really does want to stream less, but she can't kick this habit alone. Right?"

Zoe gave him a weary smile, thankful for the support.

[Zoe has gained +1 Affection! +1 Smooth Talker]

"Sounds about right, I... look, Mia. I've got a problem. There. I said it. I'm an attention whore who can't go more than a few fuckin' minutes without some kinda validation, and I'll be the first to admit I'm a total fuckin' bitch for letting it get this bad, but I did, and you know why I did, and-"

"Mommy and Daddy didn't love you enough, sí, sí, I know, perezosa, I-"

Mia froze as Zoe went silent, and Rebecca covered her mouth to stop herself from gasping. That damned boyfriend of hers was a bad influence. Now she was compulsively blurting out stupid shit she'd typically never say. It didn't matter how rightfully annoyed she was- she'd crossed a line.

Recognizing this as the minefield it was, Oliver kept quiet to see which way the wind blew.

"M-Mia..." Rebecca squeaked. "Y-You shouldn't have said that...!!"

"I know- shit. I know. I'm sorry, Zoe. I didn't mean to-"

"I know you didn't," Zoe sighed and nodded, mildly dejected. "It's fine. I deserve it, and it's not like it ain't the truth, so... whatever. All I was trying to say is that even though I'm totally having a fuckin' relapse, I'm still gonna attempt to power through at least one more game."

"And... after that...?"

"I'm probably gonna stream," Zoe looked away, guilt coloring her expression. "I know myself better than anyone, and I won't be able to hold back forever. Not now that it's back on the table."

"How long do you think you'll stream?" Oliver asked.

"Overnight, probably?"

"And you'll stop sometime tomorrow?"

"I... well, Mia's gonna be at her parent's place tomorrow, so-"

"I think you should stop sometime tomorrow," he reiterated.

"To do what, exactly...?" Zoe tried sounding open to the idea, but anyone could hear her wavering conviction.

Oliver didn't care, pushing forward.

"We'll figure something out. I didn't have anything planned for tomorrow, so maybe you and I can hang out alone together?"

"Uh-" Zoe looked away from him, suddenly feeling a little hot.

"Unless you wanted to join us, Rebecca?" Oliver added to be polite.

"H-Huh? Oh, no. I, um, I appreciate the offer, b-but I'm gonna need to de-stress from all the tension, honestly... I'd rather stay home and play games..."

"Fair enough. Just making sure you feel included." Oliver smiled at Rebecca, earning a much larger and more bashful one in return.

"You gonna ask for your girlfriend's permission to hang out alone with her hot friend at some point, mi amor?"

"Wasn't planning on it, no," he quipped with such purposeful nonchalance that it got Mia's cheeks burning. "But I promise we'll send you a pic if anything happens."

"W-What?!" Zoe burned even hotter.

"...Really, really not the time to be making jokes like that, mi amor," is what Mia said, but...

[Mia has gained +3 Affection! +2 Smooth Talker]

"I don't get it..." Rebecca mumbled, tilting her head. "What kind of thing might happen that you'd send a pic of...?"

"Nothing, that's what!" Zoe answered in a fit.

"So you're saying you don't want to hang out with me tomorrow?"

"No, that's- that's not what I said at all, I... gah- we can hang out or whatever, but you'll probably need to force me to stop streaming, and I'm gonna be mad at you if you do. I'll probably get over it, but I might not."

"But I do have your explicit permission to stop your stream?"

"Yeah, whatever, just... don't come in the room and don't open the door to yell at me. Last fuckin' thing my career needs is for my audience to find out there's a dude in my life."

"So there's a dude in your life, mn? News to me."

"Fuck off, you know what I fuckin' meant," Zoe gave up, slouching over the table. She barely managed to dredge her eyes up at Oliver long enough to say, "Figure it out, Olive. Unplug the router or some shit. Just remember-"

"You'll be pissed?"

"Extremely, so don't say I didn't warn you..."

"I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," he shrugged. "You about ready to kick things off?"

"In a sec. Gonna go piss first and grab another can while I'm at it-"

"Sure. Leave your phone before you go, though." Oliver suggested as she started getting up.

"Huh?"

"I'm saying you should leave your phone out here so you're not tempted to scroll through it while you're pissing rainbows,"

"...Yeah, okay. Makes sense." Zoe dug her phone out and slowly extended it toward the table. She paused before letting go, her eyes lingering on the display that had just finished lighting up with yet another notification. "Then again-"

"Drop the fucking phone, Bilbo. Shit's not a fucking magic ring." Mia sighed.

"Fuck- okay, okay," Zoe grumbled, forcibly dropped the phone, and then scampered back to the restroom to freshen up.

Rebecca was sitting there giggling to herself, prompting Oliver to ask, "What's so funny?"

"O-Oh, um, nothing, I just... I understood Mia's joke just now, I... uh..." she coughed. "A-Anyway, how are we feeling about Zoe's, um... situation?"

"Good question. Mia?"

"Miffed, maybe? Mn... sí, 'miffed' is good. Be more upset at the bitch if she wasn't so honest, but... hey, we got her to admit she's got a problem, mi amor. That's more progress than I ever could've dreamed of- and in only a few short days, too. Hard not to be a little happy at that."

"But...?"

"The timing is still a pretty big buzzkill," Mia admitted. "We were supposed to have a week to win her over, damn it. Between work and spending Thursday afternoon together, shit felt like barely a day and a half. Got myself all pumped up for today, too, and for a while everything was maravilloso, you know? Now, everything's just kinda... eh. Don't know about the two of you, but I almost think we should cut our losses and let her off for the night. Her heart's not gonna be in this next one, and neither is mine."

"I-I'm sorry it turned out like this, Mia..." Rebecca frowned. "If you don't want to play again, that's, um... d-disappointing but totally understandable-"

"We're playing again," Oliver said, gathering his confidence. "We have to."

Mia didn't sound convinced. "We do, do we?"

Dialing it back a bit, he scratched the back of his head and dished out a tired smile. "Sorry. Didn't mean to get so melodramatic there. I'm just thinking to myself. Still, though. Zoe's trying really hard to push herself out of her comfort zone. I know you're upset, but turning her down would be like, the worst thing we could do right now. It's gonna suck- and none of us are gonna have fun- but we should play the game anyway, if only to keep her out of her room for a little while longer."

"Damn you," Mia's head lazily lolled back with a lengthy sigh. "You're right, you're right. Don't listen to me. I'm just tired- tired and pessimistic as shit when it comes to Zoe."

Oliver took Mia's hand and gave it a supportive squeeze. "It's all good. The way you're feeling is perfectly valid, so if you don't have it in you to stay positive, all I ask is that you leave it to me."

"...Gotta say that this determined, unflinching optimism sounds drastically out of character coming from the mouth of my sad, sheltered little white boy. Where's this coming from, mn?"

"Well, if you must know, I...  may know a thing or two about breaking through to a social recluse than I'd care to admit..."

"...Ah. I'd say you should've said so sooner, but-"

"Yeah," Oliver shrugged and looked away. Now she was squeezing his hand. "It's not something I was in a hurry to open up about. Even now, I'd rather not get into the nitty gritty and would prefer if you just trusted me when I tell you we have to keep engaging with Zoe no matter how awkward it might get. Sound good?"

Mia allowed him to drop the subject after stating her approval, giving him a supportive smile to go along with it.

Rebecca also wanted to say something comforting but had no clue how to go about it. That, and she felt it wasn't entirely her place to do so. Fourth wheel, and all that. Instead, she spat out something that stuck out to her which she'd wanted to correct.

"You're um... you're wrong about one thing, soldier..."

"I am?"

"Y-Yes. Sorry, it's just that- ah- a second ago when you said that it's gonna suck and that none of us are gonna have fun- I, um, I just wanted you to know that it doesn't matter if no one else's heart is in the next game because I'll still be having fun!" Rebecca clenched her fists in solid determination, finding the courage to stare him dead-on.

Seeing the awkward nerd acting so cute and resolute prompted a smirk from Oliver. Acting on impulse, he started patting her on the head.

"Of course you will be," he laughed, thinking nothing of it. He only realized what he was doing when Rebecca reflexively dodged the third head pat like she was throwing herself on top of a grenade.

"Ah! N-No!"

Mia shook her head, smiling as Oliver grew increasingly flustered trying to explain himself. "Oh, shit- s-sorry, Rebecca! I, um, I didn't mean to just reach out and casually touch you like that! That was totally inappropriate of me, it's just that I- uh... no, no I shouldn't say I couldn't control myself because you were so... y-yeah, no, that's not an excuse. That's just plain rapey, I-"

"R-R-Rapey?!"

Oliver was redder than ever, even more than he got when messing around with Mia. Accidentally making the precious, innocent little space Nazi enthusiast parrot the word 'rapey' filled him with a previously unthinkable amount of shame. He looked to Mia for support, finding nothing but her teasing grin.

"Couldn't control yourself, mn?"

"No, she's like some sort of small defenseless little animal-" he slumped his shoulders in defeat, whispering to his girlfriend as Rebecca continued shivering a foot away. "She makes me wanna reach out, comfort her, and tell her everything's gonna be okay!"

Mia eyed him up and down. "Relateable," she reached out, ran her fingers through his hair, and smirked. "Everything's gonna be okay, mi amor. Everything's gonna be okay."

[Mia has gained +3 Affection!]

Oliver grumbled internally, both happy and flustered that Mia found him so cute that it raised her affection. It made him make a mental note to look into whether or not there was a love skill related to that- it seemed to happen pretty often.

Great as the attention was, he pulled himself away to focus back on the trembling nerd girl he'd sent into a panic. "Rebecca? Are you-"

"F-Fine, I'm... I'm fine..." she finally managed to pull herself upright after taking a deep breath. "I... I don't do well when people t-touch me, p-people I don't know very well, I mean! Especially not b-boys... but you need to know that it's not you, it's me! Heck, I actually liked it! A lot! I... said that part out loud... didn't I...?"

"Sí, but that's okay. Don't gotta be stressing yourself out over a slip of the tongue, you silly, silly girl. At any rate, mi amor will endeavor to be more careful in the future, won't you?"

"Y-Yes, absolutely! One hundred percent. Sorry again, Rebecca. Really. It won't happen again."

Rebecca slowly inched herself back to her seat, now somehow even more conscious of her proximity to Oliver than before. "Y-You didn't listen to me," she mumbled. "I said it only happened because I don't know you very well yet. T-That, um, doesn't mean I wouldn't mind you touching me in the future..."

There wasn't a shred of lewdness attached to Rebecca's statement whatsoever. It was so earnestly pure that Oliver felt like a vampire standing before a cross, rendering him unable to respond in any way but a respectful nod.

"Phrasing,"

"Huh?"

"Nothing, mi amiga," Mia sighed. "Nothing at all..."

The bathroom door suddenly opened and out came Zoe, who then wandered toward the fridge to grab a fresh can of caffeinated sludge.

"Heard Becca shouting 'rapey' a minute ago. Did I miss out on Olive being a fuckin' creep, or what?"

"You most certainly did not," Oliver sounded off. "I just..."

"Just?"

He spent a couple seconds thinking about it but couldn't think of a way to say 'I compulsively felt the need to reach out and touch Rebecca because she was being adorable' without playing into Zoe's hands. His forehead met his face, prompting Zoe to smirk.

"I-It's okay-" Rebecca burned brightly but clenched her fists regardless, forcing herself to say in his defense, "I was just surprised, b-but I liked it! A lot!"

Zoe cracked open her can, eyed Mia, and then Rebecca. She took a sip. "Of course you did, sweetie," lazily plopping back onto her beanbag chair, Zoe asked, "Everyone ready for game four?"

"As I'll ever be," Mia shrugged, trying and failing to dredge up some enthusiasm. "And how about you, mn? Looks like you're positively raring to go..." she said, referring to Zoe instantly reaching out to snatch up her phone.

"Gah- shit-" Zoe stopped herself short. She'd washed her face while she was away, but sweat was already starting to grease up her brow again. Instead of picking it up, she slid the phone over to Mia. "Hold onto that for me, would you?"

Mia did so, sitting the phone on the ground by her thigh, then moved the conversation forward, urging everyone to help set the board up and pick their shit. What followed was easily the worst board game experience Oliver had ever had in his brief history of having them.

Mia and Zoe both didn't want to be there and no matter how much they tried forcing it, neither could sell the obvious lie.

Zoe was a sweaty mess the entire time, her eyes constantly darting to where Mia hid her phone or toward her door. Her attention span was well and thoroughly fucked. She had to be reminded of when it was her turn, when to roll the dice, and of basic mechanics she herself had memorized to teach the group.

On the other hand, Mia couldn't pretend to give a damn. She was bored. Bored, and frustrated. She put in the bare minimum amount of effort to move the game along, and not an ounce more.

Oliver wasn't into it, either, but he had enough motivation to act like he was, if only to keep Zoe engaged. He basically started acting as her keeper, calling out to her, focusing her, and making sure there was always something resembling a conversation going on at any given moment. As a socially inept dude with more than mild anxiety, this was hell, plain and simple, but at least he wasn't trudging through it alone.

True to her word, Rebecca still somehow had the time of her life. That's not to say the mood was lost on her. She was just so happy to be playing a game with her friends that her mental armor could block it out as long as they were still rolling dice.

She helped Oliver's attempts at conversation, responding when appropriate and even trying to get something out of Zoe and Mia every now and then by herself, but in the end, she won the game so hard that she couldn't even purposefully throw it again evennn if she wanted to.

"Nice one, Rebecca!" Oliver said with a poor facsimile of gusto. "You really nailed it by the end, there. No one else even came close."

"Ah, um, ahaha... yeah, I had some pretty good rolls, I guess...?"

Mia and Zoe mumbled something or other in celebration, too, but it all sounded like indeterminate gibberish. Mia looked like a depressed, dried-out slug, and Zoe looked like you'd find her tweaking out in the nearest dark alley.

Needless to say, Oliver hadn't earned any affection over the last hour and a half.

"So... how are you two holding up? You guys still human, or-"

"Mn. Suppose so? If only by definition..."

"Cool, very reassuring thing to hear. And what abou-" Oliver stopped to watch Zoe comically contort her much bigger body around Mia's to grab her phone. "...Zoe?"

"Huh?" She jolted upright- but only after her target had been safely secured. "Shit, sorry, yeah. Doing great, Olive. Real fuckin' great- no joke. Never better, I- holy shitballs, that's a lot of messages!!"

Oliver and Rebecca exchanged worried looks. It felt odd doing this with someone other than Mia, but Rebecca shared his concerns now that she'd snapped out of her fantasy world where she and all her friends were having fun together and everything was rainbows and unicorns.

Sucking it up, Oliver reached across the table to block Zoe's phone with his hand.

"Gah- h-hey, what the shit, dude?"

[Zoe has lost -1 Affection!]

Yeah, can't say I didn't expect that one...

"Sorry, Zoe. Had to grab your attention somehow- I wanted a quick word before you head back to your room for the night."

"Sure, whatever, uh... as long as it really is a quick one. I'm like... not even here right now, Olive."

"Noticed that, yeah. Just making sure you remember that I'll be cutting off your stream at some point tomorrow so we can hang out."

"There's like... a zero percent chance I'm gonna remember that, bro. I told you I'm gonna be pissed when it happens."

"But I do still have your permission?"

Zoe visibly fought against herself internally for a couple seconds. A war waged in her mind- the correct answer winning only by a slim margin. She managed to nod a couple of times, which was the best she could do.

"...Okay, cool. You're dismis-"

He didn't even finish his sentence before Zoe scrambled back to her room. Mia might've been onto something- that shit really did look like it was straight out of The Exorcist. Forget her spiritual connection to sloths. That chick could move.

Rebecca hung her head. "She didn't even say goodbye to me..."

Oliver's heart went out to the poor girl, whom he was somehow expected not to reach out and smother with head pats.

"Try not to hold it against her. I'm not saying you need to forgive her, but-"

"N-No, I understand... I know Zoe has a problem, and I know that she's having a relapse, but t-that doesn't mean I... um... ah, well... at least she made it through the game?"

"Yeah. We should be proud of her for that much." The two shared a small smile before inevitably turning their attention toward the deflated echo of what used to be Mia. Taking the initiative, Oliver scooted up from behind and scooped her onto his lap. She didn't resist, not even as he gently shook her shoulder.

"Kitten?"

"Is not here right now. There is only husk girlfriend- the girlfriend that is also a husk."

"Doing that bad, huh?"

"Eh. Wouldn't say I'm doing bad. Just... emotionally exhausted. Thinking I need some time to myself tonight if you don't mind. Might go for a walk. Clear my head, then fog it up with a gummy or two."

"That's cool, but you know we could always-"

"Points for consistency, but I'm still not ready to get high with you, mi amor. Saw me drunk yesterday. It's like that, but, mn... a lot worse... sí?"

"So, what, you get even more clingy?"

"Among other things..."

Oliver suddenly noticed Rebecca shifting around in her seat, her face beet-red. She stared at the ground when she caught him looking and mumbled, "S-She's not kidding, you know. There, um, there was this one time when I came over without knowing Mia was already high, and, um... o-oh, I can't even say it!!"

"Becca! Already apologized for that like a billion times- you don't gotta go telling him about-" she stopped, feeling something pressing against her from below. Husk girlfriend looked back at horny boyfriend, finding him only somewhat ashamed. "...Really?"

"Yes, really," Oliver shrugged. "I mean, if the implication isn't that you groped your friend while you were high, I'll happily rescind my reaction, but if it is, then I believe this response is fully warranted and came about through no fault of my own."

"W-What response...?"

"Nothing you need to worry about," Mia sighed, accepting her seat on the boner throne. "Mi amor is just easily excitable, and his silly, silly head's running wild with the knowledge that I got so horny when I was high one time that I felt up one of my friends a little..."

"It..." Rebecca paused, memories flashing before her eyes like a shell-shocked soldier returning to a life of peace. She gulped. Then, she adopted a nearly imperceptible smile while whispering to herself, "Was a lot more than a little..."

It was a good thing Oliver hadn't heard that. Things were already hard enough for him, and that would've kicked him over the edge. Instead, he calmed himself down as much as possible before pushing forward.

"Oooookay. Putting that aside, what now? Are you kicking us out?"

"Guess so," Mia frowned. "Sorry, Becca. Just not in the mood to entertain guests anymore. Or boyfriends."

"Oh, it's okay. It's, um, it's not like we didn't just spend eight hours together, ahaha... and hey, I can still fit in some games tonight if I go home now, so that's a win for me, r-right?" Rebecca got out her phone, the case of which was designed to look like the back of a Sorcery the Consumption card. It was 7:30- plenty of time, indeed. "I'll just call a c-c-cab so that I don't bother my dad..."

Mia nudged Oliver's thigh as if he needed the cue. He didn't and was going to volunteer himself regardless since the mere notion of calling a cab seemed like it was gonna give the poor girl a panic attack.

"Why waste your money on a cab when you've got so many expensive hobbies to support? I can take you home."

[Mia has gained +1 Affection!]

Rebecca looked up at him, baffled. The thought hadn't even crossed her mind. Now that it was in there, though, it shook her up something fierce. "W-W-What? N-No! I- I couldn't- I mean, I don't want to trouble you-"

"I wouldn't be troubled at all. Really."

"B-But, um, M-Mia would-"

"Feel a lot better knowing my boyfriend is driving my good friend home instead of some shady cab driver? Sí, Becca. I would indeed."

Rebecca's eyes ping-ponged between her two friends, gears spinning in her mind as she tried devising some excuse to escape it. After a few seconds of this awkward hell, her train of thought reached a point where she asked herself why. It wasn't like she was against saving money or didn't want to be alone with Oliver.

Ultimately, her token resistance cracked under pressure, and Rebecca nervously accepted Oliver's offer. She headed to the restroom after they helped pack up her game, giving Oliver and Mia a brief moment alone before his departure.

"You sure you're gonna be alright tonight by yourself, kitten?"

"Reckon I'll manage, sí. I get moody, mi amor. Just cause I'm clingy doesn't mean I won't want to be alone occasionally."

"No, no, I get that. I'm more worried over how you're feeling about Zoe."

"Mn. Currently? Equal parts happy to see her actually trying for once in her life and frustrated at the rug getting pulled out from under our feet. Gives me whiplash, Ollie, and I get pissy when I get whiplash."

"Oh, trust me. I remember." Oliver laughed. "Just... do me a favor and try not to feel like this is the end of the world, Mia. Sure, the goalposts were shifted a little, but they're not so far off that we can't still see them in the distance. Zoe's making an honest effort, and no matter how much she yells at me, I'll do my best tomorrow to keep breaking through to her while you're hanging out with your family. Okay? I promised you I would fix things, and-"

Mia smiled at that, then went quiet. She rubbed her right wrist. "Don't gotta keep pretending you're doing this solely for my benefit, mi amor. I know it's for you just as much as for me."

"Anyone can tell you like Zoe a whole hell of a lot, but it's not just that you're crushing on her, is it? Mn?"

After a long silence and a more prolonged sigh, Oliver confessed, "No. No, it's not, but it's not that I'm doing it explicitly for myself, either. I'm doing it for Zoe because I know what it's like to shut yourself off from the world, plug your brain into the internet, and piss your fucking life away. I wasn't sure what to think about her at first, sure, but now that I know her well enough to understand she cares the world for Rebecca and you and it's just that her brain got fucked up somewhere along the way? I... Mia, I can't even look at Zoe when she's struggling without every last cell in my body screaming 'you have to help her' on an endless goddamn loop, I-"

Mia closed the distance between them, shushing Oliver by pulling him into a bear hug. The weak girl squeezed and squeezed, burying her face in his chest with all the love she could muster.

[Mia has gained +10 Affection! +3 Smooth Talker]

"Silencio, mi amor. Getting all worked up when you still gotta drive Becca home."

"Ah... um... s-sorry, I-"

"Nuh-uh. Don't you fucking apologize for spilling your heart out to me, ese. Normalize that shit and be better. Got it?"

Oliver pulled away from the hug long enough to stare into the eyes of his precious girlfriend, addicted to the way she made him feel. "...Yeah. I got it."

Mia narrowed her eyes, testing his resolve. When he refused to back down and even managed to shoot her a reluctant smile, she returned to nuzzling his chest before throwing him a curveball.

"Take Becca out for dinner before you drop her off,"

"And... that came from... where exactly?"

"Came from me thinking that just because I'm feeling pissy doesn't mean you don't still deserve to have some fun with a cute girl tonight, mi amor. Wager she'll wriggle and squirm at first if you bring it up, but she'll fold if you're insistent."

"Wow. That was quite possibly the worst way you could've put that."

"Oh, shush. You know how Becca is by now. Can't even accept a ride home unless we put her under some pressure. Just... do me a favor and ask, okay? And then do me another by asking again when she says no."

"Why not just suggest it yourself if you're so insistent? Bring it up before we take off."

"Defeats the purpose, silly. It'll mean more coming from you."

"If you say so. I'm still not sure I'm comfortable forcing her to do something she doesn't want to, but-"

"Ollie, she's not a child. If she doesn't want to do something, you'd know. Idling, shifting around, and avoiding eye contact is Rebecca for 'yes, I would very much like that, but I'm too nervous I'd somehow trouble you by admitting it'. Asking you to trust that I know my friend of seven years well enough to know she'd love the chance to-"

"Okay, okay! I get it. You don't need to keep sounding off on me like that." Oliver laughed.

"You know I'm pissy right now," Mia ended the hug, folding her arms and pouting. "So you'll ask?"

"I will ask,"

"And when she says no?"

"I will trust your judgment and ask her again while trying not to feel like a creepy alpha male dudebro who automatically assumes 'no' means 'yes',"

[Mia has gained +1 Affection! +1 Smooth Talker]

"Muy bien," Mia smiled, grabbing Oliver by his collar and surprising him by initiating a kiss on her own. She felt slightly overly protective after he'd revealed his power level a second ago by hinting at his tragic backstory. Her lips and tongue showered him in love, putting so much passion into it that it left him breathless and unable to respond for several seconds after she pulled away.

"...Too much?"

"So, do I, like, have to leave, or-"

Rebecca came out of the bathroom wearing a frazzled expression. "S-Sorry I took so long! I was, um, I-I was going through my emails, and I noticed there was a newsletter about some upcoming units that just got revealed earlier today, and I- ah... um... got... distracted... ahaha..."

"All good, Becca. Ollie was just getting ready to go and start the car. Weren't you, mi amor?"

"Indeed I was," he sighed longingly but smiled quick enough afterward for Rebecca not to catch on. "Ready when you are."

After the two girls shared a hug goodbye and Oliver convinced Rebecca to allow him to carry her heavy-ass backpack, the two were on their way. She slouched the second they left, looking smaller than ever and letting out a small yawn.

"Long day, huh?"

"I- um... y-yeah... it was a good one, though! Mostly, I mean. Aside from the drama."

"That fucking temp ban just had to go and get lifted at the worst possible time, didn't it...?"

"No, the worst possible time would've been, um, this morning right after I got there, d-don't you think?"

"On second thought, you're right. That would've sucked." Oliver nodded, holding open the door for her as they left the building and started toward the parking lot. He pointed out his car to her, and they started walking toward it. Opening the back seat, Oliver dropped Rebecca's bag off and watched as she entered from the opposite side.

"You can sit up front with me if you want. Don't gotta hide away in the back."

"Ah- um, t-thank you, b-but... I'm... still a little nervous about... you know... so... I think I'll stay back here f-for now. Please don't take that the wrong way, though!"

"That's cool, just offering," he gave her a gentle smile while doubting Mia's plan. He couldn't imagine her agreeing to get dinner together if Rebecca was still so anxious about being near him. Still, he promised he'd ask.

Ignoring his fast travel menu and getting in the driver's seat, Oliver turned to face her and threw it out there.

"By the way, are you hungry?"

"...Huh?" Rebecca blinked blankly. "Um, yeah. Quite a lot. W-Why do you ask?"

Oliver got a little nervous at her initial reaction, but you couldn't say he wasn't improving. He pushed past his anxiety, doing his best to project friendly vibes instead of creepy ones.

"Oh, no reason. Just thought I'd offer to grab dinner somewhere on our way to your place if you wanted? My treat."

He watched in real-time as the gears in Rebecca's head jammed in place. She heated up, idled, shifted in her seat, and avoided eye contact. "I- ahhhh... don't... know about that..." she bit her lower lip. "I am pretty hungry, b-but... I don't want to trouble you, a-and-"

"I wouldn't be troubled at all, Rebecca. Your dad went out of his way to feed me this morning, so I can't in good conscience bring back his daughter without..." Oliver paused, blushing after catching himself.

"W-Without...?"

"Nothing, I just... nearly slipped and almost said 'without filling her up' before I realized how bad that would sound..."

"I, um... I don't get it..."

"Don't worry about it, not a big deal," he sighed, relieved. "Offer still stands. I don't know about you, but I'm pretty stressed out after that whole mess and would love to stop, sit down, and unwind somewhere for a bit- just you and me."

Silly thoughts flooded Rebecca's mind. She didn't think hanging out alone with her friend's boyfriend was very appropriate, but he was nice. Really nice.

Her biggest weakness.

She thought about it a little more and concluded that it probably wouldn't be a big deal. There didn't exist a single world in the entire multiverse where this cute boy would show any kind of romantic interest in her, and it wasn't like she was about to steal him away from Mia with her good looks or charming personality any time soon, either. So long as she kept her expectations in check, what was the harm in saying yes?

"Well... I, um, I guess that would be okay... b-but... can I ask something a little... strange?"

"Uh, sure?"

"This is mostly a rhetorical question. I- ah- already imagine I know the answer because my impression of you is that you're a really, really nice guy, b-but my nerves won't settle down unless I hear you actually tell me 'no'."

Oliver took this much more seriously knowing that easing the poor girl's anxiety was the line, telling her, "Okay. Take your time and lay it on me as soon as you're ready."

Rebecca nodded, sucked in a deep breath, and asked, "It's just, um, there's somewhere specific I'd like to go, but... you wouldn't judge me if it was a little... childish... would you...?"

***

Stat Changes

Mia Rosas | Status: Girlfriend | 92/300 | ❤❤❤♡♡

Zoe Myers | Status: Friend | 83/100 | ♡♡♡♡♡

Chapter Tomorrow

I thought for sure it’d be done today but it’s not happening. The chapter is longer than I expected, currently at 6k words and still needs another few hundred but I’m at the point where my drive is burnt up even though I’m right at the end essentially. My recovery is going well but I still don’t really have the focus to work at night yet, but my days are a lot more productive at least. I suspect I need to be on the medicine for a while again before I get that back. Either way I’m happy for doing 3.5k words today and am going to relax now.

Stacy Mirror Selfie Pinup

Gift from Milly! I saw this sort of thing was a trend a while back and thought it was a good fit for Stacy. It turned out really good!

And so has the next chapter so far. It’s very far along right now- I might finish it tonight but idk yet. Need to take a break first and see how I feel since I’ve been writing for like 4 hours straight thus far. I’m very happy with the new direction and I think you all will be, too.

Art by https://www.reddit.com/u/Teinokami/s/EAJenqjL3G

Mood Improvement

This is like day five of being back on the medicine I believe and I’m starting to feel significantly more like a human again and not a shambling pile of headaches and attention span issues. I’m not going to preemptively say I’m better before I see how things go but I’m feeling well enough to try and get some work done. Just thought I’d let you all know.

Don’t read this next part if yo haven’t read the outline/don’t want spoilers as I’m going to talk about my current thoughts on the next chapter.

I’ve been thinking on it and I believe I’m going to significantly tone down the incident from what was planned. I just think it’s too much melodrama if Mia is yelling at Zoe and Rebecca ends up crying, and I can get the same results without meandering in angst. Zoe will show more resistance and instead of yelling I think it will be better if Mia just gets dejected and dismisses her. Everything else would still be as planned and I’m not saying Mia won’t still stand up for herself, I just want to dial it back a lot from the big breakdown it was in the outline where it just totally ruins everyone’s day.

We’ll see how things go.

Zoe Pajama Pants Pinup

Gift from Milly! More from the new artist I found, I would say more about it but I’m currently feeling quite sick. Sleep shenanigans left me with a sore throat all day and I’m just laying around today doing nothing. I love how this came out though!

Art by - https://www.reddit.com/u/R1cklin/s/GL1BjWc0L3

Mia Exhibitionist Pinup

Gift from Milly! Was very, very, very excited for this one and I think you can all see why. Like, damn. I don’t even have much to say, it’s just that good. The artist threw in the cat alt and it’s very cute lol.

Still enjoying a break today. The good news is that I can 100% for sure say I feel the pill doing its job as opposed to before but it’ll probably need a few more days to really settle down. I’m still feeling a mild headache pretty much the entire day but unlike before I’m starting to feel focus returning.

Art by https://www.reddit.com/u/Veronik_OwO/s/6awkD9lFku

Zoe and Mia Smothering Oliver Pinup

Gift from Milly, happy birthday to Milly as well! Wanted this pose for a while now and I’m happy to get it haha. It came out very cute!

Art by https://www.reddit.com/user/nyansteria/

Stacy Nightgown Pinup

Gift from HN! The artist was sick and it took a little bit longer than usual but wonderful work as always. Stacy hasn’t been a big factor this book but I have some plans to work her in a little more after a bit but it’ll still be a while.

Art by https://twitter.com/38jxL

Taking Minor Break

Hey, just touching base. My mental shit is still a little fucked- I found out that the anti depressants I went back on were expired and so I’ve only ‘actually’ been back on them for two days now after getting a fresh bottle and I keep trying to write and nothing comes out so I’m going to relax on and off for a few days and see how I adjust to this. Not sure when the next chapter will be. I’ve started it but as I said it hasn’t gone well.

Some good news is that I just approved of the final audiobook stuff and assuming they get everything set up right away tomorrow then it will be available in roughly three weeks after it’s submitted, so I hope you’re all looking forward to that.

Mia Displaying Panties Pinup

Gift from Milly, although this one is slightly for herself lol. It’s her birthday tomorrow so we orchestrated a more foot centric one as that is Milly’s thing. At least it’s not distractingly foot fetish lmao, and I really, really like this artist and the final piece itself so expect to see more of them!

Art by - https://www.reddit.com/u/R1cklin/s/GL1BjWc0L3

Mia Cock Worship Pinup

Gift from Milly! Been waiting on this one for a while, but the artist had some national holidays. Extremely worth the wait, though, goddamn. Love it so much.

Art by https://www.reddit.com/u/Teinokami/s/EAJenqjL3G

Love Addict's RPG Vol. 2 Ch. 77

Not much to say this time, pretty straightforward chapter and I'm eager to see how the upcoming stuff turns out.

---

Rebecca's plan to keep Zoe entertained was simple. Instead of playing a video game, they’d do the next best thing. In her hands was a copy of Eternalus Souls: The Official Board Game, which sparked the gamer's interest as soon as she saw it. The dark fantasy action RPG series was one of her favorites, and from what Oliver knew about Rebecca’s interests, it made sense that she was also a fan.

After getting more cushions, everyone huddled around the coffee table as Rebecca unpacked the box's contents. There were dice, tokens, cards, the board itself, an instruction manual the size of a novella, and so much more. What captured Oliver's interest most were the dozens of little figurines depicting recognizable characters, monsters, and bosses from the game.

They appeared hand-painted, inspiring Oliver to pick one up and ask, "Did you paint these, Rebecca?"

"Huh? O-Oh, yes! Yes, I did all of these," she smiled, then preempted any praise. "It's, um, it's not a big deal..."

"Well, I think it's a pretty big deal. Some of them look like they stepped right out of the TV."

Mia picked up a figurine of a cleric, turning it around to better inspect it. She squinted her eyes at a blue gemstone atop the character's staff. It was roughly the size of a grain of rice, maybe smaller, and you could almost mistake it for real.

"I'll never understand how you get all the little details..." she mused.

"Practice. Practice and, um, magnifying goggles... ahaha..."

"How recent are these?" Zoe asked while admiring a well-painted hydra with glimmering scales.

"I, ah... I finished the last of them a month and two days ago. W-Why?"

"Just feels like you've stepped up your game every time I see your work, that's all! I swear, you should really be posting this shit online. Get a Xitter or something! I could teach you how to tag things and shit so your posts get a ton of reach, on top of promoting you myself, obviously, and-"

Rebecca laughed at the notion, her cheeks overheating from all the attention. "Oh, no. No, I would never! I'm not that good of a painter. You guys should know that. You've seen my dad's stuff, and my grandpa's even better than him! Well, I guess Oliver didn't know that, b-but, um, trust me. I'm nothing impressive."

"Yeah, no, I'm not buying it. It doesn't matter if you're not the best of the best. This is still something you should be proud of! I can't imagine myself ever getting half this good, Rebecca." Not without buying painting skills, which Oliver would never do for the same reason he refused to touch Drawing Lv. 1. He didn't like the idea of devaluing the hard work and effort of someone he cared about.

Rebecca responded to this previously unknown level of praise by picking up the game's manual, opening it up, and burrowing her face in it. Her big, dull eyes were barely visible as they peeked out from behind its cover. "T-Thank you, that's... um... very nice of you to say, but, ah... w-we should really get a move on. There's a lot of rules to cover before we can start, and-"

Zoe's phone vibrated on the table, everyone's eyes suddenly focusing on her.

"Whoops. Sorry, I guess that'll probably get a little distracting after a while... hold on..."

While Zoe was genuinely interested in trying out the game Rebecca brought explicitly to appeal to her, disengaging with the net wasn't easy. Not even after deciding she might want to. She thought setting her phone on vibrate would be a good compromise, but she changed her mind and made it so that the screen would light up whenever she got a new notification.

That way, her phone wouldn't annoy everyone around her, and she would still get her constant drip feed of attention from knowing people were talking about her. It wasn't as good as turning her phone off altogether, but it was the best she could currently manage.

"You were saying?"

Rebecca started talking about the rules in greater detail. The good news was that the book was so damn big because there was lots of art, while the bad news was that she wasn't a very good explainer. Zoe's prodigious ability to absorb game knowledge came in handy once it turned out it applied to board games as well, though. After flipping through the book on her own, she spelled things out in a way Oliver and Mia could actually follow along with.

They still had to break out a video tutorial on a few occasions. Rebecca claimed this was all part of the process, joking that any board game you didn't have to watch at least three videos to understand wasn't worth playing.

It wasn't that bad once Oliver got it.

Players started on one of the map's corners and were free to venture around the board as they liked, collecting weapons and spells and defeating bosses to level up their character, and like the game it was based on, you were expected to die. A lot. Each death prompted an event card, adding new monsters or resources to the map until a winner was crowned upon defeating Archalonde, King of Oblivion's End, who awaited all comers at the board's center.

After verifying everyone was on the same page, Oliver and the girls picked their characters and began what quickly proved an addicting experience. His exposure to board games started and ended where most people's did. He occasionally played Monopoly with his parents while growing up, and that was it.

This was all a brand-new world to him, and it turned out to be one he liked.

The ups and downs of rolling the dice, drawing cards, and making strategic decisions while competing against his friends were good fun. Mia acted smug when pulling ahead, then became pouty when the shoe was on the other foot. Zoe stayed calm and aloof, though she always had a plan in mind and a wicked smile. Rebecca was sweet as could be, helpfully reiterating the rules while taking the tiniest steps toward securing her victory.

Despite the brutal source material, Eternalus Souls: The Official Board Game was a walk in the park compared to Dokadon Empire. Oliver burned through his afternoon playing it. Zoe took the first game- a mix of strategy, good dice rolls, and undercutting the competition helping her thief to the finish line. Mia took the second by steadily accruing power in the early game and then going all out in the final stretch in a blaze of glory, her mage incinerating the big boss with a fireball.

Given that each game took roughly ninety minutes to trudge through, you think they'd get bored after a while. But they didn't. They were near the end of their third game now, and his idle comments throughout the last five and a half hours had earned him some affection from the ladies.

[Mia has gained +17 Affection!]

[Zoe has gained +14 Affection!]

Solid progress on both fronts, even if Mia still had a long way to go. Zoe, though? Seventy-seven out of a hundred was something to be excited about.

Things were ramping up not only with his heroines but also with the game. Bad rolls had left Mia and Zoe lagging, leaving Rebecca as the only remaining threat in the way of Oliver's victory. She was close- real close.

"Come on, Becca. You can kick his ass if you go straight for Archalonde right now!" Zoe advised.

"I, um, I don't know... it could go either way. My stats may not be high enough to survive."

"Won't know if you don't try," Mia added. "Think you should go for it. Otherwise, mi amor's got this in the bag."

"So nice to see I have everyone's love and support," Oliver shrugged.

"Hey, girls gotta help each other out!" Zoe barked back, then took the last sip of her Gamer Gulpies.

"Side note, but I can't believe you've only had two of those this entire time we've been playing. How are you still functioning?" He asked.

"Poorly," she grumbled. "Guess that's what I get for trying to pace myself, but whatever... so are you-" Zoe's attention span failed her as her phone's screen lit up again. It'd been doing that every few seconds for the last several minutes, but she hadn't inspected any of the notifications she was getting.

"You gonna check that, or what?" Mia asked. "It's starting to tick me off, perezosa."

"I'm trying to ignore it, but yeah, I'll give it a look after we finish up... speaking of, you make up your mind yet?"

"Y-Yes," Rebecca said, moving her piece across the board not towards Archalonde but a weaker boss monster. "After I defeat this Medusaloid, I should be at a high enough level to ensure victory, and also, if I'm really lucky, I'll roll the Medusaloid Head from the drop table and, um, t-that would make things even easier!"

"You sure?" Oliver frowned. After his string of defeats, he was desperate for a win, but he'd feel bad about one-upping Rebecca to get there. She was just too sweet.

Rebecca hesitated, briefly looking up at him through her visor. She gulped, nodded, and then committed to her final gambit. She beat the Medusaloid and even got its head. Sadly, it was too late to make a difference. Oliver went directly to Archalonde the moment it was his turn. The boss battle was fierce, but Oliver's swordsman had everything it took to topple the titanic tyrant.

Victory felt as hollow as he expected.

"Why didn't you just go for it, Rebecca?" Oliver wondered, helping everyone clear the board.

"Huh? Oh. Well, before the Medusaloid, I probably had about a sixty percent chance of winning the game with my stats at the time. You had an eighty percent chance, and I was, um, banking on the twenty... ahaha..."

"Should've just gone for it," Mia clicked her tongue. "Miss all the shots you don't take, and so on."

"Right..." Rebecca smiled meekly. "Well, maybe next time? If everyone wants to keep playing, I mean. I brought other things we can try, or, um-"

"I dunno about you guys, but I'm down for one more," Zoe said.

"Sí, wouldn't mind one last go. Mi amor?"

"Like you even have to ask," he laughed. "I could keep going all night."

Zoe resisted the urge to reach for the low-hanging fruit and quip 'that's what she said' as Rebecca's smile went from meek to starry-eyed.

"You really like the game that much...?"

"Honestly? The game is fun as hell, but it's less that and more so that I'm hanging out with all of you. We could be doing fuck all, and I'd still be having the time of my life."

The girls all looked at him. Mia had patient love in her eyes, Zoe had a somewhat confused smile, and Rebecca had nervous anticipation and a smidge of disbelief. His sudden admission created a silence in the room that he filled with another confession straight from the heart.

"Don't get me wrong, Mia, Zoe- I had tons of fun when it was just the two of us hanging- but this? It's totally new to me. I... never actually had many friends growing up... or since then, really, so..." Oliver's confession started weighing heavily on his heart the more he spoke. He looked down, his face burning up as he let out a self-deprecating laugh, saying, "God. Sorry, I didn't mean to suddenly go off on you guys about my old hangups. All I'm getting at is there's nowhere else I'd rather be."

The girls kept staring. Oliver felt like he had egg on his face, but his concerns were put to rest before they could spiral when a couple notifications popped.

[Mia has gained +5 Affection!]

[Zoe has gained +5 Affection!]

He blushed harder, confusion taking hold.

Huh? I... don't understand. The affection boost, sure, but where's the Smooth Talker bonus...?

Oliver's ignorance made him overlook the truth. It wasn't his words that raised their affection scores but what those words accomplished. He'd activated the maternal instincts of everyone around him.

Mia's heart was filled with the desire to give her sad little white boy all the love he was missing out on. Rebecca's temptation to remove her armor and tell this relative stranger how deeply she could sympathize with his troubles was immeasurable, and Zoe?

Even she cracked.

By now, Zoe had picked up that Oliver had some baggage, and it wasn't just from everything Mia had told her about him. She felt it in his awkwardness around her. Saw it in the adoring way he gazed at her during their brief moment of intimacy. Something was wrong with him, and hearing about his loneliness tugged her heartstrings.

Short of getting in line the next time it was dick-sucking o'clock, Zoe wondered if there was more she could be doing to help the guy. It didn't sound like it would take much to make him happy. All he wanted was friends. Attention. She could relate to that much.

Just another reason to rethink my streaming schedule... Zoe supposed. And while we're at it, maybe we could try that again...

"...Um, guys?" Oliver asked once the awkward silence became too much. "Did I just totally kill the mood, or-"

The three flavors of nerd girl all snapped out of their respective trances, covering for themselves in different ways.

"No, no. Sorry, mi amor," Mia reached under the table to hold his hand as tight as she could. "Don't have much new to say to your sudden trauma-dumping other than I'm here for you, I will always be here for you, and that this is your life now. Might not be much to write home about, but you got me, and my friends are your friends. Right, girls?"

"Y-Yes, of course!" Rebecca worked past her anxieties to lean a little closer- even if only an inch. "I... um, I won't stop being your friend unless you ask me! And even if you did, I'd probably be really annoying about it and cry until you took me back out of pity!"

"Geez..." Zoe scratched the back of her head and looked off to the side. "Way to put a girl on the spot, Mia. Not like your boyfriend's mental shit is any of my problem... but... then again..."

Oliver suddenly jumped in his seat. Mia knew what was up and smiled knowingly as Rebecca tilted her head, oblivious to Zoe's foot mingling with Oliver's under the table. It felt good, strangely enough, but he pulled it back out of shyness as she finished her statement.

"What can I say, Olive? I like ya, and if hanging out with me of all people brings your mopey ass some measure of peace or whatever the fuck, what kinda girl would I be if denied you my company?"

"A bitch," Mia added without skipping a beat. "A cruel one, at that."

"Uh. Yeah? That's what I was getting at, Mia. You don't gotta get on my case."

"Don't I? Trying to comfort him, perezosa. Ain't the time for your tsundere-ass bullshit, so say it like you mean it."

"Gah- fine, fine..." Zoe shrugged and forced herself to look Oliver dead on, saying, "I like hanging out with you too, nerd. The last couple of days have been fun as fuck, and I'd... be pretty fuckin' sad if you stopped coming around any time soon. You got that?"

Oliver lowered his head, feeling self-conscious as all hell. He'd just blurted his confession out for no real reason, and then everyone went and made a massive deal of it. He wasn't looking for their sympathy and didn't know how to handle having it.

It took all he could muster just to say, "I, uh... t-thank you, everyone?"

"...Too much?" Mia frowned.

"...A little, yeah," he sucked in a deep breath. "I can barely process it when you say sappy shit to me. How am I supposed to deal with another two cute girls doing it at the same time?"

Rebecca looked close to fainting. "C-Cute...?! You can't p-possibly mean that... c-can you?"

"Well, I didn't mean to casually throw it out like that, but-"

"N-No! Don't answer! I don't want to know, and besides, you shouldn't be joking about stuff like that to begin with! Your girlfriend is right there!!"

Mia rubbed her forehead, sighing. Uncomfortable as it would be, she really, really needed to talk to Becca about her 'specific interests' sometime soon so she'd stopped freaking out about her little crush. But not now- not right away. Slowly easing the innocent girl into getting comfortable talking about lewd things first was probably for the best.

Zoe was far less considerate. She had half a mind to fill Rebecca in right here and now but admittedly thought things were amusing where they stood and ended up saying nothing. Not her department.

Oliver took in a deep breath, steadying himself. The emotional moment had passed, and while he still couldn't efficiently work through his feelings, all the attention, friendship, and love on Mia's behalf left him on top of the world.

"Right, well. I still have no idea how to respond to... any of that, but it makes me want to double down on the part where I said there's nowhere else I'd rather be. Seriously." Oliver said, trying his best. "Now, if it's all the same to you, I think we should get started on the next game before my heart gives out on me from having to work through so much positivity."

"You... really aren't used to this kinda thing, huh, Olive?"

"Nope, not in the slightest, but here's hoping I'll come around the more we hang out..."

Zoe frowned. She wasn't dense- she knew she was emotionally distant and downright reclusive. Even so, at least she knew what it felt like to have people who cared for her. It got her wondering how bad he'd had it until hooking up with Mia, and she was even starting to wonder more about the guy in general.

Her tiny world had expanded by a single person, and at just the right time, too. As soon as she got her streaming schedule under control, Zoe would hopefully have plenty of time to get to know the newest member of what was essentially her family. The prospect oddly excited her.

But before that could happen...

"Atta boy. Gimme just a second to check my messages and shit so Mia stops bitching at me, and then we can-"

Zoe's eyes bulged when she saw the exact number of notifications and why she was getting them. The room went quiet as everyone turned to look at her.

"...Perezosa? You doing okay over there?"

"Y-Yeah," Zoe nodded absently, her thumb scrolling and scrolling and scrolling. "Just... got a lot of shit to go through..."

"Oh! Um, d-did one of your clips go viral again?"

"Not exactly, no..."

"Well, what's going on, then?" Oliver asked. "You're kinda freaking me out, Zoe..."

Zoe looked up to her three friends. Then, back at her phone. Then, her friends. Phone. Friends. Phone. Friends-

Friends first, damn it! Wasn't that what you fuckin' decided, you stupid bitch? Come the fuck on. Do the right thing for once and be happy with what you fuckin' have. Look at Olive- he's barely got shit, and the dude's so happy he doesn't even know how to fuckin' process it!

But you...?

"Zoe," Oliver repeated, concerned. "Are you okay? Do you need more caffeine or something? I normally wouldn't ever offer to grab you some, but you have been pacing yourself today, so I'd understand if you needed a little boost or-"

"No, no," Zoe sighed, forcing herself to look up at everyone. "It's nothing like that. I'm fine. Juuuust fine. Well, maybe a little bit more on edge because of the caffeine, but that's not... gah- dancing around this is giving me a fuckin' headache, so I'm just gonna throw it out there. Tweak's mod team or whoever the fuck reviewed my appeal and decided I was right. I didn't break the ToS, so... my temp ban got lifted, and I can get back to streaming whenever I want."

Mia frowned and rubbed her right wrist. Rebecca shrank in her seat after the ramifications sunk in. Oliver simply stared.

"Oh," he said. "Shit."

***

Stat Changes

Mia Rosas | Status: Girlfriend | 68/300 | ❤❤❤♡♡

Zoe Myers | Status: Friend | 82/100 | ♡♡♡♡♡

Zoe Controller Pinup

Milly helped get this one a few weeks ago and it finally got done! It’s pretty good but I might honestly reuse the concept of her naked with controllers draped around her sometime in the future because while the piece is good it’s not my favorite. There was a pretty big language barrier with this artist and explaining instructions to them was not great so I didn’t really push for the right body type and I don’t think it came out quite ‘Zoe’ enough. It’s still a really good piece of art, though! I don’t wanna dunk on the artist for their style, she’s just way too thin and that’s mostly how they draw their characters so it was probably a bad matchup for them.

Art by https://www.reddit.com/u/koolbois/s/Lheik1szNN

Mia Portrait with Bonus

Gift from Milly, was technically part of the same order as the last one! They had simple portraits at a cheap price so we tacked it on. Was a good decision, as this came out real cute!

Art by https://www.reddit.com/u/Veronik_OwO/s/6awkD9lFku

Mia Topless Beach Pinup

Gift from Milly again, and damn! She suggested a topless swimsuit pic and I don’t think either of us were expecting it to come out THIS good. It’s not the only thing I got from the artist, either! I quite like them and you can expect to see more art from them in the future.

Art by https://www.reddit.com/u/Veronik_OwO/s/6awkD9lFku

Mia in Heat Pinup

Gift from my dear Milly! Seeing her stripping like this in one of her fits unable to hold back is very, very hot and the artist did a great job with it! I tried to edit a background photo to make it look like she was outside in an alleyway but I can’t come up with a way to edit photos nice enough to use as backdrops sadly. I just made the background pattern myself. I consider the series as a whole to have a glitchy vaporwave aesthetic so that’s kinda what most of them would look like if left up to me.

Hoping to get this pic next from this artist with Zoe on the left and Mia on the right but it’ll have to wait a bit, I thought it just being busts would make it cheaper but it’d still be $55 lol.

Art by https://www.reddit.com/user/nyansteria/

Love Addict's RPG Vol. 2 Ch. 76

Wasn't sure I'd get this done today, but I pulled it off and I'm quite happy with it! Lot of stuff going on here like our first deep dive into Rebecca's psyche, funny shit involving her favorite game, more playful Zoe and Mia asides, and Rebecca acting as Zoe's morality pet. Love writing fun fluff like this, but sadly, the plot is scheduled to happen any second now...

***

You've got this, soldier. You've got this.

Rebecca took a deep breath as everyone else started eating. There was chatter, but it was more of the same. Zoe and Mia kept teasing each other- or at least Rebecca assumed it was teasing- while Oliver stepped in occasionally to get them off each other's backs.

She was used to being the third wheel but not the fourth. It was new. Rebecca didn't generally didn't appreciate change, but new wasn't always bad.

She smiled plainly, picking the blueberries off of her pancakes. Those were for later.

Oliver suddenly said something funny. Rebecca didn't get it, but Mia and Zoe laughed, so she laughed, too. It was okay. She'd figure it out later, and then her fake laugh would retroactively become real.

She still felt bad about him. Or rather, herself.

Good job, Rebecca. You've got two friends in the whole world, and the second one of them gets a boyfriend who just so happens to act a liiiittle bit nice to you, you go and...

N-No. That's not it. You're not that shallow, and even if you were, it's not possible- and that's that.

Wait- crap.

Now Zoe said something funny. Oh. Wait, no. False alarm. Rebecca understood Zoe's joke, laughing louder than everyone else. Too loud. Everyone was staring at her.

They smiled like they were amused, but were these real smiles? Rebecca didn't know. She hardly ever knew.

These are your comrades, soldier. Of course they're real. They like you. Really. Don't hide in the trenches. Trenches are for cowards- like the spineless wretches in the Communardic Elygium.

She shrank, apologized, and the conversation drifted on without her. She degreased her bacon with a napkin, covering the motion with her hand. Stealth check; successful. No one saw her being weird.

...Or did they? Her eyes scanned her friends. Inconclusive. The thought scared her. It was like rolling a ten without modifiers on an unknown difficulty class.

She fought off anxiety but found something new to fret about before too long. Was she eating too fast? Too slow? Was Oliver talking to her right now or someone else? Was she not supposed to laugh at that? 

It was all so much. It was always so much.

She peeked over her shoulder at the space between the wall on the couch. Where it was comfy. Where it was safe.

No!

No trenches, Rebecca! No. Trenches. You can't go to your comfy spot while everyone is eating- they'll think you're weirder than they already do! Just get past this. It won't be so bad when you're not eating and you don't have to multitask, so just... do what you always do.

Put it on...

Rebecca closed her eyes, nibbling on her degreased bacon.

Put on your armor...

Salasta VII- an alien world ravaged by a never-ending war was waged in the name of the holiest virtue of all.

Genetic purity.

Far, far off in the distance was a citadel of the Elygium, and at its heart was a monolithic structure- a palace of sinful delight where traitorous humans submitted themselves to stress-free lives of illicit drugs and endless fornication with innumerable species of xenoscum, diluting the gene pool with abominable crossbreeds.

Fools, the lot of them. Casting aside their own genetic superiority for the sake of hedonism... have they no shame? If those Communardic bastards had their way, their lifestyle would be forced on everyone until the once proud human race ceased to exist altogether!

This grim, dark potential future must be avoided at all costs, but the battle was at a standstill. Waves upon waves of brave Neosoldats sacrificed their lives to breach the citadel's defenses, only for their efforts to end in failure. It was time to summon the big guns. The sons and daughters of the Vergoldet Uberfuhrer of Sacred Erde themselves- the Ubermensch Marines.

The duty fell to Kampfgruppe Festung, specialists in not only siege warfare but in defending their territory against all comers, and they sent one of their best to lead the charge.

Clad in a suit of hulking yellow power armor crafted from Neu Berlinian thulesteel, the ten-foot-tall, sole survivor of the Siege of Maskaltan leaped from her dropship into the active warzone. Fifty of her eugenically perfected brothers and sisters followed after her, each one sworn to obey her command until the day they drew their last.

Her name was Leutnantin Rebekkiller die Berg-Maneater, and with an StG 44000 in one hand and a roaring Kette Schläger in the other, she tore into the enemy with all mankind's righteous wrath.

The filthy xenoscum, human traitors, and crossbreeds alike never stood a chance.

Legions of the Leutnantin's foes died in a million different ways, limited only by her creativity and passing whims. Heads exploded. Arms were ripped straight off. Skulls stomped under heel. Bodies sawed in half. Fireworks of blood- gore- and viscera popped off everywhere she went. She was unstoppable- the strongest of the strong- and nothing could hurt her.

Not while she still had her precious power armor...

"You doing okay, Rebecca?" Oliver asked.

Rebekkiller's armor disintegrated like dust in the wind, leaving her naked, vulnerable, and as helpless as the day she was born.

"Huh-wha? What's going on?"

"Just making sure you're all right. You zoned out on us for a while there."

Rebecca looked around her. Her friends had finished eating, and so had she. Even the blueberries.

"T... tactics..."

"Huh?"

"Tactics. I was thinking about new tactics for my army, t-that's all! No need to worry about me, but, um, t-thank you anyway!"

Even Rebecca could tell Oliver didn't look too convinced, but he dropped it.

"Honestly?" He said. "We should be thanking you. Breakfast was great. Like, holy shit. Now I know why that place is so expensive..."

Mia agreed, "Gonna have to tell your dad I said thanks, Becca,"

Zoe leaned back in her beanbag, sighing, "Saaaaame. I just fuckin' wish there was more of it..."

"Sí, by all means, Zoe. Eat so much you go up another cup size, mn?" Mia grumbled.

"Hey, hey! Don't take your weight thing out on me, all right? It's not my fault my body knows exactly where to strategically store shit!"

"Not taking it out on you, only pointing out an injustice..."

"That's code for 'Mia misses her d-cups', Olive," Zoe smirked. "Just in case you didn't-"

"Yeah, Zoe, I read between the lines..." he sighed, then spared a glance at Mia. The catty back-and-forth hadn't actually made her mad, though she was pouting and crossing her arms.

Oliver rubbed his girlfriend's back, intending to cheer her up somehow, only for Rebecca to speak up in an attempt to remain part of the conversation.

"I, um, I-I feel your pain, Mia... all my fat just goes straight to my butt... and my thighs... and m-my belly... really, everywhere except... um..." Rebecca looked up to find everyone was staring at her now, because of course they were.

She really rolled a nat one on that one.

Even worse, Oliver looked down at Rebecca's pitiful chest. It only lasted a split second, and he wasn't a perv about it- but still. She noticed these things. Not that anyone had ever checked her out before- if that really was what he'd just done...

Oh, why on Sacred Erde did you just say that?! You don't always have to contribute. You could've nodded, or laughed, or... armor, Rebecca. Put it on. Put it-

"Here's an idea; how about we all stop talking about the size of everyone's tits long enough to clean up the table and figure out what we're going to do today?" Oliver suggested with a weary smile.

"You saying you don't get off on my boob envy, mi amor? Thought that was a thing with guys."

"No, no, I think your titty jealousy is adorable, Mia. But it's also making Rebecca uncomfortable."

Mia could've gone either way on that one, but she liked his honesty. And his concern for her friend.

[Mia has gained +1 Affection! +1 Smooth Talker]

Zoe apparently liked it, too.

[Zoe has gained +1 Affection! +1 Smooth Talker]

Rebecca thought she misheard him for a second, then tried to downplay her feelings.

"W-Wha? Oh, no, don't worry about me. I, um. I love talking about boobs! We can talk about them for as long as you guys want to! M-Mine are b-cups, by the..."

Zoe held back a snort, but it looked like she felt bad about it. Mia couldn't decide to wear a smile or frown, and that's about where Oliver was, too.

Right. To the trenches, soldier.

Rebecca got up from the couch, dropped to her knees, and crawled around behind it. Comfy spot; claimed.

Everyone else went quiet for a few seconds.

"Should I maybe-"

"Probably not you, no," Mia said. "Don't want to overstimulate her even more, do you?"

Oliver slumped his shoulders. "Good point."

"I'll handle her if you guys take care of the mess," Zoe stretched out and sighed.

"Anything to get out of cleaning, mn?"

Zoe ignored the jab and met up with Rebecca behind the couch.

"How's it hanging, sunshine?"

"How is what hanging, I- oh. You... weren't being literal. Right, duh... I, um. I dunno..." Rebecca shrank a little more. Then, Zoe's hand gently snatched the brim of her hat and took it away. It came out of nowhere, and she didn't know how to respond.

Before she knew it, Zoe's fingers dug into her hair and started giving her scalp a massage.

"Come on, Becca," she said, lowering her voice until it was smooth as silk.

Her face was all smiles. Real ones. Rebecca couldn't mistake them for anything less.

"What's the matter? Talk to me, girl."

"Ah-ahhhhhh..." Rebecca melted into Zoe's touch.

So good. So relaxing. It wasn't fair. Why didn't this ever work when she tried doing it on herself? Rebecca was helpless against it and owned up to her feelings.

"I'm just... stressed... work was really bad these last few days, and I'm more on edge than usual... t-that, and... I'm not used to him being here, I-I guess?"

"He's a good dude, Becca. He'd understand if you said this was too much for you right now and you wanted to make this a girl's only thing."

"N-No, I don't want him to go! I... I even brought him something, I-"

"You did?" Zoe couldn't restrain a smirk while sneaking a peek at Rebecca's bulging backpack.

She nodded sheepishly, and Zoe felt she shouldn't tease her about it. The smirk didn't go away, though. This shit was too hilarious.

"Then why don't you give it to him, you nerd?"

"Because I said the boob thing," Rebecca tried hanging her head, but she couldn't escape Zoe's persistent petting. She sighed. "And also, I'm nervous I'll keep saying other stupid things."

"So?"

"...Huh?"

"I've known you, what, Becca? Seven years? In all that time, you've blurted out so much stupid shit I can't even remember it all, and you know what? You're one of my favorite people in the fuckin' world."

"I... I am...?!" Rebecca gawked in disbelief.

A little embarrassed, Zoe tried to walk it back a tiny bit. "Granted, the list had like... one other person until fuckboy over there showed up, but... y'know... you're goofy as fuck, soldier. There's no getting around that, so own the fuck up to it! He'll like you more out there than he will back here."

Zoe's encouragement made Rebecca feel all warm and fuzzy. "...You promise?"

"Not gonna pretend I know the guy like the back of my hand, but yeah, fairly fuckin' sure he's not gonna treat you any different just because you had an anxiety attack or whatever," pressing her advantage, Zoe gave her friend a sincere smile and sat Rebecca's hat back on her head. "So why don't you pull yourself out of the trenches and go on the attack, huh? Give him what you've got."

Rebecca stared into her friend's eyes, wondering why she was cursed with a mind that made her constantly doubt the people around her. She bit her lip, nodded, and sucked in some air.

"Kay. I'll do it."

"Atta girl," Zoe sighed with relief, then got out of the way so Rebecca could leave her comfy spot.

"Thank you, Zoe," Rebecca said before hugging her friend again. "Thank you..."

"Aw, geez..." despite her grumbling, Zoe hugged her right back. This time, they didn't stop until a few moments later. "Come on, come on. Stop stalling, already."

"Kay," with Zoe's help, Rebecca fully emerged from her hidey hole.

Oliver and Mia had finished cleaning up a bit ago and were hanging around in the kitchen to give Zoe time to do her thing. Mia nudged him, hinting he should take the initiative.

"Hey," Oliver called out to her. "Are we good to come back, or do you need another few minutes to yourself?"

Rebecca perceived his tone as gentle. Supportive.

"I... I'm fine now..." she claimed, another deep breath filling her lungs. "I get nervous when I say dumb things, especially when I don't know the person very well, and you already know I have trouble being around men, and it also doesn't help that I'm really stressed out from my job, and also also..."

"It's cool, Rebecca. Really. I'm, like, the last guy in the world who needs a crash course in social anxiety, so I get where you're coming from..."

"...You do?"

"Sure," he confessed. "Not a minute goes by where I'm not second-guessing myself, worrying about what other people think of me, or unintentionally putting my foot in my mouth by saying something stupid..."

"It's true. Mi amor's foot spends so much time in there I can practically taste it whenever we're making out."

Oliver sighed as Zoe passed them by to grab a can of Gamer Gulpies from the fridge. "Bet your kinky ass is into that shit," she teased.

"Can't say for sure, but I'd reckon it tastes better than that sludge,"

"Feel free to let me know as soon as you find out, perv," Zoe cracked open her can and took a single sip rather than chugging it all at once. 

Rebecca giggled. She liked her friends, and the mental image of Mia licking Oliver's foot amused her. That, along with his reassurance, had her feeling a little better. 

"I, um... I wouldn't have guessed that we're so similar, ahaha..."

"Did Mia neglect to mention my defining characteristic is being a hot mess?"

"And ruin the surprise?" Mia playfully jabbed.

"You don't seem like a hot mess, though... you were so cool when you were fighting Mia's brothers..."

Zoe shook her head, saying, "Still can't believe you guys weren't gaslighting me and that Olive actually did that. The fuck else did I miss out on?"

"A whole lot of shit, perezosa. A whoooole lot of shit."

Zoe quietly had another sip.

Oliver took the initiative to head back into the living room. He was cautious, making sure Rebecca wasn't spooked by his approach. Much to his relief, she held her ground and seemed fine.

"I was pretty fired up back then, yeah, but this?" He gestured at himself. "This is the real me. I'm just a guy, Rebecca. A stupid one who makes lots of mistakes, has self-confidence issues like you wouldn't believe, and who's always worried about saying the right thing.  I'm just as nervous about being around you as you are about being around me, and that's the truth."

Rebecca stared at Oliver in silence for a long, long time. Uncomfortably long. He didn't know what was going on with her, and true to his words, he was desperately afraid he'd said the wrong thing.

He didn't know that Rebecca's heart was beating faster than if she'd topdecked the exact card she needed to win her a round of Sorcery. She didn't know what was going on. Oliver was... he was... he was like her.

It didn't make sense- but he wasn't lying to her, was he?

No, of course not. It would take a real asshole to lie straight to her face about something like this, and as anxious as she was, Rebecca refused to humor a single one of her doubts. Oliver was telling the truth, and upon that realization, something clicked for her in a way nothing else ever had.

She felt heard.

By Mia's boyfriend, Rebecca reminded herself, putting on her armor. It doesn't matter if he's the first person you've ever met who might actually be able to relate to you. He's Mia's boyfriend...

But...

That doesn't mean you can't be friends with him...

Right, soldier?

"Rebecca?" He asked, the awkward silence finally proving too much for him to bear.

"T-Thank you, Oliver. I... ah... I feel much better after hearing you say all that. There will definitely be times in the future where I, um, might be difficult on account of my, ah... w-well, I..." floundering, Rebecca sucked in as much air as she could and fired off her artillery. "Darn it. What I'm trying to say is that I hope you'll be patient with me so that we can be friends!"

Mia smiled. Zoe did the same, feeling slightly envious of her friend's honesty.

"Of course I will," Oliver promised wholeheartedly. "So long as you'll be patient with me, that is."

"Y-Yes, of course! I'm very patient- it's one of the core principles in war, after all! I'll wait as long as it takes to claim victory for Sacred Erde and the Vergoldet Uberfuhrer!"

"...Sounds great," Oliver exercised some of his promised patience right now by filtering out the mousy nerd girl pledging victory to what sounded like the obvious Hitler stand-in of her favorite wargame. "I'll hold you to it."

Back in the kitchen, Zoe had trouble repressing her amusement.

"I think Becca just fuckin' declared war on you,"

"Rather make love than war, but I suppose we'll march across that battlefield when we come to it..."

"You think he's got any idea how hard he's leading her on?"

"Absolutely not. White boy's built different, mi amiga. Got a tragic combo going on. His brain was born without self-awareness or the ability to take a hint."

"Well, when you put it like that, they almost sound like a perfect match..."

"Sí, don't they? Might've even felt threatened if I wasn't so-"

"Fucked in the head?"

"Cucked in the bed, more like," Mia shrugged as they rejoined the living room cringefest.

Feeling generous, Zoe thought she'd help her little friend some more. She sat her drink on the table and melted into her beanbag chair once again, exhaling in comfort.

"Okay. So. That's breakfast checked off the list, and we managed to fit in some nerd-on-nerd bonding while we were at it, too. That's all well and good, but my goopy gamer brain's piss-poor attention span is begging to know, guy and gals. What's fuckin' next? You got anything in that big, bulging sack of yours to keep us entertained, Becca?"

"Phrasing," Mia commented, taking Oliver's hand and leading him back to the couch.

"Uh, duh? That was the joke, Mia! You don't get to pull 'phrasing' on an intentional innuendo."

"Meh."

"Innuendo?" Rebecca tilted her head.

"Don't worry about it," Oliver sighed, holding back a smile. "I'm with Zoe, though. What's going on in the bag?"

"Ah- um, y-yes, that's right. The bag! I brought a couple of board games in case we needed them!"

"Oh, no..." Oliver said. "We might have a problem. I don't think Zoe knows how to play games that aren't on a screen." 

Zoe rolled her eyes and told him to fuck off, but Rebecca was quick to ease his sarcastic concerns. "Not to worry, I accounted for Zoe's preferences and brought something we could all enjoy!"

"Oh yeah? Interesting. Very interesting. Looks pretty stuffed, though. Is it all games, or do you got anything else in there, Becca?" Zoe hinted overtly, then winked when it didn't seem Rebecca followed along.

"Ah... well..." she got the message, blushing as she unzipped her backpack. Multiple board games threatened to explode out of it the moment the seal was undone. Rebecca then removed a medium-sized box and held it close to her chest as she approached Oliver on the couch.

"Y-Yeah. There was something else. Here-" Rebecca thrust it towards him. "I got some nice cards out of the Sorcery packs you gave me the other day, and, um, I... well, it's not much, but I wanted to give you a little something in return..."

Surprised, Oliver took the present and inspected it in closer detail. The box read '40th Space Reich: Start Collecting!' and the art on the packaging displayed five soldiers in blue power armor fighting against five generic-looking aliens. Included were model kits to build all ten of these mini-figures, a pair of hobby clippers, a brush, and all the paint he'd need to make them look like the ones on the box.

Oliver started blushing almost as bad as she was.

"Mn. Would you look at that, mi amor. Got the start of your own little army of space Nazis right there."

"I sure do. Wow, Rebecca. I... don't know what to say. This was really nice of you. I have to ask, though. This, uh... this didn't cost you too much, did it? Because I looked into the prices right after I met you and, well... it's an expensive hobby..."

"So it's okay for you to squirm when someone spoils you, but I get teased for doing the same? Double standards." Mia shot him a teasing glance, which he brushed off as best he could.

"No, no!" Rebecca huffed defensively. "Don't worry, it's not like that. These things are loss leaders meant to suck people into the game, you know? Once you've got your foot in the door with plastic crack, you don't come back. It's, um, probably worth about as much as the cards would've cost you if you'd bought them, so... consider us even, maybe?"

Mia was right about the double standards, but Oliver couldn't change his feelings. He disliked when people went out of their way for him, and he wasn't used to having friends. Even a box of plastic space Nazis meant the world to someone like him.

"Okay," Oliver smiled awkwardly, feeling like Rebecca had raised his affection meter by about ten points. "I won't fight you on this, so if you really insist-"

"I do, really," she squeaked.

"Welp. Okay, then. Thank you so much for this, Rebecca... I don't know if I'll end up getting into the game itself, but I'm definitely gonna build and paint these as soon as I've got the time. I promise."

Pleased with herself, Rebecca lowered her head and smiled. "Kay..."

"Not to ruin the moment," Zoe piped up, ruining the moment. "But you might want to look at the packaging a little closer, guys. Kinda looks like it's been opened before."

Oliver flipped the box around and confirmed Zoe's observation, only for Rebecca to clarify.

"Oh. That was me. I, um, I swapped some of the paints it came with so that you're not stuck with Kampfgruppe Blau."

Oliver politely looked at her like she was speaking another language.

"I-I'm talking about these guys-" Rebecca tapped on the blue space Nazis pictured on the box art. "I'll try not to lore dump too hard, but the Ubermensch Marines are all broken into big squads called Kampfgruppes, right?"

"Okay," Oliver nodded along.

"And each one has their own specialty, weapons, vehicles, and special units,"

"All of which are sold separately at about three hundred times their manufacturing cost," he continued nodding.

"Yes, that's why most people only build one or two armies, b-but that's neither here nor there. The blue ones are Kampfgruppe Blau and... um... how do I say this..." Becca closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Mia and Zoe exchanged looks, both thinking the same thing.

Heeeere it comes...

"They're the worst," Rebecca fumed. "Well, not in lore, but in real life. In lore, Kampfgruppe Blau are the elite of the elite. They can do everything, and they're treated as a step above all the other Kampfgruppes when that's simply not true! Amusement Atelier- the, um- the people who make this game- they give Blau special treatment. They get the most books written about them, they have the most models, the most merchandise, and the most representation in video game adaptations, but they're so BORING! They don't have any interesting lore or unique specialization, and the only thing that sets them apart from everyone else is that they're the 'perfect' ones. It's not like I don't get it, either. Every media franchise needs a proper poster boy, but... but..."

Halfway through her ranting, Rebecca acquired a hint of self-awareness. She doubted herself, at least until she found the courage to look up at Oliver. He didn't seem any different than he did a few seconds ago and was listening intently with a patient smile.

It made her cheeks burn hotter, and she cut herself short despite knowing she could've continued.

"A-Anyway, I took out the blue paint and gave you the colors you'd need to paint Kampfgruppe Festung... they're, um... they're my favorite..." she said, staring meekly at him in hopes of a positive response.

"Okay. Speaking honestly? I'm not gonna pretend like I understood... any of that, but hey, I'm always eager to listen to someone passionate about their hobbies, and I'm sure I'll be able to follow along eventually."

With tremendous gratitude and excitement over gaining a new method to train his spark stat, Oliver absorbed Rebecca's gift into his inventory.

[Item Acquired! 40th Space Reich Start Collecting Box - A gateway drug and potential pipeline to venomous ideologies depending on the level of one's media literacy. Do not paint the space Nazis blue under any circumstance. She will never forgive you.] 

"Just let me know if you need any help," Rebecca giggled, embarrassed yet over the moon at what she accomplished with Zoe's prodding. "Instructions are included, and these models all snap together, so you don't have to glue them, but, um, it can still be pretty intimidating when you're just starting out!"

Zoe wasn't done with her prodding. Not after noticing one last push she could make. "And how's Olive supposed to hit you up if he doesn't have your number?"

Rebecca took the implication about as well as she could've.

"W-What? Oh, um... well... he could contact Mia, and then Mia can tell me about the problem he's having, and then I can tell Mia what he should do, and then Mia can tell-"

"The fuck do I look like, some kind of mailman?" Mia couldn't hold back a laugh.

"N-No?" Rebecca shrank. "You're not a mailman. You work at a grocery store, a-and-"

"Why don't you just give me your number, Rebecca?" Oliver interjected, speeding her along to reaching the point. "I'd rather have someone I can talk to about this instead of going through online tutorials, and it'd be a lot faster if we skipped the middleman."

"You shouldn't discount online tutorials! There's so much to learn about painting mini figures that mastering the art without-"

"Becca," Zoe took her glasses off and rubbed her eyes. "Give the dude your number."

"R-Right, yes, of course... t-that makes more sense, ahaha..."

With great trepidation on her behalf, Oliver and Rebecca traded numbers. He couldn't believe how many cute girls were on his contact list compared to how barren it was a little over a week ago. Damn, that felt good.

Though he didn't get any milestones out of the exchange, his powers still had something to say about getting Rebecca's digits.

[Mia has gained +5 Affection!]

Of course she has, Oliver laughed to himself.

"Something you'd like to share with the rest of the class, mi amor?"

"Nope, nothing at all," he moved along. "I'm just curious about this board game you brought along that supposedly gonna hold Zoe's attention span, Rebecca. Care to tell us all about it in exhausting detail?"

Rebecca looked at him from the floor, where she sat digging through her backpack. She couldn't believe there was a cute boy on her contact list compared to how barren it was not even a few minutes ago. Damn, that felt good, but it also made her feel very conflicted.

He was smiling at her expectantly, waiting for her to go on.

You can't afford to take your armor off, Rebecca. He's Mia's boyfriend, and that's that.

But...

Maybe just your helmet?

Taking a deep breath, Rebecca yanked out the biggest box in her backpack and showed it off for all to see, saying, "I'm so happy you asked!"

***

Stat Changes

Mia Rosas | Status: Girlfriend | 46/300 | ❤❤❤♡♡

Zoe Myers | Status: Friend | 63/100 | ♡♡♡♡♡

Rebecca Dice Pinup

Gift from Maelstrom148! This one came out absolutely incredible, no notes. Perfect petite chubbiness in all its glory. Good timing with the current chapters, as well.

Next chapter is pretty far along. Might be done today, but if not today, tomorrow. Just hard to gauge 100% how much is left.

I need still need help rounding out the full cast for these pinups. Stacy’s will cost 70 while Tessa’s is more expensive at 120 because of a funny idea I had for it that you guys should really like. If anyone can help, let me know, otherwise I’ll figure something out.

Art by https://twitter.com/38jxL

Mia and Zoe Size Comparison Shitpost

Gift from Urban! It’s an idea he had for a while now and it was quite a good one. From one of my favorite artists, too.

If you have any ideas for other shitposty art feel free to suggest/link them in the comments, this artist really likes doing memes and silly stuff like that!

Art by https://twitter.com/jannzky

Give Funny Suggestion Please

No spoilers but next chapter explores some of Rebecca's coping mechanisms and I'm stuck on the name of her edgy 40th Space Reich self-insert Mary Sue OC. Bout to take a break so I'll check and see if anyone has anything funny later, but here's what I got so far.

'Rebekkill Berg?' need something funny to tack on to the first syllable of her last name lol. Something stupidly grimdark and/or German- but not so over the top that it stops being parody. No Rebekkill Bergocaust, for obvious reasons. The joke is that she doesn't get all the obvious Nazi dogwhistle shit in the game but if it was that overt she'd just look stupid lmao.

Side Tasks Completed

It took me ages yesterday to transcribe all the audiobook proofing shit into the company's proofing document and right now I just finished up fixing all the many typos I uncovered while following along with the audiobook. I'm not saying vol 1 is completely free of them, but it should be pretty damn close now. I've submitted the new version to Amazon and am now ready to get back to actual work. Both of these tasks were very fucking annoying lmao.

Love Addict's RPG Vol. 2 Ch. 75

As promished, fresh slop for you fine gentleman. Big chapter this time mostly because I get out of hand when there's so many characters in a scene and can't really stop myself when writing cute slice of life fluff, of which there's a lot this time around.

Rebecca is finally back and we're about to get a lot of focus on her, and I quite like what she adds to the group dynamic now that we've seen her with our current main trio.

For Zoe, I think you'll notice why I thought it was necessary to go back and make that mini chapter. There was a bit too much of a gap from where she left off last night to where she is today, but we're definitely seeing a softer and more thoughtful side that's going to keep growing from here.

I'll be taking most of the day off today after this because I need to transcribe my audiobook proofing notes into the company's document for changes and shit, and after that, I have a lot of typos to fix in vol 1 that I noticed upon listening. My editing pass didn't catch them all, so I'll put out a new update once I've finished doing that. Since this should clear up most of them, it might be a good time to look into a paperback! I've been putting that off for a while since I knew there were still typos and such and I didn't feel up to bothering, but yeah.

Will get back to work as soon as I'm done with those two things, quite looking forward to the next chunk of the story.

---

His morning strategy meeting concluded, Oliver bid farewell to his companion, locked his door, and warped back to what was quickly becoming his home away from home. He took a moment in his car to pump himself up and remind himself of today's objective; bond with Mia and Zoe. Same as the last couple of days, nothing new aside from the fact that they'd have company.

While Rebecca wasn't a heroine, Bradley was convinced she had the potential to become one. Oliver wouldn't mind if that ended up being the truth, but he didn't intend to push for it. Not when untangling the knot Mia and Zoe had made of their friendship was his biggest priority still.

Oliver entered the apartment, determined to make the most of his day. Rebecca still wasn't here yet, and the girls were on opposite ends of the couch chatting about something or other when he arrived. Zoe looked a little uncomfortable, but that faded as soon as she saw him. Mia's hair was damp from her shower, and she'd changed into black, red-striped athletic shorts, an anime tee, and black thigh highs.

"There you are," she purred, smiling. "Took you longer than I thought, mi amor. Run into some traffic for once in your life?"

"Like you wouldn't believe," Oliver kicked off his shoes.

He noticed something about her comment. Even though Mia wasn't consciously aware of his fast travel ability, she still registered his supposed driving speed as if it were normal. The trip back and forth from his place to hers should've taken about forty minutes, but she didn't even think it would take him the twenty or so it did.

Convenient.

Zoe patted the middle of the couch for him.

"Park it. You're just in time; Becca said she'll be here any minute now."

"Oh boy, my third day in a row of kicking back on the couch with a bunch of nerdy chicks," Oliver teased, taking his spot.

Though daring, he rested his arms on the headrests behind not only Mia but Zoe as well. Mia immediately snuggled up to him. Zoe didn't, but she wasn't put off by the gesture. Instead, she got more comfortable where she was. He felt the back of her head on his upper arm.

"That a complaint I hear?" Mia asked.

"Not a complaint, more of a desperate plea for variety. I maintain that it would be nice if we did something new for once."

"But we are doing something new, Olive. Today, you'll be kicking back on the couch with three nerdy chicks instead of the usual two! Are you saying this dramatic shakeup somehow ain't enough for you? Talk about ungrateful."

"Throwing stones in glass houses, perezosa," Mia said pointedly and with sarcasm.

"Gah," Zoe stared at the ceiling, inadvertently nuzzling Oliver's arm even more. "I get it already. You don't gotta keep slinging passive-aggressive barbs..."

"Mn, probably not, no. But it's fun, and you deserve it."

"Mia? Have you been getting on Zoe's case?"

"Sí, a little. Feeling more confident than usual on account of last night, and, well, I smelled doubt. Decided to pounce."

"Really?" Oliver brightened up. "Proud of you, kitten." He leaned in and kissed Mia's forehead after pulling her closer.

"I try," she purred.

[Mia has gained +1 Affection!]

Zoe watched them getting all cute together and frowned. She crossed her arms, looking away. "You sure it's doubt you smelled? Might just be your pheromones, kitty-cat."

"Think I don't know an emotionally conflicted white bitch when I see one? You aren't exactly an endangered species."

While Oliver was happy to see Mia standing up for herself and hearing her confidence rise, he needed her to cool it. One or two was fine, but constant passive-aggressive comments would only make Zoe retreat into her hidey hole. He knew as much from personal experience.

"Let's just chill for now, okay?" Oliver rubbed Mia's back and pushed his luck to see if Zoe was fine with him patting her shoulder. She was. Even leaned into it a little. "Zoe told me she's already rethinking her streaming schedule, right?"

"...Yeah," she stared at the floor, blushing mildly at his touch.

"You are?" Mia's expression softened. "Why didn't you say so sooner? Wouldn't have been so heavy-handed if you had."

"Because I'm an emotionally conflicted white bitch? I don't fuckin' know how to process or express my feelings- I never have! All I do know is that I've been a shitty friend, and I let my job get to my head. Streaming means a lot to me, but... somewhere along the way, I..."

Zoe started to look a little rough again. Her brows were knit in frustration, her purple eyes sad. She hunched her back and leaned forward, rubbing her forehead.

Oliver and Mia exchanged looks. She nudged his rib, so he took the arm he had wrapped around her and placed its hand on Zoe's knee.

Zoe looked at him, confused- but also in expectation.

"It's cool, Zoe," Oliver spoke gently. "Speaking from personal experience, the first step to solving a problem is admitting you've got one. I know what you're going through, but trust me. It's all uphill from here."

Zoe was quiet, suddenly overly conscious of her hand lying limp at her side. It felt like she should do something with it, but she wasn't sure what.

His hand felt nice.

"Not sure how you think you know what I'm going through, but I... appreciate the support, Olive. Really, I do."

[Zoe has gained +5 Affection! +3 Smooth Talker]

She continued to speak, saying, "But that's enough about me for now. We'll have time to figure this shit out eventually, so I'd rather we just focus on showing Becca a good time today, yeah?"

"One more question before I drop it?" Mia asked.

"Go on, get it out of your system..."

"Why the change of heart, mn? Wasn't expecting it to only take, like, not even two days of hanging out for you to flip the script."

"It's not just hanging out with you guys," Zoe sighed. She grew self-conscious and scooted away from Oliver's touch, now looking at the two of them. Her expression was serious. "It's also just seeing you together as, like... a whole, or something? You've got a connection. A real one. I'm not saying I'm jealous- not in that sense- but it's enough to get me thinking."

"About?" Oliver wondered.

"If I could... learn something from you guys, maybe? Fuck if I know..."

"So. What I'm hearing is that you need mi amor and I to act like an even more obnoxious couple to teach you the meaning of love?"

"Ugh! N-No, that's... definitely not what I meant. Christ, I couldn't handle it if you two were any cuter than you already are! I'd be gagging every few seconds."

"Gagging's not so bad under the right circumstances," Mia smirked. "Can honestly be kind of a rush."

"Mia, what the fuck-" Oliver panicked and blushed.

Zoe's face lit up as she looked back and forth between them. An awkward sweat trickled down her brow. "Y-You... did you actually just... well, of course you actually just said that, you're the biggest perv I've ever known, but... really? Like- you actually put that... huge... fuckin' thing of his... in your mouth...?!"

As Oliver lowered his head in shame, wishing he was anywhere but here, Mia blinked innocently.

"That so hard to believe?"

"Isn't it... dirty?"

"Can be,"

"But, like... what do you get out of it?"

"Not about getting something out of it, though I certainly do," Mia shot a look at her embarrassed boyfriend, licking her lips. He was too busy counting prime numbers to acknowledge her. "Making your partner feel good is its own reward, sí?"

"I..." Zoe scrunched her face as it grew redder and redder.

She thought back to her only sexual experience two days prior, reliving the sensation of straddling the awkward dude sitting next to her. The kiss was... nice, as was rubbing against his dick. Her favorite part remained the doofy look on his face when she was grinding on him, though.

That look of desire mixed with the strange satisfaction of knowing she was doing a good job...

"I guess I can see where you're coming from... still sounds pretty gross, though..."

"Bet you'd pass that hurdle real quick once you've had a good look at the faces he makes when you're loving on his tip..."

"...Oh?" Zoe shifted around in her seat.

"Sí. It's pretty great." Mia exhaled dreamily. "Isn't that right, mi amor?"

"Forty-one... forty-three... forty-seven... fifty-three..."

"He says yes."

"Huh..." Zoe nodded absently.

She kept looking between Mia, Oliver, and Oliver's lap. Weird things were on her mind- things she'd never been curious about until now. Her glasses were foggy, and she was unconsciously smacking her lips.

Now is the perfect time to strike, and since Oliver was too distracted to do it himself...

"You know... could always give you a live demonstration, perezosa. Show you exactly what I'm talking about... let you watch him get all cute as he loses his shit..." Mia proposed, doing nothing to hide the thick trace of lust in her voice.

Zoe snapped out of her virginity-inspired mental haze long enough to react accordingly. She scooted as far away as possible without falling off the couch and became flustered as all hell.

"Seriously, Mia? Are you fucking kidding me right now?"

"No? Open offer, just like the pile-up."

Zoe's composure continued cracking. She smiled a little, then she frowned. Flip-flopping between extremes, her breath grew heavier as she awkwardly laughed, saying, "I... I swear to god, I will never fuckin' understand what goes on in that fucked up little head of yours..." 

"Mn," Mia held her chin, narrowing her observant eyes. "Would've agreed with you there, once upon a time. Used to think you were a sexless lump without a hint of libido. Now, though? Not so convinced you don't have what it takes to sink to my level, mi querida amiga. Not after the things I've been notici-"

His concentration snapping upon reaching ninety-seven, Oliver placed his hand over Mia's mouth. She mumbled a little but eventually accepted her fate. He took a deep breath and heavily exhaled before putting his foot down.

"Enough already, Mia! I know you're excited to tease Zoe, but the sexual tension in here is already bad enough-"

"Pft. Sexual tension? What sexual tension?" Zoe ignored her sexual frustration from the night before to continue her dismissive yapping but was promptly ignored.

"So unless you think it'd be a good idea for me to greet Rebecca with the world's biggest tent in my pants, I could really go without you offering Zoe front-row tickets to dick-sucking o'clock. Please. I can barely hold back as it-"

The front door lock started to jostle.

Oliver took away his hand and sat up straight, Mia and Zoe following his lead. The girls fussed over their appearance a tiny bit, Zoe dabbing at her sweat and wiping her foggy glasses as Mia adjusted her bangs.

"Door is unlocked, Becca," Mia called out.

A mousy voice responded, "Oh, um, kayyyy..." before Rebecca opened the door and unslotted the apartment key apartment she apparently owned.

Dressed as strangely as ever, the petite, somewhat chubby nerd girl stepped inside. She had her hat, dice bag, snow boots, baggy turtleneck touting the Sorcery the Consumption logo, and red fanny pack. New to Oliver was the bulging backpack that looked almost twice as big as the tiny brunette.

Rebecca's face was red with exhaustion, and four big breakfast bags were hanging from her arms. "Sorry I'm a little late. I didn't know what rations everyone would want, so I... um..."

Rebecca stared at the three seated on the couch. Though a girl of many talents, understanding social cues and parsing the meaning behind other people's facial expressions and body language were not among her gifts. That even she picked up on the strange vibes here was a testament to how deluded Zoe was in trying to ignore them.

"Is... um, is everything okay? You all look a little... off."

Oliver raised his hand in greeting and corrected his bizarrely stiff posture now that the stiffness in his pants was no longer a concern. "Hey, Rebecca. Glad you could make it. Everything's just fine, right, Mia?"

"Sí, sí," Mia barely restrained a smirk. "Go so far as to say they're better than fine. Zoe?"

"Yuuuup. Everything's fan-fuckin'-tastic, thanks for asking..."

"A-Are you sure? Your face is really red right now, Zoe... I'm, um, I'm worried. You never leave your room these days- your immune system might be compromised! It could be a fever, the beginnings of a cold, or-"

"I'm fine, promise," Zoe shoved her face in her palm, sighing as Mia lost her restraint and smiled at the pitiful look of her frazzled friend.

God, was it cathartic to fuck with her.

Rebecca was sure more was going on here, but when wasn't there? You got used to always being a few steps behind when you spent your entire life like that. If nothing else, she recognized an implication that she should drop it when she heard one.

"Just making sure," Rebecca mumbled as she struggled to close the door behind her. She then paused, innocently adding, "I love your new choker, Mia!"

"Thanks," Mia smiled, knowing she didn't know.

"Here," Oliver rolled his eyes, got out of his seat, and rushed to her side. "Let me help you with all that."

Rebecca turned, meeting his boyish smile and the exasperated look in his eyes. And those cute, curly black locks of his. Her heart pounded. Her stupid, stupid, sheltered nerd heart.

"Oh," her jaw fell slack, exposing her two buck teeth, which she quickly became self-conscious about. Glancing down and making eye contact with the floor, Rebecca thrust out her arms for him to lighten her load. "P-Please. That would, um, be very helpful if you really don't mind..."

"Of course not," he smiled wider, taking all the bags. "You look like you're about to fall over, carrying all that stuff."

"Ah... ahaha..."

Having pulled herself out of her embarrassment long enough to witness whatever the fuck was going on here, Zoe now had a dozen questions. She scooted closer to Mia and leaned in for some girl talk.

"Is Becca-"

"Sí,"

"The fuck? How many times has she even met the guy?"

"Same as you. Three."

Zoe pointedly ignored that comment.

"Okay, but... why?"

"Wanted to speed past the timid house pet phase, so I had him give her some Sorcery cards. More so than that, though? Think it's most just because he's nice to her."

"Yeesh... that... really is all it would take, isn't it...?"

"Sí," Mia frowned. "Poor girl."

"And does she know about the fucked up boyfriend sharing shit you get off to?"

"Course not. You forget how she can barely look at my art without-"

"I know, I know, but are you gonna tell her?"

"Not anytime soon?" Mia blushed. "Too innocent. Doesn't feel right talking about horny stuff with Becca... what's it to you, anyway, mn?"

"Well, you're obviously trying to set me up with him, so I thought-"

"Am not,"

Zoe laughed, amused. "You really think I'm stupid enough to believe that, Mia? Really?"

"Demonstrably so, sí,"

"Bitch-"

"You know I'll knock you down if you set yourself up like that, perezosa," Mia shrugged.

Before Zoe could get a word in edgewise, Oliver sat the four big bags on the coffee table. "You girls about done with your little aside, or what?” He asked. “It's rude to keep your guest waiting, especially when she's so excited to see you."

Snapping out of it, Zoe looked over at Rebecca. She shed her massive backpack and idled a few feet from the couch. Her maroon eyes twinkled like a little puppy reuniting with their master after staying at a pet hotel for a few weeks.

"H-Hey," the awkwardest member of the nerdy trio raised her voice. "Are you sure you aren't sick with anything, or can I, um-"

As if she didn't already feel guilty enough.

"Bring it in, soldier..." Zoe sighed, extending her arms.

Rebecca's nervousness around pretty people didn't extend to her hot streamer friend. She closed the distance, all but throwing herself on Zoe. Though startled by the suddenness, Zoe responded in earnest, hugging her back.

“S-Sorry,” Rebecca said mid-hug. “I, um, I didn’t mean to jump you like that but it’s been so long, and also-”

“Oh, don’t fuckin’ apologize to me over a damn hug, Becca…” Zoe exhaled. “It… has been a while, hasn’t it?”

“Two months and twelve days…” Rebecca tried to pull away to be polite but found that Zoe was keeping her in place and leaning into the hug more than she ever used to. “Zoe? Are you, um-”

“Huh? Oh. Uh, my bad.” Zoe let go despite not wanting to. “I just… I missed you too, okay?”

“…Okay,” Rebecca smiled blankly. She didn’t know what was going on and was just happy to see her friend.

Zoe had other things on her mind. She could’ve sworn it’d only been a few weeks since she last saw Rebecca. Time was slipping through her fingers like sand in an hourglass, and with all the other shit weighing down her mind, Zoe wondered how much she’d wasted.

How much she had left.

“Where have you been, girl? You should hop on to the stream more often!” Zoe said, feeling grimy as soon as the words left her mouth.

“Oh, um… w-well… you haven’t really been playing anything I’ve been interested in lately. Sorry. Don’t take that the wrong way, I just- oh! That reminds me!”

Everyone watched as Rebecca rifled through her gigantic backpack, fishing out a video game box with some fascist-looking dudes in power armor on the cover.

“I don’t know if you heard, but, um, there’s this new 40th Space Reich CRPG that came out a month and a half ago. It’s really good. The story is amazing, with all these different branching paths and weighty decisions… you could play it forever and still not see everything! Anyway, I burned through all the content in about two weeks. I meant to see if you wanted to borrow it and maybe play it on stream or… something, but I haven’t had the chance until now. I, um. I’d watch you if you did…”

Zoe stared at the copy of 40th Space Reich: Kommandant Khronicles her little friend held out for her. “Oh, hey…” she said, taking it. “I heard this one was pretty good, actually, yeah!”

“You’re into the whole Space Reich thing, too, Zoe?” Oliver asked while unloading the breakfast bags.

“Eh, kinda. The IP owner licenses out the property to just about anyone, so there’s always like fifty billion Space Reich games coming every fuckin’ year. Most of ‘em are shovelware, but every so often, you’ll end up with a studio that shits out a miracle.”

“We used to play a lot of the tactical RPGs and RTSs together way back when,” Rebecca sheepishly admitted. “It was a lot of fun..."

"What about you, Mia? Did you ever join in?"

"Tried," Mia sighed, frazzled. "Like myself a good RPG, but all that tactical stuff is beyond me. I prefer saving princesses, grinding experience points, and protecting the crystals to ordering around pieces on a board. So are you gonna play the thing, Zoe?"

"I, uh..." Zoe continued absorbing the boxart, sneaking a look at Rebecca's puppy dog eyes every so often. "Honestly, I've wanted to play this fucker for a while now. Just never got around to it because 40th Space Reich games are hella niche, you know? My viewers would dip way the fuck down if I went anywhere near one. Remember how bad it went when I streamed Battles of Zehrgiok Prime?"

"That's too bad..." Rebecca frowned, pulling her visor over her eyes. "I was really hoping you'd try it, but if it would really be that bad for your stream, then I guess I understand..."

Oliver and Mia exchanged glances, disappointed with Zoe's priorities. They weren't the only ones. The streamer was still feeling introspective, and seeing Rebecca's disappointment helped shake things up.

"H-Hold on a second, I... I didn't say I wouldn't..." Zoe blurted out.

Rebecca's sadness lifted off of her like a veil blown away by the wind. "You will...?!"

"Sure, why the fuck not? I can see about fitting it into my schedule! I'll just probably have to break it into chunks so that I don't lose too many viewers... like, maybe play it for an hour or so at the end of a stream or as a palate cleanser in between segments or shit. That kind of thing."

"Oh, I'm so excited!" Rebecca was so happy that she did a little jump for joy, then became embarrassed when she saw Oliver and Mia smiling at her. "A-Anyway, feel free to take as long as you need. Ah. Also, let me know ahead of time when you plan on fitting it in. I'd like to be there live if I have the chance."

"You got it," Zoe set the game aside. Now she was the target of Oliver and Mia's grins. "And what the fuck're you two looking at, huh?"

"That part in The Grinch where they zoom in on his heart and it grows a couple sizes?" Mia observed.

"Three sizes, to be precise," Oliver said.

"Fuck off," Zoe laughed, then turned towards the spread that Oliver had been building up. "What's with all the food, anyway? Did your dad say fuck it and bring us one of everything?"

"Essentially," Rebecca admitted.

Oliver was taken aback. He looked at the seashell logo on the bags, asking, "I've never been there before, but isn't Aphrodite's supposed to be, like... a really classy diner over on Foamy Shores...?"

Rebecca rubbed her elbow, picking up that 'classy' meant 'expensive'.

"Y-Yeah, but it's not a big deal. We live over there, so it's close by... that, and, um... my dad is just happy I'm getting out of the house on the weekend for once, and he thought he'd send along a little thank you to everyone for hanging out with me..."

Living at Foamy Shores was indeed a big deal. It was one of the most expensive neighborhoods in Vista Venus, and Oliver gathered Rebecca's dad had to be raking it in to pull that off. She frowned as she spoke, though. He wasn't sure what upset her, so he asked a follow-up question. "Mia said you're usually busy with tabletop games on the weekends, right?"

"Uh-huh," Rebecca clutched the dice bag hanging from her neck, a small smile replacing her frown. "My dad runs Dice Rolls and Dungeons campaigns for his friends, and they're all 40th Space Reich and STC fans, too, so every weekend is kind of a big blowout party of nerdy junk. That and weekends are usually the best time to play virtual tabletop stuff with my grandpa. He, um- he lives in London."

"Really?" Oliver remarked. "That's... really interesting, Rebecca. You sound like you've got a pretty sweet life."

She burned bright red. "Oh, it's nothing special, ah... hahaha..."

"Unlike this huge ass breakfast spread we've got going on," Zoe pointed out. "Think we can start eating it one of these days, or you two just gonna keep flirting right in front of us?"

"Fuh... fuh... flirting...?!" Rebecca eyed her comfy spot behind the couch, where she would be protected. She almost went for it, but Oliver rolled his eyes and spoke up.

"Oh, shut up," he laughed, thoughtlessly adding, "If I was flirting with Rebecca, she'd know."

"Would she, now?" Mia mused. "And how would you go about that, mi amor? Mn?"

"Ah... I... uh..."

Oliver sighed and hid his blushing face. "Swear to God, I should just go mute for the rest of my life. Maybe that would get me to stop compulsively saying stupid shit."

Mia's amusement led to a small affection bump.

[Mia has gained +1 Affection!]

"And ruin all the fun? Nuh-uh. Happen to be at your best when you're compulsively saying stupid shit, and I-"

Her stomach empty, Zoe groaned, "Oh my God, are ANY of you people physically incapable of not flirting for more than a couple of seconds?!"

Mia shrugged, then placed her hand on Zoe's knee. Her fingertips slowly crept up her friend's thigh. "You know me. Never could help myself."

Everyone in the room aside from Mia blushed at this casual intimacy- Zoe most of all. Mia had touched her before. They were comfortable enough with each other to fuck around like this every so often, but that was before Zoe's nascent sexuality began blooming.

Zoe lost her breath until jolting upright and patting Rebecca on the back. "H-Hey, here's an idea. Why don't you take my seat, Becca?"

Rebecca panicked at the thought of sitting next to Oliver. "W-What? Um, n-no, I can sit on the floor if you-"

"Come on, it's a win-win! You get to keep flirting with your new favorite fuckboy, and I put some distance between me and my creepy, hypersexual roommate!"

"You liked it," Mia purred.

Zoe stomped off to her room, refusing to dignify that with a response. She was right, of course. It did feel kind of nice, and she didn't fucking get it. She'd let Mia feel her up before for 'artistic research', for Christ's sake, and it was mostly just 'whatever' at the time.

Now, though? It was like that kiss with Oliver flipped a switch in her mind, sending a snowball down a hill. It was easily ignorable at first, but as her exposure to all this flirting and sexuality increased, things led to where Zoe found herself now; lost and confused.

Oliver watched her go, then sat down next to Mia while Rebecca nervously took Zoe's old spot. She put as much distance between herself and Oliver as possible, to the extent that she was practically sitting on the armrest.

"Is Zoe okay?" Rebecca worked past her nerves to ask. "I, um, I noticed as much when I came in, but she doesn't seem to be getting any better..."

"I was wondering the same thing," Oliver said. Then, he whispered to his girlfriend, "Are you sure teasing her like that was a good idea?"

"Doubt it hurts," she said. "Besides, you really gonna tell me she doesn't look cute as shit when she's all sexually confused?"

"No, absolutely not, she's adorable as shit right now. I just think that if she really is sexually confused, we should maybe try being supportive and not... you know, gropey?"

"Ah, you're right, mi amor... suppose I'll try and tone it down, even if groping is the fun part..." Mia sighed. "On that note, don't actually try flirting with Becca anytime soon. Girl's delicate, if you hadn't noticed. Prone to overheating."

"And you aren't?"

Mia jabbed him in the ribs as Rebecca watched on, clueless and out of place- her default state of being.

Zoe returned from her room carrying an oversized beanbag chair designed to look like a sloth's face. She plopped it on the ground next to the coffee table, then plopped herself down.

"You really like sloths, huh?" Oliver smirked at the streamer's consistent theming.

"I sometimes feel as if they're my people," Zoe sighed wistfully, with a hint of sarcasm.

"Everyone has their own little hyperfixations," Rebecca helpfully added. "Zoe has sloths, video games, and caffeine, Mia has drawing, and, um... puh... puh... pornography... and... um... Oliver has-"

"Enough for breakfast to freeze over by the time I finish listing them," Oliver saved her the trouble. "Much as I'd love to catch everyone up on my various obsessions, I'm pretty sure Zoe's gonna kill me if we don't start eating already."

"More like I'll eat you,"

Mia smirked at the phrasing, Zoe shot her a flushed glare, Rebecca tilted her head blankly, and Oliver pinched the bridge of his nose, already exhausted. This was going to be a long day.

***

Stat Changes

Mia Rosas | Status: Girlfriend | 39/300 | ❤❤❤♡♡

Zoe Myers | Status: Friend | 61/100 | ♡♡♡♡♡

Zoe Fishnet Pinup

Gift from HN, thank you very much! I was extremely excited for this and it turned out even better than I dreamed. Love working with this artist a ton, can’t wait to do more with them. Rebecca is next thanks to another donation and the other two will be done after that.

Art by https://twitter.com/38jxL

(New) Love Addict’s RPG Vol. 2 Ch. 73

If you didn’t see announcement, this is a new chapter and the old 73 is now 74. I need to make a few edits to 74 to account for this- namely reference that Zoe eventually showered and have her more flustered when she sees Oliver in the morning. Just a few lines. I’ll do that later.

Safe to say I’m back to full power- I did over 4K words today and knocked this one out in one sitting, editing and all.

I quite like what came out of it. I enjoy doing psychological breakdowns, especially of broken characters like Zoe. I was trying to carefully avoid specifics about why she’s like this but I think her current thoughts come off as believable and if it wasn’t obvious this really shows off how deep her parallels to Oliver run.

Skip this part if you haven’t read the outline and don’t want spoilers, but the incident is going to be softened by quite a bit. Zoe will be shown struggling against the temptation not to go and stream, but she just isn’t at the point where she can fight it off alone and Mia urging her not to fucking bother won’t exactly help. Oliver is going to be much more determined than in the outline, too, I think, as he’ll get a sense for how bad Zoe’s issues are and it’s core to his character that he can’t not try and help (a cute girl) in that position. Especially when they both essentially suffered from different types of internet addiction. He’ll be harsh with her on Sunday when confronting her, but ultimately, Zoe will ask be the one to ask him for help changing instead of it being forced on her.

75 will come out tomorrow, the text is done I just don’t wanna edit it lmao.

***

Zoe knew better than anyone she needed to stop drinking this fucking poison. Her last can of gulpies was wearing off late at night as she laid on the couch, gaming on her Vapor Dock. The crash was something else, like her heart was threatening to burst out of her ribcage.

"Fuckin' Christ..." she groaned, shutting off her Dock without even bothering to save her progress in Early Access Roguelite #637, or whatever the fuck she was even playing. It was looking like she might actually sleep for two nights in a row.

And even now, all I can fuckin' think about is slamming another can... never should've taken that stupid sponsorship in the first place. That fuckin' forty-eight pack they sent me was a trap...

Forget sleep. Zoe could use a shower. Sweat oozed out of her facial pores, greasing her up something fierce. She was probably close to smelling like one of her fans.

Zoe tried getting up, which was the biggest mistake of her night. Her head swirled, the world revolving around her. Lightheadedness hit her like a fist to the face, and she gave up before she even made it halfway to sitting.

"God, he was right... this shit is radioactive piss..." Zoe angrily eyed the empty can.

Not having much else to do, she shut her eyes. Even sleep wouldn't take her. Her mind raced far too much, leaving her trapped in the uncomfortable haze between dreams and waking life.

Guess I'll wait this out and shower later on, then...

For how long Zoe was left there alone with only her thoughts to keep her company, she couldn't say. In this nigh-delirious state, Oliver and Mia kept popping up at the forefront of her mind. She missed them. They were right there in Mia's bedroom, but she still somehow missed them.

There was nothing Zoe hated more than being alone.

It wasn't like she didn't get it. They were a couple. A new one, at that. All they wanted was to be all over each other, and now that she'd had a tiny taste of what that was like, Zoe didn't blame them.

She didn't fully understand it, but she understood a lot more than she used to. Sitting on his lap. Kissing him. Getting felt up by him. Having Mia watch, even. It took her time to process, but Zoe wasn't in denial.

She knew she liked it- all of it.

But she didn't get the same thing out of it that Mia did. Zoe liked the guy more than it was maybe appropriate to like someone after knowing them for two days- you latched on to friendly faces quickly as a reclusive hermit- but she wasn't in love with him. What felt mind-numbingly great for her best friend was akin to a mild, 'hey, this touching each other thing is actually pretty nice' for her.

Zoe thought she had it all. She made a lot of money, had a nice place where she lived with her best friend, and had thousands upon thousands of fans who gave her what her heart desired more than anything else whenever she so much as posted to her social media accounts.

She let her addiction spiral. Let herself believe that getting as much attention from as many different people as possible was more important than getting it from people she actually cared about.

Zoe bit her lip.

Mia looked so hopeful when she asked me about changing my schedule earlier... I... I can't just do that out of the blue, but... can I?

Zoe thought about it, and her mind spiraled even further.

What if all of her fans went away? What if she really did need their constant adoration to make it through the day? What if she gave it all up, only to somehow fuck things up with Mia? Then nobody would love her, and she'd be right back where she started- all alone in a dark room, with only pixels and polygons for friends.

No. Never again. Mia loves me. Becca loves me. My fans love me. I can make this work- normal people balance work and real life, how hard can it be? Maybe I'll start taking a couple hours off on weekends? Yeah. It wouldn't be much, but I could work up from there, I-

Oliver moaned loudly from within Mia's room, snapping Zoe out of it.

She managed to crane her neck over to look down the hall, now blushing furiously. "The fuck are they doing in there...?"

Whatever they were up to, the dude was having the time of his life. He kept making sounds. Cute, adorable fucking sounds. Zoe's mouth went dry. She couldn't hear Mia, so they definitely weren't having sex, but... what, then?

Maybe she's using her hands again...

It made her flashback to when she'd barged in at the height of her caffeine rush right after getting temp band. She didn't think a single thing about all that sex stuff back when it was happening. She thought about it a few times since then, though. That face of his when he was blasting rope. The way he covered her face. The size of him, and whether or not someone as small as Mia could even take all that.

Oliver kept moaning louder and louder, and Zoe kept burning up.

What the fuck... does it really feel so much better when you love someone else...?

She bit her lip. Wiggled her hips. Ground her thighs.

Zoe was weak, tired, delirious.

Horny.

I don't get it.

I don't.

I don't, I don't, I don't...!!

Her hand slipped into her pajama pants, pushing past her bush to find something she wasn't used to. Wetness. She'd been horny before, but this?

This was new.

Zoe made the most of it and rubbed herself raw, but she didn't do this often. She sucked at it. Anything close to resembling a climax eluded her, which wasn't the case for Oliver.

He soon let out the biggest and cutest moan she'd heard out of him yet, and in her stupid, confused state of arousal, the only thing Zoe felt was jealous about not getting to see whatever face he was making for herself. She masturbated through these new and complex emotions, failing to get herself off.

Thankfully, round two started up in Mia's bedroom only a few minutes later, giving her plenty more to work with.

Zoe was pretty sure she heard some slapping sounds and strange noises coming out of Mia this time around. She wondered what her friend looked like when Olive was doing his thing. What kind of cute faces she made.

It almost got her where she wanted to go, which only added to Zoe's confusion. She'd never had thoughts like that before, but it seemed like anything was on the table now that she was in the midst of a sexual renaissance...

Zoe was close.

So close- but Oliver and Mia eventually stopped, and the moment was gone.

"Fuckin' fuck, fuck, fuckity FUCK...!" Zoe hissed in futility, keeping her volume down so no one heard. Now she was tired, delirious, lonely, and more sexually frustrated than she'd ever been. Probably needed a shower about twice as much as before, too.

Laying there in about fifteen types of abject misery and tired of being who she was, Zoe took a long look at herself.

Not every person in the world needed love to get by. Plenty of people didn't. They didn't want to be touched or enter relationships, which was fine.

Zoe was never one of these people.

Love was all she ever wanted. Familial love, platonic love, romantic love... it didn't matter, she'd take and take and take whatever she could get, and before she knew it, she wound up with an addiction to one of the worst kinds.

Fake love.

Zoe was an idol, a golden calf who built a world for herself where horny losers showered her with nonstop parasocial affection- and none of it was real.

Not compared to what Mia had found for herself.

I don't get it, Zoe stared at the ceiling. I don't fucking get it at all, but...

I want to...

And that would never happen if she didn't start making some changes around here. She didn't need a better balance between work and life; she needed the balance to tilt away from work and toward life- but Zoe wasn't mentally prepared for all that. Not yet. She was scared and still addicted to the shit she already had- but in time, all that would pass.

That's all she needed.

More time to learn from their example, discover more about herself, and muster up the willpower to break her chains to change herself for the better.

Zoe's temp ban still had five days to go.

Next Chapter is Basically Done, But…

I want to go back and add a short chapter in between 72 and 73 to briefly explore Zoe’s thoughts when she’s out on the couch at the same time Oliver is getting a blowjob, highlight her increasing sense of loneliness, sexual confusion, and realizing that something is very wrong with her life compared to what Oliver and Mia have. The actual chapters are coming out different than the outline and Zoe’s rougher edges are really softening up. The bad thing scheduled to happen is shaping up to be less her fault and she’s showing a lot of self reflection in 74 that I wanted to build on and explain a bit more. It’s not that it came from nowhere, I just think we’d get more out of it if we saw more of how she got there.

I don’t think it will be very long, but I’ll hold off on posting what is now 75 until it’s done.

Another bit of good news is that I’m almost done proofing the audiobook! They’ll have some fixes to make but I imagine we’ll probably have it up for preorder sometime this month, I don’t know for sure. All I do know is that I hear the actresses voice in my head whenever I’m writing Mia’s dialogue now and that none of you are ready for how sexy she sounds.

Update

Slightly annoying day on one hand, but a productive one on the other.

Someone hacked into my Facebook account overnight and made a bunch of charges to my PayPal debit and I had to call them, disable the card and such, change FB password etc. I should get back the $160 they took within ten days but it wasn’t a great time for that to happen.

The good news is that I’m pretty damn sure I’m almost back to full ‘strength’. I had a successful writing session at night for the first time in weeks last night and it’s going well today, too. I said chapter would probably be done today but it’s longer than I thought it’d be. Tomorrow for sure, though.

One last topic, I wanted to ask if anyone wanted to help with some art. The guy who did that amazing Mia vibrator pic has completed one with Zoe I haven’t shared yet cause it’s pending a few revisions but undoubtedly a 10/10. I wanted to keep the train going and I had a really good idea for a Rebecca one that I felt motivated enough to sketch out.

This artist and I get along really great and I have some bigger plans with him once I finally get my royalty money at the end of the month, but beyond that, I was thinking a complete set of pinups by him would be a good thing to release along with the audiobook similarly to how I showed off everyone’s references in the same post. Got 2/5 so far and they’re $75 each, though Tessa’s might be more expensive since I was thinking of asking to include a couple cats with the composition I had in mind.

Here’s the idea I had for Rebecca’s, https://files.catbox.moe/27icrh.jpeg

All these pinups thus far have had the girls on the bed so I think Stacy’s would be her painting her nails wearing a pretty pink negligee and Tessa’s would be in the morning holding a cup of coffee, barely awake expression, robe open with exposed breasts as a couple cats rub on her or something and she lazily pets one.

Let me know if you’d be interested in helping, I can’t ask my official gender-fluid sugarmomdad Milly since they helped with other stuff recently as well as the PayPal thing lol.

But yeah. Shitty day but I’m feeling very good today despite that.

Oliver Rough Dominating Mia Pinup

Long story behind this pic. Was scheduled months ago but the artist wasn’t feeling well and neglected to tell me so I was left to assume the worst about that because they wouldn’t reply yet were still active on social media. I hope they feel better. Great pic, though! I generally don’t get anal art and honestly I didn’t know it was anal from the sketch but it’s okay lol, I don’t mind it I just know it’s not everyone’s thing.

No homo but Oliver came out really good in this pic. Gives a glance of what he might be like when more confident regarding domination.

Health wise, doing better, upped dosage a little more and definitely feeling a huge improvement because of it. Next chapter will probably be tomorrow since it’s a shorter one.

Art by https://twitter.com/lewdpot

Mia and Zoe Fingering Pinup

Present from Milly! Very pleased with this one, I like the artists style a lot. It’s quite unique and very sexy. Expect more from them as they’re very cheap.

Oliver is working on his multitasking and seems to be doing a good job.

Art by https://www.reddit.com/u/skrooe/s/5gbNzcRZlu

Love Addict's RPG Vol. 2 Ch. 74

And we're back after an unfortunate break. I'm slowly feeling more stable, but its looking like I'll still need a while to fully get there. It's still the nights that are the hardest. Before I cracked I was doing so bad I couldn't even muster up enough attention span to play a video game or something but I have gotten past that hurdle again, and I'm much stabler when writing during the day now, too, so maybe I'll have fully recovered in a few weeks.

I apologize that my patreon has been something of a mental health blog this last week. I'm not looking for sympathy, I just have twice as much support as I did on here two months ago. I definitely want to keep you guys as long as I'm able to and I believe communication is important. If you want to make me feel better though just keep up the comments or hit me up if you want to talk about the series sometime, as I said nights are the worst for me discussion would be nice.

Anyway, this chapter turned out good, I think. Most of it is RPG stuff that needed to be addressed at some point but there's still some good character beats. More excited for everything we've got ahead of us.

---

February 24th

Oliver awoke the following morning to a sensation of bliss. Pleasure reverberated throughout his body, stirring his tired mind. He felt warmth and wetness enveloping his morning wood, as well as the gentle suction of Mia's lips and the lashing of her tongue.

A contented sigh escaped him upon opening his eyes.

"Cashing in your all-access pass already?" He asked the outline of his girlfriend's head bobbing up and down beneath the blanket. Oliver then winced as she pulled her lips from him tortuously slow.

"Not much use in having something and not making the most of it, mn?" Mia replied, then gave his tip a loving kiss. "Morning, mi amor."

Oliver removed the blanket, revealing her sleepy face, staring with the purest of smiles. His heart melted as his erection quivered. "Morning, Mia. What time is it?"

"Dick sucking o'clock," she descended upon him again, engulfing the first few inches and getting to work.

"A-Ahhh... yeah, I... I guess it is, isn't it...?"

Oliver laid back and enjoyed his current situation. Mia gave it to him slowly, dragging it out while going hard enough to compensate for her lack of speed. Minutes passed as his climax began to build. She had him moaning and groaning, desperate for release.

He was getting closer, and Mia could feel it. She always figured she'd enjoy giving head, but she truly underestimated how cute it would make Oliver. His whimpers, the way he trembled and throbbed in her mouth, every last bit of it was further encouragement to drain him dry.

Mia grabbed his wrist, placing Oliver's hand on the back of her head. He took the message and grabbed her hair before pronouncing his imminent eruption.

"M-Mia... I'm almost-"

There was a knock at the door. Mia stopped in her place as Oliver reflexively covered her up, expecting the worst.

Zoe surprised them both by showing restraint and not barging in this time. She only called out to them, saying, "Yo, not to be rude or anything- rich, going from me, I know, I know- but are you guys almost done in there, or what? Becca hit me up. She's worried because you haven't responded to her texts and she told me she'll be here by noon, so..."

Mia popped off of him, the interruption somehow annoying her even more than it did Oliver. She was almost at the best part, damn it. Oliver handed off her phone from the nightstand as soon as Mia opened her palm for it.

"Mierda. Didn't know it was eleven thirty. Here, text her something while I finish you off."

"Uh, yeah, sure..." Oliver said, taking it back as Mia lowered her mouth onto his cock again. "A-Ah, shit... t-thanks for letting us know, Zoe. We'll be- ah... done in a few..."

"Geez... sure fuckin' sounds like it..."

Oliver heard an awkward laugh as Zoe left them alone, but he was too busy to care. Mia was sucking him off, he was close to finishing, and he had a job to do. He skimmed through Rebecca's texts, feeling bad for her obvious anxiety the longer she went without a reply.

His grip on Mia's hair tightening, Oliver grit his teeth and told Rebecca they were up and getting ready. She replied almost instantly, now in a much better mood and promising to bring breakfast for everyone, to boot. With that load off his mind, Mia forced out a different load.

"Mn, mn... mn...!" She sucked and sucked.

Oliver moaned as his girlfriend maximized the pleasure of his climax, refusing to give him an inch of leeway. He took the hint, keeping her head in place so that she sucked out every last drop and a little more beyond that. In the end, he had to practically pull her off his dick to get her to stop.

After surfacing for air, she opened her mouth for his viewing pleasure. She hadn't swallowed it all yet, and the kitten had a saucy look in her eyes as she finished the job with one last gulp.

"Delicioso," Mia sighed, contented.

[Mia has gained +1 Affection!]

Oliver craned his neck at the sky and exhaled dreamily. "God," he uttered. "How is the rest of my day supposed to measure up to that?"

"Making you ask that was kind of the point, mi amor,"

"Mission accomplished, then. Are you happy now?"

"Reasonably,"

"Only reasonably?"

"Never gonna be fully satisfied until I'm able to throat the fucker..."

"Figures. Do you just intend on living out every single one of your hentai fantasies with me, or what?"

"The ones that are feasible, sí," Mia smiled suggestively. "Why? Do you not want deep-throating added to your little gatita's sexual repertoire?"

"We really don't have time for all this flirting, Mia..."

"Then I suppose you should answer the question,"

Oliver bowed to her stubbornness. "I'm not saying I wouldn't love it if you could pull off deep-throating me, but I can't possibly stress how good blowjobs already feel without you going the extra mile. Seriously. Anything else would just be a cherry on top."

Mia stared at him determinedly in total silence.

"In one ear and out the other, huh?" He sighed.

"My honor as a sexual deviant depends on this, mi amor. What kind of hentai-obsessed freak can't deep-throat their boyfriend's dick?"

"The kind with a gag reflex?"

"Like I'm gonna let that stop me," Mia scoffed, her lewd ambition making itself manifest in a way that benefited the both of them by causing a new notification to pop up.

[Quest Received! Help Mia learn to Deep Throat +20LP]

Oliver had to try not to laugh at the depths of Mia's perversion. At least it gave him a quest that didn't put him on the spot or make him uncomfortable, for once. If she really wanted to go that far for him, who was he to say no?

"Let's put a pin in that and come back to it later," Oliver sat up. "For now, we need to get ready for Rebecca."

"Mn. Suppose we do." Mia stretched out.

She was still half naked from the night before, and Oliver found he adored the way the morning light splayed against her bare chest. His staring made her feel a little shy, but there was no use in hiding when the cat was already out of the bag.

Instead, she came closer, wrapped her arms around him, pressed her naked chest against his own, and gave him a good morning kiss. Oliver returned the gesture with enthusiasm, but his expression as she pulled away made Mia feel a touch embarrassed.

"Imagine I probably need to brush my teeth..."

"Well, I wasn't going to outright say it..."

The two shared an awkward smile and both left the bed. Mia threw on her shirt from the night before and tossed him his clothes.

"Might as well have a quick shower while I'm at it. You could do with one, too, mi amor. Personally, I'm pretty into the kinky sex musk you got going on-"

"Surprise, surprise,"

Mia ignored him. "But something tells me it's not quite Becca's speed."

"Sure. I'll head back home for a few and freshen up. I didn't bring anything else to wear, anyway."

"Need to get in the habit of bringing along an overnight bag,"

"I suppose I do,"

Another one of their awkward smiles kicked in, leading to a second kiss before they separated in the hallway. Mia headed for the bathroom, Oliver, the living room. A semi-familiar sight was waiting for him when he got there.

Zoe was chilling out with her Vapor Dock as per usual, though she was wearing an actual shirt for once. A cute one with her channel's logo on it. She looked up at him as he approached, noticing his stare. "Morning, perv. Take a pic. It'll last longer."

"Morning. I'm good, thanks. Not like I don't know where to look if I want hot pics of you."

"You sure? Seems kinda like you can't take your eyes off me, so I thought I'd offer..."

"Nah, I'm just a little weirded out. I've never seen you with your boobs covered before, so it's like, where the heck am I supposed to look now when I'm talking to you? Your eyes?" 

Oliver wasn't sure where he found the courage to pull that one off, but it amused Zoe and scored him some points.

[Zoe has gained +1 Affection! +1 Smooth Talker]

"Heh. Just getting cockier by the day, aren't you? Fear not. The girls'll resume their regularly scheduled cockteasing duties as soon as Becca's out of the picture. Think you'll live till then?"

He slumped his shoulders and gazed into the middle distance. "If you can call that living..."

"Oh, fuck off," Zoe laughed. "Don't act like you don't already have more than enough sexual stimulation on your plate as it is. I heard you howling like a little bitch last night, Olive."

"Last night? We didn't do anything that sexual for, like... two hours after we left. Were you still out here listening to us like a creep?"

"I might've crashed on the couch after you guys abandoned me to go do bullshit couple stuff," she grumbled.

The mood between them was good, so Oliver risked a quick jab. "You know, speaking of abandonment-"

"Fuckin' oof," Zoe recoiled at the sudden accusation. "Can't say I didn't walk right into that one... is now really the best time for you to get on my case, though? Becca's on her way, and besides, I... I already said I was thinking about it, didn't I?"

Zoe's reaction wasn't as adversarial as it could've been. It inspired Oliver to take things a bit further and ensure they were on the same page.

"Thinking about what, specifically?"

"About..." Zoe idled, restlessly twitching her leg. "Cutting back my stream hours to... hang out with you guys more often, or... something. Gah. It was fun, okay? What else do you want from me?"

Oliver could think of an answer or two, but he'd poked the beehive enough for now. He smiled, happy that Mia's heartfelt plea had as much of an impact as it did. While Zoe getting mildly upset last night was amusing, the fact that she was still passive-aggressive about it the following day showed progress.

Bit by bit, the plan was working. They were getting through to her. Zoe was starting to remember what she was missing out on, and with Rebecca's help, today was the best chance they would get to really hammer in their point.

"Nothing, for now. I'm heading home real quick to shower and change. I'll be back in a few, so try not to miss me while I'm gone, okay? I know pissy you get when you're left all alone."

"Pft. Right." Zoe shoved her face back into her game console. As soon as he made for the door, she stealthily looked back up at him while scrunching her face. She watched him putting on his shoes, despite trying to look away.

His hand reached for the door.

"Don't take too long..." she mumbled.

Oliver looked over his shoulder to stare at Zoe for a few seconds. His expression softened the longer he did.

"I won't," he promised.

[Zoe has gained +1 Affection! +1 Smooth Talker]

"...Good. You don't wanna keep Rebecca waiting, do you?"

"That, I don't," Oliver left the building after waving Zoe off, feeling good about his progress just now. 

About a minute later, he was halfway across town, showering. A big, dumb grin was plastered across his face as he soaped himself up. It didn't look like she'd admit it anytime soon, but... it looked like Zoe missed him whenever he left. He was surprised at how fast he was impacting her, though Oliver supposed his powers helped a lot on that front.

That, or maybe he wasn't all that special and she was just that desperate for companionship. While certainly possible, the thought was pessimistic, and he dismissed it. All that mattered was that he could keep chipping away at her and refine the crude feelings Zoe was developing for him into something more potent and real.

Still in high spirits after his quick shower, Oliver toweled himself off, did his hair, and went through the rest of his morning routine in a hurry. This time, he sucked a few day's worth of clean clothes into his inventory, along with deodorant and other supplies. The second he looked away from everything he had taken, a new replacement appeared.

It made Oliver curious, so he tried to absorb another deodorant stick and see if a third appeared. If this worked, then maybe-

[Acquisition Rejected! No more than one of any item created through Free Ride may be stored within your inventory at any given time. Free Ride's purpose is to alleviate financial responsibilities so that your money may be put toward pursuing heroines. It is not an infinite duplication glitch, and any attempt to sell items created by it will find no success.]

"Damn it," Oliver sighed. "I should've figured that was a no-go, but you can't blame a guy for trying..."

Now thoroughly freshened up and with all the components of an overnight bag stashed inside his inventory, Oliver checked the time. He still had twenty minutes till noon, so he figured he might as well have a quick strategy meeting with his best bro to let him know about the change in Mia's affection cap.

He shot Bradley a text, closed his eyes, and counted down.

"One... two..."

"Oliver!" The door burst open, Bradley stepping in with all the exaggerated swagger of a primitive computer animation from the '90s. "It's good to SEE you, my FRIEND! To what DO I owe this [Unexpected Pleasure]? Is something WRONG? If my memory SERVES, you should be with [Heroines Two, Four, and Prospective Heroine Number Five] by now!"

"Hey, nice to see you, too," Oliver slumped his shoulders. He didn't bother correcting him about any of that. It just wasn't worth it anymore. "I just came back to sneak in a shower and pick up some stuff. That, and I have some updates to share."

Bradley compelled him to lay on the news, so Oliver exposited the PG-rated version of yesterday's events.

"I'm just wondering why it didn't happen sooner. It only took one hundred affection to get her first three Heart Events, and now it's tripled for her fourth. Any idea on what the big deal is?"

"The affection required TO further the route of a [Heroine] varies from [Girl to Girl]! It would be [Wise] to think of [Second Heroine Mia Rosas'] easy progression as AN [Exception] rather THAN [The Rule]! Almost as if SHE were a...?" Bradley stared at him pointedly.

Oliver shut his eyes and sighed. "A... tutorial girl?"

"[Correctamundo]! And the ONLY reason things proceeded [Smooth as Silk] until now was that...?"

"She was already in love with me from the start, right? That makes sense... but I guess that means I shouldn't expect the cap to be at one hundred three times in a row with Zoe or anyone else, then."

"Does knowing THIS invoke any change in your [Game Plan], my [Man]?"

"Well, I could maybe use some more love skills to speed up my affection farming, but other than that? I'm... not so sure I need to do anything special. Mia's isn't hard to please."

"Up TOP!" Bradley proposed a high five, causing Oliver to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"Not what I meant..."

"Fair ENOUGH!" Bradley snapped his fingers but didn't it drag him down, jumping straight to the next beat. "Allow ME to make a [Pointed Suggestion], then! [Love Skills] don't BUY themselves, and between purchasing THEM and saving for [Heart Locks], you'll be burning through your [Love Points] faster than YOU earn them!"

"I know," Oliver blushed. "I'm not too worried just yet, though. I mean, Mia and I are, um... well, we've been having a lot of fun, and I'm picking up points at a decent pace with her. There was the whole thing with Zoe the other day, too, and she definitely sounded interested in giving it another go sometime... but... then again..."

"Yes?"

"If I keep progressing with Zoe, she'll eventually present her own roadblocks, won't she? Same with the others. I'm starting to think that no matter what road I go down, I'm always gonna be strapped for LP..." Oliver started rubbing his pulsating forehead, which ached from overthinking.

"Right, right, RIGHT on the [Money]! That is exactly WHERE I was going with [This]!"

"What's your suggestion, then? I'm all ears."

"Putting things [Blunter] than a [Doobie], stop trying to SAVE [Love Points] for every [Heart Lock] that appears!"

Oliver tilted his head. He didn't see the logic right away, but he made sure to pay attention whenever Bradley's opinion differed from his own. There's not much use in having a confidant if you don't hear them out.

"Go on,"

"Currently, you ARE stuck in the [Narrow Mindframe] of a [Reactionary] who attempts to [Speedrun] every little problem THAT appears. While some [Heart Locks], such as [The First of Mia Rosas'], require your [Immediate Attention], not ALL of them will. There was no reason YOU had to [Snatch Up] a bunch of [Style Skills] yesterday when you COULD have done additional [Stat Training]." 

Oliver felt called out, but not in a bad way. He rubbed his chin and narrowed his eyes, ultimately nodding along.

"I'm not saying you're wrong, but in my defense, my speedrunner mindset came from wanting to heal Mia's wrist as fast as possible. That, and I was operating under the assumption that every Heart Event only took a hundred affection to unlock. You might be right, though. I've definitely been slacking on my self-improvement these last couple of days. Not that I've really had the time between unraveling all this Zoe shit and enjoying my relationship with Mia, but still."

The more he thought about it, the more Oliver agreed with Bradley's train of thought.

Buying a skill and suddenly getting complimented for becoming vaguely more handsome was nice and all, but it took genuine effort for Oliver to hang out with Stacy long enough for her advice to rub off on him and level up his style. When Mia saw his transformation the next day, it left a much bigger impact on him. It made him feel good about himself, and the same could be said about his level-up after a day of sparring dudes on Brawln.

"No, you're definitely right about this," Oliver said, focusing on the truth. "Tier one skills are great, but I've been using them as a crutch. I'll try to lighten up on them from here on out and mostly stick to buying the ones I actually need to clear Heart Locks. Vogueing was crucial to modeling for Mia, but Hairdressing and Smiling? I could've gone without those."

Bradley smiled much more softly than he usually did. He seemed relieved. "So glad you see THINGS [My Way]! I've had this [Concern] since you FIRST started talking about [Brute-forcing Heart Locks], but did NOT want to [Rain on Your Parade] with everything ELSE [Going On]!"

"I appreciate it. This week's been a whirlwind; I definitely didn't need more shit to have to think about on top of it..." Oliver sighed. "Not gonna have a chance to start training until tomorrow, though. Maybe I should pick up something to make up for lost time?"

"Was there a [specific skill] you HAD in mind?"

"There is, yeah," he looked away. "One I probably should've grabbed a lot sooner, honestly, but I didn't because the idea of it makes me somewhat nervous..."

Bradley tilted his head, confused. "Your [Best Bro] does NOT follow. I can't THINK of any [Corruption Skills] that would help with-"

"Oh, no. It's not a corruption skill. It is in tier two, though. I don't remember the name, but wasn't there one we saw that cut down on the amount of sleep I needed?"

"Ah. Now I SEE."

"Yeah. Nights have always been when my compulsivity is at its worst, so I'm naturally wary of staying up later than I have to..."

"While it's IMPORTANT to [Know Your Limits] Oliver, PAL, you say that AS if you aren't already [Staring] at [The Answer]!"

"I figured you'd say that, but really, that makes me even more hesitant. I don't want to cut into your free time anymore than I already am just so you can babysit me for a few hours every night. You deserve to be out there doing your own thing as much as you damn well please."

"Your concern is AS [Hopelessly Misplaced] as ever! I would've thought that BY now you'd understand that assisting you IN your [Romantic Endeavors] is EXACTLY what I [Damn Well Please]! Every [Precious Moment] I spend with YOU is another opportunity for ME to learn more regarding the [Fragile Human Condition], my FRIEND!"

"Not sure I really get what all we would learn from sitting in the corner while I read a book, practice sketching, or flip through men's fashion magazines, but... if you're really gonna be that insistent, I won't turn you down," Oliver said. "Thanks, Bradley."

Finding his determination, Oliver went through his skill menu to locate his next acquisition. After getting down to the 'S' section, he found what he was looking for and made his purchase, gratitude toward his Best Bro as heavy on his heart as always.

[Skill Purchased! Sleep Optimization -50LP]

[Sleep Optimization | ** | Utility | Reduces the amount of sleep required to maintain a healthy body and mind down to only four hours a day. Also grants the ability to fall asleep at will and set precise wake-up times, though external noises and stimuli may cause you to awaken earlier than scheduled.]

Nothing specific happened in the wake of his purchase. Oliver's brain felt a little tingly, and that was it. Bradley suggested he try it quickly, so he laid on his bed and thought about sleeping. Sure enough, a pop-up box asked him to input the desired duration of his nap.

That was confirmation enough for Oliver, so he got back up and opened his skill menu again.

"Massage turned out to be a great idea," he said. "It really helped Mia out, so I'm gonna make one last exception and get its third level. After that, I'll officially start limiting my tier one purchases."

"Sounds LIKE a [Plan], my [Man]!" Bradley shot him some finger guns right on time with Oliver hitting the button.

[Skill Purchased! Massage Lv. 3 -100LP]

[Massage Lv. 3 | * | Smarts | With this, you've mastered your idle hands and can use them on someone else's body quite well. Grants advanced knowledge of massage techniques and gives you the skills to perform them. +1 to Smarts.]

[Gained +1 Smarts!]

Now back to only having 100LP in the tank, Oliver's brain sucked in the new information and got another tingle upon the stat increase. He looked down at his hands, flexing them. No major differences again.

"Is SOMETHING the matter?"

"No, not at all. I just thought that finally getting a level three skill would've felt more monumental than this..."

"You'll likely see a [Drastic Increase] in your [Massage Abilities] when PUTTING them [To the Test], but even then, a [Level Three Skill] does NOT mean you're suddenly one of the world's best AT whatever the [Skill] is for!"

"So you're saying that there's still room for improvement even now?" Oliver smiled as he sighed. "Sounds about right. You  can't ever let yourself grow complacent in dating sim RPGs..."

A new notification popped up confirming precisely that.

[15 Tier One Skills Acquired! Difficulty raised. Prices increased as follows; Lv. 1 - 50LP. Lv. 2 - 75LP. Lv. 3 - 125LP.]

"...Shit, seriously?" Oliver blinked, then opened up his status menu to check and count the skills for himself.

"Let's see here... Physical Conditioning 1 and 2, Boxing 1 and 2, Hyper Reflexes 1 and 2, Fancy Footwork 1, Massage 1, 2, and 3, Vogueing 1 and 2, Hairstyling, Smiling, House Husbandry all at 1... that's... fucking damn it...! Why didn't you tell me this was a thing, Bradley?"

"I didn't KNOW!" The thoughtform insisted. "My knowledge regarding [Your Powers] is expansive, but not [All Encompassing]! You wouldn't play a game where the [Tutorial Character] spoiled EVERY individual [Twist and Turn] for you ahead of TIME, would you?"

"...No," Oliver groaned. "No, I wouldn't. Damn it. That's inconvenient, but it doesn't change much since I planned to focus on skill training anyway. I just don't get why there are so many checks and balances for every little thing, you know? Lucky Bastard had a hidden cooldown mechanic, and I found out a bit ago that Free Ride won't let me sell items it makes, and that's on top of it only paying rent on a place I could've afforded on my own, too. I just don't get it."

A few seconds passed in silence. Oliver looked at his friend, then asked, "Isn't this the part where you're supposed to ask me a rhetorical question so I can figure out why things are like this for myself?"

"I thought a [Change of Pace] might be EXACTLY what the [Doctor Ordered]," Bradley smiled brightly. "Why don't we SKIP the [Middleman] this TIME around, and you just TAKE a [Shot in the Dark]?"

Oliver closed his eyes and did what he did best, overthink the situation. Maybe it was that new point of smarts he just got, or perhaps it was just that obvious, but it didn't take him long to come up with something. Two things, actually.

"My first guess is that part of wishing my life was more like a dating sim means things will constantly be balanced to keep me focused on improving myself in any way I can to better match the theme of those sorts of games. That, or my internalized guilt literally seeped into my psychic awakening, making it so that even now I can't fully enjoy myself," he sighed. "What do you think, Bradley? Does either of those sound about right?"

"I THINK, Oliver, my FRIEND, that you should KNOW by now that [Reality] is what YOU make of it!"

***

Stat Changes

Oliver Chase | Strength 9 | Style 5 | Spark 1 | Smarts 4
Cash: $1070 | LP: 100

Mia Rosas | Status: Girlfriend | 37/300 | ❤❤❤♡♡

Zoe Myers | Status: Friend | 53/100 | ♡♡♡♡♡

Zoe Spanking and Filming Pinup

New pinup my friend Milly got me! Punishment and filming/taking lewd pics are set to be among Zoe’s fetishes when she’s had more sexual development and I think getting to explore that will be really hot. Stuff like taunting her for being a brat, her going out of her way to earn spankings and shit while teasing her about how easy it would be for some of this stuff to end up online… can’t wait!

Mental health update, day 2 of course correction went much smoother than the first. I got a good chunk of writing done today and it went much easier than any of my attempts in the last few weeks. Might just need another few days of readjustment.

Next chapter might be tomorrow, though.

Art by https://www.reddit.com/user/nyansteria/