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"Now that is the face of a man who has a lot on his mind," said a sweet voice at my ear. I looked up from my moping to see Brie Wensleydale, exchange student from Arcadia, mouse-girl science whiz, and my lab partner. Also the cutest girl imaginable, but I tried not to think about that seeing as I was spoken for. Well, I hoped so, anyway.
"Oh. Hi, Brie." I straightened up from my slump and stood to my full unimpressive height -- which still made me a head taller than Brie. "I was just waiting for Steve."
"I know," said Brie. "He asked me to talk to you." She brushed a strand of snow-white hair out of her eyes and adjusted her glasses before taking my arm. "Come on. You can tell me all about it while you walk me home."
"Sure, okay." I started walking, and somehow it was easy to shorten my stride to stay in step with my smaller companion. A whiny voice in the back of my mind wondered if Arikah did the same for me, but I squashed it without mercy.
Brie gave my arm a squeeze as if she could sense the thoughts bouncing around my mind. "So let me guess... girl trouble?" At my nod she added, "How are things between you and Arikah?"
I shrugged. "I thought they were going great. We have fun together. We enjoy talking to each other. We fight sometimes, but we always make up." I smiled at the memory of those make-ups. "The cuddling is nice."
"And the sex is even better," said Brie.
"The sex is amazing," I agreed. Then I realized what I'd said, and to whom. "Hey!"
The mouse girl giggled and patted my arm. "It's okay, Tony, I've known about it for weeks. A human nose wouldn't notice, but you and Arikah have started to smell like each other." She grew more serious then, and she caught my eye before asking, "So what happened?"
I sighed. "Ari said we should see other people. That was three days ago." I couldn't help looking forlorn as I said, "I think she's breaking up with me."
"What makes you think that, exactly?"
"Well... when a human girl uses that phrase, she's already seeing other people -- or at least has someone in mind."
Brie shook her head. "Arikah's not a human girl." She idly rubbed her hand along my upper arm, and I let myself notice how comforting that felt. "What were her exact words, if you remember?"
I let out a bitter chuckle. "How could I forget? She said, 'Tony, I think you need to see other girls.' I guess her seeing other guys was a given."
My lab partner let out a sigh. "It means nothing of the kind." She looked up at me and asked, "Do you know what it's like in Arcadia? Specifically, the sex ratio?"
"Yeah, they covered that in Extraspecies Culture," I answered. "Four women to every man. Arcadia's a playah's paradise, for sure."
"It's four-to-one in gate towns like my home," Brie corrected. "Out in the wilds, where Arikah's from, it's more like seven-to-one. And that's ten times better than it was in Arcadia's distant past."
"Yikes," I said, "But that's relevant because... ?"
"Because any Arcadian woman who's lucky enough to have a man has to share," said Brie. "Arikah's had you to herself since Valentine's Day. That was great when you were just fooling around. But it's been almost seven months, and now you're getting serious. Have you talked about marriage yet?"
"Ummm..."
"I'll take that as a yes." Brie patted my arm again and gave it a squeeze. "Look, Arikah really likes you. I'd even go as far as to say she's in love with you. But if the two of you are going to have a future together, she has to see that you're okay with being shared... because she can't stay here, and if you go home with her there's no way she'd be your only wife."
"Lovely. So all I have to do to keep the one girl I want is find a side piece." I shook my head. "Not many girls lining up for that gig."
"Maybe not human girls," said Brie. We turned up the path to her boarding house, and she released my arm to retrieve her keys. "Do you remember the day we met?"
"Hard to forget," I said. "If Steve hadn't been there, I would've gotten my butt kicked."
"You didn't know Steve was there when you confronted those guys who were harassing me," she said as she unlocked the door. "But you did it anyway. That sort of thing makes an impression on a girl."
I grinned. "I believe it. I figured that was why we were such good friends."
Brie turned to face me and slid her arms around my neck. "Antonio Miguel Warren, the only reason we're 'friends' is because Arikah had already staked her claim. But if you'd met me first..." She went up on her tiptoes and planted a gentle kiss on my lips. "...We'd have a slightly different relationship."
"Okay, that was unexpected," I muttered. I put my arms around her waist and added, "But not unwelcome. Bold of you to assume that I'd be interested, though."
"Tony, I can smell the desire when you look at me. If you didn't try so hard to be a one-woman man we'd have been all over each other months ago."
"Probably true," I admitted. My expression grew serious then, and I asked, "I'm going to need some time to think about this, you know."
"I assumed so," said Brie. "But consider this; Arikah came here through the gate my family controls. We already have diplomatic ties. But if we were co-wives, that would bind our families even tighter. Our mothers would certainly approve... and I know you've been worried about meeting Arikah's mother."
"I do need all the help I can get." I hugged her tight and said, "Thanks, Brie. And I really will consider your offer. When do you need an answer?"
She returned the hug and said, "Two days would be good... but if you kiss me again, I can wait a week."
"Five extra days for a kiss, huh?" I leaned in and whispered in her ear, "Now why do I feel like I'm the one who's caught in a trap?"
Brie gave me a sultry smile and said, "At least you get the cheese." We kissed again, but for some reason I didn't feel trapped at all.