IncuBUST

Dear Ophelia

 I set down my clipboard and reached out, catching her hands in mine. She was positively beaming. I glanced at the other people in the room. August and Celeste were sitting on the two available chairs, a small travel terrarium containing a rather fat bearded dragon resting on August's lap.

"Where's your aunt?" I asked and Octavia rolled her eyes before looking at August.

"She's waiting in the car. Said she couldn't bare the thought of being in a waiting room full of freaks," August muttered, "Though she's perfectly okay with sending her teenage daughters in to deal with them."

"Not that we think you're a freak," Celeste said with an anxious smile. I returned her smile and gestured at the bearded dragon asking, "So, who do we have here?" August stood up and set the terrarium on the examination table.

"Ophelia," August replied, "She belonged to my friend Nathan. They don't allow pets in the apartment him and his family moved into." I opened up the terrarium and reached inside. The lizard scuttled right into my hand, absorbing the warmth.

"Hmm..." I said hefting the lizard in my hand. "She's a little hefty for her length." I turned the lizard over and my eyebrows climbed my forehead.

"Also a he," I added and August came to look over my shoulder asking, "How can you tell?" I glanced at her and pointed at the small dots running from knee to knee on the underside of the lizard's back legs.

"Femoral pores. They're a lot more prominent in males. Also..." I pointed to two bulges along the base of the lizards tail, "Hemipenal bulges. Females have a single bulge running horizontally along the base of their tail. Males have two. It's easy to miss if you don't know what you're looking for." August nodded as if she found this the most interesting thing in the world.

"Augie's always wanted a bearded dragon. She's obsessed with reptiles. Mom finally broke down when we came home with Nathan's sob story about not being able to take her...or him rather," Celeste said.

"Do you know how old he is?" August asked looking at me and then back at the lizard. I set him back on the table and gently stretched him out to his full length. I tilted my head to one side and replied, "About eighteen inches long so a little over a year, maybe."

August grinned and said, "Cool. That means he'll be around for a while." I smiled and glanced at Octavia. She looked positively ecstatic that I was getting along with her cousins.

"So, he looks pretty healthy in my opinion aside from being a little overweight, but the doctor will take a proper look probably take a little blood to check for any diseases," I said. I looked at Octavia and added, "It was nice seeing you." She leaned in for another hug which I happily accepted.

When she pulled away she signed, "Is it okay if I give Niki your number? He's been asking about you." I blinked at her and then looked at the floor shaking my head.

"No," I said looking back up at her. I smiled awkwardly and continued, "I'm kind of involved with someone right now." She grinned and signed, "Really? What's his name?" I bit down on my bottom lip. She wasn't going to like this.

"No," she signed shaking her head. She emphatically signed the letters 'N' and 'O' before tentatively asking, "Barapha?" I smiled apologetically.

"He's really not that bad," I said and August muttered, "Better than my brother apparently."

"Are they talking about Niki?" Celeste asked and August filled her in.

"Oh no. You're dating someone else? But Niki is crushing on you so hard. He's gonna be heartbroken," she cried and I felt guilt squirming in my chest which was ridiculous. It wasn't like we were a thing. I wasn't cheating. We hardly even knew each other.

 I turned towards the door and said, "I-I'm going to get the doctor now." The last thing I heard was Celeste mumbling, "Me and my big fat mouth."