Harem House - Selene Pt. 25

"Yeah, well." Arthur shrugged.

"What do you want to do?" Deb asked. "Are you the guy who sleeps with as many different women as possible?"

"No?" Arthur asked.

"You're not sure?" Deb asked.

"I mean, I don't know." Arthur said. "I was in a relationship for most of my college life. Then I wasn't. Now, I'm in five simultaneous relationships. One of my girlfriends wants five to be enough, and the other wants me to be some kind of..."

"Don Juan." His mother supplied.

"Sure." Arthur recognized the name through Phantom of the Opera. He was confident that wasn't what his mother was referencing, but it sounded right.

"You want my advice?" Deb asked.

"Yes." Arthur said, his shoulders slumped. "Please."

Deb patted him on the back. "Find out why each girl wants their solution. Ask if they're willing to compromise. Then decide if either is what's best for your little family or if there's a better solution."

Arthur nodded along. He had an idea as to why the girls wanted their respective solutions. Kat wanted his attention, and she was insecure about their relationship. What was it she said earlier when dragging him to the library? She wanted reassurances. She wanted security. She feared someone taking him from her, which seemed ridiculous to Arthur, but he couldn't tell her that her fears were silly.

Selene, on the opposite side of the coin, craved adventure. Selene wanted her partner to be such a stud that he could sleep with anyone, and she got off on Arthur getting off. She was a genuine cuckquean. Not that he could tell his mother that part of it.

Kat was a Baggins, wanting security. Selene was a Took, hungry for adventure. Arthur almost laughed at the comparison. Selene might appreciate it. Still, the amusing distraction didn't solve his problem.

They both said they would compromise. Or at least, they'd submit to his decision on it. They'd both put the decision in his hands, so what should he choose? And how would the other girls react? Did they want a say? Or did they want Arthur to make this choice for them?

Arthur found more questions than answers the longer he remained silent, so he spoke. "Thanks, Mom."

"Anytime." Deb ruffled his hair. "Come on, I want to watch the game too, you know?"

Arthur laughed and walked his mother toward the stadium, joining the tail end of the crowd.

~~~

While Arthur and Deb talked, the girls headed into the stadium, briefly encountering Brad, Mark, Maria, and Jen again. Questionably sober people packed the concession lines, making the traffic challenging to navigate. Walking slowed to stepping, which gave them a chance to talk.

"Where's Arthur?" Mark asked as they made their way to the student seating section.

"He's coming. Had to hang back and talk to his mom." Selene answered.

Brad laughed. "Right. For a moment, I thought he'd run off with one of you."

"I just don't get it." Jen said, shaking her head as they shuffled past the snack lines.

"Don't get what?" Kelly asked.

"Why you're dating him?" Jen asked. "I mean, sure, he's hot. He's cute. He seems like a decent guy--"

Brad coughed.

"And he's secure in who he is. All that ribbing taken in stride, like clowning couldn't hurt his pride even in front of the girls he liked." Jen continued.

Brad's cough stopped.

"But he's not an overconfident douchebag." Jen said. "Is that what it takes?"

"We love Arthur for different reasons." Selene shrugged. "And rather than compete." She glared at Kat. "We decided to share him and work together instead of against one another. A sisterhood, sharing the man who makes us happy."

"You don't have to sell her on the idea." Kat said, her tone full of warning.

"I'm just trying to make a point." Selene said. Her tone was defensive, but she relaxed when Kat turned aside to look at Jen.

"Oh, I'm not interested in joining your sisterhood." Jen assured Kat. "But the whole arrangement piques my interest. You're quite a menagerie of girlfriends." She observed. "Arthur's a lucky man, but it's gonna be one hell of a storm when the drama starts."

Kat shook her head. "Oh, we've got drama aplenty already."

"I'm not surprised. Five girlfriends? That's a lot of work." Jen pointed out. "And polyamory is weird to people raised to expect monogamy. That's one of the reasons I want to write that article on ethical polyamory - to raise awareness."

Rani chuckled. "Well, apparently, non-monogamy turns people crazy?"

"Oh?" Jen asked. "Has there been infighting over Arthur?"

Rani laughed. "No. We look out for each other. The drama is from outside. Our being together has started what, three fights? Between the cafeteria Monday, Sanjay and Jace jumping Arthur on Friday, now this Yvonne bitch making a scene with our girl. Three fights have broken out on campus over us. People are insane."

"Jace is that big guy from Skee-ball, right? Is that why he apologized to Arthur?" Jen asked. "And Sanjay is the guy you kicked in the nuts on Monday?"

Rani nodded. "He's an asshole."

"Is it worth it?" Jen asked, her tone curious. "Is dating Arthur worth the hassle? Why not dump him and find another partner?"

"Because we love him." Kat said without thinking. "In different stages, maybe. Not every relationship is the same, but I don't want to end my relationship with him. Neither does Selene. Though it looks like it will cost her friends, even so, she'll still have us. I guess that's another reason. It's not just Arthur. The h--the group of us are close. We support one another. It's tougher to break up the group than a duo."

Jen shrugged. "That's the price then. Some people are going to think the worst. Bad friends will fall out with you over it. Good friends will stick by you."

Kelly rubbed Kat's back. "And we've got each other."

"Where is Arthur, anyway?" Mindy asked, looking around. "I know he's with his mom, but weren't they following us?"

"Come on." Selene took Mindy's hand in hers. "Let's go meet him."

It took no convincing whatsoever for Mindy to abandon the others and follow Selene in search of Arthur. They left them and went against the crowd until they were forced to the inner wall to get past everyone.

"Hopefully, Deb's helping him sort things out." Kelly shrugged. "She seemed like a good mom."

Rani shrugged. "Well, Mindy and Selene will help Arthur forget the drama."

Kat took a deep breath. "You're right." She said to Jen. "Yvonne was a bad friend. Selene will be better off without her. We're all better off without bad friends."

Kelly frowned.

~~~

Arthur passed the soft pretzel snack line and contemplated joining it when Mindy tackle-hugged him from the side. Selene laughed from a few feet away, and Arthur found his footing in time to avoid crashing into anyone else.

Mindy giggled in triumph. "My turn."

"What?" Arthur asked.

"The game hasn't started yet. They've got the whole pregame to go through." Mindy explained. "So it's my turn! Kat had her turn. I want my turn. Let's go."

Arthur laughed. He couldn't help but smile at Mindy's enthusiasm. Her tug on his wrist was insistent. He emphasized it was his choice by pulling her back with one yank and spinning her into him. He held her in place with her back pressing against his front. Selene stood behind them, blocking anyone else's view of Arthur's grip on Mindy's wrists.

"I know where I want to fuck you." Arthur whispered in Mindy's ear. "And with everyone here, this might be our only chance to do it." He glanced behind him at Selene, then turned back to Mindy. "Let's go to your dorm."

Mindy closed her eyes, and pulled on his arms wrapped around her. She nodded hard enough to make her hair bounce.

Arthur, Mindy, and Selene raced to Mindy's dorm. Mindy started running a step ahead once they were free of the crowd. Arthur followed, enjoying the occasional flash of Mindy's backside under her skirt. Selene was running beside him, grinning wide.

Arthur laughed as he pulled ahead on the home stretch, passing Mindy effortlessly and opening the door for her. He wasn't even panting. Mindy was when she reached him, but her heaving chest looked good. The fun pushed the problems he'd been obsessing over far away. His pulse was high, and it beat higher as Mindy smiled at him.

"Thanks, Boss." Mindy walked through the doors, followed by Selene.

"Thanks, Master." Selene followed Mindy and wasn't surprised when Arthur caught up to them and palmed their butts once they were past the lobby. The three of them walked together, with Arthur in the center. His arms behind them, they looped theirs around his lower back.

Mindy's freshman suite was on the first floor. It wasn't a long walk from the lobby. By this point, most of the campus was a ghost town. The pregame show for the homecoming game was starting.

Mindy announced Arthur's presence anyway. She frowned when her call of "Boy in the suite!" was met with the creak of an opening door.

Sara and Bella peeked out from their room, dressed for the day in jerseys and jeans, though they couldn't have pulled them off more differently if they'd tried. The tall, slender African-American Sara wore hers long and baggy. Bella, the shorter, rounder Latina, wore hers higher and more fitted.

"Hey, Arthur!" They said simultaneously, making their greeting sound like a catcall.

"You might want to sit on the couch." Bella pointed to the couch in the suite. "Mindy's roommate is in there doing homework." She gestured toward Mindy's door.

Mindy's frown deepened. "Aren't you going to the game?"

Bella nodded. "We thought we'd wait until after kick-off, skip the crowds."

Mindy sighed, then looked apologetically at Arthur. "You'd better wait here."

"Of course." Arthur nodded and sat after giving Selene a pat on the butt. "But you should change your clothes." He told Selene. "I'll let Mindy find you something to wear." He looked at Mindy meaningfully, and her frown disappeared. She smiled ear-to-ear at him.

It was time for the ropes to come off. He trusted Mindy to have something sexy for Selene to wear. Sara and Bella didn't react, but to Mindy, Arthur, and Selene, it was Arthur letting Mindy play dress up with his fuck doll. Both girls looked excited.

"Sure thing, Boss." Mindy held her bedroom door open for Selene. Selene grinned at Arthur as she shut the door behind them.

"So..." Sara said as she and Bella came to join Arthur in the suite's living room area. "Is it true?"

Arthur looked at Sara and Bella as if they would elaborate. He sensed their curiosity. They didn't look shy as they perched on the sofa arms on either side of him. When neither explained, he asked, "Is what true?"

"You know..." Bella prompted as if Arthur should know what they were referencing.

"That you're secretly a billionaire?" Sara asked.

Arthur laughed. "Ha! That is definitely a lie."

"Oh." Bella and Sara looked at each other, disappointed. "Well, if you're not secretly rich, how do you have five girlfriends?"

"I can breathe through my ears." Arthur joked, but neither girl appeared to understand.

"What?" Bella asked.

"I can breathe through my ears?" Arthur repeated.

"Why would that get you five girlfriends?" Sara asked.

"You've never had a guy go down on you." Arthur meant it as a question but stated it as a fact. Both girls blushed, then giggled. They retreated to the bedroom, where their laughter increased.

The door to Mindy's room cracked open. The eye looking through the space surprised Arthur. It was not either of his girlfriends but Mindy's roommate, Rachel, who stepped into the suite's common room, closed the door behind her and stared at him.

"Hi." Arthur waved from his spot on the sofa.

"Hello." Rachel said. She stared at him.

Arthur folded his hands together and rested them on his thighs. His thumbs tapped together as he pretended not to notice Rachel's continuing glare. He gave in and let his eyes meet hers. Rachel's eyes bored into him, and he would not have been surprised if she suddenly tried to shoot him.

He was a cowboy at high noon without his hat, gun, or piece of straw to chew. He glanced at her hip to be safe, but there was no holster. He didn't have a horse or any cows either. Though, both were lingerie ideas for Selene and Mindy he could endorse.

Arthur looked over his shoulder to make sure there wasn't a ghost. There wasn't. She was definitely staring at him. Right at his face. He returned her gaze, meeting her intense eyes. He tried to hold the stare and managed it through sheer will before he started speaking.

"Can I... help you?" Arthur asked.

"You know you're going to hell, right?" Rachel asked. "But you don't have to. You can be a better person."

Arthur blinked. "I'm good." He held his hand up in polite rejection as if he were saying no to drugs instead of God.

"You're fine seducing young, impressionable women like Mindy into lewd acts of fornication?" Rachel asked. "Making her sin? You don't care about her soul?"

Arthur took a deep breath. "Mindy's soul is beyond your reproach." He said. "Isn't there something about logs and splinters that applies here? But to answer your question, I'm not sure I believe in the soul or an afterlife. So, the whole concept of sin doesn't mean much to me. I try to act correctly out of an obligation to my fellow human beings, not a higher being. Does that make sense?"

Rachel continued to stare at him, not answering.

Arthur tried again. "I might be more sexually active than you're used to, but I try to be ethical. For me, that means consent. So long as everyone involved consents to what's happening, we're good."

"What you, Mindy, and the others are doing is wrong." Rachel said. She was determined, but her glare lost its heat.

"What we're doing is like the polygamy in your Bible, I suppose, but more ethical." Arthur said. "Because, unlike the women in your book, Mindy has the liberty to choose her sexual partners for herself at a legally and morally acceptable age. No one's deciding for her or treating her as property--without her consent."

Rachel hesitated.

Arthur wondered what her experience with these conversations was. Had she prepared for an argument? Had she expected him to rant and rave so she could enjoy moral superiority over keeping calm?

It was also possible she had zero experience. Sara, Bella, Mindy, and Rachel were eighteen. Judging by Rachel's clothes, she was the most sheltered of the four. These were the discussions students had in the philosophy and humanities classes Rachel hadn't attended yet.

Rachel looked at her shoes. Her black boots with a slight heel were the only thing she or anyone could see under her long black skirt and conservative blue top.

"Have you talked to Mindy about this?" Arthur asked.

Rachel looked up and shook her head. "She won't listen. She's too infatuated with you."

Arthur smiled softly with half his face. To her credit, Rachel was at least trying to be direct in her approach without being overly rude. Maybe consistent exposure to Rani was raising his bar for untenable directness. Rachel wasn't throwing holy water in his face and demanding he atone for his grievous sins. She wasn't picketing his apartment or his group date. From what he could gather, she was attempting to save him or Mindy, whatever that meant to her.

"Judge people less and listen to them more." Arthur suggested. "It'll help you make friends."

Rachel glared, huffed, turned, and slammed her door behind her.

It opened a second later, and Arthur was unprepared for what he saw. Mindy and Selene stepped out of her room, wearing only towels and flip-flops.

Arthur glanced to either side of him. "Well, that'll pull focus at the stadium."

Mindy raised her hand palm-up, presenting Selene. "As I explained to Rachel. Selene spilled something over us and our clothes. So we're going to scrub off the sticky." She nodded her head toward the hallway, where the showers were. "Care to join us?" She mouthed but didn't say aloud.

Arthur's smile grew to match Selene's, and he stood to join them. Mindy's towel was dangerously low, while Selene's was dangerously high. Both threatened delight as they clasped arms and danced together in their excitement.

"I'll text the others and tell them we'll be late to the game." Arthur said.

By the time he'd finished, Mindy and Selene were halfway to the bathroom in the hall.

~~~

After reaching their seats and sitting there for a few minutes, Kelly realized she was snackish. She wasn't hungry for a meal but ate less than the others at Arthur's parents' tailgate. "Do you two want snacks?" Kelly asked.

Kat groaned. "We just ate so much at the tailgating."

"I always want snacks." Rani said. "Do you have snacks?"

Kelly nodded toward the exit, where the snack stalls were, as people made their way to the stadium seats.

"We should have done what Mark, Maria, Brad, and Jen did - get snacks before sitting down." Rani said. "I want snacks, but I'm lazy." She shrugged and sniffed the air. "Still, the more people come in here, the better the smells and the hungrier I get."

Kelly smiled at Kat. "Well, let's not be lazy. Come on. I'll buy you snacks if you keep me company."

Kat and Rani looked at each other, shrugged, and followed Kelly. They re-entered the mass of bodies sloughing through the concessions. The lines were backed up, so they were waiting, and they chose the nearest stand.

Kat's phone dinged as they reached the order line, but Kelly ordered for them based on what they'd told her in line. "An order of fries. Kat, you wanted a pretzel, right? And one pretzel. Oh, Kat, pick which pretzel you want? Okay. And Rani--"

"Nachos, no cheese," Rani told the concessions guy, who nodded and gave her a plastic basket of nachos. The built-in cheese cup section was empty.

Kat's phone dinged again, the electronic chime chirping as Kelly paid the attendant.

"Is that Arthur?" Kelly asked.

Kat checked her phone and shook her head.

"Is it Katelyn?" Rani asked.

Kat shook her head. "It's my mom." Her tone when she said 'mom' sounded venomous.

"Uh... why'd you say 'mom' that way? Do you and your mom not get along?" Rani asked.

Kelly looked at Kat, but Kat pretended not to hear Rani. "Have you texted with Katelyn since this morning?" Kelly asked, changing the topic gracefully.

"No." Kat spat. Her tone was even darker, which surprised Rani even more.

"Do we hate Katelyn now?" Rani asked. "What the fuck happened? Did she try to kiss you or something?"

"What? No." Kat sounded surprised.

"Well, I don't know. You reacted to her name like it was sour, and I know how you are about kissing girls." Rani pointed to Kat. "So what happened?"

"They had a falling out." Kelly started to explain.

Rani looked at Kat and raised her eyebrow. "Not that surprising, I guess." She sighed. "How big a falling out? Is this you being you, or is this a big deal?"

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Kat asked.

"I mean, you're called Brat for a reason." Rani said. "You're prickly, you don't react well to change, you lash out for attention, and you're possessive over Arthur. You get pissed off over shit as easily as I get turned on. And it's hit or miss as to whether you'll laugh at a joke or storm off over it." She recited the facts without anger, even if she spoke confidently.

Kelly was silent. Kat clenched her jaw so tightly her face twitched.

"So, are you going to tell me what happened or storm off?" Rani asked.

Kat angrily told her what had happened. She recounted where she'd been the night before after they split off. Then she explained the argument that arose when Katelyn described trying and failing to take Arthur's towel. She then revealed how she left Katelyn's house and drove to Arthur's apartment, sleeping on his sofa until he woke her in the morning.

Rani seemed to silently contemplate her story as they shuffled forward in the pick-up line. Kelly understood why Kat was upset, but she was much softer toward Katelyn than Kat. She'd forgiven Katelyn after Katelyn apologized to Arthur. Tensions hadn't cooled immediately, but there was progress. Kat was less inclined to forgive.