Page 29 of There's No Place Like Oz

I was already in too deep with Leon and playing exhibitionist with Crowe. The last thing I needed was to corrupt Tobias. The only guy I hadn’t crossed a line with yet was Talos, and now I almost felt like I owed it to him to at least sit on his face or something.

These last twenty-four hours—or however long a day was in Oz—had been a whirlwind and a half.

When I sighed, that was just enough stimulation to wake up Tobias. He tightened his arms around me in a good morning hug, then he released me enough to let me pull away.

“Good morning.” He said, as if nothing had happened.

“Good morning.” I returned the greeting with an involuntary smile despite myself. As easy as it would be to freak out some more, it was as if his whole existence was crafted to bring me calm, and it was hard to stay riled up and in a tizzy when he looked at me with those friendly morning eyes. I supposed that was why he was my emotional support for so long. Last night didn’t have to change that. Right. Act normal. “I’m going to start making breakfast if you want any.” I said.

“I’d like that.” He hugged me one more time, and I crawled out of the tent without a single word about what happened between us.

We didn’t need to talk about it really. We could just sweep everything under the rug. No need to just come out and say“oh wow, I never expected you had such an appealing cock, Toto!”or“nothing like a little making out and dry humping between friends!”

No, no reason to talk about any of that at all. Instead, let’s talk about apples. I love apples. Who doesn’t love apples!

I laughed to myself like the crazy person I was, then I resolved to go find Talos for some apples, and absolutely not to sit on his face.

When I approached, he and Crowe were seated back to back, and despite the fact that they could silently communicate, I could tell that they weren’t currently speaking. Crowe noticed me first, and just the way he made eye contact had me blushing and replaying bath time in the woods.

“Oh good. The humans are fully charged again.” He said with his patent sarcasm.I guess we’re all just talking to each other like nothing at all happened and everything is not awkward or tense or weird.

I raised an eyebrow and corrected him in an attempt to be as cool a cucumber as everyone else. “Not without breakfast we’re not.”

“Sweet fucking Lucifer, seriously?” He groaned, and I laughed.

“You’ll get used to it someday, I promise.” With a pronounced roll of my eyes, I approached Talos. In immediate understanding, he handed me some apples from his satchel. I curtsied for my immortal companions as an equally sarcastic thank you, and I headed back to the campfire without doing any further sex things with any of them.

And I sat across from Leon, who already had the fire crackling and ready to go. His eyes crawled over my body, the least subtle of all my men, apparently.

Then he frowned. “No new marks? Shame.”

My whole entire body turned red. “Y-you—”

“You’re both welcome.” He interrupted me so obnoxiously and smugly and singsong. “What fun this is going to be.”

Soheknew what happened already. He probably took Tobias on a hunt with him just to get him riled up. Maybe he even slipped him something. Tobias could have been the Oz equivalent of drunk for all I knew. Maybe he didn’t even remember last night at all.

I opened my mouth to say… something. Anything at all. But I was absolutely speechless.

Before I could figure out how to make my brain or mouth work, Tobias sat down by the fire with us, carrying a fresh pot of water and a conveniently shaped rock that I could use to bake the apples. He took a sip and handed me the pot, and my mouth was so dry in my new state of what-the-fuckery that I guess I downed the whole thing in a series of desperate and not very ladylike gulps. They both stared at me for several moments.

Then Tobias patted me on the shoulder. Leon shook his head. And we all laughed.

It was possible I was over thinking this. Maybe it didn’t have to be weird or awkward at all.

After an eventful morning—for me anyway—we were back to walking the Yellow Road to Nowhere. Every step took us closer and closer to the dark green monument in the distance, and I was finally starting to feel like we had some hope of making it to the Wizard and having all of our issues fixed.Ah, who needs therapy when you have magic?

The guys all seemed to be getting along well enough. Crowe tended to walk with Talos, while Tobias had somehow turned animosity into friendship with Leon. It was kind of cute, honestly, and I was starting to like the chaos of juggling so many different personalities. All of the camping and struggles had been a nice way to bond, even if I was starting to question the wholesomeness of my own bonds with everyone.

But my interest in them was different, too. I hated how often I was supposed to pay for roles with my body, but I also hated that I’d started to view sex as something to give to others in barter instead of something to enjoy for myself. If I got nothing else from this interruption of my life, I hoped it could be that.

The day’s walk wasn’t without its obstacles, but with everyone’s unique talents, nothing felt terribly bothersome. When we came across a gushing river where the road had been washed out, a very hard hit from Talos’ fist was all it took to down a tree to create a bridge. Tobias carried me across to make sure I didn’t trip. When overgrowth blocked the path, Leon’s claws made quick work of the vines, and Crowe made quick work of any beasts or munchkins that crossed our path.

The sun was just drifting past high noon when the Emerald City appeared close enough to feel obtainable. All that stood between us and our goal was a field of soft yellow flowers, both lining the road and spouting up between every gap and break in the brick construction. My heart felt lighter looking at the enchanting contrast of bright and cheerful with deep greens. Pair that with the vibrant path and the clear blue sky and Oz was truly a beautiful place.

“We’re so close!” I shouted with excitement. My silver shoes clacked as I started to run through this last stretch of open road. It felt so good to have finally made it. The journey had felt far longer than the handful of days it had taken. “Finally.” I spun on my heel to face my companions behind me. I took a pronounced inhale, reveling in the fragrance of the flowers.

An overwhelming sense of dizziness surged through my brain. I might have puked if not for the fact that, the very next moment, my whole world went black.

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