Bizarre Love Triangle

"Urgh, God I'm so booooored."

Jen flopped on the bed, her six-foot, spread-eagled frame impossible to ignore.

Stabbing at the joypad, trying her hardest to do just that, Adrienne lost yet another life in the video game she was playing. "Uh huh."

Her friend turned onto her front, kicking her legs childishly behind her. "Can't we just go out for a little while?"

She paused the game with a theatrical sigh and put the pad down. "You know we can't, you pillock, we're on lockdown." She really needed a cigarette to deal with this mood.

Nobody rolled their eyes quite like Jen though. "Oh balls to lockdown. What are they going to do, arrest us?"

Adrienne had no idea. "Yes. Probably. Anyway, it's for our own safety."

"You're such a worry wart," her friend huffed. She got up to rifle through Ade's CDs. "Christ, do you have *anything* that isn't from an anime, a musical or come out in the last twenty years?"

"Will you stop? Most of my music is on mp3, and you are being a pain." She really didn't though, that was the bulk of her collection right there. At one point she'd been quite proud of her CDs, until she saw Jen's.

Jen had moved in a month earlier, she claimed to be trying for a fresh start, stopping the drugs (though she still smoked Steve's weed) and stating a need for more privacy, read: freedom from her mother's shadow.

One of Adrienne's previous housemates had gone AWOL and skipped a month's rent at the same time. When they checked in on his room they found him and his stuff missing. Which turned out to be perfect timing for Jen.

And then COVID-19 happened.

It was turning out to be the ultimate test of Jen's resolve as far as the drugs went. She simply had no choice, her usual sources of illicit substances, clubs and pubs, were suddenly cut off. This should be seen as a blessing, but she was clearly going stir crazy.

Their friendship was holding strong, and although she never tired of exclaiming how wonderful it was to be free of her mother's clutches, she missed her fiercely. With the virus essentially confining everyone inside their homes, Jen was constantly preoccupied with worries about her mum's health.

"Where's Steve?" Jen asked.

"Supply run. We needed a few things."

She seemed to perk up at the news, like a meerkat. "So we have the whole house to ourselves?"

Ade looked up to see her waggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"Tie a knot in it, Babe." Ade threw an ugly, rectangular green plushy in Jen's direction. "Besides, I'd feel weird about it now that I'm with Steve."

Jen picked the toy off the floor and looked at it curiously. "Didn't stop you at the caravan."

"That's different. I was *drunk*. We both were. And it was only a sneaky handjob, it's not like we fucked."

Jen gave up trying to understand Ade's toys, and threw the green monstrosity on the bed. "So what you're suggesting is we just get pissed and we can fool around?"

"No. Look, if you're horny why don't you go and put on a show for your fans?" It came out wrong and Adrienne immediately felt bad.

"I just might!" Said her friend sourly.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to sound crass."

"It's fine, darling. I'm just a little wound up." She made to leave. "But if I'm not getting any action this afternoon I think I'll take a long cold shower."

As she was about the close the door, her head poked back inside: "You know, polygamy isn't such a dirty word, sweetie."

Another plush toy, this one a sheep hit the door and bounced off as Jen made her escape.

Kneading her pillow, Ade thought about the idea; the three of them together; and shivered excitedly. It would never happen, but still, as far as fantasies go, a threesome with your two besties, it was a pretty hot one.

o-o-o-o-o

Steve arrived home with around half a dozen shopping bags, groaning under the onslaught of what looked like most of a supermarket.

"You two could help you know," he cried.

Jen squeezed his bicep playfully. "What? And miss out on the chance to see you flex your rippling muscles?"

Ade intervened and thrust a bag into her hands, almost making her keel over.

Jen put the bag on the counter and rubbed the small of her back. "Fuck's sake, did you get enough groceries?"

"I had to think creatively. The shelves were emptying fast. Then I got worried about stockpiling, so I had to get more."

Ade opened one particularly heavy bag to see it bursting with bottles of liquor. "Uh, Steve? Did you spend all the money on booze?"

"Not all," he replied meekly. "But I thought it wouldn't hurt to make lockdown a little more enjoyable."

Jen lifted out a bottle of vodka and cooed: "Ooh, the expensive stuff, mummy like."

"Oh now you've done it, you've woken her inner lush."

Jen pirouetted in the middle of the kitchen, clutching the bottle to her bosom. "You know what this means of course?"

Ade crossed her arms. "Me crying over the bank account?"

"Lockdown party!"

Sitting at the kitchen table, she opened a bag of crisps and shook her head: "Absolutely not."

Jen pulled a face: "You never want to have fun."

"Hey, I'll have you know I love fun. I am the funnest."

"Oh yeah? Prove it."

Steve looked from one to the other with increasing amusement.

"Uh uh, I know what you're doing, lil' miss reverse psychology, it isn't going to work."

"Hah, I knew it. Party poop pants."

Steve looked a little distracted holding a can of soup, and needing a break from Jen, Ade pulled him aside. "You okay in there? Looked like you went somewhere deep all of a sudden."

"Actually, I need to talk to you about something."

She felt a little anxiety bubble in the pit of her stomach as she followed him out into the hallway, leaving Jen to sort out the remaining groceries.

"So what's up?"

He leaned against the doorjamb and stared into the distance. "I've got to go away for a bit, not long, just a few days. I got a call from my mum on the way home."

"Oh shit, babe, are your folks okay?"

"Yeah, they're doing fine, but you know how they're high risk right? They're going to be pretty much quarantined for a while."

Ade breathed a sigh of relief that it wasn't anything too serious, but she still felt awful. Both for Steve and for not having him around. "You take as much time as you have to, love. They need you."

"It's just until they can sort out something a bit more long-term. There's already a support network of care in the community volunteers who are doing shopping runs."

She thought about her own parents, and how lucky the situation was for them. She wondered if she'd have the strength to do what Steve was doing.

Ade made up her mind: "Well then. If this is going to be our last night together for a bit, we might as well make it a banger."

They both went back into the kitchen where Jen was arranging the alcohol bottles in a sequence known only to herself.

"Say, Jen, that party sounds like a great idea actually. What do you say to a few hands of poker?"

"Urgh, poker's boring. Besides, what are we going to bet with? Steve's burned through all our money buying drinkies."

"I was thinking a more adult type of game, certainly not the boring kind."

Jen blinked: "Are you suggesting strip... poker. Who are you and what have you done with my friend Adrienne?"

"If you don't want to, I guess Steve and I can always play on our own.

"Ooh, now who's using reverse psychology?"

"Admit it, you can't resist the chance to see us both naked and humiliated."

For the first time since Ade had known her, Jen was lost for words.

o-o-o-o-o

When evening rolled around they piled into Jen's room, mainly because it was the biggest, and the one closest to the kitchen if they needed more snacks. They floated the idea of using he lounge but neither of them wanted to put the effort in to clean it or move the couch.

Ade loved what she'd done with it. Jen had turned her room into a copy of the one at her mum's house, but with a bit more space she had the opportunity to work it into something new and fresh. One wall was taken up with her broadcasting set-up, with the bed facing it. It left a wide section of floor open, so they were able to throw down a whole mess of cushions and pillows to make themselves more comfortable.

Steve had filled Jen in on his plans to leave, and she cried for him, hugging him tight as she shared the pain of not being able to see her own mother. Ade felt a little awkward watching them, and turned away until they were done.

After digging out the cards they settled down. Drinks were poured and they dealt a few practice rounds to remind themselves of how to play. Eventually they got down to business.

The first hand went to Jen, who yelled a little too excitedly.

Steve pleaded to the trans-coloured scarf that festooned the ceiling light above his head: "Why do I suddenly get a bad feeling about this?"

"Come on then, I want to see some skin," she urged with a mischievous smirk.

Surrendering, he pulled off his T-shirt to leave himself bare chested, making Jen coo, and after a few more seconds deliberation Ade pulled off one of her socks.

Jen stared at her open mouthed: "You are just..."

"When did you start wearing socks?" Asked Steve, equally incredulous.

"You never know when you'll get cold feet?" Ade quipped.

He wasn't buying it: "I dunno, one sock doesn't seem fair to me."

"Hey, you set up some rules and I'll play by 'em. Until then..." She pointed at her bare foot and wiggled her toes.

"Oh you are going down," said Jen, shuffling the cards furiously.

Steve put a hand in the air to call for peace. "Right. Fine. New rule. Pairs of a thing count as one item. So from now on they both come off. Okay?"

Nobody wore anything else that consisted of a pair anyway, so the point was decidedly moot, Ade thought. "Cool with me."

The next hand went to Adrienne. She was dealt a run that only got better as the game went on. Jen silently mouthed the word "fuck" as the cards were slapped down and she pulled off her camisole with a huff.

Her exposed breasts were soft pale pillows that bounced as she moved her arms to throw the vest top onto a nearby chair. Ade and Steve both cleared their throats and examined the room's decor to avoid staring at their friend's nakedness, and in particular, her perfect, light brown nipples.

"Drink it in, darlings. My time will come."

Steve took off his belt, placing it to the side and making no further moves to remove his clothing.

"Well, what about the trousers?" Asked Ade.

Jen was forced to agree: "Yeah, come on, Steven, don't keep us in suspenders."

"A belt counts as an item of clothing."

"It does not!" Shouted Jen.

Ade nodded: "I'm with her. A belt is part of the clothes, not a separate item."

"Illegal move, Steve. Forfeit."

"No can do, ladies. If you want to set up some rules-"

"Fine. *FINE*. New rule, belts don't count." Jen downed what was left in her glass and waved it in the air to indicate another was needed.

Fresh drinks were poured and sipped while tempers cooled.

The next round was even more contentious, Jen won and not only did Ade have the opportunity to remove her remaining sock, Steve took his watch off.

Jen had to stand up she was so mad, opening the window to yell outside. That out of the way, she began to vape thick clouds of unpleasant smelling cherry menthol smoke that ended up blowing back into the room to hang near the ceiling, forming their own indoor weather front.

One of the unfortunate repercussions of COVID running rampant was the fear that smoking would make things worse, so the three of them had made a pact to give up. It didn't take them long to crack under the pressure though, and they'd been forced into a compromise. Adrienne and Jen had bought vape tanks, while Steve had given up the tobacco in favour of weed. The two girls had argued that this was less a positive move than he liked to imagine, but there was no convincing him.

Her nicotine levels sated, Jen returned to the group. "Does anyone have any more jewellery? Piercings? Procrastination?"

"I'm good," said Steve.

"Me too," mirrored Ade. "Come on, Jen, we're waiting on you."

As the cards were shuffled and dealt anew, Adrienne noticed that Jen had probably the worst poker face she'd ever seen. As much as she tried to hide it, it was impossible to disguise her glee over the fact that she was going to slaughter them both with this hand.

With time to kill, she took the opportunity to run her eyes over the two of them, both topless, and sucked the smoke from her own vape greedily. She couldn't help it, but she felt herself getting a little turned on.

"Full house, sweetie," Jen purred, placing down her cards.

Steve stood to unbutton and take down the trousers he was wearing, trying to salvage some dignity out of the proceedings. Ade and Jen didn't make it easy for him to accomplish this, hooting and clapping until he was clad in just his boxer briefs.

Adrienne was staring at the down of mousy hair under his navel that ran south under his waistband when her daydreaming was rudely interrupted by Jen, coughing to get her attention.

"*Ahem* Aren't you forgetting something?"

She blushed: "Uhm, oh right."

She tugged up the T-shirt and Steve helped her with the last few manoeuvres, helping pull it over her head when it got stuck on her ear.

"Oh this is just wrong," yelped Jen, catching sight of the navy blue sports bra Adrienne was wearing.

"Now I know she's playing us," said Steve. "She never wears a bra."

"Hey! My tits are my business. Maybe I needed a bit of support." Ade feigned outrage, throwing the shirt at Steve's head.

Jen spread her hands in front of her, framing her own, much larger breasts. "Darling, please."

"I think we need a breather," suggested Steve. "Smoke break?"

The bottle of gin they were guzzling was empty, and while Steve hovered near the window sparing them the stench of whatever vile strain of weed he had dug up during lockdown, Jen got them a new bottle from the dresser. She made a detour towards Steve to take a sneaky hit of his joint and the two of them chatted.

Not into pot at all, Ade wandered over to check out Jen's music collection. She didn't recognise any of the artists amongst the CDs.

Pulling out one disc she called over: "Hey Jen? What are this band like? Any good?" The cover was in a foreign language and unfathomable to her.

"Um, they're an experimental noise-core band from Belarus. You wouldn't like them, sweetie."

"Experimental noise-core? What the hell is *that*" Ade said to herself, putting the CD back like it was radioactive.

It wasn't until she started rummaging through the vinyl that she felt more knowledgeable. She chose the Billie Holiday album Lady Sings the Blues and took it over to the record player, placing it gently on the turntable and depressing the pleasingly old school analogue play button. The soft, haunting voice filled the room.

When the game resumed, Jen looked more relaxed, read: stoned, and handed out the cards while mumbling under her breath, making Ade giggle.

"Stop that, you'll make me lose count," but she was laughing too.

She looked determined this time though, her face much harder to read as she studied the cards. Steve too looked imperceptible.

"I'll take two," said Ade, hoping for a king. It didn't come and she was left with two jacks. She could still win if the others had nothing, but it was looking unlikely.

"Two pair." Said Jen, calling the round.

Steve slapped his cards down and groaned, starting to get up. "I'm done. Good night, girls."

He made to leave the room rather than strip any further.

"Oh Steve, babe, no. Please stay," cried Ade.

"I really need to start packing-"

Jen opened her arms wide: "Make you a deal, darling. A quick flash and you can sit behind me if you want. You can be my teammate and we can take her down together. What do you say?"

Ade's eyes nearly popped out of her head: "Are you serious? How is this fair? Steve you're not going to betray me like this are you?"

To her annoyance he didn't take much convincing, and with a defeated sigh, pulled his underwear down his hips and nicely muscled thighs, freeing his extremities. He stepped out of his briefs and offered them a nice glimpse.

"Bravo, darling. Just what the doctor ordered," said Jen.

Ade had to admit, it was probably worth it to see him as nature intended, but it was a Pyrrhic victory and she was still annoyed. "You know what? Take him. He hasn't won a hand all night, he'll probably do more harm than good."

He put a hand over his heart in mock pain: "Oooh, ouch. It's your turn to lose the clothes by the way."

Adrienne was still ahead of Jen in the clothes stakes, if it hadn't been for her extra layers she'd be as naked as Steve right now, but playing it smart had only got her so far, now it was down to the wire.

She wriggled out of the shorts, leaving herself in just the bra and panties. She sat back down red-faced as they whistled and clapped.

Steve was all but Jen's patsy right now, he was massaging her neck, and frustratingly keeping his bits hidden from view. This wasn't in the spirit of the game at all, Ade thought, wondering just what the two of them had been conspiring about near the window.

She lost the next hand too, spectacularly, and with Jen and Steve ogling her like a pair of hungry hyenas she pulled the stretchy bra over her head. Her breasts were small but inviting, and she felt her cheeks burn every time the two of them leered at her.

The next cards were dealt and Adrienne turned them over with a sinking feeling. A three, seven, and a nine. Even if the next cards were killer, the prospects of winning anything were very slim.

She tried to read Jen's expression but got nowhere. Steve was leaning over her shoulder and pointing at a card.

"I'll take three." Said Jen.

Three? Maybe there was a chance after all, she thought. "Two please."

Ade turned the first card over hesitantly. A three! She almost made a gleeful noise but kept it in. She looked up from her hand to see Jen and Steve staring at her intensely.

"Want to make this interesting?" Said Jen mischievously.

Ade absolutely did not, and peaked under the edge of the last card. However...

Another three. Miracle of miracles, three of a kind. Jen *had* to be bluffing.

"What did you have in mind?" Ade countered.

"Loser becomes the other's servant for the rest of... Ooh, let's say the week?"

"Servant?" Said Ade and Steve at the same time.

"You'll be required to service the other in whatever fashion they desire."

"Uh oh," Steve said, getting to his feet, retrieving his clothes and making for the door. "I want no part of this. See you in the morning."

They let him leave this time, taking a moment to admire his bare backside as it exited the room, and soon it was just the two of them. The side of the record had finished and it clicked to a stop, plunging the room into silence.

The stakes were pretty high as far as Ade was concerned. If she lost this last hand God only knows what Jen would end up having her do. But on the other, having a live-in butler for a whole week had its charms. Her room desperately needed a vacuum. Sandwiches on demand, foot rubs. Tempting.

"Well? Are you in or are you out?" Jen goaded.

She slapped down her cards before she lost her nerve. "In."

Jen looked shocked, but only for a moment. She placed down her hand, one card at a time with a smug grin.

"I can't believe how easy that was."

Ade looked at the run of picture cards on the carpet and clawed at her face. "Arggh, you utter *bitch*."

"Now now, be nice."

"You hustled me. Both of you! I can't believe it. Did you cheat?"

Looking offended, Jen tinkled the ice in her glass: "As punishment for being a sore loser, you can start by fixing me a rum and coke, darling."