Maysie's Galaxy ONC 2023

Aftermath

Maysie fumed into the void for an eternity until they pulled her out of the cold while she nearly chattered her teeth out of her head.

The first thing they did was pile her with warmth and placed her in Ethan's lap while she involuntarily shook herself back to the land of the living. How tight he held her showed he hated seeing her suffer.

Cleo spoke first, 'So, what did you see?"

"I got a catalog and 4 new projects.  It's a good thing I built the beds because the next bit is going to be wild."

"And what of that boyfriend that's holding you back from the best dick in Europe?" Cleo never held punches, going straight for the heart of the matter.

It wouldn't have mattered. Even if she met Talon, she would have been offended at the truth that Cleo brought down on her fantasies. The man who she trusted and wanted with every fiber of her being was under her ass, but the man to whom she felt she owed everything allowed her to be in Ethan's care.

So she ignored the taunt to spend time sitting on her stability and strength, warming up, as she typed away on an ancient tablet they managed to scrounge up, so she could file her new schematics away without having to lean over another terminal.

Cleo stared at her knowingly much of that time but asked pertinent questions about the new schematics that Maysie was coming up with.

As for what they would build next, it was a tie between the head augmenting device and the computer terminal that could connect directly to the mainframe of another Turtle's population without using the human mind.

"What do you think Ethan?"

'The terminal would help us to monitor what people are learning. What if they came out with a weapon that could destroy us all, and they were allowed to because there were no restrictions?" So they focused on the schematics for the terminal, for safety's sake. Ultimately, it would allow Cleo to interact with the sleeping, while she monitored them.

Turns out it was a great thing that there was a gem cutter in town--one that mostly grew his diamonds in his basement because lab-grown tended to be purer. Silica was used in Earh Computers because of its cheap availability. Terminals would wind up being rarer or they would have had to learn to build great crystal vats before they could make a terminal.

Eventually, everyone had to go to bed for the night. Excitement at rapidly expanding work couldn't sustain them forever.

It was the first time in a long time that Maysie dragged Ethan to bed where she cried against his shoulder, letting out all the frustration she couldn't dwell on while they worked. Much like when she was drunk, a few gentle touches to soothe his Venus was all it took for Ethan to put her to sleep.

He knew that one of the last delays was upon them. Maysie wouldn't stay sad for long.

~~~

Maysie woke angry. No, she was frustratedly enraged beyond her ability to cope with it. Ethan was breathing heavily against her neck. The resulting goosebumps were not enough to distract her. She slowly peeled Ethan's arm off her and gently rolled him onto his back.

It didn't surprise her that he was ready. Why had she delayed for two years? She straddled him in his sleep just to get a feel of him as she woke him up.  Leaning forward and kissing his jawline had him jerk his face away and pout.

It was adorable. She couldn't help her grin as she massaged his chest. He woke up slowly to gently squeezed pecs and light little kisses and being cradled against her rocking hips.

"Ah, fuck me..." Not the command, but the curse came out of his generous mouth.

"I'm trying to."

That snapped him awake. "Damn, I thought I was dreaming."

"Is it a bad thing?"

Ethan looked down between them as his shirt rode high on her hips, leaving his pants alone as the sole defender of her innocence. "No...kind of, but no."

"You're going to tell me I'm not ready again?"

"You're not. You know who you are. If you were the type to casually sleep with a man, I'd have been hounded by your competition against Cleo from the start."

"This isn't fake, Ethan. I know I want you."

"And you want this with another man in your head known as Talon. You don't spend time with me outside of work and rarely go drinking. This right here is the only point of contact we have."

"I thought you were capable of casual sex."

"I am, but I've always wanted more from you than just sex, Maysie. Even Cleo and I have done things outside the bedroom that normal healthy friendships do. It's why you thought we were in a relationship. "

That turned Maysie's mood sour as she threw herself off of him to go stomp into the shower and seethe that neither man was going the way she thought he would.