Page 86 of Habibi: Always and Forever
“Of course. Humans get the flu all the time.”
Dakota made a cute snuffling sound, pulling both our gazes to him. He slowly opened his eyes, glancing from me to Star.
“I need to go to the bathroom,” he said a moment later, his voice hoarse.
We’d installed a bathroom in all our rooms after we found Dakota, so at least we wouldn’t have to go back to the human world.
“I’ll take you,” Star said as he jumped to his feet, then picked Dakota up.
“I can walk,” Dakota protested, but obviously neither of us would make him do that when we could easily carry him.
I opened the bathroom door as Star carried him in, then set him on his feet in front of the toilet before reaching down and lowering his pants.
“Hey! I can—” Dakota broke off into a coughing fit, and I ran over to rub his back as Star held him steady.
“Let me help,” Star insisted once the coughing had passed, and Dakota seemed too exhausted to protest anymore.
Once he was done, I carried Dakota back to the bed while Star washed his hands.
The chills had returned during the short trip to the bathroom, so I quickly covered Dakota with the blankets before shifting and adding my wing to the mix.
Star came back and settled in on Dakota’s other side, though he didn’t shift again.
“Thank you,” Dakota mumbled, his eyes flicking from me to Star.
I leaned over and kissed his cracked lips. “No need to thank us, love.”
* * *
NICO
I poured the hot chicken soup into a bowl, then grabbed the takeout bags and the bag full of more drinks for Dakota before teleporting to the demon realm.
Placing everything on the corner table, I went back to our home and grabbed Moon and Candy.
They’d been roaming around the house looking for their people, and I’d promised to take them with me when I went back.
The moment we appeared in the demon realm, they jumped out of my arms and raced to the bed before curling up on top of their human, Candy on his legs with her tail wagging rapidly, and Moon on his chest, where he immediately started purring.
“Aww, they’re worried about him,” Ryk said, as he hopped off the bed, shifted, then came over to help me as Star woke Dakota so he could eat.
I settled in the spot Ryk had just vacated, made sure the soup was at an optimal temperature, then scooped up a spoonful. “Open up,” I murmured, making Dakota groan.
“I can feed myself.”
“Dude. If we didn’t let you pee by yourself, we clearly aren’t going to let you feed yourself,” Ryk said, and I blinked. They what?
Shaking my head, I waited until Dakota sighed and opened his mouth, biting back a satisfied smile as I fed him.
“Damn, that’s good,” he mumbled, and I didn’t hold back my smile this time.
While I fed Dakota, Star and Ryk fed me between bites of their own meals, and before long, we’d all finished our lunch.
I gave Dakota some pills for his headache, some more Gatorade, and then Star helped him lie down again.
Dakota fell asleep quickly, and I ran my fingers through his sweaty hair, frowning at the tangles.
“I’ll take the trash back and do the dishes,” Ryk said, then quickly gathered everything up before disappearing home.
“His hair is a mess,” I mumbled, then used my magic to get rid of all the sweat in his hair.
Magicking up a brush, I pulled his hair out from under him and started brushing, careful not to wake him as I got the tangles out. Once the long, brown strands were straightened out, I twisted them into a bun on top of his head, then tied a band around it to keep the bun in place.
“It’s strange, isn’t it? We’ve only known Dakota a few weeks, and yet our lives now revolve around him so completely,” Star said, and I hummed.
“I think it’s been that way since the day we realized he was our mate,” I said, and Star chuckled.
“That’s true. Ryk had this idea about using our magic to shield him from viruses and bacteria, so this doesn’t happen again. We can do that, right?”
I blinked, thinking about it. There were very few things we couldn’t do with our magic.
We couldn’t create a new dimension or planet.
We couldn’t create new life or heal someone who was sick or dying.
And we couldn’t hurt humans physically or with our magic.
But we were here to protect humans, so I was sure we could do this.
“What if it protected him from getting physically hurt as well? Like a full-body, injury-proof suit that’s invisible and intangible?”
“That would be perfect,” Star murmured, and I nodded excitedly.
“Let’s put our heads together and work it out once Dakota gets better.”
“Sounds good. If we figure it out, we could share it with the others, too.”
“Lux will be delighted if he can protect baby Gunner like that,” I said, making Star smile.
“Yeah, he will.”
We were silent after that, just holding Dakota as he slept, rubbing his chest when he woke up in a coughing fit, then quickly fell back asleep. Moon had relocated to the pillows after the first bout of coughing and seemed content to purr Dakota back to health from there.
Ryk returned a while later, then joined us in the bed, lying over our legs with Candy. We stayed quiet, so we didn’t wake Dakota, and while I wished Dakota weren’t sick, I always loved it when the four of us were together like this.
I woke Dakota periodically to make him drink some water or Gatorade, but otherwise let him sleep. In the evening, we moved him back to the house so we wouldn’t be going back and forth, and he slept through the whole thing, which Archer assured me was quite normal.
I’d never taken care of a sick human before. None of us had. I felt proud of ourselves for taking such good care of Dakota. Sure, we’d fumbled a little in the beginning, but we’d figured things out and gotten help when we needed to.
“His fever is down,” Star murmured from Dakota’s other side, his fingers trailing over Dakota’s forehead.
“That’s good,” Ryk said from where he was curled up between Dakota and me.
“I think the worst of it is over.”
“I hope so. He really isn’t like himself when he’s sick.” I could almost hear the pout in Ryk’s voice, and it made me smile.
“Come on, let’s get some sleep,” I said, squeezing Ryk closer, and he hummed as he clasped my arm, turning to give me a sleepy kiss before brushing his lips against Dakota’s cheek.
“Night, everyone,” he mumbled, and Star repeated the sentiment. It didn’t take either of them long to fall asleep after that, and I took a moment to turn off the lights before letting myself drift off.
* * *
STAR
Three days later, Dakota was doing much better. He’d even gone to work today, which none of us had been particularly enthused about. But he’d assured us he was fine and had made it back home in one piece a few minutes ago.
My phone buzzed as I was petting Moon, who’d been lazing on my chest as usual while Ryk sat at the foot of the couch, and I would’ve ignored it except for the fact that Nico and Ryk’s phones buzzed at the same moment.
Curious, I pulled my phone out as they did the same.
Dakota : Could you guys come upstairs, please?
I shared a worried glance with Ryk as Nico stepped out of the kitchen, and I quickly deposited Moon on the couch before leading the way upstairs.
The three of us burst into the main bedroom as if we were about to fight off a horde of dark souls, and I jerked to a halt so suddenly that Ryk and Nico slammed against my back, making me stumble forward.
In the middle of our giant bed lay Dakota, his bare skin on display, his lap strategically covered with a bedsheet. His long hair was loose and spread over the pillows under his head; his blue eyes heated as they watched us.
I swallowed hard as my feet took me closer to the bed, sensing our mates doing the same. Dakota had my complete attention, though, and I climbed onto the bed, stopping when I was seated right by his hip.
“Dakota...” I murmured, and he smirked at me, his eyes flicking from me to Ryk and Nico.
“You guys took such good care of me when I was sick. I wanted to do something to show you how much I appreciated it,” he said as he sat up, pulling my eyes to the sheet that slid just low enough to offer a tantalizing peek of his happy trail.
“You don’t have to do that. It was our pleasure,” Nico murmured before a smacking sound cut him off, and I wondered if Ryk had told him to shut up.
“I want to,” Dakota said simply as he sat up, slid his palm behind my neck, and pulled me into a kiss.
It was a blur of lips and skin and flying clothes after that, and I lost myself in my mates, wondering if this would ever feel any less intense, and hoping it never would.
I sat back as Dakota turned his attention to Ryk, his lubed fingers making a beeline for Ryk’s hole as our smaller mate moaned, his fiery red curls bouncing with each movement of his body.
“Here.” Dakota thrust the bottle of lube toward Nico, lowering himself over Ryk’s lap to expose himself. “Prep me.”
Nico blinked, his dark eyes blazing with heat as he licked his lips and accepted the lube.
Running my palm over my slick length, I watched my mates pleasure each other, and wondered if this was what Afterworld felt like. Who needed Afterworld when I had this?
“I’m ready, I’m ready,” Ryk pushed past a whimper, and Dakota slid his fingers out of him, grabbed his hips, and pushed right in, making Ryk’s lips part in a soundless moan.
“Nico...” Dakota demanded through gritted teeth, and Nico slapped his ass as he withdrew his fingers, replacing them with his cock in one hard thrust.
They stayed like that for a moment, absorbing everything and giving me a delightful view of my mates all connected, their skin flushed with desire, their bodies trembling with barely restrained need.
“Star,” Dakota murmured, drawing my gaze away from the spot where the three of them were connected, to his face. “I want you in my mouth.”
I blinked as my cock jumped in my loose grasp, spilling precum over my hand, then nodded rapidly.
Rising onto my knees, I moved closer so my leg was pressed against Ryk’s side, and Dakota lowered his head, wrapping his lips around the head of my cock.
The angle was awkward, and I used my magic to give Dakota some invisible support so he wouldn’t hurt himself.
He made an appreciative sound around my length, making me suck in a breath.
Nico started moving as Dakota sucked me down deeper, Nico’s hard thrusts pushing Dakota further into Ryk.
Ryk grabbed my thigh, squeezing tightly as he moaned, and my eyes fell to him, capturing the deliciously debauched picture he made with his red hair spilling over the cream pillows and his freckles standing out against his flushed face.
He peered up at me with bleary blue eyes, and I reached down to cup his face, running my thumb over his plush lower lip.
Ryk sucked my thumb into his mouth, then bit down gently, sending a sharp bolt of pleasure-pain racing through me just as Dakota swallowed me all the way down to the base. I groaned loudly, head thrown back as I tried to will my legs not to give out.
Needing something to hold on to, I slid the fingers of my free hand into Dakota’s hair, tugging at the long strands and making him groan around my length.
“Fuck,” I gasped, my eyes flickering shut only to snap open when Nico grabbed my chin and turned me to him, pulling me into a rough kiss.
The scents and sounds of my mates surrounded me, drowning me in a world of pleasure and touch and love, and I could feel my climax drawing close as Ryk started jerking himself off before Nico pulled my gaze away as he bit down on my lower lip, making me gasp into his mouth and welcome his tongue into mine.
I wasn’t sure which one of us came first. Maybe it was Ryk, or Dakota, but within seconds, we were all falling over the edge one after the other.
I felt disconnected from my body as the pleasure washed over me, and for a few moments, everything was just white noise. My vision was hazy, and my skin felt like it was buzzing; my whole body was electrified.
It took me a few minutes to return to the present, and when I did, I found myself tangled in a mess of limbs, sweat, cum, and soft, gasping breaths.
We stayed like that for a few minutes before one of us used our magic to clean us up, and then we spent a few more minutes just breathing each other in.
“Fuck, I love you guys so much,” Dakota murmured after a while, his palm running up and down my back.
“We love you too,” Ryk answered while Nico and I mumbled our agreement.
I knew Nico would soon begin insisting we get up and eat some dinner, but for now, I was content to lie there in my mates’ arms for as long as possible.