Alex and Lily

Lily was deliberate in only just arriving on time for the Economics tutorial she shared with Alex. She was still unsure of what she wanted to say to him and didn't want to have any awkward conversations until they could find the time to be alone. Despite reassuring herself the night before, she had woken up with misgivings. She wondered if Alex's words were more out of defiance against the pressure his family was putting on him rather than a genuine desire to reject what they saw as his birthright. Would he change his mind when the time came to make his decision official? If he didn't change his mind, would this become something he might regret?

With all the thoughts in her head, she could barely pay attention during the tutorial session. She couldn't stop herself from running through the possible scenarios for how their conversation would go. By the time the tutorial ended, she was even more confused, but her little act of delaying the inevitable conversation came to an end as their tutor released them. Shuffling out of the study room, she waited for Alex to join her in the corridor.

"Hey," Alex said quietly.

Lily looked over at him and noticed that he also appeared nervous about the upcoming conversation. It was the first time since they'd gone public with their relationship he hadn't greeted her with a hug and kiss. Wanting to reassure him, and maybe herself, she stepped into him and wrapped herself around him, tilting her head up.

"Hey, you know one of your boyfriend duties is to kiss me when you see me," she told him with a small smile.

Lily's smile got a little wider as she saw Alex's lips curve into a smile as he leaned his head to kiss her.

"There, much better," Lily said, breaking the kiss. "Now let's go find a cup of coffee somewhere we can be anonymous and talk openly."

Lily slipped her hand into his as he led her off the College grounds into the town centre; she was surprised when they arrived at a well-known chain pub with a reputation for opening early.

"A bit early to start on the drink, isn't it, or is this going to be one of those conversations?" Lily asked.

"You wanted to be anonymous. Can you think of a better place?" Alex replied. "Anyway, I haven't had breakfast, and the coffee is bottomless," he told her before leading her in.

"You hungry?" Alex asked as they found a table in the corner. "I'm just getting a breakfast wrap.

"Yeah, I didn't eat either; I'll have the same, please", Lily replied, settling into her seat while he went to the bar to order.

Lily didn't know what to say when Alex came back a few minutes later with coffee for both of them. She knew she should start since she had requested this meeting, but at the same time, she didn't know where to start. Thankfully, Alex took the initiative.

"Want to tell me about your chat with Mike?"

Lily took a sip of her coffee, thankful for the easy opening. She went through her chat with Mike for ten minutes, explaining that he hadn't spoken for Alex or tried to read his mind. She went through Mike's justification about why he wouldn't want the job if he were in Alex's position.

"So is it true that your family don't see you as a fully Motswana because of your Dad?" Lily asked.

"On a basic level, yes," Alex replied. "Mike's situation is a bit different. He doesn't have a strong relationship with his mother's family. He respects them and plays his role in the family, but he doesn't prioritise them. As far as I can tell, he's happy with that, and they respect him. I've always been close with my family, but yes, there was a little bit of not feeling fully included at times."

"Okay, so why don't you want to be chief?" Lily asked.

"I gave you my reasons."

"You gave me a reason, and not a good one," Lily countered. "You told me you could do more by not being chief, but that's not a reason to reject your birthright and be responsible for upholding the traditions your people have built over centuries. There's value and importance in that, too," Lily challenged.

"Lily, despite what my grandfather and other family members think, I wasn't raised to be chief," Alex replied tensely. "At least not so soon. I thought it might be a conversation in my 40s or 50s when Mum was older and didn't want to do it anymore, but it was not something I expected was going to be forced to start preparing for when I was 16. Mum always talked to me about what it meant, but she also told me that I was the beneficiary of two cultures and to enjoy that. I would only have to be chief if I wanted it. Then she died, and not even a week after her funeral, my grandfather was talking to me about what would be expected from me. I didn't want it then, and I want it less now. I'm happy to support my family and attend events as and when expected, but I don't want to be chief."

"I understand that, but we're young. What if you regret it in the future?" Lily asked.

Alex paused as their food arrived before speaking again. "Lily, like you, I make my own choices, and I try not to have regrets because of those choices. Whatever decision I make, it's the best choice for me at the time. If I regret it in 20-30 years, fine, that's on me; I'll have to live with it, but it still wouldn't change the fact that right now, I'm making the choice I feel is best for me. My choice right now is not to be chief but to try to enjoy College and build a future with you. If that last one works out, I'm sure I'll have no regrets."

"Alex, it's sweet of you to say that. I want to build a future with you, too," Lily replied, reaching for his hand. "It's just what your dad said and Mike's implication that your family may not like me because they might see me as the reason for turning it down."

"Lily, if they dare, I'll borrow a few pages from Mike's book and keep them at arm's length. I will not let them blame you for a decision I made before we met. If it makes you feel better, all I've received about us are nice texts from my friends and cousins saying I should take you with me when I next go back. That's all. I wouldn't worry about it too much."

"You're serious, aren't you?" Lily asked.

"Yes, I'm serious. I thought about all of these things when we first got together. I spoke to Mike about it, and after a while, it hit me, and I'd already made my choice. I'd already chosen not to be chief, and then I chose to pursue this relationship with you. One choice did not influence the other, but together, I felt happier and more at ease than I felt in a long time."

"Okay, last question, and I'll let it go. When were you going to tell me?"

"I guess if we ever got to the point where I seriously asked you to come to Botswana with me," Alex replied easily. "I wouldn't have made as big a deal about it as Dad did, though. I probably would've explained the tribal system before telling you I'm the heir to my tribe."

Not for the first time, Lily was struck by Alex's simple approach to life. He didn't panic, and he didn't overthink things he didn't feel he needed to. Whereas her life had been filled with constant worry, he was perfectly at ease with the burdens that had been placed upon him, deciding which were important enough to give his attention to. He wasn't interested in being chief, yet when his grandmother, Jean, had an accident, he changed his entire life plan to be present for her. He was somehow both selfish and selfless at the same time. She'd never known anyone like him.

"Okay," Lily said after mulling over his words. "If I were to go to Botswana with you, when would we go?"

"Easter is a good time; Botswana summers are brutal, especially coming from winter here, so Christmas is out, and I don't see you giving up Christmas with your family. Mike and Sarah tend to go around then, so you'd have more than me there to look after you."

"I like that idea. Is that an invitation?" Lily replied with a challenging smile.

"It is if you want it to be," Alex replied with a matching smile. "If you want to visit, you could just ask."

"So yes, you're inviting me. I'll have a chat with Sarah, and maybe we could work towards planning to go over Easter." Lily softened her tone before continuing, "Alex, Babe, I get that you sometimes find it hard to explain your life to me. But let's try to make this our last big secret, okay? If we're going to be a team and have a future, things like this won't help us."

"I don't think there's anything else to tell you. I just don't like talking about this. It's the sort of thing that changes how people see me even though they don't understand the cultural context. I told you the other night that I just want to be Alex."

Lily smiled at his words. She took them as further proof of how much he trusted her and decided that was the end of the matter. She had one more thing to discuss with him before they had to go back to the real world.

"There's one more thing we need to deal with," Lily told him. "We didn't get our usual weekend time. I know your dad is around, but is there any chance we can watch a movie tonight? I know we said no weeknight sleepovers. I just want to hang out with you."

"I can make that work. It'll give Dad time to have a drink with Mike. Believe it or not, they actually get on when Dad isn't putting his foot in it."

By the time they got back to College, Lily was far more comfortable with her place in his life. During the short walk, they discussed evening plans. Alex had a society meeting, so he agreed to meet her at her flat when he was done.

Finishing at College earlier than him, Lily decided to make a stop at the shopping centre. She wanted a new lingerie set. Despite what she had said, she had no intention of watching a film with him. They'd been so busy with the start of College, and the events of the weekend had meant they hadn't had sex for 10 days, and Lily was horny. Two things had happened since they'd begun having sex; one, she was using her vibrator less. As much as she still enjoyed her private little moments, nothing compared to being with Alex, and after the self-induced orgasm faded away, all she wanted was him next to her. The second was that she was constantly wearing sexier underwear. He had a way of making her feel sexier about herself, and as a result, her underwear choices had changed accordingly. It helped that her implant had more or less put a stop to her periods, which meant she had almost no fear of being caught wearing the wrong pair on the wrong day.

She headed home after picking a dark green lace bra and knicker set. After talking to Meg and Jess about her impromptu date night and promising them she would stay in her room with Alex, she pulled up her food delivery app and put in a pre-order for some dumplings and noodles to arrive about 10 minutes before Alex was due. She took a quick shower for some last-minute grooming and put on her new lingerie set before putting on some loose pyjama bottoms and Alex's team hoodie she had stolen when she discovered he was getting a new one. Her plan was to give him no clues of her real intentions for their night together.

It worked perfectly, and they had their meal while Jess and Meg sorted out their dinner. Lily made sure they hung out for a while so he didn't get an idea of her ulterior motives. Alex used the time to tell Jess and Meg that he was technically a prince, though he preferred to use the term 'heir', saying that prince wasn't a good translation. Lily remained silent as they asked questions. He explained to them that it wasn't a big deal to him and that it was unlikely he would ever actually take on the title. He only emphasised that he didn't want it to be public knowledge, and he trusted them with a secret reserved for family. Once they reassured him that they would keep it to themselves, Lily took his hand and led him to her room.

It was only in her room that she put the final steps of her plan into action, asking Alex to take over her laptop and find a film. She quickly stripped while he was distracted, dressed in nothing but her new set. She called out to him quietly.

"Babe, turn around."

Lily watched shyly, biting her lip as he turned around, watching him take her in.

"Miss Wilson, did you invite me here under false pretences of dinner and a movie?" Alex asked with a small smirk forming on his face.

"There were no false pretences, Mr Taylor; I invited you, my boyfriend, over for dinner and a movie. I assumed my sexual availability was implied. Then I decided the movie wasn't necessary," Lily replied, trying to match his smirk.

Lily stayed still as Alex closed the small gap between them, taking her into his arms and kissing her deeply. She remained still as his kisses moved from her lips to her neck while he unclasped her bra before trailing little kisses along her collarbone and removing the offending piece of clothing. It was one of their moments. Lily knew that if she submitted to him, he would make the entire experience about her pleasure.

Her instinct proved right as he gently pushed her onto the bed and put his hands on the waistband of her knickers. They had played this game before; he wouldn't remove them until she willingly raised her hips for him. That little piece of admin done, Alex went to his knees between her legs and began to lick his way around her folds slowly. Lily committed herself to keeping quiet. She knew if she moaned too early or tried to direct him, he would prolong his teasing. All she could do was let him dictate her release. Conscious that she shouldn't make too much noise, she pulled her pillow over her face to muffle her moans.

She was just on the edge of her orgasm when she felt him stop. Opening her eyes to face him, she noticed he was standing and stripping quickly. Instead of complaining, she spread he legs wider and began gently toying with herself while waiting for Alex to catch up.

As his semi-hard cock sprang into view, Lily resisted the temptation to slide off the bed and help him. Instead, she watched him stroke himself to full hardness while she continued to play with herself. She knew what was coming; he was going to take her. It was going to be hard and fast, and all she had to do was let him.

Lily spread her legs wider as Alex moved between them, taking his place on top of her. She moaned quietly at his slow intrusion inside her. They'd had enough sex that was easily able to accommodate his girth, but she still savoured the feeling as he slowly stretched her. He started with a slow and sensual pace, just enough to create and maintain a little stimulation but slow enough they could maintain eye contact and focus on each other and the intimacy of the moment. As her desire grew, she began raising her hips to meet him. She moaned as Alex suddenly stopped his movements.

"Babe, I want more. I want you," she complained.

"I'm going to fuck you now, Miss Wilson."

"Is that a threat or a promise?" she asked, smiling at him.

"Both."

Lily felt herself let go as Alex slowly worked his rhythm up. There was no finesse, just her man making the most of their connection, the raw biological need for him to fill her and take pleasure from it. Thanks to his oral ministrations, Lily was close to the edge, and all she could think of was her oncoming orgasm. Sure enough, within moments, she felt the tension that had been building in her core release and let go. Moments later, Alex resumed his tempo, and before she knew it, she was on the edge again. Only this time, she could feel he was close too, and she wanted his release more than our own, so she encouraged him.

"Cum for me, baby, fuck your cum into me," she whispered.

Moments later, Lily felt the familiar slowing of Alex's rhythm as he tried to control himself. Instead of letting him have that, she resumed meeting his thrust, this time trying to match his force and unpredictable tempo, desperate to feel his release. Moments later, it arrived; feeling it, she stopped and accepted his offering while his cock continued to pulse within her as his seed overfilled her already-stuffed pussy. Feeling his last pulse, she kissed his cheek.

"Thank you. That was the perfect reminder that I'm yours."

Unfortunately, Alex couldn't stay the night, and after twenty minutes of cuddling, he slowly got up and got dressed. Lily remained in bed watching him get dressed, feeling both a deep sense of longing and satisfaction. She longed for him to spend the night and was completely satisfied by the sex they'd just had. He had just bent down to kiss her goodbye when she held his face.

"You should think about leaving a few things here in case we ever need an impromptu sleepover."

"I'll see what I can do," Alex replied gently. "See you tomorrow. I love you."

Lily just managed to respond to Alex's words before he kissed her again and pulled away. "Leaving you is hard enough," he said in response to her moan.

Lily waited until Alex was at her door before speaking again. "Alex, thank you for today. I'll try not to need too many more reassurances. I just feel like you have this whole life I'll never really be a part of."

"I don't want a life that you don't feel like you could be a part of, whether you're my girlfriend or not," Alex replied. "Now I've got to go.

Over the next few days, things settled down. Classes had started in earnest, and Lily gave them her full focus; regardless of her relationship with Alex and their future, she was still determined to succeed on her own terms. Outside of classes and other commitments, they started studying together. Like many things, working with Alex made her better. She already knew he was smarter than she was and found the concepts easier. Strangely, Alex told her she made him a better student as well.

"Babe, that makes no sense; you're already better than most people at this," Lily replied when he told her.

"It's hard to explain, but I'll try," Alex said. "You're right that I'm better at this, but that's because I grew up listening to my grandparents, Dad, and even Uncle Andrew discussing and debating a lot of these topics, so I absorbed a lot of knowledge. When we got here, I just took what I already knew and did enough work to apply that with proper referencing, and even there, I had a head start, thanks to having Grandma as a resource. Working with you is different. It allows me to slow down and look beyond what I already know. I wouldn't have done that before."

"I think you're giving me too much credit; you always had it in you," Lily responded, blushing.

"Just take the compliment, and it's not just my academic work. I like to think just having you in my life has made everything about me better."

"I like that idea, but you shouldn't say things like that in the library when we have to concentrate," Lily whispered, feeling a warm tingle. "Save them for our private time, and we can channel our feelings productively."

"I'm sure we can make that happen," Alex whispered back, "I'd say we could start tonight, but I have practice, and our first game is on Saturday. You're still coming, right?"

"I said I'll come to every game I can. I'll be there," Lily promised.

"Good, I was thinking, why don't you spend Friday with me at Grandma's? We can have dinner and a lowkey pub night on Friday. Dad also wants a second chance with you before he heads home."

"He doesn't need a second chance. He didn't really do anything wrong. What are we doing Saturday night?" Lily asked.

"First game of the season means a compulsory team night out, unfortunately," Alex said with a smile. "It's up to you if you want to be part of that. Theoretically, girlfriends aren't invited to this one, but it's funny how we always seem to end up at the same bars and clubs at the same time. You'll need to coordinate with the other girls."

"Okay," Lily said nervously, thinking this would be the first time she would see the Alex she had spent close to a year convincing herself she didn't like. Quickly pushing the thought out of her mind, she prodded him with her pen and directed him back to the reading they were meant to be doing.