It’s Not Easy Making Money In The Apocalypse

Ultimately, after about four hours of work, I had already sold a bowl and seconds to just about everyone in the Rink. The total profits turned out to only be another two hundred large crystals. Such an amount could already be considered an incredible profit, especially given the time. I also only needed to use about 1/3^rd of the food supplies that I would simply trade precooked cans of food. There was no more money to extract from the Rink that night.

A few residents did ask me about buying cans of food under the counter, but I had a contract with the mayor, and I also expected at least some of those requesting supplies might be planted by the mayor to see if I was going to honor our contract. It was Raven who had suggested he might try such a thing, and I quickly realized that the mayor was exactly the kind of guy who would do such a thing. I decided I wasn’t going to take such a risk, as any extra crystals they gave me wouldn’t be worth the deal I made with the mayor falling through.

I had accumulated 1400 large crystals from the Rink in a single night, and it had only cost me perhaps a single grocery trip worth of supplies from my world. It was a small fortune in the wasteland, and so I needed to be discrete with it unless I wanted to get robbed. I didn’t want to be carrying the money around and tempting others, such as the caravan I was traveling with. I didn’t want to suspect Tom, but Raven reminded me I should suspect everyone.

As was, they didn’t know how much money I had made with the mayor, but anyone observant would have an idea of how much I had made in the restaurant. My one saving grace was that I could put the money in my digitizer. No one else could access this storage, even if they killed me, so it was the safest place for my money. More than that, crystals didn’t seem to take up space in the digitizer like other items, so it didn’t take away from my total capacity. I wasn’t sure about the physics of how that worked, but then again, very little in this apocalyptic world truly made sense.

I might have considered doing breakfast too, but I was sure the money I made wouldn’t be as much as the first time, and my returns would only be diminishing the longer the restaurant remained active. I still had thoughts that a restaurant might be worth it for the future, but for the current moment, I had better things to focus on, like the 2600 crystals I still needed. Thankfully, Twin Elms was larger and wealthier than the Rink, and I believed that I could trade what I needed to be able to purchase those slaves. The quicker we got there, the better off we would be. That’s what I thought.

Normally, I would have gotten a room at their inn. However, the inn hadn’t been too impressive the last time I was there, and I didn’t even want to waste the few crystals it would cost to stay the night. Instead, I left the Rink and made camp with Raven and her crew. As I was finding a place to sleep, Raven glanced over at me, and then looked away with a blush.

Why was she acting shy now? She certainly wasn’t acting that way the previous night when she came at me with a knife! I was just getting comfortable when I noticed someone walking toward my sleeping bag. It wasn’t Raven though, but Feather.

“Can I sleep with you?” Feather asked.

My mouth fell open. She just asked it so plainly.

“I-”

“I mean, just sleep under the covers, not with…” Her face flushed.

I glanced over at Raven, but she had found a spot some distance away and her eyes were closed. I still wanted to refuse, but something about the way Feather was holding herself, I couldn’t say no. I gave a small nod and then lifted my blanket. Feather smiled and then moved under my blanket. She did it very naturally, snuggling up to me like this wasn’t her first time doing such a thing.

She pressed her butt up against my lower region, and while it wasn’t enough to trigger any impulses, I wasn’t sure where to put my hands. The only place that wasn’t wrapped around her was at my sides, and it was kind of uncomfortable, but I wasn’t going to grab her. After settling down for a few minutes, I closed my eyes and tried to go to sleep. The two guys were going to take turns watching, although, with the caravan nearby and the protection from the Rink itself, this was a rather safe place to spend a night.

“Daniel… I have a question.” Feather spoke quietly.

I opened one of my eyes. “What is it?”

“Did you sleep with Raven?”

Both eyes opened, but I remained quiet for a second. It wasn’t like I wanted to make it a secret. Katarina already knew about it, and she was the only one in this world that I would have worried about.

“Yes, we did.”

“Oh.” Her voice sounded light, and after another moment of silence, she asked another question. “Is it because you’re attracted to dudes?”

“What?” I just caught myself before I sat up, and earned a harsh look from Hunter, who was currently on watch.

“You thought Raven was a guy when you first met her, yet, after learning she was a girl, you slept with her.”

“I also slept with Katarina.” As soon as I said that, I felt a bit awkward.

It wasn’t like I was trying to brag or something. It just felt odd having such a conversation with someone.

“That’s true… and I’ve seen you looking at Red’s chest too. It is way too big.”

I took a breath. “I am a man, after all.”

“Yet, you ended up sleeping with Raven.”

“It’s not like she left me much of a choice,” I responded sheepishly.

“No, I can see you have feelings for her. You care about her.” Feather cut in.

“What are you getting at?”

“Why haven’t you… slept with me?” Feather asked.

“What? Why would I… I mean…”

“I’m pretty. I’m willing. Is it because I’m used goods?”

“You’re not used…”

 “Raven kept her virginity, and so did Katarina. Meanwhile, I’ve been with more men than I could even count. Is that why?”

“Kiera was with other men too.”

“Have you slept with Kiera?”

I winced. “No…”

“I see…”

I didn’t know what had brought this all on, but the way she was talking made me feel a bit sad. I had only just started to work out my feelings for Raven, and that seemed to have set Feather off. Between the two, Feather was far prettier. She had a girly appearance and looked soft and delicate. It was also this appearance that led to her being abused so much in the wasteland.

She had slept with a lot of men, but a good deal of them had been against her will. I didn’t have sex with her because I didn’t feel right pushing that on her after what she had been through. However, those were principles from my world, and I knew she wouldn’t understand them. After a few minutes of thinking, I came up with a different response instead.

“Feather, I haven’t slept with you because we don’t have that kind of relationship. It is as simple as that. I care about you and see you as a friend, but it’s not your body that I want. Rather, I don’t want anyone’s body. I’m not swayed by looks. I know a lot of beautiful women, so looks aren’t as important to me.”

Feather slowly turned around until her body was facing me. I could see her eyes shining wetly, although she wasn’t shedding a tear. She smiled at me gently.

“Daniel, it’s exactly because you don’t want my body that it’s completely yours.”

“Feather…”

“Shh.” She lifted and touched my lips with her finger. “I just wanted to tell you that I’m already yours. Anytime, anywhere, anyhow… just say it, and I’ll be yours for as long as you want, and then you can throw me away when you’re done with me.”

“I would never throw you away!” I didn’t realize I had reached out and grabbed her shoulders until her eyes widened in shock.

That’s when I remembered how I had been treating Raven just a few days prior. I had been pressuring her to leave with her group, saying things like I didn’t need them anymore and it would probably be better if they left. It looked like Raven wasn’t the only girl I had upset with such words. I also realized that I hadn’t meant them.

Looking at Feather with her small, delicate face, she was pretty. She wasn’t a knockout like Katarina, but she was appealing. I started to lean toward her, our lips seemingly becoming magnetized to each other. At that moment, a form flopped right between us, forcing the two of us apart.

“What the heck are you doing?” I cried out, looking up at Raven.

“I’m not comfortable. I’m finding a more comfortable spot.” She responded coldly.

“And that spot is right between me a Feather?”

“And what if it is?” She demanded.

“You’re annoying!” I snapped.

“Shut up! If you want a girl to snuggle with, just put your arms around me.

“I’m afraid I’ll get tetanus if I touch you.”

“What did you say? Did you want to get cut?”

A giggling noise from Feather broke both of us out of our struggle, and we looked over to see Feather had already gotten up and was standing. She stretched herself out, her body on full display in the moonlight.

“I think I’ll find a new spot for tonight.” She spoke to no one in particular before her eyes fell on me. “But, just remember, my offer always stands.”

She winked at me before turning and walking away. Raven grabbed my collar.

“What offer?” She glared.

“N-nothing!” There was no way I’d tell her the truth.

“Y-you! Who permitted you to play with other girls?

“Katarina?”

She blinked. “Well, that’s not good enough. You need my permission too! If your needs aren’t being met, then I’ll meet them!”

She grabbed my pants and started trying to pull them out. “H-hey! What the hell are you doing?”

“I’m taking care of it, bastard.”

“It doesn’t need to be taken care of! Stop!”

As Feather walked by the seat Hunter was propped up at, he spoke quietly. “They’re so noisy.”

Feather looked back at the two struggling figures, and then over at Hunter, and grinned. “Yeah, but’s a good kind of noisy. It’s… life.”

She found a spot and lay down, meanwhile; Hunter ignored the struggling sheets until things finally calmed down. I had to sleep with my thing clutched in Raven’s hand as she slept, like she was claiming no one else could have it. I got better sleep than I expected.