As always, all characters in the story are above the age of 18.
CHAPTER 4 - A RULE OF THREE
I feel daunted.
The polarity between Sylvia and I has been reversing, ever since I let her down with the group project. It's been reversing in more ways than one.
Of course I'm happy about that! Change is what I wanted, change is what I got. It wasn't fair for my friend to live in my shadow, the nerdy second fiddle to the contrarian gal that always looks out for number one and nothing else. This is a much better arrangement.
Only...
Sometimes it feels like I'm in her shadow, now. That's not a bad thing, of course, not a bad thing at all, selflessness is about putting other people in the spotlight, right? Their wants and needs come first.
Besides, every time I question this, the mist closes in... preeetty colors, glimmering, shimmering, soothing me...
But I can't unsee it. The polarity between us is reversing. I'm orbiting Syl now, not the other way around.
That's not the only polarity shift we've gone through. When we started talking about my decision to radically change my life, Sylvia was the one trying to convince me that something was amiss. Now, she seems more than happy to go with the flow. And while I started out perfectly convinced that everything was normal, now I feel this sense of...
Wrongness?
Whatever it is I'm feeling, it's not mutual: Sylvia herself seems perfectly at ease with our new arrangement. A secret between friends. Me, being nice to her (long overdue). I suppose that so long as she's happy with things, then I shouldn't put too much stock into this odd feeling of wrongness.
I'm just helping out my best friend.
"Say, Pheebs" she says suddenly. "I've been thinking. You know, about the next dare."
I find myself shifting uncomfortably in my seat. At once, it's like I can't look at her, and can't look away from her. Her presence is so imposing, like she's the room's center of gravity.
"Um, yeah, do tell Syl. But you know I don't think these dares are entirely necessary," I say in a mumble.
Sylvia doesn't pay that any mind. She's tapping a finger against the edge of her bed in mock contemplation.
"Well, let's see. You've already serviced Derek alone, and then you took care of him and his friends all together. And they haven't picked up your offer of a second foursome yet, so you have a free schedule. So, in the interest of fairness... I think it's high time you also offered some individual attention to Marty and Tyler. Don't you agree?"
My eyes widen, and I swallow hard. "Um, I... I guess that makes sense?" I say, though it comes out more like a question than a statement.
Sylvia shakes her head, clearly amused. "Totally. It makes total sense. It's what I want, and besides, I'm sure it would make them very happy. It's just the selfless thing to do, you know?"
I nod my head, because of course it is. I did agree that my new job would be to make her happy. I did tell her I'd do whatever she wanted. If I tried to weasel out now, what would that say about me? I'd be a terrible friend.
"So," Sylvia says, her tone turning more conspiratorial, "here's the plan. You're gonna go up to Marty first, and then to Tyler, and ask them what their deepest sexual fantasy is. Then, you're gonna fulfil it. Oh, and you'll film yourself, of course. To show me later."
I feel my cheeks flush hot with embarrassment at Sylvia's words. Ask them their deepest fantasy? Fulfill it? And film myself doing it? The old me would have told Sylvia exactly where she could shove that idea. But the new me...
"Um, okay," I find myself saying meekly. "If that's what you want me to do, Syl."
She grins wickedly. "Oh, it definitely is. This is going to be hilarious. I can't wait to see the videos later."
I nod numbly. "When do you want me to do it?"
"No time like the present!" Sylvia says. "Go find Marty now. He's usually at the library right now, I've met him a few times when studying there myself. Corner him in there and make his day."
A lesser friend would stand her ground, would refuse, would come up with some excuse. But that's not the person I've decided I must be, and so I stand up, gathering my things, ready to march to the library right now.
Anything for my bestie.
"This is just too precious," Sylvia says, shaking her head again. "You're such a good friend, Phoebe. I'm really curious to see just how far your selflessness can go..."
***
Sylvia was right.
She usually is, I guess. I should have started listening to her long ago. Instead, I just pushed the envelope, tested the boundaries, bucked and caused her so many issues over the years.
I let her down so many times.
Well, better late than never. At least now I know just how much value there is in listening to her, and in prioritizing her needs.
Marty is sitting at a solitary table in a secluded corner of the library's third floor. It's empty right now, though there's enough students on the lower floors that there's no guarantee it will stay this way. He hasn't spotted me -- his head is buried in a book.
"Hi, Marty," I say, trying to sound casual. "Got a minute?"
He widens when he spots me, then looks around, as if expecting someone to rescue him. Poor thing, he's really not used to getting female attention, is he? Sylvia's dare is looking better by the minute, to be honest. I'm about to make him feel better about himself. How could that possibly be a bad thing?
It takes him a while, but Marty nods slowly. "Sure, Phoebe. What's up?"
I take a seat across from him. The wooden chair scrapes the floor as I get in closer, leaning forward. He closes his book, but his hands fidget with the cover, flipping it open and shut.
"I wanted to talk to you about... something," I start. How do I even phrase this? "About last time. With Derek and Tyler."
His eyes widen even further behind his glasses. I didn't think that was possible. "Y-yeah?"
I take a deep breath. "You did great, you know. I mean, considering everything. I just wanted to see if you had any... thoughts."
He swallows hard. "Thoughts?"
"Like, if there's something you'd want to try. A fantasy or something. Maybe you'd like to fuck my pussy this time?"
I almost asked if he's ever done that before. During the foursome, Tyler said, he hasn't been getting any, but I'm not sure if that was meant to imply he was a virgin, or just that he hadn't had sex in a long time before I sucked his cock.