Page 74 of Love Limits

Will you be warm enough like that?

I will if you’re cuddling me. It was true. Zhong was a furnace when he slept.

I need a shower first. But then I’ll come hold you.

Can I play a game while I wait?

They usually started the crossword puzzle while he showered, but he figured that wouldn’t work right now. Sure. He grabbed the tablet and typed in “games for preschoolers.” Predictably, there were bazillions of them. He scrolled through a couple, then tapped four free ones to download. It was only going to be a few minutes anyway.

He dragged them all to a folder called “Little Ash,” and then showed them where it was. They chose one and started feeding pizza to monsters, at least as far as he could tell. Good. Maybe that would make up for not having Candy Land.

He was almost to the shower when he remembered the pacifier. He wondered if Ash would mind him going through their bag, but he was pretty convinced they wouldn’t. They’d encouraged him to dig through their drawers and cabinets at home. Not to mention that he was their temporary Caregiver for the evening.

It didn’t take long to find the pacifier along with a purple plush squid wearing a punk rock jacket with little patches. Two of the squid’s arms were threaded through the jacket and the others came out the bottom under a sparkly skirt. It was such an Ash object that he laughed aloud. He was certain that they’d sewn the clothing themself. But how come he’d never seen it before?

He wandered back into the bedroom, still chuckling.

Hey, he tapped their shoulder. Who’s this?

Ash held out their hands for it, then tucked it under one arm. They made the sign for OCTOPUS, with the fingertips of one hand on the back of the other hand that slithered around like tentacles. The sign darted upward in little leaps, so maybe that was the sign for SQUID. Zhong had to be honest in saying that he’d never learned a sign for the term. Maybe there wasn’t even an official one, but ASL was full of home signs.

So, essentially, Ash had a squid named Squid.

Did you make Squid’s clothes?

Yep! They beamed.

I thought so. You’re very talented. Do you usually sleep with it?

Only sometimes. When I’m really lonely. They shrugged. The fabric is kind of scratchy.

Well, I hope you’re never lonely here, but you can still sleep with it if you want.

I’m never lonely here, they beamed.

Here’s your pacifier. He slipped it into their mouth, and there it was. That little moment where they closed their eyes and completely relaxed before opening them again to glance down at the game.

Thank you. They reached up like they were going to sign something else, then aborted the motion.

You’re welcome. I’m going to shower now. Back in a few. He dropped a kiss on their head, feeling tender and, honestly, a little proud of himself.

He’d done this, given them a place to let go and relax. They’d trusted him to keep them safe and see to all their needs and he’d done it.

He stood in the doorway for a moment, watching them. They were completely absorbed in the game, fingers flying and body wiggling in glee every time something exciting happened on the screen.

When they looked up and caught him watching, they favored him with a happy grin before returning to their pizza monsters.

They were just so cute snuggled up in his bed.

They looked like they belonged.

Chapter 16

Zhong

Zhong pulled up to Dustin’s house, driving with extra care since he couldn’t see out the back window. Foliage filled the car, interspersed with the wooden trellis that he’d barely managed to squeeze in. On the passenger side, Ash had contorted themself around a nectarine tree, the pot between their feet and the leaves flowing into the back.

Ash had seemed to be back to their usually bubbly self since the night of that age play scene, and Zhong was happy to see it.