Bar Two — The Velvet Room

The second bar was darker. Smaller. More private.

They had a booth in the back, tucked away from the rest of the crowd. The lighting was low, candles flickering on the tables, the music quiet enough to actually talk. It felt like a secret being kept. The leather of the booth was cracked and worn smooth by years of use, warm against Emma’s bare thighs.

Tyler had his phone out now, filming.

“For memories,” he said, panning across the group. “This is going on the highlights reel.”

He filmed as Megan demonstrated a body shot on Lily: salt licked slowly from her collarbone, tequila poured in the hollow of her throat, lime bitten from between her lips. When Megan’s tongue dragged up Lily’s neck, the birthday girl shivered visibly. The camera captured it all.

More body shots followed. More drinking. The booth got crowded, bodies pressing together. Emma could smell perfume and sweat and tequila, could feel the heat radiating off the people pressed against her.

At some point Emma ended up doing a shot off Hannah’s stomach, her lips brushing soft skin as she chased tequila into the curve of Hannah’s belly button. Hannah giggled, squirming, her full breasts jiggling with the movement. Her skin was warm and tasted like salt.

“Kiss for shots,” Megan announced. “New game. Every time two girls kiss, the boys all buy us a shot.”

“That’s going to get us alcohol poisoning,” Jo observed, but she was smiling.

“Then we better make them count.”

Megan grabbed Lily and kissed her. Not a peck. A real kiss, open-mouthed, deep, her hands tangled in Lily’s blonde waves. When they broke apart, Lily’s tiara was crooked again and her cheeks were flushed, her lips swollen and wet.

“That’s worth the good tequila,” Jake declared.

The kissing became competitive. Emma noticed Megan keeping score—who had kissed whom, how many times, who was “winning.” Classic Megan, turning everything into a competition even when there was nothing to win.

“Hannah,” Ryan said. “Your turn. Remember: the answer is always yes.”

Hannah nodded, glasses fogging. She turned to Emma and kissed her without hesitation this time, deeper than before, her tongue seeking Emma’s immediately. Emma felt Hannah’s soft body press against her, those hidden curves suddenly very present, and kissed back hard, one hand tangling in those brown curls.

When they broke apart, Hannah was breathing hard, her eyes bright behind her glasses.

“I’ve been missing out,” she said. “I’ve been missing out on so much.”

“Jo.” Ryan’s voice. “You’re part of this. No barrier, remember?“

Jo grabbed Megan by the collar and pulled her into a fierce kiss. Emma caught the way Jo’s hands gripped Megan’s hips—possessive, hungry, like she’d been waiting for an excuse. Megan made a surprised sound against her mouth, then kissed back just as hard, her fingers tangling in Jo’s short hair.

When they broke apart, both of them were breathing heavily. Something had shifted between them, some pretense dropped.

The kisses got longer. Sloppier. At some point Emma was kissing Lily, tasting the innocence of her, the sweetness, the hint of lime still on her tongue. Then Hannah again, deeper this time, Hannah’s tongue eager and hungry, learning fast. Then Jo, and Jo kissed like she was making a statement, direct and unhesitating, her hand cupping the back of Emma’s neck possessively.

“Fucking hot,” Tyler said, still filming. “This is the best group we’ve had in weeks.”

Something about that phrasing snagged in Emma’s mind. The best group we’ve had. But the thought slipped away before she could hold it, lost in the warmth of the alcohol and the softness of lips against hers.

“Emma.” Ryan was beside her. “How are you feeling?”

“Good.” And she was. Wasn’t she? “Really good.”

“That’s because you stopped fighting it. You’re following. You’re letting yourself feel.” He held her gaze. “Whatever happens next, remember: you’re here because you want to be. You’re doing things because they feel right. Trust that.”

Trust that.

“I trust it,” Emma said.

Whatever stray thought she’d been trying to catch dissolved like sugar in water.

* * *

The Second Bus Ride

The bus again. Moving through the dark city toward somewhere Emma couldn’t see and didn’t care about.

Things had shifted now. The playful energy from the bar had thickened into something heavier. Everyone was drunk, handsy, the line between friends and something more thoroughly erased.

Megan was on Tyler’s lap, straddling him, grinding. His hands were under her shirt, cupping her breasts, and she was making small sounds against his mouth as they kissed, wet squelching sounds as she rolled her hips against his crotch.

Lily was curled against Jake, his hand up her dress. Emma could hear the wet sounds of his fingers moving, could see the way Lily’s thighs were parted, her innocent face flushed and slack with pleasure, mouth hanging open.

“That’s it,” Jake murmured. “That’s it, birthday girl. Feels good, doesn’t it?”

“Yes,” Lily breathed. “Yes, it feels... oh...”

Hannah was with Connor, her glasses completely fogged over now. He had her pressed back against the seat, one hand up her shirt massaging her heavy tits, the other between her legs. She was whimpering softly, hips rocking against his hand, making wet clicking sounds as his fingers worked her.

“Say yes,” he told her. “Tell me you want it.”

“Yes. Yes, I want it. The answer is always yes.”

Emma sat in the middle of it all, watching. The sounds filled the bus: moans, wet fingers, heavy breathing, the slick rhythm of Megan grinding on Tyler. She could smell sex now, mingling with the leather and the artificial air freshener.

This is really happening, she thought. We’re really. Doing this.

The thoughts came slower now. Spaced out. Like her mind was learning a new rhythm.

But it didn’t feel alarming. It felt inevitable. Like she’d been waiting for this all along without knowing it.

Jo was next to her, watching too. Her dark eyes tracked across the bus, taking it all in. Emma noticed her gaze kept returning to Megan—to the way Megan’s body moved on Tyler’s lap, the sounds she was making.

“Wild night,” Jo said. Her voice was rougher than usual.

“Yeah.”

“Never thought I’d see Hannah like that.” They both watched as Connor worked Hannah toward orgasm, her curly head thrown back, her full tits bouncing as she bucked against his hand. “The girl couldn’t even say ‘penis’ at the start of the semester. Now look at her.”

“She’s catching up,” Emma said. “That’s what Ryan told her. Say yes to everything.”

“What did he tell you?”

“That I should follow. Stop being the one in charge. Just... let go.”

Jo nodded slowly. “He told me to stop being on the outside. Be part of whatever’s happening. No barrier.”

“Is it working?”

Jo’s mouth quirked. “I’m here, aren’t I?”

Megan extracted herself from Tyler and swayed toward them, flushed and grinning. She’d lost her bra at some point, her shirt hanging open to show off her full, heavy breasts with their pink nipples, already hardening in the cool air of the bus.

“You two are being boring,” Megan announced. “Stop spectating.”

She flopped down between them and kissed Emma first, deep and aggressive, tasting like vodka and something fruity, her tongue immediately claiming Emma’s mouth. Then she turned and kissed Jo—and this kiss was different. Slower. More deliberate. Like she knew exactly what she was doing, exactly what effect she was having.

Jo made a sound against Megan’s mouth. Her hands found Megan’s waist, pulling her closer.

Tyler followed, drawn by Megan’s gravity. He settled in close, watching the two women kiss with undisguised hunger.

“Fuck, that’s hot,” he murmured.

Megan pulled back from Jo, grinning, and then did something unexpected. She took Jo’s face in her hands, turned it toward Tyler, and before Jo could register what was happening, Tyler was kissing her.

It happened so fast, so naturally, that Jo didn’t pull away. One second she was kissing Megan, the next she was kissing Tyler, and somehow the transition felt seamless, just part of the flow of the night. His mouth was different, harder, but Megan was still there behind her, hands roaming, making it feel like an extension of what they’d been doing rather than something new.

When Tyler pulled back, Jo looked almost surprised at herself.

“Jo.” Ryan’s voice from across the bus. “That’s it. No barrier, remember? Whatever they do, you do. You’re part of it.”

Jo’s expression settled. The surprise faded into acceptance.

“No barrier,” she agreed.

She kissed Tyler again. This time deliberately.

Tyler’s hand found her thigh, sliding up. Emma watched Jo’s face change, her eyes widening slightly, then fluttering closed as his fingers found their target.

“Not so different,” Tyler murmured against her mouth. “See? A mouth is a mouth. A pussy is a pussy.”

Jo didn’t answer. But her hips were moving, grinding against his hand.

Emma watched her friend, her gay friend, getting fingered by a man for the first time. Watched Jo’s carefully constructed cool crack open. And felt nothing but a warm curiosity.

Then Jake appeared beside her.

“Your turn, Red.”

Before Emma could respond, he was kissing her. His mouth was demanding, insistent, tasting like beer. His hand found her breast, squeezing roughly through her shirt.

I follow, she reminded herself. I do what feels good.

It did feel good. She kissed him back, let his hands roam, let him push her back against the seat. When his fingers slipped under her skirt, finding her wet and wanting, she spread her legs to give him access. The leather of the seat was slick against her bare thighs.

“Fuck, you’re soaked,” Jake breathed. “Ryan said you’d be a good one. The responsible ones always are. All that control, and underneath you’re just dying to let someone else take over.”

His fingers pushed inside her. Emma gasped at the intrusion, at the sudden fullness.

Around her, the bus had become a tangle of bodies. Megan was on her knees in front of Tyler, his cock in her mouth, wet slurping sounds filling the air. She gagged slightly, drool running down her chin, but kept going, her head bobbing rhythmically. While she sucked him, Tyler reached over to where Jo sat nearby, pulling her close, kissing her, his free hand slipping under her shirt to play with her small tits. Lily had Ryan’s cock out, stroking it hesitantly while he murmured encouragement, her small hand barely wrapping around his girth. Hannah had Connor’s pants undone, staring at his cock like she’d never seen one before.

“It’s so... big,” Hannah whispered. “I mean, I’ve seen pictures, but...”

“Say yes,” Connor told her. “Touch it.”

“Yes.” She wrapped her hand around him, started stroking clumsily. “The answer is always yes.”

Tyler broke from kissing Jo long enough to look down at her flushed face, her hard nipples visible through her shirt where he’d been pinching them.

“Gonna fuck you later,” he told her. “Gonna be your first cock. You ready for that?”

“No barrier,” Jo said. Her voice was thick. “Whatever they do.”

“That’s right.”

The bus rolled on into the dark.