I picked up the condom from the sheet beside us and held it up. She looked at it, then took it from me with fingers that only shook slightly, tearing the wrapper with the focused expression she brought to everything, like even this was a task to execute correctly.
"You're thinking very hard," I said.
"I'm concentrating."
"I noticed."
"Be quiet, Rome."
I pressed my lips together and watched her work.
The drain sat warm and constant between us, registering every point of contact, every shift of her weight. Her Essentia tasted like it always did, sharp and electric and sweet underneath. But there was something else in it now, something that hadn't been present in the classroom or the storage room. Something softer.
She finished and looked at me. Her grey eyes were dark, her hair a complete loss cause at this point, and she'd never looked less like the class representative and more like herself.
"I changed my mind," she said.
My stomach dropped exactly one inch.
