Page 32 of Red Flag, Green Light

While Amelia and Ceres continue their conversation without me, I decide to send Brian a perfectly normal message. Simply because I can. And also because I am bored.

Mars: Are you ace?

Brian’s reply is swift, which probably means he’s bemoaning a slow mail day at the fancy office building he heads mailroom in. It’s the very same company that handles Rouge’s branding, which is to say, yes, Brian knows Jove and I are Rouge. He’s the one who connected us with Whirlwind Branding, which gave our business a fighting chance years ago. Getting our branding together and getting the opportunity to work with a cover artist like Frank was the turning point for the Rouge Empire.

Now that I’m thinking about it, Brian and I might actually be friends.

Huh. Wild.

Brian: Am I what?

Mars: Asexual. Aromantic. Etc.

Brian: I like girls.

Shocking.

Mars: What type?

Brian: XX

I stare at my phone, certain I’ve not just been sent chromosomes in response to my query. Except. No. That’s exactly what has happened.

Mars: Bro.

Brian: Any type of woman can love mail, Mars.

Wow. I suddenly feel like a moron.

Mars: So can any type of man, Brian. If you like girls, there’s more to it than just “loves mail.” Jove loves mail. He got mad at your sister for not handling the mail lovingly enough two days ago.

And then he dumped a box of fanmail unceremoniously on the dining room table, but that’s not important. For the purpose of my point, Jove loves mail. Not just Lyra’s mail.

Even though it is absolutely just Lyra’s mail that Jove loves.

Brian: Are you trying to set me up with your brother or convince me to disown my sister?

Mars: Jove’s already married, and your sister’s already disowned you.

Brian: …

Brian: Could this conversation have been a letter?

Mars: No.

Brian: You wound me.

Mars: Snail mail is too slow for my undiagnosed ADHD. Kindly elaborate upon your female preferences. It’s for research. Lyra loves mail. You know Lyra loves mail. And we both know Lyra crushed on you for half a millenia. You never reciprocated her feelings. Why, if your type is simply “female who loves mail,” was that the case?

Brian: Because she’s Jove’s Lyra.

Mars: She wasn’t Jove’s in kinder.

Brian: Pretty sure she wasn’t writing letters in kinder, either, homie buddy. I’m confident her single goal in life was befriending butterflies. Her love of mail bloomed with her love of Jove, and I’m too much of a gentleman to intrude uponanother man’s mail-loving lass.

Mm. I suppose he’s not wrong. Someone really should tell both Jove and Lyra about their bloomed love, though. Sometimes, I find myself feeling particularly insane purely because I’m the only one wholeheartedly aware of this silly thing called myvery obvious feelings.

Brian: Was there a point to your inquiry?

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