SLMO (Girl X Girl - Actually? Intersex :))

Our First...

The Next Day...

I stand in the quiet of my villa, a place no one knows about except Rachel, my ever-watchful assistant. It's my escape, my sanctuary from the endless parade of women I've been with—just bodies to keep the loneliness at bay. But today, something's different.

It's barely 6 AM, the sun creeping up over the city below. The lights twinkle like scattered stars, and I watch it all through the floor-to-ceiling windows, feeling nothing but the cool air around me and the emptiness in my chest. I haven't eaten, haven't even bothered with the usual routine yet. My mind is still stuck on last morning. That damn morning with Alexis.

I can't shake the thought of her. It's not the game anymore. It's not about the thrill of seduction or the rush of being wanted. It's something deeper, something raw. The feeling hits me like a freight train—a heavy weight settling in my gut. The kind of thing that makes me realize just how much I'm lying to myself.

I've always been careful with my emotions, always kept them locked up behind walls I built myself. I'm not naive; I know what love can do to you. The scars from Sarah are still there, buried deep, too deep to dig up right now. I don't want to relive that. But... Alexis. She's different. She isn't like the others. I know it in the pit of my stomach, the way her presence lingers even when she's gone.

This isn't just another fling. No, this is more than that, and I can feel it clawing at me. She's special, and I'm terrified of messing it up.

I can't ignore the way she's been acting, the hesitation in her eyes whenever I get too close. And maybe I deserve the distance, the doubt she's holding onto. But it's eating at me, the thought of her pulling away, of pushing her further into distrust. I need to make this right, but I don't know how.

Should I just... propose? The idea is ridiculous. We're not even a thing, not really. But the thought lingers, pulls at me like an invisible thread. Maybe it's too soon, but what if... What if I did something different? Something that would make her see me for who I really am, not just the 'me' who's been running from her past. Maybe a gesture, something real—a way to tell her I'm no longer just playing the game.

The idea of courting her, of making her mine in a way that goes beyond the physical, takes root in my mind. Maybe a special way to ask her out, to show her that I'm here for something more. Maybe then she'll stop looking at me with doubt in her eyes, stop holding herself back.

And maybe—just maybe—we could take this whatever it is between us to the next level.

I was lost in my own thoughts, too caught up in the mess of feelings I was trying to untangle, when my phone buzzed, pulling me back to reality. A voicemail.

I hit play.

"Kim, I'll be in Cupertino in two weeks. Don't overreact, okay? Kent knows about this—though I only told him I've missed you. Yeah, true—I miss you. But the real reason I'm calling is to say I'm heading to see Alexis. I'm wrapping up some business here, and then I'm on my way. Kim, you know the deal—Alexis is mine. Don't mess this up. Any updates from your end? Did you give her a hard time? Just... don't be too harsh, okay? She might leave the company, and if she does, I lose my chance to introduce myself properly. Got it? I'll see you so—"

The message hit me like a punch in the gut, and before I even realized what I was doing, my finger hit the screen, cutting off the voicemail mid-sentence. Without thinking, I tossed my phone across the room. It hit the floor with a crack, and I stared at it for a second too long. Shit. I couldn't contain the guilt anymore.

I knew what my sister meant to me. A family, too valuable, too important. She's too precious to mess with, and I should have known. Alexis wasn't meant for me. She had a place in someone else's vision. Someone who had more directions in life, more serious. But god, why couldn't I just ignore these damn feelings? Why couldn't I stop wanting her, stop feeling like I needed her?