All the bread things Royce had handed me were marvelous, and I couldn’t stop myself from eating every last one. I was so very full, and it reminded me of the last time I ate that much. It was a mid-year feast, and oysters were plentiful. The flesh was so fresh and delightful to bite into, but the memory was bittersweet now. I was happy then, ignorant of everything I could see so clearly now. 

There was a knock on the door, and I wasn’t sure why. It was odd that land dwellers were very much about their privacy and their coverings. I opened the door, and Royce stood there for a moment with more coverings in his hands. 

“Pete let us borrow more clothes. We’ll get you a few things when we go to town.”

“Where is Pete now?” I asked, worried that he might tell others I was here. 

“He’s seeing to the boat today.”

“What’s a first mate?”

“A first mate means he’s next in charge of the boat after me.”

Royce’s mate seemed important to him, and Pete had responsibilities similar to Royce. If Royce already had a mate, would he be willing to entertain another? “Do you have other mates?” 

The confused look on Royce’s face made my face heat. Maybe it was the wrong question to ask. His confusion changed to embarrassment as his face turned a bit red.

“Oh, I understand now. Pete and I work together. It’s a job. We’re friends that care about each other, that’s all.”

Most of the words Royce said, I understood and decided that I needed to know more. “What does job mean?”

“Well, do you perform a service or have a role where you’re from?” Royce asked. He stood in front of me holding the new coverings as he tried to explain his relationship to the other man. 

I shook my head and brought my legs up to my chest. My full stomach, my memories of home, and now Royce’s words made me feel alone. I couldn’t tell him the truth. I began to think this was a mistake. Maybe what little light there was the night I saw Royce’s face had been a trick. Perhaps I saw things there I hadn’t really understood. 

“Hmm, okay, do others do things for you that are important? Like gathering food?”

“Yes. They do.” I thought about that. We all took turns gathering and hunting for food. “Pete gathers food for you?”

“Uh, he helps me, and we make sure that food goes to people that give it to more people.”

“Oh.” Royce was a protector. It was a kind of water folk in the pod that spent their lives making sure the rest of us were safe. Whether it was finding food or defending the pod from other predators. Though, land dwellers did have different social structures and species. Maybe this was the case with Pete. We were mostly the same size, so maybe land dwelling protectors didn’t all need to be Royce’s size. I rested my head on my knees, and Royce came to sit next to me on the sleeping platform.

We sat quietly for a time, then Royce made a throat noise and touched my shoulder.  “I know this is a lot for you. Let me show you the shower, then we’ll figure out what to do next.”

It was awkward between us as Royce showed me how to turn on another switch in the small box, which made water come out over my head. He took the wand from the holder on the wall to show me what it does, then pointed to bottles attached to the wall. 

“Soap, shampoo, and conditioner.”

“Why?” The names were odd enough, but I certainly didn’t understand why one would need three different potions for this shower ritual.

“Uh, soap is to clean your skin. Shampoo for your hair, then conditioner is also for your hair so that it doesn’t tangle up or become too dry.”

“Land dwellers have a lot of potions.”

“Right. This crap probably seems really silly to you.”

I laughed. “It is, but I know my skin is different out of the water. My hair too.” I held out my matted hair. It smelled, which I wasn’t used to. In the water, it was regal, perfect, and I missed it. Royce looked concerned. 

I reached for his arm to reassure him. “It’s okay, Royce. I chose this.”

He stilled under my touch, but his heart beat fast. I dared the one thing I wasn’t sure I should do and leaned forward. I pressed my lips to his, and he froze. I pulled back and looked at him. His eyes were wide and searching. I was afraid I’d done something wrong when he reached for me and kissed me in return. 

I pressed myself to him, and he wrapped me in his large, muscular arms. The coverings were in the way. I wanted my skin pressed to his. I was frantic to pull the shirt over my head. Royce noticed and helped. When we kissed again, my chest was pressed to his bare skin warmed by the sun. My back was pressed to the water room door. I moved to wrap my legs around him, and Royce responded by sliding his arm under my buttocks to hold me up.

Royce’s facial hair tickled and burned my skin by turns as each press of his lips was accompanied by the rasp of his hair. I wanted more. So much more. 

“Hey Royce, do you know where the pastry box….” Pete stood at the open door to Royce’s room, and we turned to look at him. “Right, um, nevermind. I’ll be on dick. I mean deck. Fuck. I’ll be up top.” Pete was sunset red. He left us as quickly as he’d appeared. 

Royce groaned into my shoulder. “I ate them all.” Royce looked up at me, slightly confused. “The breads in the box. I ate them all, Royce.” I felt horrible that I might have caused an issue between Royce and his first mate. 

Royce returned his head to my shoulder, and I felt him shake as he pressed a kiss into my skin and then put me down. I heard him laugh and watched as it shook his whole person. The laugh did things to my belly I couldn’t quite understand, but I knew I liked it. 

“Are you okay, Royce?”

“Yeah. I’m alright. It’s alright.” He tried to calm himself as he took large, deep breaths. He reminded me of a beached porpoise the way he gasped for air.

“I can tell Pete it is my fault.”

 

He got himself under control enough to clear his throat and took another deep breath. “Um, let me tell Pete what happened to the pastries while you take a shower.” Before I could say anything else, he left the room. I stood there feeling a bit foolish. I shouldn’t have kissed him. I shouldn’t be here. But I didn’t know where else to go. I hoped Royce would forgive me for my brashness. Maybe I could repay his kindness one day or become a protector myself so that we could be friends and work together. 

I stripped out of the pants coverings and stepped into the water room. I did as Royce had shown me. The water did not sting, and the liquids helped wash the salt from my skin and hair. I combed my hair with my fingers and felt the strands loosen to their more natural state. My arousal dissipated, thankfully, so I would not embarrass Royce again. 

When I stepped out of the water room, I grabbed the coverings Royce left for me. I quickly put them on as Royce had shown me and sat down. I did not know when Royce would return, but I could wait. I did not want to cause him more hardship with his first mate.