Chapter 36
Peony
“I feel weird.”
The statement, so randomly and suddenly pulled from Peony's mouth, made the girls all turn to her with confused expressions.
She was getting ready for her date with Atem.
Their first date, technically, despite the fact that they were already exclusive and sexually active.
Very active, she thought of last night and how eager Atem always was to return the favor after she gave him a blowjob.
His recovery time was amazing and there was something incredible about falling asleep with him still inside her.
But today, after he left early to finish his tasks as planet leader, she had become restless.
And she didn't even know why. She paced up and down the room.
She tried to sit but couldn't get comfortable.
When it came time to meet with the girls to help her get dressed – as was the right of best friends when it came time for date prep, especially first date – she had nearly run to their room.
But even being around them, she still didn't feel right.
She couldn't point out anything that was wrong.
She wasn't in pain, she wasn't nauseated, she wasn't even gassy.
She had a great breakfast, her clothes were super comfy since she hadn't changed yet, and she was surrounded by her best friends in what would normally be fun hours of giggling, preparations, and girl talk.
But she couldn't enjoy any of it because she just felt off.
“Weird how?” Scarlet asked, looking at her from where she sat on the bed.
They had gathered in Hattie's room, since she was the one who had the best selection of makeup and jewelry. Hattie's room was also super plush and comfortable.
But Peony just couldn't relax.
“I don't know.” She grimaced, shifting on her chair. “Like, off balance? I guess? Or maybe, like that weird feeling you get when you go in a familiar room and something is different, but you just can't place it. You know, that feeling?
“Maybe you're nervous?” Holly laughed, braiding her hair back. “It is your first date.”
“I've had his dick in my mouth. What do I have to be nervous about?”
“TMI,” Scarlet said, rolling her eyes with a grin.
“Wait,” Hattie turned from the makeup she was picking to match Peony's chosen dress. “I definitely did not get TMI. I want to know more.”
“Interrogate her on alien dick another time. Like, when you actually work up the ability to talk to Tuvo without giggling,” Scarlet said making Hattie blush and stick her tongue out at her.
“I'm with Scarlet,” Holly laughed. “I'm taking a less-is-more approach to the alien dick situation.”
“You guys really don't know what you're missing,” Peony grinned.
“But I want to,” Hattie moaned pitifully. “What if-”
“No,” Scarlet and Holly cut her off at the same time.
She pouted as Alanna laughed.
“Don't be nervous,” she said from where she was sitting in a chair near Peony. She wasn't helping in the dressing process, but she was providing great moral support. “You're going to have a great time. The domini take romance very seriously. There's three whole chapters on it in the Omoni Otorsi.”
“Anything I should be concerned about?”
Alanna hummed thoughtfully. “Not that I can think of. It's mostly got old fashioned kind of rules.”
“Old fashioned how?”
“Think traditional gender roles? It just keeps saying that a male is responsible for his female and caring for her, etc, etc. Well, it doesn’t say ‘male’ or ‘female’, it says ‘domin’ and ‘adassi’, but that’s kind of how I’ve translated it.
Even though, technically, I think the terms are gender neutral. ”
“Wonderful,” Scarlet grumbled sarcastically, rolling her eyes.
Alanna smiled at her. “I haven't really done much more than give those chapters a cursory glance though. I can look closer if you like, Peony.”
After thinking about it for a second, Peony shook her head. “No. I think I want to feel my way a bit. As long as there's not something big I should be aware of, I'm kind of enjoying just exploring what Atem and I have. We communicate really well.”
“Aw,” Holly and Hattie smiled at the same time making her laugh.
Scarlet hummed thoughtfully. “There doesn't seem to be much in the way of gender roles when it comes to working or equality. At least, I hope not. I haven't seen any yet.”
Peony smiled at her in the mirror. She wasn't concerned about it, but Scarlet seemed worried. As she was trying to get a job and earn her own way, she could understand why.
“All right. Done over here!” Holly declared, smacking her hands together like she was cleaning them of dust. As she stepped back, Hattie was getting to work, applying the soft paints to Peony's face.
The makeup the domini used weren't powders like she was used to.
They almost seemed more like actual paint.
There wasn't foundation or blush or highlighter – nothing subtle like that.
Instead, Hattie was able to apply bright colors to her eyes, paint designs on her temples, and make her lips pop with a bright pink.
The makeup could only be removed with the right solvent.
The paints were designed not to interact with the camouflage to make it safe to wear, but they weren't that popular for daily wear and were only used for special occasions.
It looked more like war paint than make up, but it kind of worked.
When Hattie finished, Scarlet helped her dress.
She had chosen one of her new polka dot dresses.
It was dark blue with hundreds of white dots that began around her waist, increasing in frequency, until they were a solid band of white around the hem that fluttered just below her knees.
The rounded, strapless bodice was partially covered by a short, sheer cape that fluttered around her upper arms, sparkling like starlight.
Dark sandals, dotted with rough, white crystals, tied around her ankles.
They didn't have heels here which Peony both loved and regretted.
While it was great not to walk around on uncomfortable stilts because it was expected, she had to admit that heels made her butt look really good.
Still, when she was finished and stood in front of the large mirror in the corner of the room, twisting to see herself from all angles, she felt beautiful. Just alien enough to be different, but there was certainly a human touch to her style that the domini didn't have.
“My baby is growing up so fast,” Hattie declared, patting at her dry eyes dramatically, making Holly laugh as she clapped for her.
“You're beautiful,” Scarlet promised, fixing a crystal and silver hairpin in her braid crown. “Still feeling nervous?”
Peony shook her head, beaming. It was a lie. That strange, off-kilter feeling remained, but it was easy to ignore in the face of how good she looked thanks to her friends and how excited she was for Atem to be picking her up.
By the time Temnavi appeared, telling her that Atem had asked him to bring her down to the hover platform, the feeling was nearly forgotten.