Star Hedonist-Chapter 26: Conflicting Feelings

Sweet.

Soft.

Small.

Nyx's lips are very different from Clara's, and Noct enjoys such differences as he kisses her.

He still doesn't know how he feels about the mysterious woman, but he likes her—and he likes kissing her.

She seems to like it too, but unlike Clara, who quickly starts letting out soft little moans, Nyx is quiet.

Her lips begin to follow his rhythm, but in a slower, more cautious way.

Almost like she's exploring his mouth, studying his kiss. Noct finds that amusing in a way.

He opens his eyes and sees that hers are wide open.

Nyx looks surprised, confused... and maybe even a little... upset?

Noct gets confused and breaks the kiss, putting a few centimeters of space between their faces to give her an inquisitive look.

"Angry?" He can't form the full phrase yet.

Nyx stares at him, her lips parted and her gaze distant.

Many different emotions flash through her eyes as she glances at his mouth.

Nyx can't say anything—she's in shock.

Noct's magical energy is coursing through her veins, making her feel it through her entire body—which feels like it's throwing a party.

So much power.

Nyx remembers the words Clara used to describe that energy:

A fucking divine addictive drug.

Nyx gets it now. It's like—after that kiss—she couldn't imagine living without this energy... without Noct.

Every cell in her body craves it. Craves his energy, his kiss.

Her lips tremble. Her eyes shine.

Noct can see that she wants more.

And he wants it too.

So he leans in over her and kisses her lips again.

Those delicate, soft lips—so good.

Noct wants to explore her mouth and taste more of her unique flavor, which now includes the wine they drank and even a deep minty taste from the back of her throat.

That taste reminds him of Clara's bathroom toothpaste—but it's actually fluoride. Nyx uses a lot of it since she's obsessed with perfect oral hygiene.

There's also a subtle metallic taste—but Noct notices it clearly in her mouth.

And even though those flavors aren't exactly pleasant, he wants to know them all—all of Nyx's tastes.

But she doesn't seem quite as excited anymore when she suddenly pushes against his chest.

Noct is once again confused and looks at her with that same inquisitive expression.

"No..." Nyx exhales—not very convincingly. In fact, she sounds a little like she's pleading.

He doesn't feel any real strength in her push, but he still moves off of her, trying to understand what's happening.

Nyx rolls to the side, avoiding eye contact with him.

She looks as confused as he does.

"Nyx?" Noct wonders if he hurt her... or offended her somehow.

She can feel the concern in his tone—and it brings a unique warmth to her heart.

But she still tries to strengthen her resolve, to ignore both the amazing energy running through her veins and the delicious taste of his mouth lingering on her lips.

"Are you okay?" Noct extends a hand to touch her shoulder.

But she reacts quickly and raises her arm to block his hand.

"We can't do this..."

Noct grows even more confused. He was so sure Nyx wanted that just as much as he did.

How could he have been so wrong?

"We can't do it... not with Clara." Nyx tries to explain.

She looks at him with a cold, distant expression—but she can't hide the sadness glowing faintly in her eyes.

"Do you understand? Clara's like a sister to me. I won't betray her."

"Betray her?" Noct is even more lost.

He watches Nyx stand up and walk away from him.

But he still doesn't understand—how could the two of them getting along hurt Clara?

He kissed Nyx because he wanted to—but it felt like a bonus that she's Clara's friend.

To him, it makes total sense to be good to Nyx too, because of Clara. And of course, it seems perfect to him that they could all be together.

Like Clara loves to say—they're a family.

So why would giving a little love to Nyx be wrong?

Noct wants to explain that to Nyx—but his lack of understanding of her language gets in the way. He doesn't have all the words yet.

He also stands up and tries to speak to her. "Nyx?"

But she shakes her head with an increasingly sad look.

"We're not doing this, big guy. You better accept it."

She doesn't sound truly firm, but Noct understands that insisting now would only make things worse.

So he nods silently.

Nyx smiles kindly. "Thanks for understanding."

"I don't blame you."

"You don't understand our customs yet. Polygamy is common among other races, but we humans still hold onto some Earth traditions—even after all these years."

"..." Noct doesn't understand what Nyx means.

She knows that, which only makes her more confused about her own reasons for saying it out loud.

"It's better if we go back now..."

She turns and walks toward the door.

"I need some time alone."

Noct senses the melancholy in her tone, and he doesn't understand how she went from being so excited to that.

He's confused and frustrated, so he agrees—it's better to end the training already.

He follows Nyx back out of the arsenal, through the elevator, and down the halls to the bedroom wing.

Nyx walks in silence the whole way, and Noct can see how much it's shaken her.

He doesn't understand what he did wrong—but he still feels guilty for leaving Nyx in such a state.

As he opens the door and steps into Clara's room, he casts one last glance at Nyx down the hallway.

She also looks back—and their eyes meet.

She sees the confusion and worry in Noct's eyes, and he sees sadness—but also gratitude in hers.

Then she turns and walks toward her room, while he steps inside Clara's.

Inside, he lets out a disappointed sigh, still wondering what the hell just happened.

But while Nyx only left him confused—Clara is still there, lying asleep, hugging his pillow.

Noct still doesn't know much about his life... but Clara is a constant he can rely on.

She's always honest and direct with him.

He walks over to the bed with a loving smile and lies down beside Clara.

She still seems to be in deep sleep, but when she senses the movement on the mattress, she releases the pillow and rolls toward Noct, hugging him instinctively.

The source of this c𝓸ntent is frёeweɓηovel.coɱ.

Snif Snif

She smells him—and when she picks up on his natural scent, her lips curl into a satisfied smile and she hugs him even tighter.

"Noct..."

She speaks in her sleep, of course.

"Noct..."

Her tone is warm and full of affection.

"Don't leave me."

Her heartfelt plea moves his heart.

He hugs her and lets her sleep with her head resting on his chest.

That's his answer to her unconscious request.

Now she can finally sleep peacefully—in his arms.

And he enjoys watching her sleep so happily... until he, too, falls asleep.

...

Ding Ding

Noct and Clara wake up to the sound of the chime echoing through the room, its volume steadily rising.

She stretches, feeling her body restored after several good hours of sleep in her beloved's arms.

She reaches for him instinctively—and he's there, still holding her.

"Noct..."

Clara looks up at his face and finds his confident, loving smile.

She opens a radiant smile in return.

And he can't resist the urge to kiss her.

Even waking up after drinking so much wine—giving the kiss a slightly bitter note—the taste of Clara's mouth is still delicious.

Both enjoy the good morning kiss.

"Mhm~"

Clara even lets out a soft moan while running her hand across his chest.

She feels her body warming and her heart beating faster, but she pauses when the chime gets louder in the room.

"Echo?! Who is it???"

"The first navigation officer," the robotic voice of the AI responds promptly.

"Jex?" Clara is still waking up and confused.

"Open communication."

She orders—and Echo does.

"Clara??" Jex's voice echoes into the room through the wall speakers.

"What is it, Jex?"

"Sorry to wake you," Jex sounds apologetic and gets straight to the point.

"We're all up here on the bridge. I've been trying to open a comm line with Maxwell's friends, and I think I've done it."

"Oh?" Clara perks up with curiosity.

"The line is almost stable—get up here, quick." Jex ends the communication.

Clara looks at Noct—and her loving smile returns. She kisses him once more.

But she breaks the kiss quickly before hopping out of bed.

"We need to go to the bridge. It's good to know who we're going to deal with..."

Her expression becomes slightly concerned for a moment.

"Since they're friends of Maxwell's, I doubt they're decent people."

Noct still knows very little about Safira's crew, but his first impression of Diego and Javier's little pet was anything but good.

He and Clara leave the room and quickly head to the bridge, where the rest of the crew is gathered.

Diego is sitting in the captain's chair—the central seat on the bridge.

Maxwell stands beside him, while Javier occupies the seat to the right.

Matteo sits in the chair to Diego's left—also a seat of high rank among the crew.

In front of the trio is Jex at the ship's main controls, alongside her assistants, the punk Zion, second navigation officer, and Louis, first engineering officer.

Clara and Jimena's chairs are positioned along the sides, in front of specialized panels for Safira's external weapons.

On the bridge, they both serve as artillery officers—Jimena as first, Clara as second.

Maxwell and Nyx also have their own chairs, though they hold no roles beyond medical officers aboard the Safira.

While Maxwell stands near Diego, Nyx is further back, near the door.

As soon as Clara and Noct arrive, Nyx can't help but glance at them—and when her eyes meet his, he can see that sad glimmer again.

"Nyx!" Clara approaches her friend with a smile on her face.

"You don't even seem fazed by all that wine, hehe!"

Nyx smiles back at her. "You're just bad at drinking!"

Both start laughing, but Noct still looks at Nyx with a confused expression.

Clara doesn't notice anything and glances at the main screen of Safira, where a loading bar now reads 98%.

"So? What the news?"

Nyx also stops looking at Noct and focuses on the screen's progress bar—now at 99%.

"You got here just in time..."

"Let's meet our new friends."

_ _ _

Author's note: Thanks for reading! If you want to read more and advanced Chapters, visit my patreon page: patreon. com/lamenthief

You can also buy the complete volume 1 on Amazon.