Bo got dressed inside tiaras room, tugging on clothes that felt like his again, before he crawled into the driver's seat of his. The contrast between the inside of his trunk and the cracked leather of his front seat was wild.
he emerged out hatch that connects the trunk to his back seat, the backseat head rest flopped forward giving Bo full view of his cars messy interior.
it was a surreal feeling knowing that the mansion he just came out of was in his trunk.
Bo stared for a second. Then, quietly whispered, "This is insane," then strategically maneuvered through the mess plopping his ass down hard in his driver seat with a loud sigh.
Gold trim. Velvet walls. Soft carpets and polished wood. All packed into a pocket of impossible space. It was ridiculous. Beautiful. And completely real.
This could change the world, Bo thought. If every homeless person had this?
It wasn't just magic it felt like the start of something revolutionary.
But this? This was his space.
that was a depressing thought, all he had let was a car.
after all these years of pulling himself up from the bootstraps to only having a car to calll mine.
phone in hand, Bo subconsciously scrolls through names, thumb hovering over Aaron's name, frozen.
What if he thinks I'm losing it?
What if I am?
He sighed, staring at the screen.
Then
"Call him," a voice said.
Bo turned and nearly jumped.
Noelani was sitting in the passenger seat, legs tucked under her, arms crossed casually as she leaned toward him. No sound, no dramatic entrance just there, like she always had been. Her tone was soft, but her eyes were steady.
"You're thinking too much," she added with a little smirk.
Bo opened his mouth. Closed it.
"How long have you been sitting there?"
"Long enough to know you're spiraling."
He laughed under his breath and finally tapped the screen.
The call started to ring.
It was 9 a.m. and Aaron was already bored.
Emily had left for work in a storm of perfume and perfectly sharpened insults, her heels clacking across the floor as she reminded him-again-that being retired didn't mean being useless.
Aaron disagreed. Loudly. From the couch.
The second the door closed behind her, he leaned back in his recliner like a man clocking into his favorite part of the day: uninterrupted nonsense.
The house was quiet. Too quiet.
He was just about to decide between messing with Emily's thermostat settings or alphabetizing his spice rack when his phone lit up.
Bo.
Aaron's eyebrows shot up.
"Bo?" he muttered, nearly dropping the phone as he swiped to answer.
"Yo!" he said, too loud, already grinning. "You alive?"
There was a pause on the other end. Bo's voice came in low. Cautious. "Hey, man... I know it's early, I didn't mean to bother you or anything-"
"Bother?" Aaron barked a laugh. "Bro, you calling me is the most exciting thing that's happened all week. What's up?"
Bo hesitated. "Can I swing by? I got... company."
Aaron's eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas.
"Hell yeah you can swing by!" he said, already standing, already moving. "Bring whoever. I don't care if it's the pope or a pitbull. I'll get the setup going."
Bo tried to say something else, probably to explain or warn or apologize, but Aaron wasn't having it. He knew that tone. He could hear it through the cracks in Bo's voice.
Something was wrong.
But Aaron didn't push. Not yet. Bo would talk when he was ready.
"See you soon," Aaron said, and hung up without waiting.
He tossed his phone on the couch, cracked his knuckles, and rubbed his hands together like he was gearing up for battle.
"Alright," he said to no one, already heading to the stash drawer. "Weed check. Controller-check. Snacks goddamn it, I knew I forgot something. Whatever. Door's open, Bo. Let's see what you dragged in."
Bo couldn't help but smile, even through the tightness in his chest. Aaron was always there for him. Always had been. That call reminded him of that simple, grounding truth.
But damn... he wished his boy had warned him.
Bo knew Aaron's wife. He knew Emily.
And he knew exactly what kind of firestorm would erupt if she walked into her home and found seven stunning women traipsing through it like they owned the place.
Still, right now? He didn't care.
He needed support. The kind that didn't come with strings, or eyes glowing from desire, or invisible hands trying to pull his soul apart. Just something real.
Maybe here-maybe with Aaron-he could breathe.
He didn't want Aaron to know too much. Didn't want to drag him into this world. These women were beautiful, powerful... and dangerous. And Aaron didn't need that in his life.
Bo pulled up slowly, eyes scanning the driveway like a soldier checking for enemy movement.
No Emily's car.
Good.
If he had seen it, he probably would've driven right past.
He stepped out, nerves high, already feeling a headache pulse behind his eyes. Behind him, the seven women followed. But to their credit, they gave him space. None of them touched him, none whispered, none tempted.
All of them walked behind him.
Except for Sayaa.
Sayaa stayed at his side, silent but present. Her steps matched his.
As they approached the front door, Bo stopped.
He turned to face them, voice low but firm.
"Listen... I need y'all to be on your best behavior in there."
The girls blinked, mildly surprised.
"I'm serious," Bo said, scanning each face. "No flirting. No feeding. No... whatever that thing was you kept doing to me."
A few of them smirked.
He didn't.
"I'm not worried about you in a fight. Honestly, I know you'd win. That's not the issue. But Emily? She doesn't play. And if she walks in and sees you acting like that toward Aaron, she'll blow the fuck up."
Sayaa nodded once, understanding, she rolls her eyes and sneers behind his back.
"And more than anything," Bo added, quieter now, "I don't want my friend's house treated like that. That man's opened his home to me. To us. That means something."
There was a pause then Noelani placed a hand over her heart, mock pouting. "You think so little of us, Bo."
"I think you nearly made me spontaneously combust in a towel," Bo muttered.
Tiara laughed. "Fair."
Elio stepped forward. "We'll behave."
"Good," Bo exhaled, turning back to the door. "Let's not make this a story we all regret."
Before he could even knock, the door swung open.
Aaron stood there with a big-ass grin on his face and then his smile froze.
His eyes drifted past Bo.
Then lower.
Then up.
Behind Bo, Sayaa stood calmly, radiant, her presence subtle but undeniable. Behind her, the six other women stood like a goddess's entourage, each one poised and ethereal in their own right.
Aaron blinked. "Bro..."
Bo smiled weakly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I did say I was bringing company."
Aaron stared for another second, then burst into laughter. "You brought a harem, my guy."
Sayaa raised a single eyebrow, amused but silent.
Bo sighed. "Just let me in before Emily comes home and I become a story y'all tell at my funeral."
Aaron stepped aside instantly. "Get in here. All of you. Hurry up. You're not dying on my front porch at least. I just vacuumed."
The women, full from their morning meal, didn't need to be near Bo to feel connected to him. They were sustained fed, in every sense of their strange, ethereal hunger.
Instead, they were more interested in the house.
It clearly had a woman's touch. Neat. Organized. Real framed pictures. Real plants that hadn't died yet.
It smelled like someone loved it.
When Aaron gestured toward the dining room and told them to "hang tight," a few gave him side-eyes, but most obeyed. Not out of submission—but curiosity. The layout, the energy, the vibe of the home—it all felt foreign to them. Grounded. Normal. So they wandered off, exploring in their own quiet way.
Sayaa and Amaya stayed back for a moment, exchanging glances before silently drifting behind the others. They knew Bo needed this moment.
Aaron, meanwhile, grabbed Bo by the shoulder and dragged him to his roomhis actual room, not the half set up man cave. The moment the door shut behind them, he turned full interrogation mode.
"Okay. Bro. What the hell is going on?"
Bo barely had a chance to breathe before Aaron steamrolled him with questions.
"Why are there like seven? women in my house?" he started, then paused. "Wait hold on they're all beautiful. No, no, ridiculously beautiful. Like... is this some reality TV dating show situation? You're hiding cameras, aren't you?"
Bo sat on the edge of the bed and dropped his head into his hands. "Aaron"
"And where the hell is Alecia?"
That one hit harder.
Aaron, noticing the shift in Bo's posture, dropped the sarcasm just enough.
"You've been with her forever, man. I know things have been rocky, but... damn. She's not gonna take this lightly."
Bo exhaled slowly. "She's gone. Left my nephew JJ."
Aaron blinked. "...JJ?"
Bo just nodded.
Aaron stood there in silence for half a second. Then:
"What a fucking pedo." Aaron says disgusted
Bo chuckled. Just a little. "I needed that."
Aaron cracked a grin and pulled out his stash box. "You need this more."
He rolled expertly two blunts back to back and handed one over without question. The lighter flicked. Smoke filled the air, curling around them like an old friend.
Time passed.
Slowly.
Comfortably.
Bo started talking about the challenge, about the wishes, about the women who weren't really women at all.
Aaron didn't interrupt much this time.
He just listened.
Eyes narrowed. Mouth tight. Letting it all soak in.
And when Bo finally trailed off, the blunt halfway gone and the weight of everything laid bare between them, Aaron leaned back against the headboard.
Aaron was in shock.
Which was saying something, because Aaron was never quiet. But after everything Bo just told him the challenge, the wishes, the women who weren't exactly women he didn't know what to say.
So he didn't.
He stood up, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck. "Yo... let's hit the man spot."
Bo nodded, following his friend down the hall. The tension needed somewhere to go, and if there was one place built for decompressing, it was Aaron's sanctuary.
The man cave was already lit up the TV still playing tekken, controller screensaver dancing across the screen. Two controllers were charged and ready. Blunt smoke still hung in the air from their earlier session like lazy fog.
Aaron pointed to the extra controller. "You're player two."
Bo sat down with a sigh, grabbed the controller, and took the blunt out of Aaron's hand without asking.
Bo finishes off his blunt.
They played.
And after a few rounds and enough silence to almost forget the madness that came before, Aaron finally exhaled and said, "So... these ladies... they're not actually ladies?"
Bo didn't even look up. "Nope."
Aaron paused.
Took another hit.
"Well... you always did have shit luck. But this? This is something else."
He took another hit and exhales.
"Then what the hell ar..."
Before he could finish, the front door slammed open.
SLAM.
Both men froze.
A beat later
"WHAT THE FUCK?"
Bo's eyes widened.
Aaron groaned. "Oh no."
"WHO THE FUCK LET ALL THESE BITCHES IN MY HOUSE?!"
Emily was home.