A/N: TW: Eating disorders 💔

Steven and Jacob noticed it around the same time, but it took the others a bit longer.

Steven scooped Connie into his arms and she squealed, threading her fingers into his hair. Unfortunately he couldn't enjoy the sensation; something was... wrong.

He furrowed his brows and set her down again, then lifted her. "Huh."

Her eyes went wide and worried. "What's wrong? Am I gaining weight?" She lifted her shirt to stare at her stomach and Steven tipped her head up to stare her down with a bit of menace.

"No," He rumbled suspiciously. "You're getting lighter."

Connie laughed and swatted his hand away. "Sorry! I've been doing ab workouts and got excited but I guess nothing for now."

His worry almost completely melted away. "Just... don't overdo it."

She smiled and booped his nose. "I'm the responsible one, remember?"

Meanwhile, Jacob shouldered into the bathroom and found Jasmin throwing up again. "I'm taking you to a doctor."

She groaned and shook her head. "Not necessary. I ate something bad I think. I'm not sure that chicken parmesan was good anymore."

Shit. He couldn't remember what she'd had for lunch, but he leaned against the door and crossed his arms sternly. "Jasmin Imani Olfax, you've been getting sick a lot lately. You need to tell me what's going on."

"Nothing!" She exclaimed in irritation. "Jesus, I know you're all about your empath energy reading but please listen to me just this once: I'm fine."

Jacob let out a long breath and then another sigh. "Okay. I'll make you something to eat. Brisket mac and cheese." He heard her stomach grumble at the mention and a small smile lifted his features as she groaned how good that sounded. "Say no more, it's done."

When he went into the kitchen, Steven was rifling through the fridge on a mission. "Ey up?"

"I'm looking for salads with Connie's name on them," He muttered distractedly. "I don't think she's been eating much lately."

Jacob quirked a brow. "Really?" He asked slowly. "Hasn't she been eating dinner with us?"

He nodded weakly. "I'm being paranoid." The fridge slammed shut and he caught the beer on top of it before sliding down it. "I can feel something is wrong but I don't know what."

"Me too." Steven met his eye and they shared a tense moment of worry. "Something's up with Jasmin."

His eyes widened. "What do you mean? Is she okay?"

He nodded hesitantly. "She's been getting sick a lot during the day."

He grinned. "Think you finally knocked her up?"

The very idea gave him butterflies and a heady blush. "I guess I hadn't thought of that because of birth control."

"It can fail," He pointed out quickly. "Trust me when I say that, it happened to some of my friends a long time ago."

Jacob chuckled and pulled out his phone. "I have a man question to ask you." Steven nodded and Jacob showed him a spreadsheet. "Is it obsessive behavior and overbearing for me to start a spread sheet of every time she throws up?"

Steven considered that with a face that said yes, but he couldn't seem to stick with that. "I mean... how else are you going to provide evidence?"

They shook their heads immediately and dropped it. No way could they impose on their partners life like that, especially if something was just going around. It could easily be chalked up to anything else, and Jacob could admit maybe he was over exaggerating in his head how long Jasmin had been sick.

The next day, Adam walked into the commons to see Jasmin and surged toward her for a kiss. "Hello, Jazzy." His hands went to hold her hips and he frowned. "Are you getting shorter?" He had to lean out of the way of the incoming swat, and then say what he actually meant. "Are you losing weight, sweetie? You seem a little smaller than normal."

Her excited shriek nearly shattered his ear drums as she gave him a full spin. "Really? You think so?"

A dark expression replaced his blank one. "That's a lot of energy over a tiny question, Jasmin."

Her arms dropped and she gave him a wry smile. "You know how much body dysphoria I have. I hate being fat and you just made me happy because no one has ever asked that before."

Adam wanted to refute that. Every alarm bell system in his body from goosebumps to his vegas nerve pulsing said that she had just lied to him. "Jasmin." He placed a hand on her arm and tried to force himself to speak but...

He had no right to when it came to her dysphoria. As a trans man he just could not fathom calling someone a liar over that. He sighed. "Nothing. You look beautiful."

Another four weeks passed and Steven bounded into the kitchen. "Guys, the aurora borealis are going to be out tonight! Can we pretty please have a star gazing night?"

He poked out his lip and they sighed with big smiles.

Anna jumped up to flounce into Steven's arms. "Up."

They hybrid grinned and lifted her as she yawned big. "Uh oh, someone needs a nap," He teased kissing over her forehead. "Do you need to be put down, babygirl?"

She nodded and rubbed her eyes with a pout. "Yes, Daddy." Adam started to get up but she clung to Steven. "I want Steven to do it, you put me down twice yesterday and I'm mad at you."

Adam scoffed as a few giggles broke out and glared at Steven's cocky sway as if he were holding the purest of gold. He was. "Fine, then. See who sings you ni-night songs tonight." He did give her a grinning kiss through.

Hazel whined, "Wait, why am I being punished?!"

"We're a team," He answered with a laugh. "Sweet dreams, baby."

They all wished her sweet dreams and Anna waved.

As soon as they got into her nursery she leaned back. "Okay, real talk: is something wrong with Connie?" Her blue eyes were dark with worry, her anxiety instantly reanimated his.

"Why?" He asked cautiously. "She seems okay if not a bit sleepy lately."

She pursed her lips. "Come on, Steven. You're a really bad liar."

He gave her the stink eye but eventually sighed. "Yeah. She's acting weird. I thought maybe something was up but she's just working out more lately."

Anna made a face. "What? No, she isn't. I haven't seen her in the basement and I've been home almost all month."

"Anything else?" Hundreds of emotions had his eyes turning pink, but he wasn't more angry than he was extremely concerned.

He could tell Anna was hesitating to speak any further on the subject, she had a very serious thing for not snitching. "She's been hanging out with Jasmin more. I heard them talking about feeling gross lately."

Steven's fingers twitched. "She's lying to me."

He set her down and brought Jacob up, claiming with a perfectly masked smile that she was getting rowdy. "Tell us more, Anna."

Her lips pressed together in a tight line. "No. I don't snitch, Steven. I never snitch."

Steven clasped hands with Jacob and they fused into Jaden staring at her hard. "Alrighty then, Anna. We can play this game but you're not going to like it."

"I don't snitch, Jaden," She repeated firmly. "It's just not how I was raised."

A bonfire of interest appeared at that but he cleared his throat. "Anna, if you don't snitch, they could start having health problems Steven can't heal. Eating disorders are serious, and if Steven and Jacob can't gain enough courage or evidence to confront them, it is a possibility that they could die."

"I don't—,"

"You're going to," Adam snapped viciously. He'd come up when he sensed more lying. "Little girl, I don't give a damn about how you were raised. If their health is less important to you than ambiguous morals, you may as well just give their ring back."

She looked like he had slapped her across the face, but he was unmovable. "That was so unnecessary."

"I know how much you love them," Adam assured her with an ache. "But we love them too, and if there's something wrong that you know more about you have to tell someone." He picked her up out of her bed and rocked her. "Or at least tell us if there's nothing to worry about. I lost a family member from anorexia nervosa when I was sixteen. They were one of the only highlights in my life."

Anna watched him blink tears out of his eyes as he revealed yet another horrible thing he'd gone through only when it was important to get a point across. She wished he would have added that to his origin story, or at least told her and Hazel in private but Adam was just a private man. If it wasn't exactly what he was talking about he kept his secrets tucked close to him.

Her eyes drifted to Jaden, who now had fingers pinching the bridge of his nose while he choked up and fought off terrified sobs.

She had to tell them. No matter the fear instilled upon her over snitching, no matter how many horrific things that would send the truly kind boyfriends she had into a killing massacre that had happened to her just over tattling, she had to come clean. If not for anyone else, for herself because she needed her girlfriends so badly. They were her best friends and confidants, and she could never lose them even if this was risking their connection. "Okay."

*

The day Jasmin passed out was the last straw for all of them.

She and Connie went out but didn't say where they were going, and Jacob called up River and Rebecca while Steven got Greg and Karla. They'd sworn their silence that Anna had told, and all were emotional messes.

Hazel crossed his arms tight and stared at the circle of chairs. "I'm angry."

"Me too," Alex muttered. "The stupid bitch is gonna kill herself."

Jacob nearly snapped at him but Steven put a pink hand on his shoulder and he relaxed again. "Thank you for coming, Mom and Dad. I didn't know who else to call."

Rebecca squeezed his hand. "We're more than happy to help. I'm so sorry."

"She's not dead yet," Jacob seethed at the floor. "God I'm so fucking pissed I could
just— just..."

"Explode," Steven finished tensely. "Same. I kind of had my absolute limit with being lied to at like, 13. I'm 27 now."

Karla smiled wanly at him. "Remember boys, that being a girl is very, very hard. The societal beauty standards and pressure are hard, especially on BIPOC women."

Greg linked his hand with hers but said nothing much to add on. It was not off brand at all, but he nodded at Steven. "Listen to your stepmother, Steven."

"Don't call her that," Steven sighed as he slunk down onto the floor. "Let's skip that stage please. Just call her my mother and be done with it. I like it that way."

Karla turned to Greg. "This is why you didn't get to come berry picking. It was a Mommy and Son trip."

Adam perked up and stared at the stairs as he bounced Anna on his knee. She was still pissed at him, but they were at a stalemate.

Anna told him he had no right to tell her she should give her ring back or insinuate she didn't love her partners. The backtracking made her madder.

Adam simply told her she was mad only because he was right. If she didn't love them enough to save them, and clearly she did because she had, then what was the point?

Anna was yelling and so upset she was practically filling the room in tears; Adam was so cool and collected he practically dropped the rooms temperature. They were a Ruby and Lapis if there was ever one.

Hazel called off the fight harshly and scolded both of them. He hated doing that and then he'd cried, so they dropped the subject.

"Here they are," Adam announced. "The car just pulled up."

Jacob started to feel nauseous and leaned on Steven for support. "I hate this."

Steven sniffled and Jaden took their place. "Me too."

Connie and Jasmin bounded downstairs, enticed by Anna's lie that they were smoking and snuggling.

They trampled down the stairs normally, but Connie giggled. "Whoops. Lightheaded."

Jaden flexed his hands as he stared at the floor. "Fuckall, I'm gonna lose it."

When they rounded the corner, they froze.

All eyes on them had them looking nervous and confused. Jaden turned to look at them next, and his distraught was so evident Jasmin started to look scared. "Who died?"

Before Jaden could stop himself he murmured, "Honesty. Sit down, wives."

Connie smiled. "You fused."

"Sit down, Divine," He repeated monotonously. "We won't take up too much of your time."

As soon as they sat together they grew suspicious looks. Jasmin swiveled to look at Rebecca and River, then Greg and Karla. "If this is what I think it is, I swear to fucking god."

Connie turned to glare at Jaden. "The amount of cowardice and disrespect to invite people outside of the polycule is downright callous."

"Get off your high horse, Connie."

Jaden sighed in relief. "Took the words right out of my mouth, Jeanne. How do you do?"

He stood to shake her hand and gestured her to her seat and as she passed Adam, she grinned. "Nice to see you again, Adam."

He still hated the ever loving fuck out of her, but then it got to be funny just how much he loathed her. A tiny smirk appeared. "Jeanne."

Once sitting, Jeanne returned her attention back to a scorned Connie. "Do you want to tell us what's going on? Or do you want me to start guessing?"

Connie opened her mouth to reply but only muttered, "They couldn't even be bothered to do separate interventions."

Jasmin just got up. "Nope. That's enough for me, kay thanks."

She got to the stairs but Alex cut her off coming down them. "Sit the fuck down or so help me God, Jasmin. I am so fucking mad at you you're lucky I'll even look at you."

"Get out of my way, Alex."

"You've been binging and purging like at Nova when I caught you, don't think you're still strong enough to push me out of your way, you fucking liar," He growled, pointing to her chair. "Sit down!"

He followed her back and sighed. "Oh, Jeanne's here. I'd like to point out that I am 6% nicer than that on any given day."

Jeanne patted his knee. "You're upset because you care. Do you know how much they care, Connie and Jasmin?"

Connie glared at the floor as she tried not to cry. "I'm not really feeling it right now."

Jaden unfused violently and Steven stood and took a deep breath. "The audacity to say that when I would do terrible things to keep her happy is too much for me to handle," He told Jeanne before regarding everyone else but Connie. "When my brave and honest wife comes back, I'll be back."

He almost very literally stormed out and Greg squeezed Karla's arm. "You can go. I'll stay here." They kissed and Karla went after him quickly before Greg turned to Connie. "So, what group of idiots told you guys you weren't good enough?"

Jasmin shuffled and avoided everyone's eyes. "It wasn't too terrible. Just some guys on the boardwalk."

"Men are terrible and most of their opinions should be taken with a grain of salt if not at all," Greg chuckled as he adjusted his seating. This wasn't his recliner, that was for sure. "Besides, what about your husbands? What do they think?"

Connie dropped her head into her hands. "I don't know why I did it."

"You're lying," Hazel and Adam said at the same time.

She growled and pulled at her hair. "I just don't compare. Allison's back."

Anna leaned forward. "Again?!"

Alex scoffed and dug out his phone. "She is actually obsessed with us."

River raised his hand. "And whom might this Allison be?"

"She hurt my Steven and I hate her. But she's famous." Connie wiped at her face but declined the tissues Adam offered. "She hurt him a lot and now she won't leave us alone. Ever since I knocked her lights out she's been planning something. She had her little interview come out about it a month or so ago and she called me a weak, dumpy little brat. She called me dumpy like seventeen times in the entire video. It just kept triggering me."

Jeanne frowned. "Why would you watch the interview?"

Jasmin winced. "I didn't know she said all that when I mentioned I got a notification..."

Jacob finally spoke up. "I think so highly of you both. And now I'm so disappointed." He nodded to Jeanne and she extended the spreadsheet to Jasmin. "You've thrown up 97 times this month."

Her lip trembled and she cleared her throat. "This is—,"

"Stop," Jacob demanded. "Take accountability."

"I didn't even know anything was wrong with Connie," She protested loudly. "This is ridiculous, she's right about this being a joint thing. It feels like being attacked."

"These are all of the people that love or care about you the most," Hazel pointed out sadly. "What's the point of me believing that you love us if you're willing to hurt yourself?"

Jasmin simpered. "It's not like it's self harm."

Jacob looked at her, fury painted across his face. "You're not a stupid girl, Jasmin. You know plenty well that not only is it hurting yourself on purpose, it's officially listed under self harm. Bulimia has a significant chance of tearing your esophagus and becoming a life threatening emergency. You could get cancer really fast with purging that much." He stopped himself and pulled in a shaky breath. "I miss seeing you roses for me, but you're starving so badly it made you faint on me today and it broke my heart."

She tried to protest but started to look like her walls were coming down. Her eyes filled with tears. "I'm sorry."

Jacob just silently cried and shook his head. "I can't forgive you until you stop. I don't trust that you're telling me the truth anymore."

Connie frowned. "That feels harsh."

Karla came back at that moment with an exhausted and heartbroken looking Steven and he shook his head at her. "So is the mortality rate for anorexia-nervosa."

"I feel fine," She whispered. "I really do."

"Please, don't lie to me again," He begged hoarsely. "I can't take it. You're so thin lately, you're spacey and weak and you tremble all the damn time. Your... your hair is thinning out. I've seen the shower and the brushes..." Steven looked into her soul for a very long time, then sighed. "I wish I would've noticed like I did in college. I had trusted that you would express I was failing you in making you feel beautiful."

"That's not it!" She lowered her voice and rested her elbows on her knees, seemingly out of breath. "It's not that. I saw a damn interview of Allison's and she called me dumpy so many times it may as well be my name. I'm a woman with a lot of insecurity, especially when I have to live up to what you give me. And then there's how much I'm giving the polycule... maybe I felt like I wasn't amounting to enough. I don't know."

"Connie, who said you weren't giving enough?" Jeanne asked patiently, crossing her legs. "Steven is not failing you despite what he thinks, because you happened to have married a man who would die every kind of death just to kiss your cheek." The parents chuckled and a few of them did too. That was extremely true. "He's crazy about you." She turned her eyes to Jasmin. "And you. I cannot think of a single couple who has ever come to me in the midst of a nasty fight to ask for therapy while holding hands. And not so young. You have worked very hard, but Jacob has broken every emotional bone he has to keep you. There is not a man that I have met in my 32 years of being a psychotherapist in all fields that has ever, ever been willing to put himself through the kind of EMDR therapy that Jacob has for you."

Hazel smiled sadly at her, even though he was crying. "Guys don't do that Jazz. You got a man tearing himself apart over you losing a single half a pound, much less 30 in a month." His eyes dropped to her body and he choked up. "My sister lost 30 pounds and the doctors told us she was lucky to be alive."

"Bet she wasn't fat."

Hazel pulled out his phone and scrolled to the folder he tried not to ever look at. "Her picture before all the symptoms started,"

He showed a chubby eight year old with a big smile and her hair in pigtails. The picture dripped sass and charm, Jasmin couldn't help but smile.

"And just before she died in my arms." Hazel choked on a sob and turned away. The girl was so dangerously thin, she was pale and waxy. Her eyes were shut, like she hadn't been awake in eons. "And now my girlfriends are voluntarily risking cancer and my feelings are so fucked up and hurt. I know it's selfish but how could you possibly risk putting me through that again?"

Connie started staring at Anna, she couldn't stand when Hazel cried. Especially when he was right and she was wrong and she hated being wrong and making people cry. Not angrily she stared, but rather curiously through her crying because she hadn't spoken much yet. She was leaned into Adam's neck sobbing quietly and squeezing his hand. She couldn't bear to see Adam's disappointment, she hated when he made that face at her.

But nothing was worse than the way her Steven was watching her. For the first time since they got married, she thought about the time he'd been kidnapped to space. She was so devastated he would essentially give himself up for execution, that he would willingly leave her behind for some imaginary greater good. She flipped the script and her refusal to accept that this could hurt him so badly shattered.

He looked terrified. She could tell he was memorizing everything about her in case he had to watch her slowly kill herself.

Like he'd read her mind, he spoke. "Do you know how quickly it would kill any good left in me if you killed yourself, Connie De Mayo-Maheswaren?"

She nodded her head. "I can imagine."

"You're five times more likely to die now," He forced himself to say. "And your chances of an anorexia fueled suicide is 20-40%. And..." He swallowed but he was already too far gone tears wise. "And if I walked in... to find my other half dead by her own hands..."

There was nothing else he could say.

"These men love you like I love my Rebecca, Connie and Jasmin," River said gently. "I'd sooner be tortured beyond my comprehension than lose my wife, and it would break me to know it was suicide."

Adam wiped the tears away from his face as something to do, he knew more would take their place. "I don't think I could handle a suicide. I really don't. It's not fair or just to expect me to be honest about my mental health and not attempt on my life if you get to. And I know that sounds selfish but—," He had to pause to cry a little and shook his head. "I couldn't go to two funerals in one week, let alone one. Please, let me return the favor. Let us save your lives this time."

It was a very difficult fix.

Jacob sobbed in Jasmin's arms when he set her on the scale and she'd hit 174 from her normal 210. He wailed and buried his face in warmth she was lacking a lot of now. It broke his heart over and over. "Oh God, how could you do this to yourself?! It had been going on for longer than I've even known, hadn't it? I should have pushed harder!" His voice was raw, she could tell his throat hurt from crying so violently. Jacob was losing his voice altogether. "I'm so sorry."

Jasmin's lip wobbled and she pulled his head up. She hated seeing so many tears in his eyes and how red they were. "You're acting like you've lost me. You're... you're acting like you're talking to a ghost and it's scaring me."

He broke down again. "It's almost like I am," He cried, wanting to hug her tighter but afraid of all the bones that might be so much weaker now. "What if you've ruined your chances for fertility? I was so excited to father her children! That's how I would've known we really made it!"

"Who's her?" Jasmin whispered.

"My wife. I miss my wife so much, and you are not her right now."

Jasmin's feelings had never been so hurt and she had never been so shocked.

Jacob was more hurt over her body getting skinnier when push came to shove. She'd known he loved her body but when you love someone you overlook their imperfections.

Apparently, to Jacob her body the way it had been was not one of them.

When Jacob dragged her downstairs for dinner, they found Steven observing Connie's ribs in the kitchen with pink fingers. "How can I show you how perfect you are? How do I get my Connie back?"

She sniffled and tried to grab his hands but he was so afraid of hurting her with a squeeze he pulled away. "I'll eat whatever you want me to, Steven. I want you to stop talking about me like that. I'm still here."

He scoffed rather childishly and glanced behind him, then did a double take. Jacob dropped Jasmin's hand and they met to hug it out. Their connection had strengthened intensely over this, they were cuddling more and seemed to have formed a food alliance.

They were fighting for their women's lives with everything they had, and they'd encouraged Hazel and Adam to watch Anna. Adam nodded. "She's officially got Dysthymia. She's eating... just less. The whole things ruined her appetite and she's sleeping all the damn time."

Hazel pulled him close. "She won't talk to us about it. This is terrible."

"I'm exhausted," The four men groaned.

But they pushed anyways and kept going.

Steven would sometimes stare at Connie like she was a stranger about to get into his bed. She sat nervously and he reached for her. Her arms lifted and she hated the way he was so gentle, like she was breakable. "You're still getting skinnier." He laid her down and kissed over every rib that never used to be visible but now could be seen a bit. "I wish I wasn't so fucking powerless."

She tried to kiss him but he shrugged her off and grabbed at his gem. "Steven, please—,"

"Stop it," He snapped through his tears. "You were so perfect, my perfect wife was beautiful whether she was 145 lbs or 1450 and you took her away and you lied to me again and again and again!" He started to corrupt quickly and violently, he cried out but it was only a roar. "Ugh, I need to go see the Diamonds."

That's how she knew he was upset because there was just no way he was doing that. He was going to go into the woods and cry as loudly as he wanted to through his rampage.

As she cried alone in their bed, she supposed he and Jacob were having a mental breakdown of sorts.

Being the cause made her nauseous.

When Jasmin gained back five pounds, Jacob cried. When she gained back 12, he cried so hard he'd nearly made himself sick. "Look at you," He'd sobbed with a smile as he hugged her tight. "I don't have to worry about breaking you."

Jasmin tried to speak but she couldn't get a word in edgewise. "Look at how beautiful you are," He groaned as he stood her in front of their mirror. His hand snaked around her neck and squeezed just enough to let her know he was there. "Your beauty is ridiculous. Come cuddle with me."

"It sounds like you wanna do more than that," She sulked with a smile. "What? Are you attracted to me again?"

An eyebrow lifted but he said nothing.

Jasmin was seeing a new side of this man: he just liked his women thick and he loved his perfectly thick wife. He loved her body, and he even wrote a song with the other boys about it.

Shape Of You became a hit single the evening they released it in honor of dysphoria and eating disorders. Millions of questions were asked, none were answered.

Steven steadily watched the fire seep back into his Connie after a depressive spell of their own. He hurt when she did and vice versa, it became a vicious cycle but Steven took care of her and every night before bed he would liter her with healing kisses that sparkled, but could not heal things like eating disorders away. Her muscle was lagging behind but her curves were more Connie, and he worshipped her day and night.

Hazel insisted they get checked out by doctors, and then screened for cancer. He was shaky and quiet until results came back clean. He held them both and cried, telling them they'd be doing it again in six months exactly.

Adam took up cooking on a level that made it borderline obsessive, the man cooked almost every hour of the day until their fridge and freezer were packed. He made them high calorie meals with a bunch of health food to replenish vitamins and weight. He spent any time that wasn't taking care of everyone hurting looking up meal tips and joining reddit for support groups geared toward people cooking for people with eating disorders. No one was surprised when he laid down on the kitchen floor to sleep after four weeks of little sleep and Jacob and Steven had to take over.

Hazel, Jacob and Steven made meals while the girls tended to Adam. He'd exhausted himself to the point he was nearly impossible to wake up nowadays and paler than usual, but having something to do helped the distract the girls enough while their weight settled to normal again.

After another night of no sleep, Adam popped his eyes open with an anxious gasp and watched the ceiling with moving eyes for so long Jasmin just had to look up. There was nothing there. Chills raced through her as she silently brought attention to it to Connie.

She moved his face to look at her and her eyebrows creased with concern. "Adam," She asked in a quiet, gentle voice. "Are you hallucinating?"

He nodded hesitantly. "If the angels take you away I'll never stop crying."

Hazel crossed over to kiss his forehead and rub his thumb over his forehead and the bridge of his nose. His eyes shut and stayed shut. "He's been not sleeping at all. We're 64 hours in this week."

Anna kissed his nose. "It's okay, Daddy. They won't ever do it again."

Adam smiled in his sleep.

One day Steven woke up and Connie was staring in the mirror naked as the day she was born with a smirk. "I'm not seeing it cause of mental health, but if you like it so much I guess there's nothing I can do."

Steven scrambled out of bed to look over every inch of her and he groaned, "Fuck, you look like my Connie again. So perfect and pretty." He lifted her into her into his arms and pressed her against the wall. "Sex drive restored."

She gasped as he bit down on the juncture of her shoulder. "Punishment fuck?"

"Worship," He murmured against her, feeling the rise and fall of healthy skin with a healthy glow. "I just wanna worship. I'm sorry I've been a nutcase lately. Jacob's sorry too."

He then took her onto their balcony and let her ride him until her legs gave out, so he could see everything.

As soon as Jasmin was better, Alex started to cry. He hugged her and kissed her forehead and said if she ever started up again, he'd just kill her. "I'd do it with a knife," He sniffled, rocking her back and forth and giggling. "I'd just murder you in the kitchen and then myself cause Jacob would make my death last."

Jasmin was shell shocked and horrified... and happy. She wrapped her arms around Alex and sighed. "I love you, too, Alex."

"I never said that," He mumbled quickly. "I was talking about how I'm going to kill you."

She melted into the hug more, oblivious to Jacob leaned against the kitchen counter watching with a huge smile and tears streaming down his face.